Hey, really glad to have you here. That song has been a favorite of followers of the Lord for the 3000 years since it was first penned as a song to be sung. And I like to just sing for you What? I think it was obvious to you as they won't do that today, but would you turn with me to Psalm 139?

Psalm 139 and I'm excited about this new series called Near a Reflection of God's Heart for US, as expressed in one of the most loved Psalm Psalms. This Psalm highlights so clearly this Christianity at the core is a relationship ship. You could even say it's a series of relationships. It's not a list of like do's and don'ts. A lot of people see faith that way.

Like it just tells you your behavior all kind of standards. And then that's that's not first of all, Christianity is it's not a series of like religious obligations. Christianity at the core is a relationship. It's all about the nearness of of God that you and I are invited into a relationship ship with the creator of everything and the one who who is and who was and who is to come really like he's always been, always would be.

And he's created us. Even if you're like a seeker, an investigator, like, I don't really know what I believe. At some point I think we all come to the place where we go. There's got to be more than just going through life, accumulating stuff, achieving some of your dreams. But you go. Even people have made it to the top like, you know, they won an NBA championship or somewhere they go, There is that end like like that thrill last for a bit.

But then what comes after that? And God has made us, the scriptures say, in such a way that we can enjoy all these good things. But ultimately the only relationship that will ultimately satisfy the deepest thirst in our souls is a relationship personally with with Jesus and and he not only does he forgive us, He he adopts us into a family and he makes us part of this family that we've got brothers and sisters around the world, all around us today.

And it is a family that's going to last forever. Christianity at the core is a relationship. So it was intriguing to me to see an article in The New York Times this past September, just a few months ago, with this title, We Know the Cure for Loneliness. So why do We Suffer? Journalist Nicholas Kristof poses that question in an op ed in citing the warnings from the US Surgeon General.

Maybe you saw this. Kristof writes this. He says, Loneliness. And this is reporting on news that maybe you saw a few months ago is as deadly as smoking. 15 cigarets a day more lethal than consuming six alcoholic drinks a day and more dangerous for your health than obesity. It's pretty sobering, isn't it? And and then to consider how widespread loneliness is.

A 2021 study by Harvard Graduate School found that 36% of Americans report feeling lonely frequently or almost all of the time. And you might say, I think I fit in that like more than a third of our population. And while loneliness often is most associated with old age, we think, well, you know, people begin to lose some of your loved ones or whatever.

The study found that 61% of young adults said those ages 18 to 25 report serious loneliness. And it's not just here in our own country. This is a global phenomenon. In fact, to the extent that in the United Kingdom, they have a point and a minister for loneliness. Same thing in Japan and Sweden. I do think it'd be a little bit awkward, don't you?

Like if you're introducing yourself someone and they go like, What are you? Who are you? What do you do? And you go, I'm Jonathan. I'm the minister for loneliness. You know, I maybe could be better titled, you know, but. But that's how profound of an issue this is that. And so friends here's I never want us to forget Christians of all people we know the cure for loneliness.

Right? And it's this that God is near. Here's the statement I, I just think says it so. Well, we may feel lonely, but we are never what a never alone you might feel lonely. But the reality is when when you are a person that is invited God in your life, you're never alone. And. And he might go, I need more than this invisible presence.

And that's the great news, is that that God puts us into a family. My prayer is that my son would tell me after the last service and she's from outside the area and she's been here for a few years. And she said, You know, Grace has become like my family. And I hope for more and more that'll be the case.

Maybe this year you'll say, I joined a small group. I went to one of the retreats you guys offer. I was part of a class. I'm serving in some capacity and voluntary. I'll make it that that you'll find that more and more that this place feels like a family for you. That that God is building and growing. And that is going to last for all of eternity.

Christianity at the core is about relationships, and it starts with the nearness of God friends. When we really grasp this, it it changes our outlook on life. Like when you really get that God is near, that you He's this close is the breath that you breathe close in the person sitting next to you right now, it changes your confidence in life because you start to realize, like, as I face this decision, I don't face it alone.

