Another Look Podcast
Another Look Podcast is a podcast where we discuss our splinters and planks of wood in the American church. The purpose of this podcast is to have frank and honest dialogue about the role of the church and the role of the believer in America today. Our goal is to take "another look" at who we are and realign our spirits properly. It will hurt initially but the end result will always be a beautiful masterpiece in the Potter's hands.
Another Look Podcast
A Pathway to Spiritual Maturity and Rest - Episode 1
What if you could strengthen your faith while navigating the uncertainties of our world today? Join me, Brother Kenny D, on Another Look Podcast as we kick off 2025 with renewed hope and spiritual growth. After a restorative break in December 2024, I'm back to tackle the new year, sharing gratitude for overcoming personal health struggles with divine guidance. As we look to the future, let's embrace spiritual vigilance and remain rooted in our beliefs, even as the world around us shifts.
In our heartfelt conversation, we address the pressing need for discernment amidst the noise of false teachings. Explore the biblical warnings of the end times and learn why personal study and prayer are vital in cultivating genuine faith. This episode isn't just about listening; it's about active engagement in your spiritual journey. Let's reflect together on the challenges of 2024, the importance of fighting the good fight, and maintaining our commitment to living a life of righteousness.
Together, we will explore the transformative journey of faith—understanding salvation, spiritual renewal, and the profound promise of God's rest. Discover how aligning your life with God's righteousness and embodying the fruits of the Spirit can lead to a fulfilling Christian life. Whether you're a seasoned believer or new to the faith, there's a space for you here. With open arms, we invite you on this journey of grace, offering support, scriptures, and guidance as you step into your spiritual renewal.
Please feel free to leave us your prayer request, comments, and feedback at our website at https://anotherlookpodcast.buzzsprout.com or https://podpage.com/another-look-podcast/.
You are precious and loved beloved. Keep pressing forward towards Jesus.
Welcome to Another Look Podcast. At Another Look Podcast, we go beyond the norm and literally take another look at our life in Christ. We keep an open heart and mind so we can reach, teach and love all of God's creation. Whether you are a novice or veteran in this walk, this podcast is for you. You ready for something new, something that will challenge your thinking and heart? Are you willing and ready to unlearn in order to learn, willing to tear down so God can rebuild? Good, let's get up and go. People are waiting for us. Let's go fishing.
Speaker 2:Tranquility Base. Here the Eagle has landed. Welcome to another Look podcast. This is the day the Lord has made. We shall rejoice and be glad in it. Welcome to 2025, beloved. This is your brother, brother Kenny D.
Speaker 2:Coming back to you took the month of December off of 2024. Just needed to recuperate and also needed to spend time just celebrating the birth of Christ and just having time with family and friends. And you know some other things. Those who know me personally know that there have been some serious challenges I've had that God is bringing me through medically. So, nonetheless, I'm not going to give a space to the enemy. I'm going to celebrate because God is bringing me through it all and I'm just grateful for just you all being faithful to the podcast as far as listening to it um supporting it, um just being just amazing dedicated listeners and supporters and um those who co-labor with me in the gospel, um whether it be through pulpit ministry or what have you um just grateful for you, thankful for um my amazing family, my wife, my children. Um my brother, um and my, my really close brothers, um brother and my really close brothers, brother Mark Polite. God bless you, my brother, love you with all my heart.
Speaker 2:Brother Troy Bratton. I know we don't talk often, but I know you got me and my dear brother, brother Derek Robertson, who we've been friends since first grade, appreciate you, love you man. You guys, you don't know how you reached out to me and blessed me around the Christmas holidays. That was something I really needed, and I'm saying that because a lot of times when you pour into others, it's an assumption that you don't need being poured into too. It's not always that you have to preach to me, sometimes just picking up the phone and saying, hey, brother, how you doing that's ministry, that's love, and you know I needed that in the month of December, and I just want to thank y'all for being there for me, for loving on me. Also, during the Thanksgiving holiday, having my sister Twanda and my sister Roz and my nephew days you're over was really a blessing to me.
