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Blindness of Pride
Episode No. 49

“We are good with faith for our salvation, but it becomes not enough for our sanctification.” Pride is sneaking in convincing us that we have to do more, be more, and rely on our ability to make a change rather than allowing Jesus to lead our process of becoming more like him.

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Resources

Verses – Galatians 3:1-9.
Verses – Galatians 3:10-14.
Verses – James 2:14-26.

Transcript

Josh: Hello. Hello. We’re just two normal dudes trying to live this Jesus’ life. My name is Josh. 

Andrew: Hey, I’m Andrew. And we are this Jesus life podcast. 

Josh: Boom, John, how are you doing my friend? Boom, makes it in to our podcast and true for me almost every week. You should have do it. And I was like, I don’t know why this time you nailed it.

Like, I don’t know what it is when I say pod 

Andrew: fan, it’s a hard P podcast, you know? And then now I’m just dancing and boom fields 

Josh: appropriate. Yeah. It’s like the good old days of, um, bomb bomb when bomb meant. Cool. You remember those days? True? 

Andrew: No, no, no. I mean, you are, we’re both old, but uh, but yeah, bomb. Oh, that’s bomb.

Yeah. It used to be a cool thing to say. Now 

Josh: there’s more to it. Yeah, but no, my aunt used balm and I only saw her a handful of times, you know, after that was, you know, a decade before, but she still used bomb. Like she was, she was in 100%, I think, for the rest of her life, the bomb.com. You remember 

Andrew: that used to be a thing, man.

Like people would say 

Josh: that like, like the late nineties, early two thousands. Well, maybe even before that, um, yeah. When, when internet companies were kind of taking off before the burst burst. Before the burst, the bubble I’m sitting here. So if you can hear, like, I don’t know, cars driving by or birds chirping or children’s screaming.

Uh it’s because my windows are open because it’s like 70 something degrees here today. Absolutely amazing after having rain for the last week. So I’m going to take it and it’s beautiful here 

Andrew: too. Sorry. You might hear songbirds coming from me too, because I have my window wide open. Cause it’s like, yeah, it’s awesome here too.

Um, but dude, I got to tell you about 

Josh: something, man. Yeah. Songbirds, the songbirds are coming from Andrew’s mouth. He’s saying it’s one of those open, it’s not introduced as this weird habit. Right. He needs to chirp all the time. So yes, I think he’s been talking to his chickens too much. This is a real issue.

So we’re hearing songbird. It’s Andrew. Like don’t let them lie to you, dude. Just 

Andrew: had to let it out. All right. Speaking of chickens, I have. I have two things that I’m watching out for constantly that I might have to kill. Uh, one is that the other day, uh, my wife was at our herb garden and the chickens were making a ton of noise, which you can’t see the chicken coop, like from our house very easily.

It’s like a little farther back by the edge of the woods. She looked back and there was either like a huge Fox or a coyote, right beside the chicken run area. And like the chickens were terrified of it. So I’ve been watching out for that. And like multiple times, every time I hear the chickens, like going nuts back there, I run back and I’m like, oh, well I don’t really want back, but I try to sneak back and I take my bow.

I’m like, I might have to kill 

something 

Josh: right now. And then like, yeah, to the Fox’s defense, like you’ve kind of just created a, a little happy meal for them. Like you’ve caged them all up right there. Ready to go for him. Like, you know, I, I don’t, I don’t, you know, um, I was gonna say, I don’t hurt the counties.

That’s not the word. I don’t think it’s their fault. Like, it’s, it’s really, you’re setting it up and you’re just like, Hey, here, here’s some chickens. They’re all in the box. Ready for you to pluck out at anytime that you need them. 

Andrew: Yeah. And it’s not their fault at all. It’s their nature. You know, I just got to like build a stronger fence and make sure they can’t get through.

But at the same time, I got to also make sure I don’t let too many of them come close and hang out because that happened in the middle of the day. And that is a bold coyote or a Fox. 

Josh: I’d say, I say, you can just kill one of them and then hang it by its feet near it just so they know, like you’re just setting like the tempo of like, Hey, I just want you to know you’re coming to close.

You’re gonna be his friend. Uh, and I think that get that, I don’t want 

Andrew: to kill him. I’m going to kill the predator. Really. I just want to like scare them, you know, make sure they know it’s a real deal, but. There’s also another animal that every day, 

Josh: like, say that, but let’s be honest, you kill a county with your bow and you’re going to tell everybody, cause we were pretty 

Andrew: proud of it.

Yeah, I will. I will. I’ll tell the 

Josh: story. Yeah. So yesterday I could hear it just getting through the fence. It was like the last minute I pulled back on my boat,

Andrew: people are gonna like report this to PETA. Like this is not okay. Content. They say this was a Jesus podcast, but they’re talking about murder. Of an animal. Um, 

Josh: what hasn’t been, it’s been a long while since we’ve talked about your chickens. So what they asked me about your chickens? Not that long ago, I don’t remember who it was, but yeah.

Um, you know, so with the podcast, which has now been on air for a year as he took both Andrew and I, yes. Uh, you know, you’re, you’re one of those OJI podcasts listeners. You would know that we talked about chickens a lot and you might’ve missed it. So there’s your update. Uh, they’re still trying to be attacked by Cody’s.

Yep. 

Andrew: Nothing’s true, dude. The other thing I have, and I have a literal alarm, like reminder every day for this, but it just says it comes on at 5:00 PM and just says kill the Groundhog. Um, because there’s a Groundhog that has been sneaking into our garden and has eaten some of our starter plants. And I caught him in there one night, but I didn’t have anything to like, do anything about it.

And honestly, I was stunned because I’m like, well, that’s a full on Groundhog. So I’ve been on 

Josh: the lookout. 

Andrew: Hey, I don’t know. They probably weigh like 25 pounds. Um, maybe, but they’re kind of long and like low and yeah, they’re like a tube shape, but, uh, anyway, I saw him the other night and it snuck out there again with my bow, but I think he caught wind of me or heard me close the door.

So, uh, yeah, literally I’m trying to like kill them 

Josh: into your garden, like coming 

Andrew: from the ground. Yup. Going right under the fence. No problem for him. 

Josh: That’s a cartoon. I think I’m pretty sure that’s like the storyline of most cartoons out there, at least from, you know, when we were kids. Yes. 

Andrew: A hundred percent.

And uh, those things, or maybe some are, I don’t know, the kids shows I let my older daughter watch are, uh, are very innocent, 

Josh: so yeah. That’s good. Yeah, man. Or at least you think they are, they might be under undercurrent sneaking things in these days. 

Andrew: You’re all doom and gloom today. Man, 

Josh: I noticed this a while ago.

Um, we’d like to say I do it probably more than you do, but I like to say, you know, not to be political, then we end up being 

Andrew: super political. Anytime you say, not, not to be political, I’m like, I’m going to make this political and just so you know, cause you’re trying to like skirt around it. I’m like, man, no, no, no.

Josh: Give you the heads up. That’d be political. 

