WEBVTT 00:00:02.039 --> 00:00:04.419 Welcome to the official podcast of the Church 00:00:04.419 --> 00:00:06.960 of Christ Wheeler area. We're so glad that you've 00:00:06.960 --> 00:00:09.439 tuned in for today's message. Whether you're 00:00:09.439 --> 00:00:11.660 on your morning commute or if you're relaxing 00:00:11.660 --> 00:00:13.640 at home, we're here to share the strength and 00:00:13.640 --> 00:00:16.640 truth of God's Word with our community. If you're 00:00:16.640 --> 00:00:18.260 in the neighborhood, we'd love to meet you in 00:00:18.260 --> 00:00:21.899 person. Come see us at 1500 South Allen L. Bean 00:00:21.899 --> 00:00:24.879 Boulevard right here in Wheeler, Texas. We gather 00:00:24.879 --> 00:00:27.879 every Sunday morning at 1030 a .m. and in the 00:00:27.879 --> 00:00:30.760 afternoon at 230 p .m. We meet again on Wednesdays 00:00:30.760 --> 00:00:34.359 at 7 p .m. Right now, let's open our Bibles together 00:00:34.359 --> 00:00:42.740 and dive into today's sermon. You know, this 00:00:42.740 --> 00:00:45.740 world presents many challenges for us, especially 00:00:45.740 --> 00:00:48.880 as God's people. There are things that we don't 00:00:48.880 --> 00:00:52.109 like that occur in this world. There are things 00:00:52.109 --> 00:00:53.850 about our government we don't like. There are 00:00:53.850 --> 00:00:55.729 things about society we don't like. There are 00:00:55.729 --> 00:00:58.329 things about pop culture that we don't like. 00:00:59.070 --> 00:01:02.549 And that's because they stand in direct contradiction 00:01:02.549 --> 00:01:06.329 to what we believe, which is God's Word. But 00:01:06.329 --> 00:01:09.329 it goes beyond that. There are multiple wars 00:01:09.329 --> 00:01:13.129 going on in this world. There's just a lot to 00:01:13.129 --> 00:01:15.650 worry about. And we as a people have so many 00:01:15.650 --> 00:01:19.310 things coming at us at any given time. We have 00:01:19.310 --> 00:01:22.019 all of those things. And then we have all of 00:01:22.019 --> 00:01:23.719 these things in the news that come toward us 00:01:23.719 --> 00:01:25.519 and then we have all of the things in our society 00:01:25.519 --> 00:01:28.939 that comes toward us. It's a lot to digest and 00:01:28.939 --> 00:01:32.379 it's a lot to process. Where do we spend our 00:01:32.379 --> 00:01:37.060 time? Where do we spend our effort? Do we seek 00:01:37.060 --> 00:01:41.140 out to find things that give us hope? Or do we 00:01:41.140 --> 00:01:45.920 spend our time looking at things that help us 00:01:45.920 --> 00:01:49.359 grow fears within ourselves? And that's the question. 00:01:49.880 --> 00:01:53.480 Are we cultivating a life that is built on hope, 00:01:53.620 --> 00:01:56.540 or do we keep going back to that same thing that 00:01:56.540 --> 00:01:59.560 gives us those fears that keep cropping up in 00:01:59.560 --> 00:02:02.420 our lives? You know, if you look at social media, 00:02:02.459 --> 00:02:05.239 what we know about social media is if there's 00:02:05.239 --> 00:02:07.560 something that you like to read about or something 00:02:07.560 --> 00:02:11.259 like that, it's gonna keep feeding that. And 00:02:11.259 --> 00:02:13.659 so if I'm looking at these things that give me 00:02:13.659 --> 00:02:16.639 fear in my life, it's gonna keep showing things 00:02:16.639 --> 00:02:20.460 that cause fear. And we have to recognize that 00:02:20.460 --> 00:02:24.280 and know that, that those things are what this 00:02:24.280 --> 00:02:28.680 world has to offer us. It's not what God wanted 00:02:28.680 --> 00:02:31.960 in our lives. He did not expect us to be a people 00:02:31.960 --> 00:02:36.599 of fear. Quite the opposite. He gives us hope 00:02:36.599 --> 00:02:38.539 through His Son, and that's the life that He 00:02:38.539 --> 00:02:45.009 wanted us to have. A life of hope. Fear as we 00:02:45.009 --> 00:02:47.629 know is an unpleasant often strong emotion caused 00:02:47.629 --> 00:02:51.449 by anticipation of awareness of danger anxious 00:02:51.449 --> 00:02:54.610 concern Now we look at that and we often think 00:02:54.610 --> 00:02:59.210 well fear is must be physical things not so In 00:02:59.210 --> 00:03:02.789 our case many of times. It's not a fear of physical 00:03:02.789 --> 00:03:06.090 harm It's more of a fear of what may happen in 00:03:06.090 --> 00:03:10.360 our lives if some adverse event occurs And that 00:03:10.360 --> 00:03:13.639 can be something as simple as you're afraid you're 00:03:13.639 --> 00:03:17.479 going to fail a math exam. That causes us to 00:03:17.479 --> 00:03:20.560 have fear in our lives. And that's not what we 00:03:20.560 --> 00:03:23.479 want. On the other hand, hope is the desire of 00:03:23.479 --> 00:03:27.900 a company by expectation of or belief in fulfillment 00:03:27.900 --> 00:03:31.620 or success. Now we look at that and we think, 00:03:31.819 --> 00:03:35.360 okay, I want to hope for certain things. I can 00:03:35.360 --> 00:03:37.580 hope for certain things, but unless there's an 00:03:37.580 --> 00:03:41.159 expectation, or belief