Speaker 2:2024 was really a unique year because there was a lot of things that I had on my heart for years to accomplish, and God allowed me to accomplish those things. So I'm just grateful for the opportunity, grateful for God giving me the provision and the ability to do some things that have been on my heart for years, and I'm so looking forward to 2025, because 2024 if that's a precursor 2025 is going to be amazing, and so I just want to say to all of you you know who are listening listen. Actually, I want to get a couple things off my heart while I'm on this, before I get started into this next episode, and then I'll lead into what the next episode's about. So one thing I want to encourage you guys to do is to be vigilant. You know there's a lot of things happening in the world. There's a lot of things happening around us. You know there's a lot of different political climates that are causing us to sometimes walk in fear or walk in apprehension. But you know number one, don't lose focus that God is still on the throne and Jesus is seated on the right hand of the Father, and right now, the Holy Spirit is still here in the earth with us. So don't lose heart, don't walk in fear. Trust God through the process and even when fear tries to grip you, stand firm. Don't fight in fear and don't fight against fear. Stand against it. Having done all the stand, you stand. Okay.
Speaker 2:Next thing I want to encourage you is this let's not be deceived. There's a lot of things happening that would lead you to believe. And don't get me wrong the Bible does say there will be a great revival, and it is happening. There are people who you wouldn't believe that are coming to the Lord, and I'm not picking out names or anything like that. But also be careful not to be deceived by what you see. There's a lot of AI things out there, a lot of AI videos that purport things but the enemy. This is also a great falling away period that's coming up too, where those who are in the body of Christ, or those who appear to be in the body of Christ, will be greatly caught away or will be deceived and will deceive many into thinking that this is the way you know.
Speaker 2:Just stay focused on the word of God, stay focused on your prayer life, Stay focused on listening to what the spirit of God is saying to you when you pray and when you don't pray. God is always speaking, and this is the key. It's important that you stay focused on that word, because God will never say anything that contradicts his word, and so those who will be deceived are those who really don't know the word. You have to be focused on the word. You have to be committed to staying devoted to your words, staying devoted in your prayer life and staying committed to the things of God, because there are even things that are, even today, being said from the pulpit that aren't even Bible. And again, I'm not into tea, I'm not into gossip, I'm not into pointing fingers, but if you know your word, you know what I'm saying is true.
Speaker 2:And you have to be careful, because there's a great carrying away, there's a great deception sometimes that is coming from the pulpit down to the people, and there are those who are. It just seems like they don't even care about or believe that God. You know, they have the fear of God. They don't fear God because the things that they're saying are just so demonic it's just not even Bible. But it's not to again get into the he's for God, he's not for God. She's for God, she's not, he's for God.
Speaker 2:It's not about that. It's about understanding that the times we're in, we're at the end times, y'all. I mean, I know you've heard it said before for many years, but this is really the end time and the rapture, which is biblically true, is going to happen. The question is will you be there when he comes for us, or will you not be there. And even if you're not there, the Bible says there's still opportunity for you. But the weight of what you have to deal with in the tribulation period and being part of the martyrdom of Christ is not something you probably would look forward to. I won't get into that, but you need to read Revelations. Ignoring Revelations is basically like saying you don't believe the Bible. Revelations is happening. It's unfolding the book of Ezekiel, the book of Isaiah, all these passages of Scripture which talk about the times. It's happening right in front of our face. Y'all. Don't put your head in the sand and act like it's not there. It's there.
Speaker 2:Stop being a lukewarm Christian. Either be all in or all out, and if you're all in, you got to read the word of God. You got to know the word of God. Stop relying on your pastor being the one who teaches you the Word. He should only be confirming what you've been studying in private. What you're getting in public is only supposed to be confirmation of what you do in private. Your private time with the Holy Spirit, studying the Word of God, preparing yourself for your own self-correction and your own self-growth, and you being used by God, is what's supposed to be paramount in your life.
