Stop Complaining - Part 2

Today on Fellowship in the Word pastor Bill Gebhardt challenges you to become a fully functioning follower of Jesus Christ. Not much of a jump we say God I was. I have asked certain expectations for my life and are not coming through and I'm angry God not getting what I want in effect in a general way we say life owes me. Life owes me something. And when life doesn't give me what I want to have that on the that's how it works for us. The problem is that the angry people don't realize something they don't realize that they allow other people to control if you're an angry person. What about person allowing the people that you're angry at the control you 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 again he shows us how God's word meets our work now to Colossians chapter 3 Colossians chapter 3, another prison epistle verse 12, the apostle Paul says so as those who have been chosen of God at again as holy means set apart holy and beloved, we are set apart people that God loves. He said I want you to put on a heart of compassion and kindness and humility and gentleness, and there it is again patient's right after patients what to say, bearing with one another.

You see, bearing with one another this and if you keep waiting for people to meet your expectations and you decide I'll stop complaining when they start meeting my expectations, you will die complaining it's going to happen every day it's going to happen almost every way. You see, what we really need to do in this fallen world is the show. As he says right there to show the heart of passion, compassion, kindness, humility and gentleness and patience, but it's even clearer if you turn with me now to Galatians chapter 5 Galatians chapter 5 and you will see that were completely without excuse when it comes the complaining and patience. Verse 22 Galatians 5 pulses but the fruit of the spirit is a please understand say this all the time. He doesn't say these are the fruits of the spirit that would be our Debbie or plural. This is a singular verb. The fruit of the spirit is so when you have the spirit in control of your life.

This is what is evidenced in your life so don't say Bob pretty good at two of those. I'm working on two or three of them and I'm probably below average. On the other is not what he means is that when you're controlled by the spirit of God. This is what it looks like the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, there is patient's kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such things there is no law when you're controlled by the spirit of God.

One of the things that is evident in your life as you are patient. If you are humble, gentle, kind and patient.

Guess what you won't be doing complaining you see. So when you are complaining, you have to ask yourself the question, what is this complaint come from.

It doesn't come in the spirit of God. This comes my flash.

Is he someone is not meeting my expectation and I want to complain about.

So the end of the complaining is patient's you need to ask yourselves just two questions. One, am I experiencing the fruit of the spirit in my life. And secondly, I think very important when it comes to certain situations or certain people have I prayed consistently and persistently about this before I start complaining about really prayed about this and inevitably I think that what ends up happening when you pray Persistently and consistently about something like this.

God may change the circumstance but he will change you see, once I start articulating my impatience my demands on others my expectations. It becomes very evident to me as I'm praying that the Lord like what oh this is all about me.

This isn't about you see we the thing about prayer. That's most amazing prayer can change things but prayer mostly changes us. That's what happens when we pray so complaining is usually a chronic condition and it's extremely brittle. This interview regarding very avid complainer. You're gonna fight with us, this message is not necessarily going to help you many many years ago I preached a sermon on an overview of the book of numbers for the book of complaining and got when the summer was over. In those days I would stand at the front door and there was a lady in our church and an elderly woman and she came to the door and this woman if this woman was primarily she's a nice lady but primarily if you said give me one word to describe her. I'd say complainer. She complained incessantly, so she gets to the door and she said based on what I think you just said I the book of numbers.

I can't complain today, but if I could. This is what I would complain about.

That's what he said if I could. These are the things that I would complain about seal chronic it is, it's who she is in it.

As I said, you always have the ammunition to complain disappointments everywhere and people never meet all your expectations.

So, complaining is chronic and want to talk now about angry words. I mean, the outburst when we have these outbursts of really angry words, angry words are sprinkled and anger all through Scripture.

Remember Kane in the book of Genesis. Early becomes angry he become so angry that he murders his brother Saul became so angry that he spent so much time trying to hunt down David and murder him. Jonah became so angry that he thought about committing suicide and he ran from God.

As far as he could get away. The prodigal son's older brother became so angry that he turned on his father. That's why James said we have to be careful when it comes outburst of anger in James one verse 19 go there with me.

James one verse 19 verse 19 James writing.

He says this.