in fulfillment, that's 00:03:41.159 --> 00:03:45.060 actually not a hope. I have no hope in certain 00:03:45.060 --> 00:03:47.300 things. I have no hope of becoming president 00:03:47.300 --> 00:03:49.159 in the next 10 minutes. It's just not going to 00:03:49.159 --> 00:03:52.979 happen. But if I have hope in things that are 00:03:52.979 --> 00:03:56.219 able to be accomplished, then I start setting 00:03:56.219 --> 00:04:00.759 goals, I start setting milestones toward that 00:04:00.759 --> 00:04:04.159 hope to help me accomplish that thing. So as 00:04:04.159 --> 00:04:07.939 we go through here, keep those two in mind. That 00:04:07.939 --> 00:04:12.080 hope should have an expectation of success. In 00:04:12.080 --> 00:04:14.400 Proverbs 10 and 24, it says, the fear of the 00:04:14.400 --> 00:04:17.180 wicked, it shall come upon him, but the desire 00:04:17.180 --> 00:04:20.379 of the righteous shall be granted. You know, 00:04:20.560 --> 00:04:23.279 fear gone unchecked will consume us. It'll take 00:04:23.279 --> 00:04:26.819 everything we have, all of our emotion. It'll 00:04:26.819 --> 00:04:29.800 take all of our energy. It'll take our motivation 00:04:29.800 --> 00:04:33.879 to do things. It'll take all of that from us 00:04:33.879 --> 00:04:37.420 if it's gone unchecked. And too many times we've 00:04:37.420 --> 00:04:40.779 seen in the past in history different events 00:04:40.779 --> 00:04:42.980 that have occurred where people gave into that 00:04:42.980 --> 00:04:46.360 type of stuff. You know, one of the lesser known 00:04:46.360 --> 00:04:50.139 events like that was back in 2012. The end of 00:04:50.139 --> 00:04:52.980 the Mayan calendar. It was known as the Mayan 00:04:52.980 --> 00:04:55.939 calendar apocalypse. And many of you may have 00:04:55.939 --> 00:04:58.519 never even heard of this because really the only 00:04:58.519 --> 00:05:00.800 reason I know about it, I remember Logan asking 00:05:00.800 --> 00:05:04.089 about this when he was really young. Well, they're 00:05:04.089 --> 00:05:07.550 saying it's gonna be the end of the world Because 00:05:07.550 --> 00:05:11.610 some calendar by a certain people Didn't have 00:05:11.610 --> 00:05:14.389 a next year on it. That was all there was to 00:05:14.389 --> 00:05:16.790 it There were movies made about this where there 00:05:16.790 --> 00:05:19.709 was all kinds of newsreels and everything all 00:05:19.709 --> 00:05:24.310 of this to cultivate fear in people You know 00:05:24.310 --> 00:05:26.930 serious enough that NASA actually came out and 00:05:26.930 --> 00:05:30.769 did a Frequently asked questions on what it meant 00:05:30.769 --> 00:05:35.019 what it was You had all of these things and these 00:05:35.019 --> 00:05:39.100 fears built up in people over a non -event. When 00:05:39.100 --> 00:05:41.339 they asked the Mayan people, okay, what does 00:05:41.339 --> 00:05:43.980 it mean? There is no continuation after this. 00:05:44.160 --> 00:05:47.339 They said it's the end of a period. That's it. 00:05:48.759 --> 00:05:50.899 Much like when you go to the bank on January 00:05:50.899 --> 00:05:52.959 1st, you get your new calendar. You take the 00:05:52.959 --> 00:05:54.980 old one down, you put the new one up. That's 00:05:54.980 --> 00:05:58.370 all this amounted to. It was blown out of proportion 00:05:58.370 --> 00:06:01.089 and people were fed these things over and over 00:06:01.089 --> 00:06:04.029 and they stockpiled food And they made preparations 00:06:04.029 --> 00:06:09.470 for the end of the world that never came Now 00:06:09.470 --> 00:06:12.529 that seems kind of kind of funny doesn't it and 00:06:12.529 --> 00:06:15.529 we look at that To think that people got that 00:06:15.529 --> 00:06:18.410 worked up over a non -event, but how many things 00:06:18.410 --> 00:06:23.160 do we have in our minds? That we succumb to Things 00:06:23.160 --> 00:06:26.480 that we hear about these things and it's just 00:06:26.480 --> 00:06:28.639 constantly a barrage of these things coming to 00:06:28.639 --> 00:06:32.019 us. And we worry about that. And it creates fear 00:06:32.019 --> 00:06:35.500 in us. And we waste time and resources and all 00:06:35.500 --> 00:06:38.519 of these things. Once again, that's not what 00:06:38.519 --> 00:06:41.519 God wanted in our lives. He wanted a life of 00:06:41.519 --> 00:06:45.319 hope. And this verse explains that the desire 00:06:45.319 --> 00:06:48.199 of hope of the righteousness, desire or hope 00:06:48.199 --> 00:06:52.470 of the righteous, will be granted. For the righteous 00:06:52.470 --> 00:06:54.709 the hope would have been to continue to serve 00:06:54.709 --> 00:06:58.029 God in that event What hope would we have if 00:06:58.029 --> 00:07:01.769 that had been the end of whatever? It would be 00:07:01.769 --> 00:07:04.269 our hope to continue to serve God and we should 00:07:04.269 --> 00:07:06.990 always keep in mind that God is in control And 00:07:06.990 --> 00:07:10.089 he is not bound by man or events that occur in 00:07:10.089 --> 00:07:14.129 this world When we hear about those