5 Disciplines Every Christian Needs for Success | Season 03, Episode 01 | Simple Truth Podcast

Why do some Christians thrive and others barely survive? Why does one Christian keep growing spiritually while another seems stuck in the same place? Two Christians, same Bible, very different results. But why? The difference, it isn't luck and it isn't talent. And God doesn't love one Christian better than the other Christian. So what is it? The difference is their relationship with God and the daily habits or disciplines that they use to build that relationship. In this episode of The Simple Truth, we're going to break down five powerful biblical disciplines that restore the close life changing relationship with God that Adam had in the Garden of Eden. Not because we deserve it, but because Jesus restored it for us through the gospel. These five disciplines, they aren't quick fixes. They're daily habits that transform you from the inside out. Remember, when we become born again, our spirit becomes alive, but our soul, our will, our intellect, our emotions, basically our personality, it's very much the same as before. So, after our spirit becomes alive and we become connected to God, God starts the conversion process. He wants our souls, our habits, our desires, our thoughts to be transformed. And the five disciplines are a great way to move this along. If you're tired of distractions and spiritual stagnation, and you're ready to grow closer to God and live a more successful Christian life, then this is for you. Let's get into it in this episode of The Simple Truth. Welcome to the Simple Truth Podcast, where we open the Bible to uncover simple, biblical, and essential truths that can transform your life. And now, here's your host, Ted Ross. Hi, my name is Ted Ross and this is the Simple Truth Podcast, your home for biblical truth clearly taught and freely given. We've got a great episode today. We are going to talk about the five disciplines every Christian needs for success. So let's get into it. Why does this episode matter? Well, first of all, at some point, every Christian goes through a difficult wilderness experience, a season where God humbles you and he tests you and he transforms you. But what can you do to come through the wilderness faster and stronger? And every Christian wants to hear God more clearly to overcome the desires of those flesh, those things, those passions that every day start to pull us down and drag us and steer us off. And everyone wants to bear the fruit of the spirit. But how does a Christian actually grow closer to God? Today we break down the five disciplines of Christian growth. These are biblical practices that will change you from the inside out and grow you as a Christian. They'll deepen your relationship with God and it will produce lasting spiritual fruit and a successful Christian life. Everybody wants success. And here are five disciplines on how to gain success. So what does success mean? Well, according to the Cambridge English Dictionary, which isn't the Bible, but it's our modern dictionary of terms in the English language, success is achieving the results you hoped for. So success is achieving the results that you and I hope for. Okay, interesting. So what does success for a Christian mean? Well, a Christian hopes for success first of all in this life. Let's be honest, we want to have success in this life, in the life we're living right now. And it shows up in a variety of ways. Happiness, everyone, I believe, wants to feel good and enjoy life. Success also shows for a Christian in peace, freedom from anxiety, from fear, from inner turmoil. Everyone wants fulfillment. We're all seeking meaning and purpose and satisfaction. We all want health. We all want physical, mental, and emotional health. We're all looking for protection. We want safety for ourselves, for our loved ones. We look for companionship. Whether it's friendship or marriage or just not feeling alone, we all seek provision. We want financial stability and success. We seek direction. We want clarity about the decisions we're supposed to make and the future we are going to have. We also seek the good of others to see others around us do well, too. It sucks sometimes when you find yourself in a place doing well when those around you are having an issue. So, we often pray for others. We want others to do well while God blesses us and we do well. A Christian hopes for success also in the life to come. So while all of those things we discussed around happiness, peace and provision and companionship, the good of others, we also desperately seek in the life to come eternal life in God's presence. So here is a not so secret secret. success and all the things I just listed, uh the things in this life as well as in the life to come, all that comes from God. All the things that you and I hope for, they come from God. And they are based on our relationship with God. Okay, I'm going to repeat that one more time. The success and the things that you and I hope for, it comes from God and it's based on our relationship with God. Which brings us to our first simple truth of the episode. God is the source of your success. Let's take a look at that. We're going to start with Matthew 6 verses 31-33. All of our scriptures are going to come from the New King James Version. So, feel free to follow along. Matthew 6:31. Therefore, do not worry. This is Jesus talking, saying, "What shall we eat or what shall we drink or what shall we wear?" Verse 32. For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly father knows that you need all these things. Folks, God isn't confused. He knows what you need and what you want. Worry. So when it says, "Therefore, do not worry," Jesus instructs. That's to be anxious about or to be distracted by. I think anxious is a definition of that word that most of us are probably pretty familiar. But I think many of us would find