What if the fight in your home isn’t really about the dishes, the text, or the tone—but about authority and foundation?
Dr. Mark Teague joins us to map the unseen battlefield that takes aim at Christian marriages, and how to respond with clarity instead of chaos. Drawing from a working-class upbringing and decades in complex corporate roles, he shows why ancient principles—truth, order, and stewardship—still outperform modern self-help when the storm hits.
We walk through a simple but demanding framework: demons don’t negotiate with credentials, they yield to Christ’s authority—so take thoughts to the Word. The flesh won’t reform on command—so take it to the cross. That daily rhythm, rooted in Romans 8 and Ephesians 6, turns vague “spiritual warfare” into concrete practice.
If your marriage feels stuck in a cycle of repeat arguments, this conversation offers a path forward: commit to the union as sacred, solve problems together, bow to the facts, and live as stewards rather than sovereigns.
You can expect practical steps, straight talk, and real hope. Dr. Teague also shares where to find his book, A Working Man’s Guide, and resources to keep growing in faith and resilience at home.
To connect with Dr. Mark Teague or to purchase his book, visit his website: www.aworkingmansguide.com
If this resonated, follow the show, share it with a friend who needs courage today, and leave a review to help more couples find a stronger foundation. Your story could be the spark someone else needs.
To download a free chapter of host Sylvia Worsham's bestselling book, In Faith, I Thrive: Finding Joy Through God's Masterplan, purchase any of her products, or book a call with her, visit her website at www.sylviaworsham.com
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
SPEAKER_00 (00:02):
If you've ever struggled with fear, doubt, or
worry and wondering what yourtrue purpose was all about, then
this podcast is for you.
In this show, your host, SylviaWarsham, will interview elite
experts and ordinary people thathave created extraordinary
lives.
So here's your host, SylviaWarsham.
SPEAKER_02 (00:29):
Hey light bringers, it's Sylvia Warsham.
Welcome to Released Out RevealPurpose.
And today is Dr.
Mark Teague.
And he, I know, has a lot ofwisdom to share with us
regarding Christian marriages,Christian faith, and especially
how he guides Christian menthrough the values that Christ
has to share with us.
(00:50):
It's a topic that's very nearand dear to my heart, as this
year God has had me in enormousamounts of training to submit to
my marriage fully.
Submission to me was not easy.
I came from a Mexicanbackground, and I saw my mother
submit to my very demandingfather as a child, and I
(01:11):
unfortunately created certainbeliefs in me about submission
and surrender to God'ssovereignty and God's will for
our lives.
In this year alone, he has beentraining me how to remove my
pride from the equation, removeit by putting me through
humility exercises and askingfor repentance to people that I
(01:36):
have offended in my life.
And one of those is my husband.
And that's why when I read Dr.
Teague's faith sheet that hesent over for me to read, I
(02:02):
started to immediately get asense that he has a story of
transformation that not only doI need to hear it, but people in
marriages that are underspiritual warfare, currently
under spiritual attack, and itusually occurs through the men.
(02:22):
The men get attacked, they don'trealize they're getting
attacked.
The women, even though they seeit later, they try to stop, it
won't stop because we've alreadyfallen into the track.
So without further ado, Dr.
Teague, thank you so much forjoining us this morning on
Released Out Reveal Purpose.
SPEAKER_01 (02:47):
Let's uh make their day better.
Well, that's why we're here.
SPEAKER_02 (02:51):
You know, I love that you're here today.
Because of the timing, as Ishared with you prior to
beginning the podcast, there wasa major fight last night, and I
woke up with a lot of revelationin my heart, and I started to
jot down all my notes, and I sawhow I fell into the trap of the
(03:15):
desires of the flesh, which arestipulated in Galatians, in the
book of Galatians.
Um, in order to produce thefruit of the spirit of
self-control and love and joyand peace, I've got to resist
that.
And the devil comes and attacksjust as there's a major
breakthrough happening.
So I know you have a lot tounpack for us today.
(03:39):
So please share with us why thistopic is so important for you to
share with Christian men and anamazing story of transformation.
SPEAKER_01 (03:49):
Thank you so much, Sylvia.
You know, at the end of thattransformation, and what brings
me here uh with the book andwith the information is I have a
deep passion for the workingclass, uh, in particular the
American working class.
You know, America is essentiallya working class nation.
We always have been, we alwayswill be.
And when the working classthrives, America thrives.
(04:10):
When the working classstruggles, America struggles.
So if we want a strong future asa nation, we need to start with
a family, working classfamilies.
And let me get definitional fora second.
Working class need you need toforget about money, about
income.
You use a literal definition.
The working class is the classthat is working.
(04:32):
When you look at it that way,the principles are the same.
We need to understand theprinciples, and they will bring
us to success.
Now, let me describe for amoment what brought me uh to
that point of deep passion.
Melissa and I, it's a lifejourney.
Melissa and I grew up uh verytraditional.
We grew up on farms and ranchesin North Texas, a very
(04:53):
traditional, classic American uhenvironment, uh strong uh values
and the incentives are verystraightforward.
If you don't work, you don'teat.
It's very clear if you don't getyour work done, your revenue
suffers quickly.
Uh the feedback is immediate andvisceral.
So we married in 1986.
Most and I grew up together.
(05:13):
We have a picture of meattending her second birthday
party when she turned two yearsold.
We were high school sweethearts,and uh, we got married uh right
out of high school for her,college for me, and started a
family, had two kids in 1986 iswhen we married.
And the farm economy was verytough, very difficult at that
point.
Cash flow was very tight.
But we chose uh through thatdecision process to change
(05:36):
careers.
I went to graduate school,earned a doctorate in
agricultural economics, wentinto the banking industry, built
a career about 30 years therethrough starting, you know,
starting uh entry-level jobs,and then all the way through to
executive management.
I wound up uh in a privateequity and uh C-suite jobs.
I was chief credit, chiefoperating officer, and that was
(05:57):
a career path.
Well, something happened alongthe way that was very
transformational, transformativefor me, and that is you go from
that environment whereeverything is very
straightforward, values arecommonly accepted, the entire
community has a very common setof values.
You go through the corporateworld, there is nothing
(06:17):
straightforward.
It is very convoluted, there'severy incentive you can imagine.
And all of your audience workingtoday, working jobs can relate
to that.
I can tell you that is a greatcontrast to what America was for
a long time.
If you go back to its rural uhroots, those things were very
different than they've become uhthese days.
(06:38):
Well, Melissa and I lived acrossthat entire cycle.
We lived across those changes.
And what I found myself doing inthat corporate world, in the
work world, you need success,and you have to do it as a team.
You have to bring peopletogether to get them to uh bond
around a common goal, put theirdifferences aside, and get
(06:59):
things done.
Well, what I found myself doingwas reaching back to those
old-fashioned ancientprinciples, pulling them into
today and applying them in amodern environment.
And I would do that over andover.
So I made notes, I jotted itdown, and it turned into a book
in the end.
And it gave me a deep passionfor the American working class.
(07:21):
So that's kind of the story thatbrought me to where I am is
basically pressure.
The pressure of life forces youto think, and you're gonna fall
back on something.
So here, Sylvia, I want to getinto the things that I truly
believe your audience needs toknow with the trials and the
troubles that they face.
(07:41):
It's gonna be two things.
Let me start with a question.
The first thing is what do youstand on?
What's your foundation?
Everyone needs to think verycarefully about that.
Everyone will have to make achoice.
What's the foundation?
Because life is going to runright over you.
(08:01):
It's going to cheer you up andspit you out, and that's going
to happen whether you like it ornot.
Now there's a dividing linehere, and we have two vast
growing groups of people in ourcountry.
People that accept that, thatunderstand that, that life is a
series of problems coming out myway.
I need to just accept that forwhat it is.
(08:23):
That's reality.
I need to develop skills andtactics and abilities to deal
with that.
And we have a group of peoplethat say, I'm too good for that.
I'm above that.
Troubles and hassles andproblems are beneath me.
You have trouble in yourmarriage, get divorced.
You have trouble with afriendship, stop it.
(08:44):
Cut them off.
You have trouble with family,stop talking to them, walk away.
They're not good enough for you.
We have an entire class ofpeople, Therapy Nation, the
snowflake crowd, says, I shouldnever be hassled.
I should never be troubled.
And if I get troubled, it'ssomebody else's fault.
Well, I got news for snowflakes.
(09:05):
Life is going to run you over.
It's going to bowl you over.
And here's the question youfirst need to ask: what do you
stand on?
What is your foundation?
Some would say you need a NorthStar.
You need a bedrock.
Some would say, I am my ownreference point.
The atheist will say, I am myown North Star.
To that, I say, good luck.
(09:26):
Good luck, man.
Because here's the problem withthat.
One, I'm flawed.
So if I choose myself as thestandard, I'm just going to
circle back around to myproblems, to those flaws.
That's not big enough.
That's not strong enough.
I need something deeper thanthat.
I need something bigger thanthat.
I need something that haspermanence.
(09:47):
I need something that was herebefore I got here, something
that will be here after I'mgone.
I need to stand upon that.
So every person has to face thatquestion.
What is your foundation?
What do you stand on?
That will determine how you comethrough trouble.
That will determine what youfall back on.
That will determine how well youcan stand and get things done.
(10:10):
Once you accept life, acceptlife for what it is, and it's a
series of problems coming yourway.
Now you have a chance tosucceed.
You have a chance to get thingsdone.
You will build the skills tosolve the problems and reap the
rewards on the other side ofthat difficulty.
That's a life well lived.
(10:30):
That is a thriving Americanworking class.
That is a thriving family.
You accept life for what it is,you build the skills to get it
done.
Now you have a serious mind.
You can achieve things, you canbe relied upon.
You know, that crowd thatdoesn't accept the difficulties
of life, they're children.
(10:50):
You cannot rely upon them, youcannot work with them, you
cannot depend upon them.
They're immature, childish innature.
If we want to be serious aboutlife and give ourselves a
chance, you start with that.
What is life?
It's a series of problems comingyour way.
You need to be able to buildskills to face that, and it
starts with your foundation.
Now I will shout to the heavens,the foundation that I've chosen.
(11:15):
I choose the God of the Hebrews.
I choose the scriptures.
That's what I stand on.
I find them to be adequate, Ifind them to be deep enough,
strong enough.
There's permanence there.
That's what I choose.
Now you can choose manydifferent things.
It's our choice.
We have that, we have thatagency in front of us.
(11:35):
That's what I choose, and I'llspeak to that and uh uh and
shout that to the heavens.
That's my choice.
It has served me well.
Now, Sylvia, I want to break fora moment.
I'm going to go into uh next themost important thing that we all
need to be aware of as we faceuh this life of difficulty.
(11:55):
But I want to break for amoment.
Any questions or or commentsaround that?
SPEAKER_02 (12:00):
I'm in total agreement with you in that the
foundation I have picked hasbeen Christ-led.
Like I was thinking of the armorof God as you were speaking.
That's what was coming to theforefront of my mind.
The sandals of peace, you'restanding on the foundation of
the king of peace.
(12:20):
But to produce the fruit of thespirit, you must resist the
desires of the flesh.
And there's so many of them.
That that other side, the fallenworld side, where people are
just divorcing and they'rechoosing to separate from
friends, and all that is the theside that is desires of the
(12:43):
flesh.
When you are spirit-led, youlearn to combat the conflict
that you encounter, and you'renot encountering conflict here
on earth, you're encounteringconflict in the spiritual realm.
Yes, man.
(13:03):
Absolutely.
The enemies coming at you.
That those trials andtribulations that you face are
always, almost always.
He he's done this from the startof time.
Look at Adam and Eve.
He tempted Eve, he tempted melast night, and I fell.
I ate apple and I gave it toAdam, meaning Bonnie, my
(13:25):
husband, and he took a bite.
Yeah, yes, we got out of thewill of God by being tempted by
our past.
That's why I always tell myhusband, guard your tongue, be
careful what you say about meout loud, for he's always
listening.
SPEAKER_04 (13:42):
Yes, ma'am.
SPEAKER_02 (13:43):
And whatever you say about me, he will twist in your
mind.
And so that's why I always say 2Corinthians 10, verse 5, which
is arguments and anything thatsets itself up against it will
demolish when we take ourthoughts captive and make them
obedient to Christ.
(14:09):
There you go.
Okay, but I didn't.
I fell in the trap.
And then instead of him holdingthe line and realizing, oh my
gosh, she took the apple, shetook the bait, let me not take
the bait, he took the bait too.
And that's why the conflictensued.
And that's that's all he wanted.
SPEAKER_01 (14:28):
He wanted to take it away.
Yeah.
He did what Adam did instead ofwhat Adam should have done.
unknown (14:33):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (14:34):
Which we do often.
SPEAKER_02 (14:36):
Which we all do because we're sinners, right?
We're not perfect, we're notChrist, right?
SPEAKER_03 (14:41):
So I my biggest thing was instead of taking the
bait, instead of taking theapple, I could have easily used
the word of God to strike andnot be tempted.
SPEAKER_02 (14:55):
But instead, I just it was late at night, my mind
was tired, and I it was easyenough to get me.
SPEAKER_01 (15:03):
You know, and it's let me give you a framework for
that.
If there's one lesson I couldteach to believers, it would be
this one.
Let me give you structure aroundthat.
First of all, a little context.
In the book that I write, uhit's a working man's guide, I
write it in voice to the man.
It's like I'm speaking directlyto the male.
But the intended beneficiary isactually you ladies.