You know, my beloved brethren but everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger that describe you, you slow to anger or to come quickly out of nowhere. You see, we have to hesitate, you know it's interesting God. I find it interesting the way God spoke to these examples I gave three of them when they got really angry when Kane got so angry God said to Cain, his first words were, this why are you angry, he said do right in your comments arise. That's an interesting thing he said can why you angry if you do the right thing.

Your comments arise. Same thing for us is he sometimes when I get angry.

I think the thing that I have to do as a priority is repent is yet to see it for what it is you said you do write your comments arise.

You see those furled eyebrows and that red face will go away you might have a smile, then the Jonah he said do you have good reason to be angry.

That's what he said the Jonah did have good reason to be angry member Jonah yes Gino John about in great reason to be angry you. Why was Jonah so angry he got angry at God for the reason you and I often get angry at God the same reason and that is the Jonah thought that God should do something. Jonah thought that God should do to Nineveh what Jonah would do to Nineveh because they had a common and God didn't that happens to us so often we expect God to act a certain way in our lives and he doesn't and then were angry because the circumstances didn't change the way we thought they would. God didn't come through for us. The prodigal sons older brother.

The father said son you've always been with me all that I have all that is mine is yours and other would you have no reason if you thought about it from a different point of view.

We simply saying you should be grateful for what you have, not angry about what your brothers getting you see not angry about what you don't have. You should be grateful for what you have sweet always have to check and see the reason. How you justify your anger very important for us why we get angry. I think it's a lot like complaining this last week I looked through some chapters are some books and address all the things it can make us angry and by the way, there's a lot.

In fact, it made me angry. We know that list to resist so many things on the list, but Andy Stanley wrote something. I thought it was very accurate. He said we get angry when we expect something that we don't get you see it's just it's like complaining, except that this outburst it's not chronic. We get angry when we expect something that we don't get what we say to people you owe me. I have certain expectations of my wife, my children, my friends, people I meet. You owe me. If you don't meet my expectations. I'm to get angry is not much of a jump that we say God owes me. I have asked certain expectations for my life and I'm not coming through and I'm angry at God because I'm not getting what I want in effect in a general way we say life owes me. Life owes me something. And when life doesn't get give me what I want to have that I'm going to get angry. That's how it works for us. The problem is that the angry people don't realize something they don't realize that they allow other people to control him. If you're an angry person and you have a lot of outburst of anger you're allowing the people that your better your angry at the control you and by the way, we know that even though we know what were saying is not true what we say to people you know what you make me angry. Let me give you the truth, no one can make you angry. Anger is an inside job, no one can make you angry.

No one has a power over you with.

You get angry and you have an outburst that came from your heart. You see, that comes in the inside. It works its way out through your tongue in an outburst that you have what's the antidote for anger again.

The book of Ephesians chapter 4 Ephesians chapter 4 in this time.

Verse 31, and I'll be honest in a certain level of these are two verses. I don't care much for the expectation is really high in these verses, verse 31 let all and no matter how you look at the word. It's the same every time you look at it in every lexicon you want all means and means all, what's the word I want there some that's the word I want I want the word some some of the bitterness go I knew that I think I'm more than that is is let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Now he says all of it has to be put away. You have to get rid of it. Literally, it says that in the Greek all but all of it seems unrealistic. It's surely seems unrealistic, but gets much more difficult.

He said no. Would like to put that all away but notice that what he says again with comparable commandments.

Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, and here's the antidote for anger, forgiving each other, forgive, that's what it said, forgiving each other and that's what it means. It means forgiving each other what they never apologized and say that.

So when I apologize, forgive the bins said, forgiving each other by the way gets much worse to word set it up just as God in Christ is also forgiven. Well, there is the definition you see there that refines the meaning of forgiveness I have to forgive others the way Christ forgives me the way God forgives me will. How does he do that completely persistently daily, hourly by the minute.

That's the word just as it interesting that you're on the forgiving anything isn't wonderful is just wonderful that God forgives me like that and then somebody doesn't meet your expectation and you harbor it on my forgiving them. They deserve my anger with me last passage you want to look at the Matthew 18 and there we get a little bit more what the just as means Matthew 18 in verse 21, Matthew writes this. Then Peter came and I said to him, Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive them, not what Peter is a surrealist Peter saying you know what all my life people have done me dirt always some unintentionally, some intentionally.

Even his other 11 guys only you think they are there annoying. You see, that's the way life is.

So Peter says home off and how many times I do that and then Peter as I've said before, the rabbis taught three times and then you're done.

