Attorney David Gibbs: Do Not Worry

Thank You pastor an honor to be here this morning and we have several of our lawyers here I'll introduce them in a minute they're just putting something up in the lobby right now thank you for being in Sunday school turn in your Bibles please to the book of Philippians the book of Philippians and for the next few minutes this morning I want to talk to you about one of the most asked questions that I get asked of me in courtrooms and legislatures all over America people are continually asking this and let me tell you what the question is and then we're going to look at what the Word of God has to say David if your God is so great so awesome so incredible so all-knowing so all-powerful if your God is everything that your people say it is then how come your people are all torn up and worried about life the way we are we understand why we worry we understand why we're consternated and all upset because we don't pretend to have that God but your people say they do have that God and if you have that God and he is everything you say that he is then how come you worry and are upset the very same way we are now that's a fair question and one that as a child of God we ought to be prepared to answer now how many of you are aware that the Bible teaches that worry is a sin how many of you are aware of that okay now I want to confess something to you my dilemma is whatever it is I'm worried about I'm worried about that and then I'm worried that I'm worrying about it how many of you understand the double whammy of that one okay well I want you to go to the book of Philippians please and once you get ready to mark your scriptures Philippians chapter 4 because the Word of God gives us some incredibly clear instruction about how to handle worry and fear in our life and here's what I've discovered life can bring seasons of things to you and you say well my plates are pretty empty right now life's pretty good only takes one phone call to turn your universe upside down and all of a sudden a trip to a doctor or a financial reversal or something that happens to a family member and all of a sudden what life brings something of great concern and what we want to do is look at what the Word of God has to say because God gives for absolute commands in Philippians 4 that are all designed to keep you and to keep me from worrying now humanly speaking perhaps you're the most disciplined person there is humanly speaking I have never met anybody who life can't bring something to get them to worry but spiritually speaking God gives us a deliverance and it's found in Philippians for want you to get ready to put these four commands together Philippians chapter 4 we're going to start at verse 4 here's the first command rejoice in the Lord always and again I say rejoice now there's the first command the word rejoice means to literally re joy redo your joy how good are you and you realize God repeats the command twice in the same verse rejoice always and again I say rejoice how good are you at stirring the joy I wonder if the kids would say I'm telling you mom is the most will person you've ever met in your life because it's commanded by God a dad is this unspeakably great rejoin it means to take the joy and stir it not no one can do this for you but you no one can do it for me but me no one can do it for your precious pastor but him this is an individual command and God says my command is take your joy and stir it revive it not win my Paul life's not working so Swift for you you've had a lot of trouble here meant your friends have abandoned you churches have forgotten that you exist you've been in prison you've been beaten and he says but my job is to restore my joy did you this morning get up and say I am commanded by God to restore my joy to rejoice I have to be careful it takes quite a little bit to get me upset but once I'm ticked off how many of you understand the word ticked off this verse just doesn't come to me okay now maybe this verse just comes to you and praise the Lord if that's the case but it's a command do you understand if you did not riester the joy today your sinning if you did not riester the joy last week you're violating a command of God we had family reunions growing up and I loved them because it was great food now our family reunions were huge and there'd be a hundred and fifty people there I did not know I did not know him at all and a bunch of them when I'd look at him it was scary because I thought man if that's our gene pool we're in trouble okay but there was great food great food and one of the things growing up that all the kids were involved in was the making of the lemonade my granddad had a bunch of oak barrels and we would make it in oak barrels and how we would make this lemonade is you would cut up hundreds of lemons and put them in the barrel squeeze and put them in then unbelievable amounts of sugar 20-pound bags they're not little by big I mean mint pour in the sugar it now you got the lemons in there you got the sugar in there and then they'd add the water but you don't have lemonade all you got is a watery sugary lemon goo somebody has to stir it and what they would use was canoe paddles and you'd put that make the most phenomenal ZUP but it had to be stirred you have all the components of joy but you're not stirring up the fact you're heaven-bound the fact your sins are forgiven the fact that God's put his Holy Spirit in you do you understand the Spirit the power in you is the very power and spirit that raised Jesus from the dead and it's in you the fact that you have the ability to be everything God wants you to be when did you last stir that and say man have I got a lot to be joyful over wow