|
Sermon: Are You Depressed?
By M. John Allen
Before I get into the topic
today I would just like to make one brief comment on world affairs since I am
not sure when I will do the next installment of the Fundamentals series and
serious things are happening on the world scene, so I want to take a moment
in passing to mention some things.
I hope that most of you are
subscribed to BOTH the Real Truth and the Restoration Times mailing lists. IN
order to get a complete picture, you should be on both lists, because each
has its own special niche. Also, don’t just assume that because something is
in one of those sections on this webstie, or because I forward an article to
the list, that I agree with it 100%. I don’t necessarily, but sometimes
I feel that the good content of an item outweighs some of the negative. I
also forward a lot more material to the lists than I display on the web. this
is mostly a time constraint, but it is also true that what is on the web I
perceive to have more lasting value than what I just forward to the list.
Also, feel free to ask questions and discuss things on t he lists. Our
forums, [bulletin boards, chat rooms, etc.] are open and our webstie space is
open to articles of all different types, so contribute in the discussion and
exchange of ideas. this should be a dialogue instead of a one way monologue,
but of course this is how our so called educational system teaches us to act,
to just passively sit rather than participate.
Also, even though I don’t
mention it often, this platform itself is also open to well thought out
messages of sound spiritual meat. So I also encourage the submission of guest
sermons or Bible studies.
If you were subscribed to the
lists this week, you would have seen an time I forwarded about the Federal
Reserve manipulating the stock market. And the day after I forwarded that
article, the stock market took a substantial dive.
For some time I have wondered
what is going on with the US markets. They are not behaving n the way that they
should. The PE ratios are all askew, meaning that the price of shares no
longer has any relation to the EARNINGS of those shares, which is the main
reason people have invested in stocks. We are supposed to invest in stocks
because we like the company that issues them and it has a sound earnings
track record, or we have located a growth company with great potential. Based
on the facts and figures, along with professional analysis coupled with our
own personal investment objectives, we should then rationally select a stock
that we wish to hold on to.
This is what has traditionally
made investing in stocks and bonds a solid proposition and NOT a trip to a
gambling casino. Over ten years ago I was a stockbroker, and so understood
many of these things. I had problems making some people in the church realize
that solid investment strategies was legitimate and NOT gambling as even some
ministers falsely believed.
But, in the current bull market
that has had a very long run now, the reality
of investment has been thrown out the window a long time ago by the gamblers
and speculators who treat stocks as a commodity themselves rather than an
investment in a company. These people have bid up the prices of stocks to
where many of them bear no relation to the underlying value of the company.
It has become a fantasy gambling casino where stocks are just mere chips at
their craps tables. they could care less about the company underneath it
except for a very superficial idea of what is going on. What they are interested
in is making the maximum amount of money on an almost daily basis from even
the smallest movements of the markets. So, what used to be a very methodical,
scientific, professional study and analysis has now become the spin of the
wheel or the throw of the dice in the biggest gambling casino on earth. And,
because most people don’t understand investing at all, they aren’t really
paying attention to the signs of danger all around.
But the dangers are there if you
know how to look for them. Another odd thing has been the behavior of the
price of gold, which stubbornly stays at its historic lows despite factors
that would normally be expected to increase its value. This is all very
strange, and I have perceived it as a danger sign of extreme caution. When the
markets are not behaving as they should, then something is wrong and you can
expect an eventual correction, and the longer things remain askew the more
painful the correction will be.
One of my friends has important
contacts in t he investment world, and he has been able to shed some light on
some of this. Some of it was put into the Real Truth area, and I suggest you
look at it, because that particular article on t he behavior of gold prices
sheds a lot of light on what is going on right now.
But just this week I received a
strange article from the Spotlight, from which I do not quote often
because I dislike the publication’s views on certain matters and also because
they can be a little extreme. But one article I this last week’s online
newsletter was a real eye catcher. That article asserted -- with some
credibility, I might add -- that the Fed is manipulating the stock markets to
keep them from the crash that they should have had and should have, following
the example of other world markets.
Just a couple short months ago,
the market did have a major collapse, and I was wondering whether the world
depression had finally arrived. Miraculously, and illogically, the downward
spiral stopped and reversed itself, sending the markets to new highs. I did
not understand this, as it should not have happened. The collapse should have
continued until the market reached its’ true level, which is probably at
least 50% less than today’s casino prices on many stocks.
