HELP SOMEBODY FIND THEIR WAY

The Reverend Mary is speaking from Along The Way Ministries about the importance of helping others find their way. She shares a parable about a prodigal son and emphasizes that God never gives up on us. She urges listeners to humble themselves and accept God's compassion and forgiveness. She warns against rejecting Jesus and encourages readers to read Matthew 25 for insight. She concludes by reminding listeners that despite spiritual warfare and trials, Jesus is our advocate. Good evening, people of God. This is Reverend Mary coming to you once again from Along The Way Ministries in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and our Savior. For Along The Way Ministries, and I want to remind you, this ministry is given to me by Heavenly Father August 14, 2006. As a disciple of Christ, I am bound in the spirit of love and obedience to do the will of God. And I am so grateful this evening that we're joined together, hearts are joined together in the name of Jesus Christ to witness the word of God, to just absorb the word of God, and to have something to grow on and something to share with somebody else. Because to be honest with you, my word today is about helping somebody find their way. Praise the Lord. That is what we're supposed to do as disciples in Christ. And I want to start off by saying that this is March the 29th on a Wednesday evening. And I'm so glad to be here on this day. And I want to start out by reading something that's really, really profound. It's called The Measure. It's one of my poems. And I want to read it to you and hope that it will touch you and that you will feel something from it, something very positive, and that you will maybe share it with somebody else. I would appreciate that very much if you would. It's called The Measure. How can we measure something that we did not create, nor did we invent? How do we measure something that is truly above reproach? It is as ancient as its creator and as timeless. The day that you measure God, that is the day that you measure love. Everything in life has a measure to some degree because it can be compared to something, rendering it searchable to some measure of degree. No such measure for love. There is a man who has the power to give up his royal life for all of us peasants. While we are not deserving, not by any means, because we are cursed by death and sin is death. The one who surpasses all measure, defeated the grave, destroyed death, arose from the place of death, subdued our enemies. One for us, a mighty victory. He is alive and because there is no measure, the beginning cannot be seen. It is finite, the width, the depth, the height, the length, infinite. It is hard to speak about the spirit of love, impossible to measure. It defines the true measure of giving. Love is the gift that just keeps on giving. Love is not logical. I have learned that it is not about what you have done but rather what he has done for you. Your prayers are incense. Your tears are jewels. Your problems are melodies. Your relationship with him is worth more to him than a king's ransom. You are truly his pride. You've been snatched up out of the hands of a father's enemy, measured by grace and mercy. Accept the gift that cannot be measured. It comes to you in such abundance that you cannot ever run out. Jesus, the portion that cannot be measured. Glory to God. Praise God. Title of the sermon, Help Somebody Find Their Way. Glory to God. There might be someone out there who mirrors the prodigal child. In some way, shape, form, or fashion, it is one thing to be a lost sheep. The shepherd of the sheep is the Messiah, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. You see, in the case of the prodigal, found in Luke, it's the 15th chapter, the 11th verse through the 32nd verse. You see, it is about a parable that Jesus spoke. He used it to make a point, a deep concern of a compassionate father toward a wayward child. One day, the youngest son approached his dad and said, give me my inheritance. The father did so. And not so long after the young son left home, he began his journey. And this journey took him far away from home. The scripture says, in a far away country. There he began living a, you know, you can imagine that a kid would, you know, what you would imagine what a kid would do when he knows that his parents can't see him. His parents aren't around to bust up what he's doing. You know what I'm saying? Well, he wasted his money. And the Bible says, I quote, on righteous living, just being foolish, people. Then one day the money was gone. He had squandered it away. Lord have mercy. The tables are about to turn a little bit here. And it wouldn't. And when you know it, it came a mighty family in the land that the Bible says. And he began to be in want, which means he began to be in great need. He was hungry, penniless. And I can imagine living under the sun in the elements because, you know, he probably didn't have enough money to even buy a room to sleep in, to put a roof over his head. The scripture says that he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country. And he sent him into his fields to feed his swine. Now here's a Jew, an Israelite, who by Jewish law, who inherently under normal circumstances would not even be caught dead near a swine. Old Testament law prohibits it. It's an unclean thing. He was tempted to eat the huff that the swine did eat. And he wasn't even off of even that. Things had gotten bad, folks. The Bible said that when he had a moment of clarity, when he came to himself, he said to himself, my dad has many hired servants and they have lots of bread, even enough to spare. Here, I am about to die. Well, he decided to humble himself, praise God, and go home and throw himself at his dad's mercy. Well, when he got there, he did just that. He said, father, I have sinned against heaven and I have sinned against you. And he knew that he wasn't worthy, folks, to be called his dad's son. He realized he had been dishonorable toward his dad. Well, listen, I give you brothers and sisters and all who will hear what the Spirit is saying, this, the father never gave up on his son. He never stopped praying for his safe return. Scripture says that when he was far off, his father had