The Fear Of Uncertainty, Part 1

Today on Fellowship in the Word pastor Bill Gebhart challenges you to become a fully functioning follower of Jesus Christ. He doesn't want to get anything that the enemy could use it for to make it even worse was the if you're worried about something fearful about something else first thing you is obvious you put your house in order. The very first this so that is the enemy about your habits. Habits one of the things you're doing joining us today on this additional fellowship in the world. Pastor Bill Gebhart Fellowship in the Words the radio ministry of Fellowship Bible church located in Metairie going Pastor Bill for now again shows us God's word.

It really doesn't matter if you're talking about now.

Back when, or in the future to then there's always something to be afraid of.

In fact, there's always something new that replaces something old that were afraid of smallpox is replaced by Ebola Nazis were replaced by Islamic terrorists. Even now among Islamic terrorist, Al Qaeda is being replaced by ISIS. There's plenty of scary things in the world today. The worldwide declining economy Argentina filing for bankruptcy.

11 other country say they will shortly. The meteoric rise of STD disease among our young people the globe is allegedly warming and the institution of marriage is steadily calling world can be a scary place known a lot of people live in fear of what they think the world can do to them in the past I've addressed that one several occasions, for the most part most of you have your fear of the world and check but many of you, if not most of you have a different kind of fear. I call it personal fears and these are the fears that rob you of peace.

These are the fears that create doubt in your heart and these are the fears that damage your testimony as a believer in Jesus Christ, and the first personal fear that I want to address in a series now on personal fears. Is this the fear of and certainty.

It's amazing to me how many of us are afraid of something uncertain what you think. Just for a moment is or something coming in your future something uncertain. Not sure about the financial was to be healthy could be relational but it's out there and already beginning to be afraid already are experiencing fear years ago we took out a billboard and I asked to give up bumper stickers and the title of it was certainty in a world of change me ideas, showing the hands of God holding the world in his hands, for the most part on a grand scale that gives us a little bit of comfort for what I have found is personal skill is harder for us. Life is uncertain, but God is not and we don't know what tomorrow holds.

But we do know who holds tomorrow so I want to deal with this fear of uncertainty and deal with it in kind of an unusual way. I want to do it through a man named Hezekiah in the book of second Chronicles in chapter 32 second Chronicles 32 for some of you this may be your first visit. The background is that Hezekiah is a king. He is the king of the southern kingdom. He is the king of Judah, which include the tribes of Judah and Benjamin. The year is 701 BC and 722 BC 21 years before this, the Assyrians came and captured the northern kingdom called Israel every king in Israel was evil in the sight of God and they were taken off into captivity and they became even to this day called the 10 lost tribes. They never made it back now.

Syria has decided to take its look at Judah and what happened with Hezekiah is what often happens with us the last two verses of chapter 31 tell us what was going on.

If this does. Hezekiah did throughout all Judah and he did what was good and right and true, before the Lord is God in every work which he began in the service of the house of God in law and in commandment seeking is God he did with all his heart and he prospered for 11 years.

Everything that Hezekiah did work. He cleaned the country out. Of all the false idols he restored worship of Yahweh. The worship of God, especially in the temple in Jerusalem. He's an interesting man in a really good game. He is personal friends with Isaiah the prophet. Everything is going well in his life and then uncertainty shows up. You see the way I want to preach this. Is this I do realize that for most of you. You haven't really worried that the Assyrians are the common attack your house.

There's no doubt about that.

That's not really something we worry about anymore, but it's interesting that if you think about it. The apostle Paul said in Ephesians chapter 6 that our struggle are battle if you me is not against flesh and blood.

It's not physical are battle he said is against wickedness and darkness in heavenly places in first Corinthians chapter 10 Paul was a writing to the church of Corinth and he was talking about the Exodus generation and want to happen to them and he said these things happen to them as an example for us and so what I want to look at is how does this apply to our lives, how is this an example for us and it's a great example when facing an uncertain future and trying to deal with your fears. The very first thing is we see the uncertainty surfaced in verse one after these acts of faithfulness's inaccurate king of Assyria came and invaded Judah and besiege the fortified cities and thought the break into them for himself. Judah is a small country extremely small Jerusalem as the center to the South Egypt and the great Egyptian Empire to the north east Assyria, the dominant empire in the world at that time. Normally the Egyptians and the Syrians with each other and kinda left Judah alone's inaccurate has a different idea. He decides is going to make Judah for himself now want to see the very first thing that happens the very first thing that Hezekiah does know when Hezekiah saw that's inaccurate had come, and that he intended to make war in Jerusalem. He decided with his officers and his warriors to cut off the supply of water from the springs which were outside the city, and they help them.