interesting for Jesus to say, "Do not worry. Do not be anxious." But also do not be distracted by what we shall eat and what we shall drink. It says or what we shall wear. And in verse 32 Jesus says after all these things the Gentiles seek. That expression the Gentiles seek. Jesus is referring to people outside of God's covenant. Right? These would be non-Christians is what Jesus is describing. So Jesus says your father is not confused about these things. Even people who aren't Christians are seeking after material things and worldly success. Clearly, God knows you have need of things to eat, things to drink, and clothing to wear. And in verse 32, Jesus says, "For your heavenly father knows that you need all these things." God is aware of all your needs. He is not distant, nor is he unaware of all your struggles. And what he's asking for you to do is to put God first, and then he'll provide you with the success that you hope for. Verse 33, but seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Make God's priorities your main focus, and your success falls into place. For Jesus to say seek, it means to search for, to desire, to strive after. Strive after the kingdom of God. Desire after the kingdom of God. And to do that first, do it firstly. Do it before. do it at the beginning. So before all other things, strive after, search for or desire after God's kingdom. What is the kingdom of God? It's God's rule. It's his reign. It's his authority. So before all else, at the very beginning, desire after, strive after God's rule, his authority, and his reign and his righteousness. It's his right standing or right behavior. Seek after God's rule in your life, God's direction and purpose in your life and after right behavior according to God. And all these things, the food, the drink, the clothing, all the things the Gentiles seek after, God will provide them. They'll be added to you. When your priorities and my priorities align with God, he supplies what we need and what we want, and we will then be successful. Let's take a look at Psalm 1 verses 1 through3. We're going to look at a variety of scriptures, folks. Psalm 1 verse one, the very first verse in the book of Psalms. It talks about the idea that real success, it isn't found in the world or the world's ways. Okay. Psalm 1:1. Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful. Blessed, happy, welloff. It implies God's favor or God's approval. So happy is that person or welloff is that person who does not walk, who does not live by or pattern their life after the council of the ungodly. Those are the advice or the strategy or the plans of the ungodly. To be ungodly in Hebrew here, it would be morally wrong or hostile to God's ways. So the writer says happy or well off is the person who does not pattern their life after or live by the strategy, the plans, the advice of people who are morally wrong or hostile to God's ways. people who are taking a stance against God. It says, "Nor stand in the path." To stand in the path is to linger. I've always thought this a little confusing and I had to always research it. To stand in the path of sinners is to linger to accept the lifestyle of those people who fall short. It's to hang out with them. To accept, right? Nor sit in the seat of the scornful. To sit in the seat is to settle in, to take an attitude. Right? When you're sitting in a seat with those who are scornful, you're sitting with them. You're accompanying them. You're really hanging out with them. And the scornful are those who are mocking God's truth. This is interesting, folks. So happy is the person who does not walk aka listen to the counsel of the ungodly nor stand that is comfortable with the sinners or sits as in settles into the scornful. Notice this progression along Psalm 1. But I think what's really important about it as we start to get into this verse two is that real success is not found in the world really. Where does it come from? is God's instructions. Psalm 1:2, "But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in his law he meditates day and night." This person's delight, the person who doesn't walk, stand, or sit, this person finds pleasure or desire or purpose. What matters to them is God's instruction, God's teaching, revelation that comes from God. That's what matters to that person. And in that instruction, in that revelation, they meditate day and night, which means it's regular, which means it's a habit. We're going to talk a little more about that. Here's a bit of a spoiler alert. When we talk about five disciplines, we're talking about five habits. There it is. Another word for habit is discipline. Blessings in success. In a nutshell, they come from God's ways. Jesus says, "Do not worry about these things. Don't be distracted by them, but seek the kingdom and his righteousness." The psalmist says, "Do not follow after this advice or these plans or these strategies, but instead delight yourself. Find pleasure, find purpose, make it matter the instructions of God, the revelation of God." So, let's see the results of these things. And that shows up actually in Psalm 1:3. He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water that brings forth its fruit in its season whose leaf also shall not wither and whatever he does shall prosper. Excellent. A person rooted in God's instructions is prosperous and is successful. So that means that this person this person who doesn't stand right walk stand or sit this person who takes desire or pleasure or values or makes it a priority God's instruction or revelation. And here we are in verse three. This person's like a tree planted. A tree planted is resilient. It's rooted. It's constantly sustained, right? It's planted by rivers of water. And this tree brings forth fruit. We're talking about producing good works. We're talking about the fruit of the spirit. This person is a tree because they made their desire God's word, God's