January 11, 2025 • 26 mins
Welcome to Moody Presents with Mark Jobe … president of Moody Bible Institute and senior pastor of New Life Community Church in Chicago. We’d like to kick off a new message series by pastor Mark with two words, are you ready? Culture shock!
Well, spiritually, as believers in Jesus, we are a part of a culture that has the power not only to be SPIRITUALLY different but to turn the world upside down.. And that’s what our new series of messages today called, DEFIANCE is all about. If we are people of Jesus Christ we are people of ANOTHER CULTURE. Let’s begin with our brand new teaching series…here’s Pastor Mark. Remember to check out all the rest we have to offer at moodypresents.org!
Become part of our Advance Team: http://moodyradio.org/donateto/moodypresents/partners
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
S1 (00:01):
Today on Moody presents what it means to live spiritually.
As people of another culture.
S2 (00:07):
Now, when's the last time someone accused you of being
someone that turns the world upside down? When's the last
time people have looked at the church and said, it's
dangerous in a good way. So I pray that God
would make us a dangerous church.
S1 (00:24):
Hi, welcome to Moody Presents with Mark Jobe, president of
Moody Bible Institute and senior pastor of New Life Community
Church in Chicago. I'm John Geiger here to kick off
a new message series by pastor Mark with two words.
Are you ready for these two words? Culture shock. That's it.
Culture shock. You know, pastor Mark and I have each
traveled a lot. And one thing is for sure, there
(00:47):
are vast and amazing differences in the way people live
their lives. For instance, in the African country of Angola,
I distinctly remember being handed a thank you gift in
the form of a live chicken. It's just such a
different way of life. That's that's not the kind of
thank you gift that we would typically think of, right? Well,
you know, spiritually as believers in Jesus, you and I
(01:07):
are part of a culture that has the power not
only to be spiritually different, but to turn the world
upside down. That's not an overstatement. And that's what this
brand new series of messages called defiance is all about. See,
if you and I are people of Jesus Christ. We
are people of another culture. Really? Literally. What do you
say we launch this brand new teaching series right now?
(01:28):
And here's pastor Mark Jobe on Moody Presents.
S2 (01:32):
I've been to the town called Thessalonica. It's actually, I believe,
called Thessaloniki. Right now. It's in Greece, on the Aegean Sea.
But years back, almost 2000 years back, when Paul was
traveling to the city of Thessalonica, he was on his
(01:56):
second missionary journey. Uh, Paul took about three massive journeys
across the known world to make disciples of Jesus Christ.
He reached modern day Thessalonica in the first century, in
about the middle of his second journey. It was an
(02:16):
amazing story how he got to this town when you
joined the Adventure of God. It's always an amazing story
how you arrive at the place that you arrive, right?
I mean, some of you are here today and you say, hey,
four years ago. No way. It's an amazing story how
(02:36):
you're sitting in the house of God with a Bible
in your hand, loving God, loving Jesus, wanting to follow him.
How many of you say it's amazing that I'm even here?
How many of you say that? How many of you
say it's even more amazing that my neighbor is here? Pastor,
you should have seen this guy. I never thought I
run into people once in a while. They come and
(02:57):
visit this church and they. They walk out amazed at
some of the people they see in this church. And
they say, I grew up with. I've seen some people
I grew up with I never thought I would see
in church. So let me tell you, people are amazed
that you're here in the house of God, following God.
(03:18):
So the story of how Paul ends up in in Macedonia,
which was the greater Providence area and specifically in Thessalonica,
is pretty amazing how Paul ended up there. He didn't
plan to go there in the beginning. He had other plans,
but he received what is called a Macedonian call. He
(03:40):
had a dream, and in his dream he was forbidden
to go to where he wanted to go. And he
was called to go to Macedonia. Ended up in Philippi.
Do you remember what happened in Philippi? He was preaching
the gospel boldly. They put him in jail. God miraculously
delivered him. He ended up The baptizing, the jailer and
(04:02):
the jailer said, what must I do to be saved?
And that night I love this. That night, the jailer
got saved and his entire family got baptized and saved
with them. Man that call a work of God. That's
the way it works. So Paul is on this move.
I mean, he's he's full of the gospel of Jesus Christ,
(04:25):
ready to tell people about Jesus. He gets from the
jail of Philippi, and he travels southward to the town
of Thessalonica. When he gets there, it's very peaceful. People
aren't aware that he is carrying with him something very dangerous.
Because I want to tell you something. The gospel of
(04:46):
Jesus Christ is dangerous. The gospel of Jesus Christ will
turn your world upside down. Oh, it's not just this
small little message sprinkled on your life. The gospel of Jesus.
If it gets a hold of you, it will radically
turn you around. It will turn your world upside down.
(05:07):
It will change the way you talk and the way
you think, and the way you walk and who you marry,
and how you raise your kids and how you go
to your job. The gospel of Jesus Christ is revolutionary.
