Latest / KCBI Digital Station / Bold Steps with Dr. Mark Jobe - Breaking Through the Gloom -- Part 2
Transcript
- 0:00S1: Are you tired of feeling down and gloomy, looking for
- 0:03S1: real ways to actually change how you feel? Stay tuned
- 0:06S1: for today's Bold Steps message.
- 0:09S2: But let me tell you, when you jump start the
- 0:11S2: sacrifice of praise, then your emotions catch up with your
- 0:15S2: joyful noise. If you've entered in praise and thanksgiving, you
- 0:19S2: can leave this place having your heart turned around because
- 0:23S2: you've gotten into the presence of God and God has
- 0:25S2: been able to speak to you.
- 0:39S1: Welcome to Bold Steps with Mark Jobe. Mark is founding
- 0:43S1: pastor of New Life Community Church in Chicago. I'm Wayne Shepherd.
- 0:47S1: You know, when we look around the world today, most
- 0:49S1: of what we see doesn't actually look so good. From
- 0:52S1: corruption and politics to the growing division within our culture
- 0:55S1: and even with other countries. There's no shortage of negative headlines.
- 0:59S1: And with all the darkness and despair that we see,
- 1:02S1: what can we do as followers of Christ to maintain
- 1:05S1: our joy and shine to those around us? That's exactly
- 1:08S1: what we're discussing on today's program. We'll be looking at
- 1:11S1: Psalm 100. So if you have your Bible, go ahead
- 1:13S1: and join us there. As Mark Jobe begins part two
- 1:16S1: of a message titled breaking Through the Gloom.
- 1:20S2: You can't change someone's attitude, but God can. You can't
- 1:23S2: fix your cousin's marriage, but God can. You can't forgive sins,
- 1:27S2: but God can. You don't know the future, but God does.
- 1:30S2: You can't see into the future what's going on, but
- 1:32S2: God does. You can't climb a mountain, but God can
- 1:35S2: overcome any obstacle. God is able. So remember who God is.
- 1:41S2: The psalmist says, be still and know that He is God.
- 1:46S2: Some of us in the middle of our chaos and
- 1:49S2: trouble were so busy and worried, running around. And sometimes
- 1:54S2: you need to be still and remember who God is.
- 1:58S2: And then he says, it is he who has made
- 2:01S2: us and we are his. We are his people, the
- 2:06S2: sheep of his pasture. When you stop and remember that
- 2:10S2: He is God, and that God knows your story and
- 2:13S2: that you are his, I want you to think about
- 2:16S2: this for a second. God is not a distant character.
- 2:21S2: This generic force in the universe that doesn't know your name,
- 2:27S2: the God of Scripture is a God that knows your
- 2:29S2: story and knows your name. And before you were born,
- 2:33S2: he knew you. Before your parents even know knew you,
- 2:37S2: he knew you. God has seen you when other people haven't.
- 2:41S2: He knows your thoughts and your heart. He's tracked your story.
- 2:46S2: He knows your middle name. Yeah. Even though you don't
- 2:48S2: tell other people about it, he knows it. He knows
- 2:51S2: the secrets of your heart. He knows the longings and
- 2:53S2: the desires of your soul. Not only that, the Bible
- 2:56S2: tells us that His Holy Spirit dwells inside of us.
- 2:59S2: God Knows you. There's something powerful about knowing that God
- 3:07S2: knows you. And even though he knows you, he loves you.
- 3:15S2: Romans tells us. 828 says, and we know that for
- 3:22S2: those who love God, all things. What things? All things
- 3:29S2: work together for good for those who are called according
- 3:33S2: to his purpose. Those that love God, all things work together.
