Religiosity Vs. Relationship

Nothing says Christmas like a wonderful family in Asia, getting a water buffalo is like getting a farm truck while working getting the stand of the market. A water buffalo opened. More importantly, it opens the door to talk about Jesus and nothing says Christmas better than that. Join Truth Network in supporting gospel for Asia gift today@truthnetwork.com and click on the Christmas critter campaign. This is Chris choose with the Christian perspective podcast with Chris use. We encourage our listeners to engage the culture with Jesus Christ your chosen Truth Network podcast is starting a just a few seconds. So enjoy it share but most of all, thank you for listening to The Truth Podcast Network. This is good Truth Network I'm holding my hands a brand-new book can give you context excites me about this book is to share Christ with people all throughout my life as a Christian, and sometimes the first thing they say is yeah you go back to church.

Yeah I needed needed change. I need you better, but pastor Allen Holmes wrote this book redefined. I'm holding my hand so excited. Congratulations on this book coming out thousand copies are flying out the door people are loving it. But you wrote this book because so many folks think there there just that religion is going to save them religiosity doing better more's rules. More pep talks and that sort of thing you know it's interesting, I think there are two big groups of people. You've got some church to say they are convinced that religion is the path of life. They were honest they would say the religion is a burden. This is what Jesus talked about in Matthew 1120 says all who are weary and heavy laden, since come to me and I'll give you rest and ideas they are burdened with religion, there burden with trying desperately to earn favor from God earn his blessing. That's part of it. Then you got another group of people who have given up on church is given up on Christ because what they would say is I tried it didn't work but I did try Jesus what they tried was religion and religion that Mark NSO what redefined is trying to redefine what it means to have a relationship with God that it's not religion that it really is a life changing relationship.

How do I cultivate that relationship is awesome in the book is redefine the noise your spirit is read the grinder because there grinding coffee here were green Joe's coffee shop right here in Greensboro Northglenn on battleground Avenue. I can think a better place to tell everyone about this awesome new book pastor Alice's life right here right always folks are common in all walks of life and so have their Bibles out, others are doing who knows what working on their junior college.

No credits get ready for this and that and were talking about this book redefined all of the simple subtitle a simple path to a hope filled life. Want to statement what what is that imply an U. We do the steps are referencing the Beatitudes so that the book is about the sermon on the Mount. What's significant about that is a sermon on the Mount is Jesus's first sermon. His longest sermon, lays out theological, philosophical foundation for his life and ministry in the Beatitudes, which is introduction to this sermon.

It's like steps in our relationship. The first four steps in our relationship with God. The first four Beatitudes and the second for our steps in our relationships with each other. We we understand what Jesus is communicating in our relationships begin to flourish and prosper gives us hope and a lot of the issues in our life that stealing our hope are resolved because our relation with God is right in our relationships with each other, flourishing in this really is a literary masterpiece, the sermon on the Mount by Jesus secular and religious scholars all agree on the always point to it is just a just and absolute critical piece of literary history.

But you go deeper with these blessed splits are the poor in spirit. Blessed are the mourners mean who says you're happy if you're sad and crying.

What is it about this kingdom message of Jesus. It's so counterintuitive to our culture today and even deeper and even more potentially offensive. Those listening out there. What is it about this is offensive. Even in the church today. Pastor Allen Holmes. We know Jesus said if we humble ourselves will be exalted. Jesus said if we lose our life, we find that our world is teaching us to try to take hold of the kingdom without the king so all of our striving in this world for financial success for fame for comfort for safety. All these things. Those are good things there kingdom things. The problem is were trying to get it without the king and what Jesus does is he helps us to see the Beatitudes are need for Jesus said is beginning Beatitudes. On one hand Jesus over and over again says I will bless you all of the less you want to bless you. But the weight of that blessing is humility. Brokenness surrender, and dependence which are what the first four Beatitudes are about what Jesus is saying is if you humble yourself if you will be broken over the condition of your soul. If you put me in charge if you will learn to rely on me to produce in you all that I expect of you.

You can begin to experience a blessed life.

Life will begin to be full and rich meaningful again as shown home. She's also pastor of definition church in Greensboro, North Carolina, and this book there's two parts.

