Closed Doors - Part 1

Today on Fellowship in the Word pastor Bill Gebhardt challenges you to become a fully functioning follower of Jesus Christ for salvation. You basically want God to be involved in yourself niceness to carry on your agenda and you're willing to ask almost anything and the door will be shot. I meet some of you I'm sure on a daily basis. Please let me get the lottery. Please let me at the lottery. I'll think of you afterwards. A minute guess a good child of God in your brain that you see why you crying that joining us today on this additional Fellowship in the Word pastor know your heart Fellowship in the Words the radio ministry at Fellowship Bible church located in Metairie, Louisiana Pastor Bill Gebhardt now again he shows us how God's word meets our work professional sports and I've been known on very rare occasion to catch a game or two that general managers often say that sometimes the greatest trades are the one you never make me give you an example that in 1987 the Los Angeles Clippers offered five players which included there to first-round draft picks to the Chicago Bulls for one guy named Michael Jordan, the bull said no and the rest is history. I think that in life and certainly in the Scriptures. Some of the greatest doors are those that are never opened. Think of the door to the garden of Eden.

Once he drove Adam and Eve out. It was shut the door to the ark.

Once judgment came in through that flight. It was shot. David was not able to build the temple of God, shut the door. I imagine each in those cases, there were a lot of disappointed people because there's something about close doors. We don't like them, we don't like the door to be closed and not only that we almost never understand why is this door closed even think about it though.

What's the greatest motivation you have to pray see what makes you a prayer warrior. What makes you want to pray a lot. Why can tell you answered prayers. If you pray and never answered, that encourages you to keep praying. So if you pray for someone who was ill and they are restored to health that encourages you when you prayed for someone's marriage and that marriage is restored and encourages you a runaway child comes home you land that job you always wanted. Mr. Wright does step into your life and you are encouraged to keep praying. But what's the biggest demotivator to prayer. I have heard from many of you over the years.

I can't tell you how many of you over the years of told me this. I don't know why a pray. I mean, I pray and I pray and I pray and really almost always nothing happens.

It seems as though the doors always shut to my prayer life. You pray for that right person to come along and they never do. You pray for justice to prevail and unfair situation at work in the company let you go instead we pray with overwhelming emotion for a runaway child who left home and they don't come back close doors discourage us, but they shouldn't open your Bibles to Revelation chapter 3 when the final message on this series called doors we have dealt in virtually every way I could think of with the horse and up except in this way, we have talked about all the different ways the doors are open, but I want to talk about doors being closed.

Revelation 3 and verse seven. The first text we used in a series, and to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write. He was holy who was true, who has the key of David, who opens and no one will shut, and then this phrase and who shuts and no one opens, says this while we never think about that meeting all by God opening up the door.

The Lord will open up a door. No one will be able to shut it but John tells us here that the Lord also shuts doors makes it abundantly clear that no one will be able to open it. It's kind of confusing though because when you get in the Gospels. Remember that Jesus said that one of the things you should do when you pray is keep praying you should be persistent. You should pound the net door you should stay at it. Just stay at it and stay at it and stay added, but if it's a door that shouted no one opens. Doesn't that seem sort of like funeral does you see when you're facing a shut door yet, ask yourself the questions will how long should I keep doing this. How loud should I keep pounding Highway no which doors will remain closed how I deal with this well over the last week and really for the last couple months. In this series. I've studied all of the pertinent text and I have an answer for you this morning and that it is just the three words so you'll all be able to remember. I don't know I don't I don't know but I have come to this conclusion. I know this that God has greater things in mind for us, then, that we know for sure which doors we should keep pounding and that we should understand that some doors shouldn't be opened as very important force. There are some reasons why God keeps doors shut from you and for me the first ones can be found in Mark 10. In verse 35. The first reason is this. Sometimes we are knocking on the wrong door were capable of that. We go to the Lord in prayer. We want something to happen but all were doing is knocking on the wrong door and here's a classic example in verse 35 says James and John. The two sons of Zebedee, came up to Jesus and they said Rabbi teacher we willing to do for us whatever we ask of you. That's kind of an interesting pregnancy would to do a survey, we want you to do for us whatever it is we ask you because we've heard you say ask you know will be given we've heard you say that and so we want to ask you something to do for us when we ask you. I love Jesus patients. He said to them what he want me to do for you and they said to him, grant that we may sit, one on your right and one on your left in your glory. That's all we want, never gonna let you be in the center okay but we want to be on the right and we want to be on the left look. You know were special because anytime we separate from the 12 there's three of us. Peter is not here, and in James and John were always the special ones so all we want is to sit on the right and on the left. Jesus said to them, you do not know what you're asking.

