Podcasts about like god

Daily Study: The results we reap are a direct product of the thoughts we think. Our minds are the engines that drive our success; therefore, we have to intentionally program how we think. If we allow worldly thinking to program our minds, then we will reap success mired with sorrows and pain. If our minds have a mixture of worldly and godly programming, then we will be unsuccessful and frustrated. However, if we program our minds to think like God, then we will have success without the hustle and sorrows. Partner with Us: https://churchforentrepreneurs.com/partner Connect with Us: https://churchforentrepreneurs.com                  

Thank you for joining us for morning worship! Today, Bishop Alfred Jackson ministers to us from the topic "Helping in Living Like God Wants Us to Live." Focal Scripture: Proverbs 4:20 - 27

Storms will come. That's not a matter of if—but when. The question is: where will you stand when the wind picks up, and how will you respond when the waves crash in? The answer isn't in trying to control the storm—it's in knowing who's in the boat.Our springboard for today's discussion is:“And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, ‘Peace! Be still!' And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.” — Mark 4:39 (ESV)The disciples panicked—and it's easy to understand why. The storm was real. The danger was intense. And Jesus was… asleep.That's how it feels sometimes, doesn't it? Like God's sleeping on your situation while everything around you falls apart. But notice what Jesus did—He didn't panic. He didn't match the chaos. He commanded peace.And peace obeyed.That same Jesus is with you now. He may not always calm the storm immediately, but He always brings peace to the one who calls on Him. Peace is not the absence of struggle—it's the presence of Christ in the middle of it.If you're overwhelmed right now, stop trying to control the outcome. Call on the One who controls the wind and the waves. Let Him quiet your heart even if the storm still rages around you.The goal isn't to escape the storm—the goal is to walk through it without losing your peace.Question of the Day:Are you trying to calm the storm yourself—or are you calling on the One who speaks to storms?Mini Call to Action:Take five minutes today, close your eyes, and breathe deeply. Say aloud, “Peace. Be still.” Let those words settle into your spirit as a declaration of trust.Let's Pray:Jesus, I invite Your peace into the chaos of my life. Remind me that You are near, that You are greater than the storm, and that my soul can rest in You. In Your name, amen.Let's Get To Work!Peace doesn't come from the storm dying down—it comes from knowing Jesus never left.My Reasons To Believe is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit myr2b.substack.com/subscribe

Storms will come. That's not a matter of if—but when. The question is: where will you stand when the wind picks up, and how will you respond when the waves crash in? The answer isn't in trying to control the storm—it's in knowing who's in the boat.Our springboard for today's discussion is:“And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, ‘Peace! Be still!' And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.” — Mark 4:39 (ESV)The disciples panicked—and it's easy to understand why. The storm was real. The danger was intense. And Jesus was… asleep.That's how it feels sometimes, doesn't it? Like God's sleeping on your situation while everything around you falls apart. But notice what Jesus did—He didn't panic. He didn't match the chaos. He commanded peace.And peace obeyed.That same Jesus is with you now. He may not always calm the storm immediately, but He always brings peace to the one who calls on Him. Peace is not the absence of struggle—it's the presence of Christ in the middle of it.If you're overwhelmed right now, stop trying to control the outcome. Call on the One who controls the wind and the waves. Let Him quiet your heart even if the storm still rages around you.The goal isn't to escape the storm—the goal is to walk through it without losing your peace.Question of the Day:Are you trying to calm the storm yourself—or are you calling on the One who speaks to storms?Mini Call to Action:Take five minutes today, close your eyes, and breathe deeply. Say aloud, “Peace. Be still.” Let those words settle into your spirit as a declaration of trust.Let's Pray:Jesus, I invite Your peace into the chaos of my life. Remind me that You are near, that You are greater than the storm, and that my soul can rest in You. In Your name, amen.Let's Get To Work!Peace doesn't come from the storm dying down—it comes from knowing Jesus never left.My Reasons To Believe is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit myr2b.substack.com/subscribe

When we don't like God's will. 6/8/25

In this sermon, Apostle B. Mthethwa challenges us to embody God's unconditional, sacrificial love, urging the church to actively encourage and build one another up through service and good works. Being like God isn't about power or knowledge, but walking in agape love that transforms lives and inspires others, flowing from God through us to the world. Be encouraged as you listen.Don't forget to LIKE, SHARE AND SUBSCRIBE!Connect with us: Facebook: oasischurchZAInstagram: oasischurchZAThreads: oasischurchZAApple Podcast: oasischurchZASpotify: oasischurchZAFor more information, visit us at http://www.oasis-church.co.za

When it feels like God isn't listening to my prayers, what do I do?

#10MinuteswithJesus ** Put yourself in the presence of God. Try talking to Him. ** 10 minutes are 10 minutes. Even if you can get distracted, reach the end. ** Be constant. The Holy Spirit acts "on low heat" and requires perseverance. 10-Minute audio to help you pray. Daily sparks to ignite prayer: a passage from the gospel, an idea, an anecdote and a priest who speaks with you and the Lord, inviting you to share your intimacy with God. Find your moment, consider you are in His presence and click play.

ENCORE EPISODEHow can we begin to understand the mystery of the Most Holy Trinity, one God in three Persons? In this episode you'll hear of one perspective and how it can change your life.Readingshttps://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/061525.cfm

(Habakkuk) There are moments when God feels wrong—when His silence pierces, His timing confuses, and His ways seem unbearable. Like Habakkuk, we cry out not just in confusion but in what feels like betrayal: "How could You?" But God invites us into the tension—not to suppress it, but to bring it honestly before Him. The answer isn't always clarity or resolution. The answer is learning to live by faith: to wait on His timing and to anchor our hope in His unchanging character. Even when the fig tree doesn't blossom and every security fails, we can still find strength in the God who makes our feet sure in the chaos.

Henry Ogbuchi - June 15, 2025 - OUR FATHER, MY FATHER-ABBA FATHER The Father and His Beloved Son–Unity (Mathew 3:17,17:4-5 & John 12:28 )  Abraham – The Foundation of Generational Leadership (Genesis 18:19; Hebrews 11:8-10).  Eli – The Consequences of Passive Fatherhood (1 Samuel 2:12–17; 3:13) A Father Must Affirm His Child's Identity and Worth. Matthew 3:17 – God publicly affirms Jesus during His baptism, declaring Him as His beloved Son.  Children need clear verbal affirmation from their fathers — not just correction or instruction.  This builds emotional strength and reinforces their sense of identity and belonging A Father Must Express Love and Delight Consistently. Matthew 17:5 – God repeats His affirmation of Jesus, expressing deep love and pleasure in Him.  Fathers should take intentional moments to say “I love you” and express pride — not only in achievements, but in the child's being and character.  This nurtures confidence, stability, and openness in the relationship A Father Must Endorse and Support His Child's Purpose. John 12:28 – As Jesus approaches His mission of sacrifice, the Father affirms: “I have glorified it, and will glorify it again.”  Like God did for Jesus, a father's role is to help their child see the value and impact of their life's mission.  This includes encouragement, prayer, and guidance — even when you don't fully understand their path. Abraham-Foundation of Generational Leadership Genesis 18:17-19 & Hebrew 11:8-10 A Father must Lead his Family with Faith and Righteous Instruction  In Genesis, Abraham is praised for being a father who actively instructs his household in God's ways.  In Hebrews, Abraham is marked as a model of faithdriven obedience. As a father, You must be intentional in guiding your family toward God's truth, not leaving their moral and spiritual formation to chance. ELI- The Consequences of Passive Fatherhood 1 Samuel 2:12–17; 3:13 Fathers should not Tolerate Sin in their Children , But Discipline with Godly Responsibility  A godly father takes responsibility for correction and discipline. Children must see both kindness and accountability in their father's leadership. Fathers Are Called to:.  Lead in faith,  Love with grace,  Discipline with justice, and  Protect with courage. When fathers reflect on these traits : They mirror the very heart of our Heavenly Father. (ABBA FATHER).

