Every Christians MUST Answer This!

Every Christian, and I do mean every Christian, needs to answer this question. The problem is very few Christians even bother to address or try to answer this question. Many people are going to suffer miserably unnecessarily by not answering this question. [music] >> [music] >> Whatever you're doing, make sure you pay attention to this video. When you're finished, share this video with someone else because it's vitally important. Here's the question, and I think it's a central question to our walk. It's important to our walk. The question is this. What if it doesn't get better? Yeah. What if it doesn't get better? Whatever the it is, and it varies from person to person. What if it never gets better? Like what? What do you mean, Corey? Well, you know, things that are happening in your life that you are loathing, that you dread going through, that you hate, that it is just problematic. It brings you down. What if that thing, whatever it is, doesn't get better? We go through a lot of different things in life. Divorce, right? Never gets better. the situation from divorce, whether it be with you, the spouse, or the ex- spouse, the the children, however things works out or shakes out because of it. What if it doesn't get better? Marriage. Your marriage is in turmoil. Your marriage is struggling. There's never really any agreement seemingly. What if it never gets better? What if your children never get better? And we don't want anything to happen to our children. What if their health issues never get better? What if their emotional or mental issues or their financial issues or their physical issues, they never get better? What would you do? What if you're um someone passed away? Someone close to you and you're just in a a funk. It never gets better. Marriage. Did I say before? Yeah. Your marriage, it never gets better. What about being lonely? You you you never find someone? No. Seriously, think about it. Ask yourself, what if it never gets better? What if your health situation never gets better? Some people are going to forever be on diialysis or taking these pills or having these treatments. As a matter of fact, some people their health situation is going to get worse. What if it never gets better? What if your finances never get better? You're working extra jobs. You have an extra gig on the side. Never gets better. What if you are doomed to be in debt forever? What if you're going to face financial hardship for the rest of your life? What if it never gets better? What about your physical issues, physical persecution? someone's after you. What What if it never gets better? What if your emotional state never gets better or that you can think of it never gets better? What if your marriage never gets better? Did I say marriage before? I said it three times because for a lot of people that's an issue. What if whatever you going through, it never gets better? Question. If it never gets better, will you still follow Christ? There's a song that you may have heard, maybe some of you like the song. The words are, I trust in God. That's how it starts off. There's a portion of the song that says, "I sought the Lord and he heard and he answered. That's why I trust him. That's why I trust him." But what if he hears you, but he doesn't answer you the way you want it to be answered? Again, remember, it's important we're following him. And sometimes he takes us through areas that we don't want to go. He takes us not on the scenic route, but kind of the back end, the business route. He doesn't and we don't like that. We don't like the way that you're going or it's not the preferred route. Would you still follow him? Is your trust predicated upon what good God does for you and how much bad he takes away? Remember, we're told for all of us, we are going to suffer and endure persecution. Some more than others, but all of us at some degree, either a lot or very, very rarely, maybe a couple times in our life. Some people seemingly every day. Paul says this in Romans 8:18, for I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us. Meaning our focus isn't on these things. It's almost like the person who is trying out for a football team or a basketball team and the rigors they have to go through just so they can be on the team and play. Well, you've got to go through these dog days of summer, the workouts and things like that to get to where you want to get to. Just like going to school, you don't want to go to school this many years and spend this much time studying and reading and writing. But once you get to where this school is going to take you to the goal, then it might be rewarding. The same thing with us as a Christian, our focus in here, our eyes, our attention, we should look on the things above instead of the things below. And what's interesting is that when we go through, Paul says something that might be insulting and might seem laughable, but remember this is from the Lord. He says, "Therefore, we do not lose heart, but th but though our outer man is decaying." If your outer man is decaying and it doesn't get better, can you handle that? What if your outer man doesn't stop decaying? Now, he says it it will decay. So, what do you do? He says, "Yet our inner man is being renewed day by day." And then he says this in verse 17, for momentary light affliction is producing our he calls our affliction light and momentary producing for us an an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison. And so he says while we look not at the things which are seen but at the things which are not seen for the things which are seen are temporal but the things which are not seen are eternal. That has to be your focus. What if things never get better? Well, if your focus is on the things that are eternal, then what's then what's temporal, though it never gets better doesn't matter anymore. Right? Remember this. Also, keep in mind in Hebrews 12:3, he says, "For consider him who has endured such hostility by sinners against himself so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. Consider what Christ went through on our behalf. You have not yet resisted to the point of shedding blood in your in your striving against sin." You know why we can make that claim? because you're still alive. All that God has done, all that he's brought you through, all that's happened