So many people assembled and stopped up all the springs in the stream which flowed through the region, saying, why should the kings of the Syria come and find abundant water and he took courage and he rebuilt all the wall that had been broken down any erected towers on any build another outside wall and strengthened the Milo and the city of David, and he made weapons and shields in great number is getting busy facing this future of uncertainty three things surface within the context of these verses. The first thing that he teaches us is this when you're facing an uncertain future.

Put your own house in order.

The very first thing you gotta do in a preemptive way is to put your house in order not want to see how he does this three steps that he takes a pudding's house in order.

The very first thing that he did was that he decided to cut off the water supply.

Now that's an armies life. The Assyrian army and will get to this much later is enormous and enormous army needs food and needs water even more so.

This is the very first thing were going to do is were going to cut off the water supply that's kind of interesting in light of what they're facing here.

I'm in a call he blocks off the bad and I'll tell you in a minute.

Why he doesn't want to give anything that the enemy could use as a foothold to make it even worse for his people as we have to do if you're worried about something or fearful about something uncertain.

The very first thing you've got to do is obvious he put your house in order, but you got a block off the bad, the very first thing you have to do within your own life. Is this what's the bad.

What gives the enemy a foothold in your life about your habits is what your habits.

One of the things you doing to you know you should be doing it all. One of the patterns you have for life. What are your attitudes you see you have to block those off. Let me illustrate that. If you have an uncertain future financially. You find yourself in financial difficulty.

Let me give you a very deep spiritual complicated solution as a first step stop spending just stop using. That's a bad habit shred to credit card. You see, you have to stop that now. If you surround yourself with friends who are just as ideological, immature and foolish with her money as you are, stop hanging out with your friends.

You see, the whole idea behind that is you gotta do something at the beginning is gotta be preemptive.

You got a block off the bad. The second thing he does as he mends the broken notice what he does with the wall.

Verse five says he took courage and he rebuilt all the wall that had been broken done erected towers on it. He takes what used to be an asset but is now liability and he fixes it. In other words, what were the walls around Jerusalem for the protection but by the way, if you have 95% of the perfect wall around the city and 5% is just an open broken down area. Are you protected no you see and that's what he does. He mends the broken took office he it takes a lot of work to do that. He took an assessment of his defenses, and so we better do something about this. Here's my question for you. You take an assessment of your own spiritual condition. See what is the authenticity of your walk with Christ really not sort of illustrated this way.

A lot of Christians I know. Especially the kind it 10 churches like this are all hat, no cattle Christians only mean by that is, they can talk the talk again.

They know Bible verses you know they can throw out Scriptures, they they got that. I think they can walk with Christ. The Monday through Saturday night walk with Christ is not there.

The walls which once were an asset and you see this so often you see people who come to Christ that I have this tremendous zeal and dedication to the Lord, but only last for season and then they start ignoring it and they started compromising and ignore God's word and then the wall started crumbling. You have to make an assessment.

If there's something in the future of your uncertain about, and you're afraid of what you have to do is you have to mend the broken in your life, and there is 1/3 thing that he does. He restores the week it says in the middle of verse five and he build another outside wall and strengthen the Milo and the city of David.

He made weapons and shields of great number he restores the week makes it an outer layer of walls. In other words he's doing all that he can. He says what we lack here we lack the ability to defend the city, so let's make it as defensive as we can. Let's build an outer wall so that we would have to walls. The question you have to ask yourself is where my week see what can I do to strengthen myself.

Is it possible you to spend more time in word. Is it possible you can spend more time in prayer is a possible can you strengthen your life spiritually, is it possible you can establish some sense of accountability with a more mature believer. Is that possible, connect, strengthen no notice. All of this is proactive and not under attack.

He's just uncertain about what's going to happen next. So he does this proactively when facing an uncertain future.

Put your house in order.

Block off the bad men the broken bolster the week. Secondly, when facing an uncertain future.

Get your heart in order, put your heart in order and that's what we see him doing verse six it says he appointed military officers over the people and he gathered them. He says in the square at the city gate and he spoke encouragingly to them and said to them, be strong and courageous. And here is do not fear or be dismayed because the king of Assyria. Don't let the king of Assyria scare you.

