Podcasts about Agape

What if much of what you believe is not truth, but conditioning, interpretation, and opinion? In this spiritual talk, explore how questioning your beliefs, releasing attachment, and asking, "Where is your proof?" can lead to greater awareness, inner freedom, conscious living, and personal transformation. Discover the freedom of not needing to be right.  Receive Rev. Lee's Daily Thought and Agape's weekly newsletter for practical wisdom that helps you live with greater awareness, freedom, love, and authenticity. Sign up here: https://www.agapespiritualcenter.com/free-affirmations Become a supporting member here: https://agapetx.infellowship.com/OnlineGiving/GiveNow/NoAccount/

Are you so focused on what happens next that you are missing your life now? In this spiritual talk, explore mindfulness, conscious living, present moment awareness, inner peace, letting go of control, and trusting life as it unfolds. Learn how grounding yourself in the present can reduce fear and create greater freedom, clarity, and spiritual awareness. Receive Rev. Lee's Daily Thought and Agape's weekly newsletter for practical wisdom that helps you live with greater awareness, freedom, love, and authenticity. Sign up here: https://www.agapespiritualcenter.com/free-affirmations Become a supporting member here: https://agapetx.infellowship.com/OnlineGiving/GiveNow/NoAccount/

Life will change. The question is whether you will change with it. In this powerful spiritual talk, explore personal growth, letting go, uncertainty, conscious living, self-trust, and the courage to step beyond your comfort zone. Discover how releasing control opens the door to transformation, freedom, and becoming who you are meant to be in your life. Receive Rev. Lee's Daily Thought and Agape's weekly newsletter for practical wisdom that helps you live with greater awareness, freedom, love, and authenticity. Sign up here: https://www.agapespiritualcenter.com/free-affirmations Become a supporting member here: https://agapetx.infellowship.com/OnlineGiving/GiveNow/NoAccount/

What if relationships are not meant to give you love, but to reveal the love already within you? Explore spiritual awakening, conscious relationships, self-love, inner wholeness, and emotional freedom. Discover how releasing the need for others to complete you can transform the way you experience love, connection, and life. Receive Rev. Lee's Daily Thought and Agape's weekly newsletter for practical wisdom that helps you live with greater awareness, freedom, love, and authenticity. Sign up here: https://www.agapespiritualcenter.com/free-affirmations Become a supporting member here: https://agapetx.infellowship.com/OnlineGiving/GiveNow/NoAccount/

Full episode at https://www.patreon.com/whitecentipedenoiseMaggie Siebert of MOUTHS AGAPE creates bleak, narrative-driven industrial noise about harm from true-crime to personal tragedies, crafted with stark Antiseptic production that reflects the angst of modern culture. Her newest album “God Only Knows What I Can Do Right Now” on Limited Hangout Recordings is a recent personal favorite of mine. Maggie is also the author of "Bonding," a work of transgressive fiction, and she recently opened Very Friendly, a record store and recording studio in Brooklyn, NY.https://mouthsagape.bandcamp.com/This episode is brought to you by:Andromache Records - https://andromacherecords.bigcartel.com/White Centipede Noise - https://whitecentipedenoise.com/Support the show

Why are we surrounded by people yet still starving for authentic connection? This spiritual talk explores loneliness, presence, vulnerability, conscious relationships, and the courage to be truly seen. Discover why real human connection begins when we stop performing, become fully present, and allow others to know who we truly are. Receive Rev. Lee's Daily Thought and Agape's weekly newsletter for practical wisdom that helps you live with greater awareness, freedom, love, and authenticity. Sign up here: https://www.agapespiritualcenter.com/free-affirmations Become a supporting member here: https://agapetx.infellowship.com/OnlineGiving/GiveNow/NoAccount/

Steve Smith :: Creekside Church :: Sunday, September 27. 2026 In John 19:1-16, three stages in the final phase of Jesus' trial before Pilate highlight Jesus' courage by contrasting it with the cowardice of Pilate and the callousness of the priests and people. Pastor Steve's message follows an announcement from Anne Marie Runnels about Agape's upcoming Walk for Life.

Change can feel uncomfortable, chaotic, and uncertain because the ego resists anything that threatens the familiar. In this spiritual talk, discover why personal growth, conscious living, self-awareness, and transformation often feel messy before they feel freeing. Learn to recognize resistance, release old identities, and trust who you are becoming. Receive Rev. Lee's Daily Thought and Agape's weekly newsletter for practical wisdom that helps you live with greater awareness, freedom, love, and authenticity. Sign up here: https://www.agapespiritualcenter.com/free-affirmations Become a supporting member here: https://agapetx.infellowship.com/OnlineGiving/GiveNow/NoAccount/

Our first letter comes from Eric and Alessandra in France: Eric and Alessandra want to help their adult son move toward financial independence without overlooking the very real challenges he faces with ADHD. They ask how to encourage responsibility and self-reliance while still offering him love and support. Our next letter comes from Naramani in South Dakota: After six years of homelessness and instability, Naramani struggles to believe that a different life is truly possible. She asks how to integrate spiritual teachings and create lasting change when circumstances continually pull her back into survival mode. Next, Michael leads a guided meditation.  ✨ What's your Life Question? Submit your questions about relationships, finances, life purpose, or understanding world events through a spiritual lens to podcast@michaelbeckwith.com. Your question could be featured in an upcoming episode! ✍️ Love Take Back Your Mind? Help the podcast grow by leaving a 5-star review or comment. Your support helps more people discover the show.

Stop looking for your purpose as something you must find. This spiritual talk explores conscious living, self-awareness, authenticity, intention, personal growth, and how to create a purpose filled life. Discover why meaning comes less from what you do and more from the presence, love, courage, and consciousness you bring to every moment. Receive Rev. Lee's Daily Thought and Agape's weekly newsletter for practical wisdom that helps you live with greater awareness, freedom, love, and authenticity. Sign up here: https://www.agapespiritualcenter.com/free-affirmations Become a supporting member here: https://agapetx.infellowship.com/OnlineGiving/GiveNow/NoAccount/

I detta predikan djupdyker vi i Romarbrevet kapitel 9 och den skarpa uppdelningen mellan barn av köttet och barn av löftet. Josef Löwdin undervisar om hur frälsningen inte handlar om biologisk härkomst eller egna prestationer, utan att det är Gud själv som suveränt avgör på vilket sätt vi blir Hans löftesbarn. En predikan om att släppa den egna ansträngningen och helt vila i Guds nåd och kallelse.Om du vill ta kontakt:info@pilgrim.mediawww.pilgrim.mediaBesök Församlingen Agape i Göteborg:Möten varje vecka - aktuell info på www.agape.nuVill du upptäcka mer om Jesus:Besök www.befriad.nu Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What if your plan is the very thing keeping you stuck? Discover how releasing expectations, surrendering control, and practicing conscious living can open the door to spiritual growth, inner freedom, self-awareness, and a more authentic life. Learn to trust life, recognize unexpected guidance, and awaken to possibilities beyond what you imagined. #Spirituality  Receive Rev. Lee's Daily Thought and Agape's weekly newsletter for practical wisdom that helps you live with greater awareness, freedom, love, and authenticity. Sign up here: https://www.agapespiritualcenter.com/free-affirmations Become a supporting member here: https://agapetx.infellowship.com/OnlineGiving/GiveNow/NoAccount/

Press play for an inspiring conversation on trusting the spark within, having the courage to follow your own path, and turning your gifts into something that can serve others!  Today, Michael welcomes Laila Ali, undefeated boxing world champion, entrepreneur, wellness advocate, television host, author, home chef, and speaker who has forged her own path across sports, media, wellness, and purpose-driven living. The youngest daughter of Muhammad Ali, she retired from professional boxing with a 24–0 record and went on to build a career centered on health, confidence, service, and empowering others. Her new children's picture book, A Spark of Greatness: The Autobiography of a Fighter, draws from her own journey to encourage young readers to recognize their inner strength, trust their unique gifts, and believe in what is possible for their lives. Conversation Highlights Include: -Why every child carries a God-given spark that needs to be discovered, nurtured, and supported by the adults around them. -The connection between literacy, confidence, and critical thinking—and why young people need more than information to find their place in the world. -How discipline, preparation, courage, and character helped transform a strong-willed young girl into an undefeated world champion. -Why confidence doesn't come from wishful thinking, but from knowing what something requires, preparing for it, and being willing to put in the work. -The importance of giving children unconditional love while allowing them the freedom to discover their own path rather than deciding their future for them. -How knowing "I've got your back" can give children a deeper foundation of confidence, security, and trust as they move into the world. -Why faith became one of Laila's greatest sources of strength—helping her prepare fully, release what she couldn't control, and step into the ring with calm certainty. Next, Michael closes with a guided meditation on activating your potential, awakening to pure awareness, and consciously choosing peace, love, abundance, and wellness.

What if life has already answered you, just not in the way you expected? Discover how attachment to timing, outcomes, and expectations can block spiritual growth, inner peace, and greater awareness. Learn to trust life, release control, recognize unexpected opportunities, and stay open to the deeper wisdom unfolding through every experience. Receive Rev. Lee's Daily Thought and Agape's weekly newsletter for practical wisdom that helps you live with greater awareness, freedom, love, and authenticity. Sign up here: https://www.agapespiritualcenter.com/free-affirmations Become a supporting member here: https://agapetx.infellowship.com/OnlineGiving/GiveNow/NoAccount/

What if life has already answered you, just not in the way you expected? Discover how attachment to timing, outcomes, and expectations can block spiritual growth, inner peace, and greater awareness. Learn to trust life, release control, recognize unexpected opportunities, and stay open to the deeper wisdom unfolding through every experience. Receive Rev. Lee's Daily Thought and Agape's weekly newsletter for practical wisdom that helps you live with greater awareness, freedom, love, and authenticity. Sign up here: https://www.agapespiritualcenter.com/free-affirmations Become a supporting member here: https://agapetx.infellowship.com/OnlineGiving/GiveNow/NoAccount/

What if the most spiritual-sounding voice in your life is the one you should question most? First John 4 reminds us that not everything that feels spiritual is from God, and that the Holy Spirit is our compass back to truth. And here is the harder question: is there someone you have refused to forgive while living in the freedom of a debt you could never repay yourself? Agape love does not hold on to what grace has already covered. ★ Support this podcast ★

Life is always guiding you toward your true self, but ignoring that inner guidance can create discomfort, confusion, and resistance. In this spiritual talk, discover how self-awareness, intuition, personal growth, conscious living, and spiritual awakening help you recognize what life is trying to teach you and move toward a more authentic and aligned life. Receive Rev. Lee's Daily Thought and Agape's weekly newsletter for practical wisdom that helps you live with greater awareness, freedom, love, and authenticity. Sign up here: https://www.agapespiritualcenter.com/free-affirmations Become a supporting member here: https://agapetx.infellowship.com/OnlineGiving/GiveNow/NoAccount/