- 3:40S2: The bad, the good, the unexpected. They collude together by
- 3:47S2: God's sovereignty, and they actually work together for the good
- 3:52S2: of the people that love God. God can even take
- 3:55S2: your bad circumstances and use them as stepping stones for
- 3:58S2: good purposes. all things work together. This is not a
- 4:04S2: world in which just random things happen without anybody being
- 4:08S2: in control. This is not a world where chaos reigns
- 4:11S2: and there is no rhyme or reason. We live in
- 4:15S2: a world where there is a sovereign God. You may
- 4:17S2: not understand why things happen. You may have difficulty, understand
- 4:21S2: suffering in this world and injustice in this world. But
- 4:24S2: I want you to understand that God is not confused,
- 4:27S2: that God does have a plan. That God does allow
- 4:30S2: bad to happen because of our choices. But in the end,
- 4:34S2: the final chapter of this book is written and the
- 4:37S2: end God wins and the end justice comes in the end.
- 4:40S2: There is a future with a hope, a purpose, and
- 4:42S2: a destiny as written in Scripture. Isaiah 41 verse ten says,
- 4:50S2: fear not, for I am with you. Be not dismayed,
- 4:54S2: for I am your God. I will strengthen you. I
- 4:57S2: will help you. I will uphold you with my righteous
- 5:00S2: right hand. Jeremiah 32 verse 27 says, behold, I am
- 5:05S2: the Lord, the God of all flesh. Is anything too
- 5:10S2: hard for me? Once in a while, in the middle
- 5:17S2: of your chaos, in the middle of your anxiety, in
- 5:21S2: the middle of your inability to figure things out, you
- 5:24S2: need to take a deep breath, slow down, and remember
- 5:29S2: who God is. Yeah, you're on the throne, God. I
- 5:35S2: remember it. You're still on the throne. Regardless of my circumstances.
- 5:41S2: And I am yours and you are mine. It tells
- 5:45S2: us in this verse. And we are his people and
- 5:47S2: the sheep of his pasture. I kind of wonder why
- 5:51S2: oftentimes the Bible compares us to sheep. I really don't
- 5:58S2: like that comparison. I'd rather be a tiger. Black panther.
- 6:06S2: A bear, but a sheep. I've been around sheep. And
- 6:12S2: here's the thing about sheep. First of all, they're not
- 6:15S2: that bright. Nah. I grew up in a village in
- 6:20S2: northern Spain. Sheep were. My best friend was the son
- 6:23S2: of a shepherd. They weren't bright. The other thing about
- 6:27S2: sheep is they're extremely vulnerable. They don't have horns on
- 6:31S2: their head. They can't camouflage themselves. I mean, they're just
- 6:35S2: white right in the middle of everything. They have no teeth.
- 6:40S2: They have no claws. They're extremely vulnerable. But one thing
- 6:46S2: that sheep have in the biblical context is they have
- 6:52S2: a shepherd. There are some of the most vulnerable animals
- 6:57S2: on earth. Rabbits can run. Tigers can fight, bears can roar.
- 7:05S2: Chameleons can hide sheep. But put a good shepherd around
- 7:12S2: a sheep. And you don't want to mess with those sheep.
- 7:17S2: Because there's a shepherd, guides them, cares for them, watches
- 7:23S2: out for them, protects them. And I love the fact
- 7:27S2: that God acknowledges our vulnerability in calling us sheep. Yet
- 7:32S2: at the same time acknowledges that he is the shepherd.
- 7:38S2: No matter how strong you may feel today or how
- 7:41S2: invincible you may feel, I want to tell you. All
- 7:44S2: of us human beings, we share a common characteristic. We
- 7:49S2: are extremely vulnerable. Cancer can hit in a moment. A
- 7:56S2: heart attack can leave you paralyzed. A car can hit
- 8:00S2: you while you're crossing the street. Life can change immediately.
- 8:05S2: We are extremely vulnerable in life, but thank God that
- 8:10S2: in the midst of our vulnerability, we have the Shepherd,
- 8:13S2: the Shepherd of our soul that watches, that cares, that
- 8:16S2: knows us, that controls our destiny and our future. Number three,
- 8:28S2: verse four. Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts
- 8:32S2: with praise. Give thanks to him. Bless his name. Number
- 8:35S2: three thank your way in the door. Make some noise.