Andrew: Ah, it’s so 

Josh: funny, dude. Um, yeah. How you been in the middle of the series? I’ve been great. I was going to transition us, but um, yeah, I’ve been great. Um, but yeah, in the middle of the series, we’re going through Galatians, we still, you know, three episodes and we don’t have a cool name for it.

Maybe one day we will, who knows. Yeah. And probably when it’s all said and done, and we package it up as a series and then put it on the website. But until then, it’s just going to be called the Galatians series. And we’ve been going through Galatians. We went through chapter one, chapter two. We’re now looking at chapter three now because we’re going chapter by chapter, but this is just kind of how it panned out.

And we’re looking at the beginning of Galatians three, the first 14 ish chapter. Chapters, uh, versus, um, as we kind of dig into this, this continued idea of, you know, we have great freedom in the gospel and Jesus went to the crossroads storing, you know, forgiving sins, but also restoring relationship with Jesus all based on faith.

Um, you know, the fact that we find salvation believing that Jesus is who he said he was, God did what he said he was going to do. It lived a perfect life and died a center staff on the cross, um, conquering death three days later. Um, and that’s where our faith real asides inside of what we call the resurrection, um, the death and resurrection of Christ.

Um, and we find a lot of freedom and it’s, it’s a faith based relationship, um, that we choose to believe that this is true. And in that faith, we find salvation, um, which is different than the old covenant old covenant was based on, you know, works. And that’s kind of what Paul hints out here. And it doesn’t hint at it.

He nails it right on the head, but, um, In Galatians one. So we’re, we’re really looking at man, what does it mean? Look like, and I think all of this is applicable today. A good portion of this audience are Jewish Christians or Gentile Christians in a Jewish culture. Um, and that’s where we’re a lot of these why he’s talking in these terminals.

These terminologies of works based religion. Um, new covenant, the law, all those types of things and how that brings it all together. Um, but yeah, there’s a lot of freedom in what we, um, have inside of Jesus. And I think oftentimes we choose a workspace faith, uh, over our freedom, um, because it, because it gives us more control, right.

We have tentatively named this episode, which probably will be the name of the episode because we won’t come up with a new one before it gets posted blind Brymans of pride. As we look at Galatians chapter three, one through four teen, but Andrew, what is your, your initial thoughts before we kinda dive into the verses today?

Andrew: Well, listen, I like the name blindness of pride. Uh, so I think it’s a solid name. You came up with it and, uh, you know, don’t screw it up, uh, go with it. It’s solid. Um, 

Josh: I approached him from somewhere else. Let’s be honest, probably I’m 

Andrew: sure. Or somebody has, has said it at some point we’ll, uh, we’ll find that out and cite it appropriately.

I’m just kidding. Um, my first thoughts is, you know, I know, uh, I think that, yeah, I think we do this often in, in our faith. Uh, it’s a, it’s a problem that is just as good. Um, and today, right now, as any time in the past of, of saying, you know, I don’t know, I don’t want to like steal your thunder, but basically in verse three, um, I won’t even read it cause I’ll, I’ll let you dive into that point cause you brought it up, but you know, Paul basically calls out directly, um, Did you guys like you, you got here through faith in Jesus and through the work that he did on the cross, but are you getting to perfection through your own strength, through the flesh, like through your own rules and your own deeds and all of that, is that the thing that actually gives you a real relationship with God and makes you somehow better than others is by what you do with your hands?

You know, he calls it out that way. And to me that’s like, kind of in the vein of are very much in the vein of what we’ve been talking about of like, are you adding to the gospel? You know, we’ve talked about no other gospel, a lot in the last few podcasts. And uh, it’s like, what are you adding to your faith?

What, what things are you starting to do that you believe make you righteous things that are of you and that are in the power of your hands that are in the rules that you made up or that you elevated to be. Like the right rules, you know, uh, not even rules, like what, what commandments are you adding to?

The things that Jesus said, and then what are you living out of? So I do think blindness of pride is a good, good word to describe this, because I think that a lot of times you accept the relationship with Jesus and you, you start with that and you say, I’m going to follow Jesus. I’m going to live in the way that, that he lived.

I’m going to try to do the things he said to do. I’m going to walk in real relationship with the Lord. And then at some point you can pretty easily trail off and say, well, I’m going to start yeah. Doing this thing. I’m going to start. It can be a great thing. I’m going to start serving at the, at the food shelter.

You know, I’m going to start serving meals to the homeless in our community once a week. And then that might feel really good. Cause you’re like, you’re doing it out of the right motives. You’re doing it, uh, as an expression of your faith. And I’m picking on this example, if you’re listening to this and you do it, I’m not saying it’s bad, but.

You might then decide over time that you’re not a real Christian. When you’re looking out at other Christians, you’re not a real Christian, unless you’re serving the homeless in this same way. And you might elevate that to say, this is the most important thing in my faith. Therefore it’s the most important thing in everybody’s faith and you slowly can get off track with something that started off.

Right. Um, but then kind of became a source of pride then makes you blind to the real gospel of. Of what is the gospel? You know, all of a sudden you see the gospel as just serving the homeless, you know, and caring for their needs. That’s a great thing. That’s, that’s something that is in line with what Jesus teaches is, you know, giving back and serving those in need.

Um, looking out for those who have less means than you, but he didn’t say that’s the gospel cause it’s not. Um, but you can, all I’m saying is you start off, it’s often out of like a good intention of I’m doing this for the right reasons. And then maybe pride swells up a little bit. And then you elevate the importance of whatever that thing is in your mind.

And then over time, it’s like, I don’t know that is the gospel, you know, serving meals. Is it the gospel? And it’s like, no, it’s totally not. And if you’re leading other people that direction, you’re leading them nowhere, they might make you feel good, but, but it’s not the gospel. So those are my initial thoughts.

And, uh, I think you should keep the title. It’s solid. 

Josh: No, I think that that’s great. Great thoughts. Um, uh, I think would probably be best just to read the verses. I know we don’t normally do on the podcast, but, um, I don’t know how much else we give context to verses like this, that aren’t famous parables.

Right. Um, but you know, I’m going to read these verses, but with a caveat and I think that’s hyperness word, the caveat is that you need to spend time with Jesus reading these verses yourself. Yes. Um, it’s, it’s one thing to hear a preacher to hear other people talk about scripture, uh, and there’s a place for that in our lives.

Um, but, um, You know, the recorded word of God and what we have, what we call the Bible, um, is designed to foster relationship with between you and God. I’m suspend time with Jesus and relationship. Ask him to speak to your soul, to your heart, um, to speak the things into your life based on what you’re reading and that you need to hear.

So don’t miss out on that because we’re going to read it. If you need to pause the podcast. Yeah. Benefit you. Beautiful thing about technology. Um, go spend some time with Jesus. We’re in Galatians three. Uh, we’ll go through with probably around 14. Um, but you can read the whole thing if you want. Uh, and just spend some time with Jesus and see what Jesus has to tell you through these things.

