72. Conversation With Amber Twigg

This week, we sat down with Amber Twigg to have an honest conversation about identity, religion, and freedom found in Jesus. We talked about what it means to truly see yourself the way God sees you; not through shame, striving, or performance, but through righteousness, grace, and relationship with Christ. 

If you've ever struggled with feeling like you have to earn God's love or wondered who you really are in Him, this conversation is for you. Our prayer is that this episode encourages you to rest in the finished work of Jesus and walk in the freedom He paid for.

Transcript

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Welcome back, everyone, to the Everyday Kingdom podcast. I'm Caleb, and I am joined by our normal crew, Miriam and Raphael. But today we have an extra special guest joining us, Miss Amber Twig. Yay! Amber The Heavens open up. I'm so excited. It's my very first one, actually. Very first podcast with yeah, because usually I do the interviewing, they're in different states. And this is like very first, like live and in-person. Yes. So we get the fire because Amber is here. Like fire. I'm glad you're saying that. Holy ghost. Amen. Holy ghost. You feel that too. I feel it. I feel that too. Well, we are really glad that you're here and able to do this with us. And uh you're gonna just drive me the whole time. Uh and uh again, just thankful that you're here to be here with us and uh looking forward to we just decided we wanted to have a conversation together. Yeah, yeah, talk about some things, and um uh there's a lot of different uh things that we could talk about. You know, ice cream. Oh that's high up on the list. Yellow, Indiana graters, yes, grape ice cream, it's awesomeness in a cup. I maybe been there two days in a row. I don't know. Depends on who you ask. Whatever. Can't confirm more than that. I may go again. It's awesome. I think it's a rite of passage, really. Ooh, it's good. French pot. It's so good. It's what it's made out of. Just feel better. Yeah, yeah, yeah. That's how it works. But yeah, we I mean, we're so yesterday you uh you spoke uh at church and absolutely crushed it. It was it was so good. Um, you you actually said a few things that were uh incredibly thought-provoking, and and uh we maybe we'll get a chance to jump into some of that here in a little bit. But um I just I wanted to say even before we started, like I just so appreciate your heart for the Lord and your passion for Jesus and um your desire to see people um walking in their identity, who they are in Christ. And uh it's it's a it's a it's a heartbeat that resonates very loudly in this house. Um that's that's that's our heart. And we've been going through on the podcast um doing a series called Free from Religion, and we've just been talking about what it looks like to live life um free from what we would call performance Christianity and and breaking free from that stuff and learning how to live from our union with Christ. And so um I know we have a few questions and stuff, but before we even get to into that, uh I just wanted to ask you, like, you know, what are what are what are your thoughts? What are some of the burning things in your heart right now that that maybe you want to share with us? Do you need your earphones? Okay. Sorry. Well you said something just in you speaking, you you talked about freedom from religion. And religion is more contagious than COVID. It's more addictive than heroin. Because it comes with the approval of man. Um and religion is often seen as uh just different forms of Christianity, but religion is man's attempt to work their way towards God. Christianity is God coming to man. Oftentimes people confuse religion with Christianity, and one is the enemy and one is God. And they're so casually tossed, and they go, What religion are you? God is not a religion, he is called the breath, he is the source of life. It's way different, and we're so casual with this religion. What kind of religion? Oh, I'm Methodist, I'm Episcopalian, I'm Baptist, you know. And God is none of those. There's no denomination lines anywhere. It's a it's a man-made construct. Um, Jesus is the source of of life, you know, and so what you said was a statement, but it's really big. Your statement is a really big statement. And most people confuse religion with knowing God, and it's completely what Jesus came to tear down. Yeah. You know, it's not it's not just a subtle, oh, take it or leave it, or it's not like a whatever place. It's it's a place either your soul is in torment in religion, um, or it's in Christ and it's whole. What you said is a huge statement uh confusing religion and Jesus is not the same thing at all. It's like confusing Moses and Christ. Right. And they're two completely different things. One is the ministry of death and one is the ministry of reconciliation. So anyway, uh yeah, you just sent me on a God ramble. Well, I you know, I love that. I I somebody had said one time, I don't even remember who it was, so I can't really attribute it to anyone. Um, but I just remember them saying, and I thought it was so good. It was religion is falling in love with where God used to be. And it's and it's and it's establishing systems around that old space. And and I just thought, man, how how true that often is, where you know, humanity can get to a place where they maybe they experienced God at one point in their life. And and as they've experienced him, they they they they built everything around that one experience instead of living life continually with him, and as he's continuing to move, they move with him. And so it it'd be like, you know, you we hear about the different movements that happen, right? And you have, you know, a faith word of faith movement, and you've got the love movement, the apostolic movement, the prophetic movement, and it's like people can get stuck in one movement where God moved in that moment, but but he continues to grow, it continues um to move. And if you get stuck in that space, all of a sudden you've you've created this uh boundary around what you think God is doing because he did it one time back here. And and instead of getting to as you said, I love it, the the it's the breath of God. It wasn't just one breath, it is a continued breathing. Like he continues to breathe. And so it's like, you know, for for us to be able to live in union with Christ, we get to love where he was and where he is, and where he's going. And we get to live from that space freely with him, partaking every moment, every day, because it is a divine union that we have with him. Uh that is not just a a one-time thing that happened back here. I love it. I you you're gonna sit me off here. Go for it. You got something. I was just saying it's we're in love with him, not what he's doing. Like we're in we're knowing the person of Christ and not wa just watching what he's doing and what's happening around him, but actually knowing him. Which is eternal life. So as you're talking, I'm thinking about Pentecostal, Methodist, Catholic, and all these