People that are grabbed a hold of the gospel of
Jesus Christ and filled with the spirit. They are never
to be the same. So when Paul gets there, people
(05:28):
are okay with Paul preaching his message because they think, oh,
he's just another teacher. But as he begins to teach
and preach the gospel, suddenly people become alarmed, scared. In fact,
it tells us that they say of them. So when
(05:49):
Paul was accused, he was accused of. These are part
of those who turn the world upside down because they
proclaim another king and his name is Jesus. Now, when's
the last time someone accused you of being someone that
(06:10):
turns the world upside down? When's the last time people
have looked at the church and said, it's dangerous? In
a good way? I pray that God would make us
a dangerous church in a good way. I pray that
God will make it a place where the message is
so powerful, so compelling, that we need to put a
(06:32):
sign on the front of the door that says danger.
You walk in this place, you may be changed. Now
people come just to get a little religious service and
walk out of this place. Their whole world turned upside down.
Now that's what I pray. And I believe that the
gospel of Jesus Christ is that way. And he caused
(06:54):
such a revolt, such a stirring, that they're accused of
being those that turned the world upside down. And that's
why we've called this series defiance. Turn your world upside down.
Let me tell you why the message was so, so
revolutionary and radical to people. I believe it was revolutionary
(07:16):
and radical because all of us have things that we serve.
Most of us serve King Self. We're on the throne
of our life. We dictate what we want, where we live,
who we marry, and how we do life. When Jesus
moves in, he beckons you. He calls you. He challenges you.
If you are going to follow him, that he be
(07:39):
king of your life. You see, the gospel says the gospel.
You cannot be a Christian without embracing the kingship of
Jesus Christ. Part of receiving the gospel and being a
Christian is that you change leaders in your life. Most
of us lead our own life or have other people
that lead our life or life or materialism leads your life,
(08:02):
or selfishness leads your life, or pleasure leads your life.
And when you come to Jesus, then suddenly those no
longer are kings. You have to establish a new king.
King Jesus and King Jesus begins to bring in his
kingdom culture into your life, and everything about your life
(08:22):
now follows the leadership of King Jesus. It tells us
in this passage that. That as Paul began to preach,
you see these people? You see Thessalonica had been established by, oh,
you'll remember the name a fellow by the name of
Alexander the Great. He had come through this place and
(08:46):
established it as a city that had a lot of
influence and power. Some people called it the Second Rome. Now,
if you know anything about the Roman Empire, when they
conquered a city, they would put up a leader, establish
a military garrison there. And they would they would levy
(09:06):
taxes against that city. But there were a few exceptions
to what they did. If a city was very loyal
to Rome, and if they felt like they were a
friend of Rome, then they would be called a free city.
In this city, they would not put a military presence,
nor would they extract taxes from that city. Thessalonica prided
(09:30):
itself in being a free city. They were loyal to Rome.
And if you were loyal to Rome, you were loyal
to the Emperor of Rome. In the middle of the
city of Thessalonica was a statue of Augustus. Archeologists have
found the statue almost intact, and it's dated back to
(09:52):
this era. The Augustus was the emperor that reigned at
that time. People that lived in lived in Thessalonica. They were.
They pledged their allegiance to the emperor. They viewed him
as a god. He was a deity to them. So
when Paul came in proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ,
(10:16):
he proclaimed that you may have other kings in your life,
but the greatest of all these kings is King Jesus.
And when King Jesus comes, everybody is submitted to King Jesus.
Suddenly it created fear in the people in Thessalonica that
that he was preaching another ruler, another king, someone else.
(10:37):
And they were afraid of their relationship with Rome. And
so it stirred up such a controversy that they literally
chased the Apostle Paul and Timothy and Sylvanus. They chased
him out of Thessalonica. And I want you to realize,
I want you to see with me the first few
verses of Thessalonians, because I believe what happens when King
(10:59):
Jesus comes in and you accept the gospel of King Jesus,
that he introduces you to a different culture.
S1 (11:11):
You're listening to Moody Presents with pastor Mark Jobe. And
did you know that you can also hear this program
on your mobile device? Yeah. Just download the free Moody
Radio app to listen whenever and wherever it's convenient to you.
You can download that free app at Google Play or
the App Store. Just search for Moody Radio. And to
learn more about the variety of ways that you can
(11:32):
catch this daily program, just head to Moody Presents. Now,
while you're there, think about the fact that with a
gift of any size, we're going to send you a
copy of Winifred Neely's very excellent book, How to Overcome Worry. Hey,
do you struggle with worry or anxious thoughts on a
regular basis? Does your mind get fixated on the same
concerns over and over? Mine does. Do you struggle with
(11:55):
knowing you should stop worrying, but repeatedly failing to do so? Ouch. Well,
how to overcome worry presents a practical biblical strategy for
this very problem. Doctor Winifred Neeley, who has experienced his
own fair share of anxiety inducing circumstances, walks you through
Philippians four six and seven to help. I mean, let's
(12:15):
be honest. Worry is one of the biggest issues in
our world today, even among believers, and this concise and
biblical approach equips you with real solutions. We'll send you
a copy for a gift of any amount when you
give online at Moody presents.org. That's Moody presents.org. Again, the
book is called How to Overcome Worry. Now if you'd
(12:35):
rather give over the telephone, you can do that when
you call (800) 400-7022. That's 800 470 022. And as you
give that gift to support Moody Presents, let them know
you want your copy of How to Overcome Worry. I
love the fact that this is not some massive book
that is so intimidating, you'll never get to it. It's
(12:58):
a small book with a powerful message how to overcome worry.
