You are Never Alone

Title of today's sermon is, You Are Never Alone. You are never alone. What's the most alone that you have ever felt? Maybe it was after a loss, or a betrayal, or an argument with a spouse or a friend, a health crisis, or when no one seemed to understand what you were going through. Many people walk through life, many Christians, many of us, walk through life carrying a silent burden. Fear, stress, discouragement, feeling that you're fighting a battle all on your own. And you feel guilty about that because you know, because you read the Bible, you're a student of the Bible, that some of those things are a lack of faith. And you know they are. And you carry them anyway. But the problem is, sometimes, we don't have the tools to overcome them. So we don't know what to do about it, do we? We just sit silently in the problem. Because we're too ashamed to ask anyone because we might be criticized about doubt or fear, which we know Christians aren't supposed to have. Especially during a trial. So we just stay alone. Today's message is going to be built on three biblical assurances. There's going to be three points with three key scriptures that will change how you walk through any trial. Point number one, God is with you. Point number two, He fights for you. And point number three, He will see you. Nothing can separate you from His love. Or, if you want to make it short, He loves you. He is with you. He will fight for you. And He loves you. We're going to go through these three points. There's going to be a lot of scriptures today, but each point will have a base, a foundation, scripture. And then we're going to draw a conclusion. We're not just going to study the points, but we're going to do something about these points. Let's go through the first point, God is with you always. Isaiah 41 and verse 10 is our anchor scripture for this point. Isaiah 41 verse 10.

Fear not, for I am with you. I am with you, He says. Do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you. I will help you. I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. He starts this with, I am with you. God's presence is personal. God is a person. One of the things that kind of, I wouldn't say annoys me, I would say bothers me. When I hear special music, is when they refer to God, they don't say you or who, they say which. As though God was an entity, but not a person. That God is not relatable. He is your Father. He is real. He is an individual. He is with you. I am with you. He's not just around you. He's not just aware of you. He's with you. He cares for you. God doesn't promise, however, a life without hardship, but He does promise His presence in your life. His presence brings comfort and courage and clarity. Let's go to the Bible and see that when God is with you, what it does for you. So in our first point, we're going to break this down into three littler points. So what does it mean when He's with you? First, comfort. We all know this one, Psalm 23, verse 4. Psalm 23, verse 4. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death. What's the valley of the shadow of death? That's when you fear you're going to die. I will fear no evil. That word evil means harm. I will not fear being harmed. It doesn't mean you won't be harmed. It means you won't be afraid of it. I will not fear evil. For you are with me, and your rod, God's protection, and your staff, God's guidance, they comfort you. We are comforted.

We also, by God's presence, take courage to do what we need to do in the moment. Joshua 1, verse 9. Moses has died. Joshua is about to become the commander of the Israel's armies and the actual commander of the army. God himself stands before Joshua. And in verse 9, chapter 1, God says, Why? Why should we have courage?

For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go. It's not courage in and of yourself. It's courage because you are not alone. So you have comfort and you have courage. But sometimes there's a fog that sets in over trials. And when you reach out to God, he will also give you clarity. Meaning, you will know where to go. You will know what you need to do in a trial. You will be comforted by his very personal presence. Not just aware of you.

Remember, Isaiah 41 is our anchor scripture here. He says, I am with you. Personally, he's not just some Trinitarian entity that is aware of you. But rather your Father who is with you. Psalm 32, verse 8, he will give you clarity as well.

Psalm 32, verse 8, I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go. I don't know where to go. I don't know what to do. I'm overwhelmed. I'm at my limit. Nay, nay. Yes, you're at your limit. God's not. God's not overwhelmed. He knows where to go. He says, I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go. I will counsel you with my eye upon you. I'm paying attention to you, son or daughter.

You matter to me. I'm going to guide you out of this. This verse emphasizes that God not only gives us direction, but does so with personal attention and care. His presence brings clarity, so we know which steps to take next. So God's presence is personal. He is personally with us, and He also sustains us. He says back in Isaiah 41, I will strengthen you and I will uphold you. God doesn't watch from a distance, but upholding you actually means putting His hands on you and picking you up when you fall down.