This week, your faves are back in the studio, and we've got some real conversation for y'all as always. We start off (2:04) the show with Wale's "Bad", steering us into a quick banter and catch-up. Then Danny poses the question of the week (8:09), stemming from the Venessa Bryant (Kobe Bryant's widow) dating situation, leading us to ask, when is the right time to move on and get back into the dating game after losing a partner? On Nana's Corner (30:08), we extensively discuss the BET Awards 2025 and all its glitz and glamour this year, after a long time, Teyana Taylor and Aaron Pierre officially stepping out as a couple + MORE! On the main portion of the show (48:20), we discuss our personal faith journey and the travails we have had to wrestle with our whole lives. We discuss the times we have had our faith rocked by life (1:11:27), times when we questioned God even as Christians, navigating our first failures, the ebbs and flows of maintaining a relationship with God over the years. We highlight moments in our lives (1:53:50) when we thought God didn't love us, having gone through a major loss, disappointment, (2:17:38) and rejections. Then we close out with new music and movie recommendations. Enjoy this amazing conversation!Song Intro: Wale Ft. Rihanna - BadMid-Episode Song: Joyner Lucas - Devil's WorkSong Outro: Dax - Dear GodSend us your Anonymous Dilemmas – ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠TSP Dilemma Stories⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Subscribe to our YouTube channel: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠DANANA | TSP⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Support the Podcast via Patreon Membership – ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Spectrum Podcast | Official Patreon⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠(If you are in Nigeria, before logging into Patreon, Download and Use Free VPN app ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Windscribe)⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Rate/Review APPLE – ‎⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠‎The Spectrum Podcast || DANANA on Apple Podcasts⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Rate/Review on SPOTIFY – ‎⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠‎⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Spectrum Podcast || DANANA on SPOTIFY ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Listen to us on iHeart Radio – ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Spectrum Podcast || DANANA – iHeart Radio⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Listen to us on Jollof Radio – ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Spectrum Podcast || DANANA – Jollof Radio⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Follow us on IG – ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@therealdanana⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Send us a mail – ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠thespectrumpodcastdanana@gmail.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠DISCLAIMER – We hereby declare that we do not own this music/song rights. All rights belong to the owner. No Copyright Infringement Intended

Who is a God like you, who pardons the guilt of the remnant, overlooking the sins of his special people? (Micah 7:18). Glory hallelujah!

sunday sermons + good news weekly live from good news in the neighborhood, a new church led by luke + kristen macdonald in the nw suburbs of chicago. we are a multi-ethnic, bible teaching, and life giving church.   find out more about us becoming + bringing the good news at   www.goodnewsintheneighborhood.org

