The Cure for an Anxious World | Francis Chan

Summary

Crazy Love Podcast – Episode Summary
The Cure for an Anxious World | Francis Chan
Date: June 22, 2026
Host: Crazy Love Ministries
Speaker: Francis Chan

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Episode Overview

In a world filled with anxiety, division, and uncertainty, Francis Chan shares a powerful message: the solution to our collective fear and stress is not a change in our circumstances, but a shift in our perspective. Drawing from the broad narrative of the Bible, Chan calls listeners to see the bigger story of God's pursuit of humanity and to find lasting peace by drawing near to God. This classic teaching traces God’s redemptive plan from Genesis to Revelation, reminding us of our purpose and the hope that transcends present chaos.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Craziness and Anxiety of Modern Life

• The episode opens with personal anecdotes about daily life feeling more hostile, fractured, and anxious than ever, especially with public confrontations over issues like elections and propositions.
• Example: The story of opposing groups on street corners, escalating to a protestor dressed as "Satan" with a "666" sign, illustrated society’s heightened tensions (01:19–01:36).
• Francis recounts his wife’s response—engaging with kindness, apologizing for past wrongs, and emphasizing love despite disagreement (02:00–03:45).

“Somehow in the midst of all this craziness, we as believers, we need to keep our heads together and have our peace and continue on our mission of loving people and having an impact wherever we go.” – Co-host (03:48)

2. Living a Life That Matters

• Discussion of how our presence should have positive impact—when we leave a neighborhood or a workplace, people should miss us.
• Francis recalls the legacy of Sandy Simrall, a woman who deeply impacted her church community, embodying wholehearted devotion and worship (04:51–07:07).

3. The Temptation to Focus on the Small and Immediate

• Chan highlights how easy it is to obsess over minor personal crises and lose sight of the larger picture. He uses relatable examples (a missed golf putt, stock market anxieties) to show our tendency to make small things “our whole world” (09:45–10:41).

“You know, I can be standing over a putt, and whether I make this putt or not, man, it is... that’s all I care about at that moment.” – Francis Chan (09:45)

4. Escaping Our Limited Perspective—The Grand Biblical Story

Chan walks listeners through the biblical narrative, emphasizing:

Creation (Genesis 1)

• God created a universe that proclaims His glory and goodness, and humanity uniquely in His image (11:25–15:36).
• Key point: Human beings were made to bear God’s image, displaying attributes like love, compassion, forgiveness, which animals and nature cannot.

The Fall and God’s Immediate Plan of Restoration (Genesis 3)

• Despite humanity’s rebellion, God initiates a plan to restore relationship, beginning with the promise of a deliverer, symbolized by the covering of Adam and Eve’s shame (16:45–18:30).

The Remnant—God’s Persistent Pursuit

• Throughout history, even in times of widespread rebellion, there is always a faithful remnant—Noah and his family, the line of Abraham, Moses, the prophets (18:31–24:47).
• Chan summarizes Israel’s history, their repeated rejection of God’s goodness, and His continuous calls for reconciliation.

“The prophets, they all had the same message…draw near to God. He’s a good God. He wants to restore.” – Francis Chan (22:39)

The Coming of Jesus and the Climax of God’s Pursuit

• Jesus’ life summarizes the Old Testament narrative—a parable (Matthew 21:33–46) about God patiently sending messenger after messenger to a rebellious people, culminating in sending His own son (25:45–27:36).
• Even Jesus’ miracles and resurrection are dismissed by many, demonstrating humanity’s ongoing resistance (28:06–29:48).

The Gift of the Holy Spirit

• After Jesus’ ascension, God sends the Holy Spirit to personally convict the hearts of humanity—internally testifying about sin, righteousness, and coming judgment (30:06–31:39).
• Some still mock or ignore even direct supernatural signs (Acts 2) (32:14–32:29).

God’s Patience and Coming Judgment

• Passages from Romans 2 and 2 Peter 3 show that God’s kindness is intended to encourage repentance, but rejection ultimately leads to storing up wrath (33:02–34:41).
• The world today seems particularly primed for the kind of global upheaval described in Revelation.

Revelation: The Final Restoration

• Francis Chan summarizes scenes from Revelation—God pouring out His wrath, humanity’s continued rebellion, but ultimately, the creation of a new heaven and new earth where God dwells with His people and wipes away every tear (37:29–42:00).

“He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more...for the former things have passed away.” – Francis Chan, quoting Revelation 21 (39:19)

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Memorable Quotes & Moments

• On Perspective and Peace:

  “Sometimes the best thing we can do...[is] take a bigger view of life for a second...Let’s get the reality of what God’s doing in this world and not think that our little thing is everything.” — Francis Chan (10:42–10:54)

• On God’s Pursuit:

  "From the very start...you two screwed up. But I'm gonna make up for it...I'll cover your shame." — Francis Chan (18:19–18:24)

• On Persistent Rebellion:

  “This whole idea of no matter what God does, people are gonna reject him. He goes, ‘You want the flood? You want Me to part the Red Sea? ... Still people refuse to believe.’” — Francis Chan (32:36–32:59)

• On God’s Promise and Hope:

  “God created this world and he said it was good. He created mankind. We rebelled, and he says, I will bring you back to me. While many will run away, there will always be a remnant...I’m going to bring you back to myself because you believe in me.” — Francis Chan (42:47)

• On Life's True Purpose:

  “The whole reason why I exist is to try to persuade you the same way Noah did, the same way Jeremiah did, the same way Jesus did...and say, draw near to God. What more could you ask a God who gave his Son to pay for your sins, and yet you’re going to embrace your sins rather than Him. Draw near to Him. That’s why we exist. I’m a part of something far bigger.” — Francis Chan (43:33)

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Important Timestamps

• World in chaos—personal anecdotes: (00:39–04:29)
• Living a life that matters—remembering Sandy Simrall: (04:51–07:07)
• Perspective shift—fixing eyes on God: (08:30–11:06)
• The Bible’s sweeping story, Genesis to Revelation: (11:12–41:00)
• God’s final redemption—Revelation 21: (39:19–42:35)
• Gospel call—draw near to God: (43:33–44:49)

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Conclusion

Francis Chan’s teaching calls listeners to trade anxiety and narrow focus for awe at the grand narrative of God’s redemption. He challenges believers to center their lives on their identity as God’s ambassadors, pursuing reconciliation and drawing peace from God’s faithfulness, not from fleeting circumstances.

If your biggest worry tomorrow is your 401k…you don't get it. We're a part of something so much bigger, so much greater. A God who's redeeming us for his own glory.” — Francis Chan (43:17)

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For More Resources:
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Transcript

[Sam]

Foreign.

[Podcast Host]

Welcome to the Crazy Love Podcast. The world feels more uncertain than ever, with every day bringing another reason to worry. But the cure for our anxiety isn't found in our circumstances. It's found in our perspective. In this classic teaching, Francis reminds us of the bigger story God's been telling from the very beginning. And when we fix our eyes on him, we find a peace that rises above the chaos all around us.

[Co-host]

Is it just me, or does it just seem like the world is crazier than it's ever been right now? You know, like, I don't remember. I mean, I'm 41 years old. I don't remember a time in my life that the world was this crazy and on edge, and everyone's just. For example, my wife was telling me she was driving up Sycamore the other day, and right there in Cochrane, there's a bunch of yes on eight people, right? Then she drives back an hour later, and there's yes on one side and no on the other, you know, yelling at each other.

[Sam]

And then she. Later on.

[Co-host]

Later on, my assistant said she went

[Sam]

up and it was just no one ate people. And then she went back later and there were no one ate people in one corner. Then in the other corner, there was

[Co-host]

a guy dressed up like Satan with a 666 sign.

[Sam]

What in the world is going on? Like, people, and they're just going nuts, and what do we do? How do we live in this time when everyone is stressed about the economy? The economy, the elections, the propositions, and everyone just seems on edge and you just want to avoid certain topics, this and that.

[Co-host]

My wife said that as she was

[Sam]

driving, and then no one ate, people were screaming and everything else.

[Co-host]

She decided to stop and pull over and just start talking to the people.

[Sam]

And she just went up to one

[Co-host]

of them and said, hey, just curious, you know, earlier today, I saw some yes on eight people. And how did those people treat you? And this girl goes, yeah, we drove them out. And she goes, some of them were flipping us off. Other people were throwing things at us. And my wife just goes, you know what? I just kind of. I just want to come and apologize, because I know that some of those people were Christians, and so I just wanted to make sure they were treating you okay and with kindness and love.

[Sam]

And then the other girl goes, yeah, you know what?

[Co-host]

Most of them were very respectful. I had conversations with them and everything else. She goes, good, because you know what? That's not the way we're supposed to do things. If we've been rude or anything like that. And then she told her, she goes, you know, I disagree with you. You know, I'm more of a yes on eight person. She goes, because I'm a Christian. And then this other girl goes, oh, I am too. And. And she goes, and this other girl goes, you know, I just believe that the Bible is defunct in certain areas and this is the main one. And so my wife answers. She just goes, she goes, you know what? She goes, I had to make a decision a while back as to whether or not I would accept everything the Bible taught. She goes, because if I went with my natural inclination, she goes, I would be a no one ate person. But there's certain times when the Bible disagrees with what I feel naturally. And at those times, I choose still to submit to the Bible. And we can disagree on this, but just want you to know that I care about you and sorry if anyone mistreated you or acted in the wrong way and just kind of shook her hand and walked away. I thought, you know what, that is so cool to just come and say, you know what, we can disagree on things. You don't think the way that I think and I don't think the way you think. But you know what? I want you to know that I care about you. And somehow in the midst of all this craziness, we as believers, we need to keep our heads together and have our peace and continue on our mission of loving people and having an impact wherever we go. It's all about wherever you go, you ought to matter.

[Sam]

Like if you moved out of your

[Co-host]

neighborhoods, it ought to bug everyone in your neighborhood that you're leaving. It shouldn't be a celebration, okay? It should be, oh, man, why?

[Sam]

Because we miss that person. They're such a big part of it. When you leave work, it should change things. When you leave the church, it should affect the rest of us. Because you were such a light here, man. I was.

[Co-host]

You know, the first service, Scott Simrall was here. Remember Scott and Sandy? They were here long time ago when the church first started. Sandy Simrall, there has never been anyone like Sandy. Sandy was one of the ones that helped lead worship here.