(15:25):
Because if men need to step upinto, we need to do what God has
called us to do and be uh themen that God has made us to be.
And when we do that, the firstand foremost beneficiary is you
ladies.
You guys benefit the most.
So we need to do our jobs.
So let me give context.
This is true for every human,believer and unbeliever, but it
(15:47):
is particularly relevant andpertinent for believers.
Now, back to what I said before,you have to have a foundation,
you have to accept life for whatit is, what's coming your way,
you need to be ready.
Here might be the most importantthing that a believer needs to
understand.
It goes like this when you getup every day, you face two
opponents that are against you.
(16:10):
You're in a fight, you're in awar, every single day without
exception.
They're there waiting for you,and they're stronger than you.
Either one of them, you can'tbeat on your own.
And and and the combination ofthe two is overwhelming.
Either one of them is strongerthan you, but you need to
understand that they're therewaiting for us.
(16:31):
The first one, the demonic,spiritual personalities that are
wholly given to wickedness,they're there waiting for you.
And you hinted at their methods.
I want to lay it out in plainterms.
Here's their primary methodplant thoughts, invoke feelings,
influence action.
(16:53):
That's how they work.
If I can plant a thought, theycan invoke a feeling, a
sentiment off that thought, andthat can influence your action,
what you do.
And they are very good at that.
That's their strategy.
They're very good.
Now, here's a mistake we makewith a demonic.
We tend to infer uh humanqualities to the demonic.
So we understand people verywell, and we understand the dual
(17:15):
nature.
Humans have a duality about us.
We are capable of great good, weare capable of great wickedness.
We both have the image of Godand the fallenness and
brokenness of sin within us.
We can do either one, and youcan see it every day around us.
Altruism is right at ourfingertips.
We can be very generous, verykind, very uh supportive, or we
(17:37):
can be cruel and selfish andvindictive.
And we could do it all in thesame hour.
We can put it back and forth.
We understand the duality ofhuman nature.
Here's the thing.
We intend to assume that demonshave that too.
The thing is, their nature issingular.
It is not dual.
There is nothing good in them.
(17:57):
It is pure wickedness, puredeception.
They have only the intent todestroy.
That's all they can do, and it'sall they do.
And here's a second thing thatwe don't quite understand about
the demonic.
They care nothing about yourcredentials.
They are unmoved by yourachievements.
You can stack all the lettersand all the net worth and all
(18:21):
the accomplishments behind yourname that you want.
It means nothing to them.
They have no fear of you as anindividual, as a person, because
they know your nature and theyknow they can beat you.
They know how to tempt, theyknow how to manipulate, and they
know it works.
They do it all the time.
They've done it since thebeginning of time.
So they're committed to that,their strategy works.
(18:44):
With the demonic, there's onlyone thing that works authority,
power.
SPEAKER_03 (18:50):
That's it.
You see, demons don't care aboutyou, they are unafraid of you,
but they're terrified of Christ.
SPEAKER_01 (18:58):
Oh, yeah.
He beat them on their terms andon their turf.
He beat them.
They're terrified of him.
So you only have one recoursewith a demonic.
That is the authority, thepower, the word of Christ.
SPEAKER_03 (19:15):
Here's the strategy with a demonic.
Thoughts to the word.
Thoughts to the word.
SPEAKER_01 (19:22):
It's the only thing that works.
You take your mind, you take itto the scriptures, that's the
only thing they recognize.
The truth in the light ofChrist, nothing else.
It doesn't matter how successfulyou get, it doesn't matter what
you achieve, it doesn't matterwho you're around, it doesn't
matter how kind you've been thelast 10 minutes.
(19:44):
That means nothing to them.
They only respond to authority,to power, and nothing else.
So the only strategy that workswith them are thoughts to the
word, thoughts to the scripture.
That beats them, nothing elsedoes.
Now here's a second.
Piece.
And here in America, we havegotten terrible at this second
(20:05):
strategy.
We don't want to recognize it,this second opponent and the
strategy associated with it.
We don't like the implications,so we attempt to work around it.
That second opponent is you,yourself.
Yep.
Flesh is still dead.
You need to read Romans 8, readit very carefully, especially
(20:26):
around verse 10.
It clearly states that this bodyis not yet redeemed.
We don't like that idea.
You know, if we could choose thegospel that we like in this
country, it would be theprosperity gospel.
That's the one we really uhenjoy.
Whom God loves, he makes rich.
When you come to Christ, allyour problems go away,
(20:47):
everything's going to be solved,you're going to be healed,
you're going to be successful,all of your troubles fade away
because I am redeemed.
Well, we need to understand fullredemption has happened in the
spiritual realm.
The spirit, the inner man, isfully redeemed.
The mind is being transformed.
This body is still dead.
(21:07):
The body is still dead in theflesh.
It is not yet redeemed.
That is clearly stated in plainterms, Romans chapter 8, and in
other places, we are waiting forthat redemption.
That comes at the second coming,not the first.
The second coming of Christ iswhen full redemption takes
place.
So here's the reality, the layof the land.
(21:30):
Every morning when you get up,you are facing demons and your
own dead flesh.
Now that should that soundspretty grim.
We should all look at that andsay, what chance do we have?
We actually don't have much.
You have demons that are expertand you can't see them in terms
of flesh.
They have an advantage in thatthey live in the spiritual
(21:50):
realm.
They are committed to yourdestruction, and your flesh
agrees with them.
Your flesh wants to do exactlywhat they're telling you to do.
So what hope do you have?
SPEAKER_02 (22:02):
So the sins of the flesh.
Yes, that entire theme throughthe uh through the New
Testament, the deeds of theflesh, the uh the Galatians
5.17, and anything that comesright before the Spirit, uh the
(22:23):
fruit of the Spirit, right?
Yes, I had that.
SPEAKER_01 (22:26):
That is embedded in your nature.
It's not just some action.
Oh, absolutely.
That's where you need to readRomans 8.
So we have this duality withinus.
We are born again.
We are sealed with the promiseof the Holy Spirit.
That is the spirit of man.
Here's another hint.
If you want to understand theTrinity of God, man is a trinity
(22:47):
as well.
We are spirit, soul, mind, andbody.
Soul and mind are kind ofinterchangeable terms.
The intellectual side of man.
You have the spirit, the innerman, you have the intellectual
side of man, and then you havethe flesh, this physical body.
The inner man is born again whenyou come to Christ.
The intellectual portion of man,your will, your thoughts, your
(23:10):
intellect, is being renewed overthe course of time as you walk
as a disciple.
The flesh, this body that welive in, it's still dead.
It's still dead in sin.
It is not yet redeemed.
Romans 8 is completely crystalclear about that.
So that's the reality that youface as a human.
Demons hate you, they want youdestroyed, they can do nothing
(23:33):
else.
The flesh that you live in, thisbody is inclined to do exactly
that.
So, what's the answer?
Well, I just covered the answerwith a demonic.
The only answer is authority,the scriptures, the truth.
I want to come back to thatnotion of authority in a moment.
Here's the answer with theflesh.
(23:54):
There's only one answer.
It's from God Himself.
It must be killed, it must die.
Death is the only answer to theflesh.
Now, the good news is we don'thave to personally experience
that death.
Christ did that for us.
But here's what you do.
We are atoned by hissubstitutionary death.
(24:17):
Here's what you do every day.
You take thoughts to the word,you take flesh to the cross, and
you leave it there.
You gotta take it to the foot ofthe cross and leave it right
there.
Death is the only answer to thisflesh that is dead in sin.
The truth, the authority ofscripture is the only answer to
(24:39):
the assault of the demonic uponyour mind and therefore your
senses, your feelings, and youractions.
So those two opponents wait foryou every morning when you get
up, they're gonna be with youall day long.
They should drive you to theseanswers thoughts to the word,
flesh to the cross.
SPEAKER_02 (24:59):
That's why 2 Corinthians 10 5 is key to that.
Thoughts to the yes, because youmake it obedient to Christ.
How do you make it obedient toChrist?
Through his word.
Absolutely.
SPEAKER_01 (25:11):
Bingo.
SPEAKER_02 (25:12):
The flesh, yeah.
But he's been downloading allthis to me all morning.
SPEAKER_01 (25:17):
Every minute of every day, that's what you face,
and it'll be again the sametomorrow.
The day after that, remember,you never reach a place of
achievement where demons areimpressed by what you've done.
They don't care.
It does not move them.
We have a hard time with that inAmerica.
In fact, we have a hard timewith two aspects of this.
(25:37):
That I can't handle demons on myown.
You can't.
They don't care what you'vedone.
And that my flesh is stillsubject to sin and death.
It is.
I would challenge you, study thescripture carefully.
It is the second coming ofChrist.
You can add to that, 1Corinthians 15.
(25:58):
Paul talks about theresurrection and the return of
Christ.
Read that carefully.
Romans chapter 8, 1 Corinthianschapter 15, and there are a host
of scriptures as well.
And then Ephesians chapter 5 and6, obviously, with the spiritual
warfare.
Very important passage there.
SPEAKER_02 (26:13):
Well, the armor of God, the armor of God, the word
of God is the sword.
unknown (26:17):
Right?
SPEAKER_01 (26:18):
Let me tell you this
grammar in Ephesians.
Paul uses a whole series oftherefore.
He's setting up a logicalframework in Ephesians.
He makes one theologicalstatement after another.
And then he gets to the end andhe says, and finally, we wrestle
not with flesh and blood.
SPEAKER_04 (26:39):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (26:39):
But with principalities, power, spiritual
forces in dark places.
That's his final point.
His culminating point inEphesians is the spiritual war
that we're in.
And it's amazing, you look athis logical sequence, he ends
with that.
He said, This is the last thingI want you to know.
This is the culminating point.
(26:59):
This is what you face.
Okay?
So we need to be prepared.
And it's an war of authoritythat we cannot win except
through the truth and authorityof Christ, and taking flesh to
the cross and leaving it rightthere.
If you pick it up from that uhthe foot of the cross, you're
(27:21):
done.
Because demons will always bethere.
They'll always be there to temptyou.
If you give them an ounce offlesh to work with, it's over.
You have no chance.
SPEAKER_02 (27:30):
That's why he writes in in Galatians to crucify the
flesh.
SPEAKER_01 (27:34):
Yes.
Right?
Absolutely.
SPEAKER_02 (27:36):
Yeah.
That's right in the foot of thespirit and the and remember the
words of Christ.
SPEAKER_01 (27:41):
If anyone would be my disciple, let him take up his
cross daily and follow me.
Flesh goes to the cross.
It's the only answer.
And as we walk through thislife, we are to walk through
this life by faith, and at theend we get full redemption,
spirit, soul, and body.
All portions of man will beredeemed, and then we enter into
(28:03):
a new heaven and a new earth forrighteousness to us.
That'll be heaven.
SPEAKER_02 (28:07):
So the mind can be renewed, but not the flesh.
Am I getting that correct?
SPEAKER_01 (28:12):
Absolutely.
Okay.
Except through the resurrectionpower of Christ.
And that happens with the fleshat his second coming.
1 Corinthians 15, read itcarefully.
It will clarify that for you inclear terms.
You combine Romans 8 and 1Corinthians 15 and many other
scriptures actually.
You mentioned several, but themain theme would be Ephesians 6,
(28:35):
spiritual warfare, Romans 8, thecondition of the flesh, 1
Corinthians 15, the path and thehope.
This flesh is fully redeemed atthe second coming of Christ, not
the first.
The only answer now is to takeit to the cross and leave it
there.
You have no other just surrenderand submit it to Him.
SPEAKER_02 (28:56):
Yes to the Lord.
SPEAKER_01 (28:57):
Yes.
SPEAKER_02 (28:58):
Like every day, just submit to Him.
SPEAKER_01 (28:59):
That is the every moment of every day, and that's
the only chance you have.
There is no other answer.
You can't get good enough, youcan't redeem it.
It's hopelessly dead, hopelesslylost.
The cross is the answer.
We are to do that by faith inthis life.
We are to walk that path out byfaith, putting our trust in our
(29:21):
Savior, and at the end of thislife, either we die or Christ
returns, he will fully redeemthat body.
We will get a new body, aspiritual body at that point
that carries us into heaven.
But this one is judged.
It is deficient.
It is broken, hopelessly broken.
The world is broken right to thecore, right down to the DNA.
(29:45):
This body is broken.
The universe is broken rightdown to its core.
The only hope is redemption.
We get that redemption now byfaith.
We get it in full when Christreturns.
That's the down payment.
That's the daily nature of this.
Now, Sylvia, here's a point thatis incredibly important and
(30:05):
relevant to the story you justtold me.
When you're facing the demonic,the only thing that matters is
authority.
That's the only thing theyrecognize.
Nothing else, only power.
They care not about you and whatyou've done.
Americans like to think I coulddo enough, I can win in the
spiritual realm as well.
You've already deceivedyourself.
You can't do it.
(30:26):
Okay?
Here's the thing.
There are essentially in the NewTestament only two restrictions
related to gender.
Just two.
One is the elder role in thechurch, the formal teaching of
Scripture, the formal leadershiprole in the body, and the head
of the household.
(30:46):
It's clear in Scripture that's amale role.
Now here's the thing (30:50):
that has nothing to do with relative
worth, relative value, relativestanding before God.
It has nothing to do with uhfirst place over second place,
subservient over uh uhdominated.
It has nothing to do with that.
It's only related to theopponent that we face, our
(31:12):
enemy, because that's all herecognizes is authority.
Look at these sequence inEphesians.
Paul is going through a clear uhdelineation of theology, the
revelation of Christ.