Um, It is a lot more going to be a lot more impactful and fruitful to your sanctification process, which we’ll get into as we talk about these verses, um, than anything would ever, uh, coming from another source. So foster that relationship. Jesus, nothing else matters more, but here it is Galatians chapter three verses one through 14.

Let’s be honest. I don’t know why I’m reading the verses. Andrew probably should read them cause he reads much better than that. Well, we’ll give it a shot. 

Andrew: You got this, bro. Don’t let a, that, that one comment get in the head. I, I believe you can do this. So 

Josh: what was the one comment that I can’t really, ah, one of 

Andrew: her friends.

You said I can read better. So I figured you were thinking about that. The one person said that anytime you were quoting Jesus, you like used a low voice or something, remember it? Yeah. You like, you changed your voice or something. You got 

Josh: this matter listener. 

Andrew: That’s so funny. Sorry, dude. 

Josh: Tried to bring that up.

She forced my hand. I was, I was preaching once and I made some comment about, um, about my inability to read. Well, I never learned the skill, uh, to sound words out. So I know the word, I don’t know the word. I don’t know that there’s a good chance. It’s funny. But I shared that. I shared it. In a, in a, I probably shared it multiple messages, probably anytime I screwed up reading something.

But, um, one time I made a comment about my mom and my mom used to make me read into a microphone and do like hooked on phonics and micro and to hear a bad, that would help from mother. If you’re listening, I know you’re not because you don’t listen to podcasts, but if you happened to wasn’t this one, I love you deeply.

I think it’s funny. That’s the only reason I share this, but I shared that in a message once and someone gave me feedback of like, you know, that’s a really shaming of your mother. Like I don’t think she’d really appreciate it. No, I don’t think that’s the case. I think, I think she, she would see it as a joke and wouldn’t, wouldn’t take any harm to it.

Um, and thanks for speaking about my mom’s emotions and feelings that you don’t know her. Um, the second time I was just talking about my inability to re somebody, emailed me and was like, Hey, I work for such and such company. We help people learn how to read better and understand. It’s never too late to get.

That is awesome. I don’t care now. 

Andrew: So funny. Thank you for your care and concern, 

Josh: but you know, so much for caring about me, but yeah, I’m not, I’m not reading into a microphone again. You’re like, this is 

Andrew: the thing of my nightmares lady. I’m not doing this again, and I’m not paying you to make me do it. 

Josh: It’s funny.

It’s like a dentist, like, well, I don’t want to pay you to you. Just tell me how, how much I suck at this. That’s totally, totally. Here it is. Galatians chapter three, starting with verse one and as. As Paul does starts it out fantastically. Well, you furnished Galatians who was being watched. You I’ll translate that for you.

Hey, you morons, like what has happened here before your very eyes? Jesus was clearly portrayed as crucified. He’s taken care of it. That’s what Paul’s saying. He went to the cross. He died for the sins of people. So people can find salvation and freedom from their sin and restore relationship with God.

Right. Jesus was clearly portrayed as crucified. I would like to learn just one thing from you, the sarcasm in it. Totally sarcastic. Yep. You’re going to be the guy that I’m going to really enjoy. If I can get close into you enough and happen. I don’t know if you’re, you’re like one of those upper echelon people that I’m just not, not good enough to be around, but if you’re not and I can have conversations or I can get along, did.

You have to receive the spirit by works of the law or believing what you heard. That’s an important verse I’m gonna read again, are important question. Did you receive the spirit by the works of the law or by believing what you heard on your own ability or by faith? Are you so foolish after beginning by means of the spirit you’re now trying to finish by the means of the flesh.

Have you experienced so much in vain if it really was in vain? So ask again, does God give you his spirit and work miracles among you by the works of the law or by believing what you have heard? So also Abraham believed God and I was accredited to him as righteousness understanding then, uh, that those who have, who have faith are children of Abraham they’re, God’s chosen people, um, scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham.

All nations will be blessed through you. So for those who rely on faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith, verse 10, for all who rely on the works of law are under the curse. As it’s written, cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the book of the wall. Clearly, anyone who relies on the laws justified before God, because the righteous will live by faith.

The law is not based on faith. On the contrary, it says the person who does these things will live by them. Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law. By becoming the curse for us, for it is written. Cursed is everyone who is hung on a pole. He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come through the Gentiles might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that faith might receive the promise of the spirit.

Now, for the sake of our conversation, let me go back to verse three. Cause I think this is going to highlight everything. Um, are you so foolish after beginning? Meaning when you came to salvation, it was by the means of the spirit. Are you now trying by the means of the flesh to complete it? 

Andrew: Yeah, 

Josh: I would say that was pretty good reading.

Well-read like, I knocked that out of the park. You 

Andrew: crushed it. Thank you. You knocked 

Josh: it out of the sublime friends of you, Andrew. I just need my pride stroke 

Andrew: done, man. I’m the one who brought up the negative reading comments. So the least I can do is bring you back up. You know, you, uh, you knocked it out of the park.

Uh, no, man. Ah, are you so foolish having begun by the spirit? Are you now being perfected by the flesh that that’s the ticket? Like, I don’t know. What, what are your reactions? I shared my kind of flourish first blush ones to that, but verse three, Galatians three first three. What are your big reactions of that question?

That Paul asks. 

Josh: Yeah, I think, and we’ve talked about it over the last handful of podcasts too. It’s kind of a recurring theme that keeps coming back up, but I think it’s a really important thing. You know, what, at the core of my life right now, in this season of life, I want people to have hope. Um, you know, I came out of a pretty dysfunctional and destructive season, um, you know, for a variety of different reasons.

Um, and I started looking around at Christianity. I started to look around the church. I started look around people I knew and, and friends that I, that, that profess faith in Christ. And the one thing I didn’t see was faith or whether the one thing I didn’t see was hope like. We have the greatest hope ever given to mankind because we’re now Jesus’s through sacrifice on the cross.

And yet we don’t live. Like we have that hope, right. Circumstances of life, just beat the living crap out of us. And we’ve never matured enough in our faith, um, to have that hope. Um, because I think a big piece of this is at some point along the way, though, faith was enough for my salvation. It’s not enough for my sanctification.

Well, that’s a good line. Let’s say that again. That is a good life. I feel like I’d be like a black preacher. I listen to a lot of black preachers, so that’s probably where it’s coming from. Not because they’re black, but because when I say black preacher, there’s a style to it that it’s just great to stop.

Yeah. But when we S I don’t remember what I said now. Dang, Josh was so glad when we missed it. Go back and listen to it for few seconds backwards on your podcast app. Just relisten to it. Hey, Hey, let me, let me hit commit. So 

Andrew: the issue is this. It was this while faith is enough for your salvation. It’s not enough for your sanctification.

Josh: That’s good. Let’s go line. Oh, thank you. Jesus. For lines that are super, super, um, rhymey in our heads. Um, Th that’s the truth of it. And this is what I mean by sanctification. Sanctification is the process of you becoming more like Christ after you find salvation in Jesus. That’s the sanctification process.

That process will continue until the day that you die. And at that point you are 100% the new creation with a new body and not new spirit, but in body and sin has gone away. Right. Um, but up until that point, sin is still dominant. Um, it’s still around in our lives and we need Jesus for that sanctification process.