[Sam]

And she was just so different. I mean, you always knew when Sandy was in service, she didn't even have

[Co-host]

to be singing up here.

[Sam]

She could be in the crowd. And as I'm preaching, she's in the back going, amen, come on, Rev, come on. You know, and getting me all fired, I mean, you just knew. And she just fired up the whole place. And when she left, man, it left a hole here. When she and her husband went to

[Co-host]

Arizona and pastored a church out there,

[Sam]

no one's ever been able to replace saints. I remember one time she was one of the singers.

[Co-host]

And it was at our 8:30 service and we're all worshiping and she turns around and she stops the band. She's not even in charge, but she didn't care.

[Sam]

She just stops the band. She stops everyone in the congregation. I'm sitting there going, what is she doing? She goes, no,

[Co-host]

I know it's early. She goes, but you do not worship my God that way. Now we're going to start this song over and you're going to worship my God, you know?

[Sam]

And I was like, yeah, you know, it was just so cool. No one's been able to pull that off since that, you know, it's just there was this. No, this reverence. I'm going to give God everything. And just seeing Scott this morning just

[Co-host]

reminded me, man, there is no one like Sandy Simrall. And that's the way we want to be. That when we leave a church, you

[Sam]

know, it leaves a hole.

[Co-host]

And everyone knew when Sandy left. Everyone was bummed when Sandy left.

[Sam]

That's the way we want to be.

[Co-host]

We want to live a life that leaves an impact. A life that matters. On Thursday, we're going to be doing Sandy's funeral here. She passed away last week, but I tell you, it's gonna be an absolute celebration because I think about how she worshiped here on earth and I can't even imagine the passion with which she's worshiping God right now in heaven and the joy that she has. And I love doing these services, honestly, when it's someone you know was the real thing, someone who gave their whole life for this.

[Sam]

Be praying for her family. Be praying.

[Co-host]

Cause her daughter. Her daughter Janelle, who lives here and see me, she went out to Arizona to visit her mom about a week and a half ago because her mom was passing. And when she was in Arizona, she got a phone call that her husband back here in Simi mysteriously died. And so I did his funeral yesterday and he'll be doing her mom's funeral on Thursday. And so just pray for Janelle and that whole situation. I mean, this is what I'm saying. It seems like everything right now I'm hearing about more people, you know, ODing or having aneurysms or just dying or

[Sam]

in some ways suicides. I mean, everything random accident, train accident, just.

[Co-host]

It seems like the last couple months, it's Just everything is coming together and so many people's lives are falling apart. And that's why I loved Todd's messages the last couple of weeks, is because what he got us to do was kind of get out of our world, see the bigger picture, and realize there's something bigger. The solution is not God, come down and fix this thing for me, but the solution is to draw near to God. There's a bigger picture here.

[Sam]

And sometimes we like to show how God is relevant in the little areas of our lives, and that brings us some peace. But I think it's better most of the time if instead of bringing God down here, we kind of escape our world and go up to where he is and see things from his perspective, and suddenly we have this high, majestic view of God and his love for

[Co-host]

us, Then suddenly our issues seem irrelevant.

[Sam]

It's similar to like in Psalm 73. The Psalmist says, gosh, when I tried to figure out what was going on on this earth, he goes, it was oppressive to me. It was bugging me. It's like this huge weight on me. And he goes, it bothered me.

[Co-host]

He goes, until I enter the sanctuary of God. Because until I escaped my little, you know, microscope world and I went up to him and I saw, okay, now I get it. And suddenly he's at peace because he escaped it all and he drew near to God because otherwise a lot of our little things can become our whole world. Has that ever happened to you, where something so small meant everything to you? You know, like your whole world's gonna fall apart, Then later on you go, wow, I can't believe that little thing affected me. But we get that way every day.

[Sam]

I can be standing over a putt, and whether I make this putt or not, man, it is. That's all I care about at that moment, right? It doesn't matter. People are going to hell, dying, starving.

[Co-host]

But I gotta make this putt.

[Sam]

You know, I'm just so focused. And we do that, we get these little things, and whether it's like, you know, what if the Dow drops tomorrow?

[Co-host]

That's all that matters.

[Sam]

If my stocks go down again, you know, if this proposition passes, you know, if this person gets elected, if I lose my house, if I lose my job, if I don't get that raise, if I lose my 401k, and we. Everything, suddenly these things become everything to us. And sometimes the best thing we can do.

[Co-host]

You know what? Let's take a bigger view of life for a second.

[Sam]

Let's get the reality of what God's doing in this world and not think

[Co-host]

that our little thing is everything.

[Sam]

So what I'm gonna do today is I'm not even gonna look at one passage. I'm gonna go through the whole Bible. Okay, we're gonna go through the whole Bible.

[Co-host]

We'll skip a few parts, but we're

[Sam]

gonna go through the whole thing this morning. Cause I feel like we need to just get back to understanding the reason

[Co-host]

why we exist, what this whole life is all about. And if we get that big picture,

[Sam]

then a lot of these little details

[Co-host]

that have been burdening us, that have caused us so much anxiety and so

[Sam]

much pain, it really will become less

[Co-host]

and less relevant in light of an Amazing God. Genesis 1:1. Okay, in the beginning, let's just take a deep breath and realize that there was a time when you did not exist, okay? It talks about it in Genesis 1:1. In the beginning, it says, you were not there, okay?