Discover why suffering is not punishment, but often the result of attachment, resistance, unmet expectations, and our demand that life be different. This spiritual talk explores acceptance, conscious living, inner peace, emotional freedom, mindfulness, and the power of releasing what should be so you can meet life as it is. Receive Rev. Lee's Daily Thought and Agape's weekly newsletter for practical wisdom that helps you live with greater awareness, freedom, love, and authenticity. Sign up here: https://www.agapespiritualcenter.com/free-affirmations Become a supporting member here: https://agapetx.infellowship.com/OnlineGiving/GiveNow/NoAccount/

This excerpt was taken from our LIVE services on Sunday mornings at Belmont Assembly of God - Chicago. Thanks for tuning in! If you're new to Belmont Assembly, check out the links below! www.belmontag.org/connect www.belmontag.org/links Schedule your visit in person or join us online at www.belmontag.org #belmontag #bagcompasskids #findingdirection

Because You Say So I Will Choose Obedience“Why do you call Me Lord and not do what I say?” Luke 6:46 “One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret, the people were crowding around him and listening to the word of God. He saw at the water's edge two boats, left there by the fishermen, who were washing their nets. He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from shore. Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat. When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.” Simon answered, “Master, we've worked hard all night and haven't caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.” When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink. When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus' knees and said, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!” For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, and so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon's partners. Then Jesus said to Simon, “Don't be afraid; from now on you will fish for people.” So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him.” Luke 5:1-11 NIV Because who says so? Doing what Jesus tells us to do doesn't always make sense to us Because You Say So I will pursue love (Agape) as the goal of my life “So I give you now a new commandment: Love each other just as much as I have loved you. For when you demonstrate the same love I have for you by loving one another, everyone will know that you're my true followers.” John 13:34-35 TPT (See also Matthew 22:37-39) Because You Say So I will forgive others as I have been forgiven “If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you. But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins.” Matthew 6:14-15 (See also Colossians 3:13) Because You Say So I will take courage that You have overcome the world “These things I have spoken to you so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.” John 16:33 NASB (See also James 1:2) Because You Say So I will strive for unity with my fellow believers “I am praying not only for these disciples but also for all who will ever believe in me through their message. I pray that they will all be one, just as you and I are one—as you are in me, Father, and I am in you. And may they be in us so that the world will believe you sent me.” John 17:20-21 NLT

What you do matters, but the intention behind it shapes everything. In this spiritual talk, discover how conscious intention, authenticity, love, self-awareness, and mindful living influence your choices and relationships. Learn to recognize whether your actions come from fear, approval, control, or genuine alignment with who you truly are.  Receive Rev. Lee's Daily Thought and Agape's weekly newsletter for practical wisdom that helps you live with greater awareness, freedom, love, and authenticity. Sign up here: https://www.agapespiritualcenter.com/free-affirmations Become a supporting member here: https://agapetx.infellowship.com/OnlineGiving/GiveNow/NoAccount/

Our first letter comes from Mikaela in Florida: As Mikaela raises her consciousness, her two young children are becoming what she calls her "tiny little mirrors," revealing where there's still room to grow. She asks how to parent with boundaries and expectations while moving from control toward greater connection, softness, and grace. Our next letter comes from Cheryl P.: After stepping away from a deeply controlling relationship with her mother, Cheryl has also lost connection with much of her family. Though her boundaries have brought greater peace and freedom, she asks how to grieve the family she's lost while remaining true to her healing and finding peace with such a profound sense of loss. Next, Michael leads a guided meditation. ✨ What's your Life Question? Submit your questions about relationships, finances, life purpose, or understanding world events through a spiritual lens to podcast@michaelbeckwith.com. Your question could be featured in an upcoming episode! ✍️ Love Take Back Your Mind? Help the podcast grow by leaving a 5-star review or comment. Your support helps more people discover the show.

Have you been conditioned to play small and doubt your worth? Discover how social conditioning, limiting beliefs, and the need for approval prevent you from becoming your greater self. This spiritual talk will help you reclaim your inner power, recognize your inherent worth, expand consciousness, and create a freer, more authentic life filled with purpose and possibility. Receive Rev. Lee's Daily Thought and Agape's weekly newsletter for practical wisdom that helps you live with greater awareness, freedom, love, and authenticity. Sign up here: https://www.agapespiritualcenter.com/free-affirmations Become a supporting member here: https://agapetx.infellowship.com/OnlineGiving/GiveNow/NoAccount/

Sometimes you must leave what is familiar to rediscover who you truly are. In this inspiring spiritual talk, Rev. Lee Wolak explores self-discovery, personal transformation, authentic living, courage, inner wisdom, and spiritual awakening. Learn why releasing old roles, relationships, and expectations can create freedom, clarity, purpose, and a deeper connection with your true self. Receive Rev. Lee's Daily Thought and Agape's weekly newsletter for practical wisdom that helps you live with greater awareness, freedom, love, and authenticity. Sign up here: https://www.agapespiritualcenter.com/free-affirmations Become a supporting member here: https://agapetx.infellowship.com/OnlineGiving/GiveNow/NoAccount/

What should you do when you're following God and suddenly everything gets hard? Does opposition mean you missed God? Should you stop? Or could this be an opportunity to develop something the Bible says every Christian needs?

Want to become a stronger Christian and actually grow spiritually? The Bible gives us a clear blueprint for how to do it.

Press play for a powerful conversation on why manifestation begins with healing—and how spiritual practice helps us return to the worthiness, guidance, and inner alignment already within us. Today, Michael welcomes Gabrielle Bernstein. Gabby is a #1 New York Times bestselling author, spiritual teacher, speaker, and host of the Dear Gabby podcast. For nearly two decades, she has helped millions deepen their spiritual connection through books including Self Help, The Universe Has Your Back, and Super Attractor. Recognized by The New York Times as a model for a new generation of spiritual seekers, Gabrielle brings together practical self-help, spirituality, and personal healing to help people live with greater faith, embodiment, and inner freedom. Conversation Highlights Include: -Why spiritual practice is not a one-time achievement, but a moment-to-moment way of living that strengthens faith, presence, and connection. -How technology, constant feedback loops, and the addiction to scrolling can interrupt our frequency and deepen the feeling of disconnection. -Michael's reminder to "touch your soul before you scroll," and why beginning the day with spiritual practice can shift the entire atmosphere of your life. -Why information alone does not heal, and how true transformation requires practice, embodiment, and the energy behind the words. -A conversation on protector parts, inner wounds, and how patterns like control, perfectionism, rage, or addiction may be trying to keep us safe. -Gabrielle's four-step practice from Self Help for checking inside, getting curious, creating compassionate connection, and returning to the energy of Self. -Why manifestation cannot bypass healing, and how worthiness, self-love, and inner alignment make it possible to sustain what we are calling into our lives. Next, Michael closes the episode with a guided meditation on waking up to your glorious nature, becoming present with your intention, and moving through the world as a sovereign being.

Perfection is not truth. It is an idea shaped by someone else's opinions and expectations. In this inspiring spiritual talk, Rev. Lee Wolak explores perfectionism, authenticity, self-acceptance, conscious living, personal freedom, inner wisdom, and spiritual growth. Discover how releasing impossible standards helps you trust yourself, live authentically, and embrace your inherent wholeness with courage and confidence. Receive Rev. Lee's Daily Thought and Agape's weekly newsletter for practical wisdom that helps you live with greater awareness, freedom, love, and authenticity. Sign up here: https://www.agapespiritualcenter.com/free-affirmations Become a supporting member here: https://agapetx.infellowship.com/OnlineGiving/GiveNow/NoAccount/

Discover why putting down the ego creates greater peace, freedom, humility, and authentic connection. In this inspiring spiritual talk, Rev. Lee Wolak explores ego awareness, conscious living, personal growth, inner wisdom, compassion, and the courage to release the need to be right, admired, or in control. Quiet the ego, awaken spiritually, and become a healing presence for others. Receive Rev. Lee's Daily Thought and Agape's weekly newsletter for practical wisdom that helps you live with greater awareness, freedom, love, and authenticity. Sign up here: https://www.agapespiritualcenter.com/free-affirmations Become a supporting member here: https://agapetx.infellowship.com/OnlineGiving/GiveNow/NoAccount/

