Smoothing Out The Rough Roads, Part 1

Today on Fellowship in the Word pastor Bill Gebhardt challenges you to become a fully functioning follower of Jesus Christ. The question for all of us is is that how do you want I and I think what's amazing and sometimes Christians misunderstand this, we always think that if we are right with God will always be smooth just keeps on smooth roads and there's nothing I hate that God does tell us is not, I will give you for shocked.

And if you put them between you and the role human arrival.

That's what I like to talk about those structures joining us today on this additional fellowship in the world.

Pastor Bill Gebhardt Fellowship in the Words the radio ministry of Fellowship Bible church located in Metairie, Louisiana that's going Pastor Bill Gebhardt. Now once again he shows up God's word meets our world 1900 for the first time in our country. Automobiles became the mode of transportation and one of the great risk associated with this new pastime of driving your automobile was flat tires. Lots of them. The reason is no real roads. The roads were just simply set for wagons, not necessarily for cars at all and so and because at that time when it first made it no spare tires so young entrepreneur name August F. Meyer. He decided that this would be a great opportunity and so with all those flat tires. He decided that he would build tire pumps and sell tire pumps. The people so they could put it in their car whenever they got a flat tire. He established the brisk blast manufacturing company in Munro Michigan soon, very soon. Brisk blast. What a name I was producing more than 5000 tire pumps a week in 1919, brisk blast changed its name and I'm grateful for that. It changes name to the Munro automobile equipment manufacturing company and soon after that, the company perfected the first soft-boiled single barrel tire pump they sold more than 2 million pumps a year, but only for a couple years. By the mid-1920s two things change completely.

One was service station started showing up all over the country and they gave free air in those days they gave free air as long as when you got gas. There secondly the automobile manufacturer started putting spare tires on their cars. But instead of giving up Meyer had an idea he got his team together and in need. He took the technology of this this single barrel of oil tire pump any decided there something else I can do with it.

I can actually smooth the ride for all of the American cars so 1926 the very first Munro shock absorbers, which is still with us today was put on American cars.

It was between the frame and the body. So no matter how rough the road was you didn't bounce up and down the shock absorbers is simply took it away and he smooth out the ride for each American in a car not the reason that I love that story. It is a great invention I mean is, no doubt about it, shock absorbers or something. Still with us today. Munro is still one of the biggest companies in the world was shock absorbers. But what a perfect picture of what the Christian life should be like that's what I want to do this morning will explain how can this be what the Christian life should be like you see, God promises us that if we apply certain shock absorbers, no matter how rough the road is of our life. Smooth out the ride.

I want you to open your Bibles to Ecclesiastes chapter 9 Ecclesiastes chapter 9 have you been a long time. You probably know this, but Ecclesiastes is my favorite book in the Old Testament. I just love the book I protrude a few times. I'm always tempted to protrude again.

I just love the book and the reason is is that Solomon is brilliant as he is in a very brilliant he is really questioning the validity of life and he really sets he really sets the stage for what is today modern existential thinking.

A lot of his conclusions.

His conclusion was pretty much this if God is not part of your life. There's no point in being alive is no purpose in life and that's exactly what modern day existentialists will teach and so Solomon then makes us great case, but Ecclesiastes 9 he says this in verses one and two, he said, for I have taken all this to my heart and explain it that righteous man, wise men and their deeds are in the hand of God.

Man does not know whether it'll be love or hatred.

Anything awaits him. It's all it's the same for everyone. There was one thing for the righteous, and another for the wicked for the good and for the claimant for the unclean for the man whopper sacrifice and for the one it is not. He said as good as man is so was a sinner as us. Where is he said is the one who's afraid to swear now let me summarize what he means. Life's a crapshoot really doesn't matter. It doesn't matter whether you're right. Just a whether center it doesn't matter if you're rich or poor, it doesn't matter.

In other words, if I was taking what I've already talked about everybody's going to experience rough roads in life and it really doesn't matter who you are and that's a very good point to make. Now the question comes down to then use. How do you deal with the rough roads and I've got a be honest if you look at our culture and most of the people in our world we deal very poorly with rough roads were not sure all how to deal with rough roads of the suicide rate in America every five years is climbing exponentially.

Is it assistance to me. Amazing how this just keeps rising and rising and rising. We don't know how to how to cope with it and it really doesn't matter how gifted you are, how talented you are, how educated you are or how rich you are.

Once the road gets rough for a lot of us, we just begin to fall to pieces. Take someone like God is currently Howard Hughes. Howard Hughes is about as talented as brilliant as successful in his famous and rich as a man could possibly be. When you read his biography you find out that he had a weakness, though his weakness was, he wasn't absolute control freak.