He gets to the family, he talksabout the head of household, the
male, the female, and then whatcomes next?
(31:35):
Spiritual warfare.
That is not an accident, that isa very clear line of thinking.
The reason we need the propersubmission of female to male, it
has nothing to do with malesbeing better or more valuable
than females.
That is not it at all.
It's because of who we face.
It's the opponent that we face.
(31:56):
He only recognizes properauthority.
And so when you break that lineof authority, you just kick the
door wide open for him to comein with his mischief to do what
he does best.
Plant thoughts, invoke feelings,influence action.
And that's what has happened.
So now contrast what we'retalking about with typical
(32:17):
mindsets in the American church.
We think my flesh is just fine.
In fact, I worship it.
I'll put most of my net worthinto it, I'll put most of my
income into it.
I worship this body, I thinkit's fabulous.
It's dead in sin, headed forjudgment.
That's the reality of it.
Okay?
And we want the prosperitygospel.
(32:37):
We want a gospel that tells useverything is great, everything
is fine.
I put my faith in Christ,everything is good after that.
The true gospel is that Christhanging on the cross, saying, My
God, my God, why have youforsaken me?
He took on human desperation.
He embraced it, he walked rightinto it.
He was not ashamed of it.
He didn't walk away from it.
(32:59):
He walked right to it and he didit for us.
He did it on our behalf.
We're called to follow in thatexample.
That was his next to laststatement on the cross.
My God, my God, why have youforsaken me?
He followed that with the laststatement of Father, into your
hands I commit my spirit.
(33:20):
Trust.
Trust.
That took him from Thursdaynight to Sunday morning.
Thursday night, the Garden ofGethsemane, and all the pure
hell that he went through untilhis death, and then he was
buried, and he was in thestronghold of Satan.
And then Sunday morning came.
You see, Satan had Christ rightwhere he wanted him.
(33:43):
Christ willingly walked intothat on our behalf.
Satan held him.
He had him rejected by hispeople, he had him condemned as
a heretic and a convict.
He had scattered his entirefollowing.
There was nothing left.
They were all gone, they wereterrified.
There was nothing left of theministry that he had built and
the movement that he had built.
(34:04):
And he was in the stronghold ofSatan.
Because what happens whensomeone dies and they're
separated from God and coveredin sin?
They go to hell, that's wherethey go.
And Ephesians 4 was pretty clearabout that.
The lower parts of the earth,Paul says.
And I could expound on that, butI'll say some of that.
(34:25):
The lower parts of the earth,and then he ascended.
So God looked down.
Satan had him right where hewanted him, except he didn't get
account for something.
The sin that he was covered inwas not his sin, it was ours.
Our sin.
God looked down upon that andlooked at his faithfulness and
looked at his trust, and heraised him from the dead.
(34:49):
And he set him at the right endof God forevermore to be our
intercessor and our high priest.
So we are following that path.
We need to understand when weget up every day, just as Christ
did, he faced the demonic and hedealt with sin by never
committing it.
He never fell into sin.
(35:09):
So his flesh was pure.
Well, we come from thestandpoint we're born as
sinners.
But what we do is we understandthe demonic thoughts to the
scripture, the authority ofChrist.
We take flesh to the cross everyday and we leave it there.
And we understand the importanceof authority.
When it comes to male and femalerelations, those two
(35:31):
restrictions in the NewTestament are set for that
reason, because of the authoritythat we had Christ exactly where
he wanted him.
You had a man who had built amovement, the kingdom of God.
Satan had taken that to run.
He had hatched a plan and itworked very well.
He had the scribes and Phariseescondemn him as a heretic.
He had the Romans condemn him asa criminal.
(35:54):
His followers were terrified.
They were scattered.
The movement was over.
So when Christ died on the crossand went to the grave, his
movement was done.
Satan had him right where hewanted him.
Christ died as a man separatedfrom God, covered in sin.
He went to Satan's stronghold,like every person goes when they
(36:14):
die separated from God, coveredin sin.
But here's the thing that Satandidn't account for.
When Christ was in that place ofbeing covered in sin, it wasn't
his sin.
It was ours.
It was our sin.
He took it upon himself as asacrifice.
So God looked down with hisfaithfulness, with his purity,
(36:36):
with his mission, and with histrust, and he raised him from
the dead and set him at theright hand of God forevermore to
be our high priest and ourintercessor.
So we follow along in that, butwe like to lose track of the
fact that A, I cannot beatdemons on my own.
I do not have the ability to dothat.
It's only authority.
(36:58):
And this flesh, there's only oneanswer.
Instead of worshiping thisflesh, instead of exalting it
and making it the pinnacle ofall of our work and achievement,
you take it to the cross and youleave it there every day.
That's the proper walk.
Now, when it comes to the uh theauthority issue in male and
female, you only have those tworestrictions in the New
(37:20):
Testament.
The head of household is a man.
The elder bishop role in thechurch, that is a man.
The nature of marriage and thenature of the church, the
relationship of Christ and hisbride, are symbolic.
Marriage is a symbol of thatrelationship with Christ and his
bride.
The truth is, marriage is theclosest thing to heaven that
(37:44):
we're going to experience inthis earth.
The depth of fellowship, thedepth of intimacy, the depth of
oneness, the communion that goeson inside of a marriage, that is
indicative of heaven itself.
That's the nearest that we willexperience it on this planet is
(38:06):
marriage as to what happens ineternity in the heavenly realm.
So we need to develop thatmarriage.
We need to treasure it.
We need to hold it sacred.
But there's that rank ofauthority because demons don't
care about what you've done.
They don't care about how strongyour marriage has been.
They're coming back with theirsame plan, their same approach.
(38:29):
They are going to plantthoughts, invoke feelings,
influence action, create all thecarnage and the damage that they
can.
And if they find any ounce offlesh available to work with,
they will ruin you.
That's how they operate.
So our daily task is thoughts tothe word because of authority.
(38:50):
Flesh to the cross because ofjudgment.
Take it to the cross and leaveit there.
That is our walk as a disciple.
Now, in those matters ofauthority, like I said before,
and it bears repeating, it hasnothing to do with the relative
worth.
We've made it into a subjugationdominion issue.
God never did that.
(39:10):
It has nothing to do with menbeing better than females or one
gender being superior to theother.
That is not the case.
It is about authority.
Is it about the opponent that weface?
We face an opponent that doesspiritual uh wickedness,
opponent of spiritual weakness,that wants us destroyed every
(39:32):
day.
So if you don't line up inauthority, you kick the door
wide open, and uh he will find away to find your flesh and to
take you to a place of run.
SPEAKER_03 (39:42):
And he did last night.
SPEAKER_02 (39:44):
The flesh was the discord for me.
I made a comment that was indirect contradiction to what my
husband was revealing, and thatopened the door for him to walk
in, and he did.
He walked in fully and then juststarted to invoke those thoughts
(40:04):
that provoked those feelingsthat influenced the reaction or
the action.
SPEAKER_01 (40:09):
Here's the good news, Zambia, for you and for
all of us.
Redemption.
Redemption is always at hand.
Renewal.
Renewal the minds.
Of the minds.
Renewal.
God is about renewal.
God doesn't want anyone to facejudgment.
He takes no pleasure in that.
He wants us to walk fully in hispresence, to head toward that
(40:33):
heavenly home.
And so you and your husband canstart over.
SPEAKER_02 (40:37):
Okay, so what is the prayer that would be the
appropriate prayer for what Idiscussed with you earlier?
SPEAKER_01 (40:45):
Okay.
Well, let's talk about actionfirst and then prayer second.
The action is one, understandthat daily reality.
That's context.
So what I've uh taught anddescribed here, that sets the
context for a believer everyday.
An unbeliever faces as, well,it's just that they're they're
doomed.
They're on the other side.
(41:06):
They're on the wrong side of itall.
As a believer, we've taken astand.
Therefore, spiritual forces aregoing to come after us.
An unbeliever, they already havethem.
They just want to hold them.
They don't want to provoke them.
They don't want to uh they wantto just stay right where they
are.
They have them where they wantthem.
A believer has taken a stand.
We're going to do good, we'regoing to advance God's kingdom.
(41:28):
So they're coming after you.
So understand the true heart andnature of that conflict, that
thoughts to the word, flesh tothe cross, that needs to be the
first thing that you're thinkingabout and working on through the
day.
Now, when you get intoparticular challenges like this,
you guys created this problemtogether.
You're going to have to solve ittogether.
(41:51):
There's no way around it, okay?
That's the nature of marriage.
You do it together, you work onit together.
So I would put uh, you know, I'mgonna defer to my wife.
I'm gonna give her as anexample.
She is a master at having ideasand making me think they were
(42:12):
mine.
How she does that, I I standamazed.
But she does.
So we wound up doing exactlywhat she wanted to do, and I
thought it was my idea allalong.
She's a she's uh amazing atthat, and uh uh and it works
very well.
But I can say this, uh Sylvia,without uh knowing your husband
(42:33):
at all, we've never met, it's uhhaving no uh intimacy there at
all.
You're gonna do it together.
It's gonna happen as a unit.
You're gonna solve the problem,work through it.
There will be a number ofapologies, there will be a
number of uh things workedthrough in terms of uh, you
know, I would say this too, thethree magic words when you're
dating are I love you.
(42:55):
The three magic words whenyou're married are work it out.
That's how it goes.
You work it out, and uh you havethe same goal in mind, you've
had a disagreement, you've hadsomething that that cut deep,
you're gonna spend timetogether, you won't solve it on
your own, he won't solve it onhis own.
You'll have to come together andsolve it together.
(43:17):
There's there's no doubt aboutthat.
SPEAKER_04 (43:19):
Okay.
SPEAKER_01 (43:19):
And I would say do what it takes to get that done.
It uh, whatever uh apologies youneed to make, whatever uh uh
sacrifice of pride and an egoyou have to make, uh put that to
the side and say, we've got towork this out and and give it
enough time.
It's uh men need a little moretime.
Once a male ego's been bruised,give them a little space uh to
to heal up, and uh uh that'sthat's necessary.
(43:42):
You ladies are a little quickerto get to forgiveness than men
are.
We're a little slower, but youladies are a little quicker to
forgive.
SPEAKER_02 (43:50):
How long does it take?
I'm curious.
Maybe maybe it's per person.
SPEAKER_01 (43:55):
Two or three days is uh is not unusual.
It uh in the same daylight uhsegment is usually too quick.
Give them a little space, and uhyou need a little time maybe to
sleep on it.
It uh uh but uh just give alittle space and give a little
room, show some respect, showsome regard, and uh uh you know
(44:17):
a lady's for need, and uh thisis uh Paul makes this clear in
Ephesians, and if I rememberout, it's chapter five, the very
last uh verse.
He he summarizes the nature ofthe marriage relationship, and
he says, Husbands love yourwives even as yourself.
Wives see to it that you respectyour husbands.
(44:39):
He encapsulates in that the coreneed of the opposing gender.
You ladies at your core needlove.
Men at our core need respect.
Those are the two drivingforces, and they're different.
You ladies need to know thatyou're loved, you're cared for,
you're protected.
Men need to know that we'rehonored and respected.
(45:01):
And that's a core need, and thenthey aren't the same.
In fact, that's a source of aquite a bit of conflict, is we
assume that that other partyneeds the same things that I do.
They're actually different needsacross the genders.
So you can you can trainyourself to meet that need of
honor and respect of yourhusband, and he needs to be
training himself to meet thatneed of love and protection for
(45:25):
you.
If you feel like you're lovedand protected, you're good.
You'll work through anything.
That's fine.
Our home is is safe and intact,I'm safe and intact.
If your husband feels honoredand respected, he's the same
way.
I'll work through anything,whatever.
It's uh we can take it on.
SPEAKER_02 (45:40):
But it it but it requires both people doing it at
the same time, or does one haveto do it first?
SPEAKER_01 (45:46):
Well, somebody's gonna need to lead, and that
will be custom, but in the end,you're gonna come together, and
you're going to uh that's whatthe marriage union is about.
For this reason, a man shallleave his father and mother and
cleave to his wife, and the twoshall become one flesh.
The whole point of marriage isthe union.
(46:09):
So when two people marry, it'sno longer about this person,
person A or person B, thehusband or the wife.
It's about the union itself.
And that is probably the mostfoundational idea in marriage
that we've definitely forgottenand left behind.
That is a commitment to themarriage itself as a separate
(46:31):
standalone unit.
That no matter what, it's themarriage that matters.
And that has to come from bothsides, for sure.
Now, in terms of reconciliation,somebody will need to step out
and lead.
The other party needs to comealong.
You're going to agree, and themain thing you're going to agree
on is the marriage is whatmatters.
(46:52):
It's the union.
That's what matters.
That's your first and foremostprinciple of marriage: that it's
no longer two people, it's oneunit.
You become one.
The expression of grace, theexpression out of that marriage
between you and your husbandwill be unlike any other.
You'll have your own way ofdoing things.
(47:13):
You'll have your own methods,your own habits, uh, and it
comes out of thisproblem-solving process.
You work through problemstogether.
It you create a special voice, aspecial expression that is just
yours.
It's unlike anybody else.
Melissa and I have our habits.
My wife and I, we have ourhabits on how we work through
things.
(47:33):
We don't do it just like anybodyelse.
There's nobody else that goesthrough problems the way she and
I go through problems.
That's true for every singlemarriage.
And that's the way it should be.
A ton of techniques can helpyou, but all that's doing is
giving you means to cometogether and solve problems
together.