uh forms of father's heart. They know father and they know a certain aspect of father, and then you have a growth where another person gets to experience another growth of father's heart, like they're expanding and being enlightened, they're and they're growing, they're stretching their tempegs, but the place that you stop seeing the next part of Father's Heart is where it becomes religion. So it's so important to maintain the father's heart and everything that you do. David, he was like he was a man after God's own heart. Why? Because he was after God's heart, he was after God's vision, he was after God's ears, he was after everything that was God, and it he it wasn't just God, it was Father, and that's why Jesus says, Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. It takes out so many uh religious thoughts. You didn't say Jesus, or you didn't say Jesus, or you didn't say um uh crystal or or whatever, and you don't know the Hebrew language, or you don't know the Greek language, and it's really simple father's heart, father's eyes, father's love going out and growing from the beginning. That was the plan. That is his thoughts of us to multiply, be fruitful in all the earth, multiply the heart of God in everything. That's how we breathe, that's how we live, and have everything in us go from day to day, glory to glory. Amber, I feel like you got something to say. Oh man, well, you said you said something, and you were talking about um the movements and things like that, and they're amazing, right? But we're talking about we're, you know, people build a camp there and stay there off of a manifestation instead of a person instead of a life. And and you build a doctrine off of a manifestation instead of the person of Christ. And you don't see Peter and Paul going, hey man, you remember what happened in the book of Acts. We just want to get back there. You don't see them going like that. You remember when the fire came down? Oh, those were the days. You know, they're not, they're like Paul says this this statement, I forget everything that's behind me to go forward in Christ. You know what I mean? It's the revelation of him. And it's like these are amazing things that God, God does and has has done and will do. Um, but it it's so limited, like uh when Moses said, Hey, okay, this glory's fading. Yeah, y'all about to see some real glory. You know, but you might want to don't look over here anymore because this this glory is fading. You know what I mean? It's like anytime you can appreciate the old, but you just do that, you appreciate it, you know what I mean? Because um God is always all God is always, He is, you know what I mean? He's present. I feel like you you got something, Caleb. Well, I was just thinking, you know, Jesus even gave us uh uh a kind of a warning of that as well, you know, and specifically talking about falling in love with where he was. And you you use the example of you know Paul and Peter, they weren't like, hey, remember what happened back here, and in Acts, they weren't doing that. Like we remember the works of God, we remember the things of God, but Jesus I believe it's the only woman he references when he speaks. He says, Remember Lot's wife. And if we remember Lot's wife, you know what happened with her, she she was instructed not to look back, but to keep moving forward because God was was actually saving them from destruction. And and and he's and they're given the instruction, don't look back. And when she does, she looks back and she turns into a pillar of salt. And and I think that's such a prophetic picture of what happens to people in life, is that Jesus warns and says, Remember Lot's wife. Don't everything that we're doing in my kingdom is he forward, it's continuing to move forward. Like Paul writes, right? I continue to press on towards the prize and the high calling. And and and and what happens is when we look back like Lot's wife, we turn into a pillar of salt where we get stuck looking back, we get stuck, we turn to a pillar, and we become salty, and not the good kind of salt that Jesus wants us to be. But we become bitter because we're looking constantly, continually looking back and and longing for the the days of your, you know, longing for what happened then instead of appreciating, you know, what God is doing here in this season and what he's about to do, like behold, I'm doing a new thing. Can you not perceive it? Right? I'm I'm wanting to move in your life today. I want to be your bread today, I want to be your breath today. You know, can you can you be here present with me today? And I think that's one of the biggest dangers that a lot of people face is they they lose the I'm gonna say it in this term, they lose the presence of God, meaning not He's left them, but being present with Him in the moment. They've lost their their desire or ability or want to just be present with Him today, they get stuck back here. Or a lot of movements get stuck out here. God's going to do this, He's going to be, He's going to be. I just know and which that's wonderful, but what's He doing presently with you? And I think the the the life of freedom that we are designed and created for is to step into the now moment with Jesus, with Father, with Holy Spirit, and live from that union right here, right now. To not be, I mean, Jesus even instructs us in that. He's like, sufficient the day or the evils therein. Like, don't worry about tomorrow. Right. Stop looking back at yesterday. What are we doing today? Seek first my kingdom and its righteousness. Everything else is gonna get taken care of. I like how you said people get stuck in the past. They they get stuck on the sacrifice that happened yesterday in the old testament. You know, like we gotta bring our daily sacrifices or or this or this or this. And the sacrifice that he requires is the fruit of your lips, your mind, your heart. And it's a daily, a living sacrifice, a living out of the worship of God. Yeah, no, it's a lot, it's a lot being said here. And um I think people get comfortable with knowing God in a historic way. You know, and information. Well, that's one way to have information, but living from a source is just that. It's living from Him, you know. And um uh how you started this off was um ending ending religion. Most people, most people don't know they're so saturated with religion. And when freedom presents itself, it seems really scary. Yep. Right, right. You know what I mean? Wow, when freedom and grace come into the picture, you go, Am I allowed to feel this good? Is this legal? Like, right, I am really happy. Where's the document that tells me exactly the steps to make things right? Like, shouldn't I be more burdened or sin conscious or worried? I mean, I feel really free. Is this allowed? You know, I mean, that's a real space, you know, that that God brings you into because you become so aware of him instead of aware of yourself. Religion is so masochistic. Religion is the original cutters, you know. Those Judaizers, when they would come to prayer parties, they would do circumcision parties, not