June 28, 2025 • 26 mins
Today on Bold Steps Weekend, Pastor Mark will explain what it means to be a true and authentic follower of Jesus. Mark is working his way through the book of Ephesians with an exciting new series of messages.
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Episode Transcript
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S1 (00:01):
Today on Bold Steps weekend, Mark Jobe explains what it
means to be a true and authentic follower of Jesus.
S2 (00:07):
They have incredible riches, spiritual riches that are theirs. They've
been given a position in God, but oftentimes live their
lives as though they were much less than who they
are because they have not quite understood how God sees
them and what God has given them.
S1 (00:41):
Welcome to Bold Steps Weekend with Mark Jobe. Mark is
president of Moody Bible Institute and senior pastor of New
Life Community Church in Chicago. I'm Wayne Shepherd. We're working
our way through the book of Ephesians and exciting new
series of messages designed to show us what happens in
the life of someone who truly and authentically Mark believes
in Jesus.
S2 (00:59):
Yeah, and Wayne, the.
S3 (01:00):
Apostle Paul starts the book of Ephesians with our identity.
S2 (01:04):
Who we.
S3 (01:05):
Are, what is our position? How do we relate to God?
And this is a message that's so very important, because
I believe that even so many Christians don't really understand
their position and what, you know can really change you.
S1 (01:21):
That's the title of this message from our series. When
you believe Everything Changes, here's Mark Jobe.
S2 (01:27):
His name was Victor. He felt like a loser. He
didn't do very well in school. In fact, when he
was about 16 years old, a teacher advised him that
it would be better for him to drop out of
high school and get a job. So he did. He
got one job and he lost it and got another
(01:50):
job and didn't do too well, got another job and
another job. By the time he was 32 years old,
Victor had had 76 jobs and not done very well
at any of those jobs. That was about to change.
He applied for his 77th job. Part of the hiring
(02:14):
process at the 77th job was that they required some tests,
personality and IQ test. Victor took an IQ test. The
normal average IQ was about 100. Victor tested at 161,
(02:35):
in the range where they consider it the range of
a genius. When the results of the test came back,
the the person giving the test said, you have just
tested in a range that we call the range of genius.
(02:56):
Victor was flabbergasted. Shocked, surprised. It was a changing moment
for him. He was never to be the same. In fact,
it so altered the way he viewed himself. So changed
the way he perceived himself. That Victor Serenko went on
(03:17):
to become famous for his research in laser surgery and
became the president of an organization called Mensa, an organization
for geniuses. All because a test said that he was special. Oh,
you see, Victor had always been a genius, but he
(03:40):
did not know who he was until the revelation came.
I went into so many Christians that are that way.
They have a lot at their disposal. They have incredible riches,
spiritual riches that are theirs. They've been given a position
(04:01):
in God, but oftentimes live their lives as though they
were much less than who they are, because they have
not quite understood how God sees them and what God
has given them. Well, I'm praying that for some of you,
this passage in Ephesians will be what Victor Sancho's test
(04:25):
was him an eye opening experience that kind of reveals
to you who you really are in God. So are
you ready this morning? All right. We're going to be
reading in Ephesians chapter one, beginning in verse 11. It says,
In Him, in Christ we were also chosen, having been
(04:49):
predestined according to the plan of him who works out
everything in conformity to the purpose of his will. We
saw this last week, but let me just reiterate it
that you in Christ, you were chosen. Chosen before the
foundation of the world. You are chosen even though God
knew who you were and how you would be. God
(05:12):
knew your character and your weaknesses. God knew your name
and your middle name and your last name and the
names they called you in school when you were growing up.
God knew your blood pressure and God knew your heart rate.
And God knew your genealogy. And God, who knew all
(05:32):
things about you, chose you in advance to belong to him.
He fully understood who you were, and he fully understood
all of your weaknesses and your propensity to the failures
that you have, and yet understanding all of that, God
still chose you. Predestined you because God knew in his
(05:59):
foreknowledge that one day you also would believe and choose
him in return. That's a powerful thought. Listen to what
it says. Listen. Having been predestined according to the plan
of him who works out everything in conformity to the
(06:21):
purpose of his will, in order that we who were
the first to hope in Christ may be for the
praise of his glory. I like that God chose us,
predestined us in advance, knew that we would be chosen
because in his foreknowledge he knew also that we would
in turn believe in him and choose him for the
(06:43):
purpose of the praise of his glory. God understood that
your transformation would lead people to praise him and say,
look what God has done in him or her. Thank God.
