Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to the Heart of Zion podcast, where Kingdom conversations
expand our growth. Make sure to subscribe and explore resources
at Heartofzion dot org. Now let's dive into today's episode.
Speaker 2 (00:15):
Welcome back to Sion's Voice podcast. We are doing a
series called Faith Hacked. This is your episode one on that.
I'm your host, Iris, and today's title is you can
love Jesus and still be spiritually illiterate. So let's go.
Let's talk because some people out there love Jesus with
(00:41):
their old heart and some still can't tell me if
abacco is in the Old or New Testament. We got
the passion, we got the playlist, the God is Dope hoodie,
but you're surviving of sermon clips and Instagram devotionals like
(01:04):
that's enough to anchor our soul. Listen, this isn't shade.
It's a little surgery because here's the truth. You can
worship Jesus and still walk around with spiritual amnesia. We
can quote scriptures you never studied. You can shout them
(01:24):
amen and still be biblically bankrupt. We're not talking about
feelings today, We're talking about foundation. Let's break it down.
How do we get here. We're living in this era,
digital era where sixty second tiktoks are passing for theology.
(01:51):
People with the blue checks and book deals are feeding
us kind candy doctrine taste, sweet melt s quick, no nutrients.
We're normalize a culture of Christians who can sing, you know,
Maverick City by heart. But having read the Book of
Matthew this year. There's a term for this in Hebrews
(02:15):
chapter five, twelve and fourteen. Though by this time you
ought to be teachers. You need someone to teach you
elementary truths of God's word all over again. You need milk,
not solid food. This scripture, every time, this scripture would
reveal to me over and over again, when this moment
(02:38):
of immaturity will rise up somewhere. Solid food is in
the deeper emotion. It's the deeper revelation. It's the understanding
of God. Let me make it a little bit simplified.
(02:58):
You can't cast out a demon you don't recognize it,
can't walk into kingdom authority with the baby bottle in
your mouth. This spiritual illiteracy isn't about intelligence. It's about intentionality.
Jesus is intentional. We're not hungry we're highted. We love
(03:21):
the idea of revival, but we don't know the roots
of our faith. What does this spiritual literacy look like.
Let's call out some symptoms. One, misquoting Versus to match
our mood, like God won't give you more than you
can't handle. That's not even in the Bible. That's a pinterest. Second,
(03:47):
assuming that holy Spirit equals goosebumps. Now, I'm a goosebump
person and I identify what this means, but not every
goosebump is gonna be holy ghosts. Discern just being said,
I love this, I love this, this, this, this right here,
reading random Versus like a spiritual horoscope. Oh yeah, people
(04:10):
are opening up the Bible like it's a fortune cookie
and just going through random stuff because you know, it's
kinda fit what today is. You know, I used to
do what I used to do a I used to
do a funny and I wook oat and be like, okay,
let's go to Walmart and we'll be Walmart and like,
let's just open up a page, you know, and let's
(04:33):
say if it speaks to us. But I didn't just
open up any book. Come on, let's be realistic. The
ones I woulgrab would be for the day, you know,
like if it was a April twenty eighth, then I
would open up April twenty eighth. Now it just so
happens that some would hit on that, like oh wow,
(04:53):
this is like really happening like this for today. That's great.
But it was more of a like like a funny
then versus you know, being like a horror school. But
I understand that random versus from people are like spiritual
horrorscopes for them. I mean, what's the word for today? Uh?
(05:14):
And there's another yone with really getting a word for today,
which is fine, you know you get that through your devotionals,
but be random, just to be like, you know, like
what's this anyway, avoiding any scriptures that makes you uncomfortable
or challenges your perception your world's view. Oh we know this, Okay,
(05:36):
let's get a little deeper into that. Proverbs verse four,
chapter seven, it states wisdom is the principal thing. So
therefore go get wisdom, and in all you're getting, get understanding.
It's on a not to feel God. You got to
understand him. You have to have the mind of Christ.
(06:00):
The spiritual maturity isn't measured by how loud you pray,
by how deep you go into His truth. Let's do
a segment called Christianese translator. Yeah, I said it, Christianese phrase.
We often hear God knows my heart. Yes he does.
(06:25):
He sure does. God surely does know my heart. To you,
remind seventeen nine states that is soul. It's the deceitful
above all things. So now what Yeah, how about another phrase,
I'm just waiting on confirmation? Is that obedience or is
(06:45):
that you're delayed disobedience in disguise? That one just gets me.