Steve DeWitt Love for the Unseen Christ - Part B Study Guide for Spiritual Exiles, 1 Peter 1:6-8 Scripture Reference: 1 Peter 1:8-9 Visit the series page: Exiles: A study in 1 Peter Donate to Support The Journey Sermon Transcript for Spiritual Exiles, 1 Peter 1:8-9 Sermon Series: Spiritual ExilesMessage: Love for the Unseen ChristAirdate: 9/14-9/15/25Programs: 2356 & 2357It's great to see and an encouragement to us. We come now to God's word, and we are back in our series in First Peter today. You know, Peter wrote to exiles in Asia Minor this letter we call First Peter, but he really might as well have written it to us. It'd be easy to read this letter and to just change the personal pronouns, change the names, and insert our own names and our own church family because what he's talking about here is totally appropriate to us as well. He writes to Christians who are experiencing trials.They're experiencing loneliness. They are ostracized in their society. They are struggling to do, you know, Christian lifestyle in a very pagan environment, which, of course, is what we're doing as well. Here today, no doubt, we have people who are dealing with crushing trials, things that even as I say the word trial, boom, it comes to your mind, and you you're thinking about that, and you you brought that discouragement into this service with you, and you're hoping for a word from God to help you. And we live in this world that is increasingly difficult, I think, to live Christianly, especially in America as it continues to slide more secular.It makes you wonder what are the days ahead gonna be like? What's coming around the bend? What are our children, Lord willing, if they embrace the Christian faith, what are they gonna experience in living the Christian life in a, America that's going the direction that it is? I doubt it's gonna be easier for them than it is for us. So how do we prepare ourselves for the trials that lie ahead?And what Peter is going to talk about here, I believe to be the high point of his letter and really is one of the most wonderful passages in all of the New Testament. The word that comes to my mind with this verse is it's magisterial. I mean, it is just, it's a it's a wonderful, wonderful word that God has for us. And for me, it is a privilege to exposit it and to teach it today, and I hope the Lord blesses it truly. So let me read First Peter one verses eight and nine, our text today.“Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not see him now, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.” Now I know it's been a couple weeks. We had snowmageddon in the in between here, but I hope you haven't forgotten what Peter has been already saying to us and teaching us, especially in, the preceding verses where he talks about trials. And he compares trials to, the fiery furnace that gold would go to.So the analogy is our faith is like gold, and our trials are like fiery furnace. And he draws the analogy, and he says, you know, when they would purify gold, they heat up gold in a furnace. And when it it's heated, the impurities rise to the surface, and they're able to skim off those impurities. And the net effect is that the gold is unveiled in a more valuable way, a more wonderful way. Its genuineness is revealed, but it is also purified by the heat of the trial.And this is intended, I think, to get us ready for what is to come. In fact, he says that. He says at the end of verse seven, that “our faith may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” Now that revelation for us personally will either happen when Jesus returns and there is the revelation of Jesus in this world, or personally, it's going to happen when we die. Because when we die, something becomes true in our faith that has never been true before.What is it? All of a sudden in that moment, I will see him. Right? I am going to see the Lord. “To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.”And that moment of death for us will be when our faith becomes sight, as the as the hymn writer writes. So this moment will be a wonderful, wonderful moment. But for now, it highlights the fact that we are believing in somebody, trusting in somebody, talking about somebody, singing songs to somebody, gathering in the name of somebody that none of us have ever seen. Is that weird? I mean, if if just your average person was to they didn't know anything and they walked in here and they were like, hey.What are you guys doing here? You're like, oh, this is a church that we're all about Jesus here. Really? You're all about Jesus? Yeah.We worship him. We sing to him. We try to live our lives to his glory. Really? Really?What's he what's he what's he like? What's he look like? I don't know. Never met him. The guy would probably be like, these people are strange.Right? I mean, what is going on here in living the Christian faith following the ascension of Jesus when Jesus went to heaven? Other than the Apostle Paul in Scripture, we don't know of anybody who's actually seen Jesus. Right? We are all living a kind of faith and a belief in somebody that we have never met, which on the surface looks strange and weird, like we're all nut jobs somehow.Is this kinda like a religious version of marrying a woman you've never met? Is it eHarmony for eternity? Or is there something else going on, something more wonderful that is going on here? And, of course, Peter writes this letter. And Peter, of all people, is himself an eyewitness.Right? I mean, other than Jesus' family, Peter probably had more eye time with Jesus than anybody else. He was part of Jesus' disciples. He lived with him for three years. They ate.They talked. They they, ministered together. He went to the top of the Mount of Transfiguration. He was there in the Garden of Gethsemane. He was part of the inner three.Jesus appeared to Peter after the resurrection more than anybody else. So you could say that Peter, of all people, had eye time with Jesus, and now here he is writing about people who have no eye time with Jesus. You might think that Peter be like, oh, you age of minor people. I've seen him. I know.You have no idea what you're missing. And we, of course, are in the same situation here today, singing “Crown him with many crowns, the Lamb upon his throne.” “Your great name.” These songs, very Christ centered, uplifting songs to somebody we've never seen with our eyes. And Peter writes here so wonderfully about the Christian experience post ascension.And he says here, you have never seen Christ, yet three things are true. We love him, we believe in him, and we rejoice in him. And let's just walk through the text here now, those three things. First of all, unseen, yet we love him. “Though you have not seen him, you love him.”Now for us, love and sight naturally go together. You sometimes hear couples, they'll say, oh, it was love at first sight. Well, now on my side of the marital covenant, I will say to you that only a very superficial understanding of love would make that kind of statement true. What kind of love or is is Peter talking about? That kind of love?Is it a is it a is it a marital love? Is it I mean, it it's not. It's not an erotic love. It's not even a friendship love that is used here. In fact, the Greek word in this text is that Greek word that the New Testament writers pulled and infused with all kinds of redemptive truth and meaning.Agape love. Agape is the is the word there. We've talked about this at length here at Bethel. We've defined it as self giving for the good and joy of another. It is a kind of love, the kind of love that God has.It is a it is a love of a different kind, a love of a deeper quality. It was this love, this agape love that God expressed to us when he sent his Son Jesus into this world. “For God so loved, agape the world, that he gave his only Son,” John three sixteen. It is this agape love that Jesus expressed to us as he hung on the cross. “Greater love is no man than this, than a man lay down his life for his friend.”“But God demonstrated his love toward us, and that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” This giving of myself, geez God expresses it to us through Jesus. Jesus expresses it to us through his cross and his death in our place. So what is our response then as as believers? First John four nineteen.“We love him because he first loved us.” Amen. Right? And so our love for for God is not self generated. It doesn't it doesn't come from us.We would naturally not love God Jesus this way. But it is an act of God's sovereign grace whereby through the gospel, we come to hear and to understand what Jesus has done for us. And that work of God by his spirit, this new birth, this regeneration explodes in our heart. We believe in Jesus, and the response to the love of God to us is that we love him. K?We don't take credit for that love. We would never come up with that love on our own. This is a part of God's good work in us. It is producing agape for God, agape for Jesus. But our agape of Jesus is different because we've never seen him.It is an unseen love or it's an unseen Christ that we are loving. I tried to think of some analogy of of this. And for obvious reasons in my life right now, I think about a parent's love for a child in the womb. Never seen that child yet. Love him or her already.Unseen child, love for the unseen child, love for the unseen Christ. The love that saving faith creates in us is a genuine love, but it is an agape kind of love even though we've never laid eyes on him. Unseen, yet we love him. Secondly, unseen, yet we believe in him. “Though you do not see him now, you believe in him.”Notice the tense change. The first clause was you did not see him, yet you love him, present tense. Here, you do not see him now, presently, yet you presently believe in him. Now I wonder, does this remind you of anybody? Somebody in the story in the gospels who, refused to believe something that he couldn't see.Now maybe this is coming to your mind already if you're with me. I think about the disciple Thomas. Do you know the story? I trust that you do. The story is that Jesus is resurrected from the dead.He makes his first appearance to the disciples in the upper room. Everybody's there except Thomas. And Jesus is there. He says, here I am. Give me food to eat.Believe. I'm alive. And the disciples, of course, are in awe at this, and they just are marvel at Jesus leaves. Well, Thomas comes in, and they're like, he's alive. And Thomas famously says this.“Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails and place my finger into the mark of the nails and place my hand into his side, I will never believe.” Thomas is like the patron saint of the cynic or the skeptic. The kind of person who says, unless I have empirical evidence with my eyes, unless I can put this in a in a test tube and and sort of prove it, I will not believe until the empirical evidence that my own eyes have seen tell me that this is true. These are the people that refuse to believe the testimony of other people regarding Jesus' claims to deity, regarding the miracles that he did in his earthly ministry and his supernatural life, his resurrection, and all the rest. It's not enough for them.They refuse to believe unless they see it with their own eyes. Notice what happens to Thomas. Eight days later, his disciples were inside again, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” Then he said to Thomas imagine this moment, by the way.The disciples are like, we've seen him. We've seen him. We've seen him. Thomas said, I don't I refuse to believe. Now all of a sudden, Jesus is there.What's the look on Thomas' face? I want a picture of that someday in heaven. Jesus says to Thomas, “Put your finger here and see my hands, and put out your hand and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe.” And Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God.”Notice Thomas doesn't say, okay. Well, let me come over there a second and see if I can put my finger in that hole. And how about if I put my side my fist in the side? He doesn't have to do any of that. He sees Jesus standing before him, and now it is enough, and he says, “My Lord and my God.”Notice the next verse though. Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you've seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” Who is Jesus talking about in that verse? He's talking about us, isn't he?Has anybody here seen Jesus? I doubt it very much. And yet, there we have Jesus saying, the real blessing is not the person who is in the upper room and actually sees the resurrected Jesus. The real blessing is the person who doesn't see that and yet has put their faith and trust in him. He's talking about us.He's talking about 99.999% of people who have ever believed. He's talking about Old Testament saints. He's talking about Moses. He's talking about Abraham. He's talking about David.These are all people that they they they had revelation a little bit from God in the Old Testament. They believed in the coming Messiah. They believed in the one that God promised who would come. They never saw him, and yet they believed. The Old Testament states he's talking about every Christian after the ascension of Jesus.Here we are, having never seen him, and yet we believe. And here we are now in a central truth about the kind of faith that saves us. Christian faith, saving faith, has a kind of seeing, a kind of perceiving, a kind of discerning that goes beyond the eyes. Faith has its own eyes, if we could say it that way. Faith sees the unseen.The writer of Hebrews gives the classic definition. “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for and the conviction of things not seen.” You know, Christianity, some people wrongly, in my opinion, accuse it of being somehow anti intellectual. It is not anti intellectual. It is a thinking faith.There is enough evidence in the world around us in the testimony of the eyewitnesses, and the story of Scripture that we can think deeply and intellectually about our faith. But here's the thing. There is not enough evidence to simply reason our way to saving faith. There comes a point where I have to see the unseen. I have to believe in something that I can't put in a test tube.I have to trust in the eyewitness account of others who saw these things. And if you're here today and maybe you have not yet believed, I want to encourage you, and my prayer has been before even preaching this message, that God would somehow use it for that person who maybe is high on the kind of the Thomas scale to help you realize that the faith that saves even by the description of Scripture is a kind of seeing that goes beyond the eyes. But it is a kind of seeing all the same. A kind of faith and trusting in the claims of Christianity, in the claims of Jesus being the Son of God, the eyewitness accounts of people who saw him dead and who saw him alive, and the testimony of two thousand years of Christians whose lives have been changed by faith in this Jesus. And maybe God would use this message to draw you into, finally, a faith relationship with Jesus and that you would put your hope and trust in him.That would be a great thing. And join the rest of us who have not seen Christ but who believe in him truly and fully. So unseen, yet we love him. Unseen, yet we believe in him. Thirdly, unseen, yet we rejoice in him.Again, the text. “Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not see him now, you believe in him. And rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory.” And that little phrase right there, in my opinion, is one of the most sublime, one of the most wonderful little clauses in all of Scripture describing the Christian experience.Rejoicing with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory. Here, I think Peter is describing the Christian experience at its highest, at its its most joyous expression. Our faith sees through the gospel. Our faith sees the loveliness, the beauty, the desirability of Jesus. And inside, there is a kind of resting, trusting in who he is and the fact that he did indeed die for my sins.And there is then in this resting and this assurance that I have that Jesus indeed is not just the savior but my savior, there flows then within us a love, a gladness, a a joy. I mean, imagine somebody receiving Jesus as savior, knowing now my sins are forgiven. My guilt is not held against me. I have the righteousness of Jesus by justification. I have eternal life.I'm a child of God. Heaven and the new earth is mine forever. And on the other side of that being like, bummer. Can you imagine that? I mean, that would be so inappropriate.Right? How can you not have all of these things now by faith and truly in your heart believe them to be true and there not be joy from it? Are you with me? Indeed, joy inexpressible. The word here for rejoice in the original means this.Here's the lexicon. To experience a state of great joy and gladness, often involving verbal expression and appropriate body movement. Some of you are getting uncomfortable now. To be extremely joyful, to be overjoyed, to rejoice greatly. And the lexicon adds this.I shout because of my joy. K? So glad that I'm just raw. But then Peter adds, this joy is inexpressible. So Peter takes it to another level then and says that it is beyond words or description.Now we've probably seen a child open a present or have some moment of such joy that they're just they they run-in place. Right? And they they go in circles like this. They're just they're just so excited. Right?They can't hardly contain themselves. There's an overflow of joy because of it. Adults, similarly, although somewhat more subdued, typically, we clap, we shout, we dance. There is a kind of joy that goes beyond verbal expression. That is this joy inexpressible.Now it would be easy for me right now to lay a massive guilt trip on the church and to say, alright, you Christian people. This is what it's supposed to look like all the time. And if you're here right now and you if I gave you the chance that you would run-in circles and dance and shout but not be able to say words, if that's not your experience right now, you're a bad Christian. And what's wrong with you people? And there are probably a few good meaning people here that would even amen something like that.It's about time we get more that way around here. But I suspect if I did that, most of us would leave very depressed. And I would as well because my Christian experience would not match up with joy inexpressible every moment of every day. My Christian experience and having been around this church long enough now, the vast majority of us are struggling to be faithful to the Lord in the ups and the downs of life. And there is a lot of times that I don't feel joy, I feel disappointment.And there are times that I don't feel joy, I feel depressed. There are times when the criticism hits home. There are times when the relationship struggles just cause despair. There are times where, like, following Jesus, it's not running in places like literally grabbing this leg and forcing it, you know, to follow the Lord and saying, I will, but inside, it doesn't feel like it. Can you relate to that?Life is painful. In fact, you could in mass Peter, why would you talk about joy inexpressible in the verse following the verses about fiery furnace trials? Like, how do those go fiery furnace trial, joy inexpressible? Like for me, when I'm in a trial, I'm not happy. And when I'm when I'm happy, I'm probably not in a in a trial at that moment.Right? I can have some joy inexpressible when everything is fantastic. I wanna live on that plane. Life isn't that way, though. And I have wrestled with this passage, and I wanna tell you what I think it's saying.At least at this point in my spiritual walk and my spiritual maturity and my understanding of scripture, maybe in ten years, I'll say, I think something different. But as best I can tell, this is what Peter is doing. Peter is describing here in such emotionally rejoicing language, he is describing the Christian faith as it can be, as it should be, and as it will be. As it can be, as it should be, and as it will be. Let's start with the as it will be because I think all of us are on the same page with this one.Who here wouldn't want to experience joy in Jesus like he's describing here? Well, be encouraged. Our entire eternity will be this. Listen, Christian. Our entire eternity is going to be the experience of perpetual and unending joy inexpressible.What am I talking about? I am talking about the day that is coming for us when we are standing in the presence of the Lord, when we are living on that new earth, when we are in our glorified bodies, when we have received all of the redemptive benefits that God has promised to us, when we are not living in this sin sick world anymore, when we are living in the next one, that experience there is going to be so far beyond this one and so far better than this one, I I wonder how we'll look back on these days. Imagine it. Every moment, joy inexpressible. That's our eternity.To think that our brothers and sisters who've died and have already gone there to think about Pete Erhammer and Merle McCleskey, two members of our church that died recently, both faithful, godly men. If we had, like, a little if we could FaceTime them right now and say, hey, Merle and Pete, how's it going up there? What would they say? I think they would say, it is so much better than I ever imagined. And we'd be like, why do you say that?I believe they would say, we have seen him. We've seen him in all of his glory, in all of his beauty, in all of his majesty. We have seen him. He talked to me. He talked to me.He ministered to me. He's seen me. I see him. You're not gonna believe what it's like. It's fantastic.Why? What's so great about there? There, the faith has become sight. And that sight is not Jesus in his more subdued, stealthy, incarnate human body. It is Jesus in all of the splendor that is his as the Son of God at the right hand of God the Father.And that will be for us since he is our savior, Lord, and friend. That will be for us a source of unending, unexhausting joy inexpressible. And our dear brothers and sisters, they're there right now, and they are experiencing that. And our faith, even right now, has capacity for that. And we have moments of that, but not like it is there.Psalm sixteen eleven, “in thy presence is fullness of joy, and at thy right hand is pleasures evermore.” And so Peter here is giving us a glimpse of what eternity's joy will be like. It'll be perfect joy. It'll be inexpressible joy, and that day is coming for us. But Peter is also here describing Christian faith as it can be and as it should be.And this is what I think he is getting at in context here in the passage is that heaven's joy is part of the present Christian experience. Only here, we have to fight for it. In this world and in this body, I have to fight for heaven's joy to be a part of my experience here. And the reason that it is a fight is because of indwelling sin. It is a fight because there are all of these joy stealers all the time that are wanting me to put my hope, trust, identity, and belief in them, but they are not Jesus.And they ultimately are disappointing. Trials are this. Trials cloud our thinking so easily. You know, in moments when I have spiritual clarity, and maybe you can relate to this, there are there are moments I could tell you some of the high points of my whole Christian experience where maybe it's on the other side of a trial or maybe it's in a particular worship service or there's something going on in my life. All of a sudden, I have clarity.Like I see things truly biblically. I see my life and I see my forgiveness in Jesus and I I don't know. I just have these sometimes these moments of clarity and I have inside of me, I just feel like a yes. There's a there's a genuine joy that I that I I'll have. And I'll bet, Christian, you've had some high points in your walk as well.Somehow, there's just a refreshment in your perspective, and there comes in your soul a kind of gladness in all that you have in Jesus and all that God has done for you and the love of God and just all the promises and the hopes that comes in him. These are wonderful moments in our life. But then we give into a temptation or some opportunity comes and we think there's greater joy in gossip or in porn than in Jesus and a life lived to his glory. There's more joy in having what my neighbor has or wishing he didn't have it. There's more joy in some other kind of sin or some good thing, but a lesser thing.And what happens in that? Where does the joy go? Boo. Out the window. Right?There it goes. Think of David as an example of this. David, King David, the the sweet singer of Israel, the writer of the Psalms, the man who God himself said was “a man after my own heart,” wrote beautiful language about his relationship to God, to the Lord. He says just says, “I love the Lord.” Right?“The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want.” I mean, he he must have had such joy in his heart as he was writing such beautiful language about what God is like. What happened to David? One day David sinned with Bathsheba.And in Psalm 51, he describes the experience of one year of living without repentance. And he says, “my bones groaned within me.” And he writes in Psalm 51, his desire is this, “restore to me the joy of my salvation.” What did David miss in his time away from God? He missed that sense of gladness in God, that everything was right.I'm living for the glory of God. And maybe you're there right now. You remember good old days spiritually. You remember times of gladness in Jesus, but you've been living for something else. Or you've given into some temptation, and your heart longs for the good old days spiritually, so did David.He wanted that joy back, but it had been stolen from him. What is David writing in Psalm 23 or Psalm 51? It's the same thing that Peter's writing in First Peter one eight. What are trials? What is the what is “the valley of the shadow of death”?What do these have what to do with joy? Simply this. Trials magnify like nothing else the joy of knowing Jesus. And the result of that is that we love him more. Is this not true?Think about it in your own life. Think about it from scripture. The writer of Hebrews I'm gonna give you one example. The writer of Hebrews writes to a group of people that had gone through a particular experience. Listen carefully to what how he describes what they went through.This is Hebrews 10. “But recall the former days when after you were enlightened, in other words, after you had come to saving faith, you endured a hard struggle with sufferings, sometimes being publicly be a And You're since you knew that you yourselves had a better possession and an abiding one.” He's talking about Christians who went through horrible experiences, persecutions, plundering of what they have. Imagine a Christian, for example, today living in Syria and seeing ISIS approaching. What would you expect to find in their hearts?Are they they're going, yes. Here they come. On one level, obviously, no. But on another level, all the trials and sufferings that come into our life do something good for us. They refine our thinking about what really matters in life, and they magnify to us the enduring value of knowing Jesus.Because, typically, all these trials involve losing something. They lost their possessions. Imagine, for example, that you're here in church, and we come to find out that even right now, there's a group of people, and they're robbing your house. How many of us are going, love that? We're not happy about that in one respect.But in another respect, if somebody did rob your house or like the family in our church whose house burned down this last year, give the testimony that spiritually, it's been a wonderful experience for them. Why? Because when your house burns down, it helps refine what really matters in life, doesn't it? And this is what trials do. They help us realize that these temporary things that in the matter in the end don't matter, that knowing Christ is the thing that matters.He is the enduring source of joy, and the joy in Jesus is magnified by the loss. Let me illustrate it this way. Let's just imagine that it's last week and you're in Phoenix. And you didn't realize it, but the Super Bowl was going on in Phoenix. And you're like, that's I've always wanted to go to the Super Bowl like you're a lifelong NFL fan.It's been a dream of yours, but they never have the Super Bowl in at Soldier Field, so you never have the opportunity. But you just happen to be in Phoenix, Arizona, and the Super Bowl is going on. You get online, and sure enough, there's a ticket. You buy this ticket. It's extraordinarily expensive, but you're like, I'm going anyway.It's a once in a lifetime chance. And so you go to the Super Bowl and you got your ticket and you you go in there and you're like, okay, where's my seat at? They say it's up there. And the next guy goes, it's up there. And the next guy goes, it's up You're in the last row of the stadium.You're all the way at the top. You're sitting behind a pillar next to a drunk guy. And you're sitting there, I can't believe this is gonna be my Super Bowl experience sitting here. And you're, like, looking around the pillar trying to see the game. When all of a sudden the guy comes up to you and says, he goes, hey.How'd you like to be in the front row? And you're like, really? He goes, here's the thing though. To be in the front row, you gotta give me your back row ticket. Now what would be the natural response to that?No problem. Best day of my entire life. You bet. You can have this ticket right here. You just frame it for all I care.You can have that. I get the front row ticket. And so down you go all the way to the front row, and there you are, best seat in the house, 50 yard line. The game's going on in front of you. And and what do you do in the entire game?You're watching the game, but every once in a while, you're looking back up at the seat that you were supposed to be sitting in. And you're thinking to yourself every time you look at it, what? Yes. Right? Look where I am.Look what I have. Fantastic. How many of us would be in the front row going, oh, the old ticket. Sounds like a country song. Right?The old ticket. Maybe I shouldn't have given that up. We don't think that. Why? Because we realize what we have.And trials are that for us. Suffering is that for us. It is always loss. Trials are it's a loss of my health. It's the loss of my job.It's the loss of my spouse. It's the loss of my financial security. It's it's somehow it involves the losing or the threatening of losing something that I am deeming valuable, but they are always things that are temporary. Even life itself is the loss of something temporary. I don't get to keep any of these things anyway, including my life.But as I go through these trials, they are and I'm losing things or maybe losing things. They are reminding the Christian that there is one thing that is enduring. There is one possession that trumps all of them. It is the front row ticket. And my joy is in this, not in that.Are you with me? And so we have to live our lives. And this is what Peter is saying. You haven't seen him, but you love him. You don't see him now.You believe in him. And the result of my gladness, my hope, my assurance being in Jesus and not in these other things is that I can have a joy that is paired with the pain. I can have a joy in the midst of the sorrow. I can have joy in the midst of the plundering of my possessions. I can have joy in the midst of the cancer treatment.I can have joy in the midst of the marital counseling. I can have joy in the midst of the painful pregnancy. I can have joy in the midst of anything that is temporary because my joy isn't something that is eternal. Right? And this joy, in the words of the old preacher, the world didn't give it, and the world can't take it away.Trials magnify what really matters. When I think about things that I've gone through in my life, I turned 47 two weeks ago. I'm not the oldest in the room, and I am not the youngest anymore. I've been around the block a few times, and I've had a few hard things that I've gone through. When I think about even the worst moments of my life, I look back at them now, and I can appreciate them because God used them in my life to refine my faith, to get my clinging from things and people and affirmation from people and a host of other things.And they have been good for me. Good for me. And I got a long way to go in this. And you catch me on the wrong day, and you're gonna walk away thinking he ain't living out his sermon very well. But neither are you, friend.And that's why heaven will be all of us living the sermon out perfectly. Joy inexpressible, filled with glory, seeing him by sight, being in proximity to him, knowing his love, not by faith, but by the full experience of human sensory knowledge to touch him, to hear him, to see him will be for us as a joy that our hearts can't even imagine now. And that day is coming. So how about you, friend? You're in a trial right now?You got some pain going on? Is your joy in the thought that maybe that trial's gonna go away? Is your joy in the thought that maybe that pain will go away? You got everybody praying that God would take the pain away. Might not the actual solution be pairing the pain with joy in the Lord?“Rejoice in the Lord always. And again, I say rejoice.” And that is how we live the Christian life in the ups and the downs, in the trials and in the blessings, awaiting a day when our faith will be sight and we will see him. That will be a great day. Amen.Would you please join me for a word of prayer?* This transcript was generated using AI transcription technology and reviewed for accuracy but may contain errors. Please refer to the original audio for precise wording.