And it says, it tells us here, listen, verse 13.
And you also were included in Christ when you heard
(07:05):
the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, having believed,
you were marked in him with the seal. Here's how
it works. God knew you before you were born. God
knew who you would be and how you would be.
God did not orchestrate that. You would sin even though
(07:27):
he knew you would. Let me just clarify. There's a
difference between foreknowledge. There's a difference between foreknowledge, in other words,
that I know in advance, and the actual making someone
(07:48):
do something. God knew that Adam and Eve would sin,
but God was not the author of evil. How many
of you are tracking with me? me, just kind of
nod your head. Just because I know something doesn't mean
I've made it happen. Some people believe that because God
(08:09):
knows it. He must be the author of it. Because
God knows that you will fall. Doesn't mean that God
wants you to fall, or makes you fall, or orchestrates
your fall, or desires you to fall. He knows the future,
but he's not the author of evil in any kind.
He knows. He knew that Adam and Eve would sin,
(08:30):
but he was not the author of their sin. He
wasn't the creator of their sin. He wasn't the planner
of their sin. He wasn't. He did not desire them
to sin. But it doesn't preclude the fact that he
knew that it would happen. And for some people, it's
hard to understand the difference between foreknowledge and actually making
(08:52):
something happen or responsibility for it. When God chose you
before the foundation of the world, he knew that one day,
one day. Oh, I love this. That one day you
would choose him in return when you were still raising
(09:16):
your fist at God. And the only time you used
the name of Jesus was to as an expletive in
your swearing. When you, uh, criticize Christians, when you laughed
at holy rollers, God already knew that he had chosen you.
God already knew that one day you would believe God
(09:38):
already knew. He was just saying, oh wait, wait, because
yours is coming. God already knew in your hardness that
one day you would bow your knee and weep and
repent and say, I've had enough. Jesus, I need you
to be my Savior and my Lord. I repent of
my ways. I invite you to come into my heart.
You see, he already knew that it didn't catch him
(10:01):
by surprise. Even when you were swearing at God, even
when you were bitter at God, even when you were
hard against God, God already knew that the day and
time would come when you would bow your knee to
his lordship and his sovereignty, because God is a God
that knows the future. So it says you were included
(10:26):
in Christ. You were chosen before, but you were included
in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the
gospel of your salvation. And when you believed, you were
marked in him with a seal the moment that you
believed you were marked. You know, the problem with tattoos
(10:50):
is that they just don't change. You change, but your
tattoo doesn't change. When you're 16 years old and you're
madly in love with Susie. And think she'll be the
love of your life. And you'll never break up. And
you can never love another woman. And you put a
(11:11):
big heart and say, Susie on your arm. And when
you're 18, you don't even know where Susie is. But
let me tell you, you still have that tattoo because
you have changed. But that tattoo doesn't change. I had
a guy that I was mentoring, I was helping in
a Bible study, and, um, one day I showed up
(11:35):
at his house and it was kind of warm, and
we were meeting for a Bible study, and he said, pastor,
I got something to tell you. I really don't like this.
I said, what, what? What's wrong? And he put out
his leg and he had on his leg a big
tattoo that ran up all the leg, and it was
a tattoo of a naked woman. And he said, now
that I'm a Christian, I just. I don't like it.
(11:56):
It's a naked woman on my leg. He said, I
got an idea though, pastor, I'm going to go back
to that tattoo guy and have her dress her up.
So he was going to make her a little bit
more modest, put a little clothes on this woman and okay, whatever.
You see, because the thing with the tattoo is you change.
(12:17):
But but your tattoo doesn't change. It's a mark that
doesn't change. Now, here's the thing. The moment that you
believed in Christ, you were marked. It tells us you
were marked. Now, what kind of marking is that? It
says you were marked in him with a seal.
S1 (12:45):
And we'll explore what being sealed means in just a
moment here on Bold Steps weekend. And by the way,
if you ever miss any of Mark Jobe's teaching on
the radio, you can always catch up by going online
and listening at bold steps. And for even more convenient
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(13:05):
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(13:29):
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search for Bold Steps Radio and click the subscribe button.