things understand 00:07:14.129 --> 00:07:18.329 that God is not controlled by any of that He's 00:07:18.329 --> 00:07:21.509 not bound by anything that happens in this world 00:07:21.509 --> 00:07:24.550 and the funny thing when you look at that is 00:07:24.550 --> 00:07:27.230 When we think about things and we think oh man 00:07:27.230 --> 00:07:32.110 things have just gotten so bad here Surely the 00:07:32.110 --> 00:07:34.569 end of the world is about to be the wind of the 00:07:34.569 --> 00:07:36.189 world's got to be upon us because things are 00:07:36.189 --> 00:07:39.269 so bad And I think about that and I think you 00:07:39.269 --> 00:07:41.750 know what if Sean tried to go to Nigeria and 00:07:41.750 --> 00:07:46.129 explain that to these people The US is so bad 00:07:46.199 --> 00:07:49.839 It's got to be the end of the world. They would 00:07:49.839 --> 00:07:53.560 think he was crazy to think that we've got all 00:07:53.560 --> 00:07:55.660 of the resources and all of the things that we 00:07:55.660 --> 00:07:59.680 have and to think this is a terrible place because 00:07:59.680 --> 00:08:03.439 of whatever. That would be very hard to explain, 00:08:03.639 --> 00:08:06.759 wouldn't it? Because of their conditions and 00:08:06.759 --> 00:08:10.399 the conditions that they live in. And to think 00:08:10.399 --> 00:08:13.279 that we've got it so bad, it just must be the 00:08:13.279 --> 00:08:16.980 end of the world. When you think about that, 00:08:17.079 --> 00:08:20.379 it seems humorous. In John 20 and verse 19 it 00:08:20.379 --> 00:08:38.519 says, Now this was actually a great time of uncertainty. 00:08:38.980 --> 00:08:42.539 This was a great time of fear, where people actually 00:08:42.539 --> 00:08:46.070 had a reason. to fear what was going on around 00:08:46.070 --> 00:08:49.309 them, what was going on in society, what was 00:08:49.309 --> 00:08:51.929 going on that these people would come to them 00:08:51.929 --> 00:08:55.590 and actually threaten physical harm against them. 00:08:57.789 --> 00:09:02.870 Jesus has been crucified. These people had no 00:09:02.870 --> 00:09:06.409 idea what to expect at that time. They did not 00:09:06.409 --> 00:09:10.190 know, and yet they assembled together. And Christ 00:09:10.190 --> 00:09:13.250 is there, and He enters in, and what did He say? 00:09:14.039 --> 00:09:22.259 peace be unto you. Now I don't know what kind 00:09:22.259 --> 00:09:24.620 of mindset I would have been in at that time. 00:09:25.259 --> 00:09:27.279 That would have been a tough time, wouldn't it? 00:09:27.639 --> 00:09:30.220 And there would probably be some fear in all 00:09:30.220 --> 00:09:33.039 of our hearts if we were in that position, if 00:09:33.039 --> 00:09:36.659 we were there at that time. But Jesus said, peace 00:09:36.659 --> 00:09:41.340 be unto you. That's hard to do, isn't it? We're 00:09:41.340 --> 00:09:45.210 given those same Words of encouragement. We're 00:09:45.210 --> 00:09:47.929 told that very thing that no matter what's going 00:09:47.929 --> 00:09:51.809 on in this world To have that peace to have that 00:09:51.809 --> 00:09:57.929 hope that Christ allows us And I'm thankful we 00:09:57.929 --> 00:10:00.950 have these types of examples to look to when 00:10:00.950 --> 00:10:03.009 we think about these types of things to see that 00:10:03.009 --> 00:10:05.889 people were challenged in those times and their 00:10:05.889 --> 00:10:10.230 their faith and and their hope in Christ Was 00:10:10.230 --> 00:10:13.899 enough to deliver them No, God didn't interior 00:10:13.899 --> 00:10:17.299 intend for us to live in fear His desire was 00:10:17.299 --> 00:10:20.480 for us to live in love and serve him in second 00:10:20.480 --> 00:10:23.980 Timothy 1 in verse 7 It says for God hath not 00:10:23.980 --> 00:10:26.399 given us the spirit of fear but of power and 00:10:26.399 --> 00:10:30.259 of love and of a sound mind You know fear is 00:10:30.259 --> 00:10:36.240 not what God intended Fear of physical danger 00:10:36.240 --> 00:10:39.980 fear of what could be fear of failure and probably 00:10:39.980 --> 00:10:45.919 the most common fear of the unknown. You can 00:10:45.919 --> 00:10:48.100 see here on a slide, this was a study done back 00:10:48.100 --> 00:10:53.019 in 2019 at Penn State. Hundreds of people that 00:10:53.019 --> 00:10:55.659 were in this study reported worrying about at 00:10:55.659 --> 00:10:59.840 least one thing or event. And it was only things 00:10:59.840 --> 00:11:02.840 that could happen during the study. In other 00:11:02.840 --> 00:11:04.940 words, like we said, you may fear you're going 00:11:04.940 --> 00:11:07.639 to fail a math test, well okay, that happened 00:11:07.639 --> 00:11:10.559 during the study, we'll take that one. Fear that 00:11:10.559 --> 00:11:13.919 I may get cancer in my lifetime, they didn't 00:11:13.919 --> 00:11:16.139 use those types of fears because that was beyond 00:11:16.139 --> 00:11:19.480 the study. But of these things, 100 % of the 00:11:19.480 --> 00:11:21.220 people in the study report worrying about at 00:11:21.220 --> 00:11:26.179 least one thing or event. 