What I did not know then was the
fact that in all of 1998 up until October, the Fed had increased the money
supply by a gigantic 12% -- but the real
surprise came when I discovered that in the month of October alone they
increased it an incredible 19%!
Then this week came the article
mentioned above that said the Fed was manipulating the market. Could it be, I
wondered, that the Fed was pumping this increased money INTO THE MARKET,
which meant that the MARKET INFLATED RATHER THAN THE GENERAL ECONOMY? Well,
no w that appears to be EXACTLY what they have done. They have done this
through bailing out a huge hedge fund that they “could not allow to fail,”
along with other shenanigans. And why! They are doing this to keep the
OVERINFLATED BUBBLE OF OUR ECONOMY AFLOAT!
Another interesting aspect is
that the dollar is only doing “well” still in relation to other currencies
that have collapsed. In those countries where the currency has collapsed, and
there are moony of them around the world now, the price of dollars and the
price of gold have skyrocketed. Flight first to dollars has sucked up a lot
of the excess dollars printed by the Fed, keeping domestic prices in check
and not generating the hyperinflation that should be generated by these
actions.
Eventually, though, with the
advent of the Euro and other factors, people will start to dump dollars.
also, at some point, money will begin to flow into gold and other hard
assets, especially as people realize the casinos are about to collapse. And we must also
remember that in spite of all the Fed’s efforts, the dollar HAS fallen
against some currencies already.
But, when the feeding frenzy
comes, followed by t he panic of an out of control run on the stock markets
and the banking system, we will someday have the greatest depression this
world has ever seen. Mark my words: we are living on borrowed time,
economically, and the more fires the IMF and other groups including the Fed
allegedly “clear up,” the worse that eventual day of reckoning will be
because the money to “bail out” these collapsed economies around he world is BORROWED
MONEY which the debtors have NO HOPE OF EVER PAYING BACK. So, all that has
been accomplished is the creation of a BIGGER DAY OF RECKONING THAN WOULD
OTHERWISE HAVE BEEN SOMEWHERE DOW THE ROAD.
Most people do not understand
where this started and for how long this has been going on, but the funny
business all started in the 1980’s under Ronald
Reagan and the bubble has been building ever since. It’s a testimony to the
size of the Fed and the world economy that the ponzi scheme has gone on as
long as it has, but this is now in its final stages, I suspect, and so I
would suggest that all of us watch out for the great implosion of the US
economy that will happen in the coming years. You may laugh now, but it will
happen.
One connection f this to prophecy
is that Adolf Hitler’s rise to power came on the heels of the last Great
Depression, so it is very likely that the Beast will come to power on the
heels of this one. So let us watch and be aware of what is going on.
Depression is one of the biggest
problems in today’s society. One of the reasons is that there is just so
much, it seems, to be depressed about. It seems that modern life is so
fragile, any catastrophe can come along and just wipe us out in a moment’s
notice.
Kids become depressed because Mom
and Dad just doesn’t seem to have time for them, or, as is the case more and
more today, Mom and Dad are at perpetual war with each other, and the
children now have step mothers and fathers to deal with, which adds to the
confusion in their young lives. Some kids even blame themselves
subconsciously for the break up of their famillies.
Grown ups are depressed because
many of them just can’t seem to make ends meet, even after working more an d
more hours, sometimes taking two jobs or more, and the two income household is
now the norm instead of the exception.
There is also failed love,
boredom, fear of crime, problems at the office, problems without he IRS,
impending lawsuits, etc., etc. etc. It seems that there is no end today about
things one can become depressed about.
And I suppose the ultimate
depression can sink in when one realizes
that life has passed them by. One day we wake up and realize
that there are more years behind us than there are in front, and that the
ones in front could be fraught with a downward spiral in our health and
physical well being, and that opportunities once open to us are now closed
off forever. For some career women, they realize
too late that they now can never have the children they always thought they
were going to have next year. Men realize
they are getting old and fat, and they can’t engage in many of their favorite
activities anymore. As they see the sunset approaching in life, many people realize
they have had what they would consider to be an empty existence, and that
there looks like no way to make up for what has been missed or lost.