The direct website handle is youtube.com. Well, as we're learning
(13:52):
what you know will change you. We're in Ephesians and
once again, here's Mark Jones.
S2 (14:01):
Now, let me talk about that for a minute, because
I want you to fully understand what's a mark and
what's a seal. The seal has to do with how
they sent correspondence and official letters. In those days. I
think it was. I was talking to a high school
student not too long ago, and they told me that
(14:24):
one of their assignments in their class was they had
to write a letter, put it in an envelope, put
the address, put a stamp on and mail it. And
these were juniors in high school. And the high school
student was telling me that a whole bunch of people
in the class didn't know how to do it. They
just didn't know how to send a letter. Because we
(14:46):
live in the age of text messaging, emails, Facebook, and
in their world they never have to send a letter, right?
But in the world that Paul lived in, they had
to send letters often, and the way that they would
authenticate a letter is they would take a someone would
(15:07):
write a letter or an official document. They would put
it in a scroll, tie it, usually with the ribbon.
They would melt wax on the place where the the
paper would meet together. They would melt wax, and then
they would take a signature ring or an emblem, and
they would put the imprint of it on the soft wax.
(15:31):
So when someone received this note or this letter, this
official document, they would look at the wax signature and
they would realize that this is an authentic document, not
a forgery, but this is the real thing. When you
came to Christ, the moment that you bowed your knee
(15:54):
and came to Christ, you were marked. You were sealed. Uh,
you were given something that authenticates the fact that you
are truly a follower of Jesus Christ. It's called the
Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit, the moment that you came
(16:14):
to Christ, the Holy Spirit is deposited in your being.
So that in the spiritual realm, when every when anybody
looks at you from the angels to the demonic to
God Himself, when he looks at you, he sees the
mark of God upon your life, which is the indwelling
(16:37):
of the Holy Spirit that cannot be raised, that cannot
be taken off, that cannot change because you may change,
but the mark never changes. It's the indwelling of the
Holy Spirit of God. You were marked in him with
a seal, the promised Holy Spirit. Now I love this about.
(17:01):
This passage. Who is the Holy Spirit? The Holy Spirit
is the third person of the Triune God. Now, this
is difficult for some people to understand. It's difficult, I think,
for all of us to understand in one way or another.
There's a lot of, uh, aberrations of Christianity that have
(17:23):
developed out of a misunderstanding of the Triune God. But
in essence, the way the Bible explains it is we.
We worship one God, not three gods. We have one
God that we worship, but that one God is manifest
in three persons with the same essence and the same nature.
(17:46):
And those three persons have different functions. They're not three
different gods. They are three persons that exist in one God.
So therefore, when we pray, we pray. Technically, I know
you say Jesus when you pray, and that's okay. I
(18:07):
know you may say Holy Spirit when you pray, and
that's okay. But technically you are praying to God the Father.
Your access to God the Father comes via Jesus the Son,
the mediator. He is giving you access to the father
through his death and resurrection. He gives you a way
(18:30):
to come before the father, and you know what to
pray and how to pray, because the Holy Spirit inside
of you gives you wisdom to know what to pray,
how to pray, who to pray for. So you pray
to God the Father via the mediation of Jesus, empowered
by the Holy Spirit. And he's telling you, the Holy
(18:53):
Spirit I'm giving you is going to do all kinds
of things. The Holy Spirit's going to baptize you with love.
The Holy Spirit's going to give you power. The Holy
Spirit's going to guide you when you're confused. The Holy
Spirit's going to convict you when you sin. The Holy
Spirit's going to give you gifts that are supernatural to
help you know how to minister. The Holy Spirit is
(19:13):
going to grieve when you grieve God and rejoice. When
you rejoice in God, the Holy Spirit is going to
go before you and go behind you. The Holy Spirit's
going to protect you. The Holy Spirit's going to constantly
live inside of you. And you think that's a lot.
But that is just a taste, a foretaste of what?
All that's coming down the road. It's a pre-payment, guaranteeing
(19:38):
that you belong to God, that nothing can take you
away from God, and that there's a lot more coming.
S1 (19:52):
You're listening to Bold Steps Weekend, the Bible teaching of
Mark Jobe, and today's message is called what you Know
will change you. You'll hear part two of this insightful
message next weekend, so keep listening. In the meantime, we
encourage you to visit our website and check out all
the special resources and opportunities we have available by going
to Boldsystems.org. Now, one resource we really encourage you to
(20:14):
check out is this month's exclusive Bold Step gift. And
to tell us more about the book, we've got the authors,
Aaron and Jason Davis here.