to get graphic and gross. But could you imagine going to a prayer meeting and they pull out a switchblade and it's four skin time cut off? Talk about hating prayer meetings. Right, right. I mean, my gosh, I'm a I don't mean to go there. I'm just saying, like, talk about the original cutters. Who do you think is the original people? And that, well, it's not people, it's a mindset of the enemy to hate your flesh, to want to destroy it. Where do you think masochistic cutting behavior came from? Religion. It is more dangerous than, you know, than most things that we say are dangerous. Religion really is serpent's seed, and it it is a seed, seeds grow, you know, so you just can't do a little bit of religion and a little bit of Jesus. You know what I mean? Can't do a little bit of legalism over here and a little bit of grace over here. It's called lukewarm. And grace and legalism mixing is that lukewarm where you you just vomit everything out, makes you nauseous and sick. Why? Because you're double-mindedness. What's double-mindedness means your head's spinning. Yeah, yeah. You're unstable. You're unstable. It's very dangerous. People, people are so passive with it. Like if you go, hey, do you do you know, do you know Jesus? And and they'll go, I go to the Methodist church down the street. That's not what I asked you. Right. That's okay. Is Jesus a Methodist? I don't know. You know, but do you know him? Like, do you love him? We've been so trained that our denomination, and I'm not, I'm not against any denominations. That's not what I'm saying. I'm just saying, man, it's Jesus didn't go, hey, I'd like for you to sign up to be Pentecostal today. Tomorrow we're gonna do an evangelical, you know. Well, actually, Pentecost was yesterday. So yesterday we were Pentecostal. Yesterday. Today, what are we? Today we're memorial. You know, memorial Pentecostals. Yeah, we get so we but we get so comfortable and safe with our denomination and what we say. Right. The head and not the tail, bliss. Okay, so but yeah, but why is that? A lot of that comes back to that becomes part of our identity. It's categorizing, right? It it it's it's categorizing, which which who's the categorizer? Yeah, you felt safety in the categorizer. He is the great categorizer. That's the that's that's the division. He's the division. We don't have the same father. What? I'm sorry, what so in talking about this, we've we've mentioned freedom a few times. Oh, yeah. And and and living freely. Uh my question for us, maybe to to consider and to talk about a little bit is what does it look like to live freely emotionally, spiritually, mentally? Like, let can we touch on that for a little bit and just talk about because I know you I know you have uh a lot of um knowledge and wisdom, especially when it comes to neuroscience and those types of things. I know you've studied that. Um so maybe we can touch a little bit of that as well. What is what does freedom look like living freely uh in in all of those areas of our life? That's really good. Uh I'll just, yeah. Freedom comes from what you believe, basically. You have a belief system that you're operating out of. Everyone has one, whether they understand it or not. And that's how they're showing up and doing life. Either life is happening to you or you're happening to life. And most people are just reacting to life instead of influencing it. Yeah. Right? And so it comes from, like most of us, you probably grew up like this, I don't know, but most of you understood that Jesus died for you, and that's amazing. You're like, that's great, and I'm forgiven. Jesus died for me, and that's awesome. But we don't know the second half of it, that you died with Christ. It's not just like wishful thinking or hypothetical or it sounds good. No, it says Galatians 2.20. It's no longer I that live, but it's Christ that lives in me. So good, I'm choked up over here. Breathe. Yeah, it's no longer I that lives, but it's Christ that lives in me. And you go, wait a minute, you mean I got executed? It was painless for him. It was painful for him, painless for us. You know, it's like, and you go, Well, how did all this happen? I don't I don't remember it. Well, do you remember your birth? Yeah, no. Did you have anything to do with it? No, it's the same way being born again. Yeah, you really are made new, but unless someone tells you what happened to you, unless Paul says a statement, did someone forget to tell you? Tell me what, Paul? Yeah. Have you been in church your whole life and never heard the gospel? Did you I didn't know Romans 6, 7, and 8 was always in my Bible. One day it came alive to me, and I I read there Romans 6, 7. For he that is died is freed from sin. I'm not trying to be free. Right. I'm not working my way towards freedom. And that word sin is a noun that I got freed from. So we confuse a verb with a noun all the time. So a noun is a persona, it's a person, place, or thing. It's uh it's an entity, it's a creature. You you see Paul discuss the Romans creat sevens creature, you know. He's talking about this thing that lived inside of him prior to his death. Because you get into Romans 8 and he says, Hey, you know why I'm not condemned? Because Romans 6 happened. I'm freed from sin. But I say that because we're talking about an identity, right? How do you be healthy in your mind? How do you get healthy in your mind? How do you get healthy in your feelings? Uh, there's so much in there that I could touch on about the art of disassociation and disassociating from everything that you used to be and associating with everything Christ is. Everything really did die in the grave with Jesus. You may have the memories of your old life, but that is not a nature. A memory is not a nature. You really did get a brand new nature. So as you continually learn your new nature, and your only reference point is Christ, because remember, the old you died. So a dead person can't sin. That's really awesome. You know, and so you start you start learning the power of what Jesus has done for you and to you, and all of a sudden your mind gets rewired because you're not trying to fix you. Right. You're not committed to sin. Like the Bible talks about like those who are born of Him can't. not commit sin they're they're not married to it they're not married to it like it's out of them they are married and bound to to him and christ has no sin in him and so if you're really his and you are you really you really are his and I love the analogy or uh how you said noun you're no longer a noun and that is that's really how I've seen it for for years and believe that the scripture points to that in so many different ways um but what would happen is I would get around these people who are just like hey you you're the verb that you just did and it's just like no I am Christ I'm his son I I am in fellowship with him I am in fellowship with the saints I am no longer this and so when I really started to believe that and proclaim I am the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus things changed things changed because I believed