March 13, 2022 Sunday Worship Service (Roy)

Brother Doug.

I know that title you're not worried about your life comes from a reading. I thought about saying, don't worry be happy but that's kind of to cliche and so I decided against that so stick what the Lord had to say about it. But as we think about The Sermon on the Mount, which is what we've been looking at for the past several weeks. Consular section of scripture. Where Jesus is asking the disciples? What are you wearing? Why are all the anxiety in your life? You're worrying about what you going to eat? What you going to drink? What you going to wear the worrying about all these things? You're you worried about tomorrow. You're living a life of. What if? What if this happens? And what is that goes on? And what if this? And what if that and so, Jesus says,

Your father takes care of the birds. Your father takes care of the flowers. He's prepared creation. He takes care of his creation. You are a part of his creation. He's going to take care of you.

and at the beginning of that message, he began by saying. You can't serve two masters. And at the end he says to his disciples. Oh, yeah of little faith. And so everything you between the commentary that's in between. Begins with. Those two thoughts, those two thoughts. Oh, ye of little faith and you can't serve two masters. And so we find here what? Exactly Jesus is driving yet what he's talking about. The idea of worried, the idea of anxiety, the idea that was causing these people to behave, like pagans.

He says even the Gentiles they spend their time being worried about these things. The very things that you find yourselves worrying about. and so, he says, And not so many words, but he says you call yourselves followers of me, but where's your face? Where is your faith? And of course, we know that anxiety. Fear is real, right. We can look at the cross itself and fine anxiety, and Fear With Jesus. Define that as he was preparing for the cross, he prayed to his father. Take this cup away from me if you can but not my will but your will be done. But of course Jesus wasn't allowed or wasn't allowing that sphere. To ensnare him. What did he say to his disciples after three times? You pray? You said it's time. Let's go. Kind of sounds like what was said on the airplane on 9/11. Let's roll. It's time to go time for prayers over with. God has a plan for me, and I need to follow that plan Jesus in it, and I'm going to follow it through to the end. And so that was the answer. God Dave. So he told his disciples get up and let's go. Jesus didn't allow the fear or the anxiety to engulf his life or to impede his decision making process. He wasn't consumed that he had it. No question about it. But a lot differently than many do over the past two years, 80% of doctors, visits to the office to the doctor's office or about anxiety related matters, stress, related matters. No Doubt. We went through a pandemic. No doubt that pandemic created a pandemic, another pandemic, a worldwide pandemic of fear. You know, it's okay to be afraid of something. It's okay to have that anxiety. Anxiety is good, right, you know, if you get nervous about something even public speaking, you tend to speak a little better because of that nervousness, Dustin Hoffman told him a story of how he was working on Broadway. Even after some 30-40 years in the acting business. He said that he would get sick to his stomach before going out on stage on Broadway and yet have been doing that for practically all his life. You probably heard about football players, get all nerved up before game and they get sick to their stomach as well. And so sometimes it's that nervousness that compels us and propels us to do better things. And we find that especially when we were afraid and we're protecting somebody. It's amazing. The Feats of Strength that could be done by people who are protecting themselves and their loved ones. And so we're human beings. Jesus was indeed a human being and guess what? We're made with a nervous system. And so the idea of being nervous with being anxious and fearful is coming to all of us. The question is, do we allowed to consume too much? That's the problem in the hearing lies. What we've been dealing with for the past two years that many have allowed themselves to be consumed with fear so much. So again, that we have 80% of a doctor's visits being stress or anxiety related. We have a star in psychotic drugs, anxiety-related drugs. These past two years. We have any an explosion. And people seeing their psychologist. What's keeping them? Very busy. And also have an explosion, believe it or not, and physiological aspects that are the result of the fear. People have been talking about fried fibromyalgia. As a result of the traumatic fear that they are experiencing. They have pains in their back, pains in their neck. Pains. I can't explain.

