An Intimate Relationship With God, Part 2

Today on Fellowship in the Word pastor Bill Gebhardt challenges you to become a fully functioning follower of Jesus Christ emptied himself for you taking one of form of a bondservant for you and being made in the likeness of men for you and being found in the appearance of a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on the cross for you is already submitted Jesus submitted himself. He died joining us today on this additional Fellowship in the Word pastor Bill Gebhardt Fellowship in the Words the radio ministry of Fellowship Bible church located in Metairie, Louisiana. Let's join Pastor Bill Gebhardt now is once again he shows us how God's word meets our world see it. We miss this and it's easy the church of Ephesus write their pulses look your great church got a great start but I'm praying that you really love the Lord. 30 years later. What does Jesus say he says you know your wonderful church in so many ways, but I have this against you, you don't love me see how this works. The longer you're in the faith.

By the way, the easier it is the fall out of love with Christ, if you don't nurture that relationship you fall out. Listen the first time I realized what the grace of God meant what the sacrifice of Jesus Christ of the cross was for my sins. I didn't know anything other bunch other than the gospel, but I know this how you loved him.

I thought while you save me once forever just because I trust you.

I was overwhelmed but you know what, as time goes by is a Christian becomes underwhelming yeah Christ affirmations, Christian man in your Christian men do they show up in church save shop in church yesterday summer volunteering doing any gifts of money to make serving works.

You do all that for nothing, absolutely nothing. If there's no love what Paul said in first Corinthians 13. What good is it, without love. You see, what good is it, without love doesn't matter what I do. But if I have no love. That's exactly what Jesus so what does it take to establish on your part and intimate, loving relationship with Christ in your life probably takes a lot. I have three things in mind. The first thing will show up in Psalm 63 so telling me to Psalm 63 Psalm 63 in verse six David David says is in verse six and seven. He said one. I remember you on my bed. I meditate on you in the night watches for you been my help and in the shadow of your wings. I sing for joy.

The very first thing it takes to establish an intimate, loving relationship with the Lord takes time. It takes time and I don't mean decades. That's all I'm talking about her years I'm talking about minutes and hours in your day. That's what I'm talking about when I say time it takes time.

You see, you can have an intimate relationship with anyone without time.

If you don't spend time together. You don't have an intimate relationship. Believe me, no matter what your Facebook friends say that's not intimacy. Intimacy requires time, he says when I'm in bed in the middle of the night and I wake up I think about you. What do you think about your see what you think about David says I think about you that's what I think about. I think about you and he says and how you have been my home is an amazing thing when a man see no wonder David is called a man after God's own heart. It's certainly not because of his performance. David commit since it you and I would blush at David love the Lord. He love the Lord away the Lord loved him. The me ask you this question.

What do you think about when nothing is forcing you to think about something in particular. What do you think about when nothing is forcing you to think about something in particular, it reveals a lot about our heart. There's more time with me to Psalm 143 again David Psalm 143 and David says in verse five I remember the days of old nostalgic. I remember the days of old.

I meditate on all your doings. I muse on the work of your hands. Eight. I stretch out my hands to you. My soul longs for you is a parched land. David says when I think back and this is kind of interesting notices this David in private. He's all by himself and he starts thinking and meditating on how much God loves him and how involved God was in his life, and David's is you not respond.

I stretch out my hands do Lord, I need you. You see I know what you've done in my life. I need you like water in a parched land. He said that's how I need you. You see, the nostalgia I meditate I think on that is an astounding thing you will do nearly enough. Often my wife and I will start talking about how the Lord put us together and we go back to the nostalgia of how that event occurred and in all the events that ended up occurring in all of the strange circumstances where I ended up in a working in a place work. Follow led me to Christ and in all whole bunch of unbelievably loosely linked circumstances by which I ended up teaching a Sunday school class and then getting up correct a pastor who had Hodgkin's disease and so they asked someone to get up and speak to the congregation because the pastor had Hodgkin's disease. The chemo was to talk one up and I did it and then the next thing you know I was doing another places and other places and then I find a home church and then I ended up at Summit and the Lord just kept doing all this and you know what happens when a war starts to worry sorry about her self-hate. My life stinks and I start thinking about that and we talk about that. I think while Ward thank you for loving me your hands been on my life. It's there… That's what I do. You see, and what what does that make you do it should make you love him. That's the point. It takes time. Paul said pray without ceasing, he didn't mean going to some room and get on your knees 24 seven he meant just pray without ceasing.