instruction, and they pushed aside counsel of people who don't know what they're talking about and who are morally wrong as the scripture was, as the definition was a couple slides ago. And it says their leaf shall not wither, which means they're spiritually strong even in difficult seasons. That's the kind of person we want to be. And whatever that person does, it prospers. They're aligned with God's purpose. So God manifests his power and it makes them succeed. When your priorities align with God, he supplies what you need and what you want and you will be successful. Okay, let's take a moment. If God is the source of my success, then how do I make God bless me? Did you hear what I was saying there? Well, the truth is you can't make God bless you, right? God is not some kind of vending machine where I show up and I put money in and I say the right thing or I do the right thing and I push the button and God's going to go ahead and just distribute it to me and I pull it out and I eat it, right? Or drink it. God is a living being and what God really wants is a relationship with you and me. So the key to success is not about doing something where then God just accepts it and says, "Well, Ted did A, B, and C, so everything's okay with me, and I'll go ahead and give Ted X, Y, and Z." That's not how it works. God wants to have a relationship with you. And as a living being, he wants you and him to be very close. And as you and him are very close, he will cause you to succeed in all sorts of things because you're doing his will. His will for your life, which is different from his will for my life. So, what is the relationship God wants from you? Well, let's start off with the relationship God does not want from you. God does not want a master genie relationship, right? A transactional relationship. God doesn't want a relationship where you rub some lamp and God gives you what you desire on demand. That's not how God works. That's not how the scriptures describe God. That certainly hasn't been my experience with God or anyone else I know as a Christian. So God does not want a master genie relationship, some kind of transactional one where you rub the lamp and get something that you desire and demand. Instead, God wants a father child relationship, a life changing relationship for you and me. One that's focused in on fellowship and growth and purpose. This is what the scriptures describe God wanting. We're about to look in the Bible and see various verses on what we're describing, but I thought it'd be important to try to set the stage. We hear a lot of things in a lot of churches in a lot of different places. And I think it's really important that we base our relationship on the Bible because I don't know about you, I want to be successful and I want what God has for me. And for me to be successful, it means I need to align with God's will. So the sooner I could understand God's will and the sooner I can start to pursue the things that God is calling me to do, the more successful and the sooner I'll be successful in my life. And the same goes for you as well as others. So that's why building and maintaining a close relationship with God is essential to true Christian success. Which leads us to our next simple truth. God wants a personal and parental relationship with you. I don't care how young or how old you are. God wants to get up close and personal with you. He wants to know you and understand you. He wants to hear from you. He wants to engage with you every day. And he wants to be a parent to you. Let's take a look at 2 Corinthians 6:16. You are God's temples, what the scripture is describing. and he wants to build a very close relationship with you. 2 Corinthians 6:16. And what agreement has the temple of God with idols. For you are the temple of the living God, and God has said, quote, I will dwell in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Oo, powerful. It says, and what agreement has the temple of God? A temple is a dwelling place. It's a sanctuary. So we are a sanctuary, a dwelling place for God. And it says that God wants to dwell, right? It says, "I will dwell in them." The scripture says, "This is God talking." That means God will inhabit us. He will live in us. It says, "I will uh I will dwell in them." This is just so powerful, folks. I will dwell in them. I will inhabit them. I will live in them. And I will walk among them. To walk among them is to move with, to interact, to guide. That's how God moves, right? He wants to move with us, live in us, interact with us and guide us. What a powerful scripture. So unlike lifeless idols, things made of wood or of stone or of metal, things that human beings carved or made, things that humans foolishly make objects of worship. Instead of those things that are lifeless, God is alive and he wants to engage with us closely. He wants to dwell in us and walk among us. This is such a powerful scripture. Dwell in them, walk among them. Sounds really close, doesn't it? Sounds like God is not over there and we're over here. Sounds like God wants to be in us and walk among us. That's exactly what the scripture says. But let's take a look at more verses. So, here we are. Matthew 15 verses 7-9 where Jesus is talking to the Pharisees and says, "Hypocrites." Wow, it's a strong start. Well, did Isaiah prophesy about you, saying, "These people draw near to me with their mouth, and they honor me with their lips, but their heart is far from me, and in vain they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men." God wants a personal relationship with you, not a transactional one. Jesus says, "These people draw near with their mouth." That means they say the right words. They stand before God in church or in the street or in the marketplace and they say the right thing. Bless God. Thank God. God is great. God is good. They say the right thing. I'm not trying to be I'm not trying to mock