Yours for a gift of any amount at Moody presents.org
or over the telephone at 800 470 022. All right,
let's dive back into our Bible study now with Mark Jobe.
As we sharpen a laser focus on developing the faith
that produces action in our lives.
S2 (13:23):
Now, some of you come from originally from another country.
And so you. When you came to America, I was
raised in another country. Although I'm American by birth, I
was raised in the country of Spain, and I never
really lived in America for any long period of time
until I was 17 and came here to go to college.
(13:45):
So although my parents were American and I was born
here and I speak English and visited, I was raised
in a different culture. So when I first came to
this culture, a lot of things were different to me.
I wasn't used to the food because I ate different
kind of food. People would talk about television programs. I
had never watched them. People listen to music that I
(14:07):
had never heard before. It was a different culture. I
my my English class in college was atrocious because I
had studied in a Spanish school system and my spelling
in Spanish was pretty good, but my English spelling was really,
really bad. I didn't have a computer with spellcheck at
(14:28):
the time. Man, I could have used one in those days. But.
But when I came to Chicago, a big city from
a small town in this country, I experienced what people
call culture shock. There was a lot of things that
were different to me, a lot of a lot of
cultural things. Why? Because I was coming from a different
(14:49):
culture and I was being inducted into a new culture.
Some of you have experienced that. We live in a
dominant culture. There are certain things if you live in
Chicago and you're an American that are part of our culture,
that we all accept that we all understand, it's called
the dominant culture. It's what David Gibbons calls the first culture.
(15:13):
Then within that dominant homogeneous culture, there are subcultures. They're
called the second culture. If you go down to if
you go down to 26th Street and in Little Village
and you walk down Little Village, it's almost like this
is a subculture of Chicago, right? I mean, you do
(15:36):
better speaking Spanish there than English. All the signs are
in Spanish. The taquerias are there. And it's like. It's
like a piece of Mexico has been translated over here.
You go to Humboldt Park and there's neighborhoods where it's
like Puerto Rican ville, right? It's like the culture of
Puerto Rico is there. You go to Chinatown and the
language of China, the Cantonese and Mandarin are spoken there.
(16:00):
The food of of China is there because there are
subcultures within a big culture. So that's called a second culture.
I believe that the gospel of Jesus Christ introduces a
third culture. It's not the dominant culture. It's not an
(16:21):
ethnic culture. It's a third culture. It's a culture that
has its own language, a culture that has its own values.
A culture, listen to me, that has its own king.
And when you embrace this culture, you will clash with
the dominant culture of our society. Because the values that
(16:45):
you hold will be radically different than the values of
most of your neighbors and most of your associates and
relatives and coworkers and students, because it's the value system
and the culture of the Kingdom of God. It's a defiant,
(17:06):
radically different culture. So Paul begins to speak to the Thessalonians.
They have been already accused of being those that turn
the world upside down. Paul has to leave Thessalonica running
for his life. He sends his young companion Timothy back
to check on the Thessalonians, and he receives news that
(17:28):
they're doing well. And so he writes the first letter
that Paul wrote, which is First Thessalonians. He's straightening some
issues out for them, but he's reminding them of the
call of who they are, or they are part of
those that turn the world upside down. And I want
you to see what he says. Verse one of first Thessalonians.
He says, Paul, Silas and Timothy to the church of
(17:52):
the Thessalonians in God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ.
Grace and peace to you. That's a common Pauline greeting.
I love that grace and peace. Grace means the unmerited
favor of God. Peace means that contentment that passes understanding.
And if you have grace and peace, you're going to
(18:12):
go a long way. I want all the grace and
all the peace I can get. That's why I try
to pray grace and peace over you every Sunday. Have
you noticed that at the end of the service I
want to bless you and pray grace and peace. Grace
is God's unmerited favor. Peace is the internal contentment, regardless
of whatever situation you're facing. So I pray grace and
(18:34):
peace almost every Sunday over this congregation. He says, grace
and peace. And then verse two, it says, we always
thank God for you mentioning you in our prayers. I
love the heart of Paul. He had only been in Thessalonica,
in Thessalonica, probably three weeks. He preached three Saturdays in
(19:01):
the synagogue, and then he was chased out. But how
many of you know when when someone comes to Christ
and you share spiritual things, you can get really close,
really fast because you share your heart and your spirit.