So that first principleprinciple of marriage is
(47:55):
commitment to the marriageitself.
That must be sacrosanct.
That's holy, that's holy ground.
A commitment to the marriageitself, not the individual in
the marriage.
It's the two individualscommitting to the unit of
marriage itself.
It's sacred, it belongs to theAlmighty, that's his.
The second principle is solvingproblems together.
(48:18):
You work through issues nolonger one at a time, no longer
on your own.
You work through problems as aunit.
You do it together.
You find your solutions thatway.
If you do those two things, youwill have a lifelong marriage,
and it will be very happy, veryproductive, virtually impervious
to problems.
You will face every problemtogether, you will work through
(48:42):
it together, you will find asolution together, and you'll be
stronger on the other side ofthat.
SPEAKER_02 (48:48):
That concept comes from 2 Peter, doesn't it?
SPEAKER_01 (48:52):
Yes, it does.
SPEAKER_02 (48:53):
Yes, because I wrote it down this morning.
That was one of the formulasthat God gave me.
SPEAKER_01 (48:58):
Yep.
Second Peter starts in Genesischapter three.
SPEAKER_02 (49:03):
It starts where you're adding from faith, you
add knowledge.
From knowledge, you add, right?
That's that one.
SPEAKER_01 (49:11):
Yes.
SPEAKER_02 (49:12):
Oh my goodness.
SPEAKER_01 (49:13):
Now you're doing it as a unit.
SPEAKER_02 (49:16):
Well, yeah, but I have to convince him as a unit.
Or is it it's not even up to meto convince him, it's up to God
to transform him.
SPEAKER_01 (49:24):
You know what you're gonna find yourself doing as an
individual?
unknown (49:28):
What?
SPEAKER_01 (49:32):
Flesh to the cross.
Now you're a disciple, you'reready to march.
Now you're ready to talk to yourhusband.
Now you're ready to visit withhim.
So we still only have onesavior.
There's one thing that neverhappens in a marriage.
You become each other's savior.
That is never true.
In Christ, we are one.
(49:52):
There is no longer Jew norGreek, bond nor free, male nor
female.
We stand before God, but standbefore our Savior, our priest as
an individual.
Now, you are accountable to GodHimself for your discipleship.
Your husband cannot save you.
You cannot save him.
(50:14):
You don't save each other.
That's Satan's trap.
That's Satan's trap.
SPEAKER_04 (50:19):
That's his trap.
SPEAKER_01 (50:20):
Your salvation is not in your husband.
His salvation is not in you.
You stand before Christ alone,needing grace, needing
reconciliation.
Christ is the only one that cansave us.
But he's also the author ofmarriage.
He marries his bride.
He understands marriagecompletely.
(50:40):
It's his plan.
Here's something else, Sylvia,chew on this for a bit.
There's only one socialinstitution that was instituted
before the fall of man.
Every other one, all societies,civil governments, uh social uh
institutions, etc., came aboutafter the fall of man for
purposes of redemption to get usback to something civil.
(51:04):
There's one social institutionthat was implemented before sin
entered this world in the Gardenof Eden, and that is marriage.
Marriage is not God's redemptiveplan.
Marriage was God's originalplan.
That's what he had in mind formen and women before sin ever
broke this world, was marriage.
(51:25):
Now, what you're doing throughthis process that you and I are
discussing, that you're mullingover, you're getting back to
that original plan.
The original plan of God, whichwas for one man and one woman to
join together in union andbecome one flesh, become one
unit.
Okay?
Now we have to do that in lightof the sin of mankind.
(51:47):
Christ is the solution to thatsin.
You have to do thatindividually.
You both go to Christ.
He is your high priest, he isyour savior.
You don't save each other.
Christ saves each one of youindividually so that now you can
be a husband and wife unit andexpress the grace of Christ
(52:09):
through that marriage.
That's what will happen in theend.
SPEAKER_03 (52:14):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_02 (52:16):
I yeah, the timing of this is really interesting.
It's very, very interesting.
I uh I I love his timing.
I think he has a reallyinteresting sense of humor.
Yes, he does.
SPEAKER_01 (52:30):
Yes, he does.
SPEAKER_02 (52:32):
There was a comedian that we saw months ago in
October that said, conflict isnot your enemy.
Conflict is when God reveals,it's a vertical revelation.
When you submit to him and youpray to him, he reveals through
(52:52):
that conflict.
There's so many things herevealed in this particular
conflict to me that are just thestrategies that you've outlined
for me.
In the interm while I'm waiting,I'm assuming it's what you said.
SPEAKER_03 (53:08):
Let me see.
I have all my notes here.
No, it's not it.
Um it is oh my lord, what is it?
It's all right.
Flesh to the cross and thoughtsto Christ to the words to the
word.
SPEAKER_01 (53:28):
Thoughts to the word of Christ, his truth, his life,
his word.
So I flesh to the cross.
SPEAKER_02 (53:35):
Pray and stay close to him during these next two,
three days.
Absolutely.
And just no more words comingout of me at all towards him.
Give him space, respect, andhonor.
SPEAKER_01 (53:48):
Yes, find a way to show your husband that you
respect him, you grant himhonor.
He is the head of the household.
You both stand before Christ uhfor purposes of redemption and
salvation.
You're going to make thismarriage work as a biblical
marriage.
You will respect him, you willhonor him, and you're asking him
(54:09):
to love you and give youprotection.
That is a very healthy, happy uhmarriage.
The woman is getting what sheneeds, the man is getting what
he needs.
You join together, it's a uniqueexpression of grace that happens
in that union.
It's a divine thing.
It truly is the closest thing toheaven man is ever going to see
(54:30):
in this earth.
A functioning, happy, biblicalmarriage.
It's a thing of beauty.
Uh, the intimacy there isunmatched.
And that gets to the sexual sideof things.
You know, the the truth ishere's another huge mistake in
society.
We try to separate love and sex.
It's impossible.
SPEAKER_04 (54:49):
No, it's the same thing.
SPEAKER_01 (54:50):
Finely bladed rope, they're they're wound together
so tight.
They come together.
Love and sex are never intendedto be separate.
They come together.
SPEAKER_04 (54:58):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (54:58):
But when you join those together in a proper,
healthy marriage, it's uh thethe intimacy is corrupt.
SPEAKER_02 (55:08):
It's all three of us in one body.
SPEAKER_01 (55:10):
There you go.
That's what I like that.
I like that.
SPEAKER_02 (55:13):
It's the spirit, man and woman, like the husband, the
wife, and God all in one.
SPEAKER_01 (55:18):
Marriage belongs to God.
He sanctioned it.
It's his, it's not ours todefile.
He gave it to us.
It's a gift, it was his originalplan.
We've done everything imaginableto dilute it, to defile it, to
dumb it down.
It all fails because it's notours.
It doesn't belong to us.
It was given to us.
So we got to use it properly asa steward.
(55:41):
We are at when we do the thingsyou and I have talked about, we
are stewards.
We are doing what God set ushere to do.
And that's another myth thatSatan uses.
We think we're sovereign lords.
We can create whatever life wewant here.
We're in charge.
Well, just ask how in charge youare.
How much can you guarantee?
(56:01):
You can't guarantee your nextbreath.
You may not make the suppertable tonight.
You may not get up in themorning.
That's how much we canguarantee.
But here's what we control ourthoughts and actions and words
in the moment.
I control that.
So what I do and say right now,I'm in charge of that.
That's enough.
(56:23):
That gives me the power of asteward.
I have the authority of asteward.
It is stewardship.
It is not sovereignty.
I do not control this world.
I do not control other people.
Just think about what can takeyour life.
I could have an aneurysm.
We could hang up this phone,Sylvia, and we never speak again
because I don't live to seebedtime.
(56:44):
That's hard reality.
We have to accept that.
That's a limit on mysovereignty.
I control what I say and doright now.
And that is enough.
I can do everything I need to doin all of life.
I can be exactly what God mademe to be by doing that.
So if you're a steward, you takethat stewardship into this daily
walk and into your marriage.
(57:05):
You're going to have pleasureand intimacy beyond description.
Read the book of Song ofSolomon.
It tells you just how good itis.
SPEAKER_02 (57:18):
Just stick with scripture.
It's going to lead you to alight.
That's the gist of what we'vebeen talking about.
That's the only thing that canthat can destroy the enemy.
SPEAKER_01 (57:31):
That's our rock.
That's our foundation.
That's the force.
He answers to that.
He answers to that.
You don't have to go to thatband of theologians, those great
uh uh profound uh uh prophets,Black Sabbath, in one of their
songs, uh they said the devil isnever a maker, and they got it
just right.
(57:51):
They hit the nail on the head.
Satan can only deceive, he canonly manipulate and distort.
He can never create, he cannever speak to what is true, he
can never take you down a pathto light, to anything good.
He is a deceiver and a destroyerand nothing else.
(58:12):
God is a creator, he's a maker,he innovates, he makes things
new and fresh and amazing.
Look at the world that he made.
It's an amazing place.
It's incredible.
He made that for us.
He made us to live in it and tofellowship with him.
So uh yeah, you keep your mindlocked into scripture, none of
(58:33):
that, no facts, things that aretrue, they don't come from
Satan, they come from God.
You have to have a reverence forfacts.
So if you're a steward, one ofthe first things you do is you
have a reverence for facts.
You bow your knee to facts.
You're humble in that way, andyou're going to make decisions
in a very different way.
If uh you're making decisions asa sovereign uh unit, you think
(58:54):
you're in charge, you're goingto rationalize.
You're going to choose up frontwhat you like, and then you'll
toss facts to the side to suityour own purpose.
If you're a steward, you gatherall the facts, you bow your knee
to those facts, and then youwork through to a decision.
That's a stewardship approach.
A sovereign lord approach says,I've already decided what I
(59:16):
want.
I'm going to pitch facts asideand people aside as I like and
get what I want.
That's the sovereign mindsetthat describes America in this
modern world.
We are meant to be stewards.
We are not meant to be sovereignlords.
So when you find yourself tryingto dominate and take control,
you've already left the truth.
(59:37):
God put us here as stewards.
It's his plan, it's his world.
We live under his authority.
SPEAKER_02 (59:45):
And you resubmit to his sovereignty.
SPEAKER_01 (59:48):
Yes, ma'am.
SPEAKER_02 (59:49):
We kneel down to it, and it's guiding.
SPEAKER_01 (59:52):
Yeah.
We created being.
That's your first point ofhumility and submission.
I did not make myself.
I am made.
I am created.
I bow my knee to that and I walkby faith with the rest.
SPEAKER_03 (01:00:08):
Yes, we do.
SPEAKER_02 (01:00:10):
So let me ask you: if men wanted to reach you to
work with you, or if we wantedto buy your book, how do we find
you?
SPEAKER_01 (01:00:20):
The best way is on the website,
aworkingmansguide.com.
It's the title on the book.
I've got one here.
A working man's guide, just dropthe apostrophe at.com, and
that'll take you right to it.
Aworkingmansguide.com.
There's contact there you canbuy right off the website.
You can go to Amazon as well,any of the mainstream uh uh
retailers.
(01:00:42):
But um uh that website is thebest.
Social media sites are tied tothat.
You'll find those on the websiteas well.
A lot of information there.
That's the best way to get intouch.
SPEAKER_02 (01:00:52):
Okay, and any last words of encouragement for
Christian men and women.
SPEAKER_01 (01:00:57):
You know, I have such a deep passion for the
American working class.
I want to encourage everyone, asyou settle that foundation and
you stand on it rock solid, thebenefits come.
God does not ask us to serve himfor no reason.
He does not ask us to serve himin vain.
He blesses us immensely, hegives us of his gifts and of his
(01:01:19):
goodness, but he demands that wetake our place.
When we try to make ourselves incharge, the trouble is going to
overcome us.
So trouble is coming.
You can't decide that.
You get to decide how yourespond.
If you take on that trouble as asteward of the Almighty, he will
protect you and he will fight onyour behalf.
(01:01:41):
If you take on that trouble as asovereign unit, you think you
can handle it, you're doomed.
Without question.
I would encourage all of yourlisteners with that truth.
Take on life for what it is, doit as a steward.
You were made by God for areason.
Accept that and walk in it.
He will fight on your behalf, hewill come to your aid and your
(01:02:04):
rescue in that circumstance.
If you try to do it on your own,you have no chance.
It's not like, well, I mightsucceed.
No, you have no chance.
Those two opponents will wreckyou.
The demonic is stronger thanyou.
Your flesh is stronger than you.
You can't beat either one.
You face them every day.
Understand the context, approachit accordingly.
(01:02:27):
That's what I would say.
God bless your listeners.
Uh I uh wish them well.
SPEAKER_02 (01:02:32):
Thank you.
We'll take your blessing everyday, all day.
Um, and to the listeners thatrelease out reveal purpose, I
just want to remind you uh aboutMatthew 5.14 to be the light.
Yes, ma'am.
Step into your light as Dr.
Teak has stepped into hiswillingly.
He has become a steward of God'swill and sovereignty.
(01:02:54):
And I can only hope that I'm onthat path, and that by the end I
will be in full submission toeverything, putting flesh to the
cross and thoughts to Christ andto his word, and making them
(01:03:14):
totally obedient to him.
And that's the only way we'regonna be to defeat the conflict
that we face, and we know thatthat conflict is not of this
world, so we've got to fight andput on his armor every single
day.
(01:03:35):
So thank you, Dr.
Teak, for joining us today andfor this powerful testimony.
SPEAKER_01 (01:03:41):
And it's a pleasure.
