Real Life Radio

Announcer: Today, on Real Life Radio,

Jack Hibbs: God is in your life working for good.

Jack Hibbs: Listen, the world is out there throwing curveballs at us, but God takes them and turns it around and makes it for good.

Jack Hibbs: This is a very dangerous world you and I live in.

Jack Hibbs: And it's getting nuttier by the minute.

Jack Hibbs: This world's nuts.

Jack Hibbs: My God's not nuts, though.

Jack Hibbs: My God's right on target.

Announcer: This is Real Life.

Announcer: Welcome to Real Life Radio with Pastor Jack Hibbs.

David J: I'm David J, thanking you for joining us today as we listen, learn, and are challenged by God's Word, the Bible.

Jack Hibbs: Hey everybody, have you ever thought about what's after life? Do you know that the Bible teaches life is after life?

Jack Hibbs: If you know the Lord Jesus Christ, my good friend Philip DeCourcy has written a great book and that's the title, "Life After Life," exploring the Bible's wonderful promises about heaven and eternity, published by Horah's House Publishers. Get a copy for yourself.

Announcer: Life After Life by Philip DeCourcy. Exploring the Bible's promises about Heaven and Eternity. It's available for a gift of any amount at jackhibbs.com. That's jackhibbs.com.

Announcer: On today's edition of Real Life Radio, Pastor Jack now continues his series called "Disciplines of Life" with a message titled "Disciplines of Decision."

Announcer: God's guidance in life guarantees certain comforts. One being that if we're in step with Him, then we don't have to make mistakes in our decision-making. You see, we have to recognize our own limitations and ask God for His guidance. We can only understand so much and we need to let God's Word guide us.

Announcer: So today, Pastor Jack teaches us that once a decision is made, we've got to be willing to obey God's guidance. God knows what's right and He wants what's best for us. There is a blessing in a disciplined decision.

Announcer: Now with his message called "Disciplines of Decision," here's Pastor and Bible teacher, Jack Hibbs.

Jack Hibbs: The book of Habakkuk, Habakkuk chapter 2, verse 3. Habakkuk 2, verse 3 says, "For the vision is yet for an appointed time."

Jack Hibbs: "But at the end, it will speak and it will not lie. Though it waits or tarries, wait for it."

Jack Hibbs: "Because it will surely come and it will not tarry."

Jack Hibbs: What does that mean? That means God knows what's up. He knows the answer that He's going to give you. You wait.

Jack Hibbs: Oh, this is the one where we just have such a hard time with.

Jack Hibbs: We want stuff to happen. We look around at people, we look around what's on the TV, or we look around what might be in the movie theater and we start thinking about our own lives.

Jack Hibbs: My goodness, I'm 21 and I don't have this, and I don't have that, and I need to make it happen.

Jack Hibbs: This is a scourge on our culture.

Jack Hibbs: I'm 30 and I still don't have this, or I'm 40, or I'm this and I'm that. And then we have what are these things? Midlife crises?

Jack Hibbs: What is that all about? What is that thing? What is that? I don't know. You see guys, their shirts are open down to here with a gold chain. They they, you know, they take their suburban and they get a little a red convertible Yugo or whatever.

Jack Hibbs: And they have this big, what's what's the deal? I thought I would have had more in life by now.

Jack Hibbs: Well, we can fix that. We'll just ship you to Mexico for a month and get your perspective fixed.

Jack Hibbs: Think about it. You have shoes, don't you?

Jack Hibbs: We've got this thing where we begin to judge our status in light of what the world offers.

Jack Hibbs: You and I will never, never achieve what the world is trying to sell us.

Jack Hibbs: It's Madison Avenue. Wake up.

Jack Hibbs: Well, I don't look like him. You'll never look like him. Well, I don't look like her. You'll never look like her. First of all, they're all a bunch of airbrushed uh, things.

Jack Hibbs: But you look at that, you go,

Jack Hibbs: Hey, wait a minute. Wait on God.

