Jentezen Franklin - Does God Really Care?
In John 6 the scripture said, «Then Jesus lifted up his eyes and seeing a great multitude coming toward Him, He said to Philip, 'Where shall we buy bread, that these may eat? ' But this He said to test him, for He Himself knew what He would do». I’ve read this story alot. I’ve preached on this story through the years many, many times from different angles. I have never noticed this verse. I don’t know how I missed it. But He did this to test him, watch, everybody read the next few words, «For He Himself knew what He would do».
He turned to His disciples and He gave them a challenge. He’s still giving His disciples challenges. He’s still allowing us to go through things with no explanation. No way to know how to do what we need to do to get through the challenge. And He said, «What have you got to feed 'em»? And one of the disciples spoke up and said, «We have 200 penny worth,» or another way of saying that in their economy was 200 days of wages. We have just… if we had it. They didn’t have it. He said, «If we had 200 days of wages, we could only give a few crumbs to each person».
Five thousand men, plus women and children, easily 15,000 people. No convenience store, no grocery stores, nothing, in the middle of the desert. And He did this, He asked this, He let them go through the challenge to prove them, to test them, «For He Himself knew what He would do». The Bible said that He knows everything, He controls everything, by Him all things consist. «He was in the world and the world was made by Him,» one scripture says. This God who could not die figured out a way to die and taste death. This God who could not be tempted figured out a way He could be tempted yet without sin.
This God who had no flesh, who had no blood, He was a Spirit, God is a spirit, He had no bones, figured out a way that He could come down to earth and take on human flesh and manifest God to a lost, and needy, and hungry world. «Without controversy,» the scripture says, «Great is the mystery of God manifest in flesh». As a man, He was here to show us the Father. «He that has seen me, has seen the Father that dwelleth in me,» Jesus said.
So, now, there’s 5,000 plus men and women, a total of certainly, easily, 15,000 and he challenged them. And before they ever got in the challenge, before they ever got in the need, He knew what He would do. And I’m preaching today, He always knows what He’s doing. He’s never nervous. He’s never wringing His hands. He’s never caught by surprise when anything happens, any challenge, any need. He knows what He’s going to do about it, with it, through it, in it, and after it. He always knows. Watch this, Matthew 12:25, «He knew their thoughts». He was casting out devils and He knew their thoughts, and He knew they were thinking, «Oh, He cast out devils by Beelzebub, the God of the flies». But He knew what they were thinking.
Luke 6:8, «But He knew their thoughts and said unto the man with the withered hand, 'Stretch forth your hand.'» Just to prove to them I have the power on the Sabbath. «You’re worried about me healing somebody on the Sabbath». And He knew their thoughts. The schemes of people against you, God’s not unaware of it. He knows our thoughts. He knows what we’re thinking. He knows everything. And then, in the book of John 2 it talks about, «He knew all men and He knew what was in them». What a powerful verse. John 5:6 at the pool of Bethesda, the scripture said, «He knew that the man had been there a long time, 38 years».
He knew it. He knows where you are. He knows who you are. He’s thinking about you. There’s nothing that you’re challenged with today, whether it’s financial challenge, or a family domestic situation, or a health issue. He knows who you are, He knows what you’re going through, He knows where you are, and He knows how long you’ve been going through it. He knew, He knew. And then, in John 6:61, «When Jesus knew within Himself His disciples murmured». Turn to somebody and say, «Uh-oh». That means He knows when you’re complaining. He knows when you’re murmuring. And then, in the same chapter John 6:64, «'Some of you believe not.' For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were that believe not and who would betray Him».
In John 13:1, «Jesus knew that His hour had come that He should depart out of the world». And then, in John 16:19, «Jesus knew that they were desiring to ask Him questions». He knew. He always knows. And there’s some things you never wanna hear Jesus say. You never wanna hear Jesus say, Matthew 25:12, «Verily I say unto you, I know you not». Let’s pause a minute. He’s actually gonna say that to people at the judgement, «I know you not». In Luke 3:27, «I know you not. Depart from me, workers of iniquity. I never knew you».