He controlled everything. The problem was, as his empire got bigger and bigger, he started losing control, and to him that became a very rough road and he had no ability at all to figure out how to wipe highlight cope with this. Now that I can control everything and so he ended up sliding further and further and further down, and it finally got to the point where he rented a condo in Mexico the top for the condo. He hired guards to guard him 24 hours a day seven days a week. He became a total recluse and he then started never cut his hair. He never cut is something the nose was toenails and then he died alone in joyless, all because he couldn't cope at all with rough road mean that is an extreme, the question for all of us is is that how do you want I cook and I think what's amazing and sometimes Christians misunderstand this, but we always think that if were right with God will always be smooth. Just keep us on smooth roads and there's nothing even a hint of that in the word of God. But what God does tell us is look.

I will give you for shock absorbers and if you put them between you and the road given a ride along pretty smooth. That's what I like to talk about this morning.

Those shock absorbers.

The first one is simply this, God offers us the shock absorber of his presence and his promise.

He said this should help you go with me to Deuteronomy 31 Deuteronomy 31 Deuteronomy is the last book Moses wrote of the Pentateuch and this chapter is Moses is an old dude. He's 120 and you got a feel for in this way heat at 40 split his first four years as the Prince of Egypt missed look I was going to be good.

Then everything went south for him because he killed an Egyptian and all that so we had to spend the next 40 years in the wilderness of Midian by himself with sheep and we know as the story goes on, that he learned humility their members, the Prince of Egypt. He won have much of that.

But what we sometimes forget as he spent the next 40 years in the wilderness was Israel. When we learned in the men's study yesterday in Numbers chapter 11, God said, I kept Israel in the wilderness for 40 years so that learned humility.

So Moses spent 80 years out of 120 in the wilderness, learning humility, and when you read the entire book, like numbers of the amount of stuff that guy had to deal with this and when you're reading to half-million people, especially to enactment of God's people got nothing but trouble and that's it. Moses had so Moses gets to this point. He says this so Moses went spoke these words to all Israel when he said to them, I'm 120 years old today. I no longer able to come and go. And the Lord said to me you're not cross this Jordan is the Lord your God will cross ahead of you, he will destroy these nations before you, and you shall dispossess them.

He says Josh what is the one who will cross ahead of you, just as the Lord spoken the Lord will do to them just as he did to Psion and Ogg and the kings of the Amorites and in the land when he destroyed them. The Lord will deliver them up before you, and you shall do to them according to all that I've commanded all the commandments, which I have commanded you. And then this he said, be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or tremble with them for the Lord your God is the one who goes with you. He will not fail you.

He will not forsake. While what an amazing promise of the presence of God. You have to understand these are 2 1/2 million people who were slaves for 400 years they don't know how to fight anybody and me there and they're not an army there. Nothing even there's no training and what we often forget is when you going to the promised land is filled with nothing but military like military like groups all them are called lights. Yet, Canaanites, Amorites, you have Jebusite peptides everywhere, all of them are combative.

So much so that the first time I got to the land 40 years earlier. They said we can go in and we can do that.

And God said, you know what the big mistake is you made.

I never thought you could do so, God, this time Moses re-re-made reiterates this.

He said do not be afraid or tremble at them, for the Lord your God.

He goes with you and he will not fail or forsake the understand that when you're on a rough road uses a minute. I will go with you and I will not fail and I will not forsake you that's repeated in Hebrews chapter 13 in the New Testament.

I'll never leave you nor forsake you the same thing out of Deuteronomy because it's such an important thing you see where we get our courage to go through the rough spots in life not from us.

We get from him this from his own promise.

Look, I will not fail you.

I can make this work for you. Let me show you how this applies and go with me now to Romans chapter 8 in the New Testament Romans chapter 8, you need to realize that when you're going through a really rough time. One of the things is important as we always consume get sort of isolated. We think it's our problem and it's all it's only how my going to get myself through this no matter what I do. God keeps trying to tell you I'm right here. Think of the words that are used in Scripture to describe your relationship with God and mine. He's called our fortress committees called our shelter. He's is called a hiding place is called our anchor wiseguy Katona said he saying I'm right here. No matter what it is you go through. I'm right here I'm right with you. I won't tell you so you get to Romans 828 and Paul says this he said we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God and those who are called according to his purpose. That's one of those love-hate versus we love that it's in there and what we want to believe it's true. But when were on a rough road we don't necessary believe this because all we know is how rough the rotors what you mean and notice he says it'll all work together for good. Every bit of it and does that help you not much. Why because there's one thing he doesn't tell us when when I'm in the middle of a rough road when is it going to get better and get better, what, when, sometimes right away. Sometimes it takes months, sometimes years, sometimes heaven. It'll all work, but it's up to God. You see, that's the way this works.

