God Delights When You Seek Him, Regardless of Your Past / S3E26

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Have you ever wondered if God could really be happy with you? That question lies at the heart of this deeply moving exploration of divine delight.

We journey through the radical inclusivity of Jesus' ministry, revealing how His invitation extends to every person regardless of social standing, moral history, or religious background. The powerful truth emerges: when we seek God, trust Him, and follow Him—even imperfectly—He genuinely rejoices over us.

Through examining biblical figures like Joseph of Arimathea (the wealthy councilman), Zacchaeus (the despised tax collector), the Roman centurion, and the Samaritan woman, we discover that Jesus deliberately sought relationships with people from vastly different walks of life. These diverse encounters demolish the misconception that Christianity is only for certain types of people.

The most transformative moment comes when we grasp that God doesn't merely tolerate our presence—He delights in us. As Zephaniah 3:17 beautifully expresses, "He will rejoice over you with gladness... He will rejoice over you with singing." This revelation fundamentally shifts how we understand our relationship with our Creator. No longer performing for acceptance, we can walk confidently as beloved children who bring genuine happiness to the heart of God.

Whether you feel wildly successful or deeply broken, whether your faith is new or you've walked with God for decades, this message speaks directly to you. Jesus came for everyone, and when you turn toward Him, you become the source of divine joy. Will you embrace this invitation today and experience what it means to be truly delighted in by God?

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hello, today we're going to talk about Jesus came
for all and those who follow him.
He delights in them.
Have you ever wondered whoJesus really came for?
Was it the rich and powerful orthe poor and the broken?
He came for all.
He came for everyone.

(00:22):
He came for everyone.
And there's something that'sabsolutely amazing about it is
that God delights in those whoseek Him.
Have you ever wondered if Godis happy with me?
Well, the answer is yes.
When you seek Him, trust Him,follow Him, he rejoices over you
.
The other night I was sittinghere and I was singing and

(00:52):
worshiping and praying and Iheard God say and that gave me
such joy.
And it's funny because I knewwhen he said that he meant he
was happy because I was happy,but he was also happy with the
person I was becoming in him andthat was one of the most

(01:12):
wonderful things that I've everhad happen to me.
And if you look at Psalms 37,23, it says the steps of a good
man are ordered by the Lord andhe delights in his way.
You know he is happy with uswhen we walk with him and listen
to him.
He's very happy with us.

(01:34):
And Jesus came for all of us.
He wants to be happy witheveryone.
John 3.16-17 says For God soloved the world that he gave His
only begotten Son thatwhosoever shall believe in Him
shall not perish but haveeternal life.
For God did not send His Soninto the world to condemn the
world, but in order that theworld might be saved through Him

(01:58):
.
And 1 Timothy 1.15 says ChristJesus came into the world to
save sinners and of course youknow the scripture that goes
with that.
All have sinned and fall shortof the glory of God.
Luke 19.10 says For the Son ofman came to seek and save the

(02:21):
lost.
He came to save everyone.
He didn't come to condemn them,but to save them.
Have you ever felt that youwere too successful to need God?
You're too broken for God towant you?
Are you unsure of where youstand with him?

(02:42):
Well, I want to tell you abouta few people in the Bible that
probably felt the same way.
Joseph of Arimathea, the wealthy, influential believer.
Luke 23, 50 through 52 says Now, behold, there was a man named
Joseph.
5350 through 52 says Now behold, there was a man named Joseph,

(03:05):
a council member, a good man andjust man.
He had not consented to theirdecision and deed.
He was from Arimathea, a cityof the Jews who himself was also
waiting for the kingdom of God.
Joseph was rich and he wasinfluential.

(03:32):
He was a member of the Jewishruling council.
He was a secret follower ofJesus and he was afraid to
declare his faith while Jesuswas alive.
He was the man who steppedforward after Jesus' crucifixion
, boldly asking Pilate for hisbody and giving Jesus his own
tomb.
Some people think thatChristianity is only for those

(03:55):
people who are desperate, thosepeople who don't feel like they
have a way in the world, orthey're not smart enough or
they're not talented enough.
But you know what?
Joseph had everything, and hestill needed Jesus.
So it doesn't matter how littleyou have, how much you have,

(04:19):
god delights in anyone who walksin faith with him.
And Joseph may have been quietabout his beliefs, but when the
time came, he acted in faith andGod was pleased with him.
And God was pleased with him.
God was happy with him.
I'm sure God told him I'm happywith you, you guys.