and others other other people seen that and they believed and when you keep on professing the fire of God the all-consuming fire like there's nothing left of me is no longer I who live but Christ who lives in me then it displays a light that cannot be quenched. The flame of God cannot be quenched. And I think part of the issue that we deal with a lot today is some of the language that is used inside of churches that calls people sinners. Right? When you when you're talking about now you're a sinner now now you're assigning an identity to someone and versus sinning. You know um it it is a it's it's one thing for it to be like you said the verb another thing for it to be a noun. And what happens a lot of times we see is you have churches that will communicate that you are a sinner. And and they'll they will you know declare that over you and the reason they do that is is so that you can uh their hope is that then you can see how much you need a savior and and so they tell you how bad you are and that this is who you used to be or this is who you are and and you need Christ so bad. And so you better turn your life around and give it to him so you can go to heaven. And then it becomes about a destination and and and not about a person or a relationship. It becomes about if you don't do this then you know it's the end for you. So they spend this all this time essentially hammering this language into people about being a sinner. And if you were to if you were to talk to a random person on the side of the road I bet they could probably tell you that because that's the common language that is used you know in in many churches. Versus beginning to declare the gospel which is that sin is not the problem. Sin is not an issue Christ has set us free from all of that and you are a son or a daughter in him. Like that's the that's the proclaimed good news that he dealt with the sin problem once for all and that we actually have been brought nearer to him not just near but into him he makes his home in us and and if it can you believe this you know and like that's what it ultimately ends with can you believe this? And if you do look at yours you get to walk this thing out now like this is this is this is your reality has anyone told you this before has no one told you this yeah you know like have you not heard this gospel that that sin once reigned and ruled but Christ but Christ now he is the one who holds the keys he is the one who is victorious over sin. And so it if you if you whatever you magnify yes that's what's going to be large in your life so if you want to magnify sin that's what's going to be large in your life. If you want to take it on as your identity so here and this is what I was getting at here's the problem that happens is we is churches will take and we they will hammer home about you being a sinner and then they'll complain why don't they understand how why are they not walking out sonship? Right yeah and and I I tell you one of the things that that really like hurts my heart to hear is I I went to a service um in one of our local churches recently and one of the things that the pastor spoke over the congregation is that he said this you are going to struggle with sin. And I'm like why what are you doing? That's not the good news that's not even true. No it's not true. That like what what why are you doing this? You know it's like it's like going to your kids and be like you are going to fail. Sorry you are going to fall and it's like guys what are we doing here? Like now all of a sudden I've shifted my eyes off of Jesus onto myself and my ability to be a a a non-sinner. Like here's the thing you can it's like we're trying to train people to be non-sinners instead of living as sons and daughters. When you live as a son or as a daughter sin isn't the issue because I have my eyes focused on Jesus. I'm son conscious not sin conscious. Oh yeah and so it's it's it's I know it's a lot to say there all in all in one but ultimately it comes down to you know I I think part of our role as leaders and and not just even not even just as leaders like even if you're listening today and you don't lead a church or anything like that, you are leading something. Yeah. Whether it's your own life whether you're in a family whether you're in a small group like whatever it is you are leading something and and what would happen what would it look like if you you began to lead from that place of of freedom not going down the road of you know calling people sinners but instead calling them who they are sons and daughters professing Christ and life over them. Watch what happens like things change. Yeah it's really good if you know the first place to start is letting God get a hold of your confession so that confession turns to life expression right it's it's at the very basic level at least you can correct your speech you're like well what can I do about it at least correct your speech on how you talk to yourself you know um and and you know I don't know where they are you know where they are in the word if they you know I don't we don't know who's gonna watch or the people that do watch you know what I mean but what we're saying here is really powerful you know what I mean? Um especially for believers if you call yourself a believer what are you believing? Right right are you believing the cross worked or do you think Jesus needs your help to make it work? Huh do I believe that the cross did a partial job or did it do a full job? Do I believe that salvation worked the first time or do I do I need to feel better in order to agree with salvation working for me? And questions provoke truth. That's why we're talking like this that's why we're talking amongst each other and so oftentimes people are talked out of believing the finality of the cross you know because the cross is the permanent line of separation from your past and your old life it is permanent severing um but yeah if it you know Miriam going from from kind of like religious stuff that you just do you show up in church you read your Bible you do life you you know you try to behave well and then get in the gospel what was the biggest thing mentally for you that took place in you like yeah well it's really tough whenever because in mentally you know you're you your your inner voice is often comes from somewhere you know so the voices that surround you are really important you know and so when you sit under teaching and things that professes to be the gospel and this is this is Christ and this is what it means to live a Christian life you know and also when you mess up here's your punishment you know when punishment is kind of held up because of justice that's your response so for me the biggest shift mentally is I had to release punishment or expecting there to my gosh. And then it's different from like you know consequences are consequences and that that happens but always looking for that the justice I guess or the rightness in it. Because when it comes down to it you know well we know his justice is mercy right so and I can't extend that mercy to