anyone here, folks. I'm quoting what Jesus said. Jesus said that these people draw near with their mouth. They say the right words, but their heart is far from God. That means they're relationally disconnected from God. That means the mouth is saying the right thing, but the heart is distant. It's disconnected. It's pushed back from God and who God is. Notice why that's why he called them hypocrites. because their mouth says the right thing and their lips are speaking the right thing but in their heart they have no feeling behind it at all. And then Jesus says in Matthew 15:9 in vain they worship me. Their worship and their service was worthless. Jesus said since they were following human philosophy and human teachings as if it was God's word. That word vain often implies emptiness. That means they're wasting their time worshiping God. That's tough. Don't treat God like some form of distant genie. He's not looking for you to say the right things in church or at home or around the streets. He wants you and he wants your whole heart. In fact, I can't speak for God, but I think he'd much rather have you say nothing than say all those things and have nothing in your heart. And I think God would much rather that you have God in your heart than even say the right things. But blessed is that person who has God in their heart and says the right things. Praise God. Romans 8:15-17. Right here we're going to talk about the idea that God has adopted Christians and he asks us to call him father, right? To call him parent. Romans 8:15 says, "For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, aba, father." Interesting. We did not receive the spirit of bondage. Bondage means slavery or enslavement. We didn't receive a spirit of slavery. A spirit of enslavement again to fear. That means we didn't receive a spirit of enslavement or terror or dread or intimidation. That's not the relationship God's looking for us. He's not looking to somehow enslave us and he's not looking for us to be in terror or intimidation. Instead, the verse says we received a spirit of adoption. Now, adoption is really powerful. That actually meant something quite different in the Roman era, right? In the era when the New Testament was being written. It means to be formally accepted, to be privileged, to be adopted. In Roman culture, adopting a child meant that child took on full rights and full status in the family. An adopted child wasn't second class in any way. An adopted child was first class. So for Paul to write that we received a spirit of adoption, it meant that God took us in and granted us full rights and full privilege in the family of God. Praise God. Remember, we are in Christ and we have a privilege to relate to the father as Jesus relates to the father. Not because you and I are great people. We're not great people and we didn't do great things and we don't deserve this. But Jesus did great things and Jesus does great things. So our ability to interact with the father through his spirit we have a privilege of going to the father as Jesus relates to the father. Such a powerful truth and I thank God for it. You're never too old to talk to God as your parent. Doesn't matter what your age is. You are never too old. And this is the relationship God wants from us. Romans 8:16. In these verses, we're going to talk about how the Holy Spirit even confirms that we are God's children. And remember, if we're God's children, that's a close relationship. God's not looking for us to see each other once a year, right? God's not looking to stay distant. God is actually creating a parental personal relationship with us. And these are just more verses showing that truth. So, Romans 8:16, the spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God. And if children, verse 17, then heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with him, that we may also be glorified together. It says the spirit himself, the Holy Spirit bears witness, testifies together. The Holy Spirit bears witness or testifies with our spirit. Right? Remember it says when we became born again, our spirit became alive. And it says here in Romans 8:16 that the Holy Spirit testifies together with our spirit that we are children of God. To be children means to be offspring, to be a child by birth. Remember, born again, to be born from above. See how these things connect and interconnect. It's wonderful. And it says, "And if children," verse 17, "then heirs with God." Heirs as in heirs. For those of you listening by audio, to be an heir is one who inherits God's promises and blessings. So if we are children, then we are also heirs. We're inheritors of God's promises and God's blessings. Thank God for that. So Paul intentionally calls us two things. adopted. That tells us that we have full legal status with God and children tells us our relational closeness to God. So, we're both have a full legal status through an adoption and we also are children, which shows this relational closeness with God. Well, that's kind of interesting. So, let's talk a little more about that. God wants an Adamike relationship with you. Now, we're starting to go, we're really kicking it old school. We're back in Genesis. Adam had a personal parental relationship with God. Notice that God formed Adam and Eve. And the relationship he had in the beginning before sin was a personal parental relationship between Adam and God. God personally formed Adam. That is a very close relationship. Let's take a look at Genesis 2:7. and I quote, "And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living being." I put Genesis 2:7 in here to start to demonstrate the idea that God personally formed Adam, and that's close. God also provided for Adam. Genesis 2:9, "And out of the ground the Lord God made every tree grow that is pleasant to the sight and good for food." God provided and provides sustenance for Adam and for Eve. And he made sure that