Peterson about seven as a great number to number prevention. It's way more double double with the Rabbi say you gotta be impressed when you hear that from me and Jesus said to him I do not say to you, up to seven times but up to 70×7. While 490 no means infinitely as soon as he said that he goes into a parable one says. For this reason, the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his slaves and when he began to settle them one owed him 10,000 talents that was brought to him and the number is overwhelmingly staggering. It's a number that no one could ever repay. That's the point of it, we would say in the term of billions of dollars. He says then, but since he did not have the means to repay, his Lord commanded him to be sold, along with his wife and his children and all that he had, and repayment to be made so the slave fell on the ground prostrated himself before him and said, have patience with me and I will repay you everything in the Lord of that slave felt compassion and released him and forgave him the debt. That's what forgiveness is.

Forgiveness is a decision to cancel the debt you owe me may really hurt me, but my decision is I cancel the debt. It's hard to do with for some of us stop complaining you see to stop having angry outburst seemed way beyond us and I really believe that the problem they were having is not the ability to do this, we have the spirit of God indwelling us. It will produce this. The problem isn't the lack of the strength of the Spirit of God of the clarity of the word of God. The problem that we have is our view of ourselves.

You see, the only person that can stop you from complaining and stop you from outburst of anger. The only one I can do that is you. You're the only person that can actually do that.

Someone remind you of something, when the Lord looks at the physical and spiritual universe. All that he is created, you're not the center of you see you're not the bull's-eye. When all the stage lights are lit and right on that stage, they're not all shining on you. In fact, if I was going to continue with that metaphor, it would be sort of like this. We are lesser orbs. That's who we are in the grand scheme of it all. We are lesser orbs we appreciated. Yes, our beloved yes I we valued highly but you are not the celebrity of the universe is the son of God is our Lord Jesus Christ. If you think about that metaphor.

I think the moon is our model. Contrary to the lyrics. The harvest Moon cannot shine on not at all.

In fact, apart from the sun, the moon is a dead black rock that's all it is. But in just the right position with the sun, it beams.

It's amazing how bright it can seem not generating any of its own light. It simply reflects light and just like you and me. It not only has a side they can reflect the light but our mood has something else.net dark side. It's always there. Just like it is with you and me. We have a dark side that complaining unforgiving angry side. The moon reflects the greater light in the moon is happy to do so. The moon never complains, never the moon allows cows the jump over it astronauts the step on it and there's no complaining at all. When we see ourselves as those who reflect the light of the sun of God.

When we do that we reflect his patients. We stop complaining we forgive as he forgives and the angry outburst vanish. So if you want to complain about the series leave me out of it. Take it up with him. That spring father.

These two issues the way we use our tongue and the weight of our words touch all of our lives, we can identify with the children of Israel we can find ourselves taken out of Egypt on the way to the promised land and complaining complaining on a daily basis complaining on things that are small and things that are large because father we really are impatient with your care in our lives. Father, we all have outburst of anger for some of us it's very difficult and occurs way too often the father what's happening as were basically saying that others in this world have to meet our expectations. When they don't. We strike out in anger.

How soon we forget that you have very high expectations and we don't meet them at all and you meet our failure with your love and forgiveness, your compassion, you cancel our debt. We are so grateful so happy that you do that. Father, we gotta be more than simply those who have been forgiven. We have to be those who forgive father I pray that as we continue to see the weight of our words and the importance of our language and our tongue that we getting convicted by your spirit, where need be and we should be encouraged that we have the capability to overcome our propensity to use our tongue to describe this. We pray in Jesus name for your glory for our good men to pastor broke apart on the radio ministry of fellowship Lord, if you ever miss one of our broadcast or maybe you just like listen to 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 to Fellowship in the Word online at that website you will find on with today's broadcast but also many of our previous audio programs is that Fellowship in the Word. We are thankful for those who financially support our ministry and make this broadcast possible. Yes, 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 the one time 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 message in its 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 oh LA.O RG at our website you will find hundreds pastor Bill sermon you can browse through our sermon archives to find the sermon series you're looking you can search by title. Once you find the message you're looking for. You can listen online or if you prefer, you can download the sermon and listen at your own. And remember all this absolutely free of charge. Once again our website FVC Nola.org forecaster Bill Gebhardt and Jason Denhardt thanking you for listening to fellowship in order