Others have been given t he bad
news of an incurable illness that only gives them X number of months or years
to live in ever increasing pain and agony. And of course, there are those who
have been crippled or sick their entire lives, with noting to look forward to
but day after day of increasing limitations.
Whatever the circumstance that
has made you depressed, I am sure that you are feeling really
down right now. Many of you have well meaning friends who try to cheer you up
by telling you that there are many people more worse off than you, but
somehow that just seems like a cop out most of the time.
Depression comes when we dwell
on something bad in our lives, and just keep on thinking about it, turning
over in our minds what is wrong over and over again. We examine every aspect
of whatever is wrong, or whatever displeases us. It just seems to go on and
on, somehow.
IN fact, this is the exact
opposite of Godly meditation, where the focus of our thoughts is on GOD or
what He has done for us, instead of OURSELVES, and what seems bad about our
lives. Many ministers have said this, and then jumped to the hasty conclusion
that depression is a selfish preoccupation with self.
There is a lot of truth to that,
but it goes much further than that. Depression can be selfish and morbid
preoccupation with what is wrong with our lives, but there is another aspect
many forget. It is a lack of FAITH! Further, there is the stubborn
unwillingness to allow GOD’S will to be done in our lives, and stubbornly
holding to what WE want.
Another reason for depression is
that it emphasizes the NEGATIVE, rather than t he positive. that is why we
cannot be sad and laugh at the same time. If we are depressed, sometimes
friends try t o cheer us up by telling us a funny joke. If it works, and we
laugh, we forget about our depression for at least a little while we have fun
with t he joke. This should tell us something about the cure for depression.
IN order to overcome depression, all we have to do is replace the negative
with the positive. Naturally, that is a lot easier said than done, and may
seem trite to a lot of people.
Now, though, I think we have
covered enough of the reasons for depression that we can see at least a
glimpse of what causes it and what some possible cures might be. In reality,
it all has to do not so much with our circumstances, but with our ATTITUDE!
Notice what the Apostle Paul had to say:
“Not that I speak in regard to
need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content: I know how to
be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have
learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need.
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” [Philip. 4:11-13
This is really
the key to the whole matter. Paul was one who suffered greatly for the faith.
He was in jail many times, he was shipwrecked, he was stoned and left for dead,
and he was finally killed for the faith. But, Paul had learned not to be
depressed. He had a greater vision and hope for the future through his faith
in Christ. And that’s what it really
gets down to: do we really have faith in Christ
that things will eventually work out to our benefit? Do we have the big
picture of our glorious salvation and the Kingdom in mind? Do we realize
that God can give us the power to fight ANY DEPRESSION if we just have faith
and reliance on Him? Do we realize that all depression can be laid at the feet of not
having enough faith?
Most of our problems come
because we lust after physical things. I am not saying we should not have
physical hopes and dreams. I am not saying that we should not seek to do the
best we can with what we have been given by God. No, far from it, otherwise
Mr. Armstrong would not have written the booklet The Seven Laws of
Success. But with God, it’s all a matter of priority and putting first
things first, which means putting HIM first!
Notice what Paul said about our
priorities, which flies in t he face of today’s ideas in our materialistic
society: “But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought
nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having
food and clothing, with these we shall be content. But those who desire to be
rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful
lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is
a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in
their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.
“But you, O man of God, flee
these things and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience,
gentleness. Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold of eternal life, to which
you were also called and have confessed the good confession in the presence
of many witnesses. I urge you in the sight of God who gives life to all
things, and before Jesus Christ who witnessed the good confession before Pontious
Pilate, that you keep this commandment without spot, blameless until our Lord
Jesus Christ’s appearing, which He will manifest in His own
time....” [I Tim. 6:6- 15a]
If we have our priorities right,
if we have our eyes focused on t he goal, then there is no reason to be
depressed because we have the greatest good news the world can ever hear. We
have the answers to all of this world’s problems, and we are instructed to
tell the world about it. Everything else must take a back seat to this goal
and experience.
Coming into God’s Truth, and
learning about Christ and the good news He has for us in His Gospel is a life
changing experience. The world fights and wrangles over material things
because that is all they know and understand, and the carnal mind, without
the Spirit of God, just cannot see the transcendent purpose in human life.