Like, I can have the wisdom of God, or when I find myself in a place of temptation that I go, my goodness, like I that I can know. God, you're with me right now and and I can experience your power like I. I can have victory in this. Whatever it is that you have, you're in some kind of unexpected crisis, an emergency room, or you get a phone call or something else happens and you can go, God, you see me right now, You know me, you know about this.

And knowing his nearness, really grasping that can change the way that you see your life, the levels of confidence with which you live. So I'm glad you're here and digging in. We're going to be in this song for a few weeks. And so I'm going to pray and then we'll do Let me just say, first of all, a welcome to all of we have three campuses, Middleburg Olmsted Falls on Columbia Road.

Some of you've been there. I love being with you friends. At the Christmas Eve service this past Wednesday night at Grace went to one and then we have a campus at Lorain Correctional and we have over 100 guys there that I love being with you guys. And we've got a team of probably 50 plus volunteers who go on a regular basis and just do a lot of group stuff.

And so welcome to you as well and other people who are engaging online in different places around Ohio, various states, and some of you founders from different countries. We're really glad to have you dig in. And the guys were with us. Let us pray and then we'll look at this passage. Laura, thank you. Today that we can come to you and we can it says that we can approach you with confidence.

Hebrews force has to find mercy and grace in our time of need. Lord, there are some here today who feel that keenly. They've been through suffering recently, maybe grief. A lot of my friends here I know are encountering that. Lord, I pray that you would show your peace, that you would meet each one where they are. Lord, Thank you.

That even with all of the uncertainties of the year ahead, just contemplating that recently, Lord, to know that there's not a day that will surprise you and there's not a day that I'll be walking by myself. And every one of us can say that. Father, as we look at a world that continues to have a lot of strife, various pockets of just conflict.

Lord, we pray that your peace would prevail. And especially in the Middle East right now in Sudan and Ukraine. LORD These ones that especially get our attention. Lord would you be the one who draws people close? And and I pray that we would see each other's dignity and treat each other accordingly. So, God, now open up our hearts, our minds, and give us faith to believe as we read your word, Jesus in your name, we pray.

Amen. So I'd like us to read the passage aloud. Psalm 139. We're going to begin with verse one, and you're welcome to read whatever device you have there or or you can read it up here. Can I just say one more thing? Can you guys go back one slide. I want to give a shout out to our Bible reading plan here.

We're doing this year. It's called The Full Story, and you can download this for free on any device. You just the Bible app, which is now banned. I remember when I met the guy who developed this, Bobby Grunwald and it was in 2008, I believe, and I think I met him in 2009 and I was like, never heard of the Bible app.

And like, tell me more about this. You know, now it's been downloaded over 600 million times and it's free is in like 800 different languages. Anyhow, we're doing this Bible reading plan, the full story from beginning to the Amen. There is a passage every day. It's really easy. You can share with a friend, you can listen to it instead of reading if that's your thing.

But we would love to have you join us in that. And there's just a great way to grow your relationship with God. All right. Psalm 139, We'll read this together. You're ready? Let's say, Lord, you have searched me, Lord, and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise, you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down.

You are familiar with all my ways before a word is on my tongue. You Lord know it completely. You hand me in behind and in before and you lay your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me. Too lofty for me to attain will just stop right there. The most important aspect of who you are is what you think about God.

We said one more time, because I believe this to be absolutely true. The most important aspect of who you are is what you think about God. Your view of God, nothing at all about you takes precedence over that. To see God as He really is, and to know that He far exceeds anything that we could ever imagine about him that you and I, it says in Colossians one that all things were made by him and were made for him, that I was made for God to be in a relation ship with him.

So what is this God like for all of us? Bigness to know that God is close, that He near his personal. It's the amazing and really incredible truth of the Christian faith that that God is more holy and majestic and amazing rising than I could ever comprehend, and yet is more close and personal than my best friend, my wife.

And he cares about me like he's near You see it over and over again when you read the Bible and when you read the Psalms that the Psalms are not just these didactic teachings that pronounce theological truth, they're songs of praise to express like our wonder about who God is. And so the psalmist, he goes, Lord, you know me and you search me.