Introduction: Leviticus 19:18 – You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the LORD. Leviticus 19:34 – You shall treat the stranger who sojourns with you as the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God. I Love My Enemies... (Matthew 5:43–48) ...because of WHO I AM. (Matt 5:45a) ...by WHAT I DO. (Matt 5:45b) ...because I Am CALLED TO BE DIFFERENT. (Matt 5:46–47) Sermon Notes (PDF): BLANKHint: Highlight blanks above for answers! Small Group DiscussionRead Matthew 5:43-48What was your big take-away from this passage / message?What does it mean to be persecuted? When Jesus said we must pray for those who persecute us, what / how exactly should we pray?Can you genuinely love your enemy if you don't really feel like it? Why or why not?Explain Romans 12:20. How exactly does loving your enemy lead him to repentance? See also Romans 2:4.What did Jesus mean in verse 48 when He said we “must be perfect”?BreakoutPray for one another. AUDIO TRANSCRIPT Open up those Bibles to Matthew chapter 5.As we go through our series, the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew chapter 5 verse 43, Jesussaid, "You have heard that it was said."Stop there for a second.This whole section that we're in right now, if you've been following this series at all,I'm sure you've noticed that that has come up.What is it like?Six total times pastor?Like, "You have heard that it was said, but I say to you."What Jesus is dealing with here is correcting some garbage beliefs.And I've shared with you before, that's my biggest concern for this church is the areaof discernment.We live in a day that there is so much bad teaching out there.And thanks to the Internet, we have access, right?And look, I'm not saying it's all bad, but I'm saying probably for every good teachingyou can find online, you can probably find ten other garbage teaching online.And my concern for the church is people not knowing the difference.And it gets back to what did Jesus actually say?It's the issue that He was dealing with in His day, lack of discernment.Last week we saw Jesus said, "You've heard that it was said, and I for an eye."And Jesus said, "No, no, no, no, no, no."Jesus, as I say to you, I'm paraphrasing, He says, "Do not retaliate."You can walk away from last week's message and say, "Got it.Don't retaliate."So I'm just going to ignore the people that I can't stand.Well, let's keep reading.Verse 43, "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate yourenemy.'But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you."Oh, no, no, don't ignore your enemies.You have to look for ways to be good to them.You're like, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.You're saying that I not only don't get to get even with them, but I have to proactivelylove them?Yeah, that's what He said.All right?It's a hard word.So I think we should just stop and pray right now, shouldn't we?I'm going to ask that you would pray for me to be faithful to communicate God's word,accurately and clearly, and I will pray for you to have a heart open to receive what ourLord is teaching us in this part of His Sermon.All right?So let's pray.Father in heaven, as we go through this sermon from our Lord, it's just wave after wave ofthings that really confront our selfish, sinful, fleshly tendencies.And I don't know of one that's bigger than this one.I'm asking, please God, please, by the power of Your Word, Father, by the power of YourSpirit that You would change our minds today, Father, change our hearts and that we wouldn'tjust leave here knowing some things, but we leave here deeply convicted and moved to dosome things.For Your glory and honor, Father.We pray in Jesus' name.And all of God's people said, Amen.All right, let's break this down here.Jesus says in verse 43, "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighborand hate your enemy.'"You have heard.You have heard.That's what we've seen in this series.The scribes and the Pharisees in Jesus' day did what's still happening today.They twist verses in the Word of God to justify whatever it is they want to justify.For them, Jesus called them out.They were justifying their lust.They were justifying their hatred.They were justifying their getting even with people.He calls them out again.You've heard that it was said, "You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy."That's what the scribes and the Pharisees said.And you're like, "Well, was that in the Old Testament?"Well, the first part was, kind of.Here's what I mean.Here's what's actually in the Scripture.Leviticus 19-18.Look at this."You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but youshall love your neighbor as yourself.I am the Lord."So you see, with the way that they sort of restated that, they ran into four problems.Four problems.The first problem is the scribes and the Pharisees left out the "as yourself" part.Did you notice that?Well, I love my neighbor, but as myself, that's a bit too much.Let's keep it vague.Because if we keep love vague, then whatever we do, we can just say it was love, right?So keep it vague.God never kept it vague.That was their first problem.Second problem is the scribes and the Pharisees redefined neighbor.And their definition of neighbor was, "Those I choose to love."That was their definition.So do you realize...the reason I'm laughing is, do you realize what that made the command?God's command is, "Love those you choose to love."That's convenient.Third problem, the scribes and the Pharisees totally added the "hate your enemy" part,right?Totally added that.You're not going to find that anywhere in the Old Testament.My vague love is for my Jewish neighbors.What about the foreigners?Hate them.And that leads us actually to the fourth problem.Because that whole love your neighbor as yourself, that was in Leviticus 19, 18.But if you go down a few verses to verse 34, it says, "You shall treat the stranger whosojourns with you as the native among you.And you shall love him as yourself."For you are strangers in the land of Egypt.I am the Lord your God.See the scribes and the Pharisees, they thought that they were honoring God by hating foreigners.And we get asked this question a lot."Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait."In the Old Testament, didn't God tell the Israelites to exterminate the nations thatwere living in the Promised Land?And don't we have all these imprecatory psalms?Like what's up with that, huh?Well, it's like the eye for an eye thing that we talked about last week.The scribes and the Pharisees took a thing that was designed for Israel as a nation andthey turned it into a personal thing.So the whole exterminate the enemies in the Promised Land.Yeah, absolutely.Israel's wars weren't personal vendettas.They were commanded by God to wipe out those nations because those nations did horriblethings.And God says, "You are not going to pollute my nation Israel."So Israel, you're going to wipe them out.And if you have a hard time with that, I would just like to lovingly remind you that Godis allowed to make those calls because vengeance belongs to Him.Okay?And God's whole purpose in that was to protect Israel as a nation in that land.That's why when you turn to your New Testament, you don't see any imprecatory language inthe New Testament.It's for Israel.And individually, we're talking about personally now, what about the people that hate me?What about the people that are my enemies?Love them.Love them.Look at verse 44, Jesus says, "But I say to you," pretty clear, isn't it?Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.You see the whole loving your neighbor command includes everyone around you, including yourenemy.Now breaking this down, when He talks about enemy, He's talking about your personal enemy.Okay?It's not this collective group idea.It's somebody who personally hates me.And Jesus says our response is to love them.That's the word agape.That is the highest form of love.That's self-sacrificing love.That's the kind of love that we should have for our enemy.And the verb tense here is constant.It's continually.You need to continually love your enemies.And you're like, well, who is my enemy?Who is it that hates you?Who is it that you know that if you tried to call them, they wouldn't answer the phone?If you sent them a text, they wouldn't reply.Or vice versa?Who is it that has been slandering you, making accusations against you?Jesus says we not only love our enemies, but you notice He ratchets it up even more whenHe says pray for those who persecute you.Those who persecute you.Those are your worst enemies.Where Jesus is speaking about your enemies who they don't just hate you.They actively hate you.These are the people that make an effort to show you how much they hate you.And as we've been going through the Sermon on the Mount, we see that a true believerin Jesus Christ is someone who is defined by the Beatitudes.And if you were here for the Beatitudes here, do you remember what the last one was?The highest rung on the ladder of following Jesus Christ is when we're persecuted.And here's the part where we stop and ask, are we persecuted?Are we really persecuted?Because here's the thing.I think for a lot of us our knee-jerk reaction to that would be I'm not persecuted, but thereality is you probably are.But you just haven't realized it.Here's what I mean by that.Here's what I mean.Persecute doesn't just mean somebody physically attacks you.Somebody murders you.Somebody gets you arrested, thrown in jail.Yes, that is persecution, but those are the most graphic manifestations of persecution.The word "persecute" literally means to pursue.That's what it means.And listen, listen to this.Persecute means somebody is chasing after you to constantly criticize and condemn you.So I imagine most of you are being persecuted right now according to the true definitionof persecution.Think about it this way.Was Jesus persecuted?If you're like, "Oh yeah, when He was crucified."Of course!But He was persecuted His entire ministry because what were they constantly doing?The proper definition.They were constantly - read the Gospels.They were constantly pursuing Jesus.They were - how would we say it?They were out to get Him.That's what persecution means.I mean, read your Gospels.They were constantly looking to criticize Jesus and assaulting Jesus, accusing Jesus."You did this in the Sabbath and you shouldn't be doing healing this way and your disciplesdidn't wash your hands and what's up with the fasting?"They were constantly, constantly, constantly after Him.That's what persecution means.And if you really follow Jesus, you have people pursuing you in that way too.Don't shout out any names.But do you have somebody at your workplace, for example, that's always watching you,always looking to get their little remarks in, get their little digs in,always looking to criticize anything you say or anything you do.That's persecution according to the proper definition.They're pursuing you.Maybe you have that family member.Never approves of a thing you do.The bum just can't do anything right and they're always vocal about it.Getting their little shots in, their little passive aggressive comments, they're alwaysout to get you.That's persecution.Maybe it's on social media.You know anything you post.You know that person is going to show up with their snarky little comment.That's pursuing.That's persecution.Jesus says we need to pray for the people to do that to us.The people that are out to get you.Jesus said pray for them.So when was the last time you did that?I don't know about you but I have a list of people that I regularly pray for.When was the last time that you loved your enemy?And you're like, why in the world would I do that?Well let's keep reading.Jesus says in verse 45, "So that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven."Why would you love your enemy?Why would you pray for people that are constantly out to get you?It's not because of who they are.It's because of who you are.That's the sermon that our Lord gives.That you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven.It's not because of who they are.It's because of who you are.We just confess that so much of our lives, our attitudes, our moods are determined byother people, good or bad.People have a way of just like governing our lives.Here's what I mean.Your service, you go over to a giant eagle and you run into an old friend that you haven'tseen in years."Oh, that puts you in a good mood.Oh, it was so great catching up."That's going to put you in a good mood for the rest of the day, right?Or somebody makes a really jerky comment to you at work intentionally wanting to getunder your skin.Then that's just like wreck your day and you're in a bad mood for days over one jerky comment.And I would bet if you had a bad day last week, if you could point to a day last weekor like, "Oh, that was a bad day," I would be willing to bet that it had something todo with people.You're laughing because it's true.And Jesus here is saying, "My people don't react to people.My people act according to the Word of God."So let's unpack this for a few moments, shall we?When you're outlining, I want you to jot some things down.I love my enemies.Can you say that?You're like, "Not now."You will in a few minutes.I love my enemies.Number one, we already touched on this.We're going to drill a little deeper here.Number one, I love my enemies because of who I am.Look at this again.This is Jesus' whole rationale.Why