And the same thing. Has that happened to you? Have
you ever been to like, like an encounter retreat or
(19:22):
a Bible study group and maybe someone that you haven't
known before ever in your life, but you're in a
Bible study for two hours and you share your heart,
and you share Jesus, and you open up and you
pray for each other, and you walk away feeling like
I just have a new family. I feel like I've
known them forever. How many of you know what I'm
talking about? Because there's something that happens when you share
(19:45):
your heart and you share your spirit with someone else,
it draws you close together. Paul had only been there
about three weeks, but he says to them, man, I
remember you every single day in prayer, and I thank
God for you. Thank God for you. I want you
to know, by the way, as your pastor, that I
(20:06):
pray for you practically every single day. And thank God
I don't say, oh Lord, why'd you stick me with
new life? Jesus. Oh, Lord, these people I have to
be on with you the great majority of the days.
I'm saying thank you Lord, for this congregation. I am
so grateful to be a part of a congregation like this,
(20:28):
and people like this and this kind of community. I'm
serious about that. I'm serious about that. Now, there are days,
you know, there's days like every day, but but most
of the time, 95% of the time, I'm really, really
thankful and grateful. And so Paul begins to think. He
(20:48):
tells him he thanks God for them continually in his prayers.
And then in verse three he says, we remember. We
remember before our God and Father three things. These three
things are characteristics of the third culture of a kingdom. Culture. Listen,
if you're going to be a follower of Jesus Christ,
(21:09):
you will have these three things in your life. If
you do not have these three things in your life,
then you're probably not a follower of Jesus Christ because
these are implicit in the kingdom culture. You're going to
breathe these things. You're going to live these things. If
Jesus is king, these values will be your values. Number one,
(21:32):
he says, we thank God continually for your work produced
by faith. The three things that he mentions are these
three things you've heard them before faith, hope, and love.
Have you heard of that trio? Faith, hope and love.
This is the first time that the Apostle Paul mentions
(21:54):
it in the entire New Testament. Faith, hope and love.
He he will mention these three trios. Later on, these
three things faith, hope and love are part of the
dominant cultural values of those people that follow Jesus Christ.
These are characteristics of everybody who's a follower of Jesus Christ.
(22:17):
If you embrace the Kingdom of God, then you will
embrace the culture of the kingdom. And if you embrace
the culture of the kingdom, these values will be part
of the values that you embrace. So I want to
talk to you about them. First of all, he says,
faith that produces. He says, your work produced by faith.
(22:40):
The first value is faith that produces action, true faith.
You believe enough that it causes you to change. There's
a lot of people when they sign into a hospital
and have to check what they are, what religion they
will say. Christian. But let me tell you, there's a
(23:02):
difference between people that consider themselves religiously Christian and people
who have real faith, because people who have real faith
will have real change and real action. You cannot have
true faith without having true change. Look at what James
(23:24):
says in James chapter two, verse 18 and 19. He says,
but someone will say, you have faith. I have deeds.
Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show
you my faith by what I do. You believe that
there is one God. Good. Even the demons believe that
(23:45):
and shudder. Some people say, well, I believe in God.
S1 (23:50):
Thank you, pastor Mark. We're going to hit the pause
button here on Moody Presents and pick up with part
two of People of Another Culture in our new defiance
series next week on the broadcast. You know, all of
Mark's messages are online, so if you missed any message
in this new series and you want to catch up,
or if you'd like to just hear any of Mark's
previous sermons, you'll find them all at Moody Presents. Moody presents.org.
(24:15):
You know, all of this is available because of listeners,
just like you, listeners who've said, you know what, I
appreciate the ministry. I know it doesn't happen by accident.
I know it doesn't happen without expenses. I want to
step up and and just do what I can to
guarantee it's there for for folks ahead. Well, that's what
it's all about. And we say thank you for that heart,
that spirit, that generosity. And by the way, if you
(24:36):
should choose to give a gift now at Moody presents.org,
we would love to send you a copy of Winifred
Neely's book, How to Overcome Worry. I confess to you,
worry has been a problem in my life and I
have loved reading Winifred Neely's book. And here's the thing.
The cool thing is, this isn't just some guy who
just wrote some book. If you meet Winifred Neely, if
you talk with him, if you travel with him as
(24:58):
we have, Boy, you find out he's the real deal.
He's not preoccupied with worry because he's preoccupied with Jesus.
How did he get there? Well, that's part of the journey.
Part of the book. How to overcome worry as he
opens up Philippians four six and seven for you and
me in a fresh, new way, a way that sticks
with you, helps you overcome your own habit of worry.
We'll send you a copy for a gift of any
(25:19):
amount at Moody Presents. Moody presents.org, and you can also
give that gift over the telephone at 800 470 022.
That's 800, 400 722. And let the operator know you
want to give a gift to support Moody Presents. And
you'd like that book How to overcome worry. Well, lots
(25:43):
more great content in this message series. We're just getting started.
