Open Door Myths - Part 2

Today on Fellowship in the Word, Pastor Bill Gebhardt challenges you to become a fully functioning follower of Jesus Christ. If you believe you're irreparably damaged because every wrong choice you've ever made, you will be irreparably damaged. You'll never get over it. You can't stop.

You know why? Because you can't stop making wrong choices. That's who we are.

We make lots and lots of wrong choices. But the Scriptures say the steadfast love of the Lord never ceases. His mercies, they never come to an end. They're new every morning. New every morning, great is thy faithfulness. That's the business that God is in. Thank you for joining us today on this edition of Fellowship in the Word with Pastor Bill Gebhardt. Fellowship in the Word is the radio ministry of Fellowship Bible Church located in Metairie, Louisiana.

Let's join Pastor Bill Gebhardt now as once again he shows us how God's Word meets our world. If you have a child and the child is four years old, as a good parent, do you think you should make most of the choices for the child? I hope I get yeses. Yes.

Yes. Child's 14. Should you make most of the choices for the child? Or should you make some of the choices for the child? See, it's not easy. Child's 24.

I imagine that people saying most at 14 are still going to say most at 24, but that would be an error. You see, what is that? What happens as a child matures? You want the child to make more and more choices. That's the whole idea of parenting.

That's launching. You want the child that, and that's why, by the way, when does this become an art form? The teenage years.

That's an art form because how much slack do I leave in the line? There are some parents that say, no slack, just a choke collar, and I'll hold them. And there are other parents that say, oh, you're 13, and they unleash you, and then just say, go, live your life.

Both are wrong. But eventually, as they mature, you want them making their own choices. God treats us exactly the same way. One of the most important things for us as we grow spiritually is that we make choices. You see, if you say, no, God's going to make every choice of my life, every single choice, that'd be ridiculous and foolish, but you know what that is? That's fatalism. There's not much of a point of being alive. You see, the whole idea is that if I can't tell which door to go through, something is wrong.

It's not necessarily true. When I was a student at Dallas Seminary, Dr. Paul Meyer was a professor in the pastoral ministries department. He was a Christian psychiatrist, and he taught in the PM department, and he and Frank Minroth ran the Minroth Meyer Clinic out of Dallas. It was one of the largest clinics in the world, and it was entirely devoted to Christ.

A unique thing to see. But before Dr. Meyer came here, he was a professor at Trinity Seminary in Deerfield, Illinois, and he had a practice in the Chicago area. And so Dr. Haddon Robinson, who was the head of the pastoral ministries department, went to recruit Dr. Meyer. They had offered him the job, and then he flew up, and he said he took us out to dinner at a restaurant. And he said, I can remember that Dr. Robinson said to us, boy, you two look terrible.

You know, you look like you've really been through it. And they said, we have. We have prayed and prayed and prayed over this, and we don't know. We just don't know what to do. We don't know if God wants us to be in Dallas or God wants us to be in Chicago.

We just don't know. And then Dr. Meyer said that Haddon just got the biggest smile on his face and leaned way back on his chair and laughed out loud. And said, God doesn't care. God doesn't care if you're in Chicago or you're in Dallas. What God cares about is how you walk with him and how you serve him. You walk with him and you serve him, and then you live where you want to live. And Dr. Meyer said, as soon as he said that, my wife looked at me and he said, I could just see the relief on her face, and she said, Dallas.

He said, all the pressure left. You see, the idea that if I can't tell which door to choose something is wrong is not necessarily the case at all. It might just be part of my maturation process.

The third is this. If God opens a door for you, the circumstances are going to be wonderful and easy. You see, if God opens a door for the person that you married and you two had that wonderful wedding ceremony, if God put you together, then every breakfast you hold hands while you're eating breakfast and he writes poetry to you. I mean, it's just the most, it's nothing but wonderful, wonderful, wonderful. I have actually had people say to me things like this, you know, we really believe it was God that put us together and we're miserable.

Why did they say that? Adam and Eve. God's fault. This is God's fault. That's why we're miserable.

God did this. No, that's not why you're miserable. You see, oh, if I only get that job, I've got to open the door to that job and I get the job. It's going to be amazing because what they're going to do is every week they're going to give me a raise. I mean, and they're going to say they're so glad I'm there and it's going to be so wonderful. It'll be like being on vacation but working because everybody's going to love me because God opened the door.

That's not the way it works. In fact, turn to First Corinthians chapter 16 with me. First Corinthians chapter 16, verse nine.

You can't beat the context. Paul says in verse eight, I'm going to remain in Ephesus until Pentecost. And then he says, for a wide door. Notice Paul didn't say a door. He said it's more than a door. It's a wide door. Now, what's the thing about a wide door?

Wide doors are easy to go through. He said God has provided a wide door for effective service has been opened to me. That's great. See, that's how great it is. Then he says this, and there are many adversaries. There are many adversaries. You see, adversity, avoidance is tempting.