So that process of becoming more like Jesus, oftentimes we take is it’s a process that’s completely up to us. It’s this, if I white knuckle it enough, if I’m self-disciplined enough, if I’m, if I’m, if I’m, if I’m whatever, right, then I will become more like Jesus. And the point of all this is is it’s not up to you.

I don’t know how many times we can say it, but it’s not up to you. The sanctification process is Jesus’s process. He leads the process. He’s the changer in the process. He is 100% in control of the process. Your job in that process is faith is by the moons of the spirit. Are you living in relationship with Jesus and fostering that relationship with Jesus and then listen to Jesus and what he’s saying and do what he’s telling you to do and nothing else, um, live in the midst of that relationship.

So like, you know, I just went public with the fact that we’re planting a church, which is credit plan on talking about this, but we use it as a sermon illustration or a podcast illustration, because this is not a sermon, but at times it feels like some kind of. And that would probably be with, with this.

And we’ve been working on this for, you know, actively for the last year and in an inactive, but active way for the last four, five or six years. Yeah. Yeah. It’s been awhile. Um, I don’t remember where I was going with this. Oh, so we went public with it. Well, it’s a steal a term from, from a friend of mine that’s terrifying and exciting at the same time.

We’ll call it Tara siding. That’s right. Um, and there’s a lot of fear that gets attached to doing something like that because it’s something that you’ve built and you’ve burst, and God has worked in your heart to bring, to being, and worked in the hearts of others as well to come into existence. Um, and you’re now bringing it out into the public for a first time, probably like a, a new parent, um, bringing your child out into the public for the first time.

Probably terrifying. You’re terrified. They’re going to get sick. Something’s going to happen to them. Um, they’re not going to be the same when they finally get home. Right? Same, same kind of feelings, not to the same level or maybe even to the same level and in a healthy way. Um, uh, in your mind, Well, you know, that’s where I was feeling and I was physically feeling it, right.

Like I was feeling it in my, in my gut of like, man, it’s out here. I don’t know how people are going to respond to it. Let’s see what’s going to happen. And in the midst of that, that moment, I remember we went public on Monday. I think it was Monday. Um, we started posting about it, but, um, Monday night, like I’m just, I can driving back from wherever and I’m just feeling it.

And I’m like, man, I don’t, I don’t know what to do. Um, so I just do what I do now is I’m going to just start talking to Jesus about it. I’m Josh, Josh, Josh. Isn’t Jesus, Jesus. Um, you know what, uh, you know, here’s the emotions that I’m feeling or I think I’m feeling. Here’s the fear that I think is starting to take over here’s, um, the, the, whatever, whatever, whatever, you know, I’m laying it all out.

And it was a long conversation. Um, I actually took more laps around the neighborhood, um, to keep that conversation going. Um, and it was just a moment of time or I’m just gonna let it all out. And then it’s after I did all my part of like, here’s, here’s everything. Geez. I’m just going to lay it bare before you, what the heck am I supposed to do?

And Jesus gave me clear instructions on what to do. And I said, okay, I’m going to do those things. And I’ll be honest with you. I didn’t think about it again the rest of the day or the next day. And in all honesty, wasn’t 100% thinking about it. Um, somebody mentioned something about it and you’re like, oh yeah, that’s right.

It’s a thing. A hill city is now, you know, out in the open, the anxiety, the fear of it all. Not worrying about whether good things or bad things come from from that announcement. And with my past bad things could come from and who knows, um, don’t really care if they do not really my problem problem with the people that think that’s a problem.

Um, but those are all things that like, I don’t know if I would’ve been be able to deal with, well, I’d probably still be sitting in the stress and the anxiety of that. If I didn’t walk through the relationship with Jesus, for those things, um, and lay it all out bare before Christ. Um, and those are the things that get us through these moments.

Um, it’s living by faith. It’s living by the spirit rather than living with the flesh. It’s not up to me. I have to what I’m able to do or not able to do it’s 100% up to what Jesus wants to do. And me just being obedient in the midst of that irrelevant. That relationship. Um, and sometimes it’s really hard and other times it’s really easy.

Um, but my job isn’t to do everything, my job isn’t to do this all on my own and what I can do it it’s 100% of I’m just going to be in relationship with Jesus and do what Jesus asked me to do and not worry about the rest. And because I could say there’s 5,000 things that need to be done between now and, and you know, a month from now.

Um, but I’m not really going to worry about any of those 5,000 things. And just going to worry about the things that Jesus telling me to do right now. Um, and when fear starts to set in or anxiety starts to set in, which I know is pretty normal in today’s age. Um, are you running back to Jesus in those moments?

Are you going to keep trying to do it on your own? And you’re going to keep trying to do it by the means of flesh in the midst of what Paul is saying here. I know that was a long rant. Andrew, what do you think about at all? That 

Andrew: was a good way for me to 

Josh: share this podcast, but there you go. No, 

Andrew: and I, sorry, if you hear a little background noise, my, uh, one daughter is, uh, screaming a lot.

So I’m going to be intentional to give my wife a break after we record this, because she’s going to need one. Um, dude, I, you know, it’s interesting you bring up, I pretty quickly, when we were talking about pride, I went to, um, like an example of like you’re serving in some way, and then you get pride around that thing.

Um, it’s interesting. You went to like, you know, with the announcement came fear that, that you could maybe block with pride of like, no, no, I’m just doing this great thing. You know, like we’re launching this church, it’s such a big deal, but it is a big deal. It’s awesome. But you went to fear and maybe that’s like the means to cover up pride.

So I don’t know. I just, I. As a person, I don’t like, I try not to like put too much stock in somebodies title or, um, wealth or appearance or whatever, because I know that stuff is like window dressing, you know? Um, but our culture says like your title, your money, your fame, your whatever, you know, social media followers, like that’s all such a big deal.

Um, but I think those are all the wrong metrics. You know, those are all the wrong. Ways to measure like a life of following Jesus. Like it’s not really about you, you know, it is in, in that it’s about a real relationship and a personal one, but it’s not about you and me and like do a million people want to follow our podcast.

Is that our only metric that matters because if it is like, yeah, we should, yeah, we get, I mean, 10 million listens a week obviously, but, um, it’s true. No, I 

Josh: mean like 

Andrew: in so much money, like if that’s the only thing you and I care about is did we get a ton of new podcasts listens? Did we get a ton of new invites to be on other shows?

Did we get, you know, like if those are the metrics we care about in this, or in any other facet of her life, Like if in planting hill city, if the only thing you care about is, Hey, are we the biggest church in Colorado? Are we the fastest growing church plant? Are we the, whatever the next life church, the next, whatever, like influential powerhouse, like if that’s what you’re caring about, then like your metrics are bad and you might get it.

You might, you might get whatever you’re pushing towards, you know? Um, and you might get it by white knuckling it, and by whatever, by making that your only goal of, we want to be the biggest, we want to be the most known. We want to be the loudest. We want to be whatever, but reality is. If, if we’re not shaping our things in life, on, on the gospel and on kind of how Jesus lived and how he modeled for us to live, then.