would I love my enemies, Jesus?Lord, why would I pray for the people that are constantly out to get me?So that You may be sons of Your Father who is in heaven.This is where Jesus starts Your identity.You love Your enemies not because of who they are, but because of who You are.Jesus is in essence saying, "You love Your enemies because..."It's a family tradition in our family.You have family traditions.You have family traditions.You know what I mean?Every family has on brand things that they do, right?Like some families, they're like, "We're campers.We go camping."Yes, we have a house, but for a while we like to pretend that we don't.That's just what we do in our family.We live in a canvas enclosure in the wildlife.Okay, but that's your family thing.For some families, it's like, "We're beach people.We love the beach."Our family loves the beach.We love the beach.That's our family thing, right?Some families are sports families like, "Oh, we're baseball.We're a baseball family.We love the box and we're on the church softball team."And we're like, "We love baseball."Every family's got their thing, right?I mean, I remember growing up, our family.Our family had our thing.I remember when we were teenagers, Aaron actually came over to our house for Thanksgiving.And they had the stuffing out and the turkey and all the dressing and all that stuff.And I just remember our family was passing around the table a bag of funyons.And I just remember Aaron sitting there going, she looked like she saw a ghost.I'm like, "What's the matter?"She goes, "Why are you passing around a bag of funyons?It's Thanksgiving."And I'm just like, "What's Thanksgiving without funyons?"Like, "We're not the weird ones here."And then I got older and realized that we were.Every family's got their thing.That's what Jesus is saying here.Like, "Hey, hey, hey, we're in God's family."He said, "You know what we do in God's family?Do you know what we do?We love like God."And God loves His enemies.You're like, "Who are God's enemies?"Everyone.Do you realize that?Literally every single person on the planet is an enemy of God until they are reconciledto God in Jesus Christ.That's what Paul said in Romans 5, right?"If while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son."See that's the glorious reality of the gospel of Jesus Christ.When you receive Jesus Christ by faith, when you believe that He died to take away yoursin, when you believe that He rose from the dead to give you eternal life, when you turnfrom your sin and receive Him, God changes you from an enemy of God to a child of God.And now we are a child still living among enemies of God, child of God.Ephesians 4, spilling over to Ephesians 5, says, "Be kind to one another, tenderhearted,forgiving one another as God in Christ forgave you.Therefore be imitators of God as beloved children."This is what we do in our family.We love like God.And as His children, we imitate our dad.Do you ever notice that kids love to imitate?Do you ever notice that?Kids loved to imitate adults.It was made painfully aware to me, oh, many, many years ago, a couple decades ago at thispoint we had foster kids.Before we had any of our own kids, we had foster kids.And I remember, one little boy, he was five years old, his name was Walter, and we'd beplaying the PlayStation.We were sitting there, playing the PlayStation, and look, I was a perfect gamer back in theday.But sometimes the stupid game would glitch or something, and my guy would get killed.And when that happened, I remember I'd put the controller down, and I'd be like, "Oh,for Pete's sake!"Well Walter would be playing video games with me, and I remember he'd be playing a videogame, and he'd just randomly throw his controller down and go, "Your pee stinks!"Like no, no, no, no, no, no.No, it's for Pete's sake.But he was...It never clicked with him.He was constantly commenting on the smell of urine.Your pee stinks.Why did he do that?He was just imitating me.Right?Kids love to do that.And as a child of God, we naturally, we supernaturally want to imitate him.So when that guy at work is constantly out to get you, and you love him, and you repayhis nastiness with kindness, and then somebody else comes in and says, "Well, what are youdoing?You love that guy?That guy's a real jerk to you!"And your response says, "Yeah, I get that from my dad."You see, I see people as dad-season.Lost.Blind.Slave to sin.Heading to hell.You know what my heavenly dad taught me?He taught me that I don't need to retaliate.And my heavenly father taught me I don't need to ignore them.My heavenly father taught me that people like that need compassion.And I know right now somebody's thinking, "Yeah, I love your enemies.I see it.I hear it.Pastor Jeff, you don't know what this person said to me.You don't know the horrible things that they said to my face.You don't know the horrible things they said behind my back.Pastor Jeff, you don't know this person for years has been just out to get me."Look.You're right.They don't deserve it.You're right.They've been miserable.But you, you love them not because of who they are, but because of who you are.You're a child of God.And your heavenly father, he loves his enemies.Right?So I love my enemies because of who I am.Secondly, number two, write this one down.I love my enemies by what I do.I love my enemies by what I do.And you might be sitting here going, "Ah, yeah, this love your enemy thing.I ain't feeling it.I ain't feeling it."And I would say, "That's okay.You don't have to feel it."But you do have to do it.Because look, when the Bible talks about love, agape love, it's not an emotion.Listen, you don't have to like them.But you do have to love them.And biblically, love is an action.Here's what I mean.Love is an action.First, John 5.3 says, "For this is the love of God that we keep His commandments."Jesus said the same thing.What is it?John 14, 15.Jesus said, "If you love Me, you will keep My commandments."John 15, Jesus said, "Abiding in Him is keeping His commandments."Notice the Bible never calls us to stir up some kind of emotion.Loving God is a choice.And yes, we worship God with our emotions in song and worship, yes, but that is thefruit of a choice to love God.The proof that you love God isn't based on your feelings.The proof that you love God according to our Lord is based on your actions.And listen, church, love works the same way with your enemies.You are not called to love your enemies by conjuring up gushy feelings.You're called to love them by your actions.You're called to love them by actively blessing them.Why?Because that's what God does.Look at verse 45, the rest of it.He says, "For He makes His Son rise on the evil and on the good and sends rain on thejust and on the unjust."God is so kind to sinners.Did you ever stop and think about that?Have you ever stopped to just marvel at the glorious truth that somebody can live theirentire life and completely ignore God?And they can still have a pretty good life on the earth.Isn't that astounding?Isn't it amazing that somebody can live their entire life hating God, speaking against God,speaking against God's people, speaking against God's truth.They can live their whole life and do that, and they can still have a good life on theearth.In God's kindness, He still lets them have sun and rain and a million other good things.You can hate God, still have food and friends and laughter and family and health.And yeah, the heart hearted may refuse to be thankful or acknowledge this, but regardless,God does it anyways.God's kindness says little about them, but it says much about Him.And Jesus says, "Take note, children of God, you show love for your enemies by what youdo for them.You show love for enemies by actively seeking their good."Like, well, what does that look like, Pastor Jeff?What does that look like?Okay, so you've got a nasty, older family member who's always hated you.Go do your yard work.You got a jerk co-worker always looking to get their little shots in on you?Look for ways to sincerely and genuinely compliment their work.You got a nasty neighbor?Find out what they like and treat them.Hey, I saw your garden, and the other day I was at the store and I saw that there wasthis magazine about gardening, and I picked it up for you.I thought you might be interested.I don't know.Just get on your face and ask God to show you how you can show kindness to your enemy.Romans 12.20, Paul quotes from Proverbs 25.He says if your enemy is hungry, feed them.If he is thirsty, give him something to drink.For by so doing, you will heat burning coals on his head.When I was a young Christian, when I read this, I had this idea that if you do goodto people that aren't good to you, like if you meet their needs, they're going to havethis like mini Sodom and Gomorrah experience on their head.Like I'm going to be nice to you, and it's going to rain lava on your head.I'm burning!Like that will show them.And then I learned that that's not what that means at all.It was actually an Egyptian symbol that they would put hot coals in an insulated pot andcarried around on their head.It was a sign of repentance.See, Israel had the sackcloth and ashes.Israel had the pot of coals on their head.And that's what God's Word is driving us to.Because no one's ever been one to Jesus because a Christian matched their pettiness.No one's ever been one to Jesus because a Christian just flat-out ignored them.It's kindness that leads to repentance according to Romans 2-4.Show love to them.Actively show love to them.Why would I do that?Because it's not about who they are.It's about who you are.And one more.I love my enemies because of who I am by what I do.In Romans 2-3 we get to another because I love my enemies because I'm called to be different.Look at verses 46 and 47.Jesus says, "For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have?Do not even the tax collectors do the same?And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doingthan others?Do not even the Gentiles do the same?Stop there.If you're like, "You know what?I love the people that I like.I love the people that I like."Well, then you do what people who don't even know Jesus do.And our Lord here is saying, "What's so special about that?"Oh, so you think you're great because you do what's normal.Well hang on a second.Let me shine up your participation trophy.Why is it that we want applause for doing what's expected?Here's an example.Well Aaron and I, we always look at each other and kind of laugh.When we hear a dad say, "Yeah, I had a baby sit my kids last Monday."Do you hear somebody say that?You're not going to say it anymore.I had a baby sit my kids last Monday.I believe that's called being a father.You didn't baby sit your kids.What did your wife pay you $10 an hour?Like look, I'm not giving you a cookie because you did what was expected.That's what our Lord is saying here.You're expected to be different because Christians have something that no one else in the worldhas.Do you know what that is?Like the Bible?Not everybody has that.Like compassion?No, a lot of people have that.Christians have something that nobody else in the world has.You know what that is?God living in them.In other words, you should be different.I mean, anybody can go one mile.That was the law.That's expected.Anyone can give up a shirt that they lost legally in a lawsuit.That's expected.And here our Lord is saying, "Anybody can say hi to their friends."That's expected.But God expects and empowers us to do more, to be like Him.So do you do what the world expects?Or do you do what God expects because God's called you to be different than the world?Do you have a heart like God?We'll find out.We'll find out because it's revealed not in how you treat your friends, it's revealedin how you treat your enemies.You love them.Not because of who they are, but because of who you are.Oh yeah, there's one more verse.One of the most deeply convicting and challenging verses in the whole Bible.Jesus says, "You therefore must be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect."In the context of this teaching, obviously, he's talking about the way we love, right?You must love perfectly the way your heavenly Father loves perfectly.That's what Jesus is saying here.And look, you and I, we look at that verse and we say, "I failed.I failed."We all have.And actually, remembering the beatitudes, step one and two of the beatitudes was recognizingthat you failed.And you're like, "Man, I'll never be perfect."But God says you must be perfect.You know what that means?It means I always have room to grow.And today we're talking about loving your enemies.And maybe right now you're saying, "You know, I knew that.I knew that, but today I'm encountered by this calling in a fresh way and I realizenow I need to grow.I want to grow in this area."It's grace.It's grace.God has made us perfectly righteous in Jesus Christ.God has adopted us as His children, and He is constantly changing us.We don't deserve anything, but God has given us everything, even though we were His enemies.It's grace.You get that?Then like your Father, give it.In just a moment, we're going to be gathering around the Lord's table as a church.And it is the Lord's table that reminds us that we are grace people.Because in essence, what we are remembering, what we are celebrating, what we are declaringwhen we take the Lord's supper together is the Lord is saying, "I saved you."Not because of who you are, but because of who I am.