trees would grow that were pleasant to look at and to consume. Thank God. Also, Adam didn't just walk around. He worked with God. Such a fascinating idea. God gave Adam a purpose. Genesis 2:15, "Then the Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to tend and to keep it." Interesting. What does tend mean? Well, to tend is to care for, to steward. So, God placed man in the Garden of Eden to be a steward, to care for that garden. The same word, that same Hebrew word is often translated as serving or worshiping God. So Adam was to serve God with the Garden of Eden, right? This area that God gave him. So God gave Adam a purpose. He asked him and commanded him to care for and to steward the Garden of Eden. And that was his service to God. That was his purpose to God. And that was his meaning in his life. Are you sensing kind of where we're going here between Adam and us? Folks, Adam and God fellowshipped and worked together. Genesis 2:19, out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the air and brought them to Adam to see what he Adam would call them. And whatever Adam called each living creature, that was his name. I'm sorry, that would be its name. So, Adam and God not only fellowship together and God gave Adam a purpose, but notice God working alongside Adam. Adam working alongside God as he's doing his purpose, as he's doing his calling, as he's fulfilling his vocation and his meaning. And the idea that God would form these animals and that Adam would call them names and whatever Adam called each living creature, that was its name. And it continues, doesn't it? God was the source of Adam's success. So, for example, God saw Adam had a need for a wife. Genesis 2:18, "And the Lord God said, it is not good that man should be alone. I will make him a helper comparable to him." God saw Adam had a need. Or we could say it this way, Adam had a want even. And God saw that. And because they were so closely aligned and Adam was fulfilling his purpose and he was tending the garden and doing what God called him to do and they had a close personal and parental relationship, God saw that desire or that need. I can't tell you which one it was. Uh but then he went ahead and he actually foresaw it and he did something about it which is fantastic. God also gave Adam happiness, peace and a sense of belonging. Right? These are some of the items we said before that Christians consider to be a part of success in this life. Genesis 2 25. And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed. I know there's a lot in that verse there, folks. And the emphasis isn't the nakedness. The emphasis is the fact that they were not ashamed. They had a sense of belonging. They had a sense of peace and they were happy. They did not look at themselves and they weren't insecure. They felt quite satisfied with the life that God had for them. They felt fulfilled. Adam lived in daily fellowship with God. He heard God's voice. He walked in God's presence. And he lived fully aligned with God's will. And this is actually the relationship that God intends for all of us. So you might be saying, I want that kind of relationship with God. We all do. We all want an Adamike relationship with God. So, what do I do next? How can I grow closer to God? How can I experience the Christian success I'm hoping for and that I've been describing for the last 15 plus minutes? Well, the answer is found in five biblical disciplines. Let's see. Build your relationship with God through the five disciplines for Christian growth. What is a discipline? A discipline is something that you repeat to improve yourself over time. Right? In the Bible, we see five disciplines worth repeating. These are practices that God uses to build your relationship with him and to grow as a Christian. So, what are the five disciplines for Christian growth? Number one, read the word of God out loud daily. Read your Bible out loud daily. And we're going to get into all of the details of these. In fact, subsequent episodes will be drilling in on what these mean and how they benefit you. Number two, meditate on the word of God and the gospel daily. Meditate on God's word and the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ every day. Number three, humble your soul with fasting. We're going to talk about what that means. Number four, learn to pray without ceasing as the scripture says. And number five, seek to be led by the spirit. These are five disciplines, five habits, five things worth repeating over and over again over time that benefit you, that help you grow as a Christian. So you can see here that in many ways your a successful Christian life it comes down to your daily habits and those should include reading God's word meditating on God's word fasting praying and being led by God's spirit. There's a lot in there and we're going to be discussing each one of them. A discipline is not something that you will naturally want to do. That term discipline already sounds like something that can be at times a little challenging. It makes you uncomfortable sometimes, but you do a discipline, you take on a good habit because it has positive results. The five disciplines can build lasting peace, clarity, and a deep relationship with God. This is what makes a Christian successful. Let's be clear. We discussed at this opening two Christians, same Bible. What's the difference? Quite often because one of those Christians is reading God's word, meditating on God's word. They're fasting from time to time. They're seeking to be led by the spirit. They're praying. Right? These are things that dramatically change these. Again, God's not a genie. These aren't things that you rub or you put in a vending machine and get, you know, get all these things out of it, but they draw you closer to God. God's communicating and interacting with you. He's directing you and he's guiding you. He's sustaining you and he's supporting you