Get back up. You can do this. He's literally with you. God doesn't watch from a distance. He upholds you in real time. He is here with you. The example of Joseph. Joseph, remember that cocky young man that made his brothers all jealous so they sold him into slavery? Which is a terrible thing to do. Remember, but notice what God says about Joseph during that time. Genesis 39 in verse 2. Genesis 39 in verse 2. The Lord was with Joseph. Really? Joseph went into slavery, rose up in the ranks, became the chief number one slave.

Then the wife found him attractive, tried to come on to him, and he refused her advances. So she falsely accused him, and he went to prison. And that whole time he was in that terrible situation. The Lord was with Joseph. He became a successful man, and he was in the house of his Egyptian master. God was with him the whole time. You remember, God released him. Verse 21. But the Lord was with Joseph and showed him steadfast love and gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison, even when he went to prison.

God was with him, and he rose up. He eventually became the second in command of the most powerful nation on the planet at the time. Also, Elijah. Elijah thought he was alone. I love Elijah's story. We can all relate to Elijah. We've all gone through those times when we felt, I am the only one who has ever gone through this. And God, you know, he's not overwhelmed, but he's also not angry.

Elijah, in his despair, let's go to 1 Kings, 1 Kings, chapter 19 and verse 10. He said, I have been very jealous for the Lord. Okay, so Elijah is at his personal limit. Okay, so what he's saying is not necessarily true, because we tend to say things, as we heard in the sermonette, that aren't actually reasonable.

He said, I have been very jealous for the Lord, the God of hosts, for the people of Israel have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword. And I, even I, only am left. They seek my life to take it away. Now, Elijah wasn't the only one left, but he literally felt alone. We can relate to Elijah. So what was God's response to Elijah when he was going through this? God didn't rebuke him. Well, not at first. He gave him a little correction, but not at first.

He nourished him with food. He spoke gently with him, and he reminded him of the bigger picture. And then, you know what he did? He gave Elijah instructions on where to go next, and he actually gave Elijah a break. God is always present. God is always with you. So when fear whispers in your ear, you're alone.

Nobody cares. Nobody understands. You answer with faith, my God is with me. Cultivate an awareness of God's presence in your thinking. Pray to him. Spend time daily in his word. I told you I'd keep saying that, and I will always keep saying that. Read the Bible every day. Sing hymns, or listen to hymns, along the way.

Sometimes when I have a long drive, I'll listen to music. Not always. Sometimes I think, or I'll listen to the Bible, or I'll listen to a book on the way. But sometimes I just need to listen to some music. And you know, I grew up in the 80s, 80s pop. It doesn't always give you the right mood. Let's just say that. So I put on some choir music, or some spiritual songs. And my mood settles right down. Listen to good music sometimes. Godly music, like we heard in special music today.

I have a whole playlist of that stuff. I have like hours of that that I can play. You should do that. It reminds us of God's presence. Even in quiet moments when you're just reflecting on your life, remember God is with you. And your reflections will be more stable. Less moody, shall we say. So Isaiah 41 in verse 10 was our anchor scripture for this point.

It showed us that God is with us. That he's powerful. But even more, point one, God is with us. Point number two, God fights for us. It's very active in our lives. For this, our anchor scripture is going to be in Exodus. Exodus chapter 14 and verse 14. Exodus 14 and verse 14. It says, the Lord will fight for you. You need only to be still.

Now what does that mean? The Lord will fight for you. You need only to be still. The context of this scripture is the Red Sea. Israel has just gone through the Passover. They were spared. The Egyptians were incredibly angry because they were not spared. Pharaoh was pursuing them from behind, and there was an ocean in front of them. And there were mountains on either side. There was nowhere to go.

Israel was trapped. They cried out in fear. But God wasn't panicked. God had it all planned out from the beginning. He led them there. He knew they were supposed to be there for a great event that represents, you're in my baptism. Everything that happened to Israel is a symbol or symbolic of our Christian walk or something that Jesus Christ did for us.