S3 (20:22):
Jason, you mentioned in your book Lies Boys believe that
one of the most harmful lies that boys can fall
for is that reading the Bible just isn't for me.
And in an age of declining biblical literacy, how can
parents help their sons develop a love for God's Word
and really want to read it?
S4 (20:43):
I think that you're right on and it is a
real issue. But an exciting thing is that searches for
Bible related content have skyrocketed over the last several months.
So I think there's a resurgence of interest in things
of Scripture. But when we're dealing specifically with young men,
(21:04):
I think that, yeah, it can be daunting, especially if
they just randomly open up their Bible and it's a,
you know, numbers and they're just reading these chains of content. Uh,
and that's important content, but it's probably more appropriate for
somebody that has a better grasp on the full scripture.
So where I think families should start is with something
(21:28):
simple like lies, boys believe something to spark an interest
in Scripture and then challenging their their son. Hey, did
you read the Bible today? Did you can tell me
about an adventure that Jesus had or tell me about, uh,
a challenge that Jesus faced? Tell me what the disciples
(21:48):
were up to and make it relatable to story instead
of just facts and figures and boys will relate more
to the story, especially when it involves adventure or challenges
and overcoming those challenges.
S5 (22:03):
And if I could just talk to the mom or
the grandma listening, it looks different for our husbands and
our sons than it does for us. Uh, for me,
it's a quiet morning with my Bible open and a
cup of coffee nearby. I gather with a group of
women in a circle every week, and for a long
time I had that expectation for Jason, my husband, and
my sons. And it looks different for them. Jason and
(22:24):
I teach boys and girls Sunday school, so he teaches
the boys. I teach the girls. We're on the same hallway,
and the girls literally are sitting quietly in a circle
with their Bibles open, reading the verses out loud, and
we can hear the boys all the way down the hall.
I don't know what they're doing, but they're they're loud.
S1 (22:41):
And Jason.
S5 (22:42):
That.
S1 (22:42):
It's important.
S5 (22:44):
Jason's taught me that it's important that those boys love
church and that they walk out of Sunday school going,
that was a great time. And they're getting the Bible,
but it looks different than it does for us. And
that's part of celebrating the differences between boys and girls.
And so I just think as moms, we can sometimes
have an expectation that our son's interactions with the word
(23:04):
will be quiet and they will exegete with us and
they will want a dialogue. And that just isn't always
how it happens. And they should have the freedom to
explore the word in ways that are meaningful to them.
S3 (23:16):
Yeah, and I love that you're pointing out the differences
with how boys and girls typically learn. There's always exceptions
to that. But thank you so much. This is a
great resource. I'm encouraged by the way, uh, Jason, you
mentioned that there's an uptick in biblical literacy. They say 22%
sales of Bibles have gone up. And I'm also encouraged
(23:39):
that we live in a season where there's an upsurge
also in young men going to church. And I do
think that some of it has to do with the
lies that they've been raised with, and they're looking for truth.
S4 (23:52):
Absolutely. They'll find it in Scripture. They'll find that truth.
S3 (23:56):
So let's get them started. Young lies, boys believe. By
Aaron and Jason. Thank you for this tool. I think
it's going to be a blessing to a lot of families.
S1 (24:06):
Well, once again the book is called Lies Boys Believe
and we want you to request your own copy today.
When you give a gift of any amount to support
this ministry, just call 800 Moody. Again, that's (800)Â 356-6639 or
donate online and request the book at bold Steps. Now,
(24:28):
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(24:50):
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(25:12):
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phone at 800 Moody. That's our time for today. I'm
(25:36):
Wayne Shepherd, inviting you to join us again next weekend
when Mark continues this message. It's part of our new
series when you believe everything changes. You'll hear more next
time right here on Bold Steps Weekend with Mark Jones.
Bold steps is a production of Moody Radio, a ministry
of Moody Bible Institute.
Today on Bold Steps weekend, Mark Jobe explains what it
means to be a true and authentic follower of Jesus.
S2 (00:07):
They have incredible riches, spiritual riches that are theirs. They've
been given a position in God, but oftentimes live their
lives as though they were much less than who they
are because they have not quite understood how God sees
them and what God has given them.