anyone else if I haven't received it myself. So recognizing that I receive that at the cross no the final word is that mercy, then I can also extend that. And so I love better from that place but starting to love from that place instead of well you need to perform for me so that I can love you or I have to perform a certain way so that you'll love me. Yeah. It's big what you're saying. So it that and it's a huge mental shift because when you're programmed one way and you're programmed to look for justice and it's and it's well meaning it's you know this is behavior modifications all that all the right things are done you know it's that that binding into the perfect Christian robot or whatever you know I I understand that but it also is very damaging internally because then you're constantly beating yourself up or you know oh am I ever going to be good enough? Am I enough? Period not forget the good part of it am I even enough for this? And so it just really had to become a major mental shift for me you know just reading what is it first John 4 16 through 21 just over and over again about how's love casts out fear and that you know loving my brother you know and and all of those things um just kind of making that become a part of who of my vocabulary. And then as I started to say it I actually started to believe it. And as I saw you know actual examples of people walking out mercy and extending it and not living offended or living hurt then you quit you just quit looking for punishment. I'm not looking for someone to to lay blame on I guess I'm trying I'm trying to figure out how to how I want to say that but you know you just start looking for love and you start thinking how can I love better in this how can I love myself better in this he paid the price I don't have to pay it so good. It's huge and and I love that because what you're describing I mean literally what you're describing is metanoia. Yeah it's changing the way that you think it's it's it's Paul talking about not being conformed to the image of this world but being transformed by the renewing of your mind. Like your mind has changed you've repented like a lot of people think of repentance of as like saying I'm sorry but it's it's literally changing the whole pattern of how you think which then affects what you do. Yeah. Right and so you you you've you've gone and you learned one thing you said and then you went and you that because you experienced it and then you begin to make it your confession you begin to change up here in your mind and and and it became and here in your heart and then out here then becomes the outflow and I mean that's literal metanoia. Right well and it takes that repetitive that that repeating of it. You know that repetitive confession I guess I'll say it you know like learning it and then recognizing it that's not what I believe. You know like you have to and I have to say it out loud what I believe is this you know in uh second peter chapter one it says as Caleb was talking about as we just got done discussing um says because of his glory and excellency he has given us great and precious promises and these are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world's corruption caused by human desires in view of all this make every effort to respond to God's promises and um one version says add faith add virtue add knowledge add temperance add patience add um godliness and it's not you adding anything it's letting it be added to you and brotherly kindness and to brotherly kindness charity for if these things be in you and abound they make you that you shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ and it goes on to say a little bit later on if you have this you will never fail you'll you will never fall down you will never do sin so many times we've heard you will fall into sin while scripture says if you have these things added to you if you let God do these things in you you will have none like no verb not even a verb and and honestly man and it's interesting too because it's like what you're what you're even saying right now is blasphemous to so many people religious I mean there there are religious leaders that will I mean literally say okay Jesus saved you but you're gonna sin oh they'll fight for sin and they'll fight for they'll fight for darkness they'll fight for deep sin fallen and it's like no we get to rise to who he has made us to be and one of my favorite examples of it actually is Jesus when when you have the the the woman caught in adultery and they're ready to stone her and and he goes and he writes in the sand and and then they all leave and he turns to her and he says you know look who's left to condemn you and no one's obviously there and he says neither do I and then he says go and sin no more I love that was she filled with the Holy Spirit no yet had Jesus gone and died on the cross yet? No. Had there been a new covenant established no yet so then how can Jesus go and empower somebody to not sin unless it's possible unless it's there and and that was that's the message that he preaches this is the kingdom of God and it's a hand. This is righteousness peace and joy here it is it's the rule and reign of Christ in our hearts right here and right now it's not about avoid sin. Get out of that stuff stay away from that yes do all of those things but the way that you do all those things is by filling yourself up with life. Yeah yeah he's the light of life in him there is no darkness keep your eyes single it's full of light yeah yeah like you you want if you got a rat problem get cats you know like it's it's like it's not time to just get rid of the rats you know like fill yourself up with something I I love the the illustration I'm sure y'all many people have probably seen it is when you have they've got a like a cup full of dirty water and they're talking about trauma and how you how you heal trauma and all that kind of stuff and and and it's they take the cup and instead of like pouring it out all they do is pour clean water in it over and over and over and over and over again until finally what happens is the clean water displaces the dirty water and pretty soon you have a a a clear clean cup. It's it's about what are you being filled with right? What are you being filled with? And Paul writes all of these things to the church and to believers to remind them and to try to get them to to to focus on the right things. Right but I think what happens is sometimes we make it such an emphasis that you are magnifying sin. And you're and like we said earlier you're you're fighting to stay fallen and you're making excuses for it already when instead I I just I spoke at a young adults meeting not too long ago and I challenged him I'm like go and don't sin but the only way that you're gonna do that is by living from Christ. Yeah and and you don't don't don't even worry about sin stop it don't stop thinking about it. Don't even think about it anymore. Watch what happens instead of being so conscious of of all stop thinking about that. Stop thinking and when you wake up in the morning oh I'm