God had it all planned out. He wasn't panicked at all. He told Moses, stretch out your hand and part the Red Sea. And God fought the battle for them. They walked across dry land. The greatest, most powerful army on the planet was buried under the crushing weight of water. The word be still in Exodus 14 does not mean do nothing. That's not what God's instructions were. It means stop trying to fix it on your own strength and trust God's hand.

Stop trying to fix it on your own strength. It doesn't mean do nothing. A lot of times God makes you do something and with all of your might, but your might is not enough. That's the point. You may not remove or God may not remove every obstacle immediately, but He will act in His time.

And if God removed every obstacle from our path, if our path was easy all the time, we wouldn't learn anything. Let me give you an example. Jehoshaphat. Let's go to 2 Chronicles. King Jehoshaphat. A good king, which was rare. 2 Chronicles 20, verse 1.

So Judah is about to be invaded by not one country, but a group of countries that have banded together to wipe Judah out. Verse 1. 2 Chronicles 20, verse 1. After this the Moabites, the Ammonites, and with them some of the Muneites came against Jehoshaphat for battle. Some men came and told Jehoshaphat, A great multitude is coming against you from Edom and from beyond the sea. And behold, they are in Hazan Tamar, that is in Gedi. Verse 3. And Jehoshaphat was afraid. Yeah, who wouldn't be?

And he set his face to seek the Lord. Correct move. And proclaimed a fast throughout all of Judah. He was not afraid to tell everybody, hey, prayer requests, we're about to get wiped out, but we're going to trust God. Fast and seek God's will. Verse 4. And Judah assembled to seek the help of the Lord. From all the cities of Judah they came to seek the Lord. So what happened? The Moabites and the rest of the Ammonites and the army came together. And in verse 15. And he said, Listen, all of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem and King Jehoshaphat. This is the prophet of God. Thus says the Lord to you, Do not be afraid, or dismayed at the great horde, for the battle is not yours but God's. Do not be afraid of the trial that is in front of you.

The battle is not yours. So what is your battle? If the battle is not your personal trial, what is your battle?

To trust God. That's the battle.

Verse 16. Tomorrow go down against them, so they had to march out to war. God wasn't letting them out of it. At least not at first. You will see he actually did let them out of it. They had to put on their swords and march to battle to meet this great horde. Behold, they will come up by the ascent of Ziz. You will find them at the end of the valley east of the wilderness of Jurel. You will not need to fight in this battle. Wow. You will not need to draw your sword or to notch an arrow.

Stand firm, hold your position, and see the salvation of the Lord, just like at the Red Sea. Hundreds and hundreds of years later, same God.

Stand firm, hold your position, see the salvation of the Lord on your behalf, O Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid, and do not be dismayed. Tomorrow, go out against them, and the Lord will be with you. The enemies of Judah turned on each other in that battle. Early that morning, the armies from the different states grouped together, and suddenly, they turned on one another. They fought a great battle amongst themselves. They got into some kind of squabble, and they just destroyed each other. And none were left alive. They killed themselves, and Judah didn't even have to fight. The result? Verse 24. When Judah came to the watchtower of the wilderness, they looked towards the horde, and behold, there were dead bodies lying on the ground. None had escaped. When Jehoshaphat and his people came to take their spoil, they found among them, in great numbers, goods, clothing, and precious things. And they took them for themselves until they could carry no more. They were three days in taking the spoil. It was so much.

What about you and your trials? Are you trying to fight your battles that God hasn't asked you to fight? Now, if he tells you to do it, you do it. If you know you have a responsibility to fulfill it. But release control, because control comes from fear.

Submit the situation that you are in to God, and ask Him, God, where do you want me to be still and trust you? Sometimes you have to struggle with life's challenges. God is always present, always by your side, and He fights when you cannot. So don't be afraid of anything in life. There is never a time when you are alone. So, so far, we have seen that God is always with us, and He fights for us, but there is actually more to God's presence than just that. His love never lets go. Nothing can separate you from His love. Point number three. Our anchor scripture, Romans 8, verse 38 and 39. Romans, chapter 8, verse 38 and 39. Paul says to all of us, Praise in Christ Jesus means you are one of His. You have committed your life to Him. And when that has occurred, nothing separates you from God's love.