S1 (00:41):
Welcome to Bold Steps Weekend with Mark Jobe. Mark is
president of Moody Bible Institute and senior pastor of New
Life Community Church in Chicago. I'm Wayne Shepherd. We're working
our way through the book of Ephesians and exciting new
series of messages designed to show us what happens in
the life of someone who truly and authentically Mark believes
in Jesus.
S2 (00:59):
Yeah, and Wayne, the.
S3 (01:00):
Apostle Paul starts the book of Ephesians with our identity.
S2 (01:04):
Who we.
S3 (01:05):
Are, what is our position? How do we relate to God?
And this is a message that's so very important, because
I believe that even so many Christians don't really understand
their position and what, you know can really change you.
S1 (01:21):
That's the title of this message from our series. When
you believe Everything Changes, here's Mark Jobe.
S2 (01:27):
His name was Victor. He felt like a loser. He
didn't do very well in school. In fact, when he
was about 16 years old, a teacher advised him that
it would be better for him to drop out of
high school and get a job. So he did. He
got one job and he lost it and got another
(01:50):
job and didn't do too well, got another job and
another job. By the time he was 32 years old,
Victor had had 76 jobs and not done very well
at any of those jobs. That was about to change.
He applied for his 77th job. Part of the hiring
(02:14):
process at the 77th job was that they required some tests,
personality and IQ test. Victor took an IQ test. The
normal average IQ was about 100. Victor tested at 161,
(02:35):
in the range where they consider it the range of
a genius. When the results of the test came back,
the the person giving the test said, you have just
tested in a range that we call the range of genius.
(02:56):
Victor was flabbergasted. Shocked, surprised. It was a changing moment
for him. He was never to be the same. In fact,
it so altered the way he viewed himself. So changed
the way he perceived himself. That Victor Serenko went on
(03:17):
to become famous for his research in laser surgery and
became the president of an organization called Mensa, an organization
for geniuses. All because a test said that he was special. Oh,
you see, Victor had always been a genius, but he
(03:40):
did not know who he was until the revelation came.
I went into so many Christians that are that way.
They have a lot at their disposal. They have incredible riches,
spiritual riches that are theirs. They've been given a position
(04:01):
in God, but oftentimes live their lives as though they
were much less than who they are, because they have
not quite understood how God sees them and what God
has given them. Well, I'm praying that for some of you,
this passage in Ephesians will be what Victor Sancho's test
(04:25):
was him an eye opening experience that kind of reveals
to you who you really are in God. So are
you ready this morning? All right. We're going to be
reading in Ephesians chapter one, beginning in verse 11. It says,
In Him, in Christ we were also chosen, having been
(04:49):
predestined according to the plan of him who works out
everything in conformity to the purpose of his will. We
saw this last week, but let me just reiterate it
that you in Christ, you were chosen. Chosen before the
foundation of the world. You are chosen even though God
knew who you were and how you would be. God
(05:12):
knew your character and your weaknesses. God knew your name
and your middle name and your last name and the
names they called you in school when you were growing up.
God knew your blood pressure and God knew your heart rate.
And God knew your genealogy. And God, who knew all
(05:32):
things about you, chose you in advance to belong to him.
He fully understood who you were, and he fully understood
all of your weaknesses and your propensity to the failures
that you have, and yet understanding all of that, God
still chose you. Predestined you because God knew in his
(05:59):
foreknowledge that one day you also would believe and choose
him in return. That's a powerful thought. Listen to what
it says. Listen. Having been predestined according to the plan
of him who works out everything in conformity to the
(06:21):
purpose of his will, in order that we who were
the first to hope in Christ may be for the
praise of his glory. I like that God chose us,
predestined us in advance, knew that we would be chosen
because in his foreknowledge he knew also that we would
in turn believe in him and choose him for the
(06:43):
purpose of the praise of his glory. God understood that
your transformation would lead people to praise him and say,
look what God has done in him or her. Thank God.
And it says, it tells us here, listen, verse 13.
And you also were included in Christ when you heard
(07:05):
the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, having believed,
you were marked in him with the seal. Here's how
it works. God knew you before you were born. God
knew who you would be and how you would be.