I'm John Geiger, inviting you back for another edition of
Moody Presents, a production of Moody Radio, a ministry of
Moody Bible Institute.
Today on Moody presents what it means to live spiritually.
As people of another culture.
S2 (00:07):
Now, when's the last time someone accused you of being
someone that turns the world upside down? When's the last
time people have looked at the church and said, it's
dangerous in a good way. So I pray that God
would make us a dangerous church.
S1 (00:24):
Hi, welcome to Moody Presents with Mark Jobe, president of
Moody Bible Institute and senior pastor of New Life Community
Church in Chicago. I'm John Geiger here to kick off
a new message series by pastor Mark with two words.
Are you ready for these two words? Culture shock. That's it.
Culture shock. You know, pastor Mark and I have each
traveled a lot. And one thing is for sure, there
(00:47):
are vast and amazing differences in the way people live
their lives. For instance, in the African country of Angola,
I distinctly remember being handed a thank you gift in
the form of a live chicken. It's just such a
different way of life. That's that's not the kind of
thank you gift that we would typically think of, right? Well,
you know, spiritually as believers in Jesus, you and I
(01:07):
are part of a culture that has the power not
only to be spiritually different, but to turn the world
upside down. That's not an overstatement. And that's what this
brand new series of messages called defiance is all about. See,
if you and I are people of Jesus Christ. We
are people of another culture. Really? Literally. What do you
say we launch this brand new teaching series right now?
(01:28):
And here's pastor Mark Jobe on Moody Presents.
S2 (01:32):
I've been to the town called Thessalonica. It's actually, I believe,
called Thessaloniki. Right now. It's in Greece, on the Aegean Sea.
But years back, almost 2000 years back, when Paul was
traveling to the city of Thessalonica, he was on his
(01:56):
second missionary journey. Uh, Paul took about three massive journeys
across the known world to make disciples of Jesus Christ.
He reached modern day Thessalonica in the first century, in
about the middle of his second journey. It was an
(02:16):
amazing story how he got to this town when you
joined the Adventure of God. It's always an amazing story
how you arrive at the place that you arrive, right?
I mean, some of you are here today and you say, hey,
four years ago. No way. It's an amazing story how
(02:36):
you're sitting in the house of God with a Bible
in your hand, loving God, loving Jesus, wanting to follow him.
How many of you say it's amazing that I'm even here?
How many of you say that? How many of you
say it's even more amazing that my neighbor is here? Pastor,
you should have seen this guy. I never thought I
run into people once in a while. They come and
(02:57):
visit this church and they. They walk out amazed at
some of the people they see in this church. And
they say, I grew up with. I've seen some people
I grew up with I never thought I would see
in church. So let me tell you, people are amazed
that you're here in the house of God, following God.
(03:18):
So the story of how Paul ends up in in Macedonia,
which was the greater Providence area and specifically in Thessalonica,
is pretty amazing how Paul ended up there. He didn't
plan to go there in the beginning. He had other plans,
but he received what is called a Macedonian call. He
(03:40):
had a dream, and in his dream he was forbidden
to go to where he wanted to go. And he
was called to go to Macedonia. Ended up in Philippi.
Do you remember what happened in Philippi? He was preaching
the gospel boldly. They put him in jail. God miraculously
delivered him. He ended up The baptizing, the jailer and
(04:02):
the jailer said, what must I do to be saved?
And that night I love this. That night, the jailer
got saved and his entire family got baptized and saved
with them. Man that call a work of God. That's
the way it works. So Paul is on this move.
I mean, he's he's full of the gospel of Jesus Christ,
(04:25):
ready to tell people about Jesus. He gets from the
jail of Philippi, and he travels southward to the town
of Thessalonica. When he gets there, it's very peaceful. People
aren't aware that he is carrying with him something very dangerous.
Because I want to tell you something. The gospel of
(04:46):
Jesus Christ is dangerous. The gospel of Jesus Christ will
turn your world upside down. Oh, it's not just this
small little message sprinkled on your life. The gospel of Jesus.
If it gets a hold of you, it will radically
turn you around. It will turn your world upside down.
(05:07):
It will change the way you talk and the way
you think, and the way you walk and who you marry,
and how you raise your kids and how you go
to your job. The gospel of Jesus Christ is revolutionary.
People that are grabbed a hold of the gospel of
Jesus Christ and filled with the spirit. They are never
to be the same. So when Paul gets there, people
(05:28):
are okay with Paul preaching his message because they think, oh,
he's just another teacher. But as he begins to teach
and preach the gospel, suddenly people become alarmed, scared. In fact,
it tells us that they say of them. So when
(05:49):
Paul was accused, he was accused of. These are part
of those who turn the world upside down because they
proclaim another king and his name is Jesus. Now, when's
the last time someone accused you of being someone that
(06:10):
turns the world upside down? When's the last time people
have looked at the church and said, it's dangerous? In
a good way? I pray that God would make us
a dangerous church in a good way. I pray that
God will make it a place where the message is
so powerful, so compelling, that we need to put a
(06:32):
sign on the front of the door that says danger.