And nine times in the first five verses, he says, Lord, you, this youth are familiar. You. And he has these nine things that he says, But we're just going to look at these for a moment. And but if you want to outline the psalm, just to sort of get a sense of where we're going here, you see four sections verses 1 to 6 that God is all see seeing 7 to 12 that he all present verses 13 to 18, his all creative and then 19 to 24 the God is all holy.

So let's just take a look at the first six verses here and then say what is this difference, Does this make in our lives? Verse one says, You have searched me, Lord, and you know me. Just what's striking is how profoundly personal this is. That God in all of like we, a lot of us don't have a problem thinking about God being like, you know, some intelligent being in the universe.

And if someone says, I don't believe there is a God, I think at some point you have to go, Well, how did it all start? Like, what is your story about how everything came to be? For me, I think the most rational and intelligent explanation is that there's a God behind it all. And but he's not only big and and amazingly, you know, larger than I could ever comprehend, he also sees me and he knows me, David says.

And there's nothing about me that he doesn't see or know. And it's the same with you. That might seem uncomfortably invasive. We just go, Wow. He searches me, knows me like, and it's a little intimidating. You might almost be like you might remember the story when Peter Historical account in Luke chapter five when Peter and his buddies are fishing and Jesus says, Hey, haven't got anything, watch three nets on the other side of the boat.

And they get this massive catch, right? What's the first thing that Peter does? He doesn't go like sign this guy up for a business, right? He falls on his knees. He just goes to pass me for I am a what? A sinful person. He knew that if God could see Jesus with, you know, God was skin and could see into the water, know where the fish were, it's like, wow.

He sees into my heart and he knows all that I've done. But God also provides a way for us to be forgiven. And you know, someone has said this. They said everybody wants to be loved, but most of us are afraid to be known. All of us want to be loved, but most of us are afraid to be known.

Why? Because we're like, If you really knew me, you knew some of the thoughts I have. You knew some of the things I've done. I don't think you would love me anymore. But here's the thing about God is that He knows me better than I know myself. He knows me better than anybody knows me. And yet he loves me more than I could ever compress.

And and David remarks that he just goes, Wow. The next few verses tell us just how completely God knows us. He doesn't just know about us in a vague, general way, like he really knows us. Think about tomorrow morning. You wake up with your alarm clock, however you get up, maybe you wake up, you know, to the smell of coffee that you've set on automatic from the night before you get your Quaker oats squares or whatever you do for your breakfast routine.

What does God see about you? Verse two You know, when I sit and when I rise, you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out of my line down. You're familiar with all my ways. Let's just point out that for a second he knows when I sit, when I rise, like it's sort of things that happen at home.

Generally you sit down to eat, the Lord sees you, you get up to see what the Amazon driver just dropped off of your front door. They seem to come every other day, you know, and God sees you do that. You plop down on the couch to watch some kind of Netflix show or Hulu or whatever your, you know, and he sees you there.

And and then David says, and you see me when I go out, when I lay down. In other words, when you leave to go watch a ballgame with a friend or you leave for work or an errand or whatever, God knows when you stop by Chipotle or you're driving down the road, he sees you hanging out with friends, the Lord sees you get ready for bed like he sees that too.

Verse three affirms this Lord, you are familiar with all my ways. I keep on using superlatives, all of them. In other words, there's no part of my day that God doesn't see or my night. He's always near from the time they get up in the morning to the time that I turn off the lights a night he sees me and all through the night too.

And it's not just that he sees what I do. There's something else he goes on to say. Yeah, he says in verse two, he says, You perceive my word, my thoughts from afar, and in verse four before a tongue, a word is on my tongue. Lord, you know it completely that our words and our thoughts are known to God even before.

Who else knows me like that? Well, okay, maybe my wife a little bit. Sometimes. You know, Mary, she can read my mind at times. She goes, I can tell you're thinking about here for Mary. And I will be in a conversation like, she'll be in a conversation with someone and we've just met and she'll ask them a couple of questions and I'll come in and I'll ask exactly the same question.

Do you ever have there was someone you love and you just sort of start to, you know, and you can sort of almost read each other's minds or, you know, what each other's going to say, but very imperfectly, right? There are times that I wildly misread Mary's mind. And she mine. But David says, Your Lord, you know what I'm going to say?