[Sam]

And everything was fine. It was fine without you. So what are you stressed about? Okay, you're not fixing anything. Don't really need you. In the beginning, God was fine. God created the heavens and the earth. There was no heavens, there were no earth.

[Co-host]

There's no angels to worship him, yet he was still go on his throne, okay? And this God begins creating things. He creates a world, and he starts creating plants and light and water and

[Sam]

land and on and on and on, night and day. And every time he created something, he would say this phrase.

[Co-host]

Like he says in verse 10, it says, God saw that it was good, okay?

[Sam]

So God's making stuff.

[Co-host]

He goes, wow, that's good. And then in verse 31, he says, that was really good. Okay?

[Sam]

When he's all done on the sixth

[Co-host]

day, it says that he saw everything that he had made. And behold, it was very good. Okay? Why was it very good? God says in Psalm 19, he says, the heavens declare the glory of God.

[Sam]

In other words, he says, you know, you as a human being can just

[Co-host]

look up at the sky, look at the, you know, look at the clouds and look at the stars, look at the universe through a telescope and you see, wow. This declares the glory of God.

[Sam]

He says in Romans 1:20, he says that ever since he created this world, he says his invisible qualities and God's divine nature could be clearly seen through the things that are made.

[Co-host]

So that men are without excuse.

[Sam]

He says, this world, he goes, I made it in such a way that is so good that no one on this planet, none of these people that I make, will have an excuse for disbelieving in me because you can just look at the stars and go, shut up. No way. How in the world does this work? How in the world do I just live on this little ball that's the core of this earth, is like this magma, lava, fire stuff, and yet the covering is water, and yet it spins and it's a circle and it spins. And we don't fly anywhere, and we fly around the sun and on and on. And then you've got these galaxies that are just going on and on and on and on and on. He says, any human being can look

[Co-host]

around and go, wow, this is good. This is so good. I could sit in that parking lot this morning. I'm just watching the sun rise and going, man, this is amazing. This ball of fire that's 93 million miles away. And I'm just watching it peek over those mountains over there, right by the San Jose pass, going, wow, that's just nuts.

[Sam]

See, God, when he created everything, he

[Co-host]

goes, wow, this is really good. And this shows off what I can do. It declares my glory.

[Sam]

Now, when God was creating things, he does something different. When he creates you and I, when he creates human beings, it's different from the plants, different from the animals. Because in Genesis chapter one, verse 26, when he makes man, it says, God says, let us make man in our

[Co-host]

image after our likeness. Now remember, this is the beginning, okay? And here's God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit. And going, you know what? Let's make man in our image. This is different from the animals, different from the plants, different from the water, different from the earth, the stars. Let's make a being that can actually be an image bearer of us.

[Sam]

Let's make these people who can display

[Co-host]

our attributes like nothing else can, you

[Sam]

see, because like an orange or an

[Co-host]

apple is, you know, while it shows off God's glory, it can't show his love. It can't show his compassion. A chicken can't forgive. You know, it's like you've got all these things that were made, but then he goes, no, let's make man and woman. And it says in verse 27, so God made man in his own image, in the image of God, he created him. Male and female. He created them. So he goes, I'm going to make something in my own image. And that's an awesome thought. To think that somehow I am made in the image of the creator of that God. Now, what happens in Genesis 3 is God tells his creation, okay, here's how I want you to live I'm going to give you dominion over the fish, over the plants, over the ground, everything. You're in control down here because that even shows God. That shows God's power to show, have dominion over, over everything. And he goes, so you do this.

[Sam]

He goes, but don't eat at this tree.

[Co-host]

So what do they do? They eat at the tree. Now, that was not a surprise to God, okay?

[Sam]

I don't believe.

[Co-host]

You know, some people say, well, I believe that God doesn't really know what's gonna happen. And I go, I don't believe that he wrote what's gonna happen right here at the very end. He knows what's gonna happen. It's all planned.

[Sam]

He didn't go, are you kidding me? I didn't think you'd eat that. You know, it's not like this. God who doesn't know the future, he knows everything. And in that, he has a plan in motion, right? When that happens, you know, they sin against God. They, you know, while God created him, gave them this wonderful place to live, they rebel against him and they're covered in shame. And what God does right then is

[Co-host]

he slaughters a couple of animals and

[Sam]

he gets those animal skins and he

[Co-host]

covers over their shamefulness, covers their nakedness, and clothes them with animal skins. And he explains in Genesis 3:15, he says, you know what he says to the woman? That I'm going to put enmity between you and this serpent who deceived you, between your offspring and his. And it's this idea of, there was going to come this deliverer. And he gives that prophecy where he says that the serpent will strike him on the heel, but he's gonna crush his head. Okay? Right then sets into this motion this restoration of God. God saying, no, I created man in my image, and I'm gonna bring him back to me. I'm gonna restore him. I'm gonna be the deliverer.

[Sam]

He sets an example from the very start of, you two screwed up.