But we, brethren, have been privileged to see things that even angels have
wanted to see! We have something that should totally CHANGE our lives and
give them a new course of happiness, purpose, and joy! And this alone should
be enough to push out thoughts of depression and self pity because we aren’t
getting something that we selfishly want.
But some have had real
tragedy in their lives which has caused their depression. Well, join the
club! The Apostle Paul had much more than his share, yet he says that he
learned to be content NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENED TO HIM, which was QUITE A LOT
BY OUR PAMPERED STANDARDS!
If we have real
faith, we will understand the truth in this statement: “And we know that all
things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the
called according to His purpose.... What then shall we say to these things?
If God is for us, who can be against us?” [Rom 8:28, 31]
We are not promised a smooth
ride, but we are told that all things happen for our own good in t he end,
and we have to have GOD’S faith to see it!
IN closing, let’s ask ourselves
if we have the faith to follow these words of Christ,
and to do with our lives what He wants and to have His goals and purposes
uppermost in our minds instead of our own:
“No one can serve two masters;
for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal
to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon [riches].
“Therefore I say to you, do not
worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about
your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more
than clothing?
“Look at the birds of the air,
for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, yet your heavenly Father
feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?
“Which of you by worrying can
add one cubit to his stature? So why do you worry about clothing? Consider
the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I
say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of
these.
“Now if God so clothes the grass
of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He
not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not worry
saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we
wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father
knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and
His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.
“Therefore do not worry about
tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the
day is its own trouble.” [Mtt. 6:24-34]
Christ is not telling us that we can’t have food or money or
clothing or a place to live. what He is telling us, though, is that we are
not to act as the world acts and have that as our main pursuit in life. Our
focus should be first and foremost on the Kingdom of God and building God’s character
into our lives, just like HIS first priority is the same thing for us.
Once we have this under control,
and have brought our life’s desires and purposes into alignment with God’s
and are growing the ay He wants, then He will add all of the physical things!
it is the exact reverse order of the way the world perceives it, which is
very common with the things of God.
I have notices that often God
does things not only differently than us humans, but He often does things in
the REVERSE ORDER that would make sense to us. He tells us to get our
spiritual goals oriented right, and then the physical will be added to us,
probably without a whole lot of trouble on our part. But if we do it the
world’s way by striving after money first, then even if we make money, we
will lose the spiritual riches which are of more importance.
What this all means is that we
as a people must straighten out our acts and get our houses in order. We must
align our lives with God’s priorities if we are to really
go anywhere and if we are to be truly happy.
We must be about our Father’s
business first and foremost, just like Christ
was. that means we must preach the Gospel t the world as a witness and have
that as the first priority in our lives, and then, once we are doing that and
the other spiritual things in our lives, then we will be blessed again. I
suggest you read the entire book of Haggi to see exactly what God is saying
to us in detail. It is a short book, but it is to the point on where our
hearts and minds need to be, and what God’s reaction is to our various
attitudes and actions.
In the last twelve years or
more, the report card in Heaven on our various churches has been the biggest
failing grade perhaps in the history of the church. God promises to bless us
and help us along the way if we will just do a few simple things. If you
don’t know what those things are, then reread this message and especially the
Bible verses until it is clear.
When we are depressed, this
state of mind is generated because somewhere there is a problem with US that
is separate from the circumstance that supposedly triggered the depression,
otherwise we would be like Paul was, who was content no matter what state he
was in.
We don’t need a psychologist or
other worldly person to tell us what is wrong with us. The Bible was written
to give us the answers we need. But we must also have the faith to believe
that God says what he means, and that He will help us through our trials.
Just read the 23rd. Psalm to see how far this goes.
Depression should not be a part
of the Christian experience, but we are all human and fall short of
the mark form time to time. So, next time you are depressed, try to figure
out why, and then read your Bible while praying for guidance. Have faith that
God will provide for you as long as you are doing your part. Learn to be
content, and then move forward. Faith in God and His deliverance are the only
real answers to depression, just like they are the only real
answers to anything else in life. Learn to use your greatest resource, and
call on your Elder Brother for help. Remember and read the many places where
He promises the help for your situation, and then reach out and touch Him,
expecting the miracle of His deliverance.
I know that you will get the
help you need to see you through.
|
