Loving the World: Loving the People Jesus Loves

Watch the full sermon on YouTube: https://youtu.be/AZSlvYWD-ug?si=5QgNW3MUJIZ2x3fs

Listen to the sermon on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/640osSH9vBkihuoSx7yYu2?si=f9fed2b7d7b64640

March 22, 2026

II Peter 3:9 and II Samuel 9

HELP  •  HOPE  •  HOME

You Were Made for This: Loving the People Jesus Loves

There's probably someone in your life right now who is not easy to love. Maybe it's the coworker who gets under your skin. Maybe it's a family member whose choices leave you shaking your head. Maybe it's the neighbor you quietly hope doesn't wave when you're heading to your car. We've all been there — and if you're anything like me, you've also felt the quiet guilt that comes with admitting it.

But here is the thing. Jesus doesn't pick favorites. He doesn't love the lovable and sidestep the rest. He loves all of them. Every difficult, complicated, hard-to-reach person in your world — Jesus loves them as fiercely and completely as He loves you. And somewhere in the middle of that truth is a calling: we are invited to love the people He loves.

An Invitation Worth Accepting

That is easier said than done, of course. Loving people — really loving them, the way Jesus does — asks something of us. It requires us to get out of our comfort zones, to see past what is inconvenient, and sometimes to love people who will never say thank you. But the invitation is still standing. And I believe with my whole heart that this is one of the most important things we can do as followers of Christ.

Our church exists to offer Help, Hope, and Home to the people in our community and beyond. Those aren't just words on a wall — they are a mission. And that mission is fueled by love: the same love that compelled Jesus to walk dusty roads, stop for the outcast, and ultimately give His life for a world that wasn't sure it wanted Him.

So let's talk about what it actually looks like to love the people Jesus loves — even the ones who make it hard.

A God Who Is Patient Beyond Measure

Before we talk about loving other people, we need to sit for a moment in the reality of how much we are loved.

"The Lord does not delay his promise, as some understand delay, but is patient with you, not wanting any to perish but all to come to repentance." — 2 Peter 3:9 (CSB)

Read that again. Not wanting any to perish. That means the person you find most difficult to love? God loves them. He is patient toward them. He is waiting and working and hoping for them, just as He once was for you.

The backdrop of 2 Peter 3 is a larger conversation about the end of all things. The prophets spoke soberly of that day — skies rolled back, the sun and moon going dark, the very heavens shaking (Isaiah 34:4; Joel 3:15–16). Jesus Himself described signs and cosmic upheaval that would precede His return (Matthew 24; Mark 13; Luke 21). The book of Revelation echoes it powerfully — a day when every person will face the reality of standing before a holy God (Revelation 6:12–17). These passages are not meant to terrify us, friend. They are reminders that time is real, it moves forward, and one day it will stop. The urgency is real.

And yet, in the middle of all of that tension, Peter writes: God is patient. He is not slow. He is waiting — for people. For your neighbor. For your estranged sibling. For the coworker who pushes every one of your buttons. That patience should change how we see the people around us. It should stir something in us, because the clock is ticking and the door is still open.

Grace That Finds You in the Broken Places

Let me tell you about a man named Mephibosheth.

After the death of King Saul and his son Jonathan, David — now king of all Israel — asked a remarkable question: "Is there anyone remaining from the family of Saul I can show kindness to for Jonathan's sake?" (2 Samuel 9:1, CSB). He had every political reason to forget the house of Saul entirely. The former king's family could represent a rival to his throne. But David had made a covenant with his dearest friend Jonathan, and love kept that covenant alive long after Jonathan was gone. They found Mephibosheth — Jonathan's son, who was crippled in both feet — hiding in a place called Lo-debar, a name that means no pasture. He was forgotten. He was marginalized. He was living in a kind of exile.

And David brought him to his table.

Can I be honest with you? That story moves me every single time. Because Mephibosheth's response says everything. He asked David, "What is your servant, that you take notice of a dead dog like me?" (2 Samuel 9:8, CSB). He didn't believe he deserved a seat at the king's table. And maybe you've felt that way too — unworthy of what God is offering you.

But worthiness was never the point. 2 Timothy 1:9 tells us God "saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began." Before time began. He decided to love you before you ever had a chance to earn it or ruin it.

"For God loved the world in this way: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him." — John 3:16–17 (CSB)

You have a seat at the King's table not because you earned it, but because He loves you. You may feel unworthy — most of us do at one point or another — but the gifts of forgiveness and a forever home with God are available to every one of us who receives them through trusting Jesus Christ. And that undeserved, breathtaking grace is exactly what we are meant to carry to the people around us. Grace received is grace shared.

See What Jesus Sees

Matthew 9:35–38 is one of my favorite passages in all of Scripture, because in just a few lines it shows us the full arc of what God is asking us to do.

"Jesus continued going around to all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and every sickness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were distressed and dejected, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, 'The harvest is abundant, but the workers are few. Therefore, pray to the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into his harvest.'" — Matthew 9:35–38 (CSB)

Did you catch that? Jesus saw the crowds and had compassion. He didn't see inconveniences. He didn't see problems. He saw people who were distressed and dejected — and His heart broke for them. In the original Greek, that word for compassion is visceral. It describes something that moves in your gut, that pulls you forward. It is not a polite feeling. It costs you something.

