(This transcript was generated by AI. Apologies for any inacuracies)

Last week, we started this series, Things Jesus Never Said.

And I love this because I think it's so important because I think there's so many thoughts and sayings out there that people believe are in Scripture, but they really aren't.

And I kind of put a few of them together.

God helps those who help themselves, right?

That is not in Scripture.

In fact, the whole idea of self-reliance is something very antithetical to Scripture in itself.

We're called to totally rely on God.

Money is the root of all evil.

That is not in the Bible.

The love of money is the root of all evil.

That is found in Scripture.

God will not give you more than you can handle, right?

In the first service, that kind of got some murmurs because I thought that was in there.

It actually says in Scripture that God will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you can bear, which is something totally different than not giving you something that you can't handle.

The next one I had was, to thine own self be true.

That is actually Shakespeare, not the Bible.

Okay?

So, for all you Shakespeare lovers, the next one I found, cleanliness is next to godliness.

Okay?

How many of you out there were in fear of your eternal salvation because your rooms were not clean as kids, right?

Like, I will tell you, honestly, like, I rebelled against that heresy harshly when I was a teenager.

So, I did not fall into that trap.

But the reason these things are so important and the reason it's important to call them out is because believing that they are biblical references leads to bad theology, right?

And what is theology?

Theology is what I believe about God, right?

Theology is what we as the Christian Church understand that God has revealed to us about Himself, right?

We get that from the Word and what we've experienced and everything like that.

And so, if I have bad theology, if what I believe about God is wrong, then I begin living out bad theology.

And that's where we start to get in trouble, okay?

And so, we as the Church have to always check our theology.

We have to check ourselves to make sure that what we are living out, what we are believing in, is true to Scripture.

One saying that has wormed its way into our modern understanding of how God works, and it's something that I've been frustrated with for years, and I've never gotten a real opportunity to talk about it, is this saying, when God closes one door, he'll open another.

Now, the phrase, when one door closes, another will open, is actually from Alexander Graham Bell.

And so, that is not found in Scripture, okay?

But we have used it so often as Christians, and I don't know how this belief has become so popular with the church today, because I think it's one of the most false and unscriptural views that we could ever have.

And I honestly think that it has kept the church in America from growth and maturity for way too long.

And so I want to address this today, because here's what I mean by it.

Usually when people use that phrase, it's because they've come up against something that is difficult in their lives.

Right?

We come up against something difficult, whether it's in a relationship or at work or at church or something, and we use that phrase, I think God is closing this door.

And rather than deal with that difficulty through prayer and perseverance, we look for the easy way out.

Now, the funny thing is there, there are very few easy things in life.

Okay?

And so here's, here's group participation time.

Okay?

If you agree with these statements, just shout, Amen.

All right?

Marriage is hard.

Amen.

Parenting is hard.

Amen.

All right?

I hear it gets really good with grandparenting though.

I hear that can be a lot of fun.

Feed them up on sugar, spoil them and then send them home.

All right?

Oh God, your mom and dad don't really love you, but grandma and grandpa always do.

School is hard.

Amen.

Yeah, see, that's what I'm saying.

Work is hard.

Amen.

And finally, growing up is hard.

Amen.

I was telling Alicia today, I said, I can't tell you the last time I got out of bed and something didn't hurt.

Right?

Like, it's hard.

It is not for the weak of heart.

But you see, it's my faith in God and my coming to the end of myself that helps all of these difficult things become testimonies of who God is.

Right?

My marriage is strong today not because I am a great husband, but because I serve a great God.

Right?

It is not me.

And my wife and I have prayed through difficult times and faced difficult times.

We have done that together and with God.

And it is only when we come to the end of ourselves that his story really begins.

Because what God does is God brings peace and growth through the difficult, not by making it easy, but by teaching us to rely on him.

Right?

And by becoming more like him.

Right?

We are being renewed in the image of our Creator.

We are becoming more Christ-like every day that we follow God.

In chapter 1 of James, we read this.

It says, consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters.

Remember you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.

And let perseverance finish its work, so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

I have to let perseverance finish its work, so that I can be mature and complete.

See, James doesn't tell you, look for the easy way.

God will provide an easy way.

He says, hey, if you're following God, it's going to be hard.

But you need to persevere.

Why?

Because God works through the difficult.

In Romans 5, Paul writes this, he says, therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand.

And we boast in the hope of the glory of God.

Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings.

That is not a phrase I use every day, you guys.

We glory in our sufferings because we know that suffering produces, again, perseverance.

Perseverance, character, and character, hope.

And hope does not put us to shame because God's love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.

You see, almost every book in the New Testament has some mention of perseverance or growing through trials and persecution.

Right?

