A Thinking Faith - Part 1

Today on Fellowship in the Word pastor Bill Gebhardt challenges you to become a fully functioning follower of Jesus Christ anonymous writer said whatever you hold in your mind will tend to occur in your life if you continue to believe is you've always believed you will continue to act as you've always acted and if you continue to act as you've always acted you will continue to get what you've always got. If you want different results in your life or in your work. Gotta change your thinking. 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 Pastor Bill Gebhardt now is once again he shows us how God's word. Our world is just about certain that none of you have ever heard it.

James out. He never achieved anything in his life at all and he died at 48 years of age.

He wrote at 19 or 20 books, most of which no one ever writer ever.

But he did write one book that was discovered after he had died and it was the second book. Ever written and he had actually written that he didn't think very much of the book because it wasn't very good and double book was discovered after his death and sold millions and millions of copies. He lived in the early 1900s in England and as far as we know he was not a Christian but this little book that he wrote was based on a single part of one verse of the Bible open your Bibles to Proverbs 23 and verse seven Proverbs 23 and verse seven just the first part of the verse Solomon writing and Solomon wrote these words he said for as he thinks within himself, so is that's the verse that he wrote the book of for as he thinks within himself, so he is one of the things that Alan said was that he now realizes the most important thing about any single one of us is our thoughts, he wrote in that book, a person's mind may be likened to a garden which may be intelligently cultivated or allowed to run wild, but whether cultivated or neglected, it must and it will bring forth fruit if the useful seeds are not put into the garden and abundance of useless seeds will fall upon it and will continue to produce their fruit and then use another person said what so ever. A man should so socially reap. It's interesting that the what this became for James Allen James Allen is now universally viewed as the father of modern positive thinking the whole movement called positive thinking among people is attributed to this book by James Allen, David Jeremiah's remarks on it was this, he said maybe you've heard something like this.

Whatever your mind can conceive in your heart can believe you can achieve an effect knowing you heard that, but just about a week or two ago my wife and I watch a Hallmark movie in that exact line was used in the movie what ever I thought it was interesting whatever you can conceive that if you believe that your treatment, he said.

Or maybe put it this way you think your way to success in many other such ideas. But this is not what the Proverbs teaching, we do not have the power to think things into existence, no matter what anyone says, the view of thinking. This view of thinking is ungodly humanism, but to understand that our thoughts are powerful. That's not humanistic at all. It's very, very biblical.

The Bible teaches us that our thoughts are important and that we cannot change our lives unless we change our thoughts said what we do with our thinking determines what we become. We are not what we think we are, but what we think we are anonymous writer said whatever you hold in your mind will tend to occur in your life if you continue to believe is you've always believed you will continue to act as you've always acted and if you continue to act as you've always acted you will continue to get what you've always gotten.

If you want different results in your life or in your work. You gotta change your thinking. The last couple weeks I've been talking about this short series and it's all in your head and the reason that I wanted to talk about it was that my experiences been that so many Christians live defeated life and then all kinds of anguish. I sometimes its pervasive defeat sometime just long periods of defeat.

Their depressed field of anxiety overcome with guilt or fear and I want to try to figure out why is this so I started the first week and said that God's God said, I have given to you as a Christian everything you need pertaining to life and godliness. Everything I've given you everything you need is not one thing I withheld. In fact, even when furthered with the Ephesians, he said I have blessed you with every spiritual blessing in heavenly places. Every single one of given to you so we can say God hasn't supplied what we need in that first week I said Peter said what we need to do is to gird up the loins of our mind and we need to be diligent in how we think about being a Christian and last week I said we make these great choices in life. If you want eternal life.

You have to choose to put your faith in Christ.

That's an appointment time you choose. You put your faith in Christ and you have eternal life. But if you want to have a wonderful life you have to make two more choices one in Baltimore in Romans 12 one into you have to choose to give your life to Christ Jesus would say this with you want to find your life you're going to have to lose it and you have to choose to not allow the world to conform you into its mold but to renew the way you think, so that you can be transformed into the image of Christ. I want to pick that up today and I went out a couple more thoughts to it before we close the series and the first one thought that I want to add is this I don't know if you realize this but our thoughts can destroy our faith, our thoughts can destroy our faith and not I don't mean for some of us I mean for all of us. Open your Bible is the first Kings I'm talking about was the first Kings chapter 18 first Kings chapter 18 in the context of chapter 18 is finding 17 one and we are introduced to a very special human being is is now Elijah Leticia pipe, who was of the settlers of Gilead, said to Ahab, he's the king of Israel, as the Lord, the God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, surely there shall be neither dew nor rain three years except by my word.