Speaker 2:We got to stop with the Sunday Christianity only. We got to stop it, y'all, because God's not coming back for a part-time, lukewarm Christian. Either you will be a sheep or you'll be a goat. This is not about having insurance to avoid hell. This is about having assurance to be in the kingdom of God, to be used by God, and I'm praying and believing that those who are listening to, I guess, as we say in the Baptist church, the sound of my voice, those who are listening to me, are serious about being more than just the Sunday Christian, more than just being the person that is God is a part of their life. God is our life. Jesus is our life. The Holy Spirit leads and guides our life. Even if we make mistakes, it's okay because we are yielding to the Spirit of God who will lead us back, and we are not willfully walking on unrighteousness.
Speaker 2:And I know I will tell you, 2025 is going to be a different kind of tone for Another Look podcast. In 2023, 2023, I began starting to walk with those who are new in the faith, those in the shadows, um who, and we began giving you milk. In 2024, we began giving you meat. 2025, we're going to start dealing with our, with our carnality. We're going to start dealing with some tough subjects. We're going to start talking about things like you know what I'm talking about today and we're going to start talking about, you know, the blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony. We're going to start talking about walking in righteousness versus unrighteousness.
Speaker 2:We're going to talk about these things because, you know, when we talk about walking as Christians, one of the things that always sticks out to me especially we use this in communion is the Holy Spirit says let a man examine himself. We use that usually in terms of before we take communion, where it says before we take the communion, let a man examine himself and if you find yourself worthy, let him eat of that bread and drink of that cup. But it also says for he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh, damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body. We've got to start examining ourselves. We've got to stop looking, examining other people and examining ourselves and dealing with ourselves aggressively, dealing with our sin aggressively, dealing with our disobedience aggressively, dealing with our unrighteousness aggressively and not tolerating walking in sinful lifestyles and carnality. We got to start looking at this. We can't start taking pieces of the Bible, ripping out the ones that don't agree with our sins or our sinful ways. And it may be that and I imagine I will lose some of y'all because you know, we like to placate or play with our sin. We like to be comfortable in what we do wrong. Even though the Holy Spirit is convicting us and pricking our spirits or pricking our soul, saying this is wrong, we still like to entertain that stuff because sin has pleasure for his season.
Speaker 2:But this year, 2025, you have to make a choice. Y'all Make a choice. If you knew the rapture was happening in two days, would you still continue to walk in what you knew was wrong in two days? Would you still continue to walk in what you knew was wrong? You know, but it's not about again. It's not about behavioral modification. It's about if we say we love God, then we got to start following after him. Following and to follow him means we must decrease so that he must increase in us, and I'm sorry, I didn't mean to dive into that, but it was on my heart.
Speaker 2:One thing I will say this is I'm going to make the presumption that a lot of you are still following after Christ with your whole heart and, yes, you're not perfect. You make mistakes, you have issues, you have issues, you have challenges. You say things you probably shouldn't have said, done things you probably shouldn't have done and thought things you shouldn't have thought, but you still have a heart after God. And guess what? I'm just like you. Just like you and it's okay, because you know what we're going to do. We're going to stand firm on what God says and we're going to trust God and we're going to believe God that, regardless of where we may find ourselves, god is still faithful and just to forgive and cleanse us of any unrighteousness that may be in us.
Speaker 2:I know one thing for me is that in 2024, with all the challenges I've had, sometimes, you know, I get tired, my soul gets tired, my spirit doesn't, but my soul gets tired because you get tired of fighting. You get tired, and I know a lot of people say well, you shouldn't be fighting. No, you have to fight the good fight of faith. It takes it's just keep your faith. You have to fight because there are so many things that challenge your faith. But anybody who, if you, anybody in the military, anyone who's not, even if you're not been in military, anyone who's fought the good fight of faith. Sometimes you just want to take your weapons off, the weapons of your warfare, and you just want to rest, but we know we can't. But still there's a time when we need to have rest. But still there's a time when we need to have rest and I know in the end of 2024, there's been a lot that came specifically towards me Battles from outside, but more so battles from within my own household, within my own family.