And Luke 5:42, «I know you that you have not the love of God in you». He knows if I have the love for God and the love of God in my heart. I can’t fool Him with being religious. I can’t fool Him by playing church. He knows if I have the love of God in my heart. He knows when He sees us, if we have a love for Him, if we love to worship Him, if we spend time with Him, if we talk with Him. You say, «But Pastor, I’ve made mistakes». That’s alright. He can deal with that, but He looks deep inside to see, «Do you still love me»? That’s what he asked the Apostle Peter in John 21 after He failed. He said, «Do you love me? Do you love me? Do you love me»? And finally, Simon Peter said, «You know, Lord. You know all things,» in John 21. He said, «You know I love you». And He said, «You do love me».
And then, He gave him His next instructions. In John 10:14 He said, «I am the good shepherd, and I know my sheep. My sheep hear my voice,» verse 27, «And I know them». John 13:18, «I speak not to you all. I know who I have chosen. I know who is mine». In the 14th chapter, verse 7 and 9, «If you had known me, you should have known may Father. Because if you’ve seen me, you’ve seen Him». In Mark 13, «Heaven and Earth will pass away, but my words shall not pass away. But of the day and the hour, no man knoweth when the Son of man is coming». I’m telling you. There’s some things that even Jesus said, «I don’t know, but Father knows». And when He tells me, «I’m coming back for my bride».
He knows us. He knows our heart. He knows if we love Him or not. He knows after a failure, if we’ve repented or not. He knows if we turned away and He can trust us with an even greater assignment after we fail because He looks deep in the heart. How many times do we say, «I just don’t know what to do»? How many times do we wring our hands? How many times do we worry ourself sick trying to figure out the problems? But can I tell you, God is never wringing his hands, and He’s never worried. He knows, He knew, what He would do. And I know this is a simple sermon, but I wanna get some things settled here today that whatever you’re facing, whatever you’re going through, I want you to know God never gets nervous. He’s in control.
Acts 15, «Known unto God is all His works from the beginning of creation». He’s always known. It’s not catching Him by surprise. From the beginning of the world, He knew that He would be the Lamb of God slain before the foundation of the earth. He knew what He would do. When you read the story of Rachel, she had a son named Esau and a twin name Jacob. Jacob would become the father of the 12 tribes of Israel. But Esau fell in love with a Canaanite woman that worshiped other gods and the mother said, «If my second son Jacob,» or the second born in the twin situation, «If he marries a Canaanite woman, I’d rather be dead».
Have you ever read that? «That one that He married has so driven me crazy that if my other one marries a crazy woman like that worshiping devils, I just can’t handle it». Watch God. So, Joseph gets a dream from God. His brothers getting jealous. They ripped the coat of many colors off. Favor was all over him and they despised him. They dug a pit, or one was already there, and they threw him in the pit. Sold him to the Ishmaelites. But God knows what He’s doing even within justice. Thrown in a pit, thrown in a prison for 13 years for a crime he did not commit. God knew what He would do with every injustice, every attack.
That’s why when you get mad at flesh and blood, you are forfeiting your blessing. But if you’ll say, «'Vengeance is mine, ' sayeth the Lord,» He will repay. He will bless you and He will take care of your enemies too. What I’m trying to preach to you is when they threw him in the pit, God knew what He was doing. When they brought false accusations and threw him in the prison, God knew what He was doing. When he was forgotten by the butler and the baker, God knew what He was doing. When he lived in the land of Goshen, God knew what He was doing.
Now, here’s a little verse and I’ll tie all this together. Don’t let me lose you. The Bible said that in Egypt, shepherds are an abomination to Egyptians. Shepherds… They could not stand. And Jacob, when he is brought… You remember Joseph goes and gets his whole family, and brings his whole family? And he made a mistake because Joseph said, «Don’t tell 'em you’re shepherd. Don’t tell 'em you’re shepherds». But Jacob said, «I’m a shepherd». And so, the Egyptians cut them off and Pharaoh still wanted to bless 'em, so he said, «I tell you what, we don’t… y’all are an abomination. We don’t like you sheep people. We are beef, cattle, and all that. We don’t want the mixing, and we don’t want our daughters marrying your daughters. So, y’all stay over there in the land of Goshen».