“LIVING AT A WHOLE ‘NOTHER LEVEL”Matthew 5:43-48Sermon 06/08/2025Sermon Notes: https://www.opendoorcommunity.net/uploads/6/3/0/8/63085847/06-08-25.pdfScripture: https://www.opendoorcommunity.net/uploads/6/3/0/8/63085847/scripture_06-08-25.pdfWebSite: https://www.opendoorcommunity.net/YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/c/OpenDoorCommunityChurchAugustaFaceBook: https://www.facebook.com/OpenDoorCommunityAugustaDonations: https://www.opendoorcommunity.net/donations.html

Scripture: Luke 6:36-38Message from Brady Bryce, Senior MinisterFor more resources and access to everything we have going on at First, visit https://www.firstabq.org

Total surrender is one thing that makes God really happy and your life just becomes less. Like God said in his word, to lay our burdens on Him

The King Like God: A Source of Life — Revelation 21:1-8 1. Life, light, and water 2. The king who gives life 3. How Men, Women, and Children give life

Have you ever been disappointed with God? Like God let you down… like He missed it? Like you obeyed, you sacrificed, you trusted—and things still fell apart? We've probably all felt that way at some point, the question is what do you do with that disappointment? Do you grieve it and process it and let it go or do you let it swell to anger and annoyance and a sense of accusation. Do you let it draw you to God or away from him? In today's message, we look at Jonah chapter 4 and find Jonah in a similar situation. God has let him down and he's fuming. What do we do when we find ourselves in that same place, what do we do with our anger? And what does that reveal about what we truly believe about ourselves and God? Scripture List: Jonah 3.10-4.4 2 Kings 14.25 Jonah 2.8-9 Exodus 34.6-7 Romans 5.10

What if the voice you're calling “wisdom”… is actually fear? In this bold and Spirit-led episode, I exposes the deceptive voices that keep faith-driven leaders from stepping into their next assignment. From hesitation disguised as discernment to spiritual-sounding delays that are actually fear in disguise, this teaching will help you break free from delay, doubt, and disobedience. Ishare her own journey of resisting God's promptings under the guise of “not being ready”—and the breakthrough that came when she finally said yes. Plus, she unpacks her 3-part Spiritual Intelligence Method™ to help you reclaim clarity, peace, and Spirit-led action.

"It's the coming and the going, it's the right now and the forever, it's this all-encompassing idea of God's watchful, beautiful care of the entirety of our lives...And what if I really, really did believe that instead of hiding from those things or maybe relying on my own control over those things?"— Natalie AbbottToday's Episode: Today Natalie and Vera are tackling two simple questions that are really hard to live out: "Do you really live like God is watching over you?" and "Do you really live like God is watching over your people?" The hope is that you would hear where they are succeeding and where they aren't and consider your own life and how you can entrust yourself and your people more to the Lord. This month's memory verse: “The Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.” — Psalm 121:8 Memorize Scripture with us: Find out more about the easy button for Scripture memory, Dwell Differently's monthly membership!Support our show: It's really just as simple as leaving us a review!Links from today's show: Memorize and meditate on God's Word with a Dwell Differently membership. Get your first month FREE with the code: PODCAST.Want to do a Scripture memory Bible study? Check it out here! Or get the teen version. Want more encouragement? Sign up for our emails!Support the showFollow Natalie & Vera at DwellDifferently.com and @dwelldifferenly.

Welcome back to Bro Talk, the go-to Christian podcast where real conversations meet real faith. In Season 6, Episode 11: "It Was Silent but He Was Moving," we explore the deep truth that even when God seems quiet—He's still working.Have you ever felt like your prayers were hitting the ceiling? Like God went silent right when you needed Him most? This episode reminds you that God's silence is never His absence.We dive into:What the Bible teaches us about seasons of silenceHow to recognize God's movement in stillnessWhy waiting on God is often where your faith journey deepens mostEncouragement to hold on when you can't see what God is doingWhether you're a new believer learning how to discern God's voice, or a seasoned Christian wrestling with delayed answers, this message is for you. Sometimes, the silence is where your spiritual growth begins—and God is setting things in motion behind the scenes.

Have you ever felt like you're just not measuring up? Like God's waiting for you to finally get it all together?