Thank you so much.
You're an excellent host.
SPEAKER_02 (01:03:45):
Uh it's been my honor to host you here, sir.
SPEAKER_03 (01:03:49):
And I wish everyone listening to have a beautiful,
blessed day.
Bye now.
SPEAKER_00 (01:03:58):
So that's it for today's episode of Release Doubt
Reveal Purpose.
Head on over to iTunes orwherever you listen and
subscribe to the show.
One lucky listener every singleweek who posts a review on
iTunes.
We'll win a chance to grandprize drawing to win a
twenty-five thousand dollarprivate VIP day with Sylvia
(01:04:19):
Worship herself.
Be sure to head on over torelease out reveal
purposepodcast.com and pick up afree copy of Sylvia's gift and
join us on the next episode.
If you've ever struggled with fear, doubt, or
worry and wondering what yourtrue purpose was all about, then
this podcast is for you.
In this show, your host, SylviaWarsham, will interview elite
experts and ordinary people thathave created extraordinary
lives.
So here's your host, SylviaWarsham.
SPEAKER_02 (00:29):
Hey light bringers, it's Sylvia Warsham.
Welcome to Released Out RevealPurpose.
And today is Dr.
Mark Teague.
And he, I know, has a lot ofwisdom to share with us
regarding Christian marriages,Christian faith, and especially
how he guides Christian menthrough the values that Christ
has to share with us.
(00:50):
It's a topic that's very nearand dear to my heart, as this
year God has had me in enormousamounts of training to submit to
my marriage fully.
Submission to me was not easy.
I came from a Mexicanbackground, and I saw my mother
submit to my very demandingfather as a child, and I
(01:11):
unfortunately created certainbeliefs in me about submission
and surrender to God'ssovereignty and God's will for
our lives.
In this year alone, he has beentraining me how to remove my
pride from the equation, removeit by putting me through
humility exercises and askingfor repentance to people that I
(01:36):
have offended in my life.
And one of those is my husband.
And that's why when I read Dr.
Teague's faith sheet that hesent over for me to read, I
(02:02):
started to immediately get asense that he has a story of
transformation that not only doI need to hear it, but people in
marriages that are underspiritual warfare, currently
under spiritual attack, and itusually occurs through the men.
(02:22):
The men get attacked, they don'trealize they're getting
attacked.
The women, even though they seeit later, they try to stop, it
won't stop because we've alreadyfallen into the track.
So without further ado, Dr.
Teague, thank you so much forjoining us this morning on
Released Out Reveal Purpose.
SPEAKER_01 (02:47):
Let's uh make their day better.
Well, that's why we're here.
SPEAKER_02 (02:51):
You know, I love that you're here today.
Because of the timing, as Ishared with you prior to
beginning the podcast, there wasa major fight last night, and I
woke up with a lot of revelationin my heart, and I started to
jot down all my notes, and I sawhow I fell into the trap of the
(03:15):
desires of the flesh, which arestipulated in Galatians, in the
book of Galatians.
Um, in order to produce thefruit of the spirit of
self-control and love and joyand peace, I've got to resist
that.
And the devil comes and attacksjust as there's a major
breakthrough happening.
So I know you have a lot tounpack for us today.
(03:39):
So please share with us why thistopic is so important for you to
share with Christian men and anamazing story of transformation.
SPEAKER_01 (03:49):
Thank you so much, Sylvia.
You know, at the end of thattransformation, and what brings
me here uh with the book andwith the information is I have a
deep passion for the workingclass, uh, in particular the
American working class.
You know, America is essentiallya working class nation.
We always have been, we alwayswill be.
And when the working classthrives, America thrives.
(04:10):
When the working classstruggles, America struggles.
So if we want a strong future asa nation, we need to start with
a family, working classfamilies.
And let me get definitional fora second.
Working class need you need toforget about money, about
income.
You use a literal definition.
The working class is the classthat is working.
(04:32):
When you look at it that way,the principles are the same.
We need to understand theprinciples, and they will bring
us to success.
Now, let me describe for amoment what brought me uh to
that point of deep passion.
Melissa and I, it's a lifejourney.
Melissa and I grew up uh verytraditional.
We grew up on farms and ranchesin North Texas, a very
(04:53):
traditional, classic American uhenvironment, uh strong uh values
and the incentives are verystraightforward.
If you don't work, you don'teat.
It's very clear if you don't getyour work done, your revenue
suffers quickly.
Uh the feedback is immediate andvisceral.
So we married in 1986.
Most and I grew up together.
(05:13):
We have a picture of meattending her second birthday
party when she turned two yearsold.
We were high school sweethearts,and uh, we got married uh right
out of high school for her,college for me, and started a
family, had two kids in 1986 iswhen we married.
And the farm economy was verytough, very difficult at that
point.
Cash flow was very tight.
But we chose uh through thatdecision process to change
(05:36):
careers.
I went to graduate school,earned a doctorate in
agricultural economics, wentinto the banking industry, built
a career about 30 years therethrough starting, you know,
starting uh entry-level jobs,and then all the way through to
executive management.
I wound up uh in a privateequity and uh C-suite jobs.
I was chief credit, chiefoperating officer, and that was
(05:57):
a career path.
Well, something happened alongthe way that was very
transformational, transformativefor me, and that is you go from
that environment whereeverything is very
straightforward, values arecommonly accepted, the entire
community has a very common setof values.
You go through the corporateworld, there is nothing
(06:17):
straightforward.
It is very convoluted, there'severy incentive you can imagine.
And all of your audience workingtoday, working jobs can relate
to that.
I can tell you that is a greatcontrast to what America was for
a long time.
If you go back to its rural uhroots, those things were very
different than they've become uhthese days.
(06:38):
Well, Melissa and I lived acrossthat entire cycle.
We lived across those changes.
And what I found myself doing inthat corporate world, in the
work world, you need success,and you have to do it as a team.
You have to bring peopletogether to get them to uh bond
around a common goal, put theirdifferences aside, and get
(06:59):
things done.
Well, what I found myself doingwas reaching back to those
old-fashioned ancientprinciples, pulling them into
today and applying them in amodern environment.
And I would do that over andover.
So I made notes, I jotted itdown, and it turned into a book
in the end.
And it gave me a deep passionfor the American working class.
(07:21):
So that's kind of the story thatbrought me to where I am is
basically pressure.
The pressure of life forces youto think, and you're gonna fall
back on something.
So here, Sylvia, I want to getinto the things that I truly
believe your audience needs toknow with the trials and the
troubles that they face.
(07:41):
It's gonna be two things.
Let me start with a question.
The first thing is what do youstand on?
What's your foundation?
Everyone needs to think verycarefully about that.
Everyone will have to make achoice.
What's the foundation?
Because life is going to runright over you.
(08:01):
It's going to cheer you up andspit you out, and that's going
to happen whether you like it ornot.
Now there's a dividing linehere, and we have two vast
growing groups of people in ourcountry.
People that accept that, thatunderstand that, that life is a
series of problems coming out myway.
I need to just accept that forwhat it is.
(08:23):
That's reality.
I need to develop skills andtactics and abilities to deal
with that.
And we have a group of peoplethat say, I'm too good for that.
I'm above that.
Troubles and hassles andproblems are beneath me.
You have trouble in yourmarriage, get divorced.
You have trouble with afriendship, stop it.
(08:44):
Cut them off.
You have trouble with family,stop talking to them, walk away.
They're not good enough for you.
We have an entire class ofpeople, Therapy Nation, the
snowflake crowd, says, I shouldnever be hassled.
I should never be troubled.
And if I get troubled, it'ssomebody else's fault.
Well, I got news for snowflakes.
(09:05):
Life is going to run you over.
It's going to bowl you over.
And here's the question youfirst need to ask: what do you
stand on?
What is your foundation?
Some would say you need a NorthStar.
You need a bedrock.
Some would say, I am my ownreference point.
The atheist will say, I am myown North Star.
To that, I say, good luck.
(09:26):
Good luck, man.
Because here's the problem withthat.
One, I'm flawed.
So if I choose myself as thestandard, I'm just going to
circle back around to myproblems, to those flaws.
That's not big enough.
That's not strong enough.
I need something deeper thanthat.
I need something bigger thanthat.
I need something that haspermanence.
(09:47):
I need something that was herebefore I got here, something
that will be here after I'mgone.
I need to stand upon that.
So every person has to face thatquestion.
What is your foundation?
What do you stand on?
That will determine how you comethrough trouble.
That will determine what youfall back on.
That will determine how well youcan stand and get things done.
(10:10):
Once you accept life, acceptlife for what it is, and it's a
series of problems coming yourway.
Now you have a chance tosucceed.
You have a chance to get thingsdone.
You will build the skills tosolve the problems and reap the
rewards on the other side ofthat difficulty.
That's a life well lived.
(10:30):
That is a thriving Americanworking class.
That is a thriving family.
You accept life for what it is,you build the skills to get it
done.
Now you have a serious mind.
You can achieve things, you canbe relied upon.
You know, that crowd thatdoesn't accept the difficulties
of life, they're children.
(10:50):
You cannot rely upon them, youcannot work with them, you
cannot depend upon them.
They're immature, childish innature.
If we want to be serious aboutlife and give ourselves a
chance, you start with that.
What is life?
It's a series of problems comingyour way.
You need to be able to buildskills to face that, and it
starts with your foundation.
Now I will shout to the heavens,the foundation that I've chosen.
(11:15):
I choose the God of the Hebrews.
I choose the scriptures.
That's what I stand on.
I find them to be adequate, Ifind them to be deep enough,
strong enough.
There's permanence there.
That's what I choose.
Now you can choose manydifferent things.
It's our choice.
We have that, we have thatagency in front of us.
(11:35):
That's what I choose, and I'llspeak to that and uh uh and
shout that to the heavens.
That's my choice.
It has served me well.
Now, Sylvia, I want to break fora moment.
I'm going to go into uh next themost important thing that we all
need to be aware of as we faceuh this life of difficulty.
(11:55):
But I want to break for amoment.
Any questions or or commentsaround that?
SPEAKER_02 (12:00):
I'm in total agreement with you in that the
foundation I have picked hasbeen Christ-led.
Like I was thinking of the armorof God as you were speaking.
That's what was coming to theforefront of my mind.
The sandals of peace, you'restanding on the foundation of
the king of peace.
(12:20):
But to produce the fruit of thespirit, you must resist the
desires of the flesh.
And there's so many of them.
That that other side, the fallenworld side, where people are
just divorcing and they'rechoosing to separate from
friends, and all that is the theside that is desires of the
(12:43):
flesh.
When you are spirit-led, youlearn to combat the conflict
that you encounter, and you'renot encountering conflict here
on earth, you're encounteringconflict in the spiritual realm.
Yes, man.
(13:03):
Absolutely.
The enemies coming at you.
That those trials andtribulations that you face are
always, almost always.
He he's done this from the startof time.
Look at Adam and Eve.
He tempted Eve, he tempted melast night, and I fell.
I ate apple and I gave it toAdam, meaning Bonnie, my
(13:25):
husband, and he took a bite.
Yeah, yes, we got out of thewill of God by being tempted by
our past.
That's why I always tell myhusband, guard your tongue, be
careful what you say about meout loud, for he's always
listening.
SPEAKER_04 (13:42):
Yes, ma'am.
SPEAKER_02 (13:43):
And whatever you say about me, he will twist in your
mind.
And so that's why I always say 2Corinthians 10, verse 5, which
is arguments and anything thatsets itself up against it will
demolish when we take ourthoughts captive and make them
obedient to Christ.
(14:09):
There you go.
Okay, but I didn't.
I fell in the trap.
And then instead of him holdingthe line and realizing, oh my
gosh, she took the apple, shetook the bait, let me not take
the bait, he took the bait too.
And that's why the conflictensued.
And that's that's all he wanted.
SPEAKER_01 (14:28):
He wanted to take it away.
Yeah.
He did what Adam did instead ofwhat Adam should have done.
unknown (14:33):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (14:34):
Which we do often.
SPEAKER_02 (14:36):
Which we all do because we're sinners, right?
We're not perfect, we're notChrist, right?
SPEAKER_03 (14:41):
So I my biggest thing was instead of taking the
bait, instead of taking theapple, I could have easily used
the word of God to strike andnot be tempted.
SPEAKER_02 (14:55):
But instead, I just it was late at night, my mind
was tired, and I it was easyenough to get me.
SPEAKER_01 (15:03):
You know, and it's let me give you a framework for
that.
If there's one lesson I couldteach to believers, it would be
this one.
Let me give you structure aroundthat.
First of all, a little context.
In the book that I write, uhit's a working man's guide, I
write it in voice to the man.
It's like I'm speaking directlyto the male.
But the intended beneficiary isactually you ladies.
(15:25):
Because if men need to step upinto, we need to do what God has
called us to do and be uh themen that God has made us to be.
And when we do that, the firstand foremost beneficiary is you
ladies.
You guys benefit the most.
So we need to do our jobs.
So let me give context.
This is true for every human,believer and unbeliever, but it
(15:47):
is particularly relevant andpertinent for believers.
Now, back to what I said before,you have to have a foundation,
you have to accept life for whatit is, what's coming your way,
you need to be ready.
Here might be the most importantthing that a believer needs to
understand.
It goes like this when you getup every day, you face two
opponents that are against you.
(16:10):
You're in a fight, you're in awar, every single day without
exception.
They're there waiting for you,and they're stronger than you.
Either one of them, you can'tbeat on your own.
And and and the combination ofthe two is overwhelming.
