Have An Unhappy Complaining Day - Part 1

Today on Fellowship in the Word, Pastor Bill Gebhardt challenges you to become a fully functioning follower of Jesus Christ. See, Scripture is clear. If we as believers in Jesus Christ struggle, setting aside a single day every year to be thankful without complaining, something is wrong with our relationship with God. God expects us to be continually thankful, and He commands us to stop complaining. 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. Do we ever really think about the words that come out of our mouth? Now, I'm sure we do about some words like, will you marry me?

Although over the years sometimes I've wondered if we thought about that. I would imagine when you're talking during an IRS audit, you think about your words. When we're being interviewed for a job or when we're giving a eulogy of a close friend at a funeral, we think about our words. But what I'm thinking is do we ever really think about our everyday words, sort of the cursory words that we use all the time? This past week I'd read of a scientific study that was done and said 50% of what we say on a daily basis is mechanical without either little or no thought put into it at all.

It's just reactive. Good morning. You say that today yet? Good morning. What do you mean about that?

What do you mean when you say that? Good morning. You mean I'm having a good morning?

Is that what you're saying? Or are you saying I wish you were having a good morning? What do you say when you say good morning? In fact, by the way, it's interesting, if you go back to the 12th century where that started, it was literally said in English, God be with you today. But we've turned that into good morning. Compared to most mornings, this is a good one.

Is that what you mean when you say it? Some people say it and sort of mean the weather's fine. Actually, I think what we often say when we say good morning is I acknowledge you exist. Most of the time we just mean hello, don't we?

How about this? How you doing? Good morning. How are you doing? Now, if you think people really want to know how you're doing, start telling them. And they won't ask you that question anymore.

You see, there's absolutely no sincerity in it at all. We just talk. Happy Thanksgiving or have a happy Thanksgiving day. What do you mean when you say that? Are you saying that you're having a happy Thanksgiving? Is that what you're saying when you say happy Thanksgiving? You say I'm having a happy Thanksgiving. Or are you saying you need to have a happy Thanksgiving?

See, what do you mean when you say that? In fact, I'm not even sure we're even truthful about it. I think instead of saying have a happy Thanksgiving day, maybe we should say in reality, have an unhappy complaining day.

Because that's probably closer to the truth. Just monitor yourself this year. You've already started complaining. We complain. We're a complaining people. Have an unhappy complaining day. We have a website called complaint.org.

There are millions of entries in the website of what people complain about. This week, by the way, I started hearing the early complaints about Thanksgiving already. One is that you know that there's not gonna be nearly enough large turkeys available this year. Made the national news. And the turkey prices continue to climb. Do you have any idea what it cost the turkey?

And you're worried because it's gone over a dollar a pound? And the new one this year, the one that's resonated on every major network, major retailers are now going to open in the middle of Thanksgiving Day or late in the afternoon instead of waiting for Black Friday morning. And they interviewed people in the streets. I am outraged. People should be home giving thanks.

Now, over all the years in your great family tradition, you watch the parades, the football games. Are people working? Are those people all working not with their families? Have you ever thought about that? And that's not the policemen and the people that work in hospitals and the people that work in restaurants.

Aren't they all working? That never bothered you. But a major retailer says I'm gonna open in the middle of the day. Oh, no. Here's a tip. Don't go shopping on Thanksgiving Day.

You know, I think this. If we put our absence where our mouth is and nobody went shopping, the retailers won't open their store. But they know all that is is an empty complaint. Have an unhappy complaining day. See, scripture is clear. If we as believers in Jesus Christ struggle, setting aside a single day every year to be thankful without complaining, something is wrong with our relationship with God.

God expects us to be continually thankful. And He commands us to stop complaining. Open your Bibles to Numbers chapter 11.

Numbers chapter 11. And the first point I want to make this morning is this. Those who choose to complain as their lifestyle will spend the rest of their lives in a spiritual wilderness. Those people who are chronic complainers, believers who are chronic complainers will spend the rest of their lives in the spiritual wilderness. In the book of Numbers is Moses is writing in verse one of chapter 11.

He says this. Now the people became like, it's interesting. Now the people became like those who complain of adversity in the hearing of the Lord. The people became like those who complain. Now notice the very fact that he wrote it says God had a different expectation for his people, but he says, no, they became just like those who complain. And by the way, when the Lord heard it, his anger was kindled on a fire of the Lord burned among them and consume someone the outskirts of the camp.

