Love Opens Doors - Part 1

Today on Fellowship in the Word pastor Bill Gebhart challenges you to become a fully functioning follower of Jesus Christ more prestige if I could have that would like to have more what I want to write on my Facebook page.

You just have more net you know if that's where you decide to go for more sensation will never be satisfied as is knowledge were created for 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 Pastor Bill Gebhart now again he shows us God's word meets our world article by Jeffrey Mohan in the Los Angeles times. He writes that a lot of studies have been done in the conclusion is this going on Facebook tends to depress people that he writes that Facebook for a lot of people is a chance to enhance your image you to get photos of yourself that really you end up looking better than you really do you list all your accomplishments but your failures are cleverly omitted.

But for many people as they read other people's Facebook page. They come away feeling diminished that their life is not really measuring up to. Apparently, what other lives are there is now a epidemic. I won't call it, but I'm sure a culture will a disease that is electronically transmitted and it even has a name. Dr. Shirley Terkel of MIT calls it foam all.

After all and all the fear of missing out.

She says apparently were afraid that other people are doing more interesting things and we are that other people are making a lot more friends than we have that other people find better ways to get in shape are better ways to save their money. In fact, Mindy Keeling wrote a book that implies promo in the title. The title of her book is is everyone hanging out without me. She writes, we keep reading one line about how wonderful experience. Our friends are having sometimes in real time and are increasingly afraid that our lives are dull and insignificant by comparison, Stephen verdict warns us that we said never compare your behind-the-scenes life with everyone else's highlight reel foam all fear of missing out. As part of the original sin amazing when you think about it whether the serpent say to Eve he said.

God knows that when you eat of the fruit of that tree. Your eyes will be opened and you will be like God and so her fear of missing out on that was one of the contributing factors to the fall and yet for all its dangers. Foam oh does tell us something very important about ourselves as people.

One is this.

We have a longing for a better life than the one were living. We have a longing for a better life than the one were living.

And secondly, we have an insatiable appetite for more. We want more. I'm sure that many of you have heard of Lon Popeo. Lon Popeo is the infomercial man. He is really vague. The king of the infomercial man I read this week is net worth is well over $100 million. Maybe you know some of the products. You may even have some of those not working probably at the moment the very dramatic, the dye somatic. The doll automatic in my favorite hair and it can, and when you watch his infomercials and he was the first to pioneer this and do this. There's something that he does as he gets going in a commercial get close. The middle and the end of it.

There's something that he does. He interjects this phrase.

But wait there's more. The reason that works is because of us more. You mean I could have two cans of hairspray two cans for just 1995.

We do know what if we were really able to handle what is real. The fear of missing out in our lives if we were able to do with the way God intends for us to deal with it. We want have a disease anymore. Open your Bibles to Ephesians chapter 3 Ephesians chapter 3 the last two verses of that chapter it's right near the first. The end of the first section where Paul spends three chapters telling us who we are in Christ telling us what it means to be a believer. All the blessings of God is bestowed on us, and then in chapter 4, he goes to the application a part of the epistle and talks to us about how to live out our faith. But right at the end of chapter 3, fittingly he gives what is a benediction but it has tremendous meaning, especially if you suffer from foam all in verse 20 says this now to him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever.

Amen. That verse 20 whatever says God is able to do what we ask God is able to do what we ask God is able to do whatever we ask. That's an amazing thing. God is able to do in your life, whatever you ask. But there's more. God is able to do what we ask and God is able even to do what we think God is able to do what we ask and what we think or even what we imagine God is able to do what you ask and even what you imagine but wait there's more. God is able to do more then we ask or could even think or imagine God is able to do more than you asked that you could even think, but wait there's more. God is able to do far more than what we ask what we think God is able to do far more with your life and what you ask and what you think you know if you really embrace that through faith you don't have it have need of the fear of missing out. Not at all see God knows something about us.