Speaker 2:Not a lot, you know, me and my wife were good, but there's been some challenges within me and my relationships with my, with one of my children. I don't think I'm alone in this and I know it's not always one person. I have a lot of growth to do myself but it took a toll on my, on my challenge, on my mental health. It took a challenge on my heart. It made me really take a step back and say, wow, you know I need some rest, because it tore me, took my heart to a place I didn't expect it to go.
Speaker 2:There was a lot of crying out in those seasons, in those months in 2024, where I was like God, it's too much. God, help me, god, recenter me, god, navigate me through this A lot of tears, that we shed A lot of pain Because, as a parent, we all want our kids to have the best. But it's a challenge when you, especially as a father, you want to have the best for your kids and you see them heading down a path that's dangerous, that's not going to be good for them, but you can't do anything about it and with all that you do, it really hurts when you do everything you can do and you get vilified for it by the one that you're helping. It's sometimes a cross you just have to bear as a parent. You know, and for me one of the results of going through all of that was my physical health took a toll because of the weariness of fighting and trying to help someone, only to be ostracized and to be, to kind of, be dogged out. You know, but it happens, it just happens. Part of being a Christian is you have to learn how to grin and bear it without retaliating, without acting evil, and then, even after that, going through and still experiencing a health scare that I'm still not sure what it is, but you know, I'm going through testing now. Things are happening and hopefully we'll have an answer soon.
Speaker 2:But you know and going through that, I reached out to some dear people that I thought and that I still think a lot of. But apparently I made the mistake of reaching out in my moment of vulnerability only to be, basically to be laid out, um, without having knowledge of what I've done, um, being um, um, just put it this way. Just, sometimes we speak without having knowledge and we can crucify a person without understanding the extent of what you're talking about. And I think, sometimes, in trying to be vulnerable and it's not easy for me to be vulnerable, because for me, and maybe I'm not alone, but I've been vulnerable in situations and it's been taken advantage of and so I'm not very, I'm not a person that's easy to open up to people but I did this time and I got burned again. But I did this time and I got burned again and um, so I, you know, my normal act, my normal response is to pull back, shy away, but God was helping me understand that.
Speaker 2:You know, the more you walk in the things of God, the more you can't always share everything, some things you just have to share with God himself. You know, and I'm grateful because I have a beautiful wife, I have an awesome wife, who's also my best friend, who I can share anything and everything with, you know. But I just thought I could reach out to some people who I thought knew me and I guess I was incorrect. But I'm not mad at them, I'm just disappointed, but it's okay. It's okay. The thing I'm learning to do is you still gotta love regardless of that. But anyway, I say all that to say this when I went through all that, it was so stressful, and it's still stressful, but I'm learning how to rest. But in doing so and preparing um for this episode, god was teaching me about his rest and you know I had to learn to, and I'm learning what it means to rest in god.
Speaker 2:What does it mean to rest in God? What does it mean to rest in God? In Philippians 2.12, god tells us we are to work out or continue to mature in the salvation of our souls. Now, philippians 2.12 says this and I'm reading all these scriptures in the Amplified Bible it says so. Then, my dear ones, just as you have always obeyed my instructions with enthusiasm, not only in my presence, but now much more, in my absence, continue to work out your salvation, that is, cultivate it, bring it to full effect, actively pursue spiritual maturity with awe-inspired fear and trembling, using serious caution and critical self-evaluation to avoid anything that might offend God or discredit the name of Christ. In the King James Version it says to work out your soul's salvation with fearing trembling. And so the working out of our soul's salvation is our assignment, which is to be done with reverence and seriousness out of respect for the Lord of our souls and seriousness out of respect for the Lord of our souls.