[Co-host]

But I'm gonna make up for it. I'm gonna atone for your sin. I will cover your nakedness, I will cover your shame.

[Sam]

And then the rest of the Bible is about this God saying to mankind, look, I'm gonna bring you back to myself. You keep running away from me, but I'm gonna pursue you and I'm gonna restore. I'm gonna restore mankind to myself. He has a. But what happens is, as he seeks to restore us into right relationship with him, we keep running. People just keep running. But as people keep running, there's always this Little remnant of people that keep

[Co-host]

following God that God draws to himself and it's his people for his own possession.

[Sam]

See, in Genesis chapter six, you have the story of Noah. Genesis chapter six. God uses a guy named Noah, saying, come on, be reconciled with God. Be reconciled with God. Quit going to your sin. God will forgive you. He'll bring you back. But no one listens. And so that remnant in Noah's day was just Noah and his family.

[Co-host]

And so he says, you know what? I'm gonna destroy mankind. I'm gonna start all over with no one, your family.

[Sam]

And then the story goes on.

[Co-host]

Later, he takes a man named Abram. He goes, okay, Genesis 12, I'll take this guy Abram, you know, this hundred

[Sam]

something years old guy, I'm gonna take him.

[Co-host]

And he says, a miracle's gonna happen. Your wife's gonna bear a child.

[Sam]

And through this child there's gonna be, remember that offspring, that seed of Eve that I was gonna talk, that I talked about, that was gonna cry. Satan said, it's gonna come from you and you're gonna be a blessing through your offspring. There's gonna be a blessing to the whole world. I'm gonna bless your nation so much that everyone's gonna see the power of

[Co-host]

this nation go, okay, I want this God. I want this God. This is how God was bringing the people back to him as they kept rebelling, rebelling. And so Abraham and Sarah have a child named Isaac. Isaac and Rebecca have a couple kids, Jacob and Esau.

[Sam]

Jacob.

[Co-host]

Jacob has 12 sons. And God later changes Jacob's name to Israel. And that's where we get the 12 tribes of Israel. And you remember Joseph?

[Sam]

Joseph was the one that was sold

[Co-host]

into slavery, Became like this leader, you

[Sam]

know, next to Pharaoh, and he's just this powerful man.

[Co-host]

But then after he passes, then suddenly

[Sam]

the Pharaoh takes over and starts oppressing God's people, the Israelites, they start oppressing them. And so God sends a deliverer named Moses. And Moses comes and goes, okay, you know what? Let's get back to our God. Let's start following him. You know, he confronts Pharaoh and saying, this God's the real thing. You know, he splits the Red Sea, sends all the plagues. You know, the story he gets them into, gets them out of Egypt. And then what do the people do?

[Co-host]

They start complaining, you know, And God's

[Sam]

saying, man, I was going to bring you to my promised land. You know, you're my people. Watch what I show you. And they don't trust God.

[Co-host]

And God's going, what more Do I need to show you? Man, you guys are hungry. I make bread appear out of nowhere from heaven, and you just pick it up and eat it. You know, you said you want meat.

[Sam]

And I have birds come fly over

[Co-host]

you, and you eat them. You know.

[Sam]

You know, you get in danger here. You want water? I just.

[Co-host]

I just touch a rock and water comes flowing through for you. And yet you don't believe in my power. And so he has a whole generation of them die out there. In the Book of Numbers, a whole generation of them dies out. For 40 years, they wander around the desert until they die because he goes, you know what? You don't deserve my promised land. And then finally, after that, Joshua leads them in.

[Sam]

Joshua, one of the faithful, one of the remnant who believed in God, leads the people into the promised land, and that's where you get the Book of Joshua. And. And then God sets up Judges, you know, and then the people go, well, we don't really like your Judges, God, you know, we want a king like everyone else.

[Co-host]

He goes, okay, whatever. You can have a king.

[Sam]

Okay?

[Co-host]

Here's.

[Sam]

Here's Saul, and here's everything you want, okay? See where he leads you? Then he has David, then he has Solomon, and on and on. And during this whole period of Joshua, Judges, Kings, during this whole time, he sends these people called prophets, okay?

[Co-host]

And these prophets, they all had the same message. They said, you guys draw near to God. He's a good God.

[Sam]

He's been after you since the beginning, but you keep running away from him. Look, don't you notice every time you rebel against God and go a different direction, you end up miserable? And then don't you realize that every time we stay close to God and his commands, there's a peace? I love the way Jeremiah puts it.

[Co-host]

One of the prophets, Jeremiah, in Jeremiah, chapter two, he says it so beautifully. He says, In Jeremiah, chapter 2, verse 5, God says, what wrong did your fathers find in me? That they went far from me and went after worthlessness and became worthless. Verse 7.

[Sam]

I brought you into a plentiful land

[Co-host]

to enjoy its fruits and its good things.

[Sam]

But when you came in, you defied,

[Co-host]

defiled my land and made my heritage an abomination. God says. He goes, what happened here? He goes, I wanted to give you the best. He goes, what did I do wrong that you guys would run away from me?