when you travel the people are taught to be polite especially on the airlines and stuff or motels and they also how are you today how do you today and I say well you know am I glad you asked you can't believe how good I am let me just tell you what God's done for me and I was temp now this is gonna take a minute now here's the dilemma the devil wants you distracted he wants your mind totally away from restoring the joy would you put a little note in your Bible here it's a pain to live with a grump it's a pain and it's a sin to be a grump you are commanded by God to be a rejoice sir it is not an option and one of the things that at pastors conferences is I always sit down and I say you know what I want to find the best rejoice or here because I want them to rub off on me I want to be a rejoice ER cuz it's comanded and if you want to be delivered from worry and fear it's the first command that's found in this litany of verses so God says rejoice and again I say rejoice make sure that's what you're doing now if you're taking notes this was the word for doing something internally and externally it means do it inside yourself and let people know you're doing it then who today did you let know with your rejoicing just how good god was and what all God's done for you the fact you woke up this morning is a blessing the fact you had the ability to walk in here and your eyes are working and your ears can hear and your mind like mine might be incredibly limited but it's still functioning you know what if we're not careful we forget the command rejoice to the young people here be real careful that that you don't marry somebody who's a critic because critics don't rejoice their gift in life is to be unhappy and they want you to join them in the misery and God says no no re Joyce rejoice now on the road with our lawyers in that I tell everybody we are our own entertainment no one's going to make us happy so we've decided to do it ourselves and you know what in life no one's going to make you happy except the Lord and God says my command is riester the joy just riester it now look at the second command number 1 rejoice in the Lord always and again I say rejoice here's the second command let your moderation be made known unto all men the Lord is at hand now I'm afraid that a number of Christians read that with no comprehension of what they just read they say I'm I'm pretty sure I'm doing that because it's a command again the command was to rejoice and the command is let your moderation be made known unto all men I think I'm doing that well this again is an overt command the word moderation there means what's got ahold of you what's controlling you and you know what God says I want you to let everybody on the planet know what's got ahold of you let your moderation be made known when you hold a meeting here your pastor is the moderator he's in charge he's in control he's running things and that's exactly what he should do well what is it that's in control what's the moderation of you who's running you today and God says I want you to let everybody know what's got ahold of you the Lord is at hand Wow when's the last time you told somebody I just like to let you know what's got ahold of me today the Lord is that hand I was on an airplane and a lady walked up to me a flight attendant and she said something good I said I beg your pardon she said something good I said I'm clueless whoa I don't know what you're talking about she said you were sitting here and all of a sudden your face broke out in this incredible smile something good I said oh yeah unbelievably good I said let me tell you what's got ahold of me would you write this down your face is God's billboard and if you ever seen an offensive billboard out there have you ever said they should never let them put stuff up like that what are they well you know what you're absolutely right there shouldn't be offensive billboards but the tragedy is there's a bunch of billboards on the Christians faces that are not good boy would anybody want what you got based on how your face looks now man we're in the season and it amazes me in this football season how people decorate their faces they'll paint themselves colors they'll I mean it is just unbelievable what they'll do they'll dye their hair you know why because they want to let everybody know what's got ahold of them they're not doing that to be recalcitrant and unnoticed they're doing that because they want to be noticed that where we live in Tampa Bay the Green Bay Packers the airport is full of people wearing cheese heads they're walking around I mean they look stupid beyond words and they are so proud of them because they want to let everybody know what's got ahold of them then they are Packers fence and you know what they did it when they were women and they did it when they weren't women do you understand God says I want you to let everybody know what's got ahold of you absolutely let them know so let's put the first two commands together number one riester the joy and number two let everybody know the Lord is at hand if you're there God's there that's what's got ahold of you that's your moderation now how many of you ever heard the name Lester roll-off anybody ever hear that dear man's name Lester roll-off when you would be out with him somewhere would do a very unusual thing he'd walk up to somebody and just didn't know them from it just a friendly guy but he'd walk up to a complete stranger and he would say to them I'm going to tell you I got something I think you ought to have and they'd look at him and he'd say not only do I think you got to have it he said I really think you need it today because he said looking at you he said I can tell you