Not partially, but completely. You discern my thoughts, Lord, even from far off, like when nobody else can tell what's on my mind or you can. That's how powerfully is how near to more versus then we'll talk about how this the profound impact this can make in our everyday life. Verse five He says, You hem me in behind and before you can take this in a couple of ways, it can be seen as sort of constricting the somehow God has got us like almost trapped, right?

Like you got me like pendant or something. But based on what David says next, how wonderful this is. I think he really meant this as a positive. Like, this is a source of encouragement and strength and confidence. David had his fair share of enemies. He was attacked frequently in his going, Lord, you've got my back and you've got my front.

I'm safe because you're near what have you. And I could see the Lord in our lives like that. You're driving down the road and he's got you surrounded, You're in your house and you can say maybe you're thinking all alone, but the Lord's in the front, He's in the back is on the side like he's you may feel lonely, but you are never what you were.

Never alone is with you all the way around. You're at a meeting tomorrow. You can know God is near. He's got you behind In front of you is you're maybe a student in school and you're walking down the hallway and you're feeling intimidated by all the people around you. Or maybe you've been you feel like you've been picked on or whatever, or perhaps as you're traveling and you just go, God, he's got you behind you.

You he's before you. He's he's all the way around you. And David says, That's incredible to me. And then there's another statement in verse five that David goes from just what God sees, and he knows and he's familiar. He says, Lord, you lay your hand upon me. It's the first mention of touch that he sees us, he's with us, he's near and everywhere in his personal There's love, Lord, you lay your hand upon me.

Mary and I were delighted to have our grandkids with us this fall for a number of weeks when our That's me introducing Terry to the finer things in culture. Do you notice what size I got for both of us? So the strategy was, I hope he doesn't finish his. And I was right. It was unbelievable. I just like, well, I got to finish his as well, you know, And but they came into town.

Lauren had baby number two here. You'll see in the next one here, we had Baby Ellie and Mares Mary with Teddy, who's just turned to a few months ago, and then Ellie was like three months old now, but we would watch Teddy at times while Lauren and Brad were out, you know, at the doctor's appointment or giving birth or whatever.

And yeah, just like another day in the park, right? Spoken by a guy, of course, But it was such a terrible remark anyhow. So it'd be naptime. Right. So I'd, I'd tell Teddy a story in my signature line with my kids will always tell you that I always finish my stories that are these, like, wild adventures. And that's the end of the story.

And the first words out of his mouth would be one mouth. One mouth. Tell me another story. And so I would tell him a story and a story, another story. And I think he likes to hear me talk. I'm going to start sending him my sermons, you know, just to put them right out. But so Teddy would eventually fall asleep, but he would do so and in the dark.

He'd want to know that I was there. And one of the ways to assure him, because if I tried to sneak in, you go, Jo-Jo. That's what he calls me. Jo-Jo. Come. You know, he'd want me to be back. And so I put my hand some lots of you as parents where you've done this. I put my hand on his back and.

And when I put my hand in his back, he'd know I was there. An appropriate touch assures someone of your presence, right. That you're sort of saying, I'm here, I care for you, I love you. Sort of touch can do, right? Done rightly. And David says, Lord, you've placed your hand upon me. It's a beautiful statement right now saying physically, like I have, you said you physically God, but he's saying, God, you're that close, that I sense your love and your blessing.

And David found comfort in that. He had a lot of issues in life. He writes as an adult, he had issues with his adult kids were at each other, wanted of murdering the I mean, there was just crazy stuff that happened in his leadership. He had people who turned against him. I'm sure he had issues in his marriage, no doubt, stuff with his health.

And he's going, God, thank you that you're that close. And he says this in verse six. He finally reflects after saying, God, you do this and this and this and this. And then he says, Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain. It's like he's going, Lord, I can't even fully comprehend how much you care about me, that you see me even in the dark.

You know me inside and you know me out. I'm never alone. I'm seen and I'm deeply valued by you. And here's what we know about God. If we're wondering, like, all kind of a God is he that would see me, know me, and, you know, search me, know my thoughts and all the rest. David is also the one road Psalm 103.