1 Corinthians 13 is most often read at weddings, held up as the standard for the love we give away to another person. And it is all of that. But it is also something else — a love letter from God to us, intended to encourage the kind of self-compassion that most believers rarely extend to themselves. Every time the word "love" appears in this chapter, it translates from the Greek agape — the highest, most unconditional love that requires no relation, no condition, and no achievement. It is the love God has for His creation, including you. When First Corinthians 13:4 says love is patient, it does not only mean patient with a spouse, a difficult coworker, or a frustrating situation. It means giving yourself grace and permission to be exactly where you are. Patient with your own growth. Patient with your own pace. The same verse adds that love does not envy — which means negatively comparing your own progress to someone else's is not a loving act, including when you direct it toward yourself. And love does not boast and is not proud, which invites a searching question: is the impatience with your own progress rooted in a desire for recognition, or a need to feel superior to others? Can you choose instead to be patient with everything you have endured, changed, and overcome, whether or not your journey has been fast, visible, or impressive by anyone else's measure? The qualities of agape love practiced toward yourself are not self-indulgence. They are what make us increasingly capable of giving that same love to others. Bible Verse "Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud."— 1 Corinthians 13:4, NIV Ponder Today Love is patient — including with yourself. The same grace and patience that agape love extends toward others is meant to be extended toward your own growth, pace, and progress. Harsh self-criticism is not humility. It is the absence of love. Love does not envy — and that includes comparing your progress to others'. Negatively measuring your pace against someone else's is not loving, not motivating, and not from God. Agape love allows you to live the life most suited to who you uniquely are. Impatience with your progress is worth examining honestly. Is it rooted in genuine desire to grow, or in a need for recognition, applause, or superiority over others? The question itself is an act of self-awareness that love invites. Self-compassion is not self-indulgence — it is what makes love for others sustainable. As you learn to extend agape love toward yourself, you grow in your capacity to give it away. The two are directly connected. First Corinthians 13 is a love letter from God to you. Read it as a personal word from the One whose love for you requires no achievement, no condition, and no further progress before it is fully given. You are lovable right now, exactly as you are. A Prayer for You Today God, I catch myself trying to do so many things at once that I start to behave in ways that are less than loving — to myself and, as a result, to others. Please pull me back into Your agape love. Teach me through Your love chapter how to see myself as enough, and how to believe that I am unconditionally lovable. Wash me of the pressure and anxiety I cause myself by feeling like I should be more accomplished or further along than I am. Speak to me that this life of mine is Yours, and that You love me right here and right now. Fill me with self-compassion so that I can practice the kind of love that reflects You to others. Thank You for loving me just as I am. In Jesus' name, Amen. Want More? Sign up for our free newsletter, The Good Word, for weekly biblical wisdom and encouragement delivered right to your inbox. Join our community today: https://www.lifeaudio.com/thegoodword/ Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Life is a daily practice of learning, growing, and moving forward. In this inspiring spiritual talk, Rev. Lee Wolak explores conscious living, personal growth, self-awareness, life lessons, inner wisdom, and positive transformation. Discover how applying what each day teaches you can turn experience into wisdom, inspire meaningful change, and help you create a freer, fuller life. Receive Rev. Lee's Daily Thought and Agape's weekly newsletter for practical wisdom that helps you live with greater awareness, freedom, love, and authenticity. Sign up here: https://www.agapespiritualcenter.com/free-affirmations Become a supporting member here: https://agapetx.infellowship.com/OnlineGiving/GiveNow/NoAccount/