and he's blessing you. He's making you successful. That's really often the difference. These five disciplines really do build an Adamlike relationship with God, a personal and parental one. The five disciplines help draw you back into an intimate relationship with God. The kind of relationship that God the kind of relationship that Adam had in the Garden of Eden. These disciplines, they don't create something new. They simply restore the daily fellowship and the focus that Adam had with God in the garden. It's a not so secret secret, right? There's really no secret to this. Adam had a close relationship with God and these five disciplines build our relationship with God and in doing so develops our success because God is the source of our success. God wants to bless us but he wants us to align with our purpose to align with his will and then there is nothing he will withhold from us. reading the Bible daily. If we were to look over at Adam, Adam understood and obeyed God. So, we read the Bible daily. And Adam didn't sit there reading a Bible, but Adam understood and obeyed God's will. We read about God's will and his instruction. And it's good for us. Meditating on the word. So by us meditating and thinking and considering God's word and what it means for us, it's the equivalent of Adam's mind being focused on God's ways. Humbling our soul through fasting. Adam wasn't ruled by fleshly desires, but we often are. And so our ability to fast from time to time to try to put down those fleshly desires and focusing on God, it actually starts to put us a lot more like how Adam was because he wasn't ruled by his fleshly carnal desires. Praying without ceasing. We learn how to pray and talk to God throughout the day the same way Adam walked and talked with God throughout the day. Being led by the spirit. Adam lived in perfect alignment with God. We look to be led by the spirit so that we could live our days in alignment with God. The five disciplines are really there to help restore the close daily walk with God that Adam had before the fall. And it was all made possible through Jesus Christ, the last Adam. These aren't just things that if I just take these five things up and if I just do them, then everything's going to be fine. Remember, God's not a genie and he's not a vending machine. He wants to have a relationship. But we could only have that relationship through the five disciplines because of what Jesus did, who in the scriptures is called the last Adam. See how we're connecting this together, folks? That brings us to our next simple truth. Jesus restored the relationship with God that Adam broke. Wow. Romans 5 18 and 19. In these verses, we're going to talk about how through Adam's failure came death, but through Jesus's obedience came life. Romans 5:18. Therefore, as through one man's offense, that's Adam's. Judgment came to all men, that's us, resulting in condemnation. Even so, through one man's righteous act, that's the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the gospel. The free gift came to all men, that's us, resulting in justification of life. There's a lot in here. So, let's break it down. Therefore, as through one man's offense, Adam's offense, an offense is a fault. It's a deviation. It's crossing the line because Adam crossed the line because he deviated because God had a purpose and a plan and Adam chose otherwise, right? Judgment came to all men, to us, and it resulted in condemnation. And condemnation simply means a bad verdict. It's a legal term. So a bad verdict was placed upon Adam and upon us because of his deviation because of his fault. It says even so through one man's righteous act. A righteous act is right behavior over obedience. So Adam had offense. He had deviation. He crossed the line. He had fault. Jesus had right behavior. Jesus had obedience to the father. Through that we received a free gift. The free gift is our justification by faith. It means that we are declared right by believing God's report, by believing in the death, burial, and resurrection. And that word is justification. It means to be declared right by God to be acquitted. So through one man's offense, through his deviation, that's Adam's judgment came to all of us and it resulted in a bad verdict. But even so, through the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, thank God, a free gift was made available to everybody. And the result of anyone who receives that gift is to be acquitted of that bad verdict. Thank God. I'm here getting happy, folks. Yeah. I don't know if you're getting happy. I pray you're getting happy. I'm here getting happy. I thank God for this. This is grace. This is God's spirit. This is power. This truth, the fact of what we just read is so powerful and so good. And it forgives us and it strengthens us and it moves us along and it converts us and it conforms us. It it changes us from where we were before that kind of wormy caterpillar and it and it conforms us and translates us into being a butterfly. It's such great news. That's why we thank God. Jesus's obedience restored the relationship with God that Adam lost. So Adam lost that relationship through his offense. And so we were dealing with the results of that. And by the way, it's not just Adam. When we were born and we were living our lives before we knew God, we were doing all sorts of offenses. We just added to the list of what Adam did. But Jesus's obedience gave us a gift and it restored the relationship with God that Adam lost. Through Jesus's gospel, we can have a restored relationship with God. Romans 5:19. For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one man's obedience many will be made righteous. It says by one man's disobedience. This is Adam's disobedience. Disobedience means refusal to obey. It also means refusal to trust. So this idea that Adam, he not only disobeyed God, right? He was told not to eat of the tree and he