Either one of them is strongerthan you, but you need to
understand that they're therewaiting for us.
(16:31):
The first one, the demonic,spiritual personalities that are
wholly given to wickedness,they're there waiting for you.
And you hinted at their methods.
I want to lay it out in plainterms.
Here's their primary methodplant thoughts, invoke feelings,
influence action.
(16:53):
That's how they work.
If I can plant a thought, theycan invoke a feeling, a
sentiment off that thought, andthat can influence your action,
what you do.
And they are very good at that.
That's their strategy.
They're very good.
Now, here's a mistake we makewith a demonic.
We tend to infer uh humanqualities to the demonic.
So we understand people verywell, and we understand the dual
(17:15):
nature.
Humans have a duality about us.
We are capable of great good, weare capable of great wickedness.
We both have the image of Godand the fallenness and
brokenness of sin within us.
We can do either one, and youcan see it every day around us.
Altruism is right at ourfingertips.
We can be very generous, verykind, very uh supportive, or we
(17:37):
can be cruel and selfish andvindictive.
And we could do it all in thesame hour.
We can put it back and forth.
We understand the duality ofhuman nature.
Here's the thing.
We intend to assume that demonshave that too.
The thing is, their nature issingular.
It is not dual.
There is nothing good in them.
(17:57):
It is pure wickedness, puredeception.
They have only the intent todestroy.
That's all they can do, and it'sall they do.
And here's a second thing thatwe don't quite understand about
the demonic.
They care nothing about yourcredentials.
They are unmoved by yourachievements.
You can stack all the lettersand all the net worth and all
(18:21):
the accomplishments behind yourname that you want.
It means nothing to them.
They have no fear of you as anindividual, as a person, because
they know your nature and theyknow they can beat you.
They know how to tempt, theyknow how to manipulate, and they
know it works.
They do it all the time.
They've done it since thebeginning of time.
So they're committed to that,their strategy works.
(18:44):
With the demonic, there's onlyone thing that works authority,
power.
SPEAKER_03 (18:50):
That's it.
You see, demons don't care aboutyou, they are unafraid of you,
but they're terrified of Christ.
SPEAKER_01 (18:58):
Oh, yeah.
He beat them on their terms andon their turf.
He beat them.
They're terrified of him.
So you only have one recoursewith a demonic.
That is the authority, thepower, the word of Christ.
SPEAKER_03 (19:15):
Here's the strategy with a demonic.
Thoughts to the word.
Thoughts to the word.
SPEAKER_01 (19:22):
It's the only thing that works.
You take your mind, you take itto the scriptures, that's the
only thing they recognize.
The truth in the light ofChrist, nothing else.
It doesn't matter how successfulyou get, it doesn't matter what
you achieve, it doesn't matterwho you're around, it doesn't
matter how kind you've been thelast 10 minutes.
(19:44):
That means nothing to them.
They only respond to authority,to power, and nothing else.
So the only strategy that workswith them are thoughts to the
word, thoughts to the scripture.
That beats them, nothing elsedoes.
Now here's a second.
Piece.
And here in America, we havegotten terrible at this second
(20:05):
strategy.
We don't want to recognize it,this second opponent and the
strategy associated with it.
We don't like the implications,so we attempt to work around it.
That second opponent is you,yourself.
Yep.
Flesh is still dead.
You need to read Romans 8, readit very carefully, especially
(20:26):
around verse 10.
It clearly states that this bodyis not yet redeemed.
We don't like that idea.
You know, if we could choose thegospel that we like in this
country, it would be theprosperity gospel.
That's the one we really uhenjoy.
Whom God loves, he makes rich.
When you come to Christ, allyour problems go away,
(20:47):
everything's going to be solved,you're going to be healed,
you're going to be successful,all of your troubles fade away
because I am redeemed.
Well, we need to understand fullredemption has happened in the
spiritual realm.
The spirit, the inner man, isfully redeemed.
The mind is being transformed.
This body is still dead.
(21:07):
The body is still dead in theflesh.
It is not yet redeemed.
That is clearly stated in plainterms, Romans chapter 8, and in
other places, we are waiting forthat redemption.
That comes at the second coming,not the first.
The second coming of Christ iswhen full redemption takes
place.
So here's the reality, the layof the land.
(21:30):
Every morning when you get up,you are facing demons and your
own dead flesh.
Now that should that soundspretty grim.
We should all look at that andsay, what chance do we have?
We actually don't have much.
You have demons that are expertand you can't see them in terms
of flesh.
They have an advantage in thatthey live in the spiritual
(21:50):
realm.
They are committed to yourdestruction, and your flesh
agrees with them.
Your flesh wants to do exactlywhat they're telling you to do.
So what hope do you have?
SPEAKER_02 (22:02):
So the sins of the flesh.
Yes, that entire theme throughthe uh through the New
Testament, the deeds of theflesh, the uh the Galatians
5.17, and anything that comesright before the Spirit, uh the
(22:23):
fruit of the Spirit, right?
Yes, I had that.
SPEAKER_01 (22:26):
That is embedded in your nature.
It's not just some action.
Oh, absolutely.
That's where you need to readRomans 8.
So we have this duality withinus.
We are born again.
We are sealed with the promiseof the Holy Spirit.
That is the spirit of man.
Here's another hint.
If you want to understand theTrinity of God, man is a trinity
(22:47):
as well.
We are spirit, soul, mind, andbody.
Soul and mind are kind ofinterchangeable terms.
The intellectual side of man.
You have the spirit, the innerman, you have the intellectual
side of man, and then you havethe flesh, this physical body.
The inner man is born again whenyou come to Christ.
The intellectual portion of man,your will, your thoughts, your
(23:10):
intellect, is being renewed overthe course of time as you walk
as a disciple.
The flesh, this body that welive in, it's still dead.
It's still dead in sin.
It is not yet redeemed.
Romans 8 is completely crystalclear about that.
So that's the reality that youface as a human.
Demons hate you, they want youdestroyed, they can do nothing
(23:33):
else.
The flesh that you live in, thisbody is inclined to do exactly
that.
So, what's the answer?
Well, I just covered the answerwith a demonic.
The only answer is authority,the scriptures, the truth.
I want to come back to thatnotion of authority in a moment.
Here's the answer with theflesh.
(23:54):
There's only one answer.
It's from God Himself.
It must be killed, it must die.
Death is the only answer to theflesh.
Now, the good news is we don'thave to personally experience
that death.
Christ did that for us.
But here's what you do.
We are atoned by hissubstitutionary death.
(24:17):
Here's what you do every day.
You take thoughts to the word,you take flesh to the cross, and
you leave it there.
You gotta take it to the foot ofthe cross and leave it right
there.
Death is the only answer to thisflesh that is dead in sin.
The truth, the authority ofscripture is the only answer to
(24:39):
the assault of the demonic uponyour mind and therefore your
senses, your feelings, and youractions.
So those two opponents wait foryou every morning when you get
up, they're gonna be with youall day long.
They should drive you to theseanswers thoughts to the word,
flesh to the cross.
SPEAKER_02 (24:59):
That's why 2 Corinthians 10 5 is key to that.
Thoughts to the yes, because youmake it obedient to Christ.
How do you make it obedient toChrist?
Through his word.
Absolutely.
SPEAKER_01 (25:11):
Bingo.
SPEAKER_02 (25:12):
The flesh, yeah.
But he's been downloading allthis to me all morning.
SPEAKER_01 (25:17):
Every minute of every day, that's what you face,
and it'll be again the sametomorrow.
The day after that, remember,you never reach a place of
achievement where demons areimpressed by what you've done.
They don't care.
It does not move them.
We have a hard time with that inAmerica.
In fact, we have a hard timewith two aspects of this.
(25:37):
That I can't handle demons on myown.
You can't.
They don't care what you'vedone.
And that my flesh is stillsubject to sin and death.
It is.
I would challenge you, study thescripture carefully.
It is the second coming ofChrist.
You can add to that, 1Corinthians 15.
(25:58):
Paul talks about theresurrection and the return of
Christ.
Read that carefully.
Romans chapter 8, 1 Corinthianschapter 15, and there are a host
of scriptures as well.
And then Ephesians chapter 5 and6, obviously, with the spiritual
warfare.
Very important passage there.
SPEAKER_02 (26:13):
Well, the armor of God, the armor of God, the word
of God is the sword.
unknown (26:17):
Right?
SPEAKER_01 (26:18):
Let me tell you this
grammar in Ephesians.
Paul uses a whole series oftherefore.
He's setting up a logicalframework in Ephesians.
He makes one theologicalstatement after another.
And then he gets to the end andhe says, and finally, we wrestle
not with flesh and blood.
SPEAKER_04 (26:39):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (26:39):
But with principalities, power, spiritual
forces in dark places.
That's his final point.
His culminating point inEphesians is the spiritual war
that we're in.
And it's amazing, you look athis logical sequence, he ends
with that.
He said, This is the last thingI want you to know.
This is the culminating point.
(26:59):
This is what you face.
Okay?
So we need to be prepared.
And it's an war of authoritythat we cannot win except
through the truth and authorityof Christ, and taking flesh to
the cross and leaving it rightthere.
If you pick it up from that uhthe foot of the cross, you're
(27:21):
done.
Because demons will always bethere.
They'll always be there to temptyou.
If you give them an ounce offlesh to work with, it's over.
You have no chance.
SPEAKER_02 (27:30):
That's why he writes in in Galatians to crucify the
flesh.
SPEAKER_01 (27:34):
Yes.
Right?
Absolutely.
SPEAKER_02 (27:36):
Yeah.
That's right in the foot of thespirit and the and remember the
words of Christ.
SPEAKER_01 (27:41):
If anyone would be my disciple, let him take up his
cross daily and follow me.
Flesh goes to the cross.
It's the only answer.
And as we walk through thislife, we are to walk through
this life by faith, and at theend we get full redemption,
spirit, soul, and body.
All portions of man will beredeemed, and then we enter into
(28:03):
a new heaven and a new earth forrighteousness to us.
That'll be heaven.
SPEAKER_02 (28:07):
So the mind can be renewed, but not the flesh.
Am I getting that correct?
SPEAKER_01 (28:12):
Absolutely.
Okay.
Except through the resurrectionpower of Christ.
And that happens with the fleshat his second coming.
1 Corinthians 15, read itcarefully.
It will clarify that for you inclear terms.
You combine Romans 8 and 1Corinthians 15 and many other
scriptures actually.
You mentioned several, but themain theme would be Ephesians 6,
(28:35):
spiritual warfare, Romans 8, thecondition of the flesh, 1
Corinthians 15, the path and thehope.
This flesh is fully redeemed atthe second coming of Christ, not
the first.
The only answer now is to takeit to the cross and leave it
there.
You have no other just surrenderand submit it to Him.
SPEAKER_02 (28:56):
Yes to the Lord.
SPEAKER_01 (28:57):
Yes.
SPEAKER_02 (28:58):
Like every day, just submit to Him.
SPEAKER_01 (28:59):
That is the every moment of every day, and that's
the only chance you have.
There is no other answer.
You can't get good enough, youcan't redeem it.
It's hopelessly dead, hopelesslylost.
The cross is the answer.
We are to do that by faith inthis life.
We are to walk that path out byfaith, putting our trust in our
(29:21):
Savior, and at the end of thislife, either we die or Christ
returns, he will fully redeemthat body.
We will get a new body, aspiritual body at that point
that carries us into heaven.
But this one is judged.
It is deficient.
It is broken, hopelessly broken.
The world is broken right to thecore, right down to the DNA.
(29:45):
This body is broken.
The universe is broken rightdown to its core.
The only hope is redemption.
We get that redemption now byfaith.
We get it in full when Christreturns.
That's the down payment.
That's the daily nature of this.
Now, Sylvia, here's a point thatis incredibly important and
(30:05):
relevant to the story you justtold me.
When you're facing the demonic,the only thing that matters is
authority.
That's the only thing theyrecognize.
Nothing else, only power.
They care not about you and whatyou've done.
Americans like to think I coulddo enough, I can win in the
spiritual realm as well.
You've already deceivedyourself.
You can't do it.
(30:26):
Okay?
Here's the thing.
There are essentially in the NewTestament only two restrictions
related to gender.
Just two.
One is the elder role in thechurch, the formal teaching of
Scripture, the formal leadershiprole in the body, and the head
of the household.
(30:46):
It's clear in Scripture that's amale role.
Now here's the thing (30:50):
that has nothing to do with relative
worth, relative value, relativestanding before God.
It has nothing to do with uhfirst place over second place,
subservient over uh uhdominated.
It has nothing to do with that.
It's only related to theopponent that we face, our
(31:12):
enemy, because that's all herecognizes is authority.
Look at these sequence inEphesians.
Paul is going through a clear uhdelineation of theology, the
revelation of Christ.
He gets to the family, he talksabout the head of household, the
male, the female, and then whatcomes next?
(31:35):
Spiritual warfare.
That is not an accident, that isa very clear line of thinking.
The reason we need the propersubmission of female to male, it
has nothing to do with malesbeing better or more valuable
than females.
That is not it at all.
It's because of who we face.
It's the opponent that we face.
(31:56):
He only recognizes properauthority.
And so when you break that lineof authority, you just kick the
door wide open for him to comein with his mischief to do what
he does best.
Plant thoughts, invoke feelings,influence action.
And that's what has happened.
So now contrast what we'retalking about with typical
(32:17):
mindsets in the American church.
We think my flesh is just fine.
In fact, I worship it.
I'll put most of my net worthinto it, I'll put most of my
income into it.