I'm just waiting on confirmation. Oh, I think God already
told you. Most of the time, God already told them.
They're just delaying what God has said because it goes
again what they want to do. So what now, how
(07:07):
to retrain our brain for the real revelation? All right,
let's put this in our toolkit. Number one. We want
to read slow, don't speed read the word. The Bible
says meditate. That means you're gonna reflect and you're gonna
wait for the spirit to speak meditate. You know, this world,
(07:32):
everything is always fast, fast, fast. Nobody slows down. And
you know when it comes to God, you gotta be
You gotta slow down. You have to slow down. This
isn't a speed race. You have to slow down with
God and take time in this world. Even now, this
gen everything is quick, fast, in a hurry. I need
(07:52):
it now. The word meditate doesn't even exist unless it's
in their yoga class. Let's keep that real, and I
don't want to get into that yoga. Some of you
might not like it. And it's history behind us, the
intention behind it. That's a problem, all right. Number two,
(08:12):
ask questions who wrote this, who were they writing to?
And why does it matter? Now? These are good questions,
are good validating questions to ask when you're reading the word.
Do you have any weapons, any arsons, you know, artillery
in your camp? Because you need tools like a strong
(08:37):
concordance would be nice. Are you using like the blue
Letter Bible? That helps? If you are not much of
a reader, then you got the Bible Project videos. Get equipped,
get some extra tools to your belt for reading. Community
(08:58):
iron sharpens iron. Find people who would challenge your understanding.
Get into a Bible study with a friend. Come on, now,
make it a life style and get involved. Get deeply
involved and find somebody who's going to challenge your perception. Five,
don't avoid the hard stuff. If it convicts you, let
(09:20):
it work. If it's convicting you, something's moving, something's you know,
the spirit's doing something. Stay there for a little while
that let that marinate in you. You know, penetrate, perminate.
Number six, pray before you open it. I still hold
the spirits of reveew not just inspire. Every time when
(09:45):
I first came to Christ, I will place my hand
on my eyes and say, Holy Spirit, open my eyes
to see and understand what it is you're teaching me today.
And I will pray that every time. I opened the
Bible all the time, and it just led me down
(10:07):
hours of reading. Now I'm just reading, studying his word.
So you can't love Jesus. And yeah, I still be
spiritually underfed, malnourished. But love isn't meant to stay ignorant.
I wouldn't want to love somebody I know nothing of.
(10:29):
I know it like surprises in a relationship. So unless
you know, it's a gift. But that's not a gift.
Ignorancy is not a good gift, and it's not definitely
it's not blissful. You know, God gave us the word
as a weapon, not as a screensaver. I have a
screensaver that I created myself where I will open it
(10:50):
and remind myself of you know, like it's a seasonal word.
It's a seasonal word that I read reading a seasonal word.
It's not something I'm just gonna, you know, have it
there because oh that's a scripture. No, it's it's to
remind me of that season. So that's okay. But to
(11:13):
put it as you know, a word, just to keep
it as a screensaver that you really don't know nothing
of it, it's a mature I'm gonna give you some
a resource. There is a download called You Need More.
You Need More Milk, More than Milk. That's a seven
(11:36):
day Bible reading plan. It's just a guide to get
you started. You can find that in my description podcast
description and you'll be able to download that. I can't
end this without praying for us, So praying for our spirit.
God help us. We need more of You. We need
(12:00):
more of who you are, more understanding of who you are. God.
We need the minor Christ. So God, we repent for
calling ourselves followers, but we were really fans who never
read the map. Wake us up from biblical laziness. Interrupt
(12:22):
our emotional hype with holy hunger. We don't want to
just feel you, We want to know you. We want
your truth to cut deeper than culture, to root deeper
than this tradition. Make us students of your word again,
make us doers of your word. Make us dangerous to
(12:45):
the enemy, and not just loud in your church. Lord,
we ask for this profound grace over our lives in
the mighty name of Jesus, the Living Word. Amen. This
is not about shaming. This is about provoking hunger, hunger
(13:09):
for the truth, hunger for death, hunger for the Word
of God to shape us, not just inspire us. This
episode stirts something in you. Don't let us stop here.
Go ahead and download that free seven day reading plan
if you like. It's a tool to help people move
(13:30):
forward from surviving off of soundbits to feeding on solid truth.
And if you know someone who's hungry, to send them
this episode. Because revival doesn't start on the stage, it
starts in our hearts that are rooted. This is Fay packed,
(13:53):
this is Sion's voice, and this is just the beginning
until the next time