And there are these three similes back to back. And here's what David says about the Lord. He says, As high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is God's Word love for those who fear him as far as the East is from the West. So far, has he removed our transgressions from us, our sins, our shame, our regrets?

The God He takes is that forgiving and as a father, has compassion on his children. So the Lord has compassion. And those who fear him. His love is unbreakable. His forgiveness is forever. His compassion is like the best of a person who just knows what you're going through and comes alongside. He's the one who sees you and knows you.

He's near when you're on top of the world or you're feeling all alone when things are going well, or when you feel like you're stumbling in the darkness. When God seems close and when you feel like your prayers are bouncing against the ceiling and he feels far away. This is the message all the way through the Scriptures. God is closer than you think.

He's near. He's with us. Even we don't see him. I want us to look at one historical account in the Book of Genesis. If you want to turn back there with me, Genesis chapter 16. And and we see this moving example of God's nearness at a time of mistreatment and abuse when sometimes God feels the furthest away that actually find out his close.

You might remember the story here of Hagar. She's far from the comfort of family and home. She's living as a house helper, and here's where things take a tough turn. Genesis 16, verse one. Now Sarah Abram's wife had borne him no children. This was a problem. Just pause for a second because a few chapters earlier remember that Abraham and Sarah had been promised that they would become the parents of like so many children and descendants.

They couldn't even count them, like they'd become the the parents of Israel and she'd had no children. So here's what happens. She had an Egyptian slave named Hagar. So she said to Abram, The Lord has kept me from having children go sleep with my slave. Perhaps I can build a family through her. Not a good idea, right? Terrible idea.

Doesn't go well. Hagar As a son, Sarah grows jealous, mistreats Hagar even more, and Hagar is on the receiving end of sexual abuse, physical abuse, emotional abuse, the worse that life can get. And in the middle of that, God assures her. Hagar I see you right now. I see you Listen to what happens here. She's this immigrant enslaved woman with no power status, and she's the first person in the Scripture to be met by an angel.

You might not believe in that, but there are plenty of situations. And even today, people have visions of saying, you know, and especially in places where maybe the gospel of Jesus is not freely known on the go, an angel appeared to me in a dream or whatever, and it happens to her and and and God just let her know you.

You're not forgotten. She's so moved that she names God. She's the only person in the Scripture to name God. And here's what she says in verse 13, chapter 16, verse 13. She gave this name to the Lord who spoke to her, You are the God who what sees me and my emotional, sexual physical abuse God, you see me, you go, Well, if he sees you, why does he deliver you?

If he sees me in my pain? Because God is allowed in this broken world for people to make choices that they make. And He doesn't treat us like robots. And God's heart breaks for Hagar and breaks for you in the midst of your pain. And one day he's going to make it all right. But in the midst of it he goes, I see you and I'm with you in the name she gives him as Elroy.

Would you say that with me? Elroy The God who sees me? It's the same thing that Davis says in Psalm 139 that the God of Israel works through all of the complexities and masses of human history through the lives of deeply flawed and broken people who never seem to get things right. And here's what he says. I am Elroy, the God who sees you.

He sees you. This is such great news for people whose lives are less than perfect, who wander about in desert desert places, who weep over the consequences of their own decisions, or the decisions of others who are on the receiving end of of abuse, of behavior that Jesus sees you and your despair. And when it seems that God is absent or you're in the wilderness like Hagar, we find out that God is closer than we think.

And it's a message that is in Genesis all the way through the Scripture that let me just do a really quick flyover of just several scriptures that have been meaningful to me. And and you'll see them in your notes as well. But Joshua one nine, they'll be on the screen. Joshua gets this promise. Here it is. Be strong and courageous.

Do not be afraid to not be discouraged for the Lord. Your God will be with you whenever you go to church. Now, what does it say? Just wherever, right? Wherever. Not just when you're at church. Not just when you're reading your Bible. Not just when you're consciously praying his with you wherever you go. In the most unlikely times, you're sitting in front of the computer, He's with you, you're driving the car, he's with you, you're hanging out with friends, he's with you.