- 8:39S2: Now you know who God is. Thank your way in
- 8:43S2: the door. Enter his presence with the ticket of thanksgiving
- 8:46S2: and praise. Notice what he says in verse four. He says,
- 8:49S2: enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise.
- 8:53S2: Can I tell you something about thanksgiving? Thanksgiving is the
- 8:57S2: language of God. It's the language of the people of God.
- 9:02S2: There are some people here today that you feel distant
- 9:05S2: from God. You feel like God hasn't spoken to me
- 9:08S2: in a long time. I don't know what it is,
- 9:10S2: but I feel like I can't get really close to God.
- 9:15S2: Can I tell you that one of the keys to
- 9:17S2: entering into the presence of God in such a way
- 9:19S2: that he can speak to us, is an attitude of gratitude.
- 9:25S2: You see, you can't enter into the gates of the
- 9:28S2: presence of God when you're full of criticism, negativity, complaint,
- 9:35S2: and darkness. You. You're kept in the outer courts when
- 9:44S2: you all. All you see is the bad in life.
- 9:46S2: What you don't have in life, what should be and
- 9:48S2: can't be. When you look at life, some of you
- 9:51S2: wake up in the morning and you already predict a
- 9:53S2: rotten day. Uh. This is going to be a terrible day.
- 9:58S2: My back hurts. Traffic's going to be terrible. Where's my coffee?
- 10:02S2: This is nasty. The job is terrible. I can't stand
- 10:06S2: this day. It's Monday. And I just feel like God's distant. Well,
- 10:15S2: maybe God feels distant because you're in the outer courts.
- 10:19S2: And the ticket inside the gates of the presence of
- 10:22S2: God is gratitude and thanksgiving. I wonder what would happen
- 10:28S2: if you got out of bed tomorrow and you said,
- 10:31S2: thank you, God, that I can walk. Bless you, that
- 10:36S2: I have air in my lungs. And you say, well, pastor,
- 10:38S2: I have enfisema. I have air in one lung at least.
- 10:41S2: Thank God that I have air in one lung. Praise
- 10:46S2: God that I. My mind is more or less still there.
- 10:50S2: Thank God that I can drive a car and not
- 10:53S2: walk to work. Thank God that I'm not sleeping in
- 10:55S2: a cardboard box under Lower Wacker Drive. Praise God that
- 11:00S2: I can eat some food. It may not be caviar
- 11:03S2: or a New York steak, but it's carne asada maybe.
- 11:08S2: You know, praise God that that that I have something
- 11:12S2: in life. You need to find something to thank God
- 11:16S2: for and start focusing on what you're going to thank
- 11:19S2: God for. Because let me tell you, a spirit of
- 11:21S2: ingratitude could be in a millionaire mansion and still complain.
- 11:26S2: It's not about your circumstances. It's about the attitude that
- 11:30S2: you have towards your circumstances. And when you look at life,
- 11:34S2: do you whine about what you don't have? Do you
- 11:39S2: complain about what's going wrong? Do you focus on what's missing?
- 11:48S2: Do you find yourself spiraling down this complaining? Jealousy. Comparison. Competitive. Whole.
- 12:04S2: So that you're always unhappy. Always discontent. Always fuming about something.
- 12:11S2: Always critical of somebody. Or have you learned the power
- 12:15S2: of thanksgiving? Where you wake up and you find something
- 12:20S2: to thank God for.
- 12:31S1: Well, don't go anywhere because Mark will be right back
- 12:33S1: to continue this pivotal lesson in just a minute. You're
- 12:37S1: listening to Bold Steps with Mark Jobe. A message about
- 12:39S1: breaking through the gloom. And real quick, we just want
- 12:42S1: to remind you that if you ever miss one of
- 12:43S1: these daily teachings on the radio, or if you want
- 12:46S1: to go back and revisit a message, you can do
- 12:48S1: that anytime by visiting our website at bold steps.org or
- 12:52S1: for easy listening straight from your phone, just open up
- 12:55S1: your podcast app and subscribe to the Bold Steps podcast.