91 % of all fears reported 00:11:26.179 --> 00:11:30.360 in the study never came true. Of the other 9 00:11:30.360 --> 00:11:34.360 % of worries that did come true, 33 % of the 00:11:34.360 --> 00:11:37.019 time the outcome was better than expected. And 00:11:37.019 --> 00:11:42.299 for 25 % of participants, exactly zero of their 00:11:42.299 --> 00:11:47.240 worries materialized. That tells you we waste 00:11:47.240 --> 00:11:50.220 a lot of time worrying about things that are 00:11:50.220 --> 00:11:53.820 never going to happen. We let those things come 00:11:53.820 --> 00:11:57.279 at us. And what we also know is we are an overstimulated 00:11:57.279 --> 00:12:02.009 population. And that has to do with the conveniences 00:12:02.009 --> 00:12:04.230 we have in this life that has to do with the 00:12:04.230 --> 00:12:06.669 communications we have in this life. It has to 00:12:06.669 --> 00:12:09.950 do with all sorts of things. But the bottom line 00:12:09.950 --> 00:12:12.850 is we are overstimulated with this type of stuff 00:12:12.850 --> 00:12:20.149 because it constantly comes at us. Remember, 00:12:21.110 --> 00:12:24.740 most of those fears are unfounded. especially 00:12:24.740 --> 00:12:27.460 the ones where we have the fear of the unknown. 00:12:27.700 --> 00:12:29.659 We don't know what's going to happen on this 00:12:29.659 --> 00:12:33.539 event so it creates fear in us. How do you solve 00:12:33.539 --> 00:12:36.860 that fear if we don't even know what it is we're 00:12:36.860 --> 00:12:39.899 afraid of? We just know we're afraid because 00:12:39.899 --> 00:12:42.460 we don't know what the outcome is going to be. 00:12:44.799 --> 00:12:48.320 Don't waste our time on that. Concentrate on 00:12:48.320 --> 00:12:51.899 hope rather than those fears. In Proverbs 29 00:12:51.899 --> 00:12:55.460 and 25 it says, the fear of man bringeth a snare, 00:12:55.700 --> 00:12:58.379 but whoso putteth his trust in the Lord shall 00:12:58.379 --> 00:13:02.700 be safe. The Lord says, it will be okay, so I 00:13:02.700 --> 00:13:07.019 can do what I need to do. When we're caught in 00:13:07.019 --> 00:13:09.720 this snare, we can't do what we need to do. I 00:13:09.720 --> 00:13:11.720 think it would be unwise to throw caution to 00:13:11.720 --> 00:13:13.559 the wind. There are certain things we should 00:13:13.559 --> 00:13:16.299 have caution about. We should make preparations 00:13:16.299 --> 00:13:18.740 and there are occurrences in our lives that we 00:13:18.740 --> 00:13:20.980 have no control over. And I'm not saying we should 00:13:20.980 --> 00:13:23.440 just throw all that away. What happens today 00:13:23.440 --> 00:13:26.419 happens today. We should make plans. We should 00:13:26.419 --> 00:13:30.399 make contingencies. But all of our effort, all 00:13:30.399 --> 00:13:33.039 of our concentration should not be on the things 00:13:33.039 --> 00:13:36.620 that may happen in this life. And to allow fear 00:13:36.620 --> 00:13:39.639 to consume and hold us captive prevents us from 00:13:39.639 --> 00:13:43.720 serving God as He would have us to do. In 1 John 00:13:43.720 --> 00:13:58.870 4, In verse 18, we read, You can't live in peace 00:13:58.870 --> 00:14:01.809 if you're trapped in fear, can you? You can't 00:14:01.809 --> 00:14:05.269 do it. Because that fear tries to consume you. 00:14:05.289 --> 00:14:08.009 It will take all the resources, all the emotion 00:14:08.009 --> 00:14:14.559 that you will give it. If I listen to everything 00:14:14.559 --> 00:14:17.580 in the media on the internet and that is my only 00:14:17.580 --> 00:14:20.919 consideration Then I'm leaving here and I'm going 00:14:20.919 --> 00:14:23.320 home and I'm boarding up my house and don't bother 00:14:23.320 --> 00:14:28.659 coming by I'm shutting it down Because the media 00:14:28.659 --> 00:14:32.500 all of those things they're after one thing attention 00:14:32.500 --> 00:14:35.919 their purpose of being there is to gather attention 00:14:35.919 --> 00:14:39.500 and So when we look at those things we have to 00:14:39.500 --> 00:14:43.200 understand that we have to weigh it that it's 00:14:43.200 --> 00:14:47.700 for attention. And while the information given 00:14:47.700 --> 00:14:50.620 there may be useful, it may be something that 00:14:50.620 --> 00:14:54.480 we can use, we have to take it for what it is. 00:14:56.000 --> 00:14:58.100 You know, if I were looking for a job right now, 00:14:58.120 --> 00:15:00.220 and these were the things I trusted with the 00:15:00.220 --> 00:15:04.039 media and the internet, then my approach would 00:15:04.039 --> 00:15:07.279 be very undesirable. And I heard this example, 00:15:07.779 --> 00:15:10.500 I think it was Dave Ramsey, several years ago. 00:15:10.519 --> 00:15:13.559 He gave this example. when talking about looking 00:15:13.559 --> 00:15:15.799 for a job. And it may have been through COVID 00:15:15.799 --> 00:15:17.360 or something like that, but there was something 00:15:17.360 --> 00:15:19.700 going on at that