need it today and I'd like to tell you what's got ahold of my life that's a command let your moderation what's gripping you be made known unto all men now this is very hard for me to say all kinds of perverse elements in America have come out of the closet but the Christians have gone into the closet suddenly we don't want to let people know what's got ahold of us and God says you want to be delivered from worry and fear well it starts with you restoring the joy and then letting everybody know what's got ahold of you everybody now look at the third command found in the next verse verse 6 be careful for nothing now the word care there underscore it because it's the word that we'd use for worry for fear for you say well I'm not fearful I'm just terribly concerned well now you're worrying and lying the boot all right the bottom line is that was the word for worry for fear be careful for nothing casting all of your care upon him for he careth for you the word there meant two things and I want you to jot these down it was the word for when you were choking the life out of something when you were killing it have you ever said this is killing me how many of you all ever heard that before how many of you all have said that this is killing me okay that's this word it was the word for Chokin the life out of something it was also the word for putting hooks in something in opposite directions and tearing it apart have you ever heard somebody say I'm all torn up huh maybe olive heard that one right that's this word God says what I want you to do is not let anything be choking the life out of you and I don't want you to let anything absolutely nothing be tearing you up be careful for nothing but here comes the third command now if you're not going to do the first two commands this third command will not activate the promise remember you got to be rejoicing twice repeated command and then you got to let everybody know what's got a hold of you the Lord is at hand but then he says here's my third command be careful for nothing but in everything by prayer and supplication that you're with Thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God God says I want you number one to rejoice number two let everybody know what's got ahold of you but he said here's the third command I want you to start talking to me about everything and you say well brother Gibbs what I'm worried I pray I pray no no that's not the command the command is in every thing be honest have you ever tried to spend even one day even one talking to the Lord about everything you're supposed to pray without ceasing and the command is oft repeated in everything or have you fallen into what I do god I can handle 80% of it you don't need to worry yourself if you just kick in on the 20% that's tearing the fire out of me what a dynamic partnership we'd be 80 percent me 20% you and you know God says I'm not interested when did you ever say today by God's grace I want to acknowledge his presence through the day and talked to God about everything a man wrote a wonderful book I've read it many times practicing the presence of God do you realize it's a decision to have God there on your part and God says I want you to chat to me we have a wonderful man in our ministry his name is Jim Coates he's been with us 20-some years Jim is a real war hero he's a black man a pilot is every hero and decoration award our country gives twice I mean this man's military record it's like wow and if you meet him he's just a great hearted wonderful guy great soul winner but he and I are traveling together through the night once and it's the middle of the night probably two three in the morning and we're traveling down the highway and in the middle of the night there's nothing I like to do like eat I like to stop and eat because the reason I like to eat in the middle of the night is there's nothing healthy open it's just all good stuff I mean you go on the truck stop you say put some more grease on that put a little more on it and and we're traveling and I said Jim let's eat let's eat I'm hungry let's eat and Jim says aw that's great great great he said let's pray about where to stop and I said pray about where to stop is exactly I'm I said Jim I don't care where we stop just pick a spot always all brother Gibbs you're such a tease he said we pray about everything right and I said yeah don't you look at me like that all you said right now man God's setting up the divine appointment that's the word he is a divine appointment of who we should hand attract to men we want to be in the right place right oh yeah yeah yeah let's pray let's pray amen I thought I was just testing it just testing you do you realize last week highly probable you made 99% of life's decisions with no prayer and God says stop it in every thing underline that in that verse everything by prayer and supplication with Thanksgiving everything we prayed for the Lord to order our steps and I mean we got off and we're at this huge gas mark type thing and we're putting fuel in our car and two semis can pull it in at parking there's a real light mist coming down a rainy mist and two truck drivers are walking by us and Jim calls out to me says hey guys hey guys I got something for you something you're gonna want because he said you guys sure you're going to heaven when you die and these guys stopped cold and they said to Jim what you say he said I just askin are you sure you're going to heaven the day you die now they came walking over to us and the one truck driver says let me tell you something mister he said we travel this road five nights a week and he said while we do is talk on our radio to each other and we drive to where we deliver and then we drive