(04:42):
Every time I think of himtelling me that you don't know
what it does inside me to knowthat God sees my mistakes.
He sees my walk.

(05:02):
He knows I stumble.
He knows sometimes I fallcompletely down, but he knows I
get up and he knows I count onhim for everything and he's
happy with me.
Another person that believed inJesus during Jesus' time that
you may not have thought Jesuswould come for because they were

(05:23):
so hated, and that wasZacchaeus.
He was a rich tax collector,kind of like Matthew.
Luke 19, 5 through 10 says andwhen Jesus came to the place he
looked up and saw him and saidto him Zacchaeus, make haste and
come down, for today I muststay at your house.

(05:44):
Zacchaeus, like I said, was atax collector and he was hated
by society, but he was wealthy.
He wanted to see Jesus.
Just to get a glimpse of him,so bad that he climbed a tree.
But his encounter with Jesuschanged him completely.

(06:09):
He went back to the poor andrepaid those that he had cheated
, despite his reputation.
Jesus dined with him.
Luke 19.10 says For the Son ofman has come to seek and save
that which was lost.
Zacchaeus shows us that eventhose who make mistakes and are

(06:37):
looked down on find redemptionin Jesus Christ.
And what happened to Zacchaeus?
Jesus was pleased with him, godwas happy with him, and Luke
19.9 says Today, salvation hascome to this house.

(06:57):
Zacchaeus wasn't perfect, buthe had a heart for Jesus Christ
and that brought joy to the Lord.
Another person that in thosedays you may not have thought
would come to Jesus, and it wasa Roman centurion.

(07:18):
We don't know his name, butMatthew 8, 5 through 10 says Now
, when Jesus had enteredCapernaum, a centurion came to
him pleading with him, sayingLord, my servant is laying at
home paralyzed, dreadfullytormented, and Jesus said to him
I will come and heal him.
This centurion was ahigh-ranking officer, he was a

(07:43):
Gentile, he was Roman, but hehad great faith in Jesus Christ.
He humbled himself and eventold Jesus that he was not
worthy for Jesus to come to hishouse.
And I will tell you Jesus waspleased with him.

(08:03):
Matthew 8.10 says Surely.
I say to you I have not foundsuch great faith, not even in
Israel.
Jesus was pleased.
The centurion shows us thateven those in power and outside
the Jewish faith can have faiththat moves the heart of Jesus.

(08:30):
Now let's look at the woman atthe well.
Oh, you think you're bad.
Well, look at the woman at thewell.
And the woman was a Samaritan,which is only half Jew.
And Jesus told her whoeverdrinks of this water will thirst
again, but whoever drinks ofthe water that I shall give him

(08:52):
will never thirst.
The Samaritan woman was anoutcast.
She was hated by the Jews.
She had a painful past by theJews.
She had a painful past, yetJesus intentionally offered her
living water or eternal life.
Despite her past, she believedin Jesus.

(09:13):
She became the first evangelist, bringing her entire village to
meet Jesus.
You know, christianity is notfor the righteous or the good
people.
Jesus went straight to a sinner, an outcast, and gave her new

(09:36):
life.
Zephaniah 3.17 says the Lord,your God, in your midst, the
Mighty One will save, he willrejoice over you with gladness,
and you know what Jesus ispleased with you too.
Romans 10.13 says For whoevercalls on the name of the Lord
shall be saved.
When God told me, he was happywith me, happy when I'm happy,

(10:01):
happy with the person I wasbecoming.
All of that is true for you too, if you walk in His ways, trust
Him, seek Him, and God delightsin you.
Psalms 147.11 says the Lordtakes pleasure in those who fear

(10:22):
him and those who hope in hismercy, no matter where you are
in your life, no matter ifyou're an outcast or you're a
rich person, or if you're hated,or if you're a Gentile or
whatever you are.
Jesus came for you and he lovesand he rejoices in you when you

(10:49):
come to him.
Jesus came for the rich, thepoor, the religious, the
outcasts, the powerful, thepowerless.
He came for you and I want toleave you with this.
Zephaniah 3, 17 says the Lord,your God, in your midst, the

(11:11):
Mighty One will save you.
He will rejoice over you withgladness.
He will quiet you with His love.
He will rejoice over you withsinging.
God doesn't just love you, herejoices over you.