Think of the disciples in Mark chapter 4 their fishermen to go on the sea of Galilee and the storm is unbelievable. They believe as fishermen are all going to perish there. All that I died in the storm all right and meanwhile Jesus in the stern underneath in the ship little boat any sound asleep okay. Now he's with them.

You see, there is his presence pretty promise them anything is what he say don't going over to the other side.

Now, when God incarnate, says one over the other side. Were we going to but they don't believe that. So they wake him up in a safe, don't you care that were perishing, and he just looked at them and said you men of what little faith, and then he just looked at the scene went the still while they find out that the road when comes rough. The smooth just like that, but they didn't pass the test, they didn't do well with this at all. They they got preoccupied with the storm instead of preoccupied with the sleeping Lord you see in the boat so that's ends up what's happening. God says look, one can understand this. Look at verse 35 of chapter 8 who will separate us from the love of Christ will tribulation, distress, persecution, famine, nakedness peril, the sword by the winners are all rough roads. Every single one of those is a really really rough road. He said without happen is a look at verse 37 in all these things we overwhelmingly conqueror through him who loved us.

We will prevail is we overwhelmingly conqueror, he said, I am convinced that neither death nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come. The powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any created thing will ever be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our with pulsing. I believe in the presence of the promise of God. You see I believe in the presence and the promise of God was created for Paul, peace.

That's peace how much peace do you have in a rough road situation in your life as I'm telling. If you have any piece you don't believe this. You don't have any piece he says will come right here. I can do this for you. I can handle this for you. The second shock absorber is are our focus must be on our destination, not the trip or the rough road we have to focus on the destination. As believers we see this over and over in the word of God.

Look at Romans eight verse 18. Notice what Paul says here, he said, I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed. Us through some of the watch. I consider that the sufferings that's a rough road of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is going to be revealed to us. What's he doing. He said I'm focused on the destination no go with me to second Corinthians chapter 4 second Corinthians 4 and notice how he picks up the same idea and what he says. He says therefore verse 16 he says therefore he said we do not lose heart.

By way, what's one of the first things you do on a rough road lose heart boy or am I going to do, how my going to get out of this is we lose heart were bouncing all around you see all we have is the body on the frame when an old dirt road.

All were doing is buns and what we don't even need the roads of New Orleans. The roads are bad enough here. Just imagine want to be like to live in Lakeview without shock of he says.

Therefore, we do not lose heart.

But though the outer man is decaying at the inner man is being renewed day by day.

Pause a little bit further down in his life knowing he he he tells all of us, something that into you get old enough, you won't understand much rollup this versus truly meant the outer man's decaying Internet stop it.

We call it aging is nothing we can do but notice what he says about the rough road for momentary, light affliction is producing for us the eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison again while we look not at the things which are seen, that's the rough robot with the things are not seen. That's God for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things that are not seen are eternal. He said I just focus on the destination my son to think of how would be a good way to give a good illustration of this is what I think would work. Have you ever driven from New Orleans to Disney World with kids in your car when it and when you're going.

The kids are focused you don't think we there yet are we there yet, but the point is, it's there. Can't wait to get there. You know once we going to get when were there.

This is going to be great were Disney World Dr. home something completely different, but the drive there because they're so excited about the destination look, why don't we meet will going to the real magic kingdom. You see, why don't we see why you want me to be absent from the body to be present with the Lord. The worst thing that could happen to us can happen to us. You see or read the end of the book we went all those things are the say the same thing, the destination, it will be worth it all. When we see Jesus why isn't that a perspective when the road gets rough. Why don't we focused on the destination. That's the second thing that he tells us the third shock absorber that he tells us is that we need to focus on all the good things and the blessings God has given us in this life we need to think about all the good see once the road gets rough.

All we think about what's rough, but we don't think about all the good things that God has for us again. I want to go back to Ecclesiastes chapter 9 Solomon again back where we started. Ecclesiastes 9 but this time in verse seven. See what Solomon says a site as I try to think about life in the big things of the meaning of life and how important it is and all that. And remember, Solomon is a guy that already knows that everything that everyone else is important isn't you see, he knows that he's wealthy beyond belief. He's got all kinds of projects he has amazing reputation with everybody.

He's tried everyplace or that the world offers in spades.

He has tried everything he said all of it is vanity.

None of it produces what you should have realized about God, nothing else mattered comfortable give her the radio ministry or fellowship nor if you ever miss one of our broadcasting or maybe you just like the message one more time. Remember that 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. So many of our previous audio programs as well at Fellowship in the Word.

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