Speaker 2:In verse 12, we see the key to working out our soul salvation is our obedience. If you remember going back to the beginning of that verse, it says just as you have always obeyed, so the key. You cannot have your soul. You can't work out your soul salvation or spiritually mature without first being obedient, and not only when it and this thing. We have to be obedient not only when it's seen by others, but especially when no one is watching. Private obedience is more important than the salvation. I'm sorry, private obedience is more important. Private obedience is more important in the salvation of. I'm sorry, private obedience is more important. Private obedience is more important in the salvation of our soul than public displays of obedience. I'll repeat that again because I messed up. Private obedience, beloved is more important in the salvation of our soul than public displays of obedience. Why? Because God's always watching and reality is this character is developed in private, not in public. Now, some believers may be confused, or often are confused, when they see this verse in Philippians 2.12, because it gives the impression that salvation is based on performance. And this is far from the truth.
Speaker 2:When you receive the finished work of Jesus Christ by confessing with your mouth what you believed with your heart, based on Romans 10.9 and 10. And what does Romans 10.9 and 10 say? And I'm reading this in Amplified Because if you acknowledge, confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, recognizing his power, authority and majesty as God, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. Why? For with the heart a person believes in Christ as Savior, resulting in his justification, that is, being made righteous, being freed of the guilt of sin and made acceptable to God, and with the mouth he acknowledges, confesses his faith openly, resulting in and confirming his salvation. That's Romans 10, 9 and 10. So, again, by confessing with your mouth what you believe with your heart, according to the scripture, your dead spirit was resurrected to life. This is what we refer to as being born again or saved. However, even though your spirit was reborn, your soul, meaning your mind, your emotions, your intellect, your imaginations, they were not born again. When you became born again. Excuse me, my phone is ringing. I don't know why it's ringing, but I have to let it go to message. Sorry, it's probably my hospital. So when you became born again, you still had those same thoughts and soulless challenges you had before you were born again.
Speaker 2:Romans 12, 1 and 2 gives us the path to our soul salvation Number one first, and let me read Romans 12, 1 and 2 to you. I'm sorry, jumped ahead a little bit. Do I want to do that? Yeah, let me read that. Let's go to Romans 12, 1 and 12. I'm going to my app, so forgive me, y'all. Romans 12, 1 and 2. I'm going to read this in the Amplified, if you don't mind. I usually have that pulled up. I do apologize. That pulled up, I do apologize. Romans 12. And let's go to the Amplified.
Speaker 2:All right, again, we're in Romans 12, 1 and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies, dedicating all of yourselves, set apart, as a living sacrifice, holy and well-pleasing to God, which is your rational, logical, intelligent act of worship, and do not be conformed to this world any longer with its superficial values and customs, but be transformed and progressively changed as you mature spiritually. There it is again, by the renewing of your mind, focusing on godly values and ethical attitudes, so that you may prove for yourselves what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect in his plan and purpose for you. There it is. So let's look at the steps here it gives us Again. When you become born again, you still have those same thoughts and soul challenges you had before you were born again.
Speaker 2:But Romans 12, 1 and 2, which I just read to you, gives us the path to our soul salvation. So what's the first one? First, you present yourself to God as a living sacrifice, as an act of worship. Sacrifice means you die to self and dedicate your life to his way and his standard. Next, you intentionally resist being conformed or formed by the culture of this world, but instead you willingly allow the word of God, by the power of the Holy Spirit, to transform you through the renewing of your mind. So those are those steps to soul salvation.