But it's not ennobling. Spiritual maturity always travels with adversity. Boy, I can't tell you I've seen that in my own life and in the lives of so many of you. Over and over again, I find people going through really difficult times.

And inevitably, somewhere along the process, they'll say something like this. I don't think I've ever felt this close to the Lord before. That's what adversity does. You see, our helplessness drives us to him.

We have to have him when we have adversity. Jesus said in Matthew 24 to the disciples and eventually the tribulation of saints, you will be hated, he says, and handed over and persecuted and put to death. In John 16, he said concerning us, the world will hate you because it first hated me. In other words, circumstances are going to be very difficult. This whole idea that when God opens a door, the circumstances are going to be easy is not true. But I can tell you what will be easy, not the circumstances but the yoke. Come unto me, all you that are heavy laden, and I'll give you rest because my yoke is light.

It's easy. What is he saying? When you face adversity in difficult circumstances, I'll be right here with you and I'll do the work. That's what Jesus is saying. You just stay close to me. I'll carry you through this.

That's the part that's easy. Okay, my life is too insignificant for God to be opening and closing doors. If I can't tell which door to go through, there must be something wrong. When God opens a door, my circumstances will be easy. And then there's another one, and this one is there's always a right door for every choice I make. There's always a right door for every choice I make. And some of you believe that. Like when I'm facing a choice or a decision, there's always a right door to go down. I'm telling you that's blatantly false.

That's not the case at all. First of all, let's deal with the idea of all the decisions that you make. Columbia researcher Sheena Iyengar did her doctoral dissertation on the decisions and choices you and I make every day. And what she studied was this. She said that the average person, and I'm venturing we're at least average, the average person makes 70 decisions a day.

Now, I don't think she meant like left sock, right sock, you know, which one do I put on first. I don't think that's what she means, but 70 decisions every day. Now, if you think about that for a moment, that's 25,550 a year. And if you live to be 70, that's 1,788,000 decisions you made. Now, if you actually believe that every single one of them there's only one right decision to make, you will go insane. You see, you would go insane. You couldn't possibly do that because that's not the way life works. That's not really even the way it is.

Think of it from this point of view. God created beetles. Now, is there only one way, one right way to make a beetle?

There are 300,000 different kinds of beetles. So apparently Godfoti had some latitude. You see, a lot of the decisions and choices that you make, you have a choice between, sometimes between good and better and best.

I mean, a lot of choices are like that. You'll be paralyzed if you live your whole life thinking there's only one right choice for everything I do, one right door for me to go through and that's the only one. You'll never have any peace. The next myth, God would never push me through a door I don't like. Turn with me to Psalm 32 for that, Psalm 32.

God would never push me through a door I don't like. Now, we could ask Jonah how that worked out for him or how about Jeremiah? God, remember Jeremiah, the open door for him is he's going to be a prophet. Jeremiah is known as the weeping prophet. You know why?

He hated his job. God really didn't care much. God can push you through a door you don't like. Look what he says in Psalm 32, verse 8. The first part of the verse sounds the way it ought to be. I will instruct you and teach you in the way in which you should go. That's reassuring. That's wisdom. He said, I will counsel you with my eye upon you.

That's intimacy. God says, I'll stay close to you and I'll tell you how to live your life. And you think, this is great.

That's what I want. Then he says, do not be as the horse or as the mule which have no understanding, whose trappings include a bit and bridle to hold them in check. God says, I'll tell you the right door to go through, but if you don't want to, I'll put a bridle on you and push you through that door. You see, that's what he's saying. There's a lot of stupid mules out there, he said.

You have to still control them. And so he's talking about us. You see, it's an amazing thing. It's kind of ironic in light of that verse that Balaam said, I'm going to Moab. God had closed that door. Balaam said, I'm going to Moab. So Balaam's donkey said to him, no, you're not.

Why is that? Even a donkey knows a donkey when they see one. How this applies to us, I can handle my drinking problem. I can handle the drugs I take. I can handle my gambling.

I can handle this, but you don't. So don't be surprised that you lose your job. Don't be surprised you lose a spouse. Don't be surprised if God doesn't push you through a door. You see, sometimes that door's the best thing for you.

You have got to get through that door. I remember many years ago we had a man in our church that confided in me and told me that he had been an alcoholic since he was 12. And a really sad thing, but he went through a set of circumstances. And in those set of circumstances he was in a family business and within the same week he was told in the family business that he would no longer be part of the family business. And in that same week God moved through his wife who had been really faithful and loyal to him and said she told him she was done, that she would not divorce him but she would leave him. And you know what happened? He became a recovering alcoholic. He was sober the rest of his life.

What happened? God pushed him through the door. Sometimes God will push you through the door because open doors and closed doors are there so that we can serve him and that we can spiritually grow and mature. The last myth is this. If I have chosen the wrong door, my life is irreparably damaged. I run into this quite often.

Oh, I made this terrible choice in 1979. Now understand I believe in reaping and sowing, that's clear. And there are certain consequences to certain sin.