did. But he also didn't trust God. I think well I don't want to put myself in Adam's shoes. But I think it's accurate to say that in many ways he thought that he could do something or get away with something and that he would actually benefit from it even though God told him it was a terrible idea. So he didn't trust God. He didn't trust in what God had to say regarding it. And he didn't trust in what the results would be. You could say it this way, and I don't want to step outside of scripture, but one could argue that Adam thought he knew better. It says, "By one man's disobedience, many were made sinners." To be a sinner is someone who falls short of a standard. It means you're a person who's living outside of God's intended relationship and purpose. Remember, God had a purpose for Adam in Eden. And it was a wonderful purpose. They walked and talked. He named animals. God saw needs that Adam had such as a wife, a desire, and gave him a wife. There was all these wonderful things in that fellowship and God had a purpose for Adam. Gave him a vocation and a calling and blessed and made him successful in it. And yet, Adam stepped outside of God's intended relationship and purpose and chose his own. And it did not work out well. More than disobedience, the fall was also a betrayal of the relationship. Right? more than just disobedience. He didn't just disobey God. He was cast out of Eden. He betrayed the relationship that he had with God. It says, "So also by one man's obedience." Obedience is having a right standing or right behavior. Jesus obeyed the father. Jesus had a right standing with the father and he behaved righteously before the father. Most importantly, he behaved righteously to his death, the burial, and God's resurrection of Jesus Christ. the gospel and that through one man's obedience, many will be made righteous. If you accept Jesus Christ, the gospel puts you in a right standing with God. The five disciplines help you live in the restored relationship. Now, so we're going to in later episodes talk about the gospel, the blood of Jesus, sanctification, righteousness, justification, redemption. We're going to talk about these very powerful ideas in the upcoming seasons. But the five disciplines help us live that restored relationship. So while God, if you receive Jesus Christ, God makes you righteous. Walking in the five disciplines helps you live in a restored relationship. Because remember, just being declared righteous doesn't mean you have a great successful life. But living in a close relationship with God, that gives you a successful Christian life. Through Jesus's gospel, we can have a restored relationship with God. Let's look at 1 Corinthians 15:45. And so it is written, the first man, Adam, became a living being. The last Adam, Jesus, became a lifegiving spirit. What does this mean? Well, first it says, "And so it is written, the first man Adam became a living being." That means God created him, right? He was formed to walk in fellowship with him. So this first man was made alive, made into a living being by God. The last Adam, Jesus Christ, then reversed what Adam lost. Right? Reversed what the first Adam lost. And he was made, he became, excuse me, a life-giving spirit. Jesus gave spiritual life to those that were fallen and received his gift. Right? those who became born again. So the first Adam was created and made into a living being and the last Adam became this life-giving spirit, this person who would give spiritual life to all who would receive him. Adam gave us a physical life, right? We were born, he was formed, he was created, and we were born much like Adam after his similitude. But Adam broke fellowship with God. So Jesus, the last Adam, gave us spiritual life, restored us, and the five disciplines help us walk in that restored relationship. So let's take a moment. We're all tempted by pursuing comfort or by distractions uh and following after those things that make our flesh feel good instead of investing in our relationship with God, aka the five disciplines, right? But when we go for short-term comfort, it doesn't make us happy. It doesn't make us happy. In fact, think about it. We live in the most comfortable and convenient era in history, right? We have so many comforts and so many recreations and so many ways to blow off steam and so many ways to be entertained all over the place. And yet depression, self harm, they're at record highs. Nearly one in five Americans is being treated for depression and yet there's comfort everywhere. So clearly comfort and distraction is not the source of happiness. Let's see what things are getting in our way. So what is getting in the way of our Christian success? Bad habits hinder your spiritual growth. So now we're looking at the opposite of the five disciplines. What are some of the bad habits? First of all, distractions. constant entertainment, social media, busyness, noise, right? All these things, they crowd out our time with God. We could literally from wake up to going to bed, even while we're sleeping, we could be constantly plugged in, dialed in, online, feeding, scrolling, you know, whatever it may be, swiping. This constant feed crowds out your time with God. comfort seeking. We often we have all these aspects available to us. We choose what often is easy instead of what helps us grow. Prayerlessness. We can go days, weeks, months sometimes never praying, never communicating with God the entire time relying on ourself. Remember, if you're not praying and seeking God's will, you're trying to do your own will, which really isn't your own will. Not reading the Bible. We don't read scripture. We don't meditate on scripture. We're not thinking about God's instructions. Remember what we saw in Psalm one. Happy is the person who doesn't walk, stand, or sit with all those folks, right? With the morally wrong, the ungodly, but instead is a person who actually prioritizes