And Pharaoh said, «Here. Give everyone of you boys, your brothers, and your dad, their own ranches». Read the story. So now, for the first time you’ve got this gathering, and they stay there, and another Pharaoh comes. God knew what He was doing when they fell out of favor, and then they went into Egyptian bondage. And they married, they married the girls that were in their group because they didn’t mix the two. Do you understand what I’m saying? God was building a nation. And the Bible said that when the second Pharaoh came and he was evil and he was mean, the Bible said, «The more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied».
Hallelujah. 'Cause God said, «I gotta get me a nation called Israel, because out of the nation of Israel would come the tribe of Judah. And out of the tribe of Judah will come the Messiah named Jesus, that’ll give me bones, and flesh, and blood so I can carry a cross». Oh, come on, somebody. He’s using everything hell brings against you. The gates of Hell shall not prevail against the church and you are the church. Even the things you don’t understand, you need to get happy again and quit waiting on the things to change.
If you’re waiting on that, you gon' be a sorrowful person and look like a cover girl for the book of Lamentations the rest of your life. You gotta get a smile on your face and throw your hands up and say, «I really do serve a good God». He’s up to something. And I know I don’t know what He’s doing, but He knows exactly what He’s doing. Take a praise break and thank Him with me. You don’t have to go through a trial and sorrow. You don’t have to make everyday the mulligrub. Get up and say, «This is the day the Lord has made. I will rejoice in it». Woo.
I close with this. Stephen being stoned looks up into Heaven, sees Jesus standing at the right hand of the Father. And the stones are hitting him, and the coats of the stone throwers are laid at the feet of a man named Saul of Tarsus, who had got the stone rocking to death of Stephen the first martyr. He had put the party together. He was the one who led the whole riot to kill that man named Steven and the coats were laid, the Bible said, at his feet Saul of Tarsus, a mean, angry, self-righteous Pharisee. And he watches the man be stoned and he hears the stones hitting Stephen. And Stephen says in the middle of his own stoning, «Lord, lay not this charge against them,» and another rock hits him and he goes down. And he’s standing there watching, and he says, «Well, that was, I don’t understand that».
It was messing with him, but he gets on his horse, and he says, «I know. I’ll ride to Damascus and kill some more Christians». And he’s riding to Damascus, but God knew what He would do. You may have a big bad sinner in your family right now that’s acting like they’re all that, they’re the chief sinner and they, «You know God. I don’t care nothing about God and that old church, and blankety blank your Bible, and this, that, and the other». But I’mma tell you something, God knew what He would do. God knew that while He was riding high on that horse, that suddenly he had a son stroke, not a S-U-N, an S-O-N. And the Son of God appeared, and he fell off his horse and he asked two questions, «Who are you»? He said, «I am Jesus whom you persecute».
The next question. This is how you know you really got saved. «What would you have me to do»? If you don’t ask that ever, you are not saved. You’re gonna go to Hell. Because the real proof of true conversion is you know who Jesus is. He is your Lord. He is your Savior. And the next question you have to ask constantly is, «What do you want me to do with my life? It’s not about me. It’s about you from this day forward. You want me to forgive? You want me to love? You want me to worship? You want me to serve? You want me to use my talent for your glory? What would you have me to do»?
He knew. He knew in his most awful condition grinning, watching Stephen die at his order. He knew what He would do. He knew that half the New Testament would be written by those same hands that had handed out the rocks. He knew. Maybe you’ve been through terrible seasons of your life. It would be a tragedy to live, and die, and go into eternity and not even know what God, He said, «I know,» Jeremiah 29, «I know the plans I have for you. Phew! I know the thoughts that I think towards you,» says the Lord.
«Thoughts of peace and not evil, to give you a future and a hope. I know what I’m doing. I’m a good God and I’m working it all for the good ultimately. And you’re gonna suffer in life, and you’re gonna go through much tribulation, we enter the Kingdom of God». Jesus said that. Much tribulation. So, let’s quit, just giving up before the fight’s even over. I’ll die when I die. Amen. When you put me in the box, then I’ll be dead. But until then, I’m gonna praise the Lord. Until then I’m gonna live. Until then I’m gonna glorify Jesus Christ. To live is Christ, to die is gain.