to you, all the pain, all the misery, all the things you don't like, the things that you want to get better that haven't gotten better yet, you're still here. In spite of all of that, you are still here. Peter says, "After you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself perfect, confirm, strengthen, and establish you." I don't feel like it, though. I don't think he is. I think maybe I'm the one that's going through and the one that I that he seems to forgotten about me because what if God has forgotten about me? That's what it feels like. That's what it seems like. It's just me. I see everyone getting blessed and not me. Well, you know what? First of all, that's not true. But two, what if you're right? You're not. But what if what you're going through you, it never gets better. It never gets better, then you die. What if? Would it be worth it? Would your destination, your final destination be worth what you went through? If you were a believer, it should. And I want to give you something that that should help you, should that should encourage you? Cuz we all want to be a benefit. We all want to be used. We all want to have a purpose and then serve that purpose. Let me show you your purpose. In Romans 8:28, Paul says, "And we know, we should know, hopefully we know, unfortunately, Paul, a lot of us don't know, but we should know what that God causes." And that is the word that's used there. And I like the word here sooner which is the er is the work and then soon is with. So God works with or causes all things. He causes all things. What is all? Everything. You know all the things that you wish to get better but don't get better. you know, the divorce, the marriage, the children, the death, um someone's dying, someone sick, someone at the point of death, our health issues, being lonely, finances, physical issues, emotions, whatever. All those things he works with or causes those things to work together for the good of those who love God. That's you. It works for the good of you. Mary, John, Ernest, Ernestine, Clarice, Carl, Clavus, Cletus, Bubba, Joe, Jim, Bob, all of you. It works for you because you love him to those who are called according to his purpose. He's going to take that and somehow make it work. How? I don't feel it working for my good. Well, in two ways. One, as it strengthens you and you grow. But consider this. It works together for the good of those. Now, this word those is plural. So, it's going to also be inclusive of not just you, but also other people. How can that be? So, when you're struggling and it doesn't get better in your marriage, and your children don't get better, and you never seek to find another um find a spouse, you always seem lonely. Your health issues don't get better. Your finances don't get better. Whatever whatever is happening physical doesn't get better. Whatever addictions or struggles you have, do you know that someone is watching? And so God is working with that all things. He's working with that not just to benefit you, but for someone else. What is your purpose? Your purpose is to smile and be godly, be holy and even appreciative while you go through what you go through, knowing that not only is God watching, but someone else is watching. And so you are a living example of how a Christian ought to be who goes through those things that never seem to get better because someone else is going through the same things also that don't seem to get better. But because they see how you walk, you know what you do? You are encouragement to them so that they can see that they too can get through it. Though it never gets better, I'll get closer. though it never gets better. Uh my walk gets better, my strength gets better, my hope gets better, my joy gets better, and soon enough I will be where I need to be with God. So no wonder James says, "Count it all joy. Everything, all that stuff, all the things that never seem to get better, count it all joy." When you encounter ver various trials, all of these many trials you go through or one long gigantic harsh trial, count it joy. Knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance, you get stronger. You get better at it. How long have you been suffering through what you've been suffering through? As a matter of fact, there are sometimes you're going through it. You forgot you're going through it because I've gotten used to it. You'll get used to it because it's no longer going to be the focus. I can handle those things because it the things that I'm handling or I'm going through, it's not my focus. He says it it produces endurance. and let endurance uh your faith produce endurance and let endurance have its perfect result so that you may be perfect and complete lacking nothing. I'm good. I'm good. Whatever I'm going through, you have the whole weight of the world on your shoulders, but I feel good. I don't feel like it. I feel stronger, as a matter of fact. And so, look what he says out in verse 12. Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial. That's you. For once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised. How many of you ever think back and think and think about how it was? Hey, we had you guys had it easier in your childhood. We have it we had it much harder and it made me the man, the woman that I am today. So these things that you go through builds you up and when you look back these were the things that make you better. I hated prison but what prison did for me I absolutely love. Would I want to go back to prison again? Absolutely not. But would I change or trade what it's done for me? Absolutely not. Because it's grown me. And so what God is saying to us in these scriptures is that it grows you and you are going to receive after being approved by going through all of these things. He says you will receive the crown of life which the the Lord himself has promised to those who love him. So what if it never gets better? Can I tell you what your response ought to be? What it must be? Okay, no problem. I got this, Lord. We got this. No problem. If it never gets better, doesn't matter. Better is expected in the future. If it never gets better, that's fine because it will fade away. It may never get better, but I will receive better. Better how? Better in heaven. Better in my eternal walk, in my eternal state with the Lord. Amen. [music] >> [music]