Hi, this is Joel in Victoria. Thanks for listening to our podcast and thanks for supporting the ministry. If you enjoyed today's message, why don't you be a blessing and share it with a friend. We appreciate you and pray for God's very best in your life. Yes! You may be seated. When Joel and I first started dating many years ago, we had a mutual friend. And I didn't know this at the time, but my friend was talking behind my back with Joel. She would say things like, she likes you. She told me she did. And Joel would say, well, tell me what she said. What did she think about our first date? He began to question her and she began to tell him, just keep doing what you're doing. She really likes you a lot. See, he began to hear how much I liked him at the very start of our relationship. And so it gave him the confidence to pursue this relationship. And as he began to pursue a relationship with me, he found out something very important. He found out that I liked him too, a lot. So as we continued with our relationship, discovering things about one another, learning things about one another, and it began to grow and it began to flourish, and 29 years later, it's still growing and it's still flourishing. You see, Joel went from hearing that I liked him to experiencing that I liked him. He went from hearing to literally knowing by my words and by my actions. And too often, we sit on the sidelines of life because we hear something is good, but we don't allow it to develop a confidence in us to pursue what is good, to pursue those things that we want. It's like that with the love of God, your family, your friends. Maybe you heard about Jesus when you were young, but you know what? There's just some areas of your life you cannot pursue him. You've let him in maybe a little bit, but there's areas that you think, I don't want him to get to know me in that area. He may not like me anymore. You feel condemned. Sometimes people think they need to clean themselves up. They need to fix themselves up nice and shiny before they can develop a relationship with Jesus. Well, they know that he loves them. They've heard it, but they've never taken the next step. Or maybe they have served God. But like I said, there are those doors that they just won't open. And you know, when that happens, our relationship doesn't deepen and strengthen. We don't develop all that we can in the relationship. Listen, if I shut some doors to Joel and wouldn't let him in, there would be some problems. But I had confidence that he wasn't going to judge me. He knew I wasn't judging him. We were in this together and we love each other and we developed it. And that's what we have to believe about the love of Christ. God does not condemn you in Jesus Christ. He loves you in Jesus Christ. There is no door that you cannot open to him. There is no sin too great. There is nothing that you've done that he will not forgive you for. The Bible says when you were yet sinners, he came and gave his life for you. See, before we were ever even knew him, he already fell in love with us. Let's go from just hearing about the love of God to truly developing and experiencing the love of God. If you're sitting here today and you've got some condemnation or some shame, can I tell you that is not Jesus? That is the accuser. And Jesus is not the accuser. There's a story in John 8 that exemplifies this so very well. Jesus was teaching one afternoon near the temple and the scribes and the Pharisees, that's the religious leaders of that day, dragged a woman to him in front of everybody and said, Jesus, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. Now in the law of Moses, it says that such an act and such a woman should be stoned to death. I'm sure they came, they came with stones in their hand and dragging that woman along. They stood her there at Jesus' feet. I can only imagine a hush, hush that came over the crowd because they said, Jesus, what do you say about this? The Bible says that he kneeled down. Now wait a minute, that woman is standing there. I can only imagine as she has her eyes glued to Jesus to see what the verdict is. When he began to kneel down, I can only imagine her heart beginning to flutter in her chest, thinking, oh no, what is he going to do? Is he going to pick up a rock? Is he going to start this execution right now? Because see, we read that story quickly, but when it's happening to you, it's happening in slow motion. You've got time to think about it. Why else would he bend down if he wasn't going to pick up a rock? Can you imagine that going on in her mind? But the Scripture says that he knelt down and he began to write in the dirt. Then he stood up again and he looked at those accusers and he said, those of you without sin, you cast the first stone. He looked at them and then he knelt down again. The Scripture says that one by one, one by one, they begin to walk off from the oldest to the youngest. You know, that's just like Jesus. He gives you time to think about it. He tells you something and then he gives you time to think about it. He stood up again, looked around. There was no one, just he and the woman. Can you imagine that woman standing there still trembling? She's standing there thinking, what just happened? You know, the law that they talked about was the law of Moses that was given to Moses by God and