Speaker 2:But now let's talk about the rest of God, because with all that we're doing, with all that we're working out with the soul, salvation, with trying to where our spirit is saved, but our soul needs to be saved. In all that we're doing, there's periods where we have to have rest and there's a rest of God that God has called for us to have that we're going to discuss in the key scripture we'll be able to find in Hebrews 4, 1 through 11. And I'm going to read this in the amplified version. Therefore, while the promise of entering his rest still remains and is freely offered today, let us fear, in case any one of you may seem to come short of reaching it or thinking he has come too late. For indeed, we have had the good news of salvation preached to us, just as the Israelites also when the good news of the promised land came to them. But the message they heard did not benefit them because it was not united with faith in God by those who heard. For we who believe, that is, we who personally trust and confidently rely on God, enter that rest, so that Verse 4. Although his works were completed from the foundation of the world, waiting for all who would believe Verse 4. For somewhere in scripture he has said this about the seventh day. And God rested on the seventh day from all his works. And again in this, they shall not enter my rest. Therefore, since the promise remains for some to enter his rest and those who formerly had the good news preached to them failed to grasp it and did not enter because of their unbelief evidenced by disobedience, he again sets a definite day, a new today, providing another opportunity to enter that rest by saying, through David, after so long a time, just as has been said before in the words already quoted If you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts. This is verse 8. This mention of a rest was not a reference to their entering into Canaan, for if Joshua had given them rest, god would not speak about another day of opportunity after that. So there remains a full and complete Sabbath rest for the people of God, for the one who has once entered his rest and has also rested from the weariness and pain of his human labors, just as God rested from those labors, uniquely his own. Let us therefore make every effort to enter that rest of God, to know and to experience it for ourselves, so that no one will fall by following the same example of disobedience as those who died in the wilderness.
Speaker 2:This key scripture beloved identifies there being two forms of rest. This is important. The first form of rest we are most familiar with and that's the rest of glory in heaven. This is the promised rest God has prepared for us when we transition from this temporary life on earth into our eternal life in heaven. Earth into our eternal life in heaven. The second form of rest in the scripture is commonly known as the rest of grace, which is what we are called to experience here on earth. For this particular episode and probably for the next one, we will focus on the rest of grace. We will likely discuss the rest of glory in heaven in the third or fourth episode, but for this again episode, we're going to focus on the rest that God in heaven. In the third or fourth episode, but for this again episode, we're going to focus on the rest that god calls for us to have here on earth, which is known as the rest of grace.
Speaker 2:The apostle paul tells us in hebrews 4, 2 and 3 our journey in the rest of grace began the moment the gospel was preached to us. Let's go back to that scripture and again, this is an amplified version it says and this is in verse two for indeed, we have had the good news of salvation preached to us, just as the Israelites also when the good news of the promised land came to them. But the message they heard did not benefit them because it was not united with faith in God by those who heard. For we who believe, that is, we who personally trust and confidently rely on God, enter that rest so that we have his inner peace now, because we are confident in our salvation and assured of his power. Just as he has said, as I swore an oath in my wrath, they shall not enter my rest. As I swore an oath in my wrath, they shall not enter my rest. This he said, although his works were completed from the foundation of the world, waiting for all who would believe. Excuse me, I had to hiccup Waiting for all who would believe. So again, the apostle Paul tells us in Hebrews 4, 2 and 3, our journey and the rest of grace began the moment the gospel was preached to us. However, what distinguishes the follower of Christ from the world is we received the preached word by faith in God's word. Our personal trust and confident reliance on God opened the door to embrace God's grace, which opened the door to embrace his grace and enter into His rest. How? Because this rest of grace is His inner peace, which gives us confidence in our salvation and confidence in His power.
Speaker 2:Take a look at Matthew 11, 27. Through 30. Again, take a look at Matthew 11, 27. I'm sorry, matthew, chapter 11, verses 27 through 30.
Speaker 2:Jesus said this and it's very powerful. He said all things have been handed over to me by my father and no one knows and accurately understands the son except the father. And no one fully knows and accurately understands the Son except the Father. And no one fully knows and accurately understands the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son deliberately wills to reveal him. Come to me all who are weary and heavily burdened by religious rituals that provide no peace, and I will give you rest and refresh your souls with salvation. And I will give you rest, refresh your souls with salvation. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me. Follow me as my disciple, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest there. It is Renewal, blessed quiet for your souls, verse 34. My yoke is easy to bear and my burden is light.