Steve DeWitt Love for the Unseen Christ - Part A Study Guide for Spiritual Exiles, 1 Peter 1:6-8 Scripture Reference: 1 Peter 1:8-9 Visit the series page: Exiles: A study in 1 Peter Donate to Support The Journey Sermon Transcript for Spiritual Exiles, 1 Peter 1:8-9 Sermon Series: Spiritual ExilesMessage: Love for the Unseen ChristAirdate: 9/14-9/15/25Programs: 2356 & 2357It's great to see and an encouragement to us. We come now to God's word, and we are back in our series in First Peter today. You know, Peter wrote to exiles in Asia Minor this letter we call First Peter, but he really might as well have written it to us. It'd be easy to read this letter and to just change the personal pronouns, change the names, and insert our own names and our own church family because what he's talking about here is totally appropriate to us as well. He writes to Christians who are experiencing trials.They're experiencing loneliness. They are ostracized in their society. They are struggling to do, you know, Christian lifestyle in a very pagan environment, which, of course, is what we're doing as well. Here today, no doubt, we have people who are dealing with crushing trials, things that even as I say the word trial, boom, it comes to your mind, and you you're thinking about that, and you you brought that discouragement into this service with you, and you're hoping for a word from God to help you. And we live in this world that is increasingly difficult, I think, to live Christianly, especially in America as it continues to slide more secular.It makes you wonder what are the days ahead gonna be like? What's coming around the bend? What are our children, Lord willing, if they embrace the Christian faith, what are they gonna experience in living the Christian life in a, America that's going the direction that it is? I doubt it's gonna be easier for them than it is for us. So how do we prepare ourselves for the trials that lie ahead?And what Peter is going to talk about here, I believe to be the high point of his letter and really is one of the most wonderful passages in all of the New Testament. The word that comes to my mind with this verse is it's magisterial. I mean, it is just, it's a it's a wonderful, wonderful word that God has for us. And for me, it is a privilege to exposit it and to teach it today, and I hope the Lord blesses it truly. So let me read First Peter one verses eight and nine, our text today.“Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not see him now, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.” Now I know it's been a couple weeks. We had snowmageddon in the in between here, but I hope you haven't forgotten what Peter has been already saying to us and teaching us, especially in, the preceding verses where he talks about trials. And he compares trials to, the fiery furnace that gold would go to.So the analogy is our faith is like gold, and our trials are like fiery furnace. And he draws the analogy, and he says, you know, when they would purify gold, they heat up gold in a furnace. And when it it's heated, the impurities rise to the surface, and they're able to skim off those impurities. And the net effect is that the gold is unveiled in a more valuable way, a more wonderful way. Its genuineness is revealed, but it is also purified by the heat of the trial.And this is intended, I think, to get us ready for what is to come. In fact, he says that. He says at the end of verse seven, that “our faith may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” Now that revelation for us personally will either happen when Jesus returns and there is the revelation of Jesus in this world, or personally, it's going to happen when we die. Because when we die, something becomes true in our faith that has never been true before.What is it? All of a sudden in that moment, I will see him. Right? I am going to see the Lord. “To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.”And that moment of death for us will be when our faith becomes sight, as the as the hymn writer writes. So this moment will be a wonderful, wonderful moment. But for now, it highlights the fact that we are believing in somebody, trusting in somebody, talking about somebody, singing songs to somebody, gathering in the name of somebody that none of us have ever seen. Is that weird? I mean, if if just your average person was to they didn't know anything and they walked in here and they were like, hey.What are you guys doing here? You're like, oh, this is a church that we're all about Jesus here. Really? You're all about Jesus? Yeah.We worship him. We sing to him. We try to live our lives to his glory. Really? Really?What's he what's he what's he like? What's he look like? I don't know. Never met him. The guy would probably be like, these people are strange.Right? I mean, what is going on here in living the Christian faith following the ascension of Jesus when Jesus went to heaven? Other than the Apostle Paul in Scripture, we don't know of anybody who's actually seen Jesus. Right? We are all living a kind of faith and a belief in somebody that we have never met, which on the surface looks strange and weird, like we're all nut jobs somehow.Is this kinda like a religious version of marrying a woman you've never met? Is it eHarmony for eternity? Or is there something else going on, something more wonderful that is going on here? And, of course, Peter writes this letter. And Peter, of all people, is himself an eyewitness.Right? I mean, other than Jesus' family, Peter probably had more eye time with Jesus than anybody else. He was part of Jesus' disciples. He lived with him for three years. They ate.They talked. They they, ministered together. He went to the top of the Mount of Transfiguration. He was there in the Garden of Gethsemane. He was part of the inner three.Jesus appeared to Peter after the resurrection more than anybody else. So you could say that Peter, of all people, had eye time with Jesus, and now here he is writing about people who have no eye time with Jesus. You might think that Peter be like, oh, you age of minor people. I've seen him. I know.You have no idea what you're missing. And we, of course, are in the same situation here today, singing “Crown him with many crowns, the Lamb upon his throne.” “Your great name.” These songs, very Christ centered, uplifting songs to somebody we've never seen with our eyes. And Peter writes here so wonderfully about the Christian experience post ascension.And he says here, you have never seen Christ, yet three things are true. We love him, we believe in him, and we rejoice in him. And let's just walk through the text here now, those three things. First of all, unseen, yet we love him. “Though you have not seen him, you love him.”Now for us, love and sight naturally go together. You sometimes hear couples, they'll say, oh, it was love at first sight. Well, now on my side of the marital covenant, I will say to you that only a very superficial understanding of love would make that kind of statement true. What kind of love or is is Peter talking about? That kind of love?Is it a is it a is it a marital love? Is it I mean, it it's not. It's not an erotic love. It's not even a friendship love that is used here. In fact, the Greek word in this text is that Greek word that the New Testament writers pulled and infused with all kinds of redemptive truth and meaning.Agape love. Agape is the is the word there. We've talked about this at length here at Bethel. We've defined it as self giving for the good and joy of another. It is a kind of love, the kind of love that God has.It is a it is a love of a different kind, a love of a deeper quality. It was this love, this agape love that God expressed to us when he sent his Son Jesus into this world. “For God so loved, agape the world, that he gave his only Son,” John three sixteen. It is this agape love that Jesus expressed to us as he hung on the cross. “Greater love is no man than this, than a man lay down his life for his friend.”“But God demonstrated his love toward us, and that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” This giving of myself, geez God expresses it to us through Jesus. Jesus expresses it to us through his cross and his death in our place. So what is our response then as as believers? First John four nineteen.“We love him because he first loved us.” Amen. Right? And so our love for for God is not self generated. It doesn't it doesn't come from us.We would naturally not love God Jesus this way. But it is an act of God's sovereign grace whereby through the gospel, we come to hear and to understand what Jesus has done for us. And that work of God by his spirit, this new birth, this regeneration explodes in our heart. We believe in Jesus, and the response to the love of God to us is that we love him. K?We don't take credit for that love. We would never come up with that love on our own. This is a part of God's good work in us. It is producing agape for God, agape for Jesus. But our agape of Jesus is different because we've never seen him.It is an unseen love or it's an unseen Christ that we are loving. I tried to think of some analogy of of this. And for obvious reasons in my life right now, I think about a parent's love for a child in the womb. Never seen that child yet. Love him or her already.Unseen child, love for the unseen child, love for the unseen Christ. The love that saving faith creates in us is a genuine love, but it is an agape kind of love even though we've never laid eyes on him. Unseen, yet we love him. Secondly, unseen, yet we believe in him. “Though you do not see him now, you believe in him.”Notice the tense change. The first clause was you did not see him, yet you love him, present tense. Here, you do not see him now, presently, yet you presently believe in him. Now I wonder, does this remind you of anybody? Somebody in the story in the gospels who, refused to believe something that he couldn't see.Now maybe this is coming to your mind already if you're with me. I think about the disciple Thomas. Do you know the story? I trust that you do. The story is that Jesus is resurrected from the dead.He makes his first appearance to the disciples in the upper room. Everybody's there except Thomas. And Jesus is there. He says, here I am. Give me food to eat.Believe. I'm alive. And the disciples, of course, are in awe at this, and they just are marvel at Jesus leaves. Well, Thomas comes in, and they're like, he's alive. And Thomas famously says this.“Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails and place my finger into the mark of the nails and place my hand into his side, I will never believe.” Thomas is like the patron saint of the cynic or the skeptic. The kind of person who says, unless I have empirical evidence with my eyes, unless I can put this in a in a test tube and and sort of prove it, I will not believe until the empirical evidence that my own eyes have seen tell me that this is true. These are the people that refuse to believe the testimony of other people regarding Jesus' claims to deity, regarding the miracles that he did in his earthly ministry and his supernatural life, his resurrection, and all the rest. It's not enough for them.They refuse to believe unless they see it with their own eyes. Notice what happens to Thomas. Eight days later, his disciples were inside again, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” Then he said to Thomas imagine this moment, by the way.The disciples are like, we've seen him. We've seen him. We've seen him. Thomas said, I don't I refuse to believe. Now all of a sudden, Jesus is there.What's the look on Thomas' face? I want a picture of that someday in heaven. Jesus says to Thomas, “Put your finger here and see my hands, and put out your hand and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe.” And Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God.”Notice Thomas doesn't say, okay. Well, let me come over there a second and see if I can put my finger in that hole. And how about if I put my side my fist in the side? He doesn't have to do any of that. He sees Jesus standing before him, and now it is enough, and he says, “My Lord and my God.”Notice the next verse though. Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you've seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” Who is Jesus talking about in that verse? He's talking about us, isn't he?Has anybody here seen Jesus? I doubt it very much. And yet, there we have Jesus saying, the real blessing is not the person who is in the upper room and actually sees the resurrected Jesus. The real blessing is the person who doesn't see that and yet has put their faith and trust in him. He's talking about us.He's talking about 99.999% of people who have ever believed. He's talking about Old Testament saints. He's talking about Moses. He's talking about Abraham. He's talking about David.These are all people that they they they had revelation a little bit from God in the Old Testament. They believed in the coming Messiah. They believed in the one that God promised who would come. They never saw him, and yet they believed. The Old Testament states he's talking about every Christian after the ascension of Jesus.Here we are, having never seen him, and yet we believe. And here we are now in a central truth about the kind of faith that saves us. Christian faith, saving faith, has a kind of seeing, a kind of perceiving, a kind of discerning that goes beyond the eyes. Faith has its own eyes, if we could say it that way. Faith sees the unseen.The writer of Hebrews gives the classic definition. “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for and the conviction of things not seen.” You know, Christianity, some people wrongly, in my opinion, accuse it of being somehow anti intellectual. It is not anti intellectual. It is a thinking faith.There is enough evidence in the world around us in the testimony of the eyewitnesses, and the story of Scripture that we can think deeply and intellectually about our faith. But here's the thing. There is not enough evidence to simply reason our way to saving faith. There comes a point where I have to see the unseen. I have to believe in something that I can't put in a test tube.I have to trust in the eyewitness account of others who saw these things. And if you're here today and maybe you have not yet believed, I want to encourage you, and my prayer has been before even preaching this message, that God would somehow use it for that person who maybe is high on the kind of the Thomas scale to help you realize that the faith that saves even by the description of Scripture is a kind of seeing that goes beyond the eyes. But it is a kind of seeing all the same. A kind of faith and trusting in the claims of Christianity, in the claims of Jesus being the Son of God, the eyewitness accounts of people who saw him dead and who saw him alive, and the testimony of two thousand years of Christians whose lives have been changed by faith in this Jesus. And maybe God would use this message to draw you into, finally, a faith relationship with Jesus and that you would put your hope and trust in him.That would be a great thing. And join the rest of us who have not seen Christ but who believe in him truly and fully. So unseen, yet we love him. Unseen, yet we believe in him. Thirdly, unseen, yet we rejoice in him.Again, the text. “Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not see him now, you believe in him. And rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory.” And that little phrase right there, in my opinion, is one of the most sublime, one of the most wonderful little clauses in all of Scripture describing the Christian experience.Rejoicing with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory. Here, I think Peter is describing the Christian experience at its highest, at its its most joyous expression. Our faith sees through the gospel. Our faith sees the loveliness, the beauty, the desirability of Jesus. And inside, there is a kind of resting, trusting in who he is and the fact that he did indeed die for my sins.And there is then in this resting and this assurance that I have that Jesus indeed is not just the savior but my savior, there flows then within us a love, a gladness, a a joy. I mean, imagine somebody receiving Jesus as savior, knowing now my sins are forgiven. My guilt is not held against me. I have the righteousness of Jesus by justification. I have eternal life.I'm a child of God. Heaven and the new earth is mine forever. And on the other side of that being like, bummer. Can you imagine that? I mean, that would be so inappropriate.Right? How can you not have all of these things now by faith and truly in your heart believe them to be true and there not be joy from it? Are you with me? Indeed, joy inexpressible. The word here for rejoice in the original means this.Here's the lexicon. To experience a state of great joy and gladness, often involving verbal expression and appropriate