God Is Near

🎯 Title: God Is Near

Finding His Presence in Our Deepest Pain

🎬 Opening (Acknowledge the Moment)

Community tonight is heavy.

Ecclesiastes 3 says there is “a time to mourn”

We are told to bare one another's burdens.

We are here today because one of our own felt like there was no one share the load. In the midst of the crowd they felt alone. This is my second time to speak because of a suicide this year.

I always wish the person could see the people that gather in support after the fact and wonder if that would change their mind about feeling alone.

And if we’re honest, in moments like this, one of the first questions that rises in our hearts is this:

“Where is God?”

Is He distant?

Is He silent?

Is He absent?

Scripture speaks directly into that question—not with an explanation, but with a promise.

God Is Near to the Brokenhearted

Psalm 34:17–18 ESV

17 When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles. 18 The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.

“The Lord is near…” That’s not poetic language. That’s a promise.

God is not far from this moment.

He is not removed from this grief.

He is near.

And notice who He draws near to:

“the brokenhearted… the crushed in spirit.”

That means:

The overwhelmed

The grieving

The confused

The ones who don’t even know what to say

👉 Key Truth:

God doesn’t move away from brokenness—He moves toward it.

We often assume the opposite.

We think:

“If I feel this broken, maybe God is far from me.”

“If this happened, maybe God has stepped back.”

But Scripture says no.

👉 Repeat:

“The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.”

Not later.

Not after you’ve processed it.

Not when you’ve pulled yourself together.

Right now.

God Moves Toward Us in Our Pain

God doesn’t just observe our pain—He enters it.

There’s a moment in the life of Jesus in John 11, when he lost a friend. The family was asking the same question that many of us are asking today, “Lord if you had been here my brother wouldn’t have died.”

A family has lost someone they love. And when Jesus arrives, before He says anything… before He does anything…He weeps.

Jesus—God in the flesh—stands in the middle of grief and feels it.

👉 Key Truth:

Before Jesus fixes anything, He feels everything.

That means:

God understands grief

God is not detached from sorrow

God is not asking you to pretend tonight

If your heart feels heavy…

If your mind is full of questions…

If your spirit feels crushed…

You are not experiencing something God is distant from.

“God is near.”

Jesus Heals What Is Broken

Now we bring in Isaiah 61:1.

Isaiah 61:1 ESV

1 The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound;

This is a prophecy about Jesus.

And when Jesus begins His ministry in Luke 4, He reads this passage and says:

“Today this Scripture has been fulfilled.”

That means this is His mission.

Not just to come near—but to heal.

“To bind up the brokenhearted.”

That phrase paints a picture.

It’s like someone carefully wrapping a wound.

👉 Key Truth:

God doesn’t just sit with our pain—He begins to heal it.

Now hear this clearly:

Healing doesn’t mean the pain disappears overnight.

But it does mean:

You don’t carry it alone

You don’t stay crushed forever

God is actively at work, even in the middle of grief

👉 Repeat:

“God is near, and Jesus heals.”

What This Means for Us Tonight

Let’s bring this down where we are.

1. You are not alone

God didn’t leave us alone, He sent Jesus

Jesus didn’t leave us alone, He sent the Holy Spirit (The Comforter)

The Holy Spirit didn’t leave us alone, He sent us to each other.

Even if you alone—God is near.

2. Jesus wants to heal your pain tonight.

That’s why he came.

That’s what he does.

He heals the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.

Some of you are brokenhearted and your spirit is crushed. You’ve had thought of ending it all just to make the pain go away.

Jesus doesn’t want you to die. He want you to be healed. He wants to bind up your broken heart and save your crushed spirit. So, Jesus died so that you can live.

3. Jesus is ready to enter into your pain so that you can be healed.

Come to him.

Matthew 11:28 ESV

28 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

When you come to Him you lay your burdens at his feet.

Jesus is drawing near to you right now.

How many of you would say that Jesus has healed your heart would you raise your hand?

Who among you would feel comfortable leading someone to Jesus and into that healing would you raise your hand.

I would encourage you to go to one of these individuals with their hands raised and let them lead you to the healer.