back but he said tonight we got talking about what's gonna happen when we die and he said I told him you got me so shook up my partner here we got so shocked up cuz neither of us knows what's going to happen we get so shocked up we never stop here never but he said I told him let's get off I want to end this conversation this has got me so shook up so we park our trucks get out going in to get coffee and you call us and you always said it's like you got sent or something boy Jim said we did get sent man it wasn't ten minutes and both of those men prayed the one on his knees on wet concrete well brother Gibbs those things don't happen to me because you're not asking and you're not talking to the one who controls everything about everything oh my the first key is you got to restore the joy the second key is you got to let everybody know what's got ahold of you the Lord is a tenth let all men know that's a command and the third thing is God says I want you to start talking to me about everything and underline those little words with Thanksgiving because you can't riester the joy without that Thanksgiving being in there okay now look at the fourth and final command well let's look at the promise and the peace of God verse seven now underline the word peace of God never confuse the peace of God with the word in the Bible peace with God two very different terms the day you got saved you made peace with God that is yours for all eternity no one can take that away man that's secured in the shed blood of Jesus Christ every person he was writing to had made peace with God but they did not have the peace of God that's two very different things peace with God is what you get when you get saved peace of God is what you get when you do this and the peace of God which passeth all understanding now that's an important part you cannot produce this for you in and of yourself an unsaved person cannot produce this because it would have to be within our understanding and it's not and the peace of God which passeth all understanding shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus now your heart is your emotion have you ever been on an emotional roller coaster I mean you're just up you're down you're this way and you know what God says I'll take care of that that's a promise shall keep your hearts and minds you ever go to bed thinking about it wake up in the middle of the night thinking about it in the morning you get up you're thinking about it then it has captured your thinking God says I'll take your emotion and your thinking through Christ Jesus what a promise cash a question why would you want to live without this men why would you want to have people of God of God you're the leader of that home why would you want to have to make them live with somebody who doesn't have this mom why would you want the kids to have a mom who doesn't have this when it's available to every child of God by the way why would you want to do it to yourself why would you want to be all torn up when God says I promise you I'll keep your heart I'll keep your mind through Christ Jesus and the peace of God which passes all understanding shall keep not may be heap shall keep your heart and mine through Christ Jesus now look at the fourth and final command it's found in verse 8 finally brethren whatsoever things are true whatsoever things are honest whatsoever things are just whatsoever things are pure whatsoever things are lovely underscore the word lovely there that's a huge one in there whatsoever things are of good report if there be any virtue if there be any praise think on these things now let's take the four commands command number one is God says I want for you to restore your joy command number two is I want you to let everybody know what's got a hold of you let all men know the Lord is at him number three says I want you to start talking to me about everything but the fourth command is then I want you to be careful where you park your mind you are 100% in control of where you park your mind and God says I want to give you a list and I want you to park your mind in this neighborhood now the devil knows that list so let me tell you what he wants you in any neighborhood but that neighborhood and tragically a lot of Christians will drag you to other than this neighborhood and God says stop it here's what I'm commanding you to do think on these things be careful everybody here is watched a news outlet for a half an hour an hour and it doesn't matter whether it's conservative or liberal it's not lovely you know what God says I want you to start putting your mind where it's love late where it's a good report pure just that's where I want it this is a command someone comes up to you and says boy have you heard about so-and-so and it's not that ladies gossip more than men but they're better at it they really are they know they are they men forget the stuff how many of you know women can remember stuff fifteen years later they've got these incredible memories you said raise my hand but you'll remember that forever if I do that okay no I understand they just have these incredibly a--to ative memories and stuff that I've long forgotten my wife can say do you remember dinner no not until you mentioned it no the bottom line is God says I want you to make sure that your mind is here and when you get around people to say if you heard the question is is this a good report is this lovely yeah but that's Stefan that's not interesting brother Gibbs I want to know the dirt then get ready to be torn up get ready to have the worry flood your life because God says you do these four things the peace of God is my promise to you and no dirt is worth sacrificing the peace of God now when