In other words, if you do the crime, you'll do the time. That's part of it. I get that in life.

But that's not exactly what I'm speaking about. I'm speaking about people who what they call now counterfactual thinking. Counterfactual thinking is people who are obsessed with what might have been. Have you ever run into people like that? All my life could have been so much better, but I went through the wrong door.

They're sort of if only people. Well, turn with me to 2 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians chapter 7. Listen to what Paul writes in verse 10. 2 Corinthians chapter 7 in verse 10, Paul says, For the sorrow, he says, that is according to the will of God, produces repentance without regret, leading to salvation. But the sorrow of the world produces death.

Whenever you go through a wrong door, you make a wrong choice or a bad decision. There is a right kind of sorrow that can accompany that wrong decision. And the right kind of sorrow will always lead to repentance, which will always lead you closer to God. He says there's a wrong kind of sorrow. He said and when you do that, you have regret. And when you have regret, he said that separates you from God. Separation from God is just another way of saying death.

Jesus did not say the kingdom of God is at hand. Regret and believe the good news. He said repent. Sometimes again, we become our own worst enemies. If you believe you're irreparably damaged because every wrong choice you've ever made, you will be irreparably damaged. You'll never get over it. You can't stop.

You know why? Because you can't stop making wrong choices. That's who we are. We make lots and lots of wrong choices. But the scriptures say this steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies, they never come to an end.

They're new every morning, new every morning, great is thy faithfulness. That's the business that God is in. All of us have made choices where we've gone through the wrong door. But the damage of your life can be very limited on the basis of a sorrow that leads to repentance which leads you closer to God. Six myths. My life is too insignificant for God to be opening and closing doors.

Don't despise small things. If I can't tell which door to go through, something must be wrong. Not necessarily God's primary purpose is for us to serve him and to grow spiritually. If God opens the door, good things will always happen. My circumstances will be easy. They weren't for Jesus. They weren't for Paul.

They won't be for you either. There's obviously a right door for every single decision. You make millions of choices in your lifetime. Many of your decisions are just choosing between good and better. God will never push me through a door I don't want to go to.

Oh yes he will. He is determined to conform you to the image of his son. And if I have chosen the wrong door, I have irreparably damaged my life. Only if you have regret instead of repentance.

That's what he is saying. Just some simple myths. We approach these so often in the wrong way. Just imagine if Abram had done this when God told him to go through the door and leave her or the Chaldees. I found this little poem. It almost sounds like Dr. Seuss. It says, this is Abram speaking, Where are these places you want me to go? When will I get there? How will I know? See I told you. He says, Will I need a design?

Will I need a degree? Will I need other things that you're hiding from me? Where is the map of your plan for my life? I must know all this stuff. I must tell my wife. I'm old. I'm not bold. And you're leaving things out. There are bales of details you must tell me about. And the writer who gave me that said, and lo the Lord didn't tell him anything. He just let him go through that door. Six words to describe your life.

Not the life I was planning. That can be a good thing. Because God opens doors and God closes doors. But he does so that we can serve him and that we can grow.

Spiritually and mature. Let's pray. Father, as we begin to look at the doors of our lives, I just pray if any of these myths have been part of any of these people's experiences, that hopefully they gain some insight into that. Father, I'm afraid that we don't realize how many doors there are. We only see the doors when they're very important to us. When we're looking for a spouse or we're looking for a new job or we're going to move someplace or we're thinking of completely changing our vocational line, anything like that, we always say, I'm looking for the open door. But Father, we know that you provide doors every single day. You provide doors of opportunity for us. Those doors will allow us to serve you and those doors will allow us to grow in the grace and knowledge of Christ. Father, I pray that we become sensitive to that and see this wonderful adventure we call the Christian life. Father, I thank you for thinking so much of us. You've given us the ability to choose.

But Father, with that ability is the responsibility to choose rightly. Father, I pray as we continue to think through this concept of open and closed doors, we do so for your glory and for our good. In Christ's name, Amen. That's OnePlace.com, and you can listen to Fellowship in the Word online. At that website, you will find not only today's broadcast, but also many of our previous audio programs as well. At 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 this radio ministry continue its broadcast on this radio station by supporting us monthly or with just a one time gift. Support for our ministry can be sent to Fellowship in the Word 4600 Clearview Parkway, Metairie, Louisiana 7006. If you would be interested in hearing today's message in its original format, that is as a sermon that Pastor Bill delivered during a Sunday morning service at Fellowship Bible Church, then you should visit our website, fbcnola.org. That's F-B-C-N-O-L-A dot O-R-G. At our website, you will find hundreds of Pastor Bill's sermons. You can browse through our sermon archives to find the sermon series you are looking for, or you can search by title. Once you find the message you are looking for, you can listen online, or if you prefer, you can download the sermon and listen at your own convenience. And remember, you can do all of this absolutely free of charge. Once again, our website is fbcnola.org. For Pastor Bill Gebhardt, I'm Jason Gebhardt, thanking you for listening to Fellowship in the Word.