He knows that we have a longing for more he gets that he said that's exactly what I offer. Think of Jesus Christ and what is offered just what he is offered. Now we know that he comes and he offers himself as a sender. He offers himself as the Savior of the world. He offers himself as your Savior. He says I will bear your sins on the cross.

You see, I will be the substitute for you for the judgment of God. While reasonable way.

There's a lot more to it than that, she there's a lot more to it than that, he said, your sins would be forgiven.

You will have a reconciled relationship with the God who created you, you have the certainty of heaven ahead of you pieces but wait there's more I will and will you through my spirit you can do all things as I strengthen you. You see, you can cast your anxiety upon me, because I care for you. You see, are not part of my kingdom is the wait there's more to it than that.

Think of the kingdom of the Lord were the least will be the greatest pieces the least will be the greatest if you suffer from foam.

Oh if you constantly are putting yourself down and think you're so insignificant as an individual. He says in my kingdom the least of the greatest the week will become strong servants will become leaders the marginalized will be loved and cherished were people who die to self will find life in the find it abundantly.

It's going to be the place where your little life becomes part of the life of the greatest story ever told.

You see, the reason the foam will exist as a we were created for more and more missing out and we try all the wrong substitutes we think will if I could have just more more money, more power, more prestige you know if I could have that but if I could have more what I want to write on my Facebook page I just have more net you know if that's where you decide to go for more. It's insatiable you'll never be satisfied. This is not what you were created for. You don't want to spend your whole life looking for a mere like narcissists no way to live. What I propose this morning as you look for a door I've been speaking on door for the last several weeks how God opens up doors. What I want to say today as it one of the most important ways to go through the door open. The right-winger life is through love. Love opens doors. Think about it God so loved the world that you and me God so love me that he opened the door and sent his son for me. You see he did that. The sun so love me that he will and you that he willingly went to the cross to die for me. Love opens doors and not just from God's point of view or his son's point of view, but from our point of view.

Jesus knew it when he was asked what is the greatest commandment. They thought they had trapped them and he didn't even hesitate. He said all that, so easy. Love the Lord your God with all your heart mind soul and strength. You love others as yourself. You see, he understood why because love opens doors illustrate that a very warm story.

The story of Ruth is turned back to roof chapter 1 the Old Testament Ruth chapter 1 and the first thing I want to say is this love finds doors that personal protection and safety would never find love finds doors, the personal protection and safety will never find the context here is as now it came about in the days when the judges government there was a famine in the land and a certain man of Bethlehem in Judah went and sojourned in the land of Moab with his wife and two sons there starving there in Judah. They decide to go to the land of Moab, the Moabites are the arch enemy of God. They are just like the Canaanites that they are part of that old overall group.

The Moabites are such an enemy of God.

In Deuteronomy chapter 23 in verse three God says through Moses. No Moabite will ever be allowed to enter the temple for 10 generations. For 10 generations. No Moabites ever going to enter the temple of God, and they have to go to the arch enemy, the land of Moab because there's food there and it says the name of the man was a limit and a limb alike had a wife and her name was Naomi and the names of his two sons were mall on and Killian. They were effort fights Bethlehem doesn't mean there were some kind of special people. Remember Mike about all Bethlehem Africa so small among the clans of Judah, besides going to come from you. That's a bit cold and resident of Jerusalem wasn't and so he says now they enter the land of Moab, and they remained there in a limb alike.

Naomi's husband died. She's up at two sons of this goes bad, worse, first of all, were starving and we have become refugees and then we go to archenemies and know my husband's dead. But please understand, Naomi doesn't go in and cast a life insurance policy at this date. There's nothing and no one to take care of her and especially in a foreign land.

No one will take care of her but she does have two sons so associate the two sons and she was left of the two sons.

They took for themselves and Moabite women as wives.

The name of the one was ORPA in the name of the other was Ruth and they were there about 10 years so at least the reading and the sons of taken on Moabite wives not really a good idea from the law point of view, but they taken more and then it says, then both mainline and Killian also died of going from bad to worse in our tragic now she's in the land of Moab. Her husband's dead and now her to centered. She has virtually no one to take care of her pretty much in the state that she's in.