gonna mess up yeah you know it's it's in in sports it's you know the when you when you come down to the end of the game you've got one team that will play not to lose and you have one team that will play to win and the one that plays to win is always the one that overcomes because when you play scared you don't play to your fullest and it's the same I I mean that'll preach for days when you live scared that you're gonna make a mistake you're not living to the fullest and you're not perfected in love. Right. But if you would allow love to perfect you it drives out all the fear so I'm no longer afraid because here's the thing here's the ultimate thing of all of it what happens when I do make a mistake what happens if I do sin I've got an advocate Jesus Christ who is speaking on my behalf and who is ever making intercession for me. And so I have in my corner the King of kings and the Lord of Lords. Last I checked he's undefeated. Come on yeah he's undefeated sin didn't beat him no so he's in my corner not only that I'm in him so yay God yeah you said some you said you said so much there. I'm sorry oh my gosh no you said so much I want to yeah there's why do we you know we're I I believe we're coming out of this I mean because there's more people preaching righteousness and grace so I'm definitely gonna you know advocate for that and believe that's happening because I think it is you know because God got us you know what I mean so um and uh people put so much confidence in their ability to to fail than the confidence in the Holy Spirit to keep them and it's like why do we put more confidence in sin than Christ right and when we say sharp things like that you you don't even know what you're doing but when it's said like this you go oh my goodness that's right why why why why why am I doing that of course knowingly I wouldn't be doing that but unknowingly it feels like you put more confidence in your ability to miss it than the Holy Spirit to keep you but you said something you know about the lady not sinning uh caught in adultery and Jesus hasn't died yet how does something like that happen says everything is upheld by the word it's the same way Peter was able to stand on the water. Right. Why he didn't fall why the word was sent and he stood on the word the same way with the woman at the well um or caught in adultery yeah the woman caught in adultery and so um when Jesus says something and his word is the ability to do it. That's right to complete it. You know what I mean? It's it's not us trying to keep ourselves from sin. Right. It's the power of the Holy Spirit to keep us in him. Remember it says I haven't lost one of them. Nobody can snatch them from my hand wow that's powerful statement as little praying out this morning just oh man it's because it is it's powerful. Yeah it says uh and nobody can snatch them from my hand I haven't lost one of them wow so even if you think you missed it mentally and you've wandered mentally you know what I mean I've I just messed up so bad. I mean I have to find my way back to God. Well where did you lose them? Right right how did you lose God? Is he hiding where does he hide in Israel? Where did it go? You live in this world you know you're using a body that that you didn't make right and you think you're far from it's called the breath it's clean as close as that you know it's like we have these jargon in the in our language we have this language that sounds holy but really it's hideous. Yeah you know what I mean it's this language that is um dirty and distant instead of clean and close language you know and we say it so casually like I just got into the flesh today brother oh you go try to put a piece of foreskin back on that it ain't gonna work that's good I'm just saying that there's there's nothing there's nothing happening there there's no blood supply you know it says our our heart primarily Jesus was a callus you know the callus is that it means there's no blood flow yes and you can't attach anything to no blood flow so when the the callus gets taken out you know Jesus says to give us you give us a new heart right right that's Ezekiel in Hebrews the religious or the religious say you can't trust your heart it's deceitfully wicked. Well maybe my old one was but not my new one Jesus paid a high price to get me this tonight. I'm not gonna deny my new self Jesus that's the problem with the world you keep denying your new self the world's waiting to see the new you Jesus paid a high price for that and what does John say about that even when your heart deceived you guess what even when your heart would deceive even when you would actually believe that and it would it would confuse you and you would believe the lie you would be deceived by it he's greater. Even and we we gotta talk about this flesh nature as in not an for the born again believer let's let's discuss that getting into the flesh is not a is not something you can inhabit anymore it is a mindset. Yeah yeah you know you can't just jump in your this isn't silence of the lambs there's no fava beans in a nice piano don't watch that that's not a plug for this actually appraising out Deliver. Hallelujah. Um, but yeah, no, I mean you can't get in the flesh suit. It's something we say so casually. I just got in the flesh today, brother. Where do you have it? Is it hanging in your closet? But then you got issues. We're gonna have to talk if you got a student there. Right. That's a whole different problem. Yeah. You know, so these are mindsets, and give yourself grace to grow into God. Let yourself be renewed. How do you get renewed? Uh, you get transformed by the renewing of your mind. But renewing it in what image? Not your old, not the new and improved self-help version 2.0 you, the 2026 edition. Right, right. We're not doing that. Not the Mattel Barbie, not the Ken Barbie 2026. No, you renew your mind in the image of what? What's the standard? It's Christ. And if you didn't learn it from Jesus, you didn't learn it right. Right. Yeah. That's it. Oh my gosh. If you didn't learn it from Jesus, you did not learn it right. Yeah. It says Christ is your life. That means you had a fake one prior to him. Yeah. It's our substance. Yes. Okay. Yes. Yeah, and and and you know, it's if first John says, and if you sin, not when you sin. Oh, those that live by the Spirit will not fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the born-again believer, it's an old, unrenewed mind. But the more you renew your mind in the gospel, the those neural pathways will upgrade to the new data you are feeding it. That's it. There's a verse in James that says, the engrafted word saves your soul. That's literal. Literally, it gives you new neural pathways. The engrafted word of God saves your soul, means it redeems your mind, will, and emotions. I mean, because your will comes out of the faculty of your understanding, your mind, right? So you go, when that thing is upgraded, how do I do that? But by the word of God, something's happening right now. It is going cellular. Yeah. It's supernatural. You know what I mean? And so