In the early church, as you became a Christian, it was just expected.

Things were going to be hard and you had to trust God in the midst of the difficult.

Last week, as we started this series, Pastor Clay read one of my favorite verses in all of Scripture.

It's in the book of John, chapter 16, verse 33.

And it's Jesus telling his disciples, in this world, you will have trouble, but take heart, I've overcome this world.

Now you see, this is happening.

Jesus is speaking these words right before he gets arrested, right?

He knows what is going on.

And you know, if I know when my end is coming, and I want to tell the people I care about the most something, I want it to be something important, I want it to be something that's meaningful, something that is encouraging.

And what does Jesus tell his disciples?

He says, hey guys, as you follow me, it's going to be hard.

But what you need to understand is that I've overcome the difficult.

I've overcome every obstacle.

And if I have done it, you will too, as long as you continue to trust me.

You see, as we live out this life of faith, we have to understand that God is never done turning us into new creations.

God is never done with that process.

I don't care how old you are, how young you are, when you became a Christian, you know, if it's been a month, if it's been 30 years, it does not matter.

God is not done growing us and transforming us.

And as most of us in here know, it's not in the easy times that I grow the most, right?

I know a lot of you in here, I've heard your stories, and there are so many testimonies of the difficult, so many times where you could have given up, but you continued to trust God, and that is when God showed up the most.

That is who God is to most of us in here.

It's times when I struggle, it's times when I run out of answers, and I finally turn to God, that that's when God truly shows up and transforms us.

And this is why I think when we're thinking that God is going to open a door that looks like an easier situation, we need to be cautious.

Because I don't think, I can't even think of one time in Scripture where that happens.

There's this great passage in Exodus 13, and this passage takes place after Pharaoh has allowed the Israelites to get out of Egypt, after the death of the firstborn, but before the crossing of the Red Sea.

And it says this, when Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was shorter.

For God said if they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.

So God led the people around by the desert road toward the Red Sea.

The Israelites went up out of Egypt, ready for battle.

Now this is just, I mean, it's amazing, right?

After God opening one of the biggest doors ever.

I mean, imagine being slaves for 400 years, and now you are being freed.

If there is ever a group of people that deserved an easy door, it was these people.

But God didn't allow it.

He didn't allow them on to the easy way, the quicker way, the simple way.

He leads his people into the longer, into the more difficult.

He closes the door on easy.

Why?

Because the Israelites weren't ready.

They didn't trust God enough.

They still had too much trust in their own strength.

Look at what it says there.

It says, the Israelites went up out of Egypt ready for battle.

If you go back and you read that story, it's incredible.

As soon as Pharaoh says, you can go, they start going and all of the Egyptians just start throwing gold and silver and goods at them.

Please just leave, just go.

And I mean, they're walking out of Egypt, the most powerful country in the world at that time, like conquering heroes.

And if you've ever had that feeling, like you feel pretty good, right?

Like, yeah, you better give me that gold.

You better.

Yeah.

And so they're walking out of Egypt.

They're coming up out of Egypt ready for battle.

They think they are set.

They are God's people.

God has done this great thing.

But God knew if they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.

That's something.

Why would you go back to slavery?

Why would you go back to captivity?

After this amazing display from God against that most powerful nation in the world, would the Israelites really crumble in the face of difficulty?

Well, it didn't take long for us to find out.

As they come up on the Red Sea, Pharaoh decides that, you know what, I'm not going to let these people go.

They're my slaves, I'm bringing them back, and so he starts going after them.

And then finding themselves caught between the Red Sea and the most powerful army in the world, the Israelites proved God right.

And in Exodus 14, it says this, as Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up and there were the Egyptians marching after them.

They were terrified and cried out to the Lord.

They said to Moses, was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die?

What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt?

Didn't we say to you in Egypt, leave us alone, let us serve the Egyptians.

It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert.

And so as soon as difficulty arises, the Israelites choose slavery over God.

I mean, it's unfathomable, right?

When following God got too hard, we choose to remain in bondage?

And yet, it sounds ridiculous, but we do it all the time.

As following God gets a little difficult or conflict arises, we decide that he must close that door.

And we look for an easier way.

But usually, it's only easier because it's what we're used to, right?

I always go back to what I'm used to, what I've known, and we end up settling for less.

We settle on captivity rather than trust God to grow us and do something great in us and through us.

And the Bible is filled with these moments, these amazing circumstances that look impossible, right?

A hundred-year-old Abraham, who God promised would be the father of many nations, is there childless.

But the difficult didn't become easy, it became miraculous.

Joseph, after being put into captivity by his brothers, was in prison for about 10 years before being released.

The difficult didn't become easy, it became miraculous.

Moses was a shepherd for 40 years before God sent him back into Egypt.