- 12:58S1: You'll find us by searching for bold steps with doctor
- 13:01S1: Mark job. And then Mark also has a one minute
- 13:04S1: feature you can subscribe to called the Bold Steps Minute,
- 13:07S1: where you'll find short segments of daily encouragement and biblical
- 13:10S1: insight from Mark. To start listening today, just subscribe through
- 13:13S1: your podcast app or visit bold steps.org. Now back to
- 13:17S1: our message for today. It's titled Breaking Through the Gloom
- 13:20S1: with Mark job here on Bold Steps.
- 13:27S2: You see, you can't get close enough to hear God
- 13:29S2: if you're criticizing and complaining. If you enter into his presence,
- 13:36S2: the outer courts with thanksgiving, you enter in through the
- 13:40S2: gates with thanksgiving, and then you enter into the courts.
- 13:43S2: The temple courts had an outer gate and an inner
- 13:46S2: court and an inner sanctum. I believe the outer gates
- 13:49S2: are the are the attitude of thanksgiving. The courts are
- 13:53S2: the place of praise. You see, thanksgiving and praise are different.
- 13:57S2: Thanksgiving is gratitude for what is around us. Praise focuses
- 14:01S2: on the character of God and thanking God for who
- 14:04S2: he is and how he is. It's a heart of worship.
- 14:07S2: And then in the inner sanctuary, there is adoration and worship. Listen,
- 14:11S2: some of you haven't heard God because you're so full
- 14:14S2: of complaining and criticism that you need to start coming
- 14:18S2: into his courts with, enter into his gates with thanksgiving,
- 14:22S2: and then enter into his courts with praise. You get
- 14:25S2: close enough to God so he doesn't have to scream
- 14:27S2: out to you. So you're close enough to God that
- 14:30S2: you can hear his voice as he whispers to you. Pastor,
- 14:34S2: I don't get anything out of the message. Well, maybe
- 14:39S2: it's me. Could be. Maybe it's because you fought all
- 14:44S2: your way into the parking lot. You came and stomping
- 14:49S2: your feet, crossing your arms. You're in the outer courts.
- 14:59S2: Even when God's trying to speak to you, you haven't
- 15:02S2: opened up your ears with praise. You haven't softened your
- 15:07S2: heart with thanksgiving. God hasn't let you into his presence
- 15:11S2: because there's just complaining and negativity. So you're in the
- 15:15S2: outer courts. What would happen if you came to church
- 15:20S2: and when you woke up in the morning, you started
- 15:23S2: thanking God. You did. You kept it 100. Yes. Psalm 100.
- 15:32S2: What would happen if by the time you entered service,
- 15:35S2: you weren't all concerned and worried about arguing with people,
- 15:38S2: but when you walked in this place, you'd spent the
- 15:40S2: morning worshiping and thanking God. What would happen if you
- 15:44S2: came into this place of worship? And already it was like, hey,
- 15:47S2: I don't need worship to warm me up. I'm already
- 15:49S2: warmed up. I'm ready to hear God. I'm ready to listen.
- 15:52S2: My heart's in the right place. I'm not fighting with anybody.
- 15:55S2: I'm not arguing with anybody. I'm here to receive. And
- 15:59S2: then God could. The moment the worship start, you would
- 16:01S2: get much more out of this service. The moment the
- 16:04S2: singing started, you wouldn't be thinking about the bass or
- 16:07S2: the sound or the stage or the temperature. You'd be saying,
- 16:10S2: here I am, God, I want to hear you. I'm
- 16:13S2: hearing your voice. You're speaking to me. You're encouraging me.
- 16:16S2: I'm getting a lot out of this because I've already
- 16:18S2: entered his gates with Thanksgiving. I've stepped into his courts
- 16:22S2: with praise, and now I can hear the voice of
- 16:24S2: the living God speaking to my life. The Bible tells
- 16:29S2: us that we have to give a sacrifice of praise.