I think we’re going to get off base and we’re going to start having the wrong goals and having the wrong measures to get there by. Um, so yeah, I don’t know, like pride is a Preds, a tricky thing, you know, it’s like Satan in the pie bowl, you know, he was an angel, uh, until he basically wanted to be in the place of God through pride, maybe he thought he could do it better, you know, that it could improve the way God was being God, you know, and that’s motivated out of pride and, and it, it didn’t work out.

Josh: Yeah. I think oftentimes we talk about pride and people often go to confidence. Um, you know, arrogance. Yeah. These more aggressive emotions of pride. Um, and I think too often because of that, they think, oh, I’m not a pro uh, I can’t be a proud for a person. Like I’m terrified. I’m full of fear. Um, but I’ll, I’ll redefine pride for you.

And I think this will be helpful for our conversation. Um, pride is thinking that you can, that you have a better way, right? Like pride is thinking, oh yeah. You know, like you just said about Satan, um, like pride was, was saying, thinking, oh yeah, Jesus is doing it this way. Uh, I have a better way. I’m going to do it this way.

Um, I’m just, you know, however you want that play out. Now, it could play out in a confident, proudful way, a arrogant way of like, I’m just better. I’m so much smarter. Look at me. I am, God is blessing to the world, but it could also play out in, in more, um, A sinister in hidden ways of like, yeah, I know this is what Jesus wants me to do.

Um, but, um, I’m going to do it. I’m going to do it this way because I think it’s better for me. And I’m special. Um, we don’t say those things, but that’s really what we’re saying for doing it the different way than Christ, like I’m special. So I don’t have to do it that way. Um, and I think this is where we get ourselves in a lot of trouble.

Um, so I’ll relate it back to the church work. Um, you know, in planting a church, we have, there’s a lot of church plants right now happening in Colorado Springs, um, where I’m based out of, um, I know of. Of three that recently launched. I know of another three that are about to launch, uh, in life church. Um, you know, the largest church in the United States, just location Springs.

Now we could look at those things and say, oh, this is a horrible time to plant a church. Um, the fact that there’s a lot of competition in the market, right. And I know plenty of pastors that live in this world, um, they’re terrified and you know, they like to hide it. Um, it’s, you know, well, you know, Yeah, no churches I’ve ever been bigger than this size and sustained it in Colorado Springs.

And I just want to give you a word of warning. Um, like we hide them in so many different ways, uh, verbally unhealthy and, and not true at all. Um, I look and say God’s up to something in Colorado Springs or what it is. I don’t know what he’s trying to bring here. I would hope that it’s the, it’s the gospel, it’s this exact message that we’re talking about today.

Stop trying to do it on your own, stop, living by your own flesh and what you’re able to do and start living in relationship with Jesus. Knowing some of these guys that are planting churches, I would argue that’s the message that God is bringing back to Colorado Springs to the Christian culture, but also to the culture at a whole restoring hope.

Um, we should be excited like, heck yeah, God is up to something and we gotta be a part of it. There is a journey who knows what it’s going to look like in 10 years from now, you will have 10, you have, you know, six, seven churches that are going to live that mission. We’re going to hold onto the gospel alone, that we’re not going to allow any other gospel to come into play.

That we’re going to help people find freedom and hope, uh, in, in their relationship with Jesus in this life that we’re going to help them mature as disciples of Christ. And when I say mature, I’m not saying knowledge maturity, I’m saying relational maturity, um, that we have great faith in who Jesus is.

And no matter what life throws at you, you can stand strong and stand firm in your identity because Jesus defined it in your relationship with Jesus, because Jesus is Jesus. And in your future, because Jesus has determined it. Um, I don’t know about you, but that’s a city I want to be in. That’s the city. I want to be a part of, um, that’s going to be an impact in the lives and the souls of people, not just for salvation, but for the life that they’re going to continue to live as a new creation before the coming of Christ.

Like that’s a huge deal. Why wouldn’t you want to be a part of those things? So. Like pride shows up in so many different ways they can show up and in, in sinister little secretive ways that you don’t even realize it. So when you hear the word pride, don’t let yourself get to the place of, oh, I’m like, that’s just for arrogant, confident people.

I’m not one of those now pride going to pray. It’s going to. Sneaking in a lot of different ways than that. And I think it comes down to exactly, you know, this verse right here that we’ve been quoting over and over again. Are you so foolish that I buy the meat at the beginning? After the beginning, by the means of the spirit, you came to salvation through faith in Christ, meaning that you believe Jesus, whose is who he said he was and did what he said he was going to do.

Um, and now. That wasn’t enough for your life. So you’ve taken on this, this workspace, faith, and that’s what Paul was trying to explain to the rest of these verses this law based. Here’s all the list of sins that you need to avoid. Here’s all the things that you need to do. So you’re not in sin and this is everything.

And Paul is trying to say, no, no, no, it’s not everything. I want you to walk in relationship with Jesus. Does that mean that Jesus doesn’t care about sin? No, we, we saw it in the last chapter. He absolutely cares about sin because sin is destructive and it’s destructive in our relationships with one another.

And it’s destructive in our relationship with God. So yes, sin matters, but sin is not the focus. And that’s really important to hear sends Neville the focus. Us sending less is never the focus. The focus is always our relationship with Jesus. And are we fostering a relationship with Jesus? You’ll find as you walk with Jesus as Jesus shapes and molds you and commands you to do certain things and not do other things in the midst of moments that yeah, you’re going to end up sending less.

It’s a by-product of walking with Jesus. Um, but the goal wasn’t to sin less, the goal is to be in deeper relationship with Jesus. And I would argue that when you get those twists and switched around, this is where you end up with in this hopeless place of where you feel like Christianity is burden, that this relationship with Jesus thing is so difficult and so hard because it’s not, it’s really easy.

Um, the burden of Christ is really light. If we choose to live in relationship with Jesus, but when we take the reins back and it’s all up to me to sin less in my life, right? It’s up to me to do all these God, God things in my life. Yeah. No wonder it feels so freaking hard because you’re not God good luck bring those things.

Well, 100% of the time you’re going to feel beat up. You’re going to feel like a failure. You’re going to feel like God’s just waiting to smite you right. In a moment. And I don’t mean to, I don’t know if my old youth pastor listens, he used to use the smite term on a regular basis. And I don’t mean to take shots in midst of theology would be different in this.

Our theology will be different in this area. And I would argue my theology is right there. God’s not out there to smite you. He’s not. If you’ve come to salvation in Jesus, recognizing as scripture, it tells us that Jesus was the summit. God, that he lived a perfect life. Then he died a sinner’s death taking on your sins and mind conquering death three days later.

So we can do the same. You believe that is who Jesus was. And that is what Jesus did. Your salvation is secured. What that means is going back to the Abraham promise your gods. You’re a child of the king. Nothing is going to change that. There’s no sin. You can commit. There’s no evil act that you could perform.