body movement. Some of you are getting uncomfortable now. To be extremely joyful, to be overjoyed, to rejoice greatly. And the lexicon adds this.I shout because of my joy. K? So glad that I'm just raw. But then Peter adds, this joy is inexpressible. So Peter takes it to another level then and says that it is beyond words or description.Now we've probably seen a child open a present or have some moment of such joy that they're just they they run-in place. Right? And they they go in circles like this. They're just they're just so excited. Right?They can't hardly contain themselves. There's an overflow of joy because of it. Adults, similarly, although somewhat more subdued, typically, we clap, we shout, we dance. There is a kind of joy that goes beyond verbal expression. That is this joy inexpressible.Now it would be easy for me right now to lay a massive guilt trip on the church and to say, alright, you Christian people. This is what it's supposed to look like all the time. And if you're here right now and you if I gave you the chance that you would run-in circles and dance and shout but not be able to say words, if that's not your experience right now, you're a bad Christian. And what's wrong with you people? And there are probably a few good meaning people here that would even amen something like that.It's about time we get more that way around here. But I suspect if I did that, most of us would leave very depressed. And I would as well because my Christian experience would not match up with joy inexpressible every moment of every day. My Christian experience and having been around this church long enough now, the vast majority of us are struggling to be faithful to the Lord in the ups and the downs of life. And there is a lot of times that I don't feel joy, I feel disappointment.And there are times that I don't feel joy, I feel depressed. There are times when the criticism hits home. There are times when the relationship struggles just cause despair. There are times where, like, following Jesus, it's not running in places like literally grabbing this leg and forcing it, you know, to follow the Lord and saying, I will, but inside, it doesn't feel like it. Can you relate to that?Life is painful. In fact, you could in mass Peter, why would you talk about joy inexpressible in the verse following the verses about fiery furnace trials? Like, how do those go fiery furnace trial, joy inexpressible? Like for me, when I'm in a trial, I'm not happy. And when I'm when I'm happy, I'm probably not in a in a trial at that moment.Right? I can have some joy inexpressible when everything is fantastic. I wanna live on that plane. Life isn't that way, though. And I have wrestled with this passage, and I wanna tell you what I think it's saying.At least at this point in my spiritual walk and my spiritual maturity and my understanding of scripture, maybe in ten years, I'll say, I think something different. But as best I can tell, this is what Peter is doing. Peter is describing here in such emotionally rejoicing language, he is describing the Christian faith as it can be, as it should be, and as it will be. As it can be, as it should be, and as it will be. Let's start with the as it will be because I think all of us are on the same page with this one.Who here wouldn't want to experience joy in Jesus like he's describing here? Well, be encouraged. Our entire eternity will be this. Listen, Christian. Our entire eternity is going to be the experience of perpetual and unending joy inexpressible.What am I talking about? I am talking about the day that is coming for us when we are standing in the presence of the Lord, when we are living on that new earth, when we are in our glorified bodies, when we have received all of the redemptive benefits that God has promised to us, when we are not living in this sin sick world anymore, when we are living in the next one, that experience there is going to be so far beyond this one and so far better than this one, I I wonder how we'll look back on these days. Imagine it. Every moment, joy inexpressible. That's our eternity.To think that our brothers and sisters who've died and have already gone there to think about Pete Erhammer and Merle McCleskey, two members of our church that died recently, both faithful, godly men. If we had, like, a little if we could FaceTime them right now and say, hey, Merle and Pete, how's it going up there? What would they say? I think they would say, it is so much better than I ever imagined. And we'd be like, why do you say that?I believe they would say, we have seen him. We've seen him in all of his glory, in all of his beauty, in all of his majesty. We have seen him. He talked to me. He talked to me.He ministered to me. He's seen me. I see him. You're not gonna believe what it's like. It's fantastic.Why? What's so great about there? There, the faith has become sight. And that sight is not Jesus in his more subdued, stealthy, incarnate human body. It is Jesus in all of the splendor that is his as the Son of God at the right hand of God the Father.And that will be for us since he is our savior, Lord, and friend. That will be for us a source of unending, unexhausting joy inexpressible. And our dear brothers and sisters, they're there right now, and they are experiencing that. And our faith, even right now, has capacity for that. And we have moments of that, but not like it is there.Psalm sixteen eleven, “in thy presence is fullness of joy, and at thy right hand is pleasures evermore.” And so Peter here is giving us a glimpse of what eternity's joy will be like. It'll be perfect joy. It'll be inexpressible joy, and that day is coming for us. But Peter is also here describing Christian faith as it can be and as it should be.And this is what I think he is getting at in context here in the passage is that heaven's joy is part of the present Christian experience. Only here, we have to fight for it. In this world and in this body, I have to fight for heaven's joy to be a part of my experience here. And the reason that it is a fight is because of indwelling sin. It is a fight because there are all of these joy stealers all the time that are wanting me to put my hope, trust, identity, and belief in them, but they are not Jesus.And they ultimately are disappointing. Trials are this. Trials cloud our thinking so easily. You know, in moments when I have spiritual clarity, and maybe you can relate to this, there are there are moments I could tell you some of the high points of my whole Christian experience where maybe it's on the other side of a trial or maybe it's in a particular worship service or there's something going on in my life. All of a sudden, I have clarity.Like I see things truly biblically. I see my life and I see my forgiveness in Jesus and I I don't know. I just have these sometimes these moments of clarity and I have inside of me, I just feel like a yes. There's a there's a genuine joy that I that I I'll have. And I'll bet, Christian, you've had some high points in your walk as well.Somehow, there's just a refreshment in your perspective, and there comes in your soul a kind of gladness in all that you have in Jesus and all that God has done for you and the love of God and just all the promises and the hopes that comes in him. These are wonderful moments in our life. But then we give into a temptation or some opportunity comes and we think there's greater joy in gossip or in porn than in Jesus and a life lived to his glory. There's more joy in having what my neighbor has or wishing he didn't have it. There's more joy in some other kind of sin or some good thing, but a lesser thing.And what happens in that? Where does the joy go? Boo. Out the window. Right?There it goes. Think of David as an example of this. David, King David, the the sweet singer of Israel, the writer of the Psalms, the man who God himself said was “a man after my own heart,” wrote beautiful language about his relationship to God, to the Lord. He says just says, “I love the Lord.” Right?“The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want.” I mean, he he must have had such joy in his heart as he was writing such beautiful language about what God is like. What happened to David? One day David sinned with Bathsheba.And in Psalm 51, he describes the experience of one year of living without repentance. And he says, “my bones groaned within me.” And he writes in Psalm 51, his desire is this, “restore to me the joy of my salvation.” What did David miss in his time away from God? He missed that sense of gladness in God, that everything was right.I'm living for the glory of God. And maybe you're there right now. You remember good old days spiritually. You remember times of gladness in Jesus, but you've been living for something else. Or you've given into some temptation, and your heart longs for the good old days spiritually, so did David.He wanted that joy back, but it had been stolen from him. What is David writing in Psalm 23 or Psalm 51? It's the same thing that Peter's writing in First Peter one eight. What are trials? What is the what is “the valley of the shadow of death”?What do these have what to do with joy? Simply this. Trials magnify like nothing else the joy of knowing Jesus. And the result of that is that we love him more. Is this not true?Think about it in your own life. Think about it from scripture. The writer of Hebrews I'm gonna give you one example. The writer of Hebrews writes to a group of people that had gone through a particular experience. Listen carefully to what how he describes what they went through.This is Hebrews 10. “But recall the former days when after you were enlightened, in other words, after you had come to saving faith, you endured a hard struggle with sufferings, sometimes being publicly be a And You're since you knew that you yourselves had a better possession and an abiding one.” He's talking about Christians who went through horrible experiences, persecutions, plundering of what they have. Imagine a Christian, for example, today living in Syria and seeing ISIS approaching. What would you expect to find in their hearts?Are they they're going, yes. Here they come. On one level, obviously, no. But on another level, all the trials and sufferings that come into our life do something good for us. They refine our thinking about what really matters in life, and they magnify to us the enduring value of knowing Jesus.Because, typically, all these trials involve losing something. They lost their possessions. Imagine, for example, that you're here in church, and we come to find out that even right now, there's a group of people, and they're robbing your house. How many of us are going, love that? We're not happy about that in one respect.But in another respect, if somebody did rob your house or like the family in our church whose house burned down this last year, give the testimony that spiritually, it's been a wonderful experience for them. Why? Because when your house burns down, it helps refine what really matters in life, doesn't it? And this is what trials do. They help us realize that these temporary things that in the matter in the end don't matter, that knowing Christ is the thing that matters.He is the enduring source of joy, and the joy in Jesus is magnified by the loss. Let me illustrate it this way. Let's just imagine that it's last week and you're in Phoenix. And you didn't realize it, but the Super Bowl was going on in Phoenix. And you're like, that's I've always wanted to go to the Super Bowl like you're a lifelong NFL fan.It's been a dream of yours, but they never have the Super Bowl in at Soldier Field, so you never have the opportunity. But you just happen to be in Phoenix, Arizona, and the Super Bowl is going on. You get online, and sure enough, there's a ticket. You buy this ticket. It's extraordinarily expensive, but you're like, I'm going anyway.It's a once in a lifetime chance. And so you go to the Super Bowl and you got your ticket and you you go in there and you're like, okay, where's my seat at? They say it's up there. And the next guy goes, it's up there. And the next guy goes, it's up You're in the last row of the stadium.You're all the way at the top. You're sitting behind a pillar next to a drunk guy. And you're sitting there, I can't believe this is gonna be my Super Bowl experience sitting here. And you're, like, looking around the pillar trying to see the game. When all of a sudden the guy comes up to you and says, he goes, hey.How'd you like to be in the front row? And you're like, really? He goes, here's the thing though. To be in the front row, you gotta give me your back row ticket. Now what would be the natural response to that?No problem. Best day of my entire life. You bet. You can have this ticket right here. You just frame it for all I care.You can have that. I get the front row ticket. And so down you go all the way to the front row, and there you are, best seat in the house, 50 yard line. The game's going on in front of you. And and what do you do in the entire game?You're watching the game, but every once in a while, you're looking back up at the seat that you were supposed to be sitting in. And you're thinking to yourself every time you look at it, what? Yes. Right? Look where I am.Look what I have. Fantastic. How many of us would be in the front row going, oh, the old ticket. Sounds like a country song. Right?The old ticket. Maybe I shouldn't have given that up. We don't think that. Why? Because we realize what we have.And trials are that for us. Suffering is that for us. It is always loss. Trials are it's a loss of my health. It's the loss of my job.It's the loss of my spouse. It's the loss of my financial security. It's it's somehow it involves the losing or the threatening of losing something that I am deeming valuable, but they are always things that are temporary. Even life itself is the loss of something temporary. I don't get to keep any of these things anyway, including my life.But as I go through these trials, they are and I'm losing things or maybe losing things. They are reminding the Christian that there is one thing that is enduring. There is one possession that trumps all of them. It is the front row ticket. And my joy is in this, not in that.Are you with me? And so we have to live our lives. And this is what Peter is saying. You haven't seen him, but you love him. You don't see him now.You believe in him. And the result of my gladness, my hope, my assurance being in Jesus and not in these other things is that I can have a joy that is paired with the pain. I can have a joy in the midst of the sorrow. I can have joy in the midst of the plundering of my possessions. I can have joy in the midst of the cancer treatment.I can have joy in the midst of the marital counseling. I can have joy in the midst of the painful pregnancy. I can have joy in the midst of anything that is temporary because my joy isn't something that is eternal. Right? And this joy, in the words of the old preacher, the world didn't give it, and the world can't take it away.Trials magnify what really matters. When I think about things that I've gone through in my life, I turned 47 two weeks ago. I'm not the oldest in the room, and I am not the youngest anymore. I've been around the block a few times, and I've had a few hard things that I've gone through. When I think about even the worst moments of my life, I look back at them now, and I can appreciate them because God used them in my life to refine my faith, to get my clinging from things and people and affirmation from people and a host of other things.And they have been good for me. Good for me. And I got a long way to go in this. And you catch me on the wrong day, and you're gonna walk away thinking he ain't living out his sermon very well. But neither are you, friend.And that's why heaven will be all of us living the sermon out perfectly. Joy inexpressible, filled with glory, seeing him by sight, being in proximity to him, knowing his love, not by faith, but by the full experience of human sensory knowledge to touch him, to hear him, to see him will be for us as a joy that our hearts can't even imagine now. And that day is coming. So how about you, friend? You're in a trial right now?You got some pain going on? Is your joy in the thought that maybe that trial's gonna go away? Is your joy in the thought that maybe that pain will go away? You got everybody praying that God would take the pain away. Might not the actual solution be pairing the pain with joy in the Lord?“Rejoice in the Lord always. And again, I say rejoice.” And that is how we live the Christian life in the ups and the downs, in the trials and in the blessings, awaiting a day when our faith will be sight and we will see him. That will be a great day. Amen.Would you please join me for a word of prayer?* This transcript was generated using AI transcription technology and reviewed for accuracy but may contain errors. Please refer to the original audio for precise wording.