I worship this body, I thinkit's fabulous.
It's dead in sin, headed forjudgment.
That's the reality of it.
Okay?
And we want the prosperitygospel.
(32:37):
We want a gospel that tells useverything is great, everything
is fine.
I put my faith in Christ,everything is good after that.
The true gospel is that Christhanging on the cross, saying, My
God, my God, why have youforsaken me?
He took on human desperation.
He embraced it, he walked rightinto it.
He was not ashamed of it.
He didn't walk away from it.
(32:59):
He walked right to it and he didit for us.
He did it on our behalf.
We're called to follow in thatexample.
That was his next to laststatement on the cross.
My God, my God, why have youforsaken me?
He followed that with the laststatement of Father, into your
hands I commit my spirit.
(33:20):
Trust.
Trust.
That took him from Thursdaynight to Sunday morning.
Thursday night, the Garden ofGethsemane, and all the pure
hell that he went through untilhis death, and then he was
buried, and he was in thestronghold of Satan.
And then Sunday morning came.
You see, Satan had Christ rightwhere he wanted him.
(33:43):
Christ willingly walked intothat on our behalf.
Satan held him.
He had him rejected by hispeople, he had him condemned as
a heretic and a convict.
He had scattered his entirefollowing.
There was nothing left.
They were all gone, they wereterrified.
There was nothing left of theministry that he had built and
the movement that he had built.
(34:04):
And he was in the stronghold ofSatan.
Because what happens whensomeone dies and they're
separated from God and coveredin sin?
They go to hell, that's wherethey go.
And Ephesians 4 was pretty clearabout that.
The lower parts of the earth,Paul says.
And I could expound on that, butI'll say some of that.
(34:25):
The lower parts of the earth,and then he ascended.
So God looked down.
Satan had him right where hewanted him, except he didn't get
account for something.
The sin that he was covered inwas not his sin, it was ours.
Our sin.
God looked down upon that andlooked at his faithfulness and
looked at his trust, and heraised him from the dead.
(34:49):
And he set him at the right endof God forevermore to be our
intercessor and our high priest.
So we are following that path.
We need to understand when weget up every day, just as Christ
did, he faced the demonic and hedealt with sin by never
committing it.
He never fell into sin.
(35:09):
So his flesh was pure.
Well, we come from thestandpoint we're born as
sinners.
But what we do is we understandthe demonic thoughts to the
scripture, the authority ofChrist.
We take flesh to the cross everyday and we leave it there.
And we understand the importanceof authority.
When it comes to male and femalerelations, those two
(35:31):
restrictions in the NewTestament are set for that
reason, because of the authoritythat we had Christ exactly where
he wanted him.
You had a man who had built amovement, the kingdom of God.
Satan had taken that to run.
He had hatched a plan and itworked very well.
He had the scribes and Phariseescondemn him as a heretic.
He had the Romans condemn him asa criminal.
(35:54):
His followers were terrified.
They were scattered.
The movement was over.
So when Christ died on the crossand went to the grave, his
movement was done.
Satan had him right where hewanted him.
Christ died as a man separatedfrom God, covered in sin.
He went to Satan's stronghold,like every person goes when they
(36:14):
die separated from God, coveredin sin.
But here's the thing that Satandidn't account for.
When Christ was in that place ofbeing covered in sin, it wasn't
his sin.
It was ours.
It was our sin.
He took it upon himself as asacrifice.
So God looked down with hisfaithfulness, with his purity,
(36:36):
with his mission, and with histrust, and he raised him from
the dead and set him at theright hand of God forevermore to
be our high priest and ourintercessor.
So we follow along in that, butwe like to lose track of the
fact that A, I cannot beatdemons on my own.
I do not have the ability to dothat.
It's only authority.
(36:58):
And this flesh, there's only oneanswer.
Instead of worshiping thisflesh, instead of exalting it
and making it the pinnacle ofall of our work and achievement,
you take it to the cross and youleave it there every day.
That's the proper walk.
Now, when it comes to the uh theauthority issue in male and
female, you only have those tworestrictions in the New
(37:20):
Testament.
The head of household is a man.
The elder bishop role in thechurch, that is a man.
The nature of marriage and thenature of the church, the
relationship of Christ and hisbride, are symbolic.
Marriage is a symbol of thatrelationship with Christ and his
bride.
The truth is, marriage is theclosest thing to heaven that
(37:44):
we're going to experience inthis earth.
The depth of fellowship, thedepth of intimacy, the depth of
oneness, the communion that goeson inside of a marriage, that is
indicative of heaven itself.
That's the nearest that we willexperience it on this planet is
(38:06):
marriage as to what happens ineternity in the heavenly realm.
So we need to develop thatmarriage.
We need to treasure it.
We need to hold it sacred.
But there's that rank ofauthority because demons don't
care about what you've done.
They don't care about how strongyour marriage has been.
They're coming back with theirsame plan, their same approach.
(38:29):
They are going to plantthoughts, invoke feelings,
influence action, create all thecarnage and the damage that they
can.
And if they find any ounce offlesh available to work with,
they will ruin you.
That's how they operate.
So our daily task is thoughts tothe word because of authority.
(38:50):
Flesh to the cross because ofjudgment.
Take it to the cross and leaveit there.
That is our walk as a disciple.
Now, in those matters ofauthority, like I said before,
and it bears repeating, it hasnothing to do with the relative
worth.
We've made it into a subjugationdominion issue.
God never did that.
(39:10):
It has nothing to do with menbeing better than females or one
gender being superior to theother.
That is not the case.
It is about authority.
Is it about the opponent that weface?
We face an opponent that doesspiritual uh wickedness,
opponent of spiritual weakness,that wants us destroyed every
(39:32):
day.
So if you don't line up inauthority, you kick the door
wide open, and uh he will find away to find your flesh and to
take you to a place of run.
SPEAKER_03 (39:42):
And he did last night.
SPEAKER_02 (39:44):
The flesh was the discord for me.
I made a comment that was indirect contradiction to what my
husband was revealing, and thatopened the door for him to walk
in, and he did.
He walked in fully and then juststarted to invoke those thoughts
(40:04):
that provoked those feelingsthat influenced the reaction or
the action.
SPEAKER_01 (40:09):
Here's the good news, Zambia, for you and for
all of us.
Redemption.
Redemption is always at hand.
Renewal.
Renewal the minds.
Of the minds.
Renewal.
God is about renewal.
God doesn't want anyone to facejudgment.
He takes no pleasure in that.
He wants us to walk fully in hispresence, to head toward that
(40:33):
heavenly home.
And so you and your husband canstart over.
SPEAKER_02 (40:37):
Okay, so what is the prayer that would be the
appropriate prayer for what Idiscussed with you earlier?
SPEAKER_01 (40:45):
Okay.
Well, let's talk about actionfirst and then prayer second.
The action is one, understandthat daily reality.
That's context.
So what I've uh taught anddescribed here, that sets the
context for a believer everyday.
An unbeliever faces as, well,it's just that they're they're
doomed.
They're on the other side.
(41:06):
They're on the wrong side of itall.
As a believer, we've taken astand.
Therefore, spiritual forces aregoing to come after us.
An unbeliever, they already havethem.
They just want to hold them.
They don't want to provoke them.
They don't want to uh they wantto just stay right where they
are.
They have them where they wantthem.
A believer has taken a stand.
We're going to do good, we'regoing to advance God's kingdom.
(41:28):
So they're coming after you.
So understand the true heart andnature of that conflict, that
thoughts to the word, flesh tothe cross, that needs to be the
first thing that you're thinkingabout and working on through the
day.
Now, when you get intoparticular challenges like this,
you guys created this problemtogether.
You're going to have to solve ittogether.
(41:51):
There's no way around it, okay?
That's the nature of marriage.
You do it together, you work onit together.
So I would put uh, you know, I'mgonna defer to my wife.
I'm gonna give her as anexample.
She is a master at having ideasand making me think they were
(42:12):
mine.
How she does that, I I standamazed.
But she does.
So we wound up doing exactlywhat she wanted to do, and I
thought it was my idea allalong.
She's a she's uh amazing atthat, and uh uh and it works
very well.
But I can say this, uh Sylvia,without uh knowing your husband
(42:33):
at all, we've never met, it's uhhaving no uh intimacy there at
all.
You're gonna do it together.
It's gonna happen as a unit.
You're gonna solve the problem,work through it.
There will be a number ofapologies, there will be a
number of uh things workedthrough in terms of uh, you
know, I would say this too, thethree magic words when you're
dating are I love you.
(42:55):
The three magic words whenyou're married are work it out.
That's how it goes.
You work it out, and uh you havethe same goal in mind, you've
had a disagreement, you've hadsomething that that cut deep,
you're gonna spend timetogether, you won't solve it on
your own, he won't solve it onhis own.
You'll have to come together andsolve it together.
(43:17):
There's there's no doubt aboutthat.
SPEAKER_04 (43:19):
Okay.
SPEAKER_01 (43:19):
And I would say do what it takes to get that done.
It uh, whatever uh apologies youneed to make, whatever uh uh
sacrifice of pride and an egoyou have to make, uh put that to
the side and say, we've got towork this out and and give it
enough time.
It's uh men need a little moretime.
Once a male ego's been bruised,give them a little space uh to
to heal up, and uh uh that'sthat's necessary.
(43:42):
You ladies are a little quickerto get to forgiveness than men
are.
We're a little slower, but youladies are a little quicker to
forgive.
SPEAKER_02 (43:50):
How long does it take?
I'm curious.
Maybe maybe it's per person.
SPEAKER_01 (43:55):
Two or three days is uh is not unusual.
It uh in the same daylight uhsegment is usually too quick.
Give them a little space, and uhyou need a little time maybe to
sleep on it.
It uh uh but uh just give alittle space and give a little
room, show some respect, showsome regard, and uh uh you know
(44:17):
a lady's for need, and uh thisis uh Paul makes this clear in
Ephesians, and if I rememberout, it's chapter five, the very
last uh verse.
He he summarizes the nature ofthe marriage relationship, and
he says, Husbands love yourwives even as yourself.
Wives see to it that you respectyour husbands.
(44:39):
He encapsulates in that the coreneed of the opposing gender.
You ladies at your core needlove.
Men at our core need respect.
Those are the two drivingforces, and they're different.
You ladies need to know thatyou're loved, you're cared for,
you're protected.
Men need to know that we'rehonored and respected.
(45:01):
And that's a core need, and thenthey aren't the same.
In fact, that's a source of aquite a bit of conflict, is we
assume that that other partyneeds the same things that I do.
They're actually different needsacross the genders.
So you can you can trainyourself to meet that need of
honor and respect of yourhusband, and he needs to be
training himself to meet thatneed of love and protection for
(45:25):
you.
If you feel like you're lovedand protected, you're good.
You'll work through anything.
That's fine.
Our home is is safe and intact,I'm safe and intact.
If your husband feels honoredand respected, he's the same
way.
I'll work through anything,whatever.
It's uh we can take it on.
SPEAKER_02 (45:40):
But it it but it requires both people doing it at
the same time, or does one haveto do it first?
SPEAKER_01 (45:46):
Well, somebody's gonna need to lead, and that
will be custom, but in the end,you're gonna come together, and
you're going to uh that's whatthe marriage union is about.
For this reason, a man shallleave his father and mother and
cleave to his wife, and the twoshall become one flesh.
The whole point of marriage isthe union.
(46:09):
So when two people marry, it'sno longer about this person,
person A or person B, thehusband or the wife.
It's about the union itself.
And that is probably the mostfoundational idea in marriage
that we've definitely forgottenand left behind.
That is a commitment to themarriage itself as a separate
(46:31):
standalone unit.
That no matter what, it's themarriage that matters.
And that has to come from bothsides, for sure.
Now, in terms of reconciliation,somebody will need to step out
and lead.
The other party needs to comealong.
You're going to agree, and themain thing you're going to agree
on is the marriage is whatmatters.
(46:52):
It's the union.
That's what matters.
That's your first and foremostprinciple of marriage: that it's
no longer two people, it's oneunit.
You become one.
The expression of grace, theexpression out of that marriage
between you and your husbandwill be unlike any other.
You'll have your own way ofdoing things.
(47:13):
You'll have your own methods,your own habits, uh, and it
comes out of thisproblem-solving process.
You work through problemstogether.
It you create a special voice, aspecial expression that is just
yours.
It's unlike anybody else.
Melissa and I have our habits.
My wife and I, we have ourhabits on how we work through
things.
(47:33):
We don't do it just like anybodyelse.
There's nobody else that goesthrough problems the way she and
I go through problems.
That's true for every singlemarriage.
And that's the way it should be.
A ton of techniques can helpyou, but all that's doing is
giving you means to cometogether and solve problems
together.
So that first principleprinciple of marriage is
(47:55):
commitment to the marriageitself.
That must be sacrosanct.
That's holy, that's holy ground.
A commitment to the marriageitself, not the individual in
the marriage.
It's the two individualscommitting to the unit of
marriage itself.
It's sacred, it belongs to theAlmighty, that's his.
The second principle is solvingproblems together.
(48:18):
You work through issues nolonger one at a time, no longer
on your own.
You work through problems as aunit.
You do it together.
You find your solutions thatway.
If you do those two things, youwill have a lifelong marriage,
and it will be very happy, veryproductive, virtually impervious
to problems.
You will face every problemtogether, you will work through
(48:42):
it together, you will find asolution together, and you'll be
stronger on the other side ofthat.