Jack Hibbs: We cannot outwait Him.

Jack Hibbs: Jack, what if I wait too long? I don't think it's possible.

Jack Hibbs: You can disobey Him once He speaks. That's a problem.

Jack Hibbs: That's our third point, I'm getting ahead of myself. That's obeying Him.

Jack Hibbs: But when you're saying, "Lord, lead me, Lord, guide me, show me." If He hasn't showed you yet, wait.

Jack Hibbs: Man.

Jack Hibbs: I won't name any names. That wouldn't be right.

Jack Hibbs: Someone came up to me about a week and a half ago, and they were a little bit upset.

Jack Hibbs: I could tell. Because things aren't going good in their family.

Jack Hibbs: And so the person said, "You know what? I mean, God

Jack Hibbs: I mean, you have really two wonderful son-in-laws. They love God and your daughters, you know, you never had any problem with them doing drugs and stuff like that and they're serving and

Jack Hibbs: almost to the point where I I felt like I should be apologizing. I'm sorry.

Jack Hibbs: And then I felt the I felt the Lord. I didn't hear any rumbles of thunder or anything, but I felt the Lord say, "Bless me now, Jack. This is your opportunity. Bless me now."

Jack Hibbs: And I don't know if you know what that means, but I knew exactly what it meant.

Jack Hibbs: I told her, I said, "Listen, first of all, when we got pregnant with these kids, we laid our hands on her tummy and prayed for God to fill those babies with His Holy Spirit."

Jack Hibbs: And when I used to pray, I used to say, "Lord, bless this baby." I'm not joking, you guys. I I told you I was nuts, but sometimes there's a benefit to being crazy.

Jack Hibbs: And we led them in the way of the Lord every day of their life.

Jack Hibbs: So now their life's blessed because God blesses obedience, and I'm supposed to apologize for that.

Jack Hibbs: I can't do it. You know why? It'd be robbing God of His faithfulness. Can't do it. God blesses obedience.

Jack Hibbs: But that's the third point, we're not there yet. We're talking about being willing to wait for Him.

Jack Hibbs: Psalm 37:7 says, "Rest in the Lord."

Jack Hibbs: "And wait patiently for Him."

Jack Hibbs: "Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way, because of the man who brings wicked schemes to pass."

Jack Hibbs: Just wait.

Jack Hibbs: Church, listen, just wait.

Jack Hibbs: I know it's hard. You wait.

Jack Hibbs: And if we're all waiting together, we can encourage one another to wait. Let's wait together. It's going to favor our walk. It's going to favor our direction in life and all.

Jack Hibbs: Also, this waiting disciplines our emotions. This is a big one, so we need to be biblical.

Jack Hibbs: Waiting kills our emotions. Come on, let's admit to it right now. We hate it. We want answers now.

Jack Hibbs: Emotions get all pumped up and we want something now.

Jack Hibbs: But listen, waiting disciplines those emotions. You know, you know how you spank emotions? You make them go sit in the corner.

Jack Hibbs: Emotions get us in trouble. Can someone say amen? Is that not true?

Jack Hibbs: We need to just discipline our emotions. First Peter chapter 1, verses 13 to 16. This is tough stuff. Peter gives tough love. Here it is.

Jack Hibbs: He says, "Therefore," he's so subtle, "Gird up the loins of your mind." Put your brain back in your head, Peter is saying.

Jack Hibbs: "Be sober." He's not talking about, "Put that drink down." He's talking about, "Think right."

Jack Hibbs: I'd love to hear him say this. Wouldn't you love that Peter come out here?

Jack Hibbs: "And rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ as obedient children. Not conforming yourselves to the former lusts."

Jack Hibbs: In other words, stop going back to your old life. It's a dead end and you know it.

Jack Hibbs: "As your as in your ignorance, but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all of your conduct, because it is written, be holy for I am holy."

Jack Hibbs: What a great statement. He's saying, listen, God's holy. Yeah, that's right. And God, because now you are hidden in Christ, you're a Christian, you get to be holy also.