[Sam]

I give you this beautiful land, and

[Co-host]

then you come to the land and you just start sinning like crazy. You care less about what I did for you. But then he says something so amazing. In chapter three, in verse 12, he

[Sam]

says, Return, return, faithless Israel, declares the Lord. I will not look on you in anger, for I am merciful, declares the Lord. I will not be angry forever. Then verse 19, I said, How I would set you among my sons and give you a pleasant land, a heritage most beautiful of all nations. And I thought you would call me

[Co-host]

my father and would not turn from following me. Surely, as a treacherous wife leaves her husband, so have you been treacherous to me. O house of Israel, declares the Lord.

[Sam]

God says, you know, when I thought, you know, maybe I was crazy, but I thought, okay, if I give you the most beautiful land on earth and just blow your minds with this incredible surrounding, he goes, I thought in my mind that maybe you would look at that and go, aw, Daddy, and just never leave me and see how good I was.

[Co-host]

He goes, but instead of doing that, you're like a wife who's unfaithful and is running off looking at other guys. And he goes, man, I would have forgiven you. All I want to do was give you the best.

[Sam]

So all this is going on. The prophets are screaming out the same message from the beginning of time, drawn here to God. He's a good God. He wants to restore. He wants to restore mankind to himself. Man doesn't any. Do we have any takers of people that just want to be with God? And then after all that, God sends his son Jesus. He goes, I'll send my son Jesus. And Jesus summed it up really well.

[Co-host]

He always seems to do that.

[Sam]

In Matthew 21, he tells this parable that just kind of describes the whole Old Testament and what was going on right then up to that point. In Matthew, chapter 21, he tells this story. He tells this parable, and he says

[Co-host]

this, Matthew 21:33, he goes, There was a master. There was a master of a house who planted a vineyard, and he put

[Sam]

a fence around it. He dug a winepress in it, he built a tower, and he leased it to tenants.

[Co-host]

And he went into another country when

[Sam]

the season for fruit drew near, he sent his servants to the tenants to

[Co-host]

get his fruit, and. And the tenants took his servants and beat one, killed the other, and stoned another.

[Sam]

Again, he sent other servants more than the first, and they did the same to them. Finally, he sent his son to them,

[Co-host]

saying, they'll respect my son. But when the tenants saw the son, they said to themselves, this is the heir. Come, let's kill him and have his inheritance. And they took him, threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. When therefore, the owner of the vineyard comes, what's he going to do to those tenants?

[Sam]

Okay? He gives this parable.

[Co-host]

He goes, man, he goes, israel, what's going on with you guys? My father, the Master, he's been sending messenger after messenger after messenger.

[Sam]

And all you do is beat up

[Co-host]

the messengers and kill them. So now, finally, he sends his son thinking, well, you'll listen to the Son of God, your Creator. But what do you do? You're going to kill him too. And he goes, what do you think he's going to do when he comes back? What do you think is going to happen when the Master, what would you do if you were that master, you were that owner?

[Sam]

What would you do to your little

[Co-host]

plot of land and to those tenants who keep beating up your messengers and then kill your son?

[Sam]

It was a voice of warning because this was the climax of it all, okay? You've had creation screaming out to you. You've had Noah, you had Moses. You had the prophets screaming out to you. Now you've got the son of God coming screaming out to you. And God saying, I'm gonna do the ultimate. I'm gonna show you. I'm gonna demonstrate my love to this world, okay? I've been pursuing you, pursuing you, pursuing you. And I showed you from the beginning that there was gonna be coming this deliverer who would cover your sins. Well, here he is, and he's gonna

[Co-host]

die on a cross for you, okay? What else can I do? I gave you the land. I gave you my love. I gave you my prophets, and now I give you my son. And it's crazy. What happens when Jesus is on the earth. Jesus, he goes, look, even if you don't believe these words that I'm saying, he goes, if you think I'm full of it, he goes, at least look at the miracles. Look at what I'm doing. Have you ever seen anyone do miracles like this?

[Sam]

But remember what the people did when Jesus. Remember when in John 9, when he heals the guy who was born blind. What do the religious leaders do? They call that guy who was born blind, and they start questioning him. Go, tell us the truth. What really happened to you? This guy's going, what are you talking about? I don't know, okay? All I know is all my life I couldn't see. Now I can. Okay? What do you want me to say? And then, you know what's crazy is you have, In John, chapter 11, you have that amazing miracle where Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead. And all these people start believing because they were at Lazarus funeral. They saw his dead body. They saw him wrapped up and thrown into the tomb. And he was in there for days. Then suddenly Jesus comes along and says, come forth, Lazarus.

[Co-host]

And he walks out of the grave and all these people just. They all die.

[Sam]

You know, they're just falling out, going, what, are you kidding me?

[Co-host]

What just happened here? And they start following.

[Sam]

But what it says In John chapter 12, the very next chapter, is the religious leaders are so bothered that people

[Co-host]

are following Jesus because of Lazarus that they plot to kill Lazarus.

[Sam]

Let's make him die again, you know, to cover up the evidence. It's just this, we're not going to

[Co-host]

believe in him and God just doing all in all. And then when his son dies on the cross and rises from the grave, still people refuse to believe. And they won't follow. They don't want to come before this God. They don't want to draw near to this God.

[Sam]

And so then Jesus. Jesus even says, okay, when I die, he says in John 16, verse 7, he goes, When I go away, you know what I'll do? I'm going to send a counselor. This is even better.