That's the last thing the world the king would want to hear Ahab as a pagan king, King of Israel, and he hears this from Elijah and so Ahab does not like Elijah and Ahab decides I'm going to hunt Elijah down in Dedham. The best way to get rain will be to get Elijah but God protects Elijah so we end up in chapter 18 verse one and it's as it came about after many days, that the word of the Lord came to Elijah in the third year and said, go show yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain to the face of the earth, so that's the scenario I want to think about this. Everybody in Israel, especially in power they hate Elijah and he's this long prophet of God. Now, after three years with the Kings hunting God says now go and present yourself to the king and Elijah doesn't. That took about two things is faith and discourage he's willing to do this so we get to verse 17, a first Kings 18 and it came about that when Ahab saw Elijah Ahab said to them, is this you you trouble or of Israel trouble of Israel is not really good translation. It's a Hebrew idiom it it's he's making an insult. Maybe I'd say in English with it. Is this you you snake in the grass.

That's what Ahab thought about you trouble or of Israel.

You brought this on.

We have extreme famine in the minutes all your fault so much as response and he said I am not troubled Israel but you and your father's house have because you have forsaken the commandments of the Lord and followed the bales you brought this about that's on you know.

Remember he speaking to a king who would like him to be dead and is all by himself, but he speaks it.

I want to remember his courage and his and his faith. He then goes on and says I got a plan for you. He says now then send and gather to me all Israel, and my caramel together with 450 prophets of bail and 400 prophets of Asherah who eat at Jezebel.

That's Ahab's wife's table. I to my plan.

I want to get everybody together now bill you read that often in the Scriptures are being it's actually Barrell but will call it bail such a weight usually said by us, but Bill shows up 89 times in Scripture and then Asherah shows up about 50 times. These are part of the Pantheon of the Canaanite gods bill is a big time God bill worshipers. And there's something funny about all this to you if you knew about Bella makes it funny. Bill is one thing, he's the fertility God if you're going to have a baby got to go through Bill but is also the God of storms. Remember this. He's the God of storms. I remember there's been a drop of three map years but he's the God of storms and Asherah.

Asherah is Bell's sister and wife okay and it's a very demented type of thing, but she's more secondary than bail ways. There's no doubt about that.

So Ahab sent a message among all the sons of Israel brought the prophets together at my caramel and Elijah came near to all the people and said how long will you hesitate between two opinions. If there is a God, follow him. But if it's bill follow him. I love this, the people would not answer him. They would give an opinion and that people you want what you want to commitment. I want to make a commitment. I mean, maybe it's God.

Maybe it's bill to stay in the middle for a while. Then Elijah said to the people I am alone and let the prophet of the Lord, but Bell's profits are 450 men nonmember. That's interesting.

The odds on this Arbel has 450 prophets Asherah has 400 and God has Elijah so with 850 to 1 right in remembering that the 850 have a king behind him the military have everything behind Elijah just has God behind so he was only says now let them give us two oxen and let them choose one ox for themselves, and cut it up and place it on the wood but put no fire under it and I will prepare the other oxalate on the wood and I will not put a fire under it. Then you call on the name of your God, and I will call in the name of the Lord in the God who enters by fire. He is God, and now all the people so that's a good idea okay so you up two offerings, the God so Elijah said to the prophet to build choose one ox for yourselves and prepare for it. First, for you are many and call on the name of your God, but put no fire under it and then they took Vioxx which was given them and they prepared it and it called on the name of bill from morning until noon, saying they'll answer us. So it's about six in the morning about noon to get about six hours and are praying over bail at 450 guys bill answer us nonmember bells, the God of storms and all you want to do is give us away is a pretty easy way to work that's way Elijah picked that I believe God did, he says them. There is no voice and no one answered so they believed about the altar, which they had made maybe is not enough dancing to me. We need to be more active. Maybe we need to start on this. Just jump this really get active in this thing and so they do that came about at noon that Elijah mocked them and said Deb call out with a loud voice, for he is a God either is occupied or gone aside maybe is on a journey or perhaps he's asleep. You need to wake him. Come on guys you're not loud enough I mean you don't know where using my piano time today. You know, but come on lets you see what you got is so they cried with a loud voice, and they cut themselves according to their custom with swords and lances until blood gushed out. So now, screaming and dancing and cutting themselves and pouring bail, the God of storms to give them some rain actually in firing this case to see what I mean. With the rain a minute so they do it. It says that came about when mid-day was past the rape until the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice. There's no voice. No one answered and no one paid attention that Elijah said all the people come near to me and all the people came near to him and he prepared an altar for the of the Lord he said was a been torn down. There were no altars for God so it's build one. He said Elijah took 12 stones according the number of the tribes of the sons of Israel, to whom that word of the Lord came and said Israel will be your name, and so with the stones he go to motor in the name of the Lord, which he and he dug a trench around it large enough to hold two measures of seed tree dug a deep trench riding you think we put a trench line and all that were going to have my fire he arrange the wood and cut the oxen pieces and he laid it on the wood and then he said to him feel for pictures with water.