Jack Hibbs: What does that mean? It means you don't have to make the wrong decision anymore.

Jack Hibbs: You just wait for Him. "Lord, what do you want me to do?"

Jack Hibbs: Do you understand that really blesses His heart?

Jack Hibbs: I'm not moving, God, till you talk to me.

Jack Hibbs: Gideon did that. Remember Gideon? A lot of people make fun of him. I think he's awesome.

Jack Hibbs: Do you guys know who I'm talking about? God, I'm not going to do anything unless you take this skin of this animal and you make it all wet and all the ground around it dry.

Jack Hibbs: So it happens.

Jack Hibbs: Okay, God, I'm not going to do anything until you make the skin wet and all the and he reverses it back and forth.

Jack Hibbs: Back and forth and people go, "Man, Gideon's got no faith." Exact opposite.

Jack Hibbs: Gideon had so much faith. He's asking God to answer him so Gideon would not make the wrong decision. I would be a Gideon any day.

Jack Hibbs: Okay? Think about that. "Oh God, you know, speak to me."

Jack Hibbs: And when you ask God, "Are you into fleeces, Jack? Are you talking about fleeces?" Because no, listen. What I am saying is because some people say, "God, if you want me to marry that person, have the sun come up."

Jack Hibbs: That ain't going to happen, that's not good.

Jack Hibbs: Gideon was seeking hard after God's mind.

Jack Hibbs: To get the answer.

Jack Hibbs: And Peter says that we get to be holy now because God is holy. We belong to Him. We are holy. He pronounces us holy. Isn't that radical?

Jack Hibbs: So listen, if that's true, and it is, the Bible makes it very clear, we are now declared holy. We are now born again. We now have been given the mind of Christ.

Jack Hibbs: Then why do we make stupid decisions? Because we don't wait.

Announcer: You're listening to Real Life with Pastor Jack Hibbs. To learn more about this ministry or to catch up on some previous episodes, go to jackhibbs.com. That's jackhibbs.com. And now, let's get back to today's message. Once again, here's Pastor Jack.

Jack Hibbs: Also, this waiting brings to you and I His joy.

Jack Hibbs: Wow.

Jack Hibbs: So we need to rest in that. Psalm 16:11.

Jack Hibbs: Psalm 16:11 says, "You will show me the path of life. In your presence is fullness of joy."

Jack Hibbs: "And at your right hand, there are pleasures forevermore."

Jack Hibbs: What an awesome God we have.

Jack Hibbs: Well, here's the verse that we're moving off from tonight. It's Jeremiah 42, verses 6 and 7. Check it out.

Jack Hibbs: "Whether it is pleasing or displeasing." That word means whether it's going to be comfortable or uncomfortable for us.

Jack Hibbs: "We will obey the voice of the Lord our God."

Jack Hibbs: Skipping ahead a little bit, "that it may be well with us when we obey the voice of the Lord our God."

Jack Hibbs: Obey Him. Watch what happens. Verse 7. "And it happened after 10 days that the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah."

Jack Hibbs: Now, I don't know about you, but after 10 days, Jeremiah got his answer in 10 days. If you ask me, that's pretty quick.

Jack Hibbs: Have you been asking God for stuff for years?

Jack Hibbs: I have.

Jack Hibbs: There's some things going on in my life, and I'll tell you right now, it's just it's just us right here, I'll just say it that,

Jack Hibbs: "Lord, I mean, this is a great opportunity for you to show yourself mighty. This is a great opportunity now, God, for you to answer that thing I've been praying to you for."

Jack Hibbs: He has not he's not listening to a word I'm saying.

Jack Hibbs: We have a relationship, Him and I.

Jack Hibbs: I talk and He answers me with what He wants to answer.

Jack Hibbs: And I've learned over a lot of years, that's a good thing.

Jack Hibbs: You can thank God right now that He has not answered all your prayers.

Jack Hibbs: I'm going to give you four verses, just jot them down real quick.