That’s going to change that. Now sin is still destructive. It’s still going to destroy this life. You continue to practice in the midst of it, but don’t try to conquer those things on your own walk with Jesus. Let him get to the root of those issues. I don’t know about you, but if you’ve ever struggled with habitual sin, which I have, like, it’s really hard to white knuckle, it, you think you’ve got a handle on it?

Two, three months later and everything falls apart again. Um, it doesn’t work, but when we focus in on a relationship with Jesus, you’ll be amazed at how easy temptation becomes to conquer, because you’re just walking with Jesus. When you feel temptation, you have the conversation with Jesus about it. What am I feeling?

What am I thinking? Why is this a source of something? What is going on that I need? What behaviors am I doing that I need to change? So I’m not experiencing these things, how quickly those conversations start to happen and how quickly Jesus guides in the midst of those things. But the difference is I’m not focusing on the sin.

I’m not focusing on, you know, the, the crappy Christian that I am. I’m just focusing on my relationship with Jesus and let him take care of the rest. We made me begin with the spirit, but all too often, where do the Galatians is the same thing? That’s true of our lives because we’re human beings and human and they can’t figure it out and we’re taking control.

It’s all up to me. What I can do. 

Andrew: I mean, we’re in the in-between phase of when Jesus came and before you came back, you know, so, uh, so we’re struggling with the same stuff they did. And we just don’t have a Paul to speak directly to our lives, but in a way we do through the Bible, you know, but the reality is, yeah, it’s anytime you’re white knuckling something, it’s probably pride saying, I can figure this out.

I can handle this, I got this. I don’t need help in it. I’ll just take care of it. You know, like I can. I can do that for when I need to spread a big old pile of mulch, I can do that. You know, when I need to stop a habitual set in my life, I’m not going to be successful doing that, um, in the same way, you know, so yeah, man, I couldn’t agree more and uh, I think it’s solid.

Like it’s just, it’s the truth and, and we think Pride’s easier, but it always ends up being harder. Um, yeah. 

Josh: And I think we, I think we have episodes in the past where we talked about pride and humility. We do have it when we went through. Um, how do we love others? I know we talked about humility, but um, so go back, listen to those.

I think they’re helpful. Um, but the opposite of pride is, is humility and it takes humility to say, you need help, whether that’s, you’re asking God for help, or you’re asking others for help. Humility means you have to rely on other people that it’s not all about you and not all about what you can do anymore.

And we’re not talking about just, um, uh, the big sins, sexual sin, um, uh, gambling, adult tree, uh, uh, you name it, whatever you wanna throw and throw gambling and their sense of like all gambling is sinful, but shows up in that place. Same thing with same thing with drinking. Right, right. Um, but if you’re in the midst of those things and you’re like, well, I just, you know, I keep trying and keep trying, or I’m not a good enough Christian.

I get angry too quickly, all these different issues. Um, when you think in your living in your flesh, meaning you’re trying to do it on your own. Um, and humility is not a part of the picture. That’s where Pride’s living and you keep trying to do it on your own. Instead of saying, Jesus, I can’t do this. Like Jesus, I got so pissed and angry at my son, or I got so pissed and angry at my daughter.

Um, and this was the result of those things. Um, If you’re going to sit there and say, and, and defend your actions. Um, yeah, that’s pride in the midst of it. You’re saying I don’t need help, but when you’re saying Jesus, I don’t want to be that person. Like, can I just lay it all out before you, so we can talk about these things.

Like that’s a big deal. Um, and humility, isn’t easy. It doesn’t come naturally to humanity. We have to practice those things. Um, and I know that’s hard, right? Like there’s so many, and that was one example. If somebody thinks that we could use it in our lives. Right. Um, so, so often it’s, uh, maybe it’s a job and you’re looking at a job and the job is stressful.

You don’t know if you’re going to keep your job. You don’t know if they’re going to whatever they’re going to. Um, uh, what’s the word I’m looking for it. They’re gonna say, you know, I don’t, uh, they’re gonna reorg and you’re gonna lose your job, like Andrew’s story. And now you’re in this feat, right? Not to bring up a wound for Andrew, but I’m like, you’re going to live in this fear of like, I don’t know what the future holds.

Well on your own accord. Sure. You don’t know what the future holds, right. If it’s all up to you and what you can do in that situation. Yeah. You don’t know if you have enough to do what you need to do, but it’s not up to you. It’s up to Jesus. Even if you have to change career fields, even if everything gets turned upside down and that could be a whirlwind of an experience, if Jesus is in the midst of it, you’re going to be okay.

If you’re walking with Christ in the midst of it, you’re not going to have fear and anxiety because you’re not relying on what you, you can do it through all this, how you can imagine, you know, uh, manage the emotions of it, how you can manage, you know, how you’re going to take care of your family in the future.

Sure. Things may be different, but if God’s in the midst of it, it’s always going to be better. And, um, and I don’t say that together and the prosperity gospel of love. You have enough faith. God’s going to give you, I don’t think any of that’s true, but if you live in a relationship with Jesus, no matter what life throws at you, God has always want me to take those things and use it for your good scripture, promises us that.

Um, so food live in that faith and we keep holding onto a relationship with Jesus. There’s nothing. I think life can throw at you that you can’t handle it. Because you can handle on your own, but you’re handling it in relationship with Jesus. Guess what? He’s going to take care of it all. Um, it might not be the way that you want it to be taken care of.

It may be different than that, but it’s always better, right? Always better. Like I’m sitting at a place today where my relationship with Jesus has never been better. And I don’t say that in pride. I don’t say that. Say, look at me. I say that to say, Hey, I’m practicing what we’re preaching. Right? The things that we’ve been talking about for the last year on this podcast, I’m practicing those same things in my own life.

I’m trying to foster relationship with Jesus as my first priority of everything that I do. And sure. Things don’t go how I planned it. Things are different than oftentimes in the midst of it. Sure. We’re worry. Fear. Anxiety are still a part of the story. Those aren’t going to go anywhere. Um, because I’m still human.

But in the midst of those things, I walk with Jesus with those things I’ve had, I have practical conversations, intimate, honest, vulnerable conversations with Jesus about those things, man, to those problems, he’s so much smaller that they don’t seem to be that big of a deal. And I’m coming out of a season where like I was fired from my last job.

I think we talked about this. Hopefully that’s not, that’s not a surprise. I think we did talk about it at one point. And we said, we’re not going to talk about it in the big picture because it’s not helpful to the people that are still sure. But. I’ll be honest with you. Greatest thing that could have happened now, I was already planning to leave that church.

We would have separated anyways. Brutal in the 

Andrew: moment though, I got on the timescale. I got a nun. Yeah, it was rough. 

Josh: Oh, absolutely brutal. Um, but God took care of me looking back every step of the way should I was fired on a Monday, on an interview on a Tuesday, like, hello, uh, you can’t say God, isn’t in the midst of those things.

You know, making more money than I ever did in my last job. Um, you know, for a variety of different. So like there’s, there’s that God’s going to take care of me. I’m not saying it’s always going to play out that way, but it played out in that. That way in my life, but it released me to do greater things for the kingdom shoot.