I think most of my pain could be explained because of getting older. I think all of us might agree to that one degree or another. But we find that these things are adding there's a psychosis now. Where the fear has gone out of control, anxiety is no longer being under the control of the individual. This is the point that Jesus is driving it in the passage that Kayden read for us. From Matthew chapter 6. But again, he says you can't serve two masters. You can't allow anxiety to keep you from serving Jesus. That's the point. If you're allowing something to get in the way of your relationship with Jesus, that something needs to go. It's all going to talk a little bit about the idea of anxiety. And when you look at it from the perspective of what Paul said in Philippians chapter 4. Adara says, rejoice in the lord. Always, you know, this rejoice in the lord always, again. I will say rejoice, let your gentleness be made known to all the Lord is at hand. Be anxious for nothing, noticed the tie in there. The Lord is at hand be anxious for nothing. Golden everything in all things by prayer and supplication with Thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and Minds through Christ Jesus. What a beautiful passes that is and what he's doing is he's offering us. Hope we have the resources in which we can turn. Return to Christ and return to his word. And so will take a closer look at that because of the fact that anxieties surely is a real issue and a real problem. It so be anxious for nothing. You don't have to be anxious. You don't have to be nervous. But again, where humans? And sometimes we can let things get out of control.

Here, we are Olympians chapter four, beginning and verse five. It says rejoice in the lord. Always again. I say rejoice, let your gentleness be known to all men that the Lord is at hand be anxious for nothing. But in everything by prayer and supplication with Thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and Minds through Christ. Jesus. Finally, Brethren, whatever things are true. Whatever things are noble, whatever things are. Just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are, lovely, whatever, things are of good report. If there is any virtue and if there's anything praiseworthy, meditate. Think on these things, meditate, the idea of meditation is run them over in your mind. Keep running them over, let him Georgia Tate within your mind. Keep thinking all of these things, keep thinking about these things. And this is the way in which we need to understand our Lord. When he was talking about this very idea. Matthew chapter 6, replace, bad thoughts with good, thoughts, replace bad thoughts with good thoughts. And so, we find here.

A similar story. I guess we will with Martha Mary and Jesus. You remember the story from Luke chapter 10. Martha. She's been working hard. She's been preparing a meal. She's been cleaning house. All for Jesus because Jesus was a guest in her house, but Mary, Mary was just listening to Jesus teach. And so it got to the point where Martha said, that's enough of this. I'm doing all this work by myself. And so she goes and she complains to Jesus about how Mary is B, you remember the response that Jesus gave Martha Martha. You have many troubles in your mind. Mary has chosen the good part. Be like Mary. He didn't say that last part. We all need to be like Mary. Mary said, you know, the Lord is here. And while he's here. I'm going to take advantage of what the Lord has to say. Biscuits right back to the heart of what Jesus is going to talk about next week and Matthew 6:33. Which follows, which was part of the reading this morning, seek? First, the kingdom of God, and his righteousness, and all these things, the food, the drink, the clothing, all of these necessities of life will be added on to you, but you got to seek the kingdom first. That's what Mary was sitting at the feet of Jesus listening to his teaching. She chose the good part. Martha was busy being busy. Rather than doing what Mary really was doing the right thing. And so, as to look at the idea of this passage. A couple spots that comes to my mind and that is, first of all, we need to come to Jesus, right? We need to come to Jesus and Matthew chapter 11 beginning of verse 28. Jesus said, come to me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. You don't we talk about worry. We're talking about a Greek word. That literally means a divided mind. A divided mind. What gets right back to the point? You can't serve two masters? You can't say I love Jesus on the one hand and let yourself worry and be consumed by it on the other. Serving another master. And so Jesus says, you come unto me and I will give you the rest that you need. Peace of God that surpasses all understanding. Isn't that a wonderful thing to think about that in the turmoil of Life, the ups and downs, the ABS and flows, the hardships, all of the pain and all the suffering, all of the trials of life and through it all. There's a piece, there's a joy and there was a rest that Jesus provide all of us. He says, this is where you need this focus and settle your heart and your mind. And then he says, talking about those things that you need to think about, think those things, if there's anything praiseworthy, if there's anything beautiful that comes from God, Focus your mind on that. Focus your mind on that. I'm going to take you through a little bit of a scriptural Excursion, this morning. Take a look at some passages that can help us overcome fear. Now, we're all going to have moments of fear, anxiety, and stress. That's all part of life. Jesus said, so these hard times will come.

It's all in how you handle the hard times. It's all in how you handle the times of anxiety and stress.

Isaiah 26:3. Notice what he says, you will keep in. Perfect. Peace. All who trust in? You all whose thoughts are fixed on you. You will keep those people in perfect. Peace. Those who have a man that's fixed on you, on God. What a lovely thought that is that in all this unrest of Life. There is his rest given by the Lord, by all those Focus completely on him. And we have this popular expression. That's come about over the past 10, 15 years or so. Keep Calm and Carry On. It was actually one of three propaganda posters that were made in England in the 1930s and into the 40s. And you remember that through the late thirties and into the early forties. The Germans were bombing London. There were bombing England and over and over again. Churchill would get up on the radio and start telling the people to never give up, never give up, never give up and he's so he would leave them on and give them that fight song, If you will have to get them at courage backbone that they needed, but they may have these posters and for whatever reason.