Jack Hibbs: You guys all know this one. This is the best.

Jack Hibbs: Isaiah 40, verse 31.

Jack Hibbs: Famous verse. "But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength."

Jack Hibbs: "They shall mount up with wings like eagles."

Jack Hibbs: "They shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint."

Jack Hibbs: Isaiah 30, verse 18.

Jack Hibbs: "Therefore, the Lord will wait."

Jack Hibbs: "That He may be gracious to you, and therefore He will be exalted, that He may have mercy on you. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed are all those who wait for Him."

Jack Hibbs: Isaiah 49, verse 23.

Jack Hibbs: Down at down the back end of that verse. It's a big verse. "Then you will know that I am the Lord, for they shall not be ashamed who wait for me."

Jack Hibbs: Wow.

Jack Hibbs: Notice that, if you will not wait for God and go do your own stubborn decisions, because you want to have it your way, and this is what you want and it must be God, because it's what I want. And you go do it and it all falls apart.

Jack Hibbs: Notice this. You're going to be put to shame.

Jack Hibbs: Your friends might pat you on the back, but when they walk away, they'll say, "Bozo."

Jack Hibbs: Don't be fooled.

Jack Hibbs: This is vital.

Jack Hibbs: Ecclesiastes 3:11.

Jack Hibbs: Ecclesiastes 3:11. Solomon wrote this.

Jack Hibbs: "He has made everything beautiful in His time. Also, He has put eternity in their hearts."

Jack Hibbs: Wow. He has put eternity in their hearts. He makes all things beautiful in this time.

Jack Hibbs: God's goodness to cause time to make sense in the end is remarkable to me.

Jack Hibbs: Young people tonight, listen.

Jack Hibbs: You need to slow down. Just slow down. It's okay. Just slow down. You're not going to miss anything.

Jack Hibbs: Somehow, He makes everything beautiful in His time.

Jack Hibbs: Which means in my time, I can destroy everything.

Jack Hibbs: In my time.

Jack Hibbs: Third and final point tonight, the disciplines of decision is this, we need to be willing to obey His guidance. When God says it, do it.

Jack Hibbs: Wow. This way, He knows what's right. When we trust Him, we we will agree. He knows what's right.

Jack Hibbs: Come on. Did any of us make the moon?

Jack Hibbs: I mean, some walked around on it, but we didn't make it.

Jack Hibbs: What do we know for sure regarding us?

Jack Hibbs: What do we know about Him?

Jack Hibbs: He is absolutely the sum of all that is perfect and beautiful and grand.

Jack Hibbs: He's lovely, says the Bible. So check this out. He knows what's right.

Jack Hibbs: Jeremiah 42, verse 3 says, "The Lord your God will show us the way in which we should walk and the things that we should do."

Jack Hibbs: You ought to memorize that. Are you young right now? Memorize that verse. Jeremiah 42:3. The Lord's going to show me the path that I should take.

Jack Hibbs: UCLA, Florida, Washington? What is it? Where are you going to go? Lord, show me the way.

Jack Hibbs: Think about it.

Jack Hibbs: Him, her, this direction, that company?

Jack Hibbs: He has promised to answer.

Jack Hibbs: And He knows what's right for us. Imagine that. We know that that's native to the human heart.

Jack Hibbs: Have you ever driven around, I don't know, thank God if it's anywhere in this region, if it is, don't tell me, I don't want to know.

Jack Hibbs: But for some reason you've driven around some old town somewhere and eventually out in the front of some old converted house, there's a sign out front and it says, palm reader.

Jack Hibbs: And it always cracks me up. Why I think, why would you go there?

Jack Hibbs: Oh, I'm going to get my palm read. For what? It's demonic.

Jack Hibbs: It's in the human heart though to try to peer into the future. Your God knows your future. He's the only one.

Jack Hibbs: I have to do this because here's a great verse, I thought, man, they're going to freak when I tell them that, but you know what? The Bible tells me that I have to give a report card to God regarding you guys in the end. Did you know that?