spotted him because he had never stopped looking for him. His father spotted him in the distance because he was always visual, looking for him like, for instance, a good shepherd, looking for that one sheep who has gone astray. He leaves the 99 who are in safety as he goes looking for the lost soul until he finds him. Thank you, Lord. That's what he did for us. Thank you, Lord. The father saw him and had compassion and he ran to him. The Bible says he ran to him and fell on his neck and kissed him. The son who was once lost, he began to apologize to his dad. I have sinned. I am not worthy. Can't you feel his humility? Glory to God. Can't you just feel it, folks? But the father said to him, well, he said to his servants, bring him a clean robe, the best robe, put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and shoes on his feet. Let us have a party, a feast, a celebration. My son has returned. For this is my son was dead and is alive again. He was lost and he is found. Expand your mind a little bit. Bear with me, please. Imagine this to be you that have fallen from grace. We have all done that, you know. We are sinners saved by grace, still every day being molded, shaped by God, praise the Lord. God's merciful hands trying to, and we're trying to work toward perfection, which is ours in Christ. Amen? Think about it. Please do not take this out of context, but in the spirit in which it's given. See, once you belong to Christ, you always belong to Christ. I'm not talking about being reprobate. That is a hallowed subject. It's useless. Useless. I ain't talking about it. I'm talking about in spirit and in truth. Remember what he said. I will not leave you nor forsake you. That is the word of God for the people of God. Amen? Eternally yours, loved ones. He is eternally yours. He will not take his eyes off of you. Remember the prodigal son. He was the one who left home. He left his family. He chose to leave, but his father never left him. Humble yourselves. He will fall on your neck and kiss you, embrace you, show you much compassion. He is, he is, he is compassion. He will embrace you, show you much compassion. He is the giver of life. Without Christ, listen people. Listen to what I'm saying. Look, the wages of sin is death. You cannot serve two masters. You will love the one and hate the other. This is the word of God. You cannot serve God and Mammon. Mammon is another name for the enemy, for Satan. In Christ, people, listen, the gift of God is eternal life. Let me read something to you that is not often mentioned, but should be because it is God's pleasure to give you hope, to tell you how much you mean to him. And in Satan, there is nothing Christ-like. There is nothing profitable. Never has been, never will be. Matthew 25, 41. Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me ye cursed into everlasting fire, preparing for the devil and his angels. Make Matthew chapter 25 one of your most, you know, your most reads. Put it that way. If you do not know where or how you have pleased the father, this scripture will put you in the loop. And remember, hell was not created for mankind. Folks, there is no condemnation in righteousness, in holiness, in love and forgiveness. Simply a closer walk with God. How on earth does anyone think that you can find, that you can have anything with our heavenly father if you reject Jesus? You have condemned yourself. There is no light. We've got to help somebody find their way. Glory to God. Praise Jesus. We have got to help somebody. This is an urgency. You see, it is one thing altogether, another thing to be saved, sanctified, filled with the Holy Ghost, and fall from grace. Just like the man said in the song, you are just a sinner who fell down. You have experienced the inevitable spiritual warfare. The flesh worn against the spirit. Kind of like oil and water, you know. Two different animals, so to speak. Trials and tribulations that the Bible said we would see. God said that we would experience this. But do not despair, people of God. We have an advocate. Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, seated on the right-hand side of the Father, who prays to the Father for us. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, Lord and Savior. Thank you, bread of life. Thank you, anointed one. Jesus will always take care of us. The power is in his wonderful name. Hallelujah. He said, if you ask anything of me, I will pray to the Father, and you will receive that which you ask for. On the flip side of being born again, having a relationship with Christ, or those who are lost, they are not a part of the fold. They are, as of yet, in darkness. We have got to get busy. We have got to be about our Father's business. The Scripture says that until the gospel of Christ reaches the four corners of the world, he means the earth, he means the earth, but deeper, deeper still, the spiritual world, that dark inhabited part of life where Satan is Prince and wreaking spiritual havoc. It must be understood that if you, in fact, want a loving relationship with God, the Father, you cannot reject the Savior of the world and expect anything from God. His love for those who love Jesus, my friends, it is great. Praise the Lord. I will say this, lost sheep, prodigal children, weak spirit, faith not strong, he will shine his light into darkness, into the darkness of this world, to find you. Darkness, excuse me, darkness cannot prevail in light. Just think about a sunrise. When the sun comes up over the horizon, you see a shadow of the land. Looks as though it is being pushed back, pushed down, out of sight. The more the sun rises, the brighter the earth becomes. Amen? By the same token, his light, his everlasting light, will shine into the darkness of this world to fix you, to restore you, to strengthen you, to lift you up into his loving care, into his marvelous light, to keep you from missing out on your inheritance, because in Christ, you have inherited the kingdom of God. There's a crown of gold for you, people. Waiting for you. And you know, the world is evil, it's confusing, unstable, unholy, unrighteous. That's the world. But the Lord has something better. He works from the inside out to change what is wrong and make it right. He is the only one who has