Are you able to drink the cup that I drink be baptized with the baptism which I'm going to be baptized, and they said to him, we are able and Jesus said to them, the cup that I drink you shall drink you shall be baptized with the baptism which I'm going to be baptized as to give your life but to sit on my writer on my left. That is not mine to give, but it is for those he says, for whom it is been prepared knocking on the wrong door.

By the way. Another reason why they were thermometer put them up to educate your mama did because what you find in Luke and if in the end, especially if it's a note I think what they did is they went back and said the mama.

He said no and she said well that I'm in a talk to and so she goes and you find the account and look at. She does want to talk and she says look on mug and asked for much all I want is when you come in your kingdom. I want my boys right here now Jesus answers her exactly the same way he answers them and says the same thing.

And those two guys again say were able to do it just like they did before which and what the answer was still no and the door was still shut to them were capable of this one time Jesus was going through Samaria and again James, James and John and up they were rejected by Samaritan town and the reason they were rejected as the Jews hated the Samaritans men's hated the Jews so they were rejected, and they basically said Lord. This bring down fire and brimstone from heaven like this plays out in Jesus said no, no, I appreciate you know your zeal. No Moses, Jeremiah, Elijah and Jonah also to the Lord, take my life. Please take my life in every case the answer is no. And the reason in all these cases there knocking on the wrong door. You see you when I have a propensity for that kind of thing because I don't know if you've noticed this about yourself, your selfish you are, your selfish and you basically want God to be involved in your selfishness to carry out your agenda and you're willing to ask almost anything and the door will be shot. I meet some of you I'm sure on a daily basis.

Lord please let me hit the lottery.

Please Lord, let me hit the lottery. I'll think of you afterwards. I'm going to guess if your child of God in your praying that your not likely at the lottery you see why you praying for that door to open. See why I want more.

I want to be more secure. Lord said then what am I here for you see one of my here for then seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all this would be added to you. What am I here for you see, sometimes we have this capacity to just pound on the wrong door and whenever we do that the door is going to stay shut. Secondly, sometimes the doors close, because God has plans and we don't know about. Turn with me to Genesis chapter 50 right at the end of the book of Genesis, right before the book of Exodus. If it the end of Genesis. You know were in the story of Joseph and before we actually go to the text I want you to think about Joseph and what his prayer life must've been like. I mean first of all, Joseph grew up in a dysfunctional family. I mean, and much everybody but is one brother Benjamin hated his guts and now he bottle that on himself because he would have dreams and then he would say all of you one day will come and bow before me brothers don't like that much and when they hear the brother saying that and so they hated him so much that they decided they would murder then they had some sense of responsibility and decided not to murder may put them in a pit and then they sold and he sold him to the Midianites, who were on their way to Egypt as a slave. Now if you are a young man like Joseph and you're on your way to Egypt as a slave when you think your prayer life is on the way, Lord, please let me get out of here. Lord, please let me escape.

Lord, please allow me to go home to see my father, my brother. Lord, please imagine he's praying that all but it doesn't work that way.

So then he gets to Egypt now gets find themselves thrown in prison. So what would you do if you were him was the universal prayer of a prisoner, especially in it. I went out I won out. Lord, please let me get out. Let me get out. Let me get out and he does so that the reserve open formally but it closes right up again. He gets his really good job at Potiphar's house, but then you start realizing something Potiphar loves him and Potiphar's wife loves him even more. But in a different way and so what you think. He prayed Lord, keep this woman from me yet.

Keep this woman away from me. No matter what can happen. You know the story back in prison then eventually he gets to interpret some dreams gets out of prison and works his way up in the sense becomes him was Prime Minister of Egypt incredible think there's a famine back in the land and his brothers come down in order to get food so you know the rest of the story but notice at the end of it all. In verse 18 of chapter 50 it says this then is brothers also came and fell down before him and said, behold, we are your servants. But Joseph said to them, do not be afraid, for I am in God's place. Do you think he was thought he was in God's place when he was in the pit. When the Midianites bottom for 20 pieces of silver. When he was so gonna need to be sold as a slave wanted the prison you think all I'm in God's place know this is hindsight this is hindsight and its hindsight because now we know is a God sometimes has plans that we don't know about all he said. As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good. In order to bring about this present result reserve many people alive while you see he looked back on it and he saw something. The conclusion is sort of this God has the fundamental right to keep a door closed because he knows what will lead to a better outcome. God will do that in your life all the time.