God's instructions and God's revelation. Pride. We can find ourselves resisting humility or correction or resisting a dependence on God. We want to do this our way. We don't like God's correction. We don't want to humble ourselves. This gets in the way of our success, folks. Iniquities. And iniquity it could sound like a fancy term. It just means repeated wrongdoing, right? Twisted behavior, things that we find ourselves over and over again going back to. The good news is that God delivers us from our iniquities. But being in these iniquities, we feel bad afterwards usually and we find ourselves repeating them over and over again and they get in the way of our success. Fear and doubt. We find ourselves worrying instead of trusting. Remember what Jesus said in the book of Matthew that we saw earlier. He says, "Do not be anxious. Don't be distracted. Don't worry about these things. Instead, we need to be trusting in God." Worldly priorities. We can find ourselves chasing success, changing pleasure, chasing after approval, right? Something where all these worldly desires where we want to be number one in the eyes of the world and not number one in our relationship with God. I'll tell you now, I have seen and faced and been a part of all sorts of worldly success. There is nothing that compares to a relationship with God. And the success of this world has only created that depression, that self harm, and all that stuff that we were describing before. God is number one. And when you put God as number one, he'll give you all sorts of desires of your heart. But you're going to be seeking first the kingdom and his righteousness before these things get added to you. The path to success is disciplines, not distractions. Distractions, they can comfort you temporarily, but a discipline transforms you permanently. Got that? A distraction can comfort you temporarily. A little bit of time, but a discipline, right? Those five disciplines, they transform you permanently. You become a very different person. So, let's take a look a quick comparison before we go ahead and close out this episode. fleshly habits and modern distractions on one side and spiritual habits for spiritual growth on the other side. So when we look at fleshly habits or modern distractions, we see comfort over discipline. We see being constantly busy. These are bad things folks. Constant entertainment, right? It's like an injection in the arm of television and radio and social media and the internet and scrolling and every feed and likes and reposts and retweets and whatever it may be. Neglecting Bible reading that's also in the fleshly habits and modern distractions. We see little or no prayer. We see pride and self-reliance. We see giving into sinful desires. We see chasing worldly success. Right? All of these items, they hinder your success. They get in the way of your success. These items lead to short-term pleasure, but they also lead to long-term emptiness, and they don't do anything to convert you. Which, by the way, as we saw before, when you become born again, God is working to convert you. So, if you're running into resistance, quite often you may be running into resistance because God's plan for you is to convert you, and your plan for you is short-term pleasures. So you can see the friction that ends up happening with it. Not a good friction folks. You do not want that friction. So let's take a look on the other side. Spiritual habits for Christian growth. So these are the things that help build success. Reading the Bible out loud daily. Meditating on scripture and the gospel. Fasting to humble your soul. Praying continually each day. And number five, trying to be led by the spirit. Seeking to be led by the spirit of God. These lead to success both in this world and the world to come. Remember when we were discussing what it means to have success. These lead to success in this world and in the world to come. These five things are worth making a habit. So today's modern distractions they offer quick comfort but they never bring peace. They never bring fulfillment and they never produce a positive change. But the five disciplines, these are things you repeat to improve yourself, right? That's what that word discipline meant. They build a deeper relationship with God and they build a successful Christian life. So join us in our next episode as we begin with the first discipline. Why reading the Bible out loud changes everything. Thank you for listening to this episode of the simple truth. Today we discussed a simple but powerful truth. Real Christian success, it doesn't come from seeking comfort or distractions or finding quick fixes. It comes from a close relationship with God made possible through the miraculous sacrifice of our Lord Jesus Christ. In the coming episodes, we will look closely at each one of the five disciplines. These habits, they aren't about earning God's blessing. They're about building a closer relationship between you and God, which as we saw today with Adam, was what God always intended for us. When you read the Bible, meditate on God's word, humble yourself with fasting, pray, and seek to be led by the spirit, it changes you and me from the inside out, and we grow as a Christian. This is especially important since God is working to convert our souls after we become born again. Remember, distractions may offer short-term comfort, but disciplines produce long-term transformation. In our next episode of The Simple Truth, we'll begin with the first discipline and explore why reading the Bible out loud changes everything. If this episode spoke to you, then please like, subscribe, and share it with someone else who wants to grow closer to God. It's been a real pleasure talking to you about the Bible. I pray God bless you and keep you until next time. Thank you for listening to the Simple Truth Podcast. For additional episodes, visit us at www.simpletruth.org