How do you think the Lord feels about complaining? You see, they like those who complain of adversity, really an unusual, the word is raw for adversity. And it means sound just what it says.

It means distress or, or misery or calamity. He isn't saying it was easy for these people. He wasn't saying that at all. He said, but they started complaining about it. The word complain translate in some translations, murmur.

It's a hard word to translate. It's with the word Anan in Hebrew, and it's only used twice in the Bible. Once right here and once in Lamentations and Lamentations three, Jeremiah says, why this is God speaking. Why should any living mortal or any man offer complaint in view of his sins? God says, how can you possibly complain in view of your sins? When we complain, what are we inferring? Something's not right. There's an injustice here. How can you complain in view of your sins?

You see, you're a recipient of the mercy, grace and forgiveness of God. How are you complaining about that? About other people coming up short or circumstances not being what you want them to be. What right does anyone have to complain, especially God's people? When you consider the circumstances of life, complaining is an attitude you choose. You choose it. You have a choice no matter what happens in your life to choose your attitude. And a complaining attitude is exactly that. And the other thing about it is it comes to us over time.

That's what happens with it. I want you to turn back to Exodus, Exodus chapter 14. I want you to see something.

This is the great miracle crossing at the Red Sea. So they're not even out yet. 400 years of slavery and now they're free.

Once you think at that moment as you're getting ready, you'd be kind of thankful, grateful. Not necessarily. Verse 11 of chapter 14 of Exodus. Then they said to Moses, is it because that we, there were no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness?

Why have you dealt with us in this way, bringing us out of Egypt? They're starting to complain right then. Now I would guarantee you knowing people that from Exodus 14 to Numbers 11 they complained. They complained. Do you know any complaining people? Do you know people that complain? Are you one of them? But do you know them?

Isn't it amazing? It doesn't seem to matter what you say, they're going to complain. Every day you meet them at work, they complain and it could be over all kinds of things. Several years ago I preached a sermon on murmuring or complaining just on the complaining part and we had a woman in our church. She's now with the Lord and I'm sure it stopped by now, but she's now with the Lord and every time I saw her, dear old lady, she always would complain. So I was at the front door as the service ended and she came out, shook my hand at the front door and said that was a really important sermon, pastor. I know from that sermon we should not complain.

So I won't. But if I were going to complain, this is what I would complain about. And then she told me her complaints. She couldn't help herself.

You see, she started, that's what she did. Her day was I'm going to complain. By the way, if you need ammunition to complain, just breathe.

Anywhere you look there's good reasons to complain if you want to choose that. Let's go to Exodus 16 too. The whole congregation of the sons of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness.

Notice what they said. Oh, would that we had died by the Lord's hand in the land of Egypt when we sat by the pots of meat and we ate bread and full, but you have brought us out in this wilderness to kill us, the whole assembly with hunger. Now they're complaining. Oh, if we could have only, you know, it would have been great to be a slave. It was so wonderful. They just had, it was like a smorgasbord. They served us steak. We had salads.

It was just a wonderful thing. Now you brought us out here. They're complaining 400 years of slavery. Now look at chapter 17 verse three. This was hunger. Now watch, but the people thirsted there for it. And it says, and they grumbled against Moses and says, why now have you brought us up from Egypt to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst? You're trying to starve us to death. We're going to kill us with thirst. By the way, think of the provision of God.

Manna sustained 2 million people in the wilderness, pheasants, a rock that followed them, water supply. They're complaining. Every time circumstances or adversity comes, they complain. That's what they do.

That's who they are. Now let's go back to numbers and this time numbers 14 you see complaining is an attitude and it can eventually become your only attitude. Numbers 14 verse three. Why is the Lord bringing us into this land to fall by the sword? Our wives and our little ones will become plunder and if not, he says, wouldn't it not be better for us to return to Egypt? There's a point you want to make here. Complaining people seldom have good ideas. I mean, you talk an idea that has stupid written all over it.

How about that? Remember the last thing that happened, a large portion of Pharaoh's army was killed in the Red Sea. Now they're going to say, let's all go back and it'll be wonderful again. You really think so? I mean, you think that's a plan? That would be a good idea.