it was written on tablets of stone by God's own finger. It was written on Mount Sinai. Jesus, when he knelt down, we don't know what he wrote. He didn't come to abolish the law. The Scripture tells us he came to fulfill the law. And I find it quite interesting that the same law that was written by God's finger, he sent his son to write something else with his finger in the dark. And that was mercy. We don't know what he wrote, but it had to have been mercy. Because he looked at that woman and said, where are your accusers? Is there anyone here condemning you? She said, no sir. And he said, I don't condemn you either. He said, go and sin no more. And she stood face to face with mercy. She went from hearing about Jesus. Everybody in the town knew about Jesus. They had heard something about him. She probably heard, yes, he performed some miracles. Yeah, he's a nice man. But she went that day from hearing about Jesus to experiencing the love of Jesus. She went from hearing to knowing this love, standing face to face with mercy. Can you imagine that day her heart was opened in such a way that when she walked off, she didn't walk off condemned, she walked off convinced. This is a man of love. This is a man that just touched me. I mean, mercy opens the door of our heart for repentance. He told her, go back and sin no more. I'm empowering you and I'm strengthening you by my mercy and my grace to stand against sin. You see, grace does not give us a license to sin. Grace gives us the power to stand against sin. The power to say no to sin. That day Jesus was in a very intimate place with that woman. A part of her life she wouldn't want no one to see. But everyone saw and they saw Jesus not pick up a rock, but take his own finger and write mercy in the dirt. If you're here today, I want to tell you Jesus isn't condemning you. Rocks, they hurt. Jesus love, it heals. No today. If anybody's throwing rocks at you. If there's condemnation in your mind because there's areas of your life you really don't want to expose to Jesus. No today. But he is not going to condemn you. He wants to convince you that yes, there is power to turn that thing around and go another way. He wants to strengthen you and give you the power you need to live the life he's called you to live. Amen. Amen. We all go through disappointments and things that are not fair, but God sees every hurt, every injustice, and he's promised to pay you back for the unfair things. I'd love to send you my new resource, Double For Your Trouble. It's filled with inspiration to help you stay in faith and not get bitter and think, why me? Now that setback may have been painful, but the fact is it's set you up for double. God will make the enemy pay and bring you out better than you were before. This ministry is reaching people around the world with a message of hope. And as our way of saying thank you for your gift of any amount, we would like to send you a copy of Double For Your Trouble, a daily guide for restoration. This 31-day spiral-bound resource is an invitation into healing, restoration, and the abundant life God has promised. Whether you're walking through a season of loss, believing for a breakthrough, or simply looking for a deeper connection with God, this guide is designed to help you reflect, realign, and rebuild day by day. Receive your copy and know that whatever you're facing today, grief, loss, uncertainty, it doesn't define your future. Choose to trust God. He sees you. He cares deeply. And He is the God who restores double. None of us like difficulties, but if you'll stay in faith, you won't come out the same. You'll come out with double. And, Victoria and I pray for you and your family every day. Thank you for your prayers and support. Your donations are bringing hope to people around the world. Special thank you to our champion of hope partners for all you do to make the ministry possible. Until we see you again next week, may the Lord bless you and keep you. Be sure to request your copy of Devil for Your Trouble available this month by simply visiting us at joelosteen.com or call 888-567-JOL. You can also receive God's Got You Restoration Duo. This book is a powerful reminder that no matter what you face, you are not alone. God's got you and He will never let you go. In addition to these two inspiration books, you can also receive the double portion Restoration Bible Collection. This beautifully curated collection brings together the restoring of hope, of double for your trouble, and the comforting reassurance of God's Got You, paired with a stunning CSB Thinline Bible, digital study edition in camel suede soft leather touch. This elegant Bible offers a rich, immersive study experience, an enduring companion as you lean in to God's promises of renewal and restoration. Let these resources strengthen your faith, study your heart, and remind you each day that God is restoring, leading, and working double on your behalf. You can request these inspiring resources by calling 888-567-JOL or logging on to joelosteen.com today. If you've never been to Lakewood, we have a great opportunity to come. We call it Homecoming Weekend. We'd love to meet you and your family. You can see the building and attend one of the services. It's a great time to be a part of the Lakewood family. Looking forward to seeing you at Homecoming Weekend.
