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Today on Fellowship in the Word pastor Bill Gebhart challenges you to become a fully functioning follower of Jesus Christ.
It's a perception that we have that this is hopeless and the more we think about how hopeless the situation is more depressed. We get a notice he says I need to put my hope in God prior show yet praise him, see the good thing about saying that is suffering joining us today on this additional Fellowship in the Word pastor Bill Gebhart Fellowship in the Words the radio ministry of Fellowship Bible church located in Metairie, Louisiana. Let's join Pastor Bill Gebhart now is once again he shows us how God's word meets in his book called the gospel according to Joe, Mike Mason writes this, there is a point at which any man simply throws in the top is not abandon his faith, necessarily, he just gets thoroughly sick and tired of trying to put good face on things, and when things he is facing do not have anything good about them at all. This is not necessarily sin is just plain honesty. Job is a forthright and plainspoken man, the sort of person who's not afraid to say what is on his heart.
He said we need gradually to acknowledge that such uncommon honesty may be one of the greatest virtues a saint can possess minute, what would have to say that because you don't want to admit that I don't want to say I'm depressed I could even imagine your eye guy know what your looks at you like how what why is if you say that you're depressed that appears unspiritual you see what you not a spiritual man Christian should be depressed Christians, we are happy happy happy.
That's all we are told not to Moses say that Elijah speaking to David talk to Joe happy happy happy. Sometimes were overwhelmed using the first step is to recognize a just admit it.
That's what Job did by the way, if you have trouble recognizing a just look at the symptoms. Tears, lack of appetite can't sleep, realizing it every time you look yourself in the mirror at your affect just gets flatter and flatter my way. People usually notice that partof something wrong with you, and you try to push that small and no, I'm good. We have to admit it. So the first thing is to recognize your depression. The second step seems odd.
Researcher depression seems. Research your depression. On the one hand researcher biblically look for other people in the Bible that were depressed. See what God says to them how they work themselves out of that part of research, but you can even research depression in another way you can find out how do I get better. How are people in this world got better and explain this one of the most influential psychiatrist in the last century was called Dr. call manager and a famous American psychiatrist and Dr. manager was up speaking in a large audience about mental health and someone in the audience raise her hand and said, what would you advise a person to do if that person felt a nervous breakdown coming on this Bob in the 1960s. What would you tell them to do.
Everyone expected a great psychiatrist say you need to go see a psychiatrist immediately.
He did not. Dr. manager said Waterhouse go across town, find someone in need and do something for.
By the way, the research backs that up what they have found that for people who are depressed is that the most important single thing you can do is to do something changing behavior changes. Your thinking. What we end up thinking is no. I want to wait till my thinking changes then I'll change my behavior. Now it doesn't work that way when I was a student at the seminary and get an internship at a Dallas hospital under a Christian psychiatrist was Prof. of the school. I can still remember one particular man that he was treating with acute clinical depression in the mental muscle catatonic to me in a hospital bed and I can remember the doctor talking to him and said to him that I want to make a covenant with you and I would ask you to do something and up you have a couple days to do it, but once you start doing I want to do it every day and I'm thinking I wonder what is going to do. We gonna memorize Scriptures what's going to happen with this guy didn't look like is even responding and he said I want you to brush your teeth once a day. That was it.
Just brush it so the man nodded and needed, and then he had them get up and wash himself and brushes to put his bathrobe on and eventually walked around his room and out into the hall and eventually started walking the hall in three weeks. That man was in group counseling with other people were depressed. It was opening up about all the issues in his life. I can remember the doctor saying you have to change a behavior you have to just in some way change your behavior. By the way, what's the last thing in the world you want to do when you're depressed, anything you see that's the problem. What is the what is the great fuel for depression, isolation, you see, when David was really depressed. Where was he isolated in a cave when Elijah was really depressed.
Where was he isolated you see how this works. It works over and over Job and lost everyone he'd even lost the relationship with his wife and told him the curse God and die. He was losing his friends he lost everybody's respect in the community. He became isolated isolations. The fuel of depression she have to researcher depression and most importantly though, you have to replace your depression.
Come with me to Psalm 42 Psalm 42 Psalm 42 in Psalm 43 are really in Hebrew.
Only one song. It's not to Psalms this one and the writer of this piece to Psalms is a person is depressed when we show you how the press, they are verse three. My tears have been my food may and night while they say to me all day long.
Where's your God. Verse five.