SPEAKER_02 (48:48):
That concept comes from 2 Peter, doesn't it?
SPEAKER_01 (48:52):
Yes, it does.
SPEAKER_02 (48:53):
Yes, because I wrote it down this morning.
That was one of the formulasthat God gave me.
SPEAKER_01 (48:58):
Yep.
Second Peter starts in Genesischapter three.
SPEAKER_02 (49:03):
It starts where you're adding from faith, you
add knowledge.
From knowledge, you add, right?
That's that one.
SPEAKER_01 (49:11):
Yes.
SPEAKER_02 (49:12):
Oh my goodness.
SPEAKER_01 (49:13):
Now you're doing it as a unit.
SPEAKER_02 (49:16):
Well, yeah, but I have to convince him as a unit.
Or is it it's not even up to meto convince him, it's up to God
to transform him.
SPEAKER_01 (49:24):
You know what you're gonna find yourself doing as an
individual?
unknown (49:28):
What?
SPEAKER_01 (49:32):
Flesh to the cross.
Now you're a disciple, you'reready to march.
Now you're ready to talk to yourhusband.
Now you're ready to visit withhim.
So we still only have onesavior.
There's one thing that neverhappens in a marriage.
You become each other's savior.
That is never true.
In Christ, we are one.
(49:52):
There is no longer Jew norGreek, bond nor free, male nor
female.
We stand before God, but standbefore our Savior, our priest as
an individual.
Now, you are accountable to GodHimself for your discipleship.
Your husband cannot save you.
You cannot save him.
(50:14):
You don't save each other.
That's Satan's trap.
That's Satan's trap.
SPEAKER_04 (50:19):
That's his trap.
SPEAKER_01 (50:20):
Your salvation is not in your husband.
His salvation is not in you.
You stand before Christ alone,needing grace, needing
reconciliation.
Christ is the only one that cansave us.
But he's also the author ofmarriage.
He marries his bride.
He understands marriagecompletely.
(50:40):
It's his plan.
Here's something else, Sylvia,chew on this for a bit.
There's only one socialinstitution that was instituted
before the fall of man.
Every other one, all societies,civil governments, uh social uh
institutions, etc., came aboutafter the fall of man for
purposes of redemption to get usback to something civil.
(51:04):
There's one social institutionthat was implemented before sin
entered this world in the Gardenof Eden, and that is marriage.
Marriage is not God's redemptiveplan.
Marriage was God's originalplan.
That's what he had in mind formen and women before sin ever
broke this world, was marriage.
(51:25):
Now, what you're doing throughthis process that you and I are
discussing, that you're mullingover, you're getting back to
that original plan.
The original plan of God, whichwas for one man and one woman to
join together in union andbecome one flesh, become one
unit.
Okay?
Now we have to do that in lightof the sin of mankind.
(51:47):
Christ is the solution to thatsin.
You have to do thatindividually.
You both go to Christ.
He is your high priest, he isyour savior.
You don't save each other.
Christ saves each one of youindividually so that now you can
be a husband and wife unit andexpress the grace of Christ
(52:09):
through that marriage.
That's what will happen in theend.
SPEAKER_03 (52:14):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_02 (52:16):
I yeah, the timing of this is really interesting.
It's very, very interesting.
I uh I I love his timing.
I think he has a reallyinteresting sense of humor.
Yes, he does.
SPEAKER_01 (52:30):
Yes, he does.
SPEAKER_02 (52:32):
There was a comedian that we saw months ago in
October that said, conflict isnot your enemy.
Conflict is when God reveals,it's a vertical revelation.
When you submit to him and youpray to him, he reveals through
(52:52):
that conflict.
There's so many things herevealed in this particular
conflict to me that are just thestrategies that you've outlined
for me.
In the interm while I'm waiting,I'm assuming it's what you said.
SPEAKER_03 (53:08):
Let me see.
I have all my notes here.
No, it's not it.
Um it is oh my lord, what is it?
It's all right.
Flesh to the cross and thoughtsto Christ to the words to the
word.
SPEAKER_01 (53:28):
Thoughts to the word of Christ, his truth, his life,
his word.
So I flesh to the cross.
SPEAKER_02 (53:35):
Pray and stay close to him during these next two,
three days.
Absolutely.
And just no more words comingout of me at all towards him.
Give him space, respect, andhonor.
SPEAKER_01 (53:48):
Yes, find a way to show your husband that you
respect him, you grant himhonor.
He is the head of the household.
You both stand before Christ uhfor purposes of redemption and
salvation.
You're going to make thismarriage work as a biblical
marriage.
You will respect him, you willhonor him, and you're asking him
(54:09):
to love you and give youprotection.
That is a very healthy, happy uhmarriage.
The woman is getting what sheneeds, the man is getting what
he needs.
You join together, it's a uniqueexpression of grace that happens
in that union.
It's a divine thing.
It truly is the closest thing toheaven man is ever going to see
(54:30):
in this earth.
A functioning, happy, biblicalmarriage.
It's a thing of beauty.
Uh, the intimacy there isunmatched.
And that gets to the sexual sideof things.
You know, the the truth ishere's another huge mistake in
society.
We try to separate love and sex.
It's impossible.
SPEAKER_04 (54:49):
No, it's the same thing.
SPEAKER_01 (54:50):
Finely bladed rope, they're they're wound together
so tight.
They come together.
Love and sex are never intendedto be separate.
They come together.
SPEAKER_04 (54:58):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (54:58):
But when you join those together in a proper,
healthy marriage, it's uh thethe intimacy is corrupt.
SPEAKER_02 (55:08):
It's all three of us in one body.
SPEAKER_01 (55:10):
There you go.
That's what I like that.
I like that.
SPEAKER_02 (55:13):
It's the spirit, man and woman, like the husband, the
wife, and God all in one.
SPEAKER_01 (55:18):
Marriage belongs to God.
He sanctioned it.
It's his, it's not ours todefile.
He gave it to us.
It's a gift, it was his originalplan.
We've done everything imaginableto dilute it, to defile it, to
dumb it down.
It all fails because it's notours.
It doesn't belong to us.
It was given to us.
So we got to use it properly asa steward.
(55:41):
We are at when we do the thingsyou and I have talked about, we
are stewards.
We are doing what God set ushere to do.
And that's another myth thatSatan uses.
We think we're sovereign lords.
We can create whatever life wewant here.
We're in charge.
Well, just ask how in charge youare.
How much can you guarantee?
(56:01):
You can't guarantee your nextbreath.
You may not make the suppertable tonight.
You may not get up in themorning.
That's how much we canguarantee.
But here's what we control ourthoughts and actions and words
in the moment.
I control that.
So what I do and say right now,I'm in charge of that.
That's enough.
(56:23):
That gives me the power of asteward.
I have the authority of asteward.
It is stewardship.
It is not sovereignty.
I do not control this world.
I do not control other people.
Just think about what can takeyour life.
I could have an aneurysm.
We could hang up this phone,Sylvia, and we never speak again
because I don't live to seebedtime.
(56:44):
That's hard reality.
We have to accept that.
That's a limit on mysovereignty.
I control what I say and doright now.
And that is enough.
I can do everything I need to doin all of life.
I can be exactly what God mademe to be by doing that.
So if you're a steward, you takethat stewardship into this daily
walk and into your marriage.
(57:05):
You're going to have pleasureand intimacy beyond description.
Read the book of Song ofSolomon.
It tells you just how good itis.
SPEAKER_02 (57:18):
Just stick with scripture.
It's going to lead you to alight.
That's the gist of what we'vebeen talking about.
That's the only thing that canthat can destroy the enemy.
SPEAKER_01 (57:31):
That's our rock.
That's our foundation.
That's the force.
He answers to that.
He answers to that.
You don't have to go to thatband of theologians, those great
uh uh profound uh uh prophets,Black Sabbath, in one of their
songs, uh they said the devil isnever a maker, and they got it
just right.
(57:51):
They hit the nail on the head.
Satan can only deceive, he canonly manipulate and distort.
He can never create, he cannever speak to what is true, he
can never take you down a pathto light, to anything good.
He is a deceiver and a destroyerand nothing else.
(58:12):
God is a creator, he's a maker,he innovates, he makes things
new and fresh and amazing.
Look at the world that he made.
It's an amazing place.
It's incredible.
He made that for us.
He made us to live in it and tofellowship with him.
So uh yeah, you keep your mindlocked into scripture, none of
(58:33):
that, no facts, things that aretrue, they don't come from
Satan, they come from God.
You have to have a reverence forfacts.
So if you're a steward, one ofthe first things you do is you
have a reverence for facts.
You bow your knee to facts.
You're humble in that way, andyou're going to make decisions
in a very different way.
If uh you're making decisions asa sovereign uh unit, you think
(58:54):
you're in charge, you're goingto rationalize.
You're going to choose up frontwhat you like, and then you'll
toss facts to the side to suityour own purpose.
If you're a steward, you gatherall the facts, you bow your knee
to those facts, and then youwork through to a decision.
That's a stewardship approach.
A sovereign lord approach says,I've already decided what I
(59:16):
want.
I'm going to pitch facts asideand people aside as I like and
get what I want.
That's the sovereign mindsetthat describes America in this
modern world.
We are meant to be stewards.
We are not meant to be sovereignlords.
So when you find yourself tryingto dominate and take control,
you've already left the truth.
(59:37):
God put us here as stewards.
It's his plan, it's his world.
We live under his authority.
SPEAKER_02 (59:45):
And you resubmit to his sovereignty.
SPEAKER_01 (59:48):
Yes, ma'am.
SPEAKER_02 (59:49):
We kneel down to it, and it's guiding.
SPEAKER_01 (59:52):
Yeah.
We created being.
That's your first point ofhumility and submission.
I did not make myself.
I am made.
I am created.
I bow my knee to that and I walkby faith with the rest.
SPEAKER_03 (01:00:08):
Yes, we do.
SPEAKER_02 (01:00:10):
So let me ask you: if men wanted to reach you to
work with you, or if we wantedto buy your book, how do we find
you?
SPEAKER_01 (01:00:20):
The best way is on the website,
aworkingmansguide.com.
It's the title on the book.
I've got one here.
A working man's guide, just dropthe apostrophe at.com, and
that'll take you right to it.
Aworkingmansguide.com.
There's contact there you canbuy right off the website.
You can go to Amazon as well,any of the mainstream uh uh
retailers.
(01:00:42):
But um uh that website is thebest.
Social media sites are tied tothat.
You'll find those on the websiteas well.
A lot of information there.
That's the best way to get intouch.
SPEAKER_02 (01:00:52):
Okay, and any last words of encouragement for
Christian men and women.
SPEAKER_01 (01:00:57):
You know, I have such a deep passion for the
American working class.
I want to encourage everyone, asyou settle that foundation and
you stand on it rock solid, thebenefits come.
God does not ask us to serve himfor no reason.
He does not ask us to serve himin vain.
He blesses us immensely, hegives us of his gifts and of his
(01:01:19):
goodness, but he demands that wetake our place.
When we try to make ourselves incharge, the trouble is going to
overcome us.
So trouble is coming.
You can't decide that.
You get to decide how yourespond.
If you take on that trouble as asteward of the Almighty, he will
protect you and he will fight onyour behalf.
(01:01:41):
If you take on that trouble as asovereign unit, you think you
can handle it, you're doomed.
Without question.
I would encourage all of yourlisteners with that truth.
Take on life for what it is, doit as a steward.
You were made by God for areason.
Accept that and walk in it.
He will fight on your behalf, hewill come to your aid and your
(01:02:04):
rescue in that circumstance.
If you try to do it on your own,you have no chance.
It's not like, well, I mightsucceed.
No, you have no chance.
Those two opponents will wreckyou.
The demonic is stronger thanyou.
Your flesh is stronger than you.
You can't beat either one.
You face them every day.
Understand the context, approachit accordingly.
(01:02:27):
That's what I would say.
God bless your listeners.
Uh I uh wish them well.
SPEAKER_02 (01:02:32):
Thank you.
We'll take your blessing everyday, all day.
Um, and to the listeners thatrelease out reveal purpose, I
just want to remind you uh aboutMatthew 5.14 to be the light.
Yes, ma'am.
Step into your light as Dr.
Teak has stepped into hiswillingly.
He has become a steward of God'swill and sovereignty.
(01:02:54):
And I can only hope that I'm onthat path, and that by the end I
will be in full submission toeverything, putting flesh to the
cross and thoughts to Christ andto his word, and making them
(01:03:14):
totally obedient to him.
And that's the only way we'regonna be to defeat the conflict
that we face, and we know thatthat conflict is not of this
world, so we've got to fight andput on his armor every single
day.
(01:03:35):
So thank you, Dr.
Teak, for joining us today andfor this powerful testimony.
SPEAKER_01 (01:03:41):
And it's a pleasure.
Thank you so much.
You're an excellent host.
SPEAKER_02 (01:03:45):
Uh it's been my honor to host you here, sir.
SPEAKER_03 (01:03:49):
And I wish everyone listening to have a beautiful,
blessed day.
Bye now.
SPEAKER_00 (01:03:58):
So that's it for today's episode of Release Doubt
Reveal Purpose.
Head on over to iTunes orwherever you listen and
subscribe to the show.
One lucky listener every singleweek who posts a review on
iTunes.
We'll win a chance to grandprize drawing to win a
twenty-five thousand dollarprivate VIP day with Sylvia
(01:04:19):
Worship herself.
Be sure to head on over torelease out reveal
purposepodcast.com and pick up afree copy of Sylvia's gift and
join us on the next episode.
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