Send us Fan MailHello everyone.  This blog post is an actual audiobook, originally written in 2013.  It is presented here in its entirety, and it will take about an hour to read or listen to.  It was initially intended only for family and friends, which is why so much of the beginning is about our family's early years.  But I left all of the autobiographical info in the audiobook because it might help others see that if God can take someone with a humble background and use them to evangelize, He can do anything. Its message is applicable to everyone.  Listen and share it widely with your family and friends.  May God bless you.Free Bus Tickets to Heaven: An Open Invitation of Salvation to My Family and Friends by  Evangelist Alfreda Lockett Evans.Copyright 2013 by Alfreda Lockett EvansRead this first.  By reading this book or listening to an audio version, you agree to the following: all rights reserved.  Alfreda Lockett Evans gives permission for this version of this book to be distributed for the purpose of the salvation of anyone.  It must never be clothed, changed, or incorporated into any other material without permission of the author.  Use it only for the glory and honor of God.  It is my desire that as I open my life and heart to others, many will be saved and sanctified and filled with the Holy Ghost.All scriptures are from the King James Version of the Bible.About the Author:   Alfreda Lockett Evans has co-authored articles in nursing journals and has written and presented published poems and short stories.  She is a prophetess, a minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, a Sunday School teacher for Young Adults, and a Christian Writer.  Her children's book, The Little Boy in Blue - Free Learns About Life After Death was published in 2009.  Her book, Strolling Through a Rose Garden Called Life -Living Holy From Birth to Death, was published in 2011.  The Night Death Came Creeping in My Room was published in 2012.Mrs. Evans is a retired registered nurse who worked initially as an ICU and CCU nurse in hospitals in Texas and Landstuhl, Germany; as a faculty member of  Texas Woman's University for 5 years; as a school nurse practitioner for 12 years; and for 20 years as an advanced practice nurse for spinal cord injury patients.  She lives in the suburbs of Dallas, Texas, with her husband, Ebed M. Evans, Sr.About the Audiobook:  Evangelist Alfreda Lockett Evans shares an intimate, autobiographical message aimed at her family and friends: an open invitation to accept Christ and the Holy Ghost. Using the recurring image of a bus headed to heaven, she recounts growing up in Galveston, her family's hard dynamics, and the stabilizing influence of her grandmother and church. Alfreda describes the moment she surrendered to Jesus, the miracles and healings God performed for her siblings and loved ones, and how her search for answers became a lifelong ministry. The episode ends with a clear, compassionate call to salvation and practical next steps for those who want to come aboard.Dedication: This book is dedicated to all my family members who are currently alive as well as those who have gone on before, and to all my friends who have been a part of my life's journey.  Please know that you are loved.Acknowledgments:  Thanks to Sister Lily Francis for her editorial skills and to my Wonderful Husband, Elder Ebed M. Evans, Sr.Table of Contents:Chapter 1. The BeginningChapter 2. The Uninvited GuestsChapter 3.  Our Family Tragedy Turned BlessingChapter 4.  The Visitor Who Changed My LifeChapter 5.  God Begins to Save My FamilyChapter 6.  The Couple on a MissionChapter 7.  Your Turn:  God's Plan of SalvationChapter 8.  Living a Life of HolinessChapter 9.  All Aboard!Introduction:  August 6, 2013.  This is the second day in a row that God has awakened me after about four hours of sleep, with a letter to my family forming in my mind.  It finally hit me this morning that I should write to you.  I warn you, this is going to be a somewhat lengthy letter, but I hope you will read it slowly and with careful thought.  For those who hate reading or are too busy to read, I'm also going to put it on a CD so you can listen.  You might also listen to it on my podcast.This letter is autobiographical because I feel you must know something of my history to understand what God has done with my life.  Many of my family members don't know me because I have become one of the older members of our clan.  Some of you know me, but we haven't spent much time together in a long time.  Nevertheless, we are family because we share the same gene pool, and I love you all.The takeaway message of this letter is that Jesus Christ is coming soon, and He does not want any of us to be lost. I have been given the responsibility of sharing my story with my family and friends, and I hope you will hear or read it, understand it, and be saved.  I'm going to start with my childhood, as far back as I can remember, so those of you in the younger generation in my family can really feel where you came from.God asked me in a dream, "Where are the souls that I intend to be saved under your ministry?"  I didn't have a good answer. I didn't even know that I had a ministry at that time.  On another occasion, I dreamed that I arrived in heaven driving a bus with very few passengers.  I knew that couldn't be good.  So here I am trying to get more people on my bus.  Obviously, that's where the title of this letter-turned-book came from.  The Free in the title is a play on my name, Freda.  Get it?Family and friends, I want you to be saved.  I want you to know Jesus as your Lord and Savior.  I want none of my family members to end up in hell because I love you with Storge Love.  Storge love is family love.  It is the bond among mother, father, sisters, and brothers.  It is the natural love among kin people.  This is the type of love we refer to when we use the expression “blood is thicker than water.”  This is the type of love God stirred in my heart toward you after I was filled with the Holy Ghost.  True story.Storge love is enhanced by Agape love, the kind of love God has for us all. Once you know who Christ is, you want to make sure the family God gave you knows Him too.I am now a minister of Jesus Christ, trying to fulfill the mandate He has placed on my life.  (The mandate is told in my book, The Night Death Came Creeping in My Room.  My sister Christine is also a prophetess and a missionary, carrying the Gospel of Deliverance.Family and friends, won't you climb aboard my bus?  It is bound for heaven.  After you hear my story, I pray that your answer will be a resounding yes.  All abooaarrrdd!  And I thank God that I am Free.Chapter 1.  The Beginning.   I was born the fourth child of five to Lilly Mae Evans Lockett and Jesse Benfoot Lockett.  Benfoot is possibly an Indian name because my grandmother's mother was full-blooded Cherokee.  My four siblings were John Henry, Willie Junior, James Alfred, and the baby girl, Christine.   My mother's mother was Mary Evans, and her father was John Evans.  Mary Evans died when my mother was a little girl, about 8 years old.  My mother's father lost his sight, and my mother was often seen throughout their community leading him about.  She had several older brothers: Ernest, Smitty, or Brut; Arthur D; and another brother I never met.  She also had a younger sister, Mamie.  Mamie was an infant when their mother passed away, and she was raised by other family members.Lillie Mae had a beautiful singing voice, and as a child she could often be heard singing as she went through her community.  Jesse B's mother, my fraternal grandmother, was Ada (Bell) Baker Lockett.  Ada married Will Lockett when she was young.  He gave her a Singer sewing machine as a wedding gift.  She became a seamstress after she mastered it.  I still have the sewing machine base today.My father had one brother, Robert, who was married to Myrtle.  Together they had my first cousins, Patsy, Barbara, Michael, Elaine, John Darryl, and Marsha. Ada later married Lawrence (Bud) Marshall and was Ada Marshall when I was born.Both my parents and paternal grandparents were born in Crockett, Texas, a small farming town in Houston County. They both went to Crockett High School.  Crockett, Texas, has a rural side and a city side.  Both of my parents lived on the rural side near Austonio, Texas.  Most of the family members were sharecroppers by trade.Jesse B. had a son before his marriage to Lilly Mae, whose name was Jesse Jr. Both Jesse Jr. and his mother moved to California when he was a baby.  I never had the opportunity to meet my oldest brother, but I do know that he lived most of his life in Bakersfield, California. He taught at a junior college, and I spoke to him by telephone on two occasions.  We also have a half-sister named Ada Marie.  Her mother's name was Aquilla May.  I remember Ada Mari as a three-year-old when I was about eight or nine, but I've never seen or heard from her since we were young.Lily Mae and Jessie B. were married in Crockett, and my three older brothers were born there.Granny Ada was something of a mother figure to my mother, Lillie, since Grandmother Mary, her mother, had passed away.  When my parents married, Granny Ada became the