Why are you in despair, O my soul, and why have you become disturbed within me for 60 my God. My soul was in despair within me. Verse nine. I will say to God, my rock, why have you forgotten me. Why don't go one morning because of the expression of the eternity.
Verse 11 winery in despair in my soul and why have you become disturbed.
He says within me and in chapter 43 in verse five.
Why are you in despair of my soul and why have you become disturbed within me is admitting it.
He recognize it. You knows is depressed but there's something else here using all this anguish. The psalmist figures out the conclusion of how do I get out of depression and that's verses one and two and by the way, almost always in Hebrew poetry in the Psalms your conclusions in the first two verses.
This is what he concludes.
He says as the deer pants for the water brooks, so my soul pants for you, O God. My soul thirst for God, for the living God, he says, when shall I come and appear before God knows what he needs as a deer pants for the water brooks of running deer running from a predator from a hunter trying to get water runs into the waters fast can I need to have water. He said that's what I'm doing.
I'm running to you is an amazing statement on his part, because what is it the we think we need when were depressed. We think we need relief. That's what I need I need relief I need to get better. That's what I need I need relief I need God. I need the presence of God. You see is not relief. The presence of God. Now, once I have the presence of God. The byproduct of that is relief. That's why would try anything for relief. That's what were so medicated because medicated. We say that gave me relief and it does for season. You see, it treats the symptoms but not the cause. So he's going to replace it. Verse eight he knows what's going to happen.
He says the Lord will command his lovingkindness in the daytime. I know what I can get from you lovingkindness that great working and we talk about all the time.
Hassett the single greatest were probably in the Old Testament other than names of God. It is God's grace, mercy, loyal love everything it's one word is Hassett is translated lovingkindness he has. I know you will give me what I need I need your grace and mercy and forgiveness and patience and love. That's what I need the Lord will command his lovingkindness in the daytime and his song will be with me in the night a prayer to the God of my life.
By the way also know something once a worse time to be depressed night is nighttime middle of the night's the worst because any going up and you can think about thinking and what you think about thinking.
The more you think and the more you think the more painful gets it's a circular cyst like quicksand. He knows that notice what he said will happen in the night and his song will be with me in the night look over to verse 11. Again, why are you in despair of my soul and why have you become disturbed within me.
Hope in God. For I shall yet praise him the help of my countenance, and my God. She also alludes the what is depression, hopelessness. That's what we get depressed, it's a perception that we have that this is hopeless and the more we think about how hopeless the situation is, the more depressed we get a notice he says I need to put my hope in God prior shall yet praise him, you see the good thing about depression, if there's something good about it is the same that is a good thing about also suffering as the drivers to God. It does the psalmist you see a drives him to God another see how Job responsiveness is go back to Job 42 few pages you left Job 42 not skip a whole bunch of chapters and Joe for good reason. You probably know the story, but the story sorta goes like this every want to. Job's friends keep getting involved in his friends keep saying the Job over and over again. What did you do, you see, you did something terrible because you did something terrible. This is what happens.
So the karma thing in the Old Testament. You see, that's the way it works no Job's righteous man. He knows something he didn't do anything terrible, but as that begins the evil and Job. Job then starts getting to this point in his depression where he saying what we all say often is unfair. This is unfair. I didn't do anything to deserve this seat, and Job understanding because he such a righteous man. Job doesn't say bad things about God because we don't want to say that even though that's what were thinking.
Job just simply says I'd like to have an audience in front of God, just give me five minutes.
I just want to get in front of you.
I got some questions you have ever thought that she depending on what your life, they have you ever thought that I got just like to have some questions well. Job doesn't get his audience.
He doesn't go to God but God comes to Job, and it's not at all what you expect of the first time you have read the book you would expect God to say no there there. Job you know them explain the whole thing. You know Lucifer and I were having a talk and then I started bragging about you and then it one thing led to another and then you know and as the I'm sorry that's not God. God comes out of the whirlwind, and says the Job, who are you who are you to question me me it infers in the Hebrew maybe this phrase you big baby. Who are you to question me.
Where were you when I created the universe. You think you are using God's point of view is that you understand who I am because if you understood why am I am infinitely good, infinitely loving and only powerful, infinitely sovereign, why are you questioning me by Weigel got to see every time we say this something terrible is happen, why would God allow that to happen is what you're saying because I think God is terrible.
Something terrible is happen, God allowed it to happen. God's terrible.