I’m planning church. Now we’ve spent, you know, four or five years dream about what could be I have. Yup. You know, for the last two years, walking with people, um, in the midst of that dream to figure out what it’s going to look like as we, you know, shape this vision with Jesus to shape our mission and how we actually accomplish the mission with Jesus.

And our mission is we want to make disciples that make disciples. And that’s not just some catchy term that we say. And that’s, that’s something that we have a reproducible process, um, to do. Um, it’s a proven process that we’re not the first to do it. It’s Jesus’ process. It’s lived out in multiple lives, but we think that’s the key to helping people find hope.

And that’s what we want to do. You know, there’s a reason, the church’s names hill city. We want to be a beacon of hope to a dark world, and we want to be the city on the hill. The thing that cannot be hidden because we live with such a level of life giving power inside of us because our relationship with Christ and we want to help people do the same thing.

I would never have chased these dreams if it didn’t end the way that it did at my last church. I wouldn’t chase him. So fervently, um, the crazy story that plays it all out, uh, if you don’t know what that story is, and, and I know you personally reach out, I’ll share that story with you. I would love to, but God’s been in the midst of it all along.

Um, best thing that’s ever happened to me to get me to this place. I don’t, you know, hurt people, hurt people. That’s what happens. I don’t hold any grudges against anyone or anything like that. Um, if you’re holding grudges against those, those people, you need to start having some conversation with Jesus, because there’s no reason you should give people power over your life.

In that way. I say all of that to say this, um, bad things are going to happen in your life. Whether it’s by other people’s actions or by, by your own actions. But when we live in relationship with Jesus, rather than in our own ability to do something, whether it’s our own ability to cope our own ability, to understand our own, whatever the own ability happens to be, or it’s in the physical realm, accountability.

Uh, when we walk in relationship with Jesus, you’ll be blown away by what Jesus can do in the midst of ugly in the midst of sin, in the midst of, uh, uncertain times, if we just continue to walk with Christ and that’s the beauty of what Paul’s trying to get across right here of man, you are, you are so good.

Galatians. When you came to knowledge of Jesus from a faith standpoint, you believe Jesus is who he said he was and did what he said he was going to do. But somewhere along the way you took back the reins and it wasn’t enough. This is what taking back the reins looks like when I’m trying to do it all on my own, rather than walking in relationship with Jesus.

I want you those listening. I want you to be at a place that no matter joys of life, fears of life, um, uh, bad circumstances of life, that the first place you’re turning his back to Jesus, because ours, he is our source of life. That’s a journey. It doesn’t come overnight. It takes intentional intentionality on your part to foster relationship to practice what we call Jesus habits.

We have a whole series on, if you go back, um, of, of how we practices Jesus habits in relationship with Jesus, like this is the beauty of what we got, what we get to do in relationship with Jesus, that nothing gets to hold us back because Jesus is working on our behalf and God is going to work out all things for the good of those who.

Love him. Love him is a relational term. Are you walking in relationship with Jesus? Doesn’t have to be grand. It doesn’t have to start with every day. I’m going to open my Bible and I’m going to talk to Jesus for 68 minutes. I don’t know why it’s 68. Just the number that came to mind, right? No, it could be, it could be three minutes that day.

It could be throughout the day. It’s just small moments to recenter yourself and to remind yourself that you love Jesus and it could just be, Hey Jesus. I just want to let you know today. I love you. Um, it could be you’re reading the same chapter of Galatians. Maybe it’s Galatians three or over and over again, until it makes sense to you until Jesus speaks through it of like, Hey, this is where in your life you’re living by the means of the flesh, your own ability.

This is where in your life you’re living by the means of the spirit in relationship with me. That could be it. And you could live in that, that chapter for a year, who knows, but there isn’t an exact science to it and it doesn’t matter. Uh, quantity is never better than quantity, quality ever in our relationship with Jesus.

You want to do all the spiritual disciplines in the entire world. And if you miss the point of the spiritual disciplines, what we call Jesus habits to be a foster relationship with Jesus, you’re doing them all in vain. You missed it somewhere along the way. But when we were walking in relationship with Jesus, that that’s our primary focus, no matter how large or how small, as long as we’re continuing to foster that.

And I would argue just like Andrew and I, when we first became friends back in 2012, I think it was if I remember the timelines, right? Yeah. I didn’t know Andrew that, well, I didn’t actually know Andrew that well for probably a good year. Yeah. Knowing each other. I know his wife, well, we worked together on a daily basis, but I know Andrew’s super well.

Um, but as Andrew and I fostered relationship with each other, spend time with each other, uh, it’s that simple relationship is fostered and it’s grown. And now Andrew and I are closer friends than I would say most people in my life other than my brother, but that like, that doesn’t happen overnight. And our relationship with Jesus the same way, it doesn’t happen overnight.

You got to keep fostering it and it starts small. Starts with a beer here, starts with a conversation there. Um, I don’t know if you’re having beer with Jesus, but I’m not opposed to it. Um, turn water into wine and it was wine . Okay. And that’s my background so I can make fun of you. Yeah. Um, that’s how that works.

Right? As long as your background, you can make fun of people. I think that’s the rule. Um, but that, that’s it. And I know this has been a long ramp, but Andrew’s been in and out too. So it’s not just me talking this whole time. I’m just trying to carry the show because Andrew keeps leaving cause he has to be a dad and all that.

I got a baby 

Andrew: over here,

Josh: just giving me a hard time. Um, but then that’s really it. Or we foster a relationship with Jesus and then it’s going to get more, more fruit, more fruit and more fruit. I think this is a good thing. And we’ll hit these verses eventually. I think we’ve actually talked about them before, but if you’re looking at your life today, um, compared to your life a year ago, and you don’t see what we call the fruits of the spirit, love joy, peace, patience, kindness in, in greater quantity than you were a year ago.

I don’t think you’re walking in relationship with Jesus. If Jesus spending more time telling you about the sins of other people than speaking into your own sanctification process, I’d argue you’re not listening to the voice of Jesus. So what does that mean? It means you have to go back to the basics, spend time, practicing spiritual disciplines in relationship with Jesus don’t over-complicate it don’t feel like you’re a failure.

Just do the next right thing. Um, maybe that’s, you’re going to pull out your Bible today and you haven’t read, um, you know, any of scripture for a long time, the recorded word of God. Um, and you want to pull up Galatians three today and you’re just going to regulations three start there. That’s fantastic.

That’s great. Keep reading it until you feel like Jesus spoke to you about it. Um, it may be, you know, the fifth time, the sixth time you’ve read it. That’s okay. Keep reading it. It’s okay. If you’re walking away from your time with Jesus today, and you feel like I didn’t hear Jesus speak to me. That’s okay.

You speak to him, you share your heart, you share your soul. I don’t know that. I don’t know of another way to describe what prayer should feel like other than intimate. Oh, I hate that word. I get it. It makes me uncomfortable. I’m like, ah, that’s gross. I like other words better, but intimate is what your relation your conversation with Jesus should feel like as you’re praying and talking.

