Matt Hagee - Heavens Prescription For An Abundant Life
If you brought your Bibles, I invite you to turn them to the Book of Proverbs 12:25, as this morning we begin a brand-new sermon series entitled "Anti-depressants". This is a topic that we hear a lot about in the world around us, but we don't speak much about in the church. And what you need to be aware of is that there isn't anything going on in the world that the church doesn't have something to say about. And so this morning, we're going to begin by discussing "Heaven's prescription for an abundant life".
If I told you that the secret to an abundant life came through a prescription, how many of you would want to know how could get one? Here's what you need to understand. Paul told Timothy, "All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable". You find that verse in 2 Timothy 3:16. Say it another way, all of this is all God and it's all good. The Lord confirms this himself, not only through the pages and the chapters and the verses that we read in the Bible, but also in the testimonies that we hear in the lives of those around us of what God's word has done for them.
Think about what God said of himself in the book of Isaiah when he told the prophet Isaiah, "My word that departs from my mouth shall not return to me void, but it shall accomplish", say that with me, "It shall accomplish". There's no question there. God says, if I said it, it's going to do it. "It shall accomplish what I please". There isn't one problem you can bring to God he can't solve. And with that in mind, I invite you to turn to Proverbs 12:25, as we read heaven's prescription for an abundant life. If you found Proverbs 12, say, amen. "Anxiety in the heart of man causes depression, but a good word makes it glad".
Heavenly Father, we're standing in your presence this morning. For every life that is looking to be turned around and receive victory, grant it, in Jesus' name. And this we ask in faith, and this we receive. And all of God's children said, praise the Lord.
You may be seated. Church, I'm simple enough to believe that this book is true. And what I read in the pages of this book is that all things are possible. Say that with me. "All things are possible". Now what you need to understand is that in order for them to be possible in your life, there's a qualification. And that qualification is to believe. The whole verse reads, "All things are possible to them that believe". And therefore, if you do not believe, then not everything is possible for you. So inasmuch as I want all things to be possible, I've decided I'm going to believe. Today, it's not a matter of will the Word of God work. Today, the question is, "Will I do what I need to do in order for the Word of God to work in me"?
Will I hear it and do it? Because Jesus said, "Blessed is the he who hears and does these sayings of mine". Will I understand it, believe it, and obey it? Because Jesus said, "If you keep my commandments, you are my disciples". Will I do as David said, "Hide it in my heart"? Because if I hide it in my heart, not only will I not sin against him. But if I also keep it in my mind, he said, "He will keep me in peace, whose mind is stayed on thee". Will I speak it with my mouth? As the Bible says, "If I decree a thing, it shall be so". Will live it in my life? The question is not, "Will God's word work"? The question is, "Will I do what needs to be done in order for it to work in me"?
Now today we've read Proverbs 12:25. "Anxiety in the heart of a man causes depression". It doesn't mean that you have an occasional moment of sadness. What it's saying is, when the weight of the world gets inside of your mind, gets inside of your mouth, gets inside of your day to where it's all you can think about, it's all you can talk about, you can't enjoy anything good because this is constantly weighing you down. The Bible gives you a diagnosis. And the diagnosis is you're depressed. Now don't tell me, "Don't diagnose me". I'm not. I'm just delivering the diagnosis, okay? And it's not a clinical diagnosis. It's a scriptural diagnosis. It says, when you hold this heaviness in your heart, you are depressed.
Now the thing that I love about the Word of God is that God never gives a diagnosis without also giving the cure. It doesn't matter where it came from. It doesn't matter what caused it. It doesn't matter how long it's been going on. God has got the cure. And his cure is the word. So what's the cost of treatment? I mean oftentimes, whenever you hear about a cure, you want to know, "Well, what does it cost"? And then you decide whether or not you can afford it. And sometimes, unfortunately, it's out of your reach. The cost of treatment for this is simple. Your copay is faith. That's all you've got to do. You don't owe God anything other than to have faith in God. But if you look in the natural world around us, I was researching what the price of treatment was in our world today.
And here's what I came across in three separate studies. These are put together by the CDC, by the National Institute for Mental Health, by the Harvard Medical Journal. They weren't all written by the same group, but all three different groups agreed to these statistics. They say that depression, as a medical issue, has increased 43% since 2020. Now I wonder what happened in 2020 that made everybody upset. But here's what the current statistics are: 14.7 million American adults, meaning above the age of 18, have received medical treatment or some measure of treatment for depression. If you look at the population, that's 61% of the adult population in the United States.
Now if you think it's just an adult problem, they also looked at adolescents, and five million young people between 12 and 17 received treatment for depression in some way. That's 20% of the adolescent population. Now you want to know what does it cost in terms of medical services, insurance claims, loss of productivity on the job, and all of the other things that are attributed to the expense of depression, in the United States economy alone, 326 billion dollars. How many of you think we could use that back in the economy right now? The last statistic that they shared in these three studies is that while it cost 326 billion in the United States, it cost over a trillion in the rest of the world. That's the price of treatment for this issue of depression whenever you start look at everything that is stacking up in our lives. And yet God says, "Have faith in me and I'll cure that in you".