Speaker 2:Jesus tells us in Matthew 11, 27 through 30,. The rest of grace because this is what he's describing can only be found in him because the father handed all things over to him. This truth centers our faith in Jesus the son. This is why we can come to him with our weariness and heavenly burdened soul. He promises if we give him our weariness and heavy burdens, he will give us his rest while we live here on earth. Please understand this. The rest that Jesus is speaking about here is not a get out of jail card. It's not a hell insurance card. The rest that Jesus speaks about here is an exchange. It requires us to be yoked with him.
Speaker 2:Now, by definition, a yoke is a wooden frame placed over two animals, so they pull together a plow or cart, but in symbolically it represents teamwork and cooperation. So if we relate this back to Matthew 11, 29, when he says take my yoke upon you, it means that the rest of grace calls for you and I to be joined together with Christ as his disciples or followers. It's got to be more than just being a believer, because even the demons in hell believe, but to be a follower means I walk away from what I know to be, what he called me to be. It means I walk away from what I want to do to do what he wants me to do. So to be yoked to him means we are putting an actual wooden frame on us like an animal or I'm sorry. So the question is sorry, are we putting an actual wooden frame on us like an animal? Well, the answer is yes and no. No, we're not literally putting a wooden frame and crawling on all fours, because we're not animals beloved, so we're not being yoked with some wooden frame to pull a cart. No, but the answer also is yes, there is a wooden frame, but the yoke which joins us together with Christ is the cross. Take a look at Matthew 16, 24. Matthew 16, 24. And I know there are other, it's also said in other versions, but for sake of time we're going to look at Matthew 16, 24. And I'm reading this in the Amplified again. It says Then Jesus said to his disciples If anyone wishes to follow me, again, follow, not believe If anyone.
Speaker 2:We start with belief, but we have to go from belief to follow. So then Jesus said to his disciples if anyone wishes to follow me as my disciple, he must deny himself, set aside selfish interest and take up his cross, expressing a willingness to endure whatever may come and follow me, believing in me, conforming to my example and living and, if need be, suffering or perhaps dying because of faith in me. See, this is the cost. There is a cost to follow Christ. There is a yoke. If you are to be his, you have to be yoked to him, and it's so descriptive in the scripture that he's telling you this is the cost to follow me. If you have to follow me, you have to first deny yourself, you have to deny your interest and you have to take up the cross that I ordained for you. You have to be willing to endure what I have endured. You have to be willing to follow me, but not only believe in me, but be conformed to my image. Romans 12, 1-10, right. Be not conformed to this world, but be transformed. So it's not about confirmation, it's about transformation. You have to be willing to be conformed to his example and live in his example, even if it means suffering, even if it means dying because of your faith in him. Whew, my Lord. So my lord.
Speaker 2:So let's summarize this first episode, because I'm going to wrap this up and I'm hoping y'all are getting this, and if not, I suggest you go back over this, because there's a lot I put in this episode, but it's going to tie together as we go through these episodes. So let's summarize this first episode. So first, there are two promised rest that are mentioned in Hebrews 4, 1 through 11. I'm sorry, I'm still reeling off this. God has intended for us to experience the rest of grace, which is for here on earth, and then there is a rest of glory in heaven, which is promised in our eternal life in heaven. Next, the rest of grace began the moment we heard the gospel preached and we received it by faith. Third, the rest of grace is defined as his inner peace, which gives us confidence in our salvation and his power. Next, the rest of grace is only found in Jesus, as the Father has given Jesus all things. Next, jesus is willing and able to remove the weariness and heavy burdens from us in exchange for his rest. But to receive his rest, he calls for us to be yoked to him as a disciple, and that yoke we must be willing to receive is the cross he gave or ordained for us.