Paul wrote this to the church I want you to look at the last and final verse but those things which you both learned and received and heard and seen in me do and the God of peace shall be with you last week did you have the God of peace oh they had all made peace with God but he said don't you want the peace of God maybe you're kind of a nervous Nellie doesn't matter and maybe you're a fella takes a lot to upset doesn't matter God says I will give you my peace which passeth all understanding and this peace is what the world is craving David if your God so awesome like you say he is so incredible how come your people are all torn up the same way we're torn up how come your people are worrying about the same stuff we're worrying about if your God is so great fair question read Philippians 4 re stir the joy rejoice number two let everybody know what's got ahold of you let all men know the Lord's at hand number three start talking to God about everything everything big things little things everything means every thing and number four think on these things I'm in the car and I got a cell phone call and I took and it was a mess a church in a huge mess and we're about to go into church my wife and I and I finally hang up the phone and the call and I said boy let's pray before we go in I love with glory and prayed she said hunting she said god help us to get back the lovely god help us to go back to good report if there's any virtue if there's any praise think on these things brother Sal that's stuck with me God helped me to get back to lovely that's where God wants your mind that's where God wants it to be and that's where God will bring this great peace if you ever worry again about anything it's because you chose to do so now I'm not telling you that based on anything David Gibbs said because I'm like you I need to be delivered from worry and fear but if you ever worry again it's because you did not have the peace of God which passeth all understanding and will keep your heart and mine through Christ Jesus closing this Sunday school I want you to turn to the person sitting next to you and tell them it's a sin to be a grump tell them tell them it's a sin to be a grump yeah now don't be pointing fingers come on it's a sin to be a grump okay now tell them and it's a sin to worry and it's a sin to worry and now tell them by the grace of God I am done worrying I am done worrying when they asked Charles Haddon Spurgeon teaching all these preacher boys in his College and having all his sermons printed in the London Times and going around the world what's the greatest spiritual challenge in your life Charles Haddon Spurgeon the man that many called the Prince of preachers he said to not worry he said I confessed to you I am by sinful nature a warrior and he said I have to keep reminding myself it's a sin and I have to keep claiming Philippians chapter 4 for deliverance and he said strangely I often have to do it while I'm in the pulpit because he said I'll be delivering a message and I'm worried about how it's going and he said I have to ask God to deliver me while I'm giving my message what a transparent thing to say indeed we all battle it and it is a sin but Philippians chapter 4 is God's measure for deliverance from that sin rejoice rejoice what's the next one let everybody know what's got ahold of you that your moderation be made known unto all men and then start talking to God about everything everything and then God says be real careful where you park your mind we were doing faith promise at our church a while back and my wife and I were going to fill out our faith promise card for missions together and do faith promise together and I said honey here's here's the number I'm thinking about and she said oh great great great and she's a cassia question she said is that your number is that God's number and I thought now's not the time to be asking that and she said honey whatever number the Lord lays on your heart is good with me but she said let's just you and me be careful we've talked to him about it cuz otherwise finances can tear us up and she said we need to talk to him boy that helped me now she didn't do it snippy she said I know you pray I know your prayer lists but she said we need to be careful when we're making decisions that we have talked to the Lord about it in everything one of the great joys of the Christian life is not just to have peace with God but to have the peace of God which keeps your heart and your mind father thank you for these precious people this morning oh my what a joy to be here now God if they forget everything I've said they haven't forgotten anything but wait and we never forget what the Word of God says and indeed it's a fair question for the world to ask if your God so great so awesome so all-powerful how come you're all torn up just like we are who don't have him God we want to show this world our faces our countenances our heavens billboards and by your grace we want the peace of God heads are about how many of you say David God spoke to my heart and Sunday school this morning and I want that peace if that's true hold your hand up right now father you see our hands and more importantly you see our hearts now help us to stay where it's lovely by your command that's not naive that's a heaven-sent command and stirring our joy and letting everybody know what's got ahold of us and talking to you about everything we praise and we thank you that is your child we can have the peace of God hear the cry of our heart this morning I pray in Jesus name and all God's children together said Amen pastor you

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Length: 50min 4sec (3004 seconds)

Published: Mon Oct 22 2012