The difficulty didn't become easy, it became miraculous.

David had to wait 15 years after being anointed King of Israel to claim his throne.

The difficulty didn't become easy, it became miraculous.

And then the last one, Jesus prayed before going to the cross, Father, if it is possible, open another door.

May this cup be taken from me.

And we know that story, the difficulty didn't become easy, it became miraculous.

I said at the beginning that I believe that this view of God closing and opening doors has kept the church in America from growth and maturity for a really long time, and I said that because here's where I see it the most.

It's when conflict arises in the church.

Time and time again, in the letters of the New Testament, we find out that there is conflict in these early churches, right?

People not getting along.

Different factions fighting with each other.

People fighting over power or prestige in the church, and it hasn't changed to this very day, right?

And if any of you in here have ever experienced any of that, you know just thinking about it makes you sick, right?

It makes me sick.

Why?

This is the bride of Christ, right?

This is why Jesus died on the cross, so that the church could be here telling and preaching the good news of Jesus and his salvation.

And we allow it to fall apart.

And when a little difficulty comes our way, we let it tear us apart.

And most of us here, we know the people I fight with the most, they're my family, right?

They're the ones I love the most.

The people I yell at the most are my family.

They are the ones I love the most, but they piss me off more than anybody else.

But I'm not walking out because God has brought us together.

And God has brought us together for a reason and a purpose.

And church, we are no different.

You are going to fight with people in here because you love them.

And yet, what we discover is that time and time again, rather than work things out, rather than reconcile and be restored, it's just easier to find another church to go to.

I mean, heck, there's four or five within half mile of this place.

But why is this so important to God?

It's because the church is supposed to be unified.

Again, before Jesus is crucified, he prays this in John 17.

He says, my prayer is not for them alone.

I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you.

May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.

I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one, I in them and you in me, so that they may be brought to complete unity.

Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me."

Church, the world should be beating down our doors to get in this place.

The world should look at the Church and know that God exists because of the way we love each other and because of how unified we are.

And yet time and time again we allow discord and disunity to define who we are as the Church.

And I know I use the Church as an example, but we see this everywhere in marriages, right?

Things get difficult, it's easier to walk away than to work things out.

We see it in workplaces, we see it in the schools, we see it with parents and children.

So many times we would rather give up and look for an easy door rather than trust that the God we serve can change hearts and do what he actually says he can do in the Bible.

Right?

How many times have I sold God short?

God, I know you rose from the dead, but man, this situation right here, that might be a little too much for you.

It's ridiculous.

And yet time and time again, we walk away because it's easier.

Is unity, reconciliation, and restoration hard?

Absolutely.

Does it suck to sit in a difficult situation and feel like it's never going to change?

For sure.

Absolutely.

Imagine being like Joseph and being innocent and sitting in prison for ten years or more.

Or like Moses, being raised as a prince and then having to live as a nomadic shepherd for 40 years.

Imagine being the son of God and being nailed to the cross.

And I'll tell you, honestly, that's the thing that resets my heart a lot of the time.

When I'm frustrated, when I'm looking for an easy way out, I just say in my mind, you know what?

Nobody's trying to nail me to a cross today.

I'm telling you, use it.

It puts things in perspective.

Nobody's nailing me to a cross today, so I can figure this out.

So why does God do this?

Why does he not just open doors and make things easy for us?

And I think it's so that when he finally gets us to where we need to be as his people, and we hear him say crazy things like, hey, I want you to march around the city for seven days, and then on the seventh day, blow a trumpet and then everyone scream.

Right?

That we hear that and we go, that's a good plan.

That's a really good idea.

You know, we have all of these great military leaders, but yes, marching and yelling, good.

Right?

God doesn't call us to an easy life, church.

He calls us to an impactful life.

He calls us to a life that is filled with his spirit, a life that sees things not as difficult or impossible, but as opportunities for God's power to be revealed.

Is there going to be pain?

Yes.

Will there be scars?

Absolutely.

But you will have an incredible story about how God showed up in your life that will open people's eyes to his love and mercy.

I'm going to close this time by reminding us of the story of Jacob.

Right?

Jacob, as you remember, was one of the forefathers of the people of Israel.

In fact, it was because of him that they are called the people of Israel.

God changed his name, but his name originally Jacob, that name, it means basically deceiver, liar.

And that's how Jacob's life was defined up to this point.

Right?

He got where he was and what he had because of deception, because of his own wits, because of his own power.

And as he is coming back now into the promised land, he knows that he is going to have to deal with his brother Esau.

And he cheated his brother out of his brother's birthright, and he knows before he left his brother wanted to kill him, and he doesn't know if that's changed anything.