He will close the door because he knows of a better outcome. That's going to come. Just imagine this, just imagine if God said yes to all of our prayers. Whenever you pray God said yes you realize what a disaster that would be. Do you realize how horrible that would get.

He said yes to every prayer you had that all of us had. You see, we have this propensity because of our sinfulness to turn anything good and make a terrible think of mankind.

Anytime mankind makes a discovery that can help people he figures out how to use that discovery to kill people. That's man you see know all of us got everything we wanted when we wanted it.

It would be a disaster. So God keeps a lot of doors closed.

The closed doors of very important part of our personal lives. This past week I was reading a biography and about a young man who was born in abject poverty and he resolved that one day he would be poor.

He was a really hard worker and not from his teenage years on when he worked, no matter how little he was paid he always find a way to save some of it so we saved all that he could and he decided that he wanted to go into business for himself, so he took his savings and he had to put up with two other things he had to put it with a partner and he had to borrow as much money as a lender would give him to start a grocery store now. One of the problems they ran into that his partner was an alcoholic and that created enormous problems. The other thing he ran into his. He did know the first thing a running up grocery store and so it was a absolute total failure and he says in the biography. I prayed every day for this grocery store, to succeed that I would lose my life savings that I finally get out of poverty, and it failed miserably. So after Philly realize should never be an entrepreneur, so he decide to go back to school when he went back to school and study law and had an average or decent law practice and then decided from the law practice to go into politics and then in 1860 was elected President of the United States. And it's interesting that when you read Lincoln from Lincoln's point of view. One of the things that amazes me. Sort of like what happens with Joseph in his second inaugural address in 1864, one of the things he says and that addresses that he had great confidence of how God is at work to bring about an outcome of that war that Civil War with infinite wisdom, rather than the will of two sides were praying every day that they went and I thought he God. That's the way it works sometimes God has plans that you don't know about happen in my life it's happening yours.

I think of all the plans of the heavenly finally went to seminary and we were going to go into ministry and going to church. I one of the plans we had was the plan a church in Plano Texas and so we were planning it and it seemed like the perfect deal we had about 2025 people but the people were uniquely gifted.

We had people that financial resources that would say will do whatever it takes to make this work. We had people who had spiritual wisdom and experience we had people who had giftedness with children and teens we had people that could sing and play guitar play piano in. I mean really looking back it must've been Mickey. I just thought of that.

Anyway, I was praying about that on a regular basis, and the door stayed close and failed. I remember once getting a chance to may be applied to a church near State College, Pennsylvania, and I was really excited about that. Sent off my resume prayed about a fervently not nothing. I never even heard of Metairie, Louisiana nine look back, I think, well, all the blessings all the people crossed my path all the chance to influence the minute Christ traded for anything in the world ever see, that's the way God is the door shut, but it shut for a reason, because he knows what we don't have very different way to pastoral giver on the radio ministry of fellowship in the Lord.

If you ever miss minimum broadcasting or maybe you just listen to the message one more time.

Remember that you can go a great website called one place.com that's one place.com and you can listen to Fellowship in the Word online at that website you will find on with today's broadcast so many of our previous audio programs as well Fellowship in the Word. We are thankful for those who financially support our ministry and make this broadcast possible. We ask all of our listeners to prayerfully consider how you might help his radio ministry continuous broadcast on this radio station by supporting a monthly fourth is the 100 support for ministry can be sent to Fellowship in the Word. 4600 Clearview Pkwy., Metairie 7006 if you would be interested in hearing today's message in its original format that is is a sermon, the pastor will delivered during a Sunday morning service of fellowship monitored visit our website FVC Nola.org that FVC and O LA.Margie at our website you will find hundreds pastoral sermon you can browse through our sermon archives defined sensors are looking for.

You can search by title.

Once you find the method you're looking for. You can listen online or if you prefer, you can download the sermon and listen at your inquiry and remember all this absolutely free of charge. Once again our website is FVC Nola.org for pastoral gift card Jason Denhardt thank you for listening to fellowship in order