God did not orchestrate that. You would sin even though
(07:27):
he knew you would. Let me just clarify. There's a
difference between foreknowledge. There's a difference between foreknowledge, in other words,
that I know in advance, and the actual making someone
(07:48):
do something. God knew that Adam and Eve would sin,
but God was not the author of evil. How many
of you are tracking with me? me, just kind of
nod your head. Just because I know something doesn't mean
I've made it happen. Some people believe that because God
(08:09):
knows it. He must be the author of it. Because
God knows that you will fall. Doesn't mean that God
wants you to fall, or makes you fall, or orchestrates
your fall, or desires you to fall. He knows the future,
but he's not the author of evil in any kind.
He knows. He knew that Adam and Eve would sin,
(08:30):
but he was not the author of their sin. He
wasn't the creator of their sin. He wasn't the planner
of their sin. He wasn't. He did not desire them
to sin. But it doesn't preclude the fact that he
knew that it would happen. And for some people, it's
hard to understand the difference between foreknowledge and actually making
(08:52):
something happen or responsibility for it. When God chose you
before the foundation of the world, he knew that one day,
one day. Oh, I love this. That one day you
would choose him in return when you were still raising
(09:16):
your fist at God. And the only time you used
the name of Jesus was to as an expletive in
your swearing. When you, uh, criticize Christians, when you laughed
at holy rollers, God already knew that he had chosen you.
God already knew that one day you would believe God
(09:38):
already knew. He was just saying, oh wait, wait, because
yours is coming. God already knew in your hardness that
one day you would bow your knee and weep and
repent and say, I've had enough. Jesus, I need you
to be my Savior and my Lord. I repent of
my ways. I invite you to come into my heart.
You see, he already knew that it didn't catch him
(10:01):
by surprise. Even when you were swearing at God, even
when you were bitter at God, even when you were
hard against God, God already knew that the day and
time would come when you would bow your knee to
his lordship and his sovereignty, because God is a God
that knows the future. So it says you were included
(10:26):
in Christ. You were chosen before, but you were included
in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the
gospel of your salvation. And when you believed, you were
marked in him with a seal the moment that you
believed you were marked. You know, the problem with tattoos
(10:50):
is that they just don't change. You change, but your
tattoo doesn't change. When you're 16 years old and you're
madly in love with Susie. And think she'll be the
love of your life. And you'll never break up. And
you can never love another woman. And you put a
(11:11):
big heart and say, Susie on your arm. And when
you're 18, you don't even know where Susie is. But
let me tell you, you still have that tattoo because
you have changed. But that tattoo doesn't change. I had
a guy that I was mentoring, I was helping in
a Bible study, and, um, one day I showed up
(11:35):
at his house and it was kind of warm, and
we were meeting for a Bible study, and he said, pastor,
I got something to tell you. I really don't like this.
I said, what, what? What's wrong? And he put out
his leg and he had on his leg a big
tattoo that ran up all the leg, and it was
a tattoo of a naked woman. And he said, now
that I'm a Christian, I just. I don't like it.
(11:56):
It's a naked woman on my leg. He said, I
got an idea though, pastor, I'm going to go back
to that tattoo guy and have her dress her up.
So he was going to make her a little bit
more modest, put a little clothes on this woman and okay, whatever.
You see, because the thing with the tattoo is you change.
(12:17):
But but your tattoo doesn't change. It's a mark that
doesn't change. Now, here's the thing. The moment that you
believed in Christ, you were marked. It tells us you
were marked. Now, what kind of marking is that? It
says you were marked in him with a seal.
S1 (12:45):
And we'll explore what being sealed means in just a
moment here on Bold Steps weekend. And by the way,
if you ever miss any of Mark Jobe's teaching on
the radio, you can always catch up by going online
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(13:05):
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(13:29):
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The direct website handle is youtube.com. Well, as we're learning
(13:52):
what you know will change you. We're in Ephesians and
once again, here's Mark Jones.
S2 (14:01):
Now, let me talk about that for a minute, because
I want you to fully understand what's a mark and
what's a seal. The seal has to do with how
they sent correspondence and official letters. In those days. I
think it was. I was talking to a high school
student not too long ago, and they told me that
(14:24):
one of their assignments in their class was they had
to write a letter, put it in an envelope, put
the address, put a stamp on and mail it. And
these were juniors in high school. And the high school
student was telling me that a whole bunch of people
in the class didn't know how to do it. They
just didn't know how to send a letter. Because we
(14:46):
live in the age of text messaging, emails, Facebook, and
in their world they never have to send a letter, right?