time. And I think it's very 00:15:19.700 --> 00:15:21.879 comparable to now because things I see on the 00:15:21.879 --> 00:15:23.539 internet says, nope, you're not finding a job. 00:15:23.700 --> 00:15:26.360 There's no sense in trying. But the example that 00:15:26.360 --> 00:15:28.220 he gave went something like this. First, I'd 00:15:28.220 --> 00:15:30.080 have to make the decision to get out of bed in 00:15:30.080 --> 00:15:32.500 the morning, but I've been told I won't find 00:15:32.500 --> 00:15:34.940 a job. So I really don't have much motivation 00:15:34.940 --> 00:15:38.350 to even do that. However, If I do decide to get 00:15:38.350 --> 00:15:40.429 out of bed, then I'll have to put some effort 00:15:40.429 --> 00:15:42.509 into looking for opportunities which I'm told 00:15:42.509 --> 00:15:45.929 don't exist. Once I'm granted an interview, I 00:15:45.929 --> 00:15:48.590 go where I'm told I won't be given a job in order 00:15:48.590 --> 00:15:51.090 to plead my case on why they should hire me. 00:15:51.590 --> 00:15:54.009 My fear of failure prevents me from putting my 00:15:54.009 --> 00:15:56.210 best foot forward, and the fear of not getting 00:15:56.210 --> 00:15:59.169 a job that I harbored is manifested in my poor 00:15:59.169 --> 00:16:02.389 performance. All of this because I had a fear 00:16:02.389 --> 00:16:06.399 of something unfounded. That is the torment that 00:16:06.399 --> 00:16:09.399 comes with fear. It keeps us from doing the things 00:16:09.399 --> 00:16:12.960 we know to do and that includes serving God. 00:16:16.980 --> 00:16:20.480 How many times have we been faced with something 00:16:20.480 --> 00:16:25.299 similar? How many times do we worry about the 00:16:25.299 --> 00:16:28.539 fears that we have and they keep us from doing 00:16:28.539 --> 00:16:32.080 what we know to do? It's one thing to not know 00:16:32.080 --> 00:16:34.360 how to go about doing something, but it's quite 00:16:34.360 --> 00:16:37.840 another when we have these fears that keep us 00:16:37.840 --> 00:16:43.919 from doing it. Unfortunately, that's within our 00:16:43.919 --> 00:16:47.799 control. We can choose. I'm not going to let 00:16:47.799 --> 00:16:50.340 that fear stop me. I'm going to do the things 00:16:50.340 --> 00:16:56.179 that I know I need to do. In 1 Peter 3 and verse 00:16:56.179 --> 00:17:00.389 13, It said, and who is he that will harm you 00:17:00.389 --> 00:17:04.369 if you be followers of that which is good? But 00:17:04.369 --> 00:17:06.829 and if you suffer for righteousness sake happy 00:17:06.829 --> 00:17:10.789 are ye and be not afraid of their terror neither 00:17:10.789 --> 00:17:15.089 be troubled It's like we said fear will consume 00:17:15.089 --> 00:17:17.809 you God has not given us the spirit of fear. 00:17:17.809 --> 00:17:20.710 We read that and love is not fear and fear is 00:17:20.710 --> 00:17:24.609 not love We're gonna harbor one of the other 00:17:25.019 --> 00:17:27.779 We're gonna harbor that fear or we're gonna harbor 00:17:27.779 --> 00:17:33.420 hope which comes from love and Fear will preoccupate 00:17:33.420 --> 00:17:36.519 occupy you with all the terror of what may or 00:17:36.519 --> 00:17:39.920 may not happen So why put so much effort into 00:17:39.920 --> 00:17:43.099 something that should be placed on Christ the 00:17:43.099 --> 00:17:47.160 things we have in this life, we know Prayer study 00:17:47.160 --> 00:17:49.680 those types of things that we can overcome these 00:17:49.680 --> 00:17:55.480 types of things and Yet we fail to do that If 00:17:55.480 --> 00:17:57.799 we subscribe to the spirit of fear, then we most 00:17:57.799 --> 00:18:00.859 certainly fail in everything we do. But lucky 00:18:00.859 --> 00:18:04.880 for us, God had a plan. The hope that we have 00:18:04.880 --> 00:18:07.579 has so much more power than the fear that we 00:18:07.579 --> 00:18:10.660 can place on ourselves. Remember, fear doesn't 00:18:10.660 --> 00:18:13.759 come from God, but a sound mind. And that's what 00:18:13.759 --> 00:18:18.039 he wants from us, is a sound mind. A mind focused 00:18:18.039 --> 00:18:20.920 on hope. And we can't concentrate on what's important 00:18:20.920 --> 00:18:24.339 in this life when we're frozen by fear. In Psalms... 00:18:24.380 --> 00:18:28.180 33 in verse 22 it says let thy mercy O Lord be 00:18:28.180 --> 00:18:32.000 upon us according as we hope and the You know 00:18:32.000 --> 00:18:34.359 the spiritual blessings we have in the far out 00:18:34.359 --> 00:18:37.700 way what anyone can do to us in this life We 00:18:37.700 --> 00:18:39.619 have those spiritual blessings They've been given 00:18:39.619 --> 00:18:42.579 to us and they could take our ability to assemble 00:18:42.579 --> 00:18:45.220 openly, but they can't take our ability to worship 00:18:45.220 --> 00:18:49.599 him. Can they? We've proven that we've gone out 00:18:49.599 --> 00:18:53.619 outside of here of this building, of this gathering 00:18:53.619 --> 00:18:58.420 together, in order to do that. We have examples 00:18:58.420 --> 00:19:00.880 where God's people worshipped in caves and under 00:19:00.880 --> 00:19:04.700 cover of night. They were not deterred out of 00:19:04.700 --> 00:19:08.359 fear from serving God. And that goes for every 00:19:08.359 --> 00:19:12.859 aspect of our life. Don't let fear hobble you 00:19:12.859 --> 00:19:16.400 from doing the things you know to do. In Psalms 00:19:16.400 --> 00:19:19.970 43 and verse 5, We read, Why art thou cast down, 00:19:20.069 --> 00:19:22.930 O my soul? And why art thou disquieted within 00:19:22.930 --> 00:19:26.089 me? Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him, 00:19:26.289 --> 00:19:29.670 who is the health of my countenance and my God. 00:19:30.549 --> 00:19:33.789 We can have many misplaced hopes in life that 00:19:33.789 --> 00:19:36.609 are outside of God. And I can hope for riches, 00:19:36.829 --> 00:19:38.809 thinking they'll solve my problems. But how many 00:19:38.809 --> 00:19:41.730 of us know people that have endless amounts of 00:19:41.730 --> 00:19:45.950 money, but a life full of problems? We all know 00:19:45.950 --> 00:19:49.569 those people. We can't assume that that's going 00:19:49.569 --> 00:19:52.829 to fix everything that we have a problem with. 00:19:54.289 --> 00:19:57.630 You know, there was a time when certain businesses 00:19:57.630 --> 00:20:00.970 were giving out these massive bonuses. You know, 00:20:01.009 --> 00:20:04.190 oh no, I've come in all this money. And we know 00:20:04.190 --> 00:20:06.750 at that time the government came in and taxed 00:20:06.750 --> 00:20:11.109 90 % of those bonuses. It was given and it was 00:20:11.109 --> 00:20:13.690 taken. It was lost as soon as it was granted. 00:20:15.079 --> 00:20:17.400 You know, you can't assume that one thing or 00:20:17.400 --> 00:20:19.579 another is going to solve all of our problems. 00:20:19.980 --> 00:20:22.319 But we can have hope of a different leadership. 00:20:23.119 --> 00:20:25.420 Or I'm sorry, we can have hope of a different 00:20:25.420 --> 00:20:28.200 leadership that will solve our problems. But 00:20:28.200 --> 00:20:30.220 the things we face today came from decisions 00:20:30.220 --> 00:20:34.700 made under several different leaderships. We 00:20:34.700 --> 00:20:37.160 can't think that one person is going to change 00:20:37.160 --> 00:20:40.819 all that. Or one person led to all of the problems 00:20:40.819 --> 00:20:44.119 that we have in this country. We can't assume 00:20:44.119 --> 00:20:48.200 that. And when we hope in God, we can trust that 00:20:48.200 --> 00:20:51.079 our loyalty and desire is placed on the right 00:20:51.079 --> 00:20:56.200 thing in this life. Psalm 71 and 14, but I will 00:20:56.200 --> 00:20:58.960 hope continually and will yet praise thee more 00:20:58.960 --> 00:21:01.859 and more. That's where we concentrate on what's 00:21:01.859 --> 00:21:04.720 important in life. We find fear in ourselves 00:21:04.720 --> 00:21:08.420 and we place that on Jesus. Those fears can be 00:21:08.420 --> 00:21:11.579 taken from us and we should avoid them where 00:21:11.579 --> 00:21:15.500 possible. You know, that verse doesn't say, but 00:21:15.500 --> 00:21:18.880 I will worry continually, morning, noon, and 00:21:18.880 --> 00:21:22.480 night, does it? That's not what it says, because 00:21:22.480 --> 00:21:25.720 worry doesn't fix any of our problems. It only 00:21:25.720 --> 00:21:30.200 makes them worse. You know, I used to ride bikes 00:21:30.200 --> 00:21:33.099 with a bunch of guys, and we would go to these 00:21:33.099 --> 00:21:38.329 races, and a new guy went with us one time. And 00:21:38.329 --> 00:21:41.630 so the main guy that we rode with, he was talking 00:21:41.630 --> 00:21:43.309 to this guy and he said, now you're going to 00:21:43.309 --> 00:21:45.390 want to be careful because that part of the track, 00:21:45.390 --> 00:21:48.730 you know, it gets very narrow. And the guy says, 00:21:48.869 --> 00:21:51.990 well, what if there's a rock in the track? And 00:21:51.990 --> 00:21:56.170 he says, don't look at the rock. He said, okay, 00:21:56.269 --> 00:21:58.390 don't look at the rock. I won't look at the rock. 00:21:59.029 --> 00:22:01.329 So we went through all of this and we got back 00:22:01.329 --> 00:22:03.329 and we waited and we waited for this guy and 00:22:03.329 --> 00:22:06.210 he finally showed up. And he said, what happened? 00:22:06.230 --> 00:22:09.369 Where were you? He said, well, I hit a rock in 00:22:09.369 --> 00:22:12.730 the track. He said, did you look at the rock? 00:22:13.210 --> 00:22:15.990 What do you think he said? He looked at the rock. 00:22:17.230 --> 00:22:19.910 Why is that a problem? He had told him, don't 00:22:19.910 --> 00:22:22.069 look at the rock. Look beyond the rock. Look 00:22:22.069 --> 00:22:25.150 where you're going to. Because if you look at 00:22:25.150 --> 00:22:27.569 the rock, the bike goes where you're focused. 00:22:28.569 --> 00:22:31.950 Focus down track. And he didn't do that, did 00:22:31.950 --> 00:22:37.029 he? He looked at the rock. He made a problem. 