our mind is getting rewired literally. You talked about neuroscience, and I love neuroscience because it shows the reality of what the word is doing to us. It's not pie in the sky. Like as we're talking, I am literally creating a landscape in your brain with my words. How important is a word? If it's a word that saves us, word is very important. It says, I sent my word to heal him called Christ. How important do you think a word is? Everything you've ever done in life comes from a word you heard. And you have to hear the word. It says, faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. What word? The word is Christ. It matters if you hear Christ in a word to renew your mind. Yeah. You sent me on a rabbit trail. A God ramble. Straight up knocking me out over here. I mean, yeah, yeah, yeah. And then I well, I'll I'll say this. You go, Well, I'm trying to change. How do I change? Guess what it says? Oh my gosh. Contemplate the Lord's glory. You mean I'm just supposed to contemplate the glory of God and then I get transformed? Yeah. Oh, it's like a kiss from the Lord. I love that. I love that. Every time that you do I've ever seen you do that, and it's twice now. I love that because it is literally the intimacy of God. Like He's kissing the sun. And it's this thing that happens on the inside that is transformed. It's not changed. It's transformed. And you if you can't change it back, it is transformed. I I love what Bill uh Vanderbilt wrote one time that I read. He said, What if today you had amnesia and you were a brand new person? He said, No, this is the reality of Christ. When you have been born again, you're no longer like your past is gone. Like if you were to talk today about the person you are today, the old man is gone. When I've tried to bring up the old man, I've had old man thoughts. But when I've lived in the transformation, I no longer think as Paul wrote in the past. I live and my eyes are beholding him face to face. It's no longer dark, but it's a daily living word that comes from his mouth, and it comes out of my mouth. When I speak in tongues, or when I prophesy, or when I pray, or when I close my eyes, God is doing this through my words or my tongue. I'm hearing the voice of God speak, the voice of God from the beginning of time. Like he speaks through me, he sees through me, and I see through him. We're one like anything I do, God is right there with me doing it. Period. And it's it's it's that is the freedom that we're talking about, is that you are living from that awareness of his presence always in you, always with you. There is no distance, there is no separation. It's like these are your words of life. And and if I if I were to live in such a way that I offer no resistance to him, because I think that's that's that's part of and that's you know, talk about like wrestling with things. Talk about wrestling with like your flesh and stuff. I mean, guys, we are so God just made us so powerful that there is resurrection life within us. What would it look like if we stopped using resurrection life on the dead flesh? Because that's often what happens. You know, you try to you people will will go and they will try to resurrect the dead man using the power that they have within them, unknowingly, they unknowingly will try to resurrect the dead man when Paul says, reckon him dead. Like let it be dead. Put you know, put two to the brain and be like, I'm done with it, right? Yeah, like let it be dead. But instead of of of of using resurrection life for that, you know, what if we could live from with the awareness that this is actually what God has has uh given to me, and I get to live from this resurrected life, resurrection life from Christ now here with me, wherever I go, so that way the words that I'm speaking are life-giving. The the the what am I focusing on right now? Is it true? Is it lovely? Is it pure? Is it above? Is it of you? Am I focusing on you? Am I dwelling on you? Am I meditating upon you? Because the reality is this the the scriptures tell us that he has written his law and his word in our hearts. Yeah. He is all he already did it. And everybody's like, well, you gotta go get into no, he has written it into you. Yes, like he has engrafted this into your DNA. This is the new creation, the old passed away. He gave you something new. So, what would happen if we get to a space where we become aware of these things, the truth and the reality that we now are in him? Become aware of that and then offer no resistance to it. Now you're living from Christ completely. Now, now the interactions that you're having with people are from a place of purity, they are a place that is holy, righteousness is emanating from you, peace is like it just comes off of you, joy is overflowing, and it's just people are in your presence and like, I really like being around you. And you're like, Well, really? You just love Jesus. Yeah, you didn't know it, but you love Jesus. Yeah, because that's what you're encountering right now is Christ. It's offering no resistance to that and becoming aware of his presence within you, and it's dwelling in his word because that is what sustained us. He fills all things everywhere with himself. Yes, that's what Ephesians tells us. He fills all things everywhere, not he's going to. Yeah. He fills like statement, period. You want to know the word, the logos, the statement, he fills all things everywhere with himself. Period. You didn't do anything for it. He did it. And I think honestly, I'm gonna be just honest with you. I think one of the biggest problems of the issues that people face is they think they're the main character in the story. Well, yeah. So then they just make it about themselves, and what do I gotta do? What do I have to do? Yeah, how can I make this happen? How can I make this a reality? How can I and it's like this is his story, guys? Yeah, wrong, wrong question. This is a wrong question. Let's let's let's reframe it. It's him, yeah, it's always been him, it will always be him. He is the beginning and the end, he is the alpha and the omega, and he has summed me up into himself. Yes, and he has given the fullness of himself to me. Yeah, man. You know what I mean? Like it's like, oh geez, you start thinking in that context, and you're like, well, you're just so high and lofty. It's like, yes, you know why I'm high and lofty. My life is hidden in Christ Jesus in the high places where he is. Yeah, it's it's hidden in him. Yeah. So yes, it's I don't think anything more of myself than I should, but I will think exactly as I should of myself. That's good. Mm-hmm. It's powerful what you're saying. And I'm yours. Yeah. It's no longer I who lives. Yeah, but it's Christ that lives in me. This life that I now live in the flesh. Not then, not later when I go to heaven. But the life that I live now in the flesh, I live by faith. I live, what does that mean by faith? I live believing him. Yep. I live believing the word that he has spoken over me. I live from his faith. Yeah. The faith that he has given me. Yeah. From the Son of God who loves me, who gave