[Co-host]

It's better than me even being on the earth. He goes, I'm going to send my Holy Spirit.

[Sam]

And then he says in verse eight, he says, when he comes, he's going to convict the whole world. Okay, so they've seen a lot of things externally, but now what's going to happen is somehow, internally, God is going to convict the hearts of the whole world. He says, I will convict the world

[Co-host]

concerning sin and righteousness and judgment. In other words, everyone in this room will know that they have sinned against God. Somehow God is gonna make you aware of that and he's gonna convict you of righteousness. That even though you may look at your friends and say, I'm a good person. I'm a good person.

[Sam]

I'm really a good person.

[Co-host]

No, when you're alone, you know that you're not a good person. And you know the things that you've done and you will be convicted of those things. And he says he'll also convict the world of judgment. That you can say, you know, well, I don't believe in God. I'm an atheist, and I think when I die, it's just gonna end. No, he says internally, he's gonna let you know that there will be a judgment somehow that you know you're gonna face your maker at the end of your life. That somehow internally, there's going to be this witness. And the point Is that no one's

[Sam]

going to have an excuse. But it's crazy, because even when the Holy Spirit came, remember how people responded In Acts chapter two, remember the disciples? Now, in Acts, chapter two, now the Holy Spirit comes. And suddenly the disciples, when they're filled with the Spirit, they start speaking different languages, languages they had never learned. And suddenly you got people from all around the world showing up in this one city spot. And they're hearing these people speak their own native tongue, going, man, how can he learn that language? How could he be speaking my language right now? And they're speaking all these different languages. And these people from all around the

[Co-host]

world are understanding them perfectly. But what does some of the others say? Others go, ah, they're just drunk. You know, when I'm drunk, I can speak any language I want.

[Sam]

You know, Isn't it weird how that happens? But here's that whole thing. It's just this. This whole idea of no matter what God does, people are gonna reject him.

[Co-host]

He goes, you want the flood?

[Sam]

You want me to part the Red Sea? You want me to send my son? You want him to raise someone from the dead? You want him to heal someone born blind? You want him to rise from the grave? You want me to send my Holy Spirit to convict your heart? You want to see the power of my Holy Spirit? Have him speaking in different languages. And people will just keep suppressing, suppressing

[Co-host]

suppression, suppressing the truth. And God says, man, don't you understand?

[Sam]

He says in Romans 2, verses 4 and 5, he goes, don't you understand that my patience and my kindness is running out? And that my kindness was supposed to lead you to repentance? I mean, he goes, I thought if I were kind to you and showed you all this stuff and I was patient with all your sin, that by doing that, that that would lead you to turn toward me. He goes, but because you're not turning

[Co-host]

to me and you're still doing your little thing in your little world, he goes, you're storing up wrath for yourself. He says something similar in 2 Peter chapter 3 and 2 Peter chapter 3, verse 9.

[Sam]

He says, the Lord's not being slow because people go, well, how come he hasn't returned yet? How come this?

[Co-host]

How come that?

[Sam]

Maybe this whole thing's a lie? Maybe Jesus really isn't going to return. And what he says in second Peter three, He says, the Lord's not slow to fulfill his promise, as some count

[Co-host]

slowness, but he's patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that

[Sam]

all should Reach repentance. You understand that again, this is God's desire. You think God wants to judge the world? You think he looks forward to punishing? He goes, it's not God's desire. He doesn't want you to just perish. He gives you opportunity after opportunity after opportunity. But he also says, look, it's going

[Co-host]

to run out at some point.

[Sam]

And for those who keep rejecting, rejecting, rejecting and running away from it, he goes, they're just storing up wrath. Because the next verse, he says, he goes, but the day of the Lord, he goes, you think it's been forever since Christ came? He goes, but you gotta understand, the

[Co-host]

day of the Lord is gonna come like a thief, and the heavens are gonna pass away with the roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed. He goes, there's gonna come a day when I will show exactly how much you rebelled against me. I had a Bible college professor who used to always said. Who used to always say, for those who go to hell, they will have worked hard to get there. They will have spent a lifetime of rejecting God's pursuit of them in different ways, and that'll be exposed at the end. It's not like they're gonna go, hey, this isn't fair. It's gonna be like, yeah, I kept pushing this God away. And there were signs all through my life. Not only was there the obvious sign of God's creation and how I could see him and everything that was made, but also the testimony of Scripture. You'll remember this day when you heard it all. You'll remember the messages you heard about Jesus. And even though you didn't understand it all, you're like, man, there's something there. You'll remember the conviction you felt about your own sin and your lack of righteousness, even though you told all your friends how good of a person you were. You know the secrets, and I don't know all the consequences of your life, but I've had friends where I go, man. I mean, you've had dreams, you've had

[Sam]

visions, you've had people tell you these things. I mean, everything comes together and you