the right to do that. Matthew is the only one who has the ability to do that. O righteous judge that he is. Hallelujah. The Lord prepares for himself. Remember we is a bride. Remember? He is a builder of honor, integrity, and high self-esteem. You are worth everything to him. Remember that. Believe that. The Holy Spirit is leading me, loved ones, to make a profound point of this. Check this out. Have you ever met a person who is a good neighbor? Well, we'll call, check on you, see if you need anything. A person who is unselfish, an unselfish giving person. Give you the shirt off the back, give you the laugh doll if you need it. Someone who will lift you up, lift your spirits up, give you a hug when you need it. You know, you get the picture right. And then one day, you're talking to that person and find out they are not born again. Hmm. Almost stuns your heart, doesn't it? If you truly know the Word of God, that person is just as lost as an adulterer, a repeat bank robber, a chronic liar, somebody who practices homosexuality. They just, they just lost. Do not despair though. God is waiting for that person. He's waiting for all of them. Jesus died for the sins of the world. He fixed it all. Nobody, not anybody can be redeemed. Not nobody can be redeemed of righteousness without Jesus. You hear what I'm saying? It's impossible to be redeemed, to be changed like you need to be to bless God without Jesus. It is not where you've been, who you used to be. What you have done is about becoming a brand new creature in Christ. He is the only way. Glory. Hallelujah. Let us just continuously acknowledge that. Last but not least, there are people who have low self-esteem, low value in themselves. You start talking to them about, about Jesus, they cannot lift up their head or look you in the eyes when they're talking to you because they're ashamed and embarrassed about what they've done, how they've lived. You know, they feel truly unworthy and will ask you, what does God see in me? Why does God love me? What could I possibly be worth to him? I'm a terrible person, a rotten sinner. Then you ask, what do you think about Jesus? And they then say, oh Lord, I believe in him, but I know he can do better than me. Do you hear that? Do you hear that? They'll say, I need to get myself together before I come to him. No, people. No, no, no, no, no. Come just as you are. You don't have to do anything. It ain't going to work anyway. You don't have the power to fix it. Only he can do that. Hmm. Do you hear that? Can you feel that? You see, it's not that they don't believe in the son of God. They just need somebody to sit down with them and to fill their cup up. They need to be taken to the well so they can drink the everlasting water so they will know what satisfaction truly tastes like. Amen? I met a man once told me that he admired people like me, what we do, you know, speaking the word of God, but he never needed God. This is what he said. He never needed God. He said, I have a good job, make a good living, take care of my family very well. At the time I lived in Pittsburgh and that was about 19 years ago and I have never forgotten it. I prayed for that man 19 years ago and here it is 19 years later. Listen, this is what I said. So first of all I want to say this. I don't believe in coincidence. I believe that the word covers a worldly philosophy. I believe that God orders my footsteps. How about you people? With the help of the Holy Spirit I told him I am just visiting this city. I may never see you again, but consider this, that everything comes from God. You are well blessed. Everything you have is a blessing and it will come a day that something will happen and you will need help and there might not be anyone else around and it might be a critical time in your life. I hope, I hope and I pray in Jesus name that you have the presence of mind to call on God and I hope in the name of Jesus that he hears you. Glory to God. I didn't catch his name. I was a security officer and I was working at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center and he was at a particular event there and I was just standing on the stairwell you know because we were, there was a platform right there and we were greeting people and he was one of the people I greeted before he went up the steps and he was very friendly and I hope and I pray as I, you know, plant that seed. You see, I know God is, God gives the increase and I haven't been worried about it, but when he crossed my mind I pray for him. You see, worry, worry don't get you anywhere. Faith does and hope and I try to keep those two spirits alive in me. Praise the Lord. Amen. For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send his son into the world to judge the world but that the world should be saved through him. Praise the Lord. Be gracious to me, O God, according to thy loving kindness and according to the greatness of thy compassion wash me thoroughly from my transgressions wash me thoroughly from my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin for I know my transgressions and my sin is ever before is ever before me against thee, the only of thy sin and done what is evil in thy sight so that thou art justified when thou does speak and blame this when thou does judge. Glory to God. Purify me with his Hallelujah. And I shall be clean. Wash me and I shall be water than snow. Glory. Hallelujah. Make me to hear joy and gladness. Let the bones which thou hast broken rejoice. Yes. Hide thy face from my sins and blot out my iniquity creating me a clean heart O God and renew a steadfast spirit within me may the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable in thy sight O Lord my strength and my redeemer brothers and sisters in Christ and all who are under the sound of my voice who believe in the word of God even if you you're weak and you're looking to be strengthened God is our strength and our salvation and he will do for you what he did for me I am no better than anybody else we're all loved the same in God's sight and what he has done he will do for someone else what he's done for others as the psalm says he'll do for you so humble yourself and stand back and watch his smoke let go and let God praise the Lord until our hearts meet again people