He said more because of all the horde that is with him for the one with us is greater when one with him, with him is only an arm of flesh, but with us is the Lord our God to help us in the fight our battles and the people relied on the words of Hezekiah the king of Judah when facing an uncertain future.

He puts the heart of the people in order how you do that.

The first thing you says you have to acknowledge and deal with your fear and deceit on the faces you can see when people are afraid he knows they're afraid he says we have to deal with our fear, he says them. Do not beef.

Do not fear or be dismayed.

If you want to do a really interesting study from a concordance of the Bible look at many times. Fear shows up and how many times God says in a variety ways. Fear not, don't be afraid only says that if you're believer in Jesus Christ and you have a relationship with God Almighty. What are you afraid of what are you afraid of me.

What we just singing Almighty Almighty, all-powerful and all loving, all good, I'm afraid. How many times, fear not, that's what he says they're putting in perspective. Fear is not reality. I know you think my fears now. It's not fear is not reality. Fear is an emotional response to what you think is reality, whatever it is you think is about to happen. Fear is your emotional response to that one commentator had an acrostic for fear that I liked. He says fear is this false evidence appearing real. And then were afraid you see. Then we become afraid, he says, look, you gotta put it in perspective. So what does he say he sounds like he's in the New Testament. He sounds like these apostle Paul. He sounds like he's Jesus Christ. Because what he is saying to the people. Is this greater is he that is a new that he lives in the world. Panel turf is the king of Assyria are not saying something like, look, God told us will never leave us or forsake us. You see, God told us that vengeance is mine, I will repay, God told us that why you told him that to take courage, put your fear in perspective and then for a long section here at something very very important if you gonna put your heart in order to limit the voices of influence in your life, limit the voices of influence in your life as a measure afraid she would. Hezekiah decided let me be the voice I'll be the voice for God. But what's what happens.

Verse nine. After this inaccurate king of Assyria sent his servants to Jerusalem while he was besieging mawkish blockages about 30 miles south west of Jerusalem so the northern king is already past Jerusalem is 30 miles southwest. That's where his army is is is what always forces with him against Hezekiah king of Judah, and against all Judah, who were Jerusalem and here's what he was saying, thus says the macro king of Assyria on what are you trusting that you are remaining in Jerusalem under siege.

Look, I sent word that I'm coming why are you staying what you trusting these. It is not Hezekiah misleading you to give yourselves over to die by hunger and by first saying the Lord our God will deliver us in the hand of the king of Assyria. He knows he has spies in Jerusalem.

He knows what Hezekiah saying is that what you're hearing don't stay there. You're going to die scary words on thing by the way, the enemy always has scary words. He's always trying to bring fear about our lives. It just continues.

He says has not the same. Hezekiah taken away his high places and his altars and said the Judah and Jerusalem you shall worship before one altar and on it you shall burn incense by the way, this is called misinformation. That wasn't what Hezekiah was doing, but that's what the macro thought he was doing snack room said by the way he's kind of a weird guy. Anyway, because now you can't worship God all over Judah you have to only worship him in the temple in Jerusalem know the altars that Hezekiah took away were the altars to the pagan gods.

He took them all away and he did centralize worship in the temple, but this is just misinformation. Then he says in verse 13 he says, do you not know what I am my father's have done all the peoples of the land that you know who I am. I'm's inaccurate and the son of Sargon. We are the dominant power of the world and by the way, maybe the coolest people whoever dominated the part of the world, Syrians, Ninevites of the story of Jonah never got so Jonah went to good minimum witness, the city, and Jonah said Celia and he's headed off for Spain.

And remember that some God finally got him to go and I've said when I've even preach those passages you have to understand the reputation of the Assyrians. Nineveh was a great city, but I remember meeting years and years ago that for about 30 miles as you approach Nineveh from any direction. One of its main gates at that mark. They started putting post in the ground with a point on the end of which they impel people that they had conquered and for 30 miles you would see the carcasses of the skeletons of people that killed and conquered so for 30 miles you're walking to the gate of Nineveh in your thinking.

These are rough people see these are brutal. That's what he is saying to macro sing.

The people didn't know you know I am having juicing with the great Assyrian Empire. See, what does that do have to go to the radio ministry of fellowship Lord, if you ever missed one of our broadcasting or maybe you just like the message one more time. Remember, you can Google a great website called one place.com that's one place.com and you can listen the fellowship and the word online event website you will find on today's broadcast but also many of our previous audio programs as well have Fellowship in the Word. We are thankful for those who financially support our ministry and make this broadcast possible.

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