Until 15, 20 years ago, some guy saw in this filing cabinet. These wonderful posters that were made for that time. And so we have them today and I think about a song that we sometimes sing. We I say sometimes because the songs that actually in our song book that we have I believe we do have a slide for it, but the song is this. Learning to Lean Learning to Lean. I'm learning to lean on Jesus, finding more power than I have ever seen. I'm learning to lean on Jesus. When Jesus was talking about these folks, having an overriding fear or anxiety. He was talking again about that, which causes them to separate themselves from the truth from him. The way the truth and the life. And when you separate yourself from the way, the truth and the life, there's an issue. There's a problem. And so Jesus says, you need to be concerned over your anxiety. You cannot let it get out of control. You cannot. And so it's not going to happen overnight though. It's a process like anything else, like learning to love reading scripture. When I was a younger man, I didn't necessarily like reading scripture. It was born. I didn't want to do it and back then it was the King James version that we had. You no longer forced to read the King James and didn't like that language. I wasn't into Shakespeare. I wasn't into the Bible. But I begin to get older. Process was developing and I began to read that Bible. Little more just a little bit more. Just a little bit more to the point. Now. I can't live without you. Like many of you need to read that Bible and perhaps all of us at one point or another. We said we loved God, but did we really love the way God wants us to love him. Maybe we didn't understand and so we didn't really have a complete love or understanding of love that we need to have for God and so we didn't love God as much as we should have. Or as much as we could have, but as we grew through that process through life experience through gaining knowledge of scripture through the application of scripture through, being with Christian people, like minded people, you begin to grow. And you begin to realize just how wonderful it is, to love God to know that he loves you back even more than you could possibly love him. So whatever you think about Learning to Lean on Jesus, we're learning to deal with anxiety. And God has given us a resource. That's a coping mechanism. And it's called God's word. I noticed what he says in Proverbs chapter 4, keep your heart with all diligence for out of it Springs. The issues of Life need to keep and guard our hearts. We talked about that in Bible class this morning. But here begins the process. It all begins with our heart and I keep pointing to the heart. It's actually the heart. It all begins up here and our minds. The inward man, the spirit that which does have the seat of emotion, but but also is that part in which reasons with God and with God's word. I saw the first thing that we need to understand that we need to seek those things which are above where Christ is set. Your mind on things above, not on things of the Earth. You know, when we start thinking about things on the earth, materialism, The Flash, and all of those things that go with human life. We can understand why anxiety, can overrule us can overcome us. Can take over our lives? Because we're not allowing ourselves to think better. Now we better of ourselves, the better of God. We think better of God, will put more trust in him and really put more trust in him. Our anxiety level Wayne. And it's much, much lower. And needs to be where we're chat at the lowest level. It can be so seek those things which are above where Christ is set, your mind on things above and that's present tense. Keep on. Shutting your mind on things above. You want to run those bad thoughts out of your mind. You replace him with good thoughts. Here's how it's done. You keep thinking about Jesus. You keep thinking about his word and, what a wonderful thing that we can do. When we go to God's word. We can see the wisdom. James just asked for wisdom, but you're not going to get wisdom that falls out of the sky because that's where wisdom sound. Define the wisdom that God gives through his word. I'm going to Romans chapter 8 says for those who live, according to the flesh, set their minds on things of the flesh. A life of fear that a life of anxiety, set their minds on things of the flesh. It doesn't rise higher than that. But all here saying, it needs to rise higher. There's a higher level of which we need to start thinking. He says to the flash shut their minds on things of the flesh, but those who live, according to the spirit, that is the things of the spirit according to this law of the spirit of life in Christ. Jesus, Romans 8 verse 2. He says they set their minds on things of the spirit.

They set their minds on the teachings of the spirit. Everything that we read in our Bible, is the teaching of the spirit. Every word is inspired of God. It comes from the spirit. The spirit has provided us this resource. How many sets for to be carnally? Minded is death, but to be spiritually minded, here it is. You keep on setting your mind on spiritual things. You become more spiritual. You become spiritually minded. And when that happens, you have life and peace. Peace. Piece of the world. That's Unpeaceful.