That's why God said on the making of the fence here you see him looking to do that at all, but I'll take what Job let me ask you these questions. Job got it. Why did Jill get it the most righteous manner. Job gone it. He understood something when he met one of my doing here. So here it is for chapter 42 verse one then Job answered the Lord and said I know that you can do all things and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.
Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge I'm talking about. Therefore, I have declared that which I do not understand. He says things too wonderful for me, which I did not know here now and I will speak I will ask you and you instruct me. I have heard of you by the hearing of the year, but now my eyes see you therefore repent and I repent in dust and ashes and he repents and is no longer depressed have come into the presence of God and in the presence of God. I see you for who you are in life for what it is my way. Verse 10 says the Lord restored the fortunes of Job when he prayed for his friends in the Lord increased all the Job code to 10 more children amazing Job came to a new perspective and instead of getting what he wanted. He got what he needed. He needed to see God for who God is in himself for who he is. Periods of depression are part of being a fallen being live in a cursed planet is just part of it is who we are. That's why it happens even to the best of us like stuff you can get extremely difficult. There's something else that happens to is the circumstances overwhelmed Job by Wednesday.
I can imagine not being overwhelmed by the circumstances but that's what always happens to us in depression. The circumstances overwhelm us and then what we listen to the circumstances. You see we listen to the circumstances and when we hear the circumstances telling us hopelessness, hopelessness, hopelessness.
We just sink deeper and deeper in the despair and depression.
No, we don't have to fear depression we can overcome it. We have to replace the depression or life of the presence of God in our life. We have to see it from the point of view of the Lord. The experiences common.
The expression is consistent. The explanations are solid but the elimination of it is, you gotta recognize it.
You can even research it to gotta replace it and by the way there's no reason were why we shouldn't you see, because the one thing you and I should never be as hopeless ever. Why would you say that because I read the end of the book we went you win them illustrated this way. Remember the movie Apollo 13 mission to the moon that didn't go very well see the movie a Tom Hanks in the and thereby 200,000 miles from Earth, and there was a problem they were trying to stir the hydrogen tank and then a spark went off and with some faulty wiring and then blew the oxygen apart in an ad.
A myriad of problems. One was almost freezing to death Stu. They have no way to get back there going to run out of oxygen. These are all the kind of things it could be depressing sink.
I meet. They can be.
They really can be. Do remember the great words from that movie Houston we have a problem right and then you're watching and you keep thinking all in the fall of 20,000 miles with a megaphone each minute. How is trying to cope and it know you didn't do that. Did you why you knew how it ended.
If you did matter what planet you're on, but you knew how the movie ended. You know it ended. You know they would safely come home.
You know they did it made all the difference in the world and it. You see, you knew the outcome so it's like, although don't worry too much about that.
Tom is gonna work out. See hereunder to be calling another freezer that these guys back in Nasser them to hold things up from the table and are gonna get you some sick because you know how it turned out, you also know how your life is going to turn out. You see, you know how it's going to and you see that's the point that knowledge changes everything. Why would I be hopeless, I have the surety of the whole Christ. So we will be times in your life what you will say heaven we have a problem. Yes, it's common is true, it's not hopeless. You see, you have the surety of it and you know why the circumstances of your life. Do not get the last word Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior gets the last word. You see, and he said I wipe away every tear will be no more sorrow to be no more tears.
Once you listen to that voice in his presence eliminate the depression in your life. Spray father I pray first of all, for people in the congregation this very day, fighting this battle. I just want to reassure them that it's not unspiritual it's real, but is not fatal. Father, I want them to understand that even there's a sense of hopelessness and despair that can be replaced with peace and even joy. Father I pray that they stop listening to the circumstances and start listening to you through your spirit in your word and sometimes even your people that you begin to hear the truth and get a perspective on it, and when they do, they would be just like Job they would repent they would repent on the basis that they simply didn't trust you to handle the circumstances of their life father for all the rest of us still be moments in our future will will fight this battle. My per symbol that we nip it in the bud. We deal with that. Honestly, we admitted when it comes we look at the circumstances and try to figure out why and then we come into your presence and allow you to love us and allow you to take control of our lives. We know father that through Jesus Christ and what he did on the cross we have the capacity that we are new creatures in Christ that all the old things are passed away that we can do all things through him who strengthens us, including dealing with our depression. Father, I thank you for the sufficiency of Jesus Christ that he was enough to save me. He is enough to receive me into his heaven is enough place, thing is preferable never. If you ever miss one of our broadcast or maybe you just like the listen to the message one more time.
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