Jeez, it should feel intimate. Practice it. Talk about it. Does it feel awkward when you start at 100%? It feels awkward, but you keep doing it anyways and you continue to foster that relationship with Jesus. And then we’ll keep reading what Jesus has recorded in his world, whether it’s, you know, another pistol or you’re back in the gospels, I would argue, stay in the new Testament for Matthew on, um, get a foundation of what the gospel is in your life, not just for salvation, but for how you’ve lived this life and how you do it in relationship with Jesus.

And then go back to the old covenant, go back to the Jewish scriptures and read it in the context of the lens of the covenant. So you can understand God’s character as it always has been. Um, but you’re not trying to apply principles from the old covenant, um, that, that have been outweighed by the new covenant.

You’re not trying to be living by the law, uh, that Paul talks about hearing Galatians three and he talks about plenty of other places as well. Um, but you’re just focusing in, on relationship with Jesus. Start with, with some start with Galatians. That’s our, we are, you could be there with us, um, and just start reading through Galatians and asking Jesus to speak through you don’t feel like he sent anything through those verses to you that day you can keep going and reading different verses, or you can go back to those same verses the next day.

Um, all you’re doing is trying to foster relationship with Jesus. You talk, he talks to you talk to you. He talks that’s how relationship works. Um, but you’ve got to let some guards down and you’ve got to get intimate in how you talk to Jesus. Does it feel weird? We first do it. Yes. You’ll get over it. I promise.

Um, but that’s getting over the pride piece, right? Going back to our previous conversation, it’s humility. And you’ll see this all throughout the epistles it’s humility. Um, that is the key to this faith. It is humility. That is the key to your relationship with Jesus. It is humility that says, I can’t do this alone.

I can’t do this based on my own abilities. I need Jesus in the midst of this. So I need to keep coming back to my source of life, which is Christ Christ, crucified. Um, I don’t know where Andrew is right now. He’s still muted. I think he’s taking care of his, his baby 

Andrew: brother. Hey, I’m here now, but listen, man, I love you.

And I love where you had that. You gotta take off. I gotta bounce, but uh, I’m just going to mute you close it out as you have been. Cause you’ve been killing it. Thanks for, thanks for your awesome thoughts. I can’t wait to listen to this back. Yeah, 

Josh: that’d be buddy. Um, And we’ll, we’ll close it. We’ll close it with that.

Like I said earlier, guys, this is why I’m friends with Andrew. He’s so encouraging. She was like, man, you’re so awesome, Josh. And I’m like, I am that awesome. Just kidding. Just kidding. Humility. Didn’t I just, just talk about it. Um, you can’t do it on your own and I’ll, I’ll tell you this, when you realize that truth, that you can’t do it on your own, and I’ll leave you this as the closing thought.

There’s so much freedom inside of it, because guess what? It’s no longer up to you and you’re okay with that. It’s up to Jesus and what Jesus is going to do. My only part living by the means of the spirit. This is what Paul means by it is am I living in a relationship with Christ and my fostering relationship with Jesus and we foster a relationship with Jesus through spiritual disciplines.

We call Jesus habits, spending time reading his recorded word in what we call the Bible. Um, spending time in intimate prayer, even though intimacy sounds terrifying to a lot of us, um, spending time, um, with other believers in community where I’m being real with who I am. Um, so other people can do the same and we can grow in unity and in community with one another.

Um, are we practicing, uh, when we practice, uh, fasting, are we doing it to be seen like Jesus warned against, are we doing it to just foster a relationship with Jesus and recenter ourselves on what’s important? The latter would be the correct answer. Um, when we practice other spiritual disciplines, are we doing it because we think this is what good Christians do.

Are we doing it to foster relationship with Jesus? I would argue it’s healthier for you and your relationship with Jesus. If you didn’t do those things, if you weren’t doing them in a relationship with Christ in the first place, reset yourself, practice them again, but practice them in relationship with Jesus.

But if it was one of the other, I would say, don’t do it because it’s only going to give you a false sense and it’s going to be you living in the flesh of what can I accomplish and what can I do to be a good Christian, to look like a good Christian, when all reality, the relationship with Jesus, the only thing that determinate, the only determining factor in whether you’re a good Christian or not, and not that’s the goal, humility is going to change everything because then your flaws are okay being your flaws.

You’re not offended by them. You’re not scared that they’re going to be, they’re going to be out there and someone’s going to attack you with them. They might, who knows, who cares though? Jesus is going to take care of it. When we get to that place where we recognize I can’t do this on my own, you couldn’t do it for your salvation.

You definitely can’t do it after your salvation. Keep moving on the gospel, keep what Jesus did and how you came to know Christ through your faith in Jesus. Live in that faith foster relationship. Don’t miss out. Hey, thanks for listening. We do really do appreciate it. We love you guys. Please know, we pray for you as, as we get this podcast going every week, because we want to help you find hope.

That’s why we started this thing. It’s the same reason I started at hill city, um, is I want people to have hope and you should, as a follower of Jesus, if you’ve come to a saving knowledge of Christ, meaning you recognize that Jesus who said he was, did what he said he was going to do. And now you get to live in relationship with Jesus because he’s taking care of your sin on the cross.

Restoring that relationship, then you’re good. You’re taken care of and you have access to that. Hope you have access to that abundant life, that full life you have access to, to that life. Giving a relationship. I got this, this comment, not that long ago. And I don’t say this to say, Josh is awesome. I say this to say, Jesus awesome.

And this is what he’s done in my life. And in my own heart, as he’s changed and sanctified me more than I’ve ever been changed or sanctified in my entire life in the last two years, because I chose just to walk with Jesus, nothing else mattered. I was just going to foster relationships. Same thing we’ve been talking about, but best, best, um, comment I ever got.

Man, when I meet with you, I just feel so much life. That’s it. That’s what we want to be. That’s what Christians need to be. We should be everyone. We come in contact. We should just be full of life because man, we get to do this thing with Jesus. It’s not on my own ability. It’s on Christ stability. And I know this has been really, really long and I keep blabbering on him.

I’m sorry for that. But I thought it was worth saying, Hey, hello, have you guys, Andrew loves you guys. We’re so thankful that you take the time out of your busy schedule to listen. I really hope that this is helpful to you. I really hope that we can bring some hope back into your life and you just start to walk in relationship with Jesus.

Andrew: Thanks for listening to our show. It really means a lot to us and we hope that it helps bring you closer in your relationship with Jesus and with other 

Josh: people. And it also helps us out. If you rate our podcast or leave us a review on whatever platform you’re listening on and also follow us on Instagram and the Facebook.

Now sharing this with your friends, isn’t just to get the word out of the podcast. We believe that we have the message of hope that’s found in the gospel of Jesus Christ and you sharing. This has the ability to transform the lives of the people around you. 

Andrew: We want to hear from you. You can email us@helloatthisjesuslifepodcast.com.

You can message us on Facebook and Instagram, or you can just visit us@thisjesuslifepodcast.com. But seriously, .

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