- 16:32S2: First Thessalonians chapter 518 says, give thanks in all circumstances.
- 16:36S2: In what circumstances? All circumstances. Hebrews chapter 13, verse 15 says,
- 16:42S2: through him, then let us continually offer up a sacrifice
- 16:47S2: of praise that is the fruit of our lips that
- 16:50S2: give thanks to his name. How many of you know
- 16:52S2: that praise sometimes is a sacrifice? You know when it's
- 16:57S2: the greatest sacrifice? When I don't feel like giving it.
- 17:03S2: When things are going good, it's easy. It's not a sacrifice.
- 17:09S2: When things are bad. Things are hard. It's hard to
- 17:13S2: give stuff that doesn't come easy. The Bible says that
- 17:18S2: sometimes we need to give a sacrifice of praise. That
- 17:22S2: means I'm going to give you something that's not easy.
- 17:25S2: Hard for me to give today. It could start slow.
- 17:31S2: Don't worry about it. Thank you Lord. I don't feel
- 17:35S2: like giving thanks, but thank you, Lord. I don't feel
- 17:39S2: like praising you, but praise you, Lord. Come on. How
- 17:45S2: many of you feel like that sometimes? You say, well, pastor,
- 17:50S2: I don't want to be a hypocrite. Let me tell you,
- 17:51S2: it's never been a hypocrite to thank God for what
- 17:54S2: you know you should thank God for even when you
- 17:56S2: don't feel like it. A hypocrite is someone who pretends
- 18:03S2: to be something that they're not. When you sacrifice, that's
- 18:06S2: not hypocrisy, that's obedience. When I thank God, when it's hard,
- 18:11S2: that's obedience. When I praise God and my circumstances don't
- 18:15S2: lend themselves. That's obedience. But let me tell you, when
- 18:18S2: you jump start the sacrifice of praise, then your emotions
- 18:23S2: catch up with your joyful noise. And by the time
- 18:26S2: you leave this place, if you've entered in praise and thanksgiving,
- 18:29S2: you can leave this place having your heart turned around
- 18:32S2: because you've gotten into the presence of God and God
- 18:35S2: has been able to speak to you. Ephesians 520 says,
- 18:39S2: always giving thanks for all things in the name of
- 18:43S2: the Lord Jesus Christ. God, even our father. Let me
- 18:49S2: give you the last point in keeping it 100. You
- 18:53S2: need to make a joyful noise. You need to know
- 18:55S2: who God is. You need to thank your way in
- 18:57S2: the door. And lastly, you Lastly, you need to lean
- 19:00S2: on his goodness. God is faithful and good towards his people.
- 19:06S2: Notice with verse five says the final verse. It says,
- 19:09S2: for the Lord, oh man, for the Lord is good.
- 19:18S2: That's a simple but profound statement. The Lord is good.
- 19:25S2: Not only is the Lord good, but his love is steadfast.
- 19:31S2: And not only is love steadfast, but his faithfulness is
- 19:37S2: true from generation to generation. What does that mean? That
- 19:44S2: means that God is not moody, that you don't wake
- 19:48S2: up one day and say, does he love me? Does
- 19:50S2: he love me not? Oh, I know you've had a
- 19:52S2: boyfriend like that. That one day he loves you. The
- 19:54S2: next day he wants to leave you. The other day
- 19:56S2: he wants to marry you. The next day he wants
- 19:58S2: to divorce you and you're not even married. I know
- 20:00S2: you've had relationships like that, but let me tell you something.
- 20:03S2: God is not that way. God loves you through your
- 20:07S2: thick and thin. God loves you and your good and bad.
- 20:09S2: God loves you and is faithful even when you're not faithful.
- 20:12S2: God's love is true today, tomorrow, the day after. God
- 20:16S2: is faithful. He's true. He's consistent. He doesn't change. The
- 20:21S2: world can fall apart, but the love of God continues.
- 20:25S2: Nothing can separate us from the love of God. The
- 20:28S2: Bible says nothing can separate you from the love of God.