And here is what I've noticed: every time we allow ourselves to be moved like that — every time we look at someone in need and choose not to turn away — something happens inside us. Our character is strengthened. We become a little more like the person we were created to be. Compassion is not only a gift to the person who receives it. It changes the one who gives it.

Notice also what Jesus does next. He doesn't hand His disciples a ten-step plan or a volunteer sign-up sheet. He says: pray. Pray to the Lord of the harvest to send out workers. The first step in loving the people Jesus loves is asking Him to open your eyes to see them. Pray for eyes of compassion. Pray that your heart would break for what breaks His. And pray — this is the challenging one — for the people you don't like. Because they are also in that harvest field. They are also His beloved.

Putting Love Into Action

So what does loving the people Jesus loves look like on a regular Tuesday afternoon? Or a Saturday morning when you'd rather be anywhere else?

"Just as each one has received a gift, use it to serve others, as good stewards of the varied grace of God." — 1 Peter 4:10 (CSB)

You have something to give. Every single one of us has been entrusted with gifts — not to hold onto, but to steward. 1 Peter 4:10 is clear: those gifts are for others. The goal is serving, not showcasing.

Loving the people Jesus loves requires humility. Choosing to set aside your preferences, your comfort, even your time — for the sake of someone else. That kind of love chooses to spend time with people who have fewer material blessings, people whose lives look different from yours, people who see the world through an entirely different lens. That kind of intentional contact — a meal shared, a conversation held, an afternoon volunteered — changes both of you. You don't walk away the same.

Wisdom matters here too. Jesus was not naive, and He doesn't ask us to be either. Be discerning in your generosity. Not every outstretched hand is reaching in good faith, and loving people well means being thoughtful, not just impulsive. You can be both generous and wise. You can be both open-hearted and careful.

And sometimes loving the people Jesus loves means crossing borders you've never crossed before. Following and supporting a missionary serving in a developing nation is one of the most powerful ways to extend love to people you may never meet this side of eternity. Your prayers go further than you know. Your giving opens doors you'll never see. There are people in corners of the world who are distressed and dejected — sheep without a shepherd — and your faithfulness makes it possible for a worker to go.

The Greatest Reception

Here is where it all comes together, friend.

On your own, none of us are worthy of what God is offering. Not one of us has done enough, been enough, or loved enough to earn forgiveness of sins and a place in heaven. But God, in His grace, has opened the door anyway. The greatest reception imaginable — an eternal home with the King of Kings — awaits everyone who receives His gifts through faith in Jesus Christ. Not because we deserve it, but because He loves us.

Knowing that — sitting with the reality that you didn't earn your seat at the table any more than Mephibosheth earned his — should make it very difficult to look at the people around you and withhold what God has freely given you. You were not loved so you could keep it. You were loved so you could give it away.

Each act of compassion strengthens you. Each prayer prayed for someone difficult softens something in you. Each hour volunteered, each boundary crossed, each gift used in service to another — all of it shapes you into the person God always intended you to be. The mission of Help, Hope, and Home is not a church slogan. For those who follow Jesus, it is a way of life.

The World Is Still Watching

People around us are distressed and dejected. They are searching for something real — something that holds when everything else shakes. They have seen enough performance, enough religion for show, enough love that comes with conditions. What they haven't seen enough of is the real thing.

And we have it. Not because we're remarkable people, but because we know Someone who is.

Loving the people Jesus loves is not always comfortable. Honestly? Sometimes it is downright hard. But hard and worthy are not the same thing. The urgency of the hour is real. Time is moving. And right now, today, there are people in your world who are waiting — maybe without even knowing it — for someone to show up with Help, Hope, and Home.

You were made for this. Now go live it.

PLAN OF ACTION

Knowing is not the same as doing. Here are some practical steps to begin loving the people Jesus loves — right where you are, starting right now.

DAILY

• Begin each morning by asking God to open your eyes to the people around you who need help, hope, or a sense of belonging. Ask Him specifically to make you aware.

• Pray for one person you find difficult to love. Ask God to give you His perspective on them — to see them the way He sees them.

THIS WEEK

• Identify one person in your immediate circle who has fewer resources or opportunities than you. Make intentional contact — a conversation, a shared meal, or a simple act of service that costs you something.

• Humble yourself in one specific situation where you might normally assert your preferences or comfort. Choose someone else first.

THIS MONTH

• Volunteer one afternoon or evening with a local organization that serves people who are less fortunate. Show up with your whole self, not just your wallet.

• Research one missionary or mission organization working in a developing nation. Commit to praying for them regularly. Consider what it might look like to give financially and consistently.

ONGOING

• Identify and use your spiritual gifts in active service to others (1 Peter 4:10). If you're unsure what your gifts are, ask your pastor or a trusted mentor to help you discover them.

• Stay wise and discerning in your generosity. Love boldly and thoughtfully, as Jesus modeled — compassionate and clear-eyed at the same time.

• Keep saying yes to the uncomfortable places. Spend time with people who are different from you, who have less than you, who see the world differently. That is where character is formed and where God's love is most powerfully displayed.

Grace received is grace given. Go love the people Jesus loves.