Think about how many people in your last don't have that piece? And they're not relying upon the things of the spirit, but they're relying upon alcohol. Reliant upon drugs. Relying upon so many other things to get them through.

In Jesus, is all you have to do is come to Mickey. I will provide what you need notice again, in Romans chapter 12 at beseech. You therefore Brothers by the mercies of God, that you present, your bodies, a Living Sacrifice. Holy and acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service and do not be conformed to this world. But what be transformed? How by the renewing of your mind? How by proving that you may prove what is the good and acceptable and perfect or complete will of God. He's referring to God's word. That's where you find God's will. You got a heart in back to God's word, to renew your mind. If you don't know God's word, I can renew the mind. That's why the word is so important and it's all sufficient for what we need in life. It really is looking Ephesians chapter 4. No longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles. Walk no longer walk like your friends walk in the futility of their mind. Having your understanding darkened, to be alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them because of the blindness of their heart, houdin past feeling have given themselves over to lewdness to work. All uncleanness with breeding has, but you have not so learned Christ if indeed you have heard him and have been taught by him. As the truth is in Jesus that you put off concerning your former conduct the old man with rose corrupt. According to deceitful, lust, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, once again, We need to be willing to have our minds altered. We need to be willing to go back to God's work and allow that to change us. God loves us. God makes us, but he doesn't throwing means, and that means is his word. You're not going to be molded and shaped in the image of God without God's word.

and finally, 2nd Corinthians chapter 11 as the serpent, deceived Eve by his craftiness. So your minds may be corrupted from the Simplicity. That is in Christ Jesus. So it's so simple. According to the Holy Spirit, not me. He said it's it's Simplicity. That is in Christ Jesus. There's nothing too hard about it. We just have to be motivated to do the things that God wants us to do. And to be the people that God desires us to be. We've got a desire, then God's not going to put that desire in your heart that has to come from you. It has to be you. I noticed as we think about that which can corrupt us. Construct, our minds and be led away from the simple Gospel of Jesus Christ. Notice what else? Paul says.

For the weapons of our Warfare are not carnal But Mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every High thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to The Obedience of Christ. Our mind again is under consideration. Paul says, sometimes your mind wanders. Sometimes your mind is just racing. Sometimes your mind is racing so much that it's very sinful. And you say you need to bring Captain those negative thoughts. No sinful false the negative thoughts of Christ.

So we fine as you continues. That exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity. To The Obedience of Christ, can't say that enough. We have to underline underscore it. And then finally, Peter says therefore here's where it takes humility. Humility to say. I need to change. And here's what I'm going to do. I'm going to do with the Lord's way. They are for humble yourselves, under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time. Casting all your anxiety upon him.

Go to God In Prayer.

Yes, He said, take care of this fear that I have helped me to overcome this anxiety. Why? Because he loves you. He wants the best for you. He cares for you. Be sober about it be vigilant because your adversary, the devil walks about like a roaring lion seeking, whom he may devour resist him steadfast. We're In the faith. God's word knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your Brotherhood in the world. All of us, we go through these trials of life, we go through the pain of things struggles and hardships. We go through death and it's a cycle and it's going to repeat itself for some of us some of some of us have yet to get there, but know that you're going to get there and it's not going to be easy, but there's going to be a piece provided you through Christ. He will guard your hearts and Minds through Christ Jesus. What a lovely thought. I just think we bring all this harm upon ourselves mentally, emotionally and even physically through being influenced and overtaken by fear. And anxiety. Jesus, of course, has the Cure, the word is the means by which we are cured. But as we think about what Jesus also had to say, you says, you need to be on the road where that cure can be accessed. And Jesus said this, he that believes and is baptized shall be saved. When what is save the rat into the church? Added to the church? They're provided all spiritual blessings in Christ. Jesus. And that is even the strength in The Help from God through prayer, to help in times of need, in times of crisis, when we're down and we need to go to God In Prayer on our knees. He'll come and help. He will be there for you. He will be there for you. And as we think about those things, if perhaps you've done that. But you haven't been grounded in the safe. Maybe you walked away from the Lord because he walked away from his word and there's that Vitality that you could have, but it's not there because you just don't have the Faith from the faith, God's word to go through these crises. But Jesus says, repent and return, it come back, and be a part of the family experience. We call the church and be a part of the learning process that we all have to go through in life, but it has to come through life experience, and by and through his word, if you're willing to do that this morning, want to come by faith as together. We stand in Spain.