And so the night before he's supposed to meet his brother, he sends his wives, sends his children, sends his servants, sends his animals, everybody goes across the river, and Jacob is there all by himself in the dark.

And I'm sure at that point he's praying, God, I would love for you to open a door.

I would love for an easy road right now.

And what the Bible tells us is that out of the darkness, God shows up.

And I love this story because it's not like God showed up and picked Jacob up and hugged him.

It's like, man, Jacob, I love you so much.

Everything's going to be okay, buddy.

We're going to make it.

No, like I picture God running out of the darkness and just boom, knocking Jacob back.

And all of a sudden the wrestling match is on.

And we hear about this in scripture and they're tumbling around and Jacob's holding on for dear life.

And in the midst of this story, I honestly think, I think God cheated, right?

Because it says he touched Jacob's hip and the hip pops out of socket.

And so Jacob's dragging around and he's holding on to God as hard as he can.

And he says, God, I'm not going to let you go until you bless me.

And I can imagine tears streaming down his face because he's angry and he's afraid and he's hurt.

And he wants something to, he wants to be able to figure this out.

And God asks him, what's your name?

That's a loaded question, right?

I'm the liar.

I'm the deceiver.

It's what I've done.

It's who I am.

And God doesn't sit there in the middle of this wrestling match and then go, yeah, Jacob, you suck.

You're a horrible person, Jacob.

No, he looks at Jacob and he says, no, your name is no longer Jacob.

It's Israel.

Because you have struggled with God and with men and you have overcome.

And I love this story because what it tells us is as the sun comes up, Jacob comes to meet his brother and he's limping, right?

Limping for the rest of his life because God popped the hip out of the socket.

And can you imagine Jacob, right?

Because he lived for a really long time.

His grandkids coming up, grandpa Jacob, grandpa Israel, why do you limp?

And can you imagine the smile that came on this man's face?

And he said, son, let me tell you a story.

Let me tell you about a God who didn't let me take the easy road, but a God who showed up nonetheless.

And church, this is who we are called to be.

As you walked in here today, you were handed a little paper.

It's a door, all right?

I know I'm creative.

That's right.

That's who I am.

It was supposed to be a prettier door, but I wasn't that technical.

I couldn't do it.

So you got clip art.

But today is that day.

Whatever you are dealing with, whatever door you are up against that you have been praying about, that you were hoping that God would open an easier road, today is the day where you come and you recognize that God is calling you to persevere.

But He's not calling you to persevere alone.

He is with you.

And He wants to transform you through this perseverance.

He wants to make you mature and complete.

Why?

So that when the world sees you and hears your story, they glorify Him.

And so our worship team's gonna come back out.

And over this next worship song, I encourage you, as you feel led, you can write something on that, and let's bring it to the crosses here on either side of the stage.

And you know what, if you don't have a pen, don't worry about writing anything.

God knows what's on that door.

And just come drop it off, because today, again, we recognize it's because of the victory of Christ on the cross, that we know doors won't stop us.

The gates of hell won't stop us.

We are in this together.

And so, after the worship song, I'm gonna come back up and kinda close us out.

And so, church, I wanna encourage you as well, if you are coming up and you drop that at the cross, and you need prayer, we're gonna have prayer partners there available as well.

Do what you need to do.

If God is whispering to your heart right now, allow him in.

Allow him to transform you and what you're going through.

Let's pray.

God, I wanna thank you so much.

I thank you for who you are.

I thank you for what you called us to.

And Lord, I know that so many people in here are facing doors that they feel like are never going to open.

But Lord, what your word tells us is that is when you do the greatest miracles.

And so Father, I wanna pray for each person in here right now as they are laying their burdens before you, as they are writing on that little paper door, as they're thinking about bringing it to the cross.

Lord, may they know that you hear their prayers, that you have not abandoned them to their hardships, and that Lord God, you are about to do a mighty work in them and through them for your glory, Lord.

And so I wanna pray, I wanna begin today by praying for those people and with those people who walked in here who don't know you as their Lord and Savior.

Because God, without you, there is no hope of getting through any door that is meaningful.

And so Lord, may their heart's prayer be this, God, I've done it by myself for so long and I know now I need you as my God, as my King, as my Lord, and as my Savior.

Today, I give you my heart and I pray, Lord, that from this day forward, as I face those difficulties, I know that I'm not alone and that you are going to help me persevere so that I can have my hope in you.

And Father, for the rest of us as your church, Lord, we want this to be a place where the world is beating down the doors to get in here.

We want this to be a place where lives are changed, where things are restored and redeemed.

And Lord, that work begins with us.

And so may we be willing and may we be excited, Lord God, to hand these burdens over to you today, that we pray all these things in your mighty name.

And all God's people said, Amen.