Now you say, "Well that's just statistics from the secular sources". Well, let's look at some church sources, because this is a problem in the church just like it's a problem in the street. Understand this: we're not immune to problems. Whatever's going on in the city is going on right in here. The difference is we don't talk about it in here. Because whenever they looked at 107 million Christians, and they identified Christians as those who go to church twice a month, they didn't look at denomination. They didn't look at tradition. They didn't look at anything other than the fact, how many times do you go to church in a month. If you went two or more times, you were listed in this study as a Christian. Out of the 107 million Christians, 7% said that they were in treatment for depression. That's 7.5 million.
Now look at the next statistic. 12% said, "I'm being treated but I don't want to talk about it. Because if I talk about it in church, they're going to view me differently". They were afraid to tell somebody they had a problem, because there's a stigma in church that if you've got that problem, while I might say it's a prayer request, I'm going to use it to talk about you. Shame on us for becoming a place where people are afraid to tell us how we can help. Put 12 and 7 together, that's 19.5 million Christians say it's a problem. 50% of the pastors who were involved in the study said that they refused to talk about depression in their messages because it's an unpopular and a sensitive topic. And yet of those 50% that refused to talk about it, 25% of them said they deal with it.
Here's the point: the struggle is real. The issue is not some mirage out on the horizon. It's having an impact in our lives. It's affecting families. It's affecting businesses. It's tearing apart churches. It's a weight over your children. It's destroying the hopes of your grandchildren. We can't deny the problem and just hope it goes away. We can't ignore the reality of it and hope that someone else will solve it. Because the Bible says, "When the enemy comes in like a flood, that the Lord is going to raise up a standard against it". Church, we are that standard. We are who God is using to push back the gates of hell. So if the enemy wants to declare war in the hearts, in the minds, in the lives of our children, in our families, in our homes, we are not going to give one inch. But we will take a stand in the mighty name of Jesus, because the gates of hell cannot prevail against us!
So when people want to know, what does it cost, they also want to know what's its cause. How did it get here? And in looking at all of the different types and forms and reasons and diagnosis for depression, here's the one thing that I could find as a commonality amongst them all. This would be the one thing that all of them shared. And it boils down to one word. The cause of depression is lack. And I'll explain that. Whenever you're lacking something, you're deficient. And whenever you have a deficiency, everything gets lower.
In Proverbs, this word "Depression" literally means to be stooped over because the weight is more than you can carry. I knew it was time to quit putting my children on my shoulders at theme parks whenever I would do so and have to walk like this. So let's consider this thought about the cause of depression being lack. You can spend hours, if you want to, getting down into the weeds and the details of your story. You can do all that you want to sit down and share it over and over and over with others. And in many cases, all you're going to do is keep hacking at the branches and the symptoms that caused depression. But when you get down to the root of it, anywhere that you are emotionally lacking, that's where you find depression. That's why I love what Jesus said in John 10:10. He said, "I have come that you might have life," and how would you have it? "More abundantly".
That word "Abundantly" doesn't mean that he comes into your life and he just puts a little back where somebody took it out. When he says, "Abundantly," he says, "I'm going to come into your life. And anywhere that you're lacking, I'm going to not only fill it up, but I'm going to overflow it. If you're lacking in joy, I'm going to overflow that area in your life. If you're looking in peace, I'm going to overflow that area in your life. In you're burdened with fear, I'm going to overflow the love. If you're burdened with rejection, I'm going to overflow the acceptance. Whatever you're lacking, not only do I know what it is, but I know how to solve it. And when I fill it up, you're not going to be able to contain it, because I am more than enough, pressed down, shaken together, and running over, exceedingly abundantly". That's the kind of God that we serve!
So how does this work? In order for you to receive this life more abundantly, you have got to get God's word in you. "Anxiety in the heart of a man causes depression, but a good word", what kind of a word? "A good word". What are we doing here this morning? We're giving a good word. But until that good word gets in your heart, it's not going to cure you. It's like having the prescription at home sitting on the counter, but you refuse to take the pill. It won't help you until you take it. Here's what you need to know about the good Word of God. One, you can't do it without Jesus. John 15:5, it says, "Without me you can do nothing". And here's what you see when you look at our relationship with the Lord. There are certain things that God requires. And when we find a requirement, you can rest assured that he is going to make us give an account for what he requires. And one of the requirements that is given to us in scripture is growth, production.
In John 15 where you read, "Without me you can do nothing," this entire chapter is speaking about growing fruit and the fruit that God expects us to produce in our lives for his glory. Let's just look at a few verses in John 15. John 15:16, "You didn't choose me. I chose you". This is Jesus speaking. "And I appointed you that you should go and", do what? "Bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain". This tree behind me talks about the fruit that we are supposed to grow. And the reason I say, "Fruit" is if you go read Galatians 5, it doesn't say, "The fruits of the spirit". It says, "The", what? "Fruit". Why is there one fruit? Because you are only one life. And you and I are expected to produce fruit. We have what's listed as the Fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.