Part one reconnect with God and people which which, as you said earlier, it's the first half of those Beatitudes which are very vertically centered toward God. In the second half are to recommit to impacting culture not only tell too many people too much because I want them to get this book and will really be blessed as we all heard sermons on the sermon on the Mount. We've all read it or many of us have, but this is just kind of a refreshing look about the sermon on the mount. As you studied it, as you preached, as you wrote this book redefined pastoral note without it connecting with your soul, take a syndicated depths of your soul. What about this message of Jesus. The really will lead you to pick up your pen and write this book for me and I think this is true for a lot of people. I went to seminary with a desire to change the world to make a difference and I think a lot of believers want to make a difference. They want to change the world. We all feel called to be called in light. However, for honest we look around our culture. We look around the condition of the church were not having the kind of impact we think we should or the can impact that we long to have what the problem unfortunately we've tried to find a political solution. We tried to find an intellectual solution academic solution and our problem is spiritual and in the church even what we've done is we've hidden.

The church and we shouted about culture and attacked culture when the truth is, were called to influence culture, but that has to begin our hearts. So what I love about the ministry of Jesus is that when he enters the first century. It's a cultural disaster.

I mean Rome was immoral. It was abusive. It was oppressive. It was bad in every way much worse anything we've experienced in modern America, and Jesus wants to address all these cultural issues but he begins with the condition of our heart that section 1 of the book, the Beatitudes, but then he shows now that we've gotten our heart right with God and man. Now we can be salt and light in the rest of the sermon.

He addresses all those cultural issues.

As townhomes we speak to our listeners. People from all kinds of background struggles.

People just doubling up on this show true thought.

I'm Stu Epperson sitting down in green Joe's when I hear coffee stops here in Greece from Battleground Avenue. I'm having a pumpkin pilot. It is almost resist the urge for the pumpkin chocolate chip muffin but I had to get one but only part of the day. This is awesome to talk about this in here for all everybody listening that I think the one verse that really stands out in the sermon on the Mount Matthew 633 seek first his kingdom and his righteousness and all these other things that were worried about that were stressed out about that were trying to control if will seek first his kingdom and his righteousness and all these things. He promises all these things will be added at us. We can trust so simple, yet we make it so complex reporting word to folks out there that are struggling in her divorce rates at an all-time high.

We have broken homes you talk about that and review your testimony. What a great testimony God's put you into your connection with Sony people.

It is a pastor of definition church in Greece were passed around homes we say to folks out there just looking for hope.

Just their empty their throat there and they're there to last as they're done there just wiped out there broken give a call that we are just taken the Lord.

Harry, what would you say to him as wrap up you know it's it's what's encouraging. I think one of the things that people have loved about the book.

As I tell my story and 23 years ago. That's where I was. It felt hopeless.

I was losing my marriage.

I was losing my ministry.

I was a seminary dropout.

I was an wrestling with this brokenness and pain from the way I grew up in trying to overcome addiction, and it was destroying my life and I had an older gentleman, Dr. Bennett stepped into my life and began discipling me and teaching me what's in this book, and as I learned to really connect with Jesus in a meaningful way. Every day he began healing the pain. He began restoring my identity. My character in this transformed my life saved my marriage brought me back in the ministry inhabited pastor of our church for 21 years and what gives people hope is to know that man of God can do it and Alan can do to me it's out there, but here's that God wants to redeem our lives and use it for his glory of your broken if you're struggling.

If you're at the end of your rope. There's one person that can help you.

His name is Jesus Christ and background. Thanks, representing Christ in this book redefined a civil path to a hopeful life.

Overall, get it was best website for folks to pick a copy of this up. The best way to get his own Amazon. That's the cheapest way to get quickest way to get it. If you decipher many of the users of your messages and also connect with definition church they can go to the definition church website. Just Google that really got my website out homes.com but the best ways is to Google definition church thing find all the messages are always there on demand fair, but what are you defined by. Maybe it's time you were redefined by Jesus Christ. A love that every great T-shirt redefined by Jesus Christ will make one of those okay. Thank this is the Truth Network