Introduction: Two Problems Jesus Has with Divorce (Matthew 5:31–32): Divorce TRIVIALIZES MARRIAGE. (Matt 5:31) Genesis 2:24 – Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. Deuteronomy 24:1–4 – When a man takes a wife and marries her, if then she finds no favor in his eyes because he has found some indecency in her, and he writes her a certificate of divorce and puts it in her hand and sends her out of his house, and she departs out of his house, and if she goes and becomes another man's wife, and the latter man hates her and writes her a certificate of divorce and puts it in her hand and sends her out of his house, or if the latter man dies, who took her to be his wife, then her former husband, who sent her away, may not take her again to be his wife, after she has been defiled, for that is an abomination before the LORD. And you shall not bring sin upon the land that the LORD your God is giving you for an inheritance. Divorce RESULTS In ADULTERY. (Matt 5:32) Ephesians 5:24–25 – Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands. Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her... Sermon Notes (PDF): BLANKHint: Highlight blanks above for answers! Small Group DiscussionRead Matthew 5:31-32 & Mark 10:2-12What was your big take-away from this passage / message?What are some beliefs you've heard Christians believe about divorce and remarriage? How do these line up with Scripture?Explain what Jesus meant in Matt 5:32, how someone's divorce even leads to other people committing adultery.How exactly would you counsel a trusted Christian friend who is considering divorce?BreakoutPray for one another. Audio Transcript Matthew chapter 5, are you there?This section we are in on the Sermon on the Mount is about the heart of God's law.And we saw that Jesus said, "I didn't come to abolish the law or destroy the law."That's what we would call the Old Testament.Jesus said, "I didn't come to do away with the Old Testament."He said, "I came to carry out everything that was said in it."It's not irrelevant at all.And through this section you're going to see, as we've already seen many times, Jesus says,"You have heard that it was said, but I say to you."And when Jesus says that, what He's saying is, "You've lowered God's standard."And Jesus is correcting them, and He's correcting us when we take the Word of God and just makeit purely external.God wants your heart.God wants your heart.That's what we saw a couple of weeks ago.Pastor Taylor taught us, Jesus said, "Murder isn't just the physical act of killing someone.It's a heart issue."We saw last week adultery is not just the physical act.It's a heart issue.And in these verses we're looking at today, Jesus is continuing His teaching on the destructivenessof adultery.And today we're going to talk about divorce.And look, there's so much controversy on this topic.And if we're going to be honest, the controversy doesn't come really from God's Word becausethe Bible is clear.The reason there's so much controversy is because if you are a divorced person, thisgets very personal and it gets very painful.And look, I've done so many weddings over the past 20-some years, so many weddings.And I can tell you emphatically that nobody gets into marriage wanting a divorce.That doesn't happen.I've never seen the wedding ceremony where the vows include something like, "I can'twait to be done with you."Or "I love you today, but in six months I will hate you more than anybody on the planet."Nobody thinks that.Nobody expects that.And when divorce happens, it's always, it's just always so painful.And we get through a passage like, "Look, I know some of you are going to be temptedto tune out because you're going to think, 'Well, you know what, Jeff, you don't knowmy circumstances.'And you're right.I don't.I don't know your circumstances."And I'm certainly not trying to be dismissive of the pain that you've gone through.And I'm certainly not trying to be judgmental for what brought about your divorce if that'syour situation.And I'm also keenly aware that I cannot exhaust everything that the Bible says on the subjectin just one sermon.What I want us all to do, it's nothing new.I just want us to do what we do every week.We're just going to take a giant step back and we're going to see what our Lord sayson the subject.And we're going to see Jesus speaks on divorce here.And I can't undo anything that happened in the past, nor can you as much as we mightwant to.It's gone.But I'm hoping with this message that we can prevent any future pain and hurt that comesfrom divorce.So let's look at Matthew chapter 5, looking verses 31 and 32.Jesus says, "It was also said, 'Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate ofdivorce.'But I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of sexual immorality,makes her commit adultery and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery."What is going on in these verses?Well, first of all, look at verse 31.Jesus says, "It was also said," what?Jesus gives a quote, "Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce."You're like, is that what the Old Testament says?Ish.Here's the problem.This statement was used by the scribes and the Pharisees as a gross misrepresentationof a passage in the Old Testament.So does the Old Testament say that?Yeah, it kind of does, but they took a direction that the Lord never intended it to go.The scribes and the Pharisees took a passage from Deuteronomy, we're going to look at herein a few moments, and they twisted it for their own purposes.Jesus says, "But I say to you," and this is one of the most difficult verses in yourBible.Jesus says, "I say, everyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of sexualimmorality, makes her commit adultery, and whoever marries a divorced woman commitsadultery."So here's the short version.See the scribes and the Pharisees, as I said, twisted this passage in Deuteronomy, and theyreduced it to this.Look, divorce and remarriage is okay as long as it's legal.As long as you do the paperwork, it's fine.It's just fine.It is just fine.And I think it's obvious that Jesus did not agree with their assessment because He saiddivorce leads to adultery.That's the short version.So let's unpack that a little bit today.On your outline, excuse me, we're just very simply calling this "two problems Jesus haswith divorce."All right, let's look at these two verses very intently, and we see there's two problemsthat Jesus has with divorce.Number one, write this down, divorce trivializes marriage.Divorce trivializes marriage.That's the problem.Quick review, marriage was defined once and for all to the first two people that God created,Adam and Eve.And I know there have been attempts to redefine marriage.It doesn't matter.God defined marriage once and for all.With the first two people that He created, Adam and Eve, and the most important versein your Bible on marriage is Genesis 2.24.It says, "Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to hiswife, and they shall become one flesh."That's the most important verse in the Bible about marriage.And I can say that emphatically because when Jesus was asked about marriage and divorce,this was the verse He quoted, Matthew 19, Mark chapter 10, when the Apostle Paul waswriting about marriage and divorce and husband and wife issues, this was the verse He quoted,1 Corinthians chapter 6, Ephesians chapter 5.God's plan in marriage is two people turning into one person.That's the plan.There's not a relationship on the earth like that.Not a business partnership.Not members of a sports team.There's nothing like the marriage relationship.This was God's intention of marriage in the very beginning.I want two people to turn into one person.And when you study Genesis, you'll see divorce was never part of God's original design formarriage.Like, "All right, well, if it wasn't part of God's plan, where did divorce come from?Where did this idea for divorce come from?"So allowance was made for divorce in the Old Testament law.I want you to look at this.We're going to put this passage on the screen.I want you to look at it very closely because this is the passage that's in question herewhere Jesus is confronting the scribes and the Pharisees.This is from Deuteronomy chapter 24.Because, again, Law of Moses here, when a man takes a wife and marries her, if thenshe finds no favor in his eyes because he has found some indecency in her and he writesher a certificate of divorce and puts it in her hand and sends her out of his house andshe departs out of his house and she goes and becomes another man's wife and the latterman hates her and writes her certificate of divorce and puts it in her hand and sendsher out of his house.Or if the latter man dies, who took her to be his wife, then her former husband, whosent her away, that's husband number one, may not take her again to be his wife aftershe has been defiled for that as an abomination before the Lord.And you shall not bring sin upon the land that the Lord your God is giving you for aninheritance.Now listen, it's a tough passage but we're going to get through this together.Here's what Moses was saying.Divorce had to have a cause.And here it's defined in the Law as some "indecency."It could have been a natural or a moral or a physical defect or whatever.It had to be something that they categorized as unclean, whatever that is.This limited the possible reasons for divorce.This was the purpose, understand.The reason Moses wrote this Law was so that a man couldn't just divorce his wife for anyreason whatsoever.Just make up some excuse, something frivolous.I'm just divorcing you because I feel like it.I don't like the meatloaf you made or I don't like your new haircut or those shoes lookhorrible.You can't just willy nilly divorce your wife.Moses is saying, "Look, there has to be a reason for the divorce."So this was actually to emphasize the importance of marriage.Like, well why would he allow the divorce then?Why go through this?Don't miss this.The purpose of divorce in this case in Deuteronomy 24 was to protect the woman.You see, when you give her the certificate of divorce, that woman had legal proof that,listen, she was dismissed from the marriage but it was not because she was unfaithful.You see that certificate for the woman showed, "Look, I did not have an affair.My husband found something wrong with me and dismissed me but it wasn't because I wasunfaithful."That's what's going on in Deuteronomy 24.But I want you to see here, listen, because this is where the Pharisees and the scribesmissed it.In Deuteronomy 24, there is not a command to divorce.That passage is just simply describing a scenario.In that passage, if we're going to boil it down, we would say this, they were told towrite a certificate of divorce if there was a divorce.The only command that you see in this passage, the only one in that passage is this, if youdivorce your wife, you cannot take her back if she's rejected by her next husband.Or if he croaks, you cannot take her back.Again, the reason for this was to protect the woman.It was to keep women from being used and discarded.It was to keep men who are hogs admittedly, it's to keep men from saying, "You know what?I'm going to try out women."But you know what?My first wife was better than this one.So I'm going to get rid of her and I'm going to take the first one back because I preferredher.That's a horrible, horrible way to treat a woman.See, that's the heart of the law here.Like God's like, "No, no, no, no, no, you're not going to treat women that way, men.This isn't a high school relationship, boyfriend, girlfriend, on again, off again.No, no, no, no, no, no.We're not treating women like that.Marriage is a very serious covenant and you're not going to just have a woman on a leashwhere you let her go and you anchor back and let her go and you anchor back.No, you are not allowed to do that."That's the heart of the law here.Deuteronomy 24 was intended to stop divorce from happening willy-nilly.Everybody on board with me now.Okay, because now I want you to see how the scribes and the Pharisees twisted it.Look at verse 31 again in Matthew chapter 5.Jesus quotes them.He says, "It was also said, whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate ofdivorce."What the scribes and the Pharisees did was through their twisting this passage, theyactually made it say the opposite of what God intended.They used this passage to justify easy divorce, that you can get a divorce for any reasonat all so long as the paperwork is done.That's what they reduced this to.Like, well look, you studied the Old Testament, it tells you very plainly.If you get a divorce, make sure that all the documents are filled out appropriately.That's really all that matters, right?That's all that matters.Just that we signed on the right line and we crossed our T's and we dotted our I's.That's really what matters.As long as you do the paperwork, as long as the divorce is legal, hey, everybody's goodwith that because everything's above board then, right?I mean, I'm not like one of those illegal divorcers, right?You know, that I get some janky, unofficial, illegal divorce document from online, fromthe dark webs.I'm not like that guy.You better be sure that when I get a divorce, it's done right.That was their mindset.The Law of Moses commands divorce to be done legally, so make sure that you do it right.And see, that's Jesus' problem with their attitude.He says your attitude about divorce trivializes marriage.And you have justified in your mind the mistreatment of women in the name of making sure the paperworkis filled out properly.That's not what the Law is about, Jesus is saying.Now, over the years, I have heard all kinds of unbiblical justifications for people wantinga divorce.And I don't even have time to get into all that today.And we're going to get to the biblical reason for divorce in a moment.But we need to stop here and say, listen, marriage should not be taken so lightly amongGod's people.The scribes and the Pharisees were so diligent to make sure that the divorce was done right.We church should be so diligent to make sure that the marriage is done right.So that's the first problem Jesus has with divorce.You trivialize marriage.You trivialize marriage.Not on board with that.But here's the second problem Jesus says I have with your attitude towards divorce.Scribes, Pharisees, church in 2025, divorce results in adultery.Look at verse 32 again.Like I said, this is a difficult verse.But this is what our Lord said.Jesus said, but I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except on the groundof sexual immorality, makes her commit adultery.And whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.So Jesus is saying, listen, with divorce, even when the paperwork is done properly, divorceleads to nothing but more and more adultery.And I think one of the troubling things about this passage is I could see in my mind thatI make choices that cause me to be guilty and suffer consequences for my own choices.But it's very clear here in verse 32, Jesus is saying that a choice for a divorce resultsin other people being guilty of sin.That's a tough pill to swallow, but that's what He said.What does He mean?In Deuteronomy 24, that passage we just looked at, when the woman was divorced for somethingless than sexual immorality, which by the way, sexual immorality breaks the bond of marriage,but in the Deuteronomy 24 case, she was divorced for something less than that, right?Jesus said, even when you divorce for less than sexual immorality, that still makes foran adulterous situation.Jesus said the divorced wife moves on, she consummates a new union when there was nogrounds to break the first one, and if you do that, if you divorce like that, you arenow guilty of adultery, and whoever marries that woman is guilty of adultery, and whoevermarries you is guilty of adultery.And Jesus is saying when you unbiblically break the marriage covenant and people gooff and get remarried, He says now we've resulted in more and more adultery happening in otherpeople.That's what He said.He says now everybody's guilty.So what Jesus is saying to the scribes and the Pharisees is that you could sit here andsay, "Oh, I'm not an adulterer.I have never slept with another man's wife.I have never committed adultery."Jesus says you shouldn't think that way.Actually, you've made adultery worse because you have such a shallow view of divorce.Jesus said you lowered God's standard because all you're focused on is the external.I didn't commit adultery.Jesus said you did.You commit adultery when you look at a woman lustfully.It proves that you already had adultery in your heart.And furthermore, when you divorce without biblical grounds, which Jesus says is sexualimmorality, Jesus said you have committed adultery and you've made her and you've made her newhusband commit adultery too.Your sin not only affects you, but it affects so many more people than just you.And I really don't have to sell people who have experienced divorce how far reachingthe damage goes.The pain is not limited to just the two people in the marriage.I mentioned biblical grounds for divorce.Biblically, now looking at the whole counsel of God, I believe that there is one biblicalgrounds for divorce and it's hardheartedness.Like wait, wait, wait, wait.How do you know when somebody is heart-hearted?Because it would be real easy, right?You're like, "I'm divorcing you because I think you're heart-hearted."Like how do you know that somebody is heart-hearted?Biblically, heart-heartedness in a marriage manifests in two ways.One is abandonment.I don't have time to get into all this today, but just jot down 1 Corinthians 7 verse 15.Abandonment.When you have a spouse who just walks out of the marriage, "I'm not willing to counsel,I'm not willing to reconcile, I'm not willing to consider anything, I'm leaving you, I don'tcare.I am done."Abandonment.My best understanding from Scripture is that is biblical grounds for divorce.When you've tried, but your partner is completely unwilling.That gives evidence that their heart is so hard, they're not willing at all to investin a covenant.Abandonment.And the other evidence of heart-heartedness in marriage, well Jesus references here,and that's adultery.Your heart is so hard towards your spouse that you were willing to physically sleepwith somebody else.It's evidence of a heart-hearted.I want you to listen very closely because even these conditions, even the issue of adulterydoes not obligate anyone to divorce.Because you study God's Word.God's Word never condones divorce and it never commands divorce.There is not one passage in your Bible where God says, "If this happens, I command my peopleto get a divorce."That it is legitimate in abandonment and adultery, but it's still not commanded.So if you're married, you should do everything that you can to avoid divorce.See the scribes and the Pharisees, they live their marriages with one hand over the ejectseat button.It's like I'm not happy with you for any reason.I am done.Jesus said, "No, no, no, no, no, that's not how it should be.You should do everything you can to avoid divorce."You're like, "Well, what about abuse?What if I'm in a relationship where there's abuse that absolutely should not be happening?"And listen, if you're in an abusive situation, you need to let me know as soon as possible.Because we will protect you.We will get you out of harm's way.We will do everything to keep you from being abused.That should not be happening.Somebody else would say, "Well, what about neglect?What about detachment?What about my husband's a lazy bum?Do not be too proud to get biblical counsel.Because there's something else I've seen over the last two and a half decades or so.No marriage is beyond saving.I've seen couples come in hours away from filing for divorce whose marriage ended upin a better place than it ever has been through the result of the ministry of the Word ofGod.If both parties are willing, the marriage can be saved.And when we talk about, yes, abuse and neglect and things like that, we have to readily admitthat there are extreme cases that require extreme action, 100%.But in our day, like in Jesus' day, the vast majority of divorces weren't because of that.The vast majority of divorces were motivated by sinful, selfish desires.The vast majority of divorces result from people treating people like used cars.Like, "Well, this one isn't working out for me.I thought I would like it, but I'm not really digging it anymore.I'm just going to trade it in."That's most divorces.And Jesus says, "Now, you've reduced the marriage covenant.You've trivialized it.You've made it purely external.And now, as a result, all kinds of adultery is happening because you're unwilling to takemarriage seriously."That should not be among God's people.It's a hard passage.What I want us to do, just so I don't want anybody to think that this is some oddballpassage, this is a one-off.Because I want you to turn to Mark chapter 10, because what I want you to see here isJesus teaching the exact same thing, but in a different context.In Mark chapter 10, the context, you'll see they were testing Jesus.They were trying to trap Jesus.They were always trying to trap Jesus.And they thought, "Oh, we know how to trap Jesus.We'll ask Him about marriage and divorce.That'll get them for sure.Why?"Well, you know the story of John the Baptist.He objected to a marriage and divorce, and he lost his head.And I go, "We get Jesus on that.They'll get them for sure.We'll trap them."So I want you to see, now we have context, but I want you to see Jesus teaching the exactsame thing, but in a different context.Mark chapter 10, verse 2, "The Pharisees came up and in order to test Him asked, 'Is it lawfulfor a man to divorce his wife?'"They're like, "We got them.We got them."Slam dunk.Because, see, if Jesus says no, we're like, "Oh, you disagree with the Old Testament,which tells us to get a divorce."If Jesus says no, you shouldn't get a divorce, rather.You're disagreeing with the Old Testament.If Jesus says, "Oh, yeah, you can get a divorce.Oh, now Jesus is taking marriage lightly, and we're going to get Him either way."You know, Jesus is disregarding the serious system of marriage, or He's disregarding whatthe Old Testament says about divorce.We got them.We got them."Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?"I love this.Jesus answered them, "What did Moses command you?"Jesus is like, "What's the Bible say?"Turned it back on them.They said, "Look at this.Moses allowed a man to write a certificate of divorce and to send her away."Do you see?It's about the stinking paperwork again.That's all they were fixated on.Yeah, Moses said, "Fill out form A-27, and you're good."Jesus said to them, "Because of your hardness of heart," there it is, "because of yourhardness of heart," He wrote to this commandment."But from the beginning of creation, God made them male and female.Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and thetwo shall become one flesh."Sound familiar?Genesis 2.24.And Jesus comments on it.He says, "So they're no longer two, but one flesh.But therefore God has joined together, let not man separate."Verse 10 says, "And in the house the disciples asked him again."That's controversial, wasn't it?Disciples asked him again about this matter.And he said to them, "Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adulteryagainst her.And if she divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery."See, it's the same teaching.Same two points in this exchange that we see in Matthew chapter 5.Jesus says you've trivialized marriage, and it just causes more adultery.God takes marriage very seriously, especially to those who claim to be followers of JesusChrist.Why is God so...Why does God seem so strict about marriage?Why is God seems so serious about marriage?It's because divorce ultimately misrepresents God.See God takes marriage seriously because there's a picture that's to be on displayin the marriage.So when that picture is broken, God is misrepresented.Ephesians chapter 5 tells us what the picture is.It says, "Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everythingto their husbands."Husbands love your wives as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her.See this, this is the idea behind marriage.The ultimate goal of marriage is the ultimate goal of everything else in the universe isto glorify God.And the way God is glorified in your marriage is by demonstrating the relationship thatJesus Christ has with His bride, the church.And in this picture, the wife represents the church following, submitting, honoring, andthe husband is to represent Jesus loving, leading, laying His life down.And when you live this out, God is glorified and your marriage is blessed.But when you divorce, you're misrepresenting God.So my friends, what are we showing the world about God and the way we conduct ourselvesin our marriages?Our worship team and communion servers would come up.It's only appropriate that we close by gathering around the Lord's table.Like, well, what does this have to do with marriage?The answer is everything.Because we gather around the Lord's table, we are reminded that Jesus Christ has a covenantlove for us.This love that Jesus Christ has for us is forever.It's never going to change.And even when His bride fails Him, and we do.Oh, and we will.Jesus isn't going to give up on us.This is our reminder of what covenant love looks like.And this is a reminder of how covenant love is to be demonstrated in our marriages.