But in the world that Paul lived in, they had
to send letters often, and the way that they would
authenticate a letter is they would take a someone would
(15:07):
write a letter or an official document. They would put
it in a scroll, tie it, usually with the ribbon.
They would melt wax on the place where the the
paper would meet together. They would melt wax, and then
they would take a signature ring or an emblem, and
they would put the imprint of it on the soft wax.
(15:31):
So when someone received this note or this letter, this
official document, they would look at the wax signature and
they would realize that this is an authentic document, not
a forgery, but this is the real thing. When you
came to Christ, the moment that you bowed your knee
(15:54):
and came to Christ, you were marked. You were sealed. Uh,
you were given something that authenticates the fact that you
are truly a follower of Jesus Christ. It's called the
Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit, the moment that you came
(16:14):
to Christ, the Holy Spirit is deposited in your being.
So that in the spiritual realm, when every when anybody
looks at you from the angels to the demonic to
God Himself, when he looks at you, he sees the
mark of God upon your life, which is the indwelling
(16:37):
of the Holy Spirit that cannot be raised, that cannot
be taken off, that cannot change because you may change,
but the mark never changes. It's the indwelling of the
Holy Spirit of God. You were marked in him with
a seal, the promised Holy Spirit. Now I love this about.
(17:01):
This passage. Who is the Holy Spirit? The Holy Spirit
is the third person of the Triune God. Now, this
is difficult for some people to understand. It's difficult, I think,
for all of us to understand in one way or another.
There's a lot of, uh, aberrations of Christianity that have
(17:23):
developed out of a misunderstanding of the Triune God. But
in essence, the way the Bible explains it is we.
We worship one God, not three gods. We have one
God that we worship, but that one God is manifest
in three persons with the same essence and the same nature.
(17:46):
And those three persons have different functions. They're not three
different gods. They are three persons that exist in one God.
So therefore, when we pray, we pray. Technically, I know
you say Jesus when you pray, and that's okay. I
(18:07):
know you may say Holy Spirit when you pray, and
that's okay. But technically you are praying to God the Father.
Your access to God the Father comes via Jesus the Son,
the mediator. He is giving you access to the father
through his death and resurrection. He gives you a way
(18:30):
to come before the father, and you know what to
pray and how to pray, because the Holy Spirit inside
of you gives you wisdom to know what to pray,
how to pray, who to pray for. So you pray
to God the Father via the mediation of Jesus, empowered
by the Holy Spirit. And he's telling you, the Holy
(18:53):
Spirit I'm giving you is going to do all kinds
of things. The Holy Spirit's going to baptize you with love.
The Holy Spirit's going to give you power. The Holy
Spirit's going to guide you when you're confused. The Holy
Spirit's going to convict you when you sin. The Holy
Spirit's going to give you gifts that are supernatural to
help you know how to minister. The Holy Spirit is
(19:13):
going to grieve when you grieve God and rejoice. When
you rejoice in God, the Holy Spirit is going to
go before you and go behind you. The Holy Spirit's
going to protect you. The Holy Spirit's going to constantly
live inside of you. And you think that's a lot.
But that is just a taste, a foretaste of what?
All that's coming down the road. It's a pre-payment, guaranteeing
(19:38):
that you belong to God, that nothing can take you
away from God, and that there's a lot more coming.
S1 (19:52):
You're listening to Bold Steps Weekend, the Bible teaching of
Mark Jobe, and today's message is called what you Know
will change you. You'll hear part two of this insightful
message next weekend, so keep listening. In the meantime, we
encourage you to visit our website and check out all
the special resources and opportunities we have available by going
to Boldsystems.org. Now, one resource we really encourage you to
(20:14):
check out is this month's exclusive Bold Step gift. And
to tell us more about the book, we've got the authors,
Aaron and Jason Davis here.
S3 (20:22):
Jason, you mentioned in your book Lies Boys believe that
one of the most harmful lies that boys can fall
for is that reading the Bible just isn't for me.
And in an age of declining biblical literacy, how can
parents help their sons develop a love for God's Word
and really want to read it?
S4 (20:43):
I think that you're right on and it is a
real issue. But an exciting thing is that searches for
Bible related content have skyrocketed over the last several months.