00:22:37.230 --> 00:22:40.789 out of a non -issue by placing his focus on the 00:22:40.789 --> 00:22:43.710 rock. If you learn nothing more this afternoon, 00:22:43.750 --> 00:22:48.569 learn this. Don't look at the rock. Don't look 00:22:48.569 --> 00:22:52.569 at the rock. Look beyond the rock. Look beyond 00:22:52.569 --> 00:22:56.930 whatever it is that's holding you back. You can't 00:22:56.930 --> 00:22:58.930 talk about fear and hope without talking about 00:22:58.930 --> 00:23:01.549 faith, and I want that to be first and foremost 00:23:01.549 --> 00:23:05.950 in what we learned this afternoon. Hope alone 00:23:06.889 --> 00:23:08.910 won't make us follow through with the things 00:23:08.910 --> 00:23:12.910 we need to do. It won't do it. We've got to have 00:23:12.910 --> 00:23:16.230 a faith that drives us, a faith that drives us 00:23:16.230 --> 00:23:18.470 to make those goals, a faith that drives us to 00:23:18.470 --> 00:23:21.210 meet those milestones to whatever it is we're 00:23:21.210 --> 00:23:24.109 trying to accomplish. If we bring that back to 00:23:24.109 --> 00:23:26.650 the study this afternoon, God gives us hope of 00:23:26.650 --> 00:23:29.769 a better life to come and our faith prompts us 00:23:29.769 --> 00:23:32.930 to do the things we have to do in order to obtain 00:23:32.930 --> 00:23:36.049 that life that we claim we want. We can do those 00:23:36.049 --> 00:23:39.309 things and our faith should drive us to do it. 00:23:40.430 --> 00:23:43.869 We have to be people of action. I want you to 00:23:43.869 --> 00:23:46.150 know that. We've got to be people of action. 00:23:46.190 --> 00:23:48.930 We've got to do the things we know to do. We've 00:23:48.930 --> 00:23:52.470 got to pursue the Christian life. We can't just 00:23:52.470 --> 00:23:54.390 let it happen to us because it's not just going 00:23:54.390 --> 00:23:58.970 to happen to you. We've got to pursue it. If 00:23:58.970 --> 00:24:01.170 we don't like our present situation, then we 00:24:01.170 --> 00:24:04.190 have to make changes to obtain a different situation. 00:24:04.490 --> 00:24:06.809 And this is true in our spiritual life as well 00:24:06.809 --> 00:24:09.789 as our physical life. If we don't like it, we 00:24:09.789 --> 00:24:13.009 have to change it. And if I don't have the spiritual 00:24:13.009 --> 00:24:15.410 life I want and God wills me to have, then I 00:24:15.410 --> 00:24:18.690 make changes to conform to His will. Not mine. 00:24:19.289 --> 00:24:25.410 I don't force His outcome to be what I want it 00:24:25.410 --> 00:24:30.190 to be. I have to force myself to conform to His 00:24:30.190 --> 00:24:32.960 will. And anything in my physical life that I 00:24:32.960 --> 00:24:35.440 don't like or need to change requires action 00:24:35.440 --> 00:24:37.640 in order to obtain a different set of characteristics. 00:24:38.779 --> 00:24:40.920 You know, it sounds simple, but once again, what 00:24:40.920 --> 00:24:45.000 often prevents us is fear. We have this fear 00:24:45.000 --> 00:24:48.079 to us as a people. We're scared of everything, 00:24:48.220 --> 00:24:52.119 it seems, in one way or another. And some people 00:24:52.119 --> 00:24:54.640 may not get it. No, I've just got a strong concern. 00:24:55.559 --> 00:24:59.240 That's fear. We've got to be able to make the 00:24:59.240 --> 00:25:01.380 changes that are required to have the life that 00:25:01.380 --> 00:25:04.039 we want. And again, whether that's physical, 00:25:04.140 --> 00:25:06.779 whether it's spiritual, either way, that's what 00:25:06.779 --> 00:25:11.920 has to be done. In Hebrews 6 and verse 18, that 00:25:11.920 --> 00:25:14.400 by two immutable things in which it was impossible 00:25:14.400 --> 00:25:17.140 for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation 00:25:17.140 --> 00:25:19.640 who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the 00:25:19.640 --> 00:25:22.539 hope set before us. which hope we have as an 00:25:22.539 --> 00:25:25.380 anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, 00:25:25.799 --> 00:25:28.200 and which entereth into that within the veil. 00:25:28.619 --> 00:25:31.180 That hope is an anchor for the soul. When we're 00:25:31.180 --> 00:25:34.000 pushed about by the world, and you will be pushed, 00:25:35.579 --> 00:25:42.839 we are anchored through His hope. We will be 00:25:42.839 --> 00:25:46.759 pushed, and we will be nudged. It's going to 00:25:46.759 --> 00:25:49.519 happen. And if we have that anchor like we're 00:25:49.519 --> 00:25:52.200 supposed to and that hope in our lives, that's 00:25:52.200 --> 00:25:55.220 what will keep us in line. And it gives us a 00:25:55.220 --> 00:25:57.539 hope of something far and above anything this 00:25:57.539 --> 00:26:00.720 life can offer. In Colossians 1 and verse 23, 00:26:01.140 --> 00:26:17.259 it says, who now rejoice in my sufferings for 00:26:17.259 --> 00:26:19.700 you and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions 00:26:19.700 --> 00:26:22.619 of Christ in flesh for his body's sake, which 00:26:22.619 --> 00:26:25.339 is the church. This