True meaningful relationships begin when we stop performing and start showing up fully. In this inspiring spiritual talk, Rev. Lee Wolak explores authenticity, conscious living, presence, vulnerability, deeper connection, and relationships without distractions. Discover how putting down the mask and the phone can create greater trust, intimacy, love, understanding, and genuine connection in everyday life. Receive Rev. Lee's Daily Thought and Agape's weekly newsletter for practical wisdom that helps you live with greater awareness, freedom, love, and authenticity. Sign up here: https://www.agapespiritualcenter.com/free-affirmations Become a supporting member here: https://agapetx.infellowship.com/OnlineGiving/GiveNow/NoAccount/

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Learning to trust yourself is essential to living your best life. In this inspiring spiritual talk, Rev. Lee Wolak explores self-trust, inner wisdom, conscious living, personal growth, confidence, authenticity, and spiritual freedom. Discover how to stop doubting yourself, make empowered choices, and courageously follow the path that is truly yours with greater clarity, purpose, and joy.  Stay Connected. Live Consciously. Grow With Us. Receive Rev. Lee's Daily Thought and Agape's weekly newsletter for practical wisdom that helps you live with greater awareness, freedom, love, and authenticity. Sign up here: https://www.agapespiritualcenter.com/free-affirmations Support Greater Clarity and Connection Your recurring gift helps Agape create practical teachings, meaningful experiences, and a welcoming community where people can question inherited beliefs, discover their truth, and live more consciously. Together, we can help more people awaken to life and live what they discover. Become a supporting member here: https://agapetx.infellowship.com/OnlineGiving/GiveNow/NoAccount/

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You don't become more spiritual by collecting beliefs or escaping your humanity. You become more present—fully awake to yourself and the life unfolding now. In this inspiring spiritual talk, discover how mindfulness, conscious living, acceptance, and nonattachment create inner peace, authentic freedom, deeper awareness, and a more meaningful life through the transformative power of presence. Stay Connected. Be Inspired. Grow With Us. Receive Rev. Lee's Daily Thought and Agape's weekly newsletter—created to bring greater clarity, peace, spiritual awareness, and practical wisdom into your everyday life. Sign up here: https://www.agapespiritualcenter.com/free-affirmations Help Us Share Healing, Truth, and Transformation When you become a supporting member of Agape Spiritual Center, you are doing more than making a donation. You are helping us create teachings, healing experiences, and a welcoming spiritual community where people can discover their worth, awaken to their power, and transform their lives. Every recurring gift, regardless of the amount, helps us reach more people and expand this work in the world. Join us in making a meaningful difference. Become a supporting member here: https://agapetx.infellowship.com/OnlineGiving/GiveNow/NoAccount/

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