Normally in that culture you have to resort to a life of baking and it says and the woman was bereft of her two children and her husband something changes now is is and then she arose with her daughters-in-law that she might return from the land of Moab and she had heard in the land of Moab that the Lord had visited his people was giving them food while someone said by word-of-mouth back in Judah. You can get a meal there's enough food back there after 10 years, to go back and she realize this. My only hope I have some family back there. The only chance I have. So she's going to leave in SSO. She departed from the place where she was in her to daughters-in-law with her and they went on the way to return to the land of Judah.

So there a road trip is a walking road trip and is is a Naomi said to her to daughters-in-law go return each of you to her mother's house.

May the Lord deal kindly with you as you've dealt with the dead and with me, and may the Lord granted you will find rest, each in our own household and then she kissed them and they lifted up their voices and they wept. These three women have a lot in common to men that they loved our dead. They have no children. There a lot of despair for all them another about the separate and so they do what women do so much better than men. They wept and braced and hugged and cried and they said to her, no, but we will surely return with you to your people, but Naomi said return my daughter's why should you go with me how my yet sons in my womb, that they may be your husband's return to my daughter's go for I am too old to have a husband. If I said I have hope. If I should even have a husband tonight and also bear sons. She said that if I got married and I got pregnant tonight. How can I help you she says in verse 13 we do therefore wait until they're grown. Would you therefore, refrain from marrying know my daughter's for it is harder for me than for you for the hand of the Lord is gone forth against me. She said I know what my life is so terrible. God's making my life terrible and what you like to be like mine. There's no hope for you. Please understand this idea of marrying these these girls getting remarried has nothing to do with romance. It has everything to do with survival. If they don't find someone to marry and they may not survive.

That's the way it works in the Moabites of a tradition very similar to the Jews in Judah and that his family members come in and bring you into their household says and they lifted up their voices and wept again in ORPA kissed her mother-in-law.

The work was thinking it through, and she said you know what she thinks. What happens she's done what you and I do all the time.

You know, that makes sense to me, that makes sense. I mean after I have to look out for myself as well. It makes more sense. I go back in the Moab and find a relatively CFO take me in is a logical thing to do. You see, this is the right here at this moment there's a door you see there's a door to statewide door to leave, but these are not doors of a right door and along door guards never ask anyway you want to do anything that's away.

Often it is with doors. You have a choice whether walk through a door not in our process that is good advice to go back and then it says this though, but Ruth clung to her. Ruth embraced her and Naomi's is the root behold your sister-in-law's gone back to her people and were God's return after your sister-in-law is the third or fourth time.

She said please go please and make sense of personal protections part of your life.

You make decisions it's it's makes sense to go but you know something. A lot of times love doesn't make sense. A lot of times love doesn't seem rational and lucid this and I don't know if there are more beautiful words written about love in the entire Bible than this. These words lucid. This do not urge me to leave you or turned back from following you for where you go I will go and what you lodge, I will watch your people shall be my people and your God my God, where you die I will die, and there I will be buried and thus may the Lord do to me. And worse, if anything but death part you and me. She saw that she was determined to go with her.

She said no more.

While what is she doing. She's doing some it's unreasonable see she's doing something to God and ask her to do it.

It seems unreasonable.

She puts all of her eggs in the love basket. All of it. I mean think about that what you saying she's not saying a hell of a back to the land with you in anger. Back home to make sure you get there safe. She said I love you I'm in. I'll be with you the rest your life. I'll take care of you in your old age. And when you die I will stay there until I die so I can be buried with you. I think Naomi felt when you heard how would you feel when you are so in love you that much. And by the way, something I haven't said yet to put it through your own grid. This is a daughter-in-law talking to her mother and is not under mom she's under mother-in-law seen love finds doors that personal protection never could find bathroom. The radio ministry of fellowship Lord, if you ever miss one of our broadcasting or maybe you dislike the method one more time. Remember the good 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 with today's broadcast so 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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