is the refuge he's provided 00:26:25.339 --> 00:26:28.960 us in our current life. That's it. That's what 00:26:28.960 --> 00:26:31.339 we're looking for. That's where our focus has 00:26:31.339 --> 00:26:34.420 to be. The opportunity to gather here with those 00:26:34.420 --> 00:26:37.059 of like minds. That's what he's given us in the 00:26:37.059 --> 00:26:40.880 present time to help that focus stay on hope. 00:26:42.279 --> 00:26:44.519 When my hope is fainting, I can draw it from 00:26:44.519 --> 00:26:48.410 those around me, the others that are here, the 00:26:48.410 --> 00:26:51.910 ones that aren't harboring fear, the ones that 00:26:51.910 --> 00:26:55.490 have hope, the ones that exemplify hope. And 00:26:55.490 --> 00:26:58.130 when they're down, they can draw that from me. 00:26:59.170 --> 00:27:01.890 Just as pessimism is contagious, so is optimism. 00:27:02.609 --> 00:27:05.410 It's just as contagious, and we need to remember 00:27:05.410 --> 00:27:08.410 that and have an influence on those around us 00:27:08.410 --> 00:27:11.400 to keep that optimism in their lives. I may spend 00:27:11.400 --> 00:27:14.599 an entire week surrounded by pessimism, negativity, 00:27:14.900 --> 00:27:18.079 all of those things. But when I come here, I'll 00:27:18.079 --> 00:27:21.019 be uplifted by a people whose hope is centered 00:27:21.019 --> 00:27:24.799 on Christ. That's what he's given us in the current 00:27:24.799 --> 00:27:30.599 time. 1 Corinthians 13 and 13, the love chapter. 00:27:31.160 --> 00:27:33.839 And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three, 00:27:33.940 --> 00:27:36.819 but the greatest of these is charity or love. 00:27:37.740 --> 00:27:40.539 Love brings about the other two. If I love God 00:27:40.539 --> 00:27:42.180 and those around me, then I have faith and I 00:27:42.180 --> 00:27:44.819 have faith. I have hope of something better to 00:27:44.819 --> 00:27:50.240 come. Remember that. In Romans 12 and verse 12, 00:27:50.359 --> 00:27:52.980 it says, rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, 00:27:53.400 --> 00:27:57.079 continuing instant in prayer. We have much to 00:27:57.079 --> 00:28:00.180 be thankful for. I think we all know that. I 00:28:00.180 --> 00:28:02.140 don't think there's anybody here that takes what 00:28:02.140 --> 00:28:04.559 they have for granted. We know we're blessed 00:28:04.559 --> 00:28:07.609 and we should. Be thankful for those things. 00:28:08.069 --> 00:28:10.430 And this verse sums up what I hope we take with 00:28:10.430 --> 00:28:13.930 us this afternoon. Rejoice because we have hope 00:28:13.930 --> 00:28:16.730 in this life and for much more to come. Be patient 00:28:16.730 --> 00:28:19.369 in tribulation. When we're faced with things 00:28:19.369 --> 00:28:21.769 we don't like from this world or anything else, 00:28:21.970 --> 00:28:26.410 remember, God is in control. He's in control. 00:28:27.269 --> 00:28:31.180 And no one or no thing can change that. Take 00:28:31.180 --> 00:28:33.619 the hope we have through Christ and pray on those 00:28:33.619 --> 00:28:36.140 things. The effects will be much more positive 00:28:36.140 --> 00:28:40.319 than isolating ourselves. You know, I hope as 00:28:40.319 --> 00:28:42.740 a result of this study we'll have a better outlook 00:28:42.740 --> 00:28:45.599 on the current things we face. And that's the 00:28:45.599 --> 00:28:49.220 idea. Concentrate on what we have to face these 00:28:49.220 --> 00:28:52.440 things. Avoid those things that cause us to harbor 00:28:52.440 --> 00:28:55.299 fear, no matter what it is we're thinking of. 00:28:56.099 --> 00:28:59.319 Use what he's given us to get in through this 00:28:59.319 --> 00:29:03.509 life. You know, we've never been taught that 00:29:03.509 --> 00:29:07.410 hard times would not come, that challenges would 00:29:07.410 --> 00:29:10.750 not come, that fear wouldn't come. I think just 00:29:10.750 --> 00:29:13.410 the opposite. He's told us those times will come. 00:29:13.930 --> 00:29:15.930 And it's through hope that we'll make it through 00:29:15.930 --> 00:29:19.809 those times. And I hope that you'll get that 00:29:19.809 --> 00:29:25.230 from the study of this afternoon. Thank you for 00:29:25.230 --> 00:29:27.309 listening to today's sermon from the Church of 00:29:27.309 --> 00:29:30.000 Christ Wheeler area. We hope this message encouraged 00:29:30.000 --> 00:29:32.500 you and strengthened you in your faith this week. 00:29:32.940 --> 00:29:36.099 Don't forget the doors always open at 1500 South 00:29:36.099 --> 00:29:39.339 Allen L. Bean Boulevard at 10 30 a .m on Sundays, 00:29:39.660 --> 00:29:42.900 2 30 p .m on Sunday afternoons and recharge with 00:29:42.900 --> 00:29:46.480 us midweek on Wednesdays at 7 p .m. For more 00:29:46.480 --> 00:29:49.900 information or to hear past messages follow us 00:29:49.900 --> 00:29:52.759 on your favorite podcast platform. Look us up 00:29:52.759 --> 00:29:55.380 on Facebook and Instagram. We hope you have a 00:29:55.380 --> 00:29:57.339 blessed week and we'll see you next time.