Jack Hibbs: First of all, listen, Jeremiah 3:15 says, "I will give you pastors according to my heart, they shall feed you with knowledge and understanding."

Jack Hibbs: I just I've been giving you a lot of verses tonight for this. Three fantastic verses about pastors.

Jack Hibbs: Hebrews 13:7 says, "Remember those who rule over you, who have spoken the word of God to you, whose faith follow concerning the outcome of their conduct." Meaning we're going to stand before God and get in a lot of trouble.

Jack Hibbs: If we misrepresented His word. Just remember how big trouble Moses got into because he goofed up.

Jack Hibbs: See, why are you saying all this stuff? Because I got to tell you this stuff.

Jack Hibbs: No palm readers, no horoscopes. No. Bible, God, prayer. Let Him answer you.

Audience: [Clapping]

Jack Hibbs: Listen to this. Hebrews 13:17 says, "Obey those who rule over you and be submissive for they watch out for your souls."

Jack Hibbs: "As those who must give an account, let them do so with joy and not with grief, for that would not be uh for that would be unprofitable for you."

Jack Hibbs: Hebrews 13:24. "Greet all those who rule over you." Say hi to me.

Audience: Hi.

Jack Hibbs: Because I'm to give an account for your soul in the end. That's why we're in the Bible.

Jack Hibbs: That's why you need to be willing to obey His guidance because if God is working in your life, He's going to speak to you from this book. Like that.

Jack Hibbs: Okay, critical, clear, very important, very quickly. He wants what's best for you and I. Aren't you glad?

Jack Hibbs: God is nuts about you.

Jack Hibbs: Is it true God's watching me all the time? It's because He can't take His eyes off you. That's why He's watching you all the time. He's crazy over you.

Jack Hibbs: He wants what's best for you. Micah chapter 6, verse 8 says, "He has shown you, O man, what is good and what does the Lord require of you, but to do justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God."

Jack Hibbs: That's beautiful.

Jack Hibbs: You guys know this, Jeremiah 29:11 and 12. "I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace, not of evil, to give you a future and a hope."

Jack Hibbs: "Then you will call upon me and go and pray to me, and what? I will listen to you."

Jack Hibbs: Third right here. Be willing to obey His guidance because He does what's good.

Jack Hibbs: He does what's good.

Jack Hibbs: Romans chapter 8, verse 28. For some of you, I I noticed we had some new believers coming in here tonight from last week. This verse is going to be brand new to you. Check this out.

Jack Hibbs: Romans 8:28. "And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purposes."

Jack Hibbs: Verse 29. "For whom He foreknew," that is, He's always known about you.

Jack Hibbs: "He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His son." That means God is at work in your life and He's going to do what's good. This is a big one.

Jack Hibbs: So yeah, but you know what? I accepted Jesus on Sunday. I got hit by a truck on Monday. God is in your life working for good.

Jack Hibbs: Listen, the world is out there throwing curveballs at us, but God takes them and turns it around and makes it for good. This is a very dangerous world you and I live in.

Jack Hibbs: And it's getting nuttier by the minute.

Jack Hibbs: This world's nuts.

Jack Hibbs: My God's not nuts, though. My God's right on target.

Jack Hibbs: And what He's doing, He's doing for good. This world's crazy, and it's a world that will hurt you. But when my God works in my life, I tell you, if you're not a Christian tonight, you're in danger zone.

Jack Hibbs: You're not a Christian tonight, you're flirting with eternity.

Jack Hibbs: Man, don't live like that.

Jack Hibbs: Very quickly, listen to this. These are the dangers of an undisciplined life or undisciplined decisions. Undisciplined decisions, listen.

Jack Hibbs: Proverbs chapter 1, verse 28 says, "Then they will call on me, but I will not answer."

Jack Hibbs: "They will seek me diligently, but they will not find me."

Jack Hibbs: "Because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the Lord."