Complaining people seldom have really good ideas. And so they said to one another, let's appoint a leader and return to Egypt. But they're still not done. Same chapter verse 27. Moses says, how long shall I bear this evil congregation who are grumbling against me? I have heard the complaints of the sons of Israel, which are making against me. Say to them, as I live, says the Lord, just as you have spoken in my hearing, so I surely do to you. I'll notice what happens. Your corpses shall fall in the wilderness. And all your numbered men, according to your complete number, with 20 years and upward who have grumbled against me. Do you think there are consequences for believers who complain about life?

Well, there are. The warning shot was the fire, the brush fire on the edge of the camp where some had died. That was a warning shot. This is the judgment.

Why? The warning shot didn't work. They just kept complaining. So what happened to them? No one over 20 ever entered the promised land.

That's what happened. Those who choose complaining as their lifestyle will spend their lifetimes in a spiritual wilderness. In 1 Corinthians 10, the Apostle Paul said the Exodus generation is an example to us so that we can learn from what happened to them. You'll never have the faith rest life, the promised land life that Jesus called the abundant life, the life of joy and the life of peace and the life of hope. You'll never have that if you're a chronic complainer.

You won't. Gratitude is at the very heart of the blessings of God. Now, I want to ask you something. On your own, ask yourselves these three questions. Am I a complainer? Ask yourself that.

And by the way, if you can't come up with the right answer, ask those who are close to you. Ask people at work, in the neighborhood, your family, your spouse, ask them, am I a chronic complainer? Because you might be. Am I reaping the consequences of my complaining attitude? My life's not marked with joy.

It's not marked with peace. I'm a slave to the circumstances in my life. When they're great, I'm great. When they're not great, I'm rotten.

It may be the most important question. Am I willing to repent? Am I willing to stop that? You see, the antidote to complaining is thankfulness.

That's the antidote. Go to Luke 17 with me now. Luke chapter 17, verse 11. You know the story.

It's pretty familiar. And Luke writes this. He says, while Jesus was on the way to Jerusalem, he was passing between Samaria and Galilee. And as he entered a village, 10 leprous men who stood at a distance met him. And they raised their voices, crying, Jesus, master, have mercy on us. And when he saw them, he said, go and show yourselves to the priest, which was required, by the way, by Levitical law. And as they were going, they were all cleansed.

Now, just imagine. This is even more astounding or more profound than the Exodus generation. These men were lepers. They couldn't have anything worse happen to you on this earth in that world, ostracized by everybody, put in your own colony, going through a really difficult way in a long, slow death. And they were all cleansed.

How would you feel? Now, one of them, when he saw that he had been healed, turned back, glorifying God with a loud voice. And he fell on his face at Christ's feet, giving thanks to him. And then Luke says this, he was a Samaritan. Now, remember, the Samaritans are the sort of half Jewish, sort of heretical wing.

They did not, did not like the Jews of Judah or Galilee, and the Jews hated them. And yet this Jewish rabbi prophet heals him. And he goes to him and worships him and thanks him for what he's done. And Jesus answered and said, were there not ten cleansed, but nine, where are they? And he says, was no one fine? He says, who returned to give glory to God except this foreigner? And then he said, stand up and go, your faith has made you well.

Now, this is kind of interesting on a couple of different levels. One thing here, there were ten actions received and there were ten attitudes chose. And only one gave thanks.

The other ten did not. And notice what he says is the blessing. He said, stand up and go, your faith has made you well. That can't be from leprosy because all ten were cleansed. The ungrateful ones were cleansed. But they didn't say thanks. Jesus says, but your attitude, your gratitude of gratitude, your thankfulness has made you well.

What's he mean spiritually well? You see, there's nothing we should be more than thankful. All of us are lepers. You see, all of us have sinned. There are none righteous. No, not one.

None of us have a uplifting, positive future. The wages of sin is death. Christ cleanses.

The expectation is, of course, thankfulness, gratitude. You've been listening to Pastor Bill Gebhardt on the Radio Ministry of Fellowship in the Word. If you ever miss one of our broadcasts, or maybe you would just like to listen to the message one more time, remember that you can go to a great website called oneplace.com. That's oneplace.com, and you can listen to Fellowship in the Word online.

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That's fbcnola.org. 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 a 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.