In other words, Constantly dialogue with the Lord in your mind all day long takes time. There's something else. It takes it takes transparency were not real good at this.

Even with the Lord. We should be would term why with each other. It's so easy to sort of talk the talk of Christianity will bless you, this place is a God good.

Well, he's so good and while you crying her eyes out last night and angry with the Lord seemed careful. He is good, denying that is not good but I'm denying that so often we put a face on our faith and it's not real.

Notice what David does in this. I love them. Verse seven he says answer me quickly.

All Lord. He said my spirit fells because cannot come up, answer me quickly, Lord. I'm I'm at fault party, or if you don't answer me quickly. She's honest Jesus. Do not hide your face or me or I'll become like one of those of the dime of the pit book if I don't get to hear from you soon number that I get on the waiver. He says let me hear your loving kindness in the morning.

Hasid one of the greatest words in the Bible. Lord I just want to hear how you have this loyal love for me in the morning, he says, for I trust in you teach me the way in which I should walk just tell me how to live, he's there for you. I lift up my soul deliver me oh Lord for my enemies. I take refuge in you teach me to do your will is a you are my God, let your good spirit lead me on level ground for the sake he said of your name or Lord, revive me.

He said in your righteousness, he says bring my soul out of trouble missing while David says the Lord, make me the man you want me to be and it's like wow that's great, but all the David's a man after God's own heart is one of the religious guys. He gets his name in the Bible how I relate to this. But watch what he does in the last verse and in your lovingkindness the great work has to be says this cut off my enemies, destroy all those who afflict my soul, for I am your servant, what is that it's real.

That's what it is. The Psalm here is in advocating hating your enemies Psalm is advocating transparency before a holy God look you feel anger in your heart, tell him when you are very much afraid, tell him you're afraid when your life is full of envy or lust, let him know it's in his life so important he already knows it's for your sake. You see, you're not going to change unless you come to an honest evaluation of yourself. You will not change. You continue to mask and so the whole idea is that he just says you come to me you just talk to me. Honestly you be as transparent as you want and when you read David. He is as transparent as a human being could be. He deals with all these issues, but when life is tearing apart come with humility before the Lord. Psalm 34 the Lord is near the broken hearted Psalm 51 a broken and contrite heart.

Oh God, you will not despise the transparent be real obviously with God you want to be a takes time. It takes transparency. It takes one more thing. Turn to Ephesians 5 with me for a moment. Ephesians chapter 5. He sets the whole section up in the first verse and 1/2 of chapter 5 is winding down this great epistle and Paul writes this, he said therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children were beloved by who, by God, he said I want you to imitate God as those of the recipients of the love of God and then he says this to us walk in love walk is a metaphor for live live your life in the context of love. And then when he goes over to verse 18. He says do not get drunk with wine that's dissipation, but be control filled with the spirit of God and then he gives the key, the most powerful relational dynamic in this world.

What is the key to all relationships.

Submission is the key to all relationships album it's submission and it's amazing how he puts us together.

We have a tendency to think about it in different terms notice the overriding versus verse 21 he says and be subject to one another in the fear of Christ. Out of respect for Christ be subject to one another. All of us and then he starts giving examples. He said wives you be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord and then in verse 25 he said husbands you love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave himself up for you see, how does that work.

My wife is the submit to me is under the Lord I'm to submit to her by loving her, as Christ loves her what was Christ willing to give up for everything he gave his life. See that's an act of submission, but he doesn't stop there.