You walk in this place, you may be changed. Now
people come just to get a little religious service and
walk out of this place. Their whole world turned upside down.
Now that's what I pray. And I believe that the
gospel of Jesus Christ is that way. And he caused
(06:54):
such a revolt, such a stirring, that they're accused of
being those that turned the world upside down. And that's
why we've called this series defiance. Turn your world upside down.
Let me tell you why the message was so, so
revolutionary and radical to people. I believe it was revolutionary
(07:16):
and radical because all of us have things that we serve.
Most of us serve King Self. We're on the throne
of our life. We dictate what we want, where we live,
who we marry, and how we do life. When Jesus
moves in, he beckons you. He calls you. He challenges you.
If you are going to follow him, that he be
(07:39):
king of your life. You see, the gospel says the gospel.
You cannot be a Christian without embracing the kingship of
Jesus Christ. Part of receiving the gospel and being a
Christian is that you change leaders in your life. Most
of us lead our own life or have other people
that lead our life or life or materialism leads your life,
(08:02):
or selfishness leads your life, or pleasure leads your life.
And when you come to Jesus, then suddenly those no
longer are kings. You have to establish a new king.
King Jesus and King Jesus begins to bring in his
kingdom culture into your life, and everything about your life
(08:22):
now follows the leadership of King Jesus. It tells us
in this passage that. That as Paul began to preach,
you see these people? You see Thessalonica had been established by, oh,
you'll remember the name a fellow by the name of
Alexander the Great. He had come through this place and
(08:46):
established it as a city that had a lot of
influence and power. Some people called it the Second Rome. Now,
if you know anything about the Roman Empire, when they
conquered a city, they would put up a leader, establish
a military garrison there. And they would they would levy
(09:06):
taxes against that city. But there were a few exceptions
to what they did. If a city was very loyal
to Rome, and if they felt like they were a
friend of Rome, then they would be called a free city.
In this city, they would not put a military presence,
nor would they extract taxes from that city. Thessalonica prided
(09:30):
itself in being a free city. They were loyal to Rome.
And if you were loyal to Rome, you were loyal
to the Emperor of Rome. In the middle of the
city of Thessalonica was a statue of Augustus. Archeologists have
found the statue almost intact, and it's dated back to
(09:52):
this era. The Augustus was the emperor that reigned at
that time. People that lived in lived in Thessalonica. They were.
They pledged their allegiance to the emperor. They viewed him
as a god. He was a deity to them. So
when Paul came in proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ,
(10:16):
he proclaimed that you may have other kings in your life,
but the greatest of all these kings is King Jesus.
And when King Jesus comes, everybody is submitted to King Jesus.
Suddenly it created fear in the people in Thessalonica that
that he was preaching another ruler, another king, someone else.
(10:37):
And they were afraid of their relationship with Rome. And
so it stirred up such a controversy that they literally
chased the Apostle Paul and Timothy and Sylvanus. They chased
him out of Thessalonica. And I want you to realize,
I want you to see with me the first few
verses of Thessalonians, because I believe what happens when King
(10:59):
Jesus comes in and you accept the gospel of King Jesus,
that he introduces you to a different culture.
S1 (11:11):
You're listening to Moody Presents with pastor Mark Jobe. And
did you know that you can also hear this program
on your mobile device? Yeah. Just download the free Moody
Radio app to listen whenever and wherever it's convenient to you.
You can download that free app at Google Play or
the App Store. Just search for Moody Radio. And to
learn more about the variety of ways that you can
(11:32):
catch this daily program, just head to Moody Presents. Now,
while you're there, think about the fact that with a
gift of any size, we're going to send you a
copy of Winifred Neely's very excellent book, How to Overcome Worry. Hey,
do you struggle with worry or anxious thoughts on a
regular basis? Does your mind get fixated on the same
concerns over and over? Mine does. Do you struggle with
(11:55):
knowing you should stop worrying, but repeatedly failing to do so? Ouch. Well,
how to overcome worry presents a practical biblical strategy for
this very problem. Doctor Winifred Neeley, who has experienced his
own fair share of anxiety inducing circumstances, walks you through
Philippians four six and seven to help. I mean, let's
(12:15):
be honest. Worry is one of the biggest issues in
our world today, even among believers, and this concise and
biblical approach equips you with real solutions. We'll send you
a copy for a gift of any amount when you
give online at Moody presents.org. That's Moody presents.org. Again, the
book is called How to Overcome Worry. Now if you'd
(12:35):
rather give over the telephone, you can do that when
you call (800) 400-7022. That's 800 470 022. And as you
give that gift to support Moody Presents, let them know
you want your copy of How to Overcome Worry. I
love the fact that this is not some massive book
that is so intimidating, you'll never get to it. It's
(12:58):
a small book with a powerful message how to overcome worry.