Jack Hibbs: "They would not have none of my counsel and despised my every rebuke."

Jack Hibbs: "Therefore, they shall eat the fruit of their own way and be filled with with full with their own fancies."

Jack Hibbs: "For the turning away of the simple will slay them, and the complacency of fools will destroy them."

Jack Hibbs: Now listen to the blessings of a disciplined decision.

Jack Hibbs: "But whoever listens to me, I will listens to me will dwell safely and will be secure without fear of evil."

Jack Hibbs: "My son, if you receive my words and treasure my commands in you, so that you incline your ear to wisdom and apply your heart to understanding."

Jack Hibbs: "Yes, if you cry out for discernment and if you lift up your voice for understanding, if you seek her as silver and search for her as for uh hidden treasure, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God."

Jack Hibbs: "For the Lord gives wisdom, from His mouth come knowledge and understanding. He stores up sound wisdom for the upright. He is a shield to those who walk uprightly."

Jack Hibbs: "He guards our guards the paths of justice and preserves the way of His saints."

Jack Hibbs: "Then you will understand righteousness and justice, equity and every good path."

Jack Hibbs: Final verse right here, wonderful verse. Ecclesiastes 12:13. "Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter. Fear God, keep His commandments, for this is man's all."

Jack Hibbs: "For God will bring every work to judgment, including every secret thing, whether good or evil."

Jack Hibbs: So what do you do with that verse? "Lord, lead me in the way of making the right decisions." And all God's people said, "Amen."

Announcer: Pastor and Bible teacher, Jack Hibbs, here on Real Life Radio and his message called "Disciplines of Decision." So glad you could spend some time with us today. You know, this message is part of Pastor Jack's series called "The Disciplines of Life." It's a series highlighting the disciplines of a Christ follower and the high cost of sharing our faith with others in a lost and broken world. And we'll continue on the next edition of Real Life Radio.

Announcer: Have you ever felt like something's missing in your life? Maybe you've been searching for answers for peace or a sense of purpose? You know, the truth is those longings are there because you were created to know God.

Announcer: At jackhibbs.com, there's a tab called "Know God." It's designed to help you discover what it truly means to have a relationship with God. This isn't about religion, it's about understanding who God is and why He loves you and how you can find hope and forgiveness through Jesus Christ.

Announcer: The page breaks it down in a simple, clear way, answering common questions and guiding you through the steps of faith. It's a great place to explore and reflect, whether you're just curious or you're ready to make that next step. So don't miss out on the most important relationship you'll ever have.

Announcer: Visit that tab called "Know God" at jackhibbs.com and start your journey today. That's jackhibbs.com because knowing God changes everything in your life for the better. Take that next step, explore and reflect at the "Know God" section at jackhibbs.com.

Jack Hibbs: Hey everybody, have you ever thought about what's after life? Do you know that the Bible teaches life is after life? If you know the Lord Jesus Christ, my good friend Philip DeCourcy has written a great book and that's the title, "Life After Life," exploring the Bible's wonderful promises about heaven and eternity, published by Horah's House Publishers. Get a copy for yourself.

Announcer: Life After Life by Philip DeCourcy. Exploring the Bible's promises about Heaven and Eternity. It's available for a gift of any amount at jackhibbs.com. That's jackhibbs.com.

Announcer: Hey, thank you again so much for listening. And if you'd like to hear or see more of what we do here, you can always go to jackhibbs.com for all the latest on what's going on with this ministry. And please, if you're ever in the Southern California area, come see us at Calvary Chapel Chino Hills. We'd love to see you there in person. It has been so good to be with you today, and I pray you find yourself in the grace and mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ. See you on the next episode.

Announcer: This program is made possible by the generous contributions of you, our listeners. Visit us at jackhibbs.com. That's jackhibbs.com. Until next time, Pastor Jack Hibbs and all of us here at Real Life Radio wish for you solid and steady growth in Christ and in His Word. We'll see you next time here on Real Life Radio.