The one thing I want you to walk out of here understanding is that this fruit is not suggested, this fruit is not requested, this fruit is required. God's not asking you if you'd like to try. He's saying, "When I see you face to face, we're going to look at what you grew". That's what Jesus said. "I chose you that you should bear fruit". John 15:8, "By this my father is glorified", how? "That you bear much fruit". Fruit is not only what Jesus chose you for, but fruit is how you glorify God. And fruit is how you identify yourself as one of his disciples. Don't say you're a follower of Jesus if you're not bearing fruit. A productive life is what God expects.
Now here's the thing that comes out of the fruit that you grow and produce: it brings joy, it brings love, and it brings companionship. People are depressed because they don't have any joy in their life. They don't have any love in their life. They don't have any companionship in their life. And Jesus is saying, if you will do what my word says to do, you'll have love, you'll have joy, you'll have companionship. Look at John 15:11. Jesus says, "These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may remain in you, and your joy may be full".
Now I want you to take a close look at that verse and notice these things: one, "These things I have spoken to you". The disciples received the Word of God. The word made flesh, Jesus, was standing in front of them, and he was speaking to them. And so the way that they were able to receive this joy is because they were with and in his word. And then he says, "These things that I have spoken to you, so that my joy may remain in you". And then he says, "And that", who's joy? "Your joy". His joy comes into me when I get in his word, and his joy becomes my joy when I'm with him. Now how does this work? Did you ever have that little irritating kid in class when you asked him for a pencil, "Psst, hey, you got a pencil"? He'd go, ahem. "Remember where you got it".
I mean he was willing to share. He just wanted you to remember where you got your pencil, right? The thing that I love about this verse is that Jesus doesn't loan you his joy and say, "When I send you my joy, you remember where you got it because I'm going to make you give it back". Jesus says, here's what you do. You take the prescription. You get in my word. You abide in my word and my word will abide in you. Because these things I have spoken to you, that my joy might remain in you. So when his joy comes into your life, the thing about your life is you're not big enough to contain all of his joy. So when his joy comes into your life, his joy fills up your life.
And suddenly, you are living in such an abundant power and presence of joy that you not only have enough joy for you to live a joyful life, but you have enough joy for your husband, for your wife, for your kids, for your friends, for your coworkers, for your neighbors, for everybody all around you to be like, "I don't know what that person's doing, but they've got something I want". And you know what it is? It's called "The joy of the Lord that gives you strength". Jesus said to the disciples, "If you keep my commandments". Verse 10 in John 15, "If you keep my commandments". Say that with me. "If you keep my commandments". Remember this: the Word of God will work. The question is, "Will we do what needs to be done for it to work"? Jesus said it right here, "If you keep my commandments, you will abide", where? "In my love, as I have kept his commandments and I abide in his love".
This is the trickle-down effect. Jesus obeyed God. God gave Jesus love. It was more love than Jesus could contain. We obey Jesus. Jesus gives us the love that God gave him. We give the love that Jesus gave us everywhere else. So just in case you're wondering and you want to know, "What is the commandment"? Read verse 12. "And this is my commandment that you love one another as I have loved you". What's heaven's prescription for an abundant life? "Love one another". Now you need to know something. It's easy to say, but it's hard to do.
That's why Jesus said, "Without me you can do nothing". Because I mean if it was up to me, if it was in my strength, and Jesus said, "Love one another," I'd say, "Okay. That's everybody right here. That's where my family sits. Yeah, you know there's a few of y'all out there I like a lot, but... But I can't love everybody in my strength". In my strength, there's only so much that can be poured out before I'm all dried up. But if I'm doing it in his strength, and his joy is my joy, and his power is my power, and his word abides in me, not only can I love those that I want to love, but I have the opportunity to see God help me love those that are hard to love.
Now here's the thing about those who are hard to love. You know who they are right now. You've got their name on a list. Just like you know those who are easy to love, that guy that offended you and didn't even act like he was sorry: that person who rejected you and doesn't act like they care: that individual that conspired against you, and took from you, and stole from you, and slandered you, and mocked you, and lied about you, and did everything that they could to verbally assassinate you, yeah, those people. How many of you know who I'm talking about? Don't raise your hand. Just nod. When Jesus said, "Love one another," he meant them too. More them than anyone else. You say, "How do you know that"? Go look at the verse. "Love one another as Jesus loved you".
The Bible says that while we were yet sinners, Christ demonstrated his own love towards us: that he gave his life. He loved you when you weren't worth loving. He loved you when you betrayed him. He loved you when you walked away from him. He loved you when you ignored him. He loved you when you took but you didn't give back. He loved you when you made the promise but you didn't keep the promise. He loved you when you failed time and time and time again. His perfect love never gave up on you. And what Jesus is saying is if I can love you like that, then you love them just the same. Church, give the Lord a mighty shout of praise and a handclap in this house today.