Yours for a gift of any amount at Moody presents.org
or over the telephone at 800 470 022. All right,
let's dive back into our Bible study now with Mark Jobe.
As we sharpen a laser focus on developing the faith
that produces action in our lives.
S2 (13:23):
Now, some of you come from originally from another country.
And so you. When you came to America, I was
raised in another country. Although I'm American by birth, I
was raised in the country of Spain, and I never
really lived in America for any long period of time
until I was 17 and came here to go to college.
(13:45):
So although my parents were American and I was born
here and I speak English and visited, I was raised
in a different culture. So when I first came to
this culture, a lot of things were different to me.
I wasn't used to the food because I ate different
kind of food. People would talk about television programs. I
had never watched them. People listen to music that I
(14:07):
had never heard before. It was a different culture. I
my my English class in college was atrocious because I
had studied in a Spanish school system and my spelling
in Spanish was pretty good, but my English spelling was really,
really bad. I didn't have a computer with spellcheck at
(14:28):
the time. Man, I could have used one in those days. But.
But when I came to Chicago, a big city from
a small town in this country, I experienced what people
call culture shock. There was a lot of things that
were different to me, a lot of a lot of
cultural things. Why? Because I was coming from a different
(14:49):
culture and I was being inducted into a new culture.
Some of you have experienced that. We live in a
dominant culture. There are certain things if you live in
Chicago and you're an American that are part of our culture,
that we all accept that we all understand, it's called
the dominant culture. It's what David Gibbons calls the first culture.
(15:13):
Then within that dominant homogeneous culture, there are subcultures. They're
called the second culture. If you go down to if
you go down to 26th Street and in Little Village
and you walk down Little Village, it's almost like this
is a subculture of Chicago, right? I mean, you do
(15:36):
better speaking Spanish there than English. All the signs are
in Spanish. The taquerias are there. And it's like. It's
like a piece of Mexico has been translated over here.
You go to Humboldt Park and there's neighborhoods where it's
like Puerto Rican ville, right? It's like the culture of
Puerto Rico is there. You go to Chinatown and the
language of China, the Cantonese and Mandarin are spoken there.
(16:00):
The food of of China is there because there are
subcultures within a big culture. So that's called a second culture.
I believe that the gospel of Jesus Christ introduces a
third culture. It's not the dominant culture. It's not an
(16:21):
ethnic culture. It's a third culture. It's a culture that
has its own language, a culture that has its own values.
A culture, listen to me, that has its own king.
And when you embrace this culture, you will clash with
the dominant culture of our society. Because the values that
(16:45):
you hold will be radically different than the values of
most of your neighbors and most of your associates and
relatives and coworkers and students, because it's the value system
and the culture of the Kingdom of God. It's a defiant,
(17:06):
radically different culture. So Paul begins to speak to the Thessalonians.
They have been already accused of being those that turn
the world upside down. Paul has to leave Thessalonica running
for his life. He sends his young companion Timothy back
to check on the Thessalonians, and he receives news that
(17:28):
they're doing well. And so he writes the first letter
that Paul wrote, which is First Thessalonians. He's straightening some
issues out for them, but he's reminding them of the
call of who they are, or they are part of
those that turn the world upside down. And I want
you to see what he says. Verse one of first Thessalonians.
He says, Paul, Silas and Timothy to the church of
(17:52):
the Thessalonians in God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ.
Grace and peace to you. That's a common Pauline greeting.
I love that grace and peace. Grace means the unmerited
favor of God. Peace means that contentment that passes understanding.
And if you have grace and peace, you're going to
(18:12):
go a long way. I want all the grace and
all the peace I can get. That's why I try
to pray grace and peace over you every Sunday. Have
you noticed that at the end of the service I
want to bless you and pray grace and peace. Grace
is God's unmerited favor. Peace is the internal contentment, regardless
of whatever situation you're facing. So I pray grace and
(18:34):
peace almost every Sunday over this congregation. He says, grace
and peace. And then verse two, it says, we always
thank God for you mentioning you in our prayers. I
love the heart of Paul. He had only been in Thessalonica,
in Thessalonica, probably three weeks. He preached three Saturdays in
(19:01):
the synagogue, and then he was chased out. But how
many of you know when when someone comes to Christ
and you share spiritual things, you can get really close,
really fast because you share your heart and your spirit.
And the same thing. Has that happened to you? Have
you ever been to like, like an encounter retreat or
(19:22):
a Bible study group and maybe someone that you haven't
known before ever in your life, but you're in a
Bible study for two hours and you share your heart,
and you share Jesus, and you open up and you
pray for each other, and you walk away feeling like
I just have a new family. I feel like I've
known them forever. How many of you know what I'm
talking about? Because there's something that happens when you share
(19:45):
your heart and you share your spirit with someone else,
it draws you close together. Paul had only been there
about three weeks, but he says to them, man, I
remember you every single day in prayer, and I thank
God for you. Thank God for you. I want you
to know, by the way, as your pastor, that I
(20:06):
pray for you practically every single day. And thank God
I don't say, oh Lord, why'd you stick me with
new life? Jesus. Oh, Lord, these people I have to
be on with you the great majority of the days.
