A hurried conversation. A familiar face we haven’t checked on. A need we notice but aren’t sure how to meet. Everyday moments give us reasons to pause and ask a simple question: Do we care?

Throughout the Bible, God’s care for people and His call to love Him and one another invite us to consider how we respond. Join us as Jo Ann Krulatz shares “Do You Care?” Come ready to consider that question in your own life.

Sermon Notes

Big Idea: Genuine Christ-like care notices overlooked people, crosses dividing lines, invites others to follow Jesus, and expresses concern as a church in tangible, timely ways.

Overview

Jo Ann asked a searching question: “Do you really care, or do you only go through the motions?” A porch-side encounter where a hurting woman said, “You don’t really care,” set the tone. Looking to Jesus, Jo Ann showed how personal compassion begins with seeing the people right in front of us, daring to step over social and cultural barriers, and extending personal invitations to follow Him. It then moved to the corporate level, holding up the church in Philippi as a model of a congregation that backed its concern with practical help. Caring, the pastor concluded, blesses both giver and receiver and multiplies the witness of Christ in the world.

Key Scripture

• Mark 10:46-52 — Foundational example: Jesus notices Bartimaeus and meets his need.
• John 4:4-26 — Crossing barriers: Jesus engages a Samaritan woman despite social taboos.
• Matthew 9:9-13 — Inviting the outcast: Jesus calls Matthew and eats with “tax collectors and sinners.”
• Philippians 4:10-19 — Model church: the Philippians express care through timely, sacrificial giving.

Main Points

1. Personal Care Begins by Seeing Who Is Right in Front of You

• Bartimaeus, ignored by the crowd, shouted for mercy; Jesus stopped and called him.
• Application: notice neighbors who are homebound or routinely overlooked. Compassion starts with awareness.

2. Cross the Lines That Divide

• Jews avoided Samaritans, yet Jesus asked the woman at the well for water, addressing her spiritual thirst.
• Social, cultural, religious, and political boundaries must not keep believers from offering Christ’s love.
• Reaching the world grows when we choose to step over the barriers that separate us.

3. Invite People into Relationship with Jesus

• Jesus said “Follow Me” to Matthew, a despised tax collector, then shared a meal with his friends.
• We do not need all the answers; we need the conviction that every person is worthy of dignity and love.
• Practical step: open your life and table to people you would normally avoid.

4. Marks of a Caring Church (Lessons from Philippi)

1. Express concern tangibly — words of sympathy become real through concrete help.
2. Seize opportunities promptly — sensitivity to need overrides convenience and schedules.
3. Share in the lives of others — partnership in ministry multiplies impact; giving links stories.
4. Receive mutual blessing — caring shifts focus from self to others, meeting both sets of needs.

Application

The call: Open your eyes, cross the lines, invite others, and let our congregation be known as a church that truly cares.

Head — Recognize the biblical pattern: Jesus noticed, crossed barriers, and invited; the Philippians acted on concern.

Heart — Ask God to soften indifference and fill you with compassion for the person others ignore.

Hands

1. Identify one overlooked person this week and offer practical help or a listening ear.
2. Take one deliberate step across a cultural or social divide—share a meal, start a conversation.
3. Participate in a church ministry or offering that meets real needs promptly.

Reflection Questions

1. When have you, like Charles Myers, been told—or felt—that you didn’t truly care?
2. Who is the “Bartimaeus” sitting unseen on your daily path?
3. What social or cultural line do you find hardest to cross, and why?
4. How can your small group or congregation express concern tangibly, as the Philippians did?
5. What blessing have you experienced when you shifted attention from yourself to someone else’s need?

Prayer

Lord Jesus, open our eyes to the people You place in front of us and the needs we have missed. Give us courage to cross every dividing line, grace to invite others into Your family, and generosity to act together as a caring church. May our words and deeds reflect Your compassionate heart, bringing Your goodness into the world. We ask this in Your name. Amen.

Recorded October 25th, 2026
Message by Jo Ann Krulatz