Speaker 2:In our next episode, beloved, we're going to continue to discuss the rest of grace and go further into explaining what it means to be yoked with Jesus. Amen, I pray. This word was a blessing to you. I know it wasn't an easy one, but it's one that is necessary because rest, the rest of God, is not based on what we define it as. It's based on what he's defined it as, and there is a rest for us in the earth and there's a rest for us in heaven, but that rest is a promised rest, the rest we weren't, but we're not meant to stay here on earth and suffer. There's a rest he gives for us, but we have to understand there are certain things that we have to.
Speaker 2:There are prerequisites, as you guess you could say. You know we can't. You can't expect to have rest in God and be yoked into sin. You have to walk away from it. You have to die to self See. That's the thing is that when it says deny yourself, or when it says set aside a selfless interest, one of the selfless interests we have is we like to be, we like to play patty kick with our sin or our disobedience. You can't be, you can't have a sin in your life as part of your normal lifestyle and at the same time, be yoked with Christ A lot of people.
Speaker 2:That's one of the biggest misconceptions that is going around from the pulpits and in the body of Christ right now. That you can live any kind of way, do any kind of thing and God's cool with that. No, that you can live any kind of way, do any kind of thing and God's cool with that. No, he's not. He's not. We've got to stop lying to ourselves about that. So I pray this word was a blessing to you and yeah, we're going to get into all of that, but we're not doing it so you can modify your behavior. We're doing it so we can aggressively address our disobedience and sin and begin to walk in the righteousness of God, walk in the peace of God, knowing that we're at peace privately, not just publicly, Not having an air of righteousness, not being what's called a white-eyed sepulcher Sepulcher, jesus called it when we look good on the outside but inside we're full of filth and sin. We got to stop this because God's coming soon, the Lord is coming, jesus is coming soon and we can't.
Speaker 2:I don't know about you, but I want my lamp lit. I want my lamp full of oil. I don't want to be caught without my lamp being lit. I want to be ready, but I don't want to be caught without my lamp being lit. I want to be ready, but I don't want to do it out of fear. I want to do it out of faith, out of love, because privately my life is aligned with his. Because if my life privately is aligned with his, then I don't have to worry about what it looks like publicly, because all it will show publicly is the fruit. You know, we are so caught up sometimes in the gifts of the Spirit but we don't demonstrate the fruit of the Spirit, and the gifts of the Spirit are manifested by the fruits. I pray that we line up with the Holy Spirit, who wants the fruit of our lives to be shown, not just the gifts of the Spirit to be shown. So I pray that you got something out of this Next episode.
Speaker 2:Again, we're going to continue in on talking about what it is to be yoked with Christ and continue to discuss the rest of grace and you know kind of detail this out a little more. Amen, god bless you. I love y'all, hope to see y'all and hear from y'all soon. I believe we will have that second episode by the end of this month. So prepare. Amen, love y'all, peace. Hey, thank you for listening to another look podcast.
Speaker 2:For now we're going to offer the call of salvation and I'm going to offer you two scriptures. The first one is Romans 10, 9. Because if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. The other one Ephesians 2, 8, 9. For by grace, you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing. It is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. So now I'm going to ask you to pray this with me, in faith, and I want you to believe that everything you pray is true and God will answer. So pray this after me. Lord, I admit I am a sinner. I need and want your forgiveness. I accept your death as the penalty for my sin. I've recognized that your mercy and grace is a gift you offer to me because of your great love, not based on anything I have done. Cleanse me and make me your child by faith. I receive you into my heart as the Son of God and as Savior and Lord of my life. From now on, help me live for you with you in control, in Jesus' precious name, amen.
Speaker 2:Welcome to the family. Feel free to give us a shout out on our Facebook page or our Instagram page, or you can email us at alptrinity1 at gmailcom or you know. However you choose to reach out to us, but we want to know if you received Christ. We want to make information and materials available to you. If you have for your next steps and if you need help finding a faith-based Bible, teaching Bible, believing church home, we have resources available to you. So we look forward to hearing from you. We are excited for you. Welcome to the family. We love you and God bless you.
Speaker 1:Welcome home Columbia, beautiful, beautiful. Welcome home columbia. Beautiful, beautiful shiva.