[Co-host]

just keep living your own life. And God's saying, draw near, draw near. And you just keep pushing them away. And so finally, at the end of it, he goes, the day of the Lord's gonna come like a thief. And then you get to the Book of Revelation, which I believe we're real close to. You know, it's just. I'VE never seen the world more set up for this than it is right now. And you get to the Book of Revelation and God, God doesn't make empty threats. You know how sometimes as parents, we make empty threats, then our kids don't listen to us? You know, it's like, yeah, you're just bluffing again, you know, but you give them these warnings and you don't really follow through. But God doesn't do that. And he says, no, I really am going to destroy the world. I really am going to wipe out you. Remember what I did with Noah and how I said, hey, a flood's coming, A flood's coming. And no one really believed it. He goes, then what did I do? I brought the flood? He goes, in the same way I'm saying, you know what? The end is coming. The end is coming and it's going to happen. And In Revelation, chapter 6, he starts pouring out his wrath. And in verse 15, it says, the kings of the earth and the great ones, the generals, the rich, the powerful,

[Sam]

and everyone slave and free, hid themselves in caves and among the rocks of the mountains, calling to the mountains. And rocks fall on us and hide us from the face of him who is seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb. For the great day of their wrath has come. And who can stand? So as God starts pouring out his wrath on mankind now you see people, he goes, the rich, the generals, the leaders, the presidents, the actors, the actresses, the athletes, the attractive, they're all screaming, you know what? I wish this mountain would just fall on top of me because I can't handle his wrath anymore. But an amazing thing goes on as God keeps pouring his wrath out on mankind. In chapter nine, it says, they refuse to repent. They refuse to turn. Even after seeing this, they go, we're

[Co-host]

still not gonna follow you.

[Sam]

In fact, what's crazy is in chapter 16, verse 20, 21, he starts pouring out these hailstones on people. I mean, just all these catastrophes happening. But in verse 21 of chapter 16, it says, they cursed God

[Co-host]

for the plague of the hail because the plague was so severe.

[Sam]

So even as God's doing this, these people are shaking their fists, flipping him off, saying, you can't do this to me.

[Co-host]

And it just shows this mankind in his rebellion, going, man, I am not going to submit to you. It is not fair what you're doing to this earth. It is not fair for you to destroy us. We are good people. On and on and on, all the way till the end. And then finally it ends with chapter 21. In chapter 21. It says this verse one. Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth. For the first heaven and the first earth has passed away. And the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, a new Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they'll be his people. And God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes and death shall be no more. Neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore. For the former things have passed away. And he who was seated on the throne said, behold, I'm making all things new. Also he said, write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true. And he said to me, it is done. I'm the alpha and the omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I'll give from the spring of the water of life without payment. The one who conquers will have this heritage. And I will be his God, and he will be my son. But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death. God says, you know what? I've had this plan to restore this portion of mankind from my glory. And at the end, they're going to see the result of their faithfulness and their courage and their willingness to stand when it was tough. And I'm going to have this new existence with them. This is what I created man to do. And they're gonna be my children. I'm gonna be their God. I'm gonna be right there with them. It's not that I'm gonna be this God that you have to pray to out there. You're gonna be right there with me and I'm gonna rule. I'm gonna wipe every tear away from your eyes. There's gonna be no more pain, no more sickness, no more death. That was God's intention from the beginning that he will bring to fruition. He goes, write this down. Cause this is so true. This is trustworthy. You can count on it. It's going to happen. God created this world and he said it was good. He created mankind. We rebelled, and he says, I will bring you back to me. While many will run away, there will always be a remnant. There will always be this group Whether it's Noah or Moses or Joshua or Peter, James, John, and some of you in this room, he goes, I'm going to bring you back to myself because you believe in me. It's an amazing picture that we're a part of. And now my whole existence, the whole reason why I exist, the Bible says, is because God gave me the ministry of reconciliation. You know, Paul says, knowing the fear of God, we persuade men, the whole reason why I exist is to try to persuade you the same way Noah did, the same way Jeremiah did, the same way Jesus did, the same way Peter did. And say, draw near to God. What more could you ask a God who gave his Son to pay for your sins, and yet you're going to embrace your sins rather than Him. Draw near to him. That's why we exist. I'm a part of something far bigger. And so if you hear all of this, what God has done for you, and your biggest worry Tomorrow is your 401k. I go, you don't get it. We're a part of something so much bigger, so much greater. A God who's redeeming us for his own glory. I'm going to have the worship team come up and we're just going to spend some time worshiping him for what he's done for us, taking our minds off everything else, because this is the picture that matters. And if at this time you just feel like, well, I've never. I've been rejecting God, I've been rejecting. I've been one that he's been patient with, and he just. He's given me sign after sign, friend after friend, message after message, and you keep pushing him, pushing him, pushing away. But now you see the big picture and you go, you know what? I don't want to push him away forever because I see the end and I want to be a part of that remnant. If that's you, you can come forward, pray with someone, get baptized today. Or maybe some of you, you've been in your own little world and looking at this little thing, and you just lost sight of what life is all about. And you've lost all your joy, all your peace, because you're looking at this one little picture and maybe you see something bigger now. I hope you do. And if that's you and just need some prayer, there'll be some people in the prayer room. But the rest of us, let's just think about what God's done for us and let's look beyond our little world that's all gonna burn anyways. And let's just worship this God.

[Podcast Host]

Thank you for listening to the Crazy Love Podcast. Join us next week for for a new episode, but until then, for more resources from Crazy Love Ministries or to support the work of Crazy Love, please visit our [e-mail].

[Sam]

Sam.