- 20:34S2: I love that about God, that he is faithful and
- 20:37S2: true and steadfast. 100% of the time. That means that
- 20:45S2: when life isn't so good, you need to remember that
- 20:47S2: God is good. And offer a sacrifice of praise. Some
- 20:54S2: of you today need to break through the gloom that
- 20:58S2: you've been living in. I'm talking to someone today that's
- 21:05S2: been so down and out and dark that you've had
- 21:10S2: thoughts of hurting yourself, ending it all. I'm talking to
- 21:16S2: some today who you've self-medicated your sadness and depression. And
- 21:23S2: so you've become addicted to something because you're sad over
- 21:27S2: something else. I'm talking to some of you today that
- 21:34S2: God is saying, you know, it's time to break out
- 21:36S2: of that gloom you've been living with. You've allowed this
- 21:41S2: world to brainwash you into depression, to blind you into despair,
- 21:50S2: to take on the atmosphere of hopelessness. But I'm saying,
- 21:56S2: go a little higher. Come on, break through the cloud.
- 21:59S2: Go a little higher. Go a little higher. Break through
- 22:01S2: the gloom. When you get on top, God is saying
- 22:05S2: to some of you. Feel the shine of my love
- 22:07S2: on you. Understand that I haven't changed. Remember that I
- 22:10S2: am faithful and true. I am sovereign, still on the throne.
- 22:14S2: I have a purpose and a plan for your life,
- 22:17S2: and it is a good purpose and a good plan
- 22:19S2: for your life. I love you, I've forgiven you. I'm there.
- 22:23S2: My presence is powerful. I can turn you around, heal you,
- 22:26S2: change you, reconstruct you, deliver. You do what it takes.
- 22:30S2: That's what God is saying to some of you.
- 22:40S3: Yeah. So I hope that this message has breathed fresh
- 22:45S3: air in some of you that have felt like I'm
- 22:48S3: living below the cloud line instead of above the cloud line. Um,
- 22:54S3: I want to just take a moment just to pray
- 22:56S3: for you right now. If you've been feeling like I've
- 22:59S3: been living in gloom. Father, I pray in Jesus name
- 23:02S3: for that man, that woman that has tried to shake
- 23:06S3: off the gloom. But it just persists. They wake up
- 23:09S3: in the morning feeling it. They go to bed at
- 23:11S3: night feeling it. They've lost their joy. I thank you,
- 23:15S3: Lord Jesus, that you're seeking to break them out of
- 23:18S3: that place of gloom. And I pray, spirit of the
- 23:21S3: living God, that even today, Holy Spirit, you would infuse
- 23:26S3: them with a new sense of hope. God, that you
- 23:29S3: would rekindle their joy, that they would begin to once
- 23:33S3: again stand firm and confident in your sovereignty. And I
- 23:38S3: pray this in Jesus name. Amen.
- 23:41S1: Amen. You're listening to Bold Steps with Mark Jobe, a
- 23:44S1: message titled breaking Through the Gloom. Mark, thank you for
- 23:47S1: those final thoughts and prayer. If you'd like to listen
- 23:50S1: again to any part of this message, or share it
- 23:52S1: with someone who needs to hear it, just visit us
- 23:54S1: online at bold steps.org. And before we go, be sure
- 23:58S1: to check out this month's exclusive Bold Step Gift, a
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- 24:05S1: Church in Babylon. Heeding the call to be a light
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- 24:13S1: that doesn't always share our values. And this book will
- 24:16S1: point you back to the one place our confidence was
- 24:18S1: always meant to rest in Christ. Whatever chapter in life
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- 25:32S1: but make plans to tune in tomorrow when Mark brings
- 25:34S1: a new message titled How to Approach God. That's the
- 25:37S1: important discussion and you don't want to miss it. Coming
- 25:40S1: up Wednesday, right here on Bold Steps with Mark, Bold
- 25:45S1: steps is a production of Moody Radio, a ministry of
- 25:48S1: the Moody Bible Institute.