I'm saying thank you Lord, for this congregation. I am
so grateful to be a part of a congregation like this,
(20:28):
and people like this and this kind of community. I'm
serious about that. I'm serious about that. Now, there are days,
you know, there's days like every day, but but most
of the time, 95% of the time, I'm really, really
thankful and grateful. And so Paul begins to think. He
(20:48):
tells him he thanks God for them continually in his prayers.
And then in verse three he says, we remember. We
remember before our God and Father three things. These three
things are characteristics of the third culture of a kingdom. Culture. Listen,
if you're going to be a follower of Jesus Christ,
(21:09):
you will have these three things in your life. If
you do not have these three things in your life,
then you're probably not a follower of Jesus Christ because
these are implicit in the kingdom culture. You're going to
breathe these things. You're going to live these things. If
Jesus is king, these values will be your values. Number one,
(21:32):
he says, we thank God continually for your work produced
by faith. The three things that he mentions are these
three things you've heard them before faith, hope, and love.
Have you heard of that trio? Faith, hope and love.
This is the first time that the Apostle Paul mentions
(21:54):
it in the entire New Testament. Faith, hope and love.
He he will mention these three trios. Later on, these
three things faith, hope and love are part of the
dominant cultural values of those people that follow Jesus Christ.
These are characteristics of everybody who's a follower of Jesus Christ.
(22:17):
If you embrace the Kingdom of God, then you will
embrace the culture of the kingdom. And if you embrace
the culture of the kingdom, these values will be part
of the values that you embrace. So I want to
talk to you about them. First of all, he says,
faith that produces. He says, your work produced by faith.
(22:40):
The first value is faith that produces action, true faith.
You believe enough that it causes you to change. There's
a lot of people when they sign into a hospital
and have to check what they are, what religion they
will say. Christian. But let me tell you, there's a
(23:02):
difference between people that consider themselves religiously Christian and people
who have real faith, because people who have real faith
will have real change and real action. You cannot have
true faith without having true change. Look at what James
(23:24):
says in James chapter two, verse 18 and 19. He says,
but someone will say, you have faith. I have deeds.
Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show
you my faith by what I do. You believe that
there is one God. Good. Even the demons believe that
(23:45):
and shudder. Some people say, well, I believe in God.
S1 (23:50):
Thank you, pastor Mark. We're going to hit the pause
button here on Moody Presents and pick up with part
two of People of Another Culture in our new defiance
series next week on the broadcast. You know, all of
Mark's messages are online, so if you missed any message
in this new series and you want to catch up,
or if you'd like to just hear any of Mark's
previous sermons, you'll find them all at Moody Presents. Moody presents.org.
(24:15):
You know, all of this is available because of listeners,
just like you, listeners who've said, you know what, I
appreciate the ministry. I know it doesn't happen by accident.
I know it doesn't happen without expenses. I want to
step up and and just do what I can to
guarantee it's there for for folks ahead. Well, that's what
it's all about. And we say thank you for that heart,
that spirit, that generosity. And by the way, if you
(24:36):
should choose to give a gift now at Moody presents.org,
we would love to send you a copy of Winifred
Neely's book, How to Overcome Worry. I confess to you,
worry has been a problem in my life and I
have loved reading Winifred Neely's book. And here's the thing.
The cool thing is, this isn't just some guy who
just wrote some book. If you meet Winifred Neely, if
you talk with him, if you travel with him as
(24:58):
we have, Boy, you find out he's the real deal.
He's not preoccupied with worry because he's preoccupied with Jesus.
How did he get there? Well, that's part of the journey.
Part of the book. How to overcome worry as he
opens up Philippians four six and seven for you and
me in a fresh, new way, a way that sticks
with you, helps you overcome your own habit of worry.
We'll send you a copy for a gift of any
(25:19):
amount at Moody Presents. Moody presents.org, and you can also
give that gift over the telephone at 800 470 022.
That's 800, 400 722. And let the operator know you
want to give a gift to support Moody Presents. And
you'd like that book How to overcome worry. Well, lots
(25:43):
more great content in this message series. We're just getting started.
I'm John Geiger, inviting you back for another edition of
Moody Presents, a production of Moody Radio, a ministry of
Moody Bible Institute.
Popular Podcasts
24/7 News: The Latest
The latest news in 4 minutes updated every hour, every day.
Therapy Gecko
An unlicensed lizard psychologist travels the universe talking to strangers about absolutely nothing. TO CALL THE GECKO: follow me on https://www.twitch.tv/lyleforever to get a notification for when I am taking calls. I am usually live Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays but lately a lot of other times too. I am a gecko.
The Joe Rogan Experience
The official podcast of comedian Joe Rogan.