So I think there's a resurgence of interest in things
of Scripture. But when we're dealing specifically with young men,
(21:04):
I think that, yeah, it can be daunting, especially if
they just randomly open up their Bible and it's a,
you know, numbers and they're just reading these chains of content. Uh,
and that's important content, but it's probably more appropriate for
somebody that has a better grasp on the full scripture.
So where I think families should start is with something
(21:28):
simple like lies, boys believe something to spark an interest
in Scripture and then challenging their their son. Hey, did
you read the Bible today? Did you can tell me
about an adventure that Jesus had or tell me about, uh,
a challenge that Jesus faced? Tell me what the disciples
(21:48):
were up to and make it relatable to story instead
of just facts and figures and boys will relate more
to the story, especially when it involves adventure or challenges
and overcoming those challenges.
S5 (22:03):
And if I could just talk to the mom or
the grandma listening, it looks different for our husbands and
our sons than it does for us. Uh, for me,
it's a quiet morning with my Bible open and a
cup of coffee nearby. I gather with a group of
women in a circle every week, and for a long
time I had that expectation for Jason, my husband, and
my sons. And it looks different for them. Jason and
(22:24):
I teach boys and girls Sunday school, so he teaches
the boys. I teach the girls. We're on the same hallway,
and the girls literally are sitting quietly in a circle
with their Bibles open, reading the verses out loud, and
we can hear the boys all the way down the hall.
I don't know what they're doing, but they're they're loud.
S1 (22:41):
And Jason.
S5 (22:42):
That.
S1 (22:42):
It's important.
S5 (22:44):
Jason's taught me that it's important that those boys love
church and that they walk out of Sunday school going,
that was a great time. And they're getting the Bible,
but it looks different than it does for us. And
that's part of celebrating the differences between boys and girls.
And so I just think as moms, we can sometimes
have an expectation that our son's interactions with the word
(23:04):
will be quiet and they will exegete with us and
they will want a dialogue. And that just isn't always
how it happens. And they should have the freedom to
explore the word in ways that are meaningful to them.
S3 (23:16):
Yeah, and I love that you're pointing out the differences
with how boys and girls typically learn. There's always exceptions
to that. But thank you so much. This is a
great resource. I'm encouraged by the way, uh, Jason, you
mentioned that there's an uptick in biblical literacy. They say 22%
sales of Bibles have gone up. And I'm also encouraged
(23:39):
that we live in a season where there's an upsurge
also in young men going to church. And I do
think that some of it has to do with the
lies that they've been raised with, and they're looking for truth.
S4 (23:52):
Absolutely. They'll find it in Scripture. They'll find that truth.
S3 (23:56):
So let's get them started. Young lies, boys believe. By
Aaron and Jason. Thank you for this tool. I think
it's going to be a blessing to a lot of families.
S1 (24:06):
Well, once again the book is called Lies Boys Believe
and we want you to request your own copy today.
When you give a gift of any amount to support
this ministry, just call 800 Moody. Again, that's (800)Â 356-6639 or
donate online and request the book at bold Steps. Now,
(24:28):
it might be easier to send your donation and check
in the mail. Now it might be easier for you
to send your check in the mail. Do that to
Bold Steps. 820 North LaSalle Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois 606 ten.
And as you found Mark's teachings to be meaningful in
your life, consider taking a step forward and becoming part
of our bold partner family by signing up to give
(24:50):
on a monthly basis. Your partnership helps us extend these
Scripture filled messages to fellow listeners seeking biblical wisdom. While
one time donations certainly move our ministry forward, it's the faithful,
month after month support that truly sustains our ability to
deliver these programs consistently ensuring that we can be here
with the biblical truth and encouragement you count on every
(25:12):
day as a bold partner. You'll also gain access to
some special resources. As a bold partner, you'll also gain
access to special resources created exclusively for our monthly supporters.
So if you're ready to join the team, simply visit
boldsystems.org or reach out to become a Bold Partner by
phone at 800 Moody. That's our time for today. I'm
(25:36):
Wayne Shepherd, inviting you to join us again next weekend
when Mark continues this message. It's part of our new
series when you believe everything changes. You'll hear more next
time right here on Bold Steps Weekend with Mark Jones.
Bold steps is a production of Moody Radio, a ministry
of Moody Bible Institute.
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