talk about my personal experiences when it seems like God is doing nothing and how I've learned to deal with these seasons. I talk about how important it is to document your prayers and any information God gives you. How communication with God can change in each season and how important it is to follow God's instructions even when they don't make sense. In this episode in particular, I've shared my personal insights with you as best I can. Let me know what you think and if you'd like to hear more deep dives like this.

In this seventh sermon in the series "Light, Life, and Love", Pastor Matt Sanders shares a sermon entitled, “How We Can Love Like God (1 John 4:1-12).”Link to Sermon notes and Wednesday Bible Study page: ⁠https://waialaebaptist.org/worshipservices/Join us on Wednesdays at 6:30 p.m. for a Bible study led by the preaching pastor on the upcoming sermon passage. Attend either in person or via Zoom. Please ⁠contact us⁠ if you would like to receive the Zoom link.Website: ⁠⁠⁠https://waialaebaptist.org/⁠⁠⁠Facebook: ⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/WaialaeBaptistChurch⁠⁠Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/waialaebaptistchurch/⁠YouTube: ⁠https://youtube.com/c/WaialaeBaptistChurch

Living Way Community Church

Shawna’s daughter remembers being left at Costco, but Shawna remembers it differently. Shawna admits there have been times she felt God had abandoned her. But God remembers it differently. He didn’t leave. He never does. God is with you. You were created for a relationship with Him by Him! He’s not going to leave you. Listener, Dawn, calls in to share when she lost her grandson God pressed deeper into her heart how he made us for relationship with Him. And that He was with her just as He was with her grandson. What are you learning about obedience? As Shawna watched her daughter’s Australian Shepherd obey as slowly as a dog possibly could she saw herself in him. There are times when her obedience to God has been soooooo slow it was hardly recognizable that she was moving at all. Listener, Jess, shares how her obedience led to greater surrender which is leading her to into her God-given destiny. Through obedience and surrender she is doing things she never thought she would – things God had planned for her before she even took her first breath!Donate to Moody Radio: http://moodyradio.org/donateto/morningshow/wgnbSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hey love, welcome back to Made to Impact. If you've been listening for a while and you're feeling that tug… that stirring in your spirit… Like God is calling you into something more—but you're not quite sure what that looks like… this episode is for you. I've been there too. That in-between space where the old doesn't fit anymore… but the new isn't fully clear yet. And I want to personally invite you into something really special. It's called a Clarity Call—and it's a 15-minute space where we can pause together, pray, process, and talk about your next right step. There's no pressure. No pitch. Just real connection, guidance, and encouragement. Because I believe when you show up—even unsure—God meets you there. And He will make the path clear. So if you're feeling stuck, overwhelmed, or just unsure of how to turn your testimony into transformation—I'd love to support you. Head to https://calendly.com/bestrongminded/clarity-call  to book your free Clarity Call. Spots are limited each month, so if this is tugging at you—don't wait. You were made to impact. Let's take that first step together. I'll see you inside the call.

Have you ever felt like God's goodness seems to be coming for everyone but you? If you've ever doubted His love or wondered if you'll actually see His goodness in the land of the living, this one's for you. Let's be real: even “good Christians” struggle with doubt sometimes, but the pain of hard seasons doesn't have to derail our faith. In fact, what if God's goodness IS showing up, just in ways that we didn't expect or wouldn't have chosen for ourselves? Today I hope to remind you that even if it's not what you wanted, that doesn't mean it isn't good. And that our God is always good, even when our circumstances are not.SUPPORT BY WORDS: https://buymeacoffee.com/bywordsSHOP MY BOOKS:Waking Up: Living Open — https://amzn.to/3LusgrzLove Is Devotional — https://amzn.to/3S6OZhs FREE Path to Purpose Guide: https://hannahhughes.myflodesk.com/pathwaytopurpose My favorite Bible studies + devotionals - HANNAHHUGHES10  for 10% off: https://thedailygraceco.com?dt_id=300773 Connect: ⁠www.thehannahhughes.com⁠Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/thehannahhughes/⁠ https://www.instagram.com/bywordspodcast Shop my Amazon faves: ⁠https://www.amazon.com/shop/thehannahhughes⁠

Have you ever felt stuck between faith and disappointment?Today's solo episode is a heart-to-heart about what to do when your prayers seem unanswered and how to dream with God again after a long season of waiting or discouragement. If you've ever walked through disappointment, discouragement or doubt, this episode is for you!We'll talk about:Why disappointment often comes down to trustWhat Proverbs 3:5–6 really calls us to live outHow biblical figures like David and Thomas wrestled with doubt too5 practical, biblical steps to steady your faith and dream againWhy your hope is safe with God — even when the wait feels too longWhether you're in a season of delayed dreams, waiting for breakthrough, or just trying to keep believing, this conversation will meet you right where you are and remind you that your story isn't stuck — it's still being beautifully written by God.Scripture References:Proverbs 3:5–6 | Psalm 34:18 | John 20:27 | Proverbs 13:12 | Hebrews 6:19 | Joel 2:25 | John 15:4–5Mentioned in this episode:➔ My book, It Is Written — Strengthen your faith and pray Scripture with boldness! https://amzn.to/4cNSJgE➔ Little Creative Company — Need a powerful brand or website that helps you reach the people you're called to serve?➔ Subscribe & Leave a Rating/ Review Please!Email me: podcast@courtneyhopejones.comFollow me: https://instagram.com/courthopejonesWebsite: thetrailblazertalkspodcast.com

Questions about whether the fact that some people go through intense difficulties and suffering indicates that God hates some and favors others, and whether someone is being abused because God doesn't think she's worshiping him enough.   I constantly feel like God hates me because of a congenital defect that affects my career choices, my self-worth, and my bitterness towards God. Why does it seem like God hates some and favors others? If God lets Satan live to bring God glory and to test us, does that mean my friend is being abused by her mom's boyfriend because God doesn't think she's worshiping him enough?

Do you struggle to get much out of prayer? Do you feel like God's not speaking to you? Today, Fr. Mike Schmitz invites us to deepen our prayer life by asking two essential questions: “What am I looking for?” and “What am I listening for?” Drawing from the rich tradition of Ignatian spirituality, he guides us in using our imagination and five senses to cultivate a more intimate and personal encounter with God.​ Whether you're new to prayer or seeking a more profound connection, this practical approach can transform your spiritual practice.​ Tickets are on sale now for Fr. Mike Schmitz's Parables Tour at www.AscensionPress.com/FrMikeTour! May 19 - Washington, D.C. May 20 - Philadelphia, PA May 21 - Cincinnati, OH [SOLD OUT] May 22 - Nashville, TN Join Fr. Mike live for an unforgettable event as he unpacks the parables of Jesus. This is your chance to experience his powerful message in person!

Join us today in ManifestingMasteryCourse.comI don't share success stories nearly enough...But today, one totally rocked my world

We read in the New Testament that God is love, and then we read other stories in the Old Testament about God bringing punishment and death and plagues. So, how do we reconcile what seems almost to be a dual personality? Does God act like Jesus dying for his executioners, or is God more like the deity who allowed an angel of death to kill the firstborn children of Egypt? The answer to that question becomes more evident when you understand that God is like a Zippo Lighter.