Paul lists every possible force, visible and invisible, past and future, life and death, and none can sever us from God's love.

What's in your past? What's in your future that makes you worry? The point is that God's love isn't fragile. It's not fragile. Based on how worthy you are, know, or what mood He is in on any particular day, God is not moody. God is not moody.

And you don't generate God's love. So it's not on you. Notice 1 John 4, verse 19. We read this in the Bible study this week. 1 John 4, verse 19. We love because He first loved us. It's not the other way around. You don't generate love, and then God will love you in return. He loves you so that you can learn to love others and Him. It's not the other way around. The nature of God's love is sacrificial. It's giving, in other words. It's caring. It's displayed most powerfully by Christ's death. Romans 5, verse 8. Romans 5, verse 8. But God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, in other words, we didn't deserve the love. We didn't earn it. Christ died for us. While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. God's love is unchanging. It doesn't fade, even when we struggle. Lamentations chapter 3, verses 22 and 23. Remember this when you're going through a rough time, when you think, you know what? I've messed up so much. I don't see how God could possibly love me. Lamentations 3, verse 22. The steadfast love of our Lord never ceases. His mercies never come to an end. The New King James says, Fail not. They are new every morning. Great is your faithfulness. So when you mess up, and you will, His love is still there. Repent. When you feel distant, His love is still there. Pray.

When others reject you, when you feel alone, His love embraces you, because God's not moody. He's not inconsistent. His love is steady and sure. Like the Father in Luke 15 and the prodigal son, He runs to His son and welcomes him back without hesitation. When the Son comes right back, He's repentant. So, we have gone through today. It's good. This will be a short sermon. Three truths. When you feel alone, remember, God is with you. He's personal. Not some entity that is aware of you, but He's with you. You are never alone. God fights for you. You are never defenseless. And nothing can separate you from His love. You are never unloved. So, what is our response to all of this? If we know this, what is our Christian duty to respond to God's presence? Well, the Apostle Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians. 1 Corinthians 16, verse 13. 1 Corinthians 16, verse 13. Remember, I said, standing still doesn't mean doing nothing. We have a part to play.

We're going to read verses 13 and 14 in 1 Corinthians 16, verse 13. Watch! Stand fast in the faith. Be brave. Be strong. Let all you do be done with love. What does that mean?

First, it's not a suggestion to stand fast. That is a command. It is an expectation that God places on you through the Apostle Paul.

In other words, he's saying, you trust me. It means you have unwavering faith in God, especially amid trials and cultural pressures and temptations. Have courage and strength to walk in God's way and thereby shine his light in a very dark world, even at personal cost.

Do it anyway, because you're not alone. As a Christian, we must watch our attitudes and stand firm in our faith. What is faith? Believe God. Trust God. You're loyal to God.

Trust when you face opposition. Trust when you face temptation. Remain loyal when you have doubt. But you must be courageous and strong, not on your own power, but on the power of God. That's actually why he's there. The command in 1 Corinthians 16, verses 13 and 14 is a call for us to become spiritually disciplined, to brave endurance, to have unwavering trust in God our Father and Jesus Christ our Brother. Closing Scripture, Deuteronomy 31 and verse 8. God said this from the very beginning, and he said it all the way through, and he says it at the very end. We're just going to go back to the front of the book and read it. Deuteronomy 31 and verse 8. It's the Lord who goes before you. He will be with you. He will not leave you or forsake you. And your response, your responsibility, the expectation it set on you, is the very next statement. Do not fear or be dismayed. So don't just hear this. Live like it is true. Pray with confidence that God is with you and will fight for you and loves you.

Rest without fear. When you put your head down on the pillow at night, get some sleep. You are protected and you are loved by God. Put your cares on Him and get some rest.

And when you wake in the morning, walk through your day with peace and assurance that not only is God with you, but He is going to help you become a little more like Him and Jesus Christ today.