Miss water because my caramel light became the Mediterranean Sea because there's not a lot of water in the land have an agreement. Three. So he said so for pictures with water poured on the burnt offering. And on the wood that we get water.

You want to doubt what you put it all over the oxen all over the web so they did it do so by what would you do that second time, do it again and he said he did his academics would you do 1/3 time so you do it 1/3 time. It's as the water flowed around the old and filled the trench so everything is soaked three times now the trench is for water. I nods about a subject nonmember.

He's calling for fire. It says the water flowed around the altar also filled the trench. It came about at the time of the evening offering of the evening sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet came near and said this is all he said. Oh Lord God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel today. Let it be known that you are the God in Israel and that I am your servant, and I have done all things according to your word answer me said, oh Lord answered me that this people may know that you oh Lord our God, and that you have turned their heart back again so we did go dancing. No long time one short little faithful prayer in the fire of the Lord fell and consumed the burnt offering in the wood in this at notice and the stones and the dust and picked up the water and which was in the trench. The fire consumed the oxen.

The word the stones of the altar. All the dust and all the water in the trench. It was more like it just gone. Is this a chart. Soon as he does well. So when all the people saw, they fell on their faces again. Love the people abated me much convincing today. They all fell on their faces and they said the Lord is God, the Lord he is God just what Isaac now what Elijah said to them, sees the profits of bail. Do not let them escape. And so the season and Elijah brought them down to the brook of Keyshawn any sleuthing there 450 men killed them all. One guy don't stop, don't do anything with no Elijah said to Ahab, and I imagine right now.

Ahab's nervous. I gotta believe this, you see with this guy just did. I don't think the 450 walked on a single follows that I wait my turn, only to have like that. I think they were forced on by God and so he says the Ahab, which is quite interesting. He said go up, eat and drink, for there is the sound of the roar of heavy shower coming in. Ahab went up to eat and drink, but Elijah he said went up to the top of Carmel, so is climbing the mountain to the top and he crouched down in the earth, and he put his face between his knees notices you military just pulls himself and pulls it no braggadocio's idea here. It always a humble man and it said to the servant go up now and look to the sea. So I went up and he looked so he must be a certain elder to discuss the climb up of the top declines of the top looks the Mediterranean. There's nothing's okay go back. It doesn't because back then there's nothing go back seven times. No one ever gives credit to the servant seven times aware of this guy's going is gone up taken a look and got nothing. Seven times Elijah says keep going, came about in the summertime, that behold a cloud of smoke was a man's hand is coming from the sea and he said go up and say to Ahab, prepare your chariot go down so that the heavy shower does not stop you.

It's going to rain so hard you won't be able to make it in your chariot but to get going now it came about a little while.

The sky grew black with clouds and women. There was a heavy shower and Ahab road and went to Jezreel.

That's where that's where is the palaces. That's where Jezebel was in it says and then the hand of the Lord was on Elijah and he girded up his loins. Me out ran Ahab to Jezreel. I have sent chariot all by what Jezreel 17 miles so he's on cherry going 70 miles an Ahab runs by a Road Runner cartoon and I just goes right by him and what you're thinking when you think of this story is this is incredible. This is one man against the King country 850 prophets and this is one man of faith. Encourage watch now Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah done and how it killed all the prophets with the sword. Then Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah and said so may the gods do to me even more. If I do not make your life as one of them by tomorrow. At this time and he was afraid and he ran for his life. Why yeah what happened with 850 prophets King. It's been happier for three years. All the military that the king would have his disposal. He has all the success and a woman says don't get to get any panics now my diminishing women. They are frightening but the real point is the problem for Elijah is not Jezebel. What's the problem between his years me ask you just a question power Jezebel pagan woman or God know who has the most power here. Billions and billions and billions of times more power, trillions and trillions of times more power you see who has power. Nothing about that he's thinking about. She threatened me. Oh my goodness she's going to get me. Now I understand a little bit about his dilemma here. I mean if you think about what he is gone through your I think that there's no question he's he's find himself in a really unique and difficult situation. He said the greatest experience of his life. He's also I think you'll see later, he isolates even up himself from everybody else, even a servant when you get isolated in your own thoughts is not good. Thirdly, it's also likely he was physically and emotionally exhausted.

Imagine, just imagine when he went to start the run to get the Jezreel and then gets lost in the same thing. You and I got so listening to Pastor Brogan on the radio ministry of fellowship Lord, if you ever missed one of our broadcast or maybe you just listen to the message one more time. Remember, 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 at that website you will find on with today's broadcast but also 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 with radio ministry continuous broadcast on this radio station by supporting us monthly with just a one-time gift support for ministry can be sent to Fellowship in the Word. 4600 Clearview Pkwy., Metairie, LA 7006 if you would be interested in hearing today's messages original format that is is a sermon, the pastor will deliver 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. Pastor Bill sermon.

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