He says again what we will all understand children obey your parents all yeah that's submission, but then he says in verse four, father or parents do not provoke your children to anger, bring them up in the discipline and instruction or admonition and nurture of the Lord. See how I submit myself to my children and provoke them to anger.

I raise them in the admonition and nurture Lord. He then says slaves all yeah we understand that part of submission. He says be obedient to those who your masters according to the flesh with fear and trembling insincerity in your heart as the Christ, and then he says in verse nine and masters do the same things that I am and give up threatening. In other words, the whole idea is submission be subject consider everyone else is more important than you are lying yourself up under submit because that's the key. And that's the key in our relationship with the Lord is the key element is submission for some of you that terrifies you. It's always amazing to me how we get terrified. Even if I totally submit myself to the Lord all my goodness what what what happened when a lot of things I like doing to me there would be able to do those anymore. Or how about this in. He might want me to do something I might end up in the Congo or somewhere you see, I mean, yeah, I meant to happen, all the things that have to give up all the places I might have to go look, the Lord can take away every single thing you have at this moment including your life. You have nothing he could do it anytime he wanted. When everyone it is hardly going to do it in loving you submit yourself to him or something else about submission.

He's already done it to you. The Lord has already submitted to you. You see, he's already done his part.

Turn with me to Philippians chapter 2 couple pages to write Philippians chapter 2 in verse three. Setting up relationships. Notice what Paul writes. He said do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourself. There's the submission. He says do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also the interest of others.

There's the submission and then he says this have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ when he submitted them. He read it a little different way, who, although he existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but he emptied himself for you. He emptied himself for you taking on the form of a bondservant for you and being made in the likeness of men for you and being found in the appearance of a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on the cross for you. He's already submitted Jesus submitted himself. He died for you.

You see, that's part of all human relationships. The way to have an intimate relationship with the Lord.

It's a matter of time and transparency in submission. That's the challenge.

Remember, Jesus was asked to summarize the whole log of what they say. He said you need to love the Lord your God is always that you need the love the Lord your God, how all with all your heart. You see, with all your soul, with all your mind with all your strength. You know I said that because that's the way he loves you. He said you neither love me the way I love you see that's what you need. It's the key to the Christian life. You see me just say this way every morning we start the morning services.

Pastor Brad always says it we want to do all we can to help you become a follower of Jesus Christ and that your life will be marked with things like peace and joy and hope because those are all biblical truths. But you know what the clarity of those biblical truths and will give you peace and some of you have probably heard him say that every single week for years and years and years and I've been with you when you have no peace for many of you, you have no joy and for some of you have no hope will, but it's it's right there in the Bible.

What's missing you see what's missing. I can tell you what's missing the intimacy of your relationship with the Lord. You see, that's where you draw the piece from that's where you draw the joy from see that's what happens when you have an intimate relationship with the Lord. That is your preoccupation, not the circumstances of your life.

That's how you end up up even if he slays me. I will trust him when he says to me I'll never leave you nor forsake you. He's never gonna leave me on offer sake me. I know him. You see, I know him. He tells me that when I seek him first is the priority of my life and his kingdom all these things will be added to me and I have peace about that. See how this works become start of the relationship.

The Lord wants us to love him the way that he loves us. The real question comes down to this. We know what he wants. The question is what do you want by the way, he won't force a thing he just come to the door. Your heart just wait for you over maybe no set time for spring father. My fear is that we are so good at pretending even before you that our heart becomes callous even to this truth. Father I pray that were transparent before you this morning that we honestly tell you and ourselves, how we truly feel about you when a day in day out basis that we demonstrate with our thought life with our actions that we love you because he first loved us. Father, for those of us that need to repent of an unloving spirit toward you give us the conviction that we need father for those of us who love you reinforce the necessity that we must continue to pursue an intimate relationship with you.

All of the things that seem to matter in this world. All of the other relationships all the task at hand. All the substance of life. All become manageable and clear.

We are truly and deeply in love with you. I pray we love you Christ bathrobe never on the radio ministry or fellowship nor if you ever miss one of our broadcast or maybe you dislike of the sum of the method one more time.

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