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Do you tremble at the fear of the Lord? Are you floored when you think about the glory of God? Let's be honest most of us don't spend much time thinking about God's glory. In fact, we spend very little time thinking about him at all. Well, tune in this week for some fuel for your thoughts, right here on The Bible Study Hour. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/81/29

In today's sermon, Pastor Andrew Coleman continues a sermon series on God's great generosity, preaching from 2 Corinthians 8: 1-7. In this passage, Paul writes to the Corinthian church and commends to them the Macedonian believers, who have demonstrated immense generosity with both their lives AND their finances. In this passage, several qualities in the Macedonian believers should impact US as we seek to live for Christ. Even in the midst of deep affliction and poverty, the Macedonians demonstrated sacrificial generosity with eagerness, joy, and compassion. They desired to give themselves first to God and then to those around them. May we learn from their example and seek to be joyfully and sacrificially generous, just as God has been inexpressibly generous toward us in the gift of Jesus Christ! ________________________________________ Links to Sermon Notes & Answers: ➤Sermon Notes (Blank): https://www.sheridanhills.org/_files/ugd/30fec2_a9d9ce9d1a6149ee9af30bec2cb3cb8b.pdf ➤Sermon Notes (Answers): https://www.sheridanhills.org/_files/ugd/30fec2_cee8eb471cc54d76b5faad75556242d1.pdf ________________________________________ In this video: Review of previous sermons in series Main Points Application ________________________________________ Subscribe to this channel to catch weekly expositional sermons from the Bible. ________________________________________ Explore more sermons and information: https://www.sheridanhills.org/watch-new ________________________________________ Follow us: ➤Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sheridanhills/ ➤Twitter: https://twitter.com/sheridanhills01 ➤Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sheridanhills/

During the Watergate scandal of the early 1970s, Senator Howard Baker posed the question during a hearing, "What did the President know, and when did he know it?" We intuitively understand that the specific knowledge people have and the amount of time they have it can either exonerate or implicate them. What does God know, and when does he know it? It's often said that God is "all-knowing," but what is the actual content of that knowledge? Do our choices matter, or is the future set in stone? Does prayer change things, or is everything destined to play out in a predetermined way? It turns out God is like Dr. Strange. 

Ephesians 5:1-2 Pastor, Sam Cirrincione

God's vision is as big as the stars in the heavens, the dust of the earth, and the sand upon the seashore—all of them too impossible to count! And then we talk about changing the nation by prayer from the heart of your home. 

If we have no memory of hating or opposing God before he saved us, then how should we understand the Bible's claim that we were his enemy?

(Genesis 1:27; 2:7) Man was created in the image of God. Our sin has marred that image, but our gracious God has made a way that we can be restored! The Bible is the only book that can accurately explain our past, present, and future. (0952250227) ----more----   The Creation of Man in God's Image "And God said, let us make man in our image." What a privilege. What a mind-boggling truth that we, humanity, were made in the image of our Creator. Now that is found in Genesis chapter 1 and in Genesis chapter number 2. God expounds upon that. He gives even more detail to His creative work. The Bible says in Genesis chapter 2 verse number 7, "And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul." The Unique Formation of Man If you want to know how man is different than the animals, Here's how. He was, first of all, the only part of the creation that was literally shaped by the hand of God. We preachers get pretty artistic at times and we say God flung the stars into space and He carved out the rivers with His finger, but actually that's not what He did. Now when you read Genesis 1 and 2, you find that God just spoke. That's the power of the Word of God. He just said, light, and there was light, and it was very good. So God spoke all of the created world into existence. But with man, this was the first record that we have that God of His own hands formed man. He took the dust of the ground and He shaped him. Why would He do that? I think it's a very beautiful picture to all of us that from the very beginning of time, God always intended for man's life to be in His hands. In a very real sense, your life is in His hands today. Your times are in His hands. The time of your life and the time of your death is all in the hand of God, not in your own hand. But I wonder, is your life really in God's hand today? Have you put your whole life in the nail pierced hand of Jesus and realized it's not your own? Have you said to your Creator, I want you to be my Redeemer? Have you said to the One who gave you life, I want this new life that comes through Jesus Christ? So the first way we are distinct is that we were formed by His own hand in this creative work. He made us.  The Breath of Life and Eternal Soul And then, He breathed into our nostrils the breath of His life. Ecclesiastes says that God has put a little bit of eternity in every one of us. That's quite a thought, to think that God has put an eternal soul in all of us. Everything is going to burn up, die, disappear, be gone, but not man. A million years from this moment you will be alive somewhere forever because you have an eternal soul. God says He made you a living soul, and when God gives that kind of life, His own life, put into man, There is no end to that. Man's Constitution and Likeness to God We've been talking about how God created man, but think about man's constitution. He was made in the image of God. That word image literally comes from a word that means to shade. The illusion of something, the resemblance of something. It doesn't mean that we are little gods. It means that He has made us in His likeness to, to resemble Him. He has used His own nature, if you will, as a model for creating us. Like God, we have life, an eternal soul. Like God, we have intelligence with the ability to reason and think and decide. Like God, we have emotional and relational capabilities. Like God, we have been made in three parts. Our God, the Godhead, we've talked about this, is God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit. We have spirit, soul, and body. Man is a spirit. And that's literally the part of you where God dwells. You have a soul, your intellect, your emotion, your will, and then He's given you a body. He's put that spirit and soul in a body. And with your body you have five senses to relate to the world around you. That's really a beautiful thing to see how God has reflected His own nature in the creative work. When He made us without sin. Every sinful thing, every wicked thing, every vile thing in this world did not come from God. Everything good had its beginning in God. Everything evil has its beginning in God. in the devil and man's disobedience to his Creator. Sin is the source of every unholy thing. But in the beginning, Adam and Eve were made with innocence. He didn't have the presence of sin because God's not the author of evil. He had the possibility of sin. He was made with the ability to choose, with a free will and a responsibility to His Creator. Now aren't you glad God made us as free moral agents, not as robots? He could have made us like robots. People sometimes argue that. Why would a good God make us So we could do wrong. Let me ask you a question. Why would a good God make us to only do what He says do? Why would He not make us to have a free will to choose? And so this was the way God created us in our constitution.  The Fall of Man in the Garden Then you gotta look beyond man's creation and his constitution to his condition. His condition in the garden was wonderful. It was beautiful. What a life it was. Suddenly sin enters into that garden. Sin enters into the heart of man. And suddenly his condition is very different. The day that man sinned against God, the image of God was not lost, but it was marred. We might say it was not erased, but it was defaced. Because when sin enters in, it brings every wicked, vile, evil thing with it. Which means that without God, we are sinners. We're lost in our sin, we're spiritually dead, we're under the wrath of God. And the only thing that separates us from eternal death is one breath. Aren't you glad God did not leave us that way? Now think about for just a moment the way God created man. Man was made to have what? Dominion. That means to rule and reign with His Creator and for His Creator. Now when He sinned against the Creator, what happened? He switched roles. Instead of being a man who had dominion over, now he is dominated by. Sin takes control of him. The devil takes over. His flesh suddenly becomes his own master.  Redemption Through Jesus Christ The only cure for that, friend, is Jesus. Aren't you glad that God sent a perfect man? He sent his own son, the Lord Jesus Christ, the second Adam, we're told in the book of Romans. Who would live a sinless life and die for the sins of mankind so that we could be set free from the domination of sin. See, when Christ has dominion over us, you're free from the dominion of sin. And what does the Lord do? The Lord not only restores what Adam has, but I want to tell you, in the authority of the Word of God, praise God for this, He gives you much more. And now I'm saved. I'm a child of God. I have God's favor. I am as sure for heaven as if I were already there. And the Lord begins to restore the very image of Christ. That's what the Lord's doing in your life today, by His Holy Spirit. He's, He is seeking to restore the image of God. To allow you to once again reflect His beauty, His glory, His holiness, His light. And of course, someday we're going to rule and reign with Him. Adam was supposed to do that in the beginning and he messed it up. Someday we're gonna rule and reign with Jesus Christ on this earth and then for all eternity. Are you getting ready to reign? Are you getting ready to rule with Christ?  Knowing Your Creator Personally All of this talk about man leads us to talk about God. And so may I speak to every person who's listening to me today. If you're a human being, I'm talking to you. First of all, you need to know your Creator in a personal way. And the only way to do that is through His Son, the perfect man, the Lord Jesus Christ.  If you're not a Christian, right now, would you just bow your head and by simple faith, would you repent of your sin and trust Jesus as your Savior? Would you say to the Lord, I'm a sinner and I'm lost and my life has been marred because of my sin nature? But I believe Jesus died for my sin. Would you invite the Lord Jesus to come into your life? You can enter into a new relationship with God, one that will not be broken. Praise God for that. And if you are a regenerated person, if you already know you've been born again, and you've come into the family of God, would you just pause and praise God who created you and has sustained you and saved you? And would you ask the Lord today to form the image of Christ in you? And to make it so that your life reflects more of Christ than it does of Adam. Would you pray right now that your life would be everything the Creator says that it should be.  Outro and Resources This is what the Bible says. Repeating what other people have said about the Bible is not enough. We must know the biblical reason behind what we believe. We hope you will visit us at etj.bible to access our library of Bible teaching resources, including book-by-book studies of Scripture. You'll also find studies to watch, listen to, or read. We are so grateful for those who pray for us, who share the biblical content, and for those who invest to help us advance this ministry worldwide. Again, thank you for listening, and we hope you'll join us next time on Enjoying the Journey.