You're watching the Browns game this afternoon. We happen to be 11 and five. He's with you. He's with you Wherever you go. It's the most frequently stated promise in the Bible. I will be with you, Isaiah 43. When you pass through the waters. I will be with you. Do not be afraid, for I am with you. God didn't want us to forget.

When Jesus shows up on the scene. The promise is the bookends of both sides of the first historical account of his life, the Gospel of Matthew. Then, in the beginning of Matthew, it says in the Virgin will give birth to a son and you'll name him Emmanuel. Which means what? God, with us, you come to the end of the Gospel of Matthew is the last thing that Jesus says.

And Matthew 28, verse 20, he says, He's sending out his followers and he's not just sending them out away from him. He says, and by the way, surely I am, what with you? To the very end, he don't want us to forget the Apostle Paul. You know, when Jesus ascends to heaven, Paul's facing some challenges. God gives him the same promise.

Chapter 18. One night, the Lord spoke to Paul in a vision. Do not be afraid. Keep on speaking. Do not be silent, for I am with you. Maybe God keeps telling us because He knows how prone we are to doubt this. I just speak for myself. You go, John and your pastor. I can go through a big portion of a day and just completely ignore the fact that God is right with me.

Next week we're going to talk about how to sort of make this real in your life and the difference it can make. But today I just want to drill it home that he just says, I see you and I'm near one more example. Hebrews Chapter 13 God has said I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.

So we can say with confidence, the Lord is my helper. So I will have. How much fear? No fear. What can mere people do to me? God sees us. Here's one of the reasons I think that the Lord repeats the promise so often in your notes. Under the questions for reflection, you'll see a quote from Rick Warren and here's what Rick writes He says, Behind every self-defeating behavior in your life is a lie that you are believing, say, one more time, be behind.

Every self-defeating behavior in your life is a lie that you're believe. That takes some pondering there and you might go, okay, what are the self-defeating behaviors of my life? What lie am I believing? One of the lies that we're most prone to believe is this that God is distant. He doesn't see me, maybe doesn't really care. I'm just like a little speck in the vastness of the universe.

And Psalm 139 tells us that's a lie. I don't. That God is near. God is closer than you think. Can you say that one with me? Let's say together already. God is closer than you think. He sees you. He knows you. You're never alone. You always have his strength at your disposal. When you come to him and you trust him.

His wisdom, his guidance, his joy, his peace. I'm getting ahead of myself. We'll talk about that more next week. There's a quote on a Christmas card that's one of my favorites. And it says this The wonder of Christmas is that the God who dwelt among us can now dwell within us. The wonder of Christmas is that the God who dwelt among us can now dwell within us.

See, friends were on this side of the cross, this side of the resurrection, this side of the Pentecost. When the Holy Spirit comes, David could say, God, you see me, you know me, you're with me. We can say today you see me, you know me, you're with me. And when I trust you, you're what you're in me. You're in me.

That's how close he can be. And it can change our lives. He can change our lives. So back to Psalm 139. Can we affirm this together? Let's read it together out loud in the world. Then we'll pray. Ready? You have searched for me, Lord, and you know me. You know when I sit And when I rise you perceive my thoughts from afar.

You discern my going out and my lying down. You are familiar with all my ways before a word is on my tongue. You Lord know it completely. You hem me behind and before and you lay your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me to lofty for me to attain. I'll say it again Christianity at the core is all about a relationship.

It's all about the newness of God and the relationships that He gives us with each other. So next, we will talk more about this. How do you experience this on a daily basis, this reality in our and in life? Because for me, it's made a profound influence in my life. But for today, let's just thank him together that he's near and he sees let's pray, Lord Jesus, thank you that you came with that message, that you as a person, you could just say, I'm Emmanuel, I'm I'm God with you.

And that Lord Jesus that you see us today, that your promises, that you're with us, would you strengthen our faith? Lord, we pray, give us eyes to see the invisible. To really believe that when it feels like we're all alone, that that's a lie as well. Lord, I pray that our relationship with you would grow like never before in this New Year, and that it would be you who define who we are.

Lord, may our relationship with you be the center of our lives in this year. And until you come, we ask for that and your powerful name. And everyone said, amen.