himself for me. I had a dream one time. And I walked up these steps, and uh I seen a podium, and uh I really wanted to be behind that podium, and I seen a tree growing beside of it. It did not yet bear fruit or any leaves, but I felt the power of God, and I seen light brighter than anything, and I felt the power of God flowing through the earth. I felt the grass, I felt so many things. And I walk through this forest and I see prophets, I see teachers, I see apostles, and I'm seeing Christ in all of them. I see, I'm seeing the effectual working power of God, and I see ground that was barren start to grow green grass, and I go and I see another like forest, and I see this huge harvest in the middle of all these trees, all these just churches, and it's just like God is so very present, and He's filling me, He's filling, and we're all so connected. And I go up this hill and I see the tree of life, and I and the tree of life, I could see in the spirit that it was connected to every single tree, every blade of grass, and it was God, it was all God, it was he was the light. He he was in the tree, and I seen him, he came to me in a form, and I was able to see this form. And the love of God was the one who made everything fruitful in its time and its season, and it transforms us, it really does, and we are not disconnected, we are so connected to his raw presence, his raw presence lives in us and everything that we touch, the very couch that we're laying sitting on, laying on, whatever, wherever you're at, the very cameras that are taking a picture or video right now, the very microphones, God's hand is in all creation, he's here, he's present. He's present and he wants us. He does, and he wants us so much. The scriptures say that we that he has brought us near. And I and I think it like if that's it, uh maybe as we kind of wrap up a little bit here. Um I I know one of the biggest things in in many of the conversations that I've had with people is they it's like they have this desire in their heart to be close to God. Whether you're a believer or a non-believer, you have this desire in your heart to be close to God, but they feel alienated from him and they seem so far away, right? So can we just speak for a moment on on the truth of what the blood has done? And I say a moment, I mean I know we could go hours on this, but just just just as a as a as kind of a parting, like let us leave you with this because maybe you're hearing what we're describing today, and you're like, man, I want that kind of life, right? Here's the good news that the blood of Jesus has brought us near. So good that it speaks better things than what we could speak over ourselves, than what religion will ever speak over us, than than than what my deadbeat dad ever said about me, than what my third grade teacher said about me. The blood of Jesus speaks better things for us and over us. It's really good. Yeah, no, I want to say something as we wrap up. Okay, I just want to give a little nugget here about feelings, because you know, feelings have a way of dick dictating sentences, and and feelings have a way of uh having a library of a vocabulary attached to it. But can I just tell you something that's I don't know how it's gonna affect you, but uh feelings literally are just chemical reactions that you assign meaning to. Say that again. Chemicals are feelings are literally just chemical reactions that you assign meaning to with certain sentences or phrases. So when a feeling comes up, which is literally a chemical reaction, you have a word phrase attached to it. You are the one that assigns meaning to these feelings, these chemical reactions with your words. It's really important, wrapping it up with the blood, you hear what the blood says. The blood is speaking. What is it speaking? It says Abel's blood cried out for vengeance, but Jesus, his blood says, spoke a better word. And in Hebrews, it says the blood is strategically applied on your conscience. Why would God put blood that speaks in the place that you comprehend it? He's a genius. Yes, he is. The blood says something. Yes, and it's right there in the faculty of your understanding. Yes, because it is saying something to you. It's saying life, restoration, acceptance, wholeness in him. He directly puts it on your conscience. And in that verse in Hebrews, it says, if the blood of bulls and goats could have cleansed the worshippers' minds, it would have, but it couldn't. But there is a blood available that can. It's the blood of Jesus. We're talking about a guilt-free conscience. The blood of Jesus, when you hear the power of what it's done, is applied on your conscience for a specific reason, so you can hear from victory. So there's a word coming from the blood that frees you from sin, death, hell, the grave, bitterness, rage, anger, perversion, lust. All of that severs you and you begin to hear it because the blood speaks. A better word in the place and the faculty of your understanding, which is your conscience. There's so much power in the blood, so much life. And this segment has been packed. I mean, I got a lot out of it. Me too. Amen. Uh, Miriam. Yes. Give us your wisdom and nuggets of goodness about being sealed in the Holy Spirit. Seal this, seal this thing up. Oh my goodness. The only thing that I have to say is to offer no resistance to it. Just receive it. It's already been done. I mean, what do we have to do? I don't have any interest in making it complicated. And I have no desire in adding anything to it. I just want to believe it and walk it out. I gotta say something, Miriam. Okay. You see this sealed in the Holy Spirit. This is a seal, right? Yes, Mary. Nothing can get in, but guess what? This can't get out. It's the same way. Yeah. Yeah. It's so simple. Yeah. It's not hard. It's just Jesus. It's him. It's him. It's just Jesus. Did you seal yourself up or did he do it? He did it. Yeah. He did it. And I'm kept in. We're kept in him. I mean, like I just think I'm just I'm just held there. So just allow yourself to be held. Yeah. And I and I think that's why you see what a mark of a believer is gratitude. Wow. Because you realize there's nothing that I could have done for any of this. Like, thank you, Jesus. It is all what he has done. There's no pride here. I didn't do any of it. I couldn't do any of it. Even if I tried and wanted to on my best day. It's it is literally him. You have done everything. You've sealed me. You've kept me. You continue to keep me. You hold me together by the power of your word. You fill me completely with yourself. You give me faith. The faith that I have is yours. Right. It's not even mine. It's yours. The breath that I breathe, it's yours. Let's go. Like you start thinking in this context and you realize, oh wow. Yeah, no. Thank you, God. I'm just showing show up for it. I'm here for you. No resistance to it. I offer no resistance to it. Let's go. So good. Ralph, would you pray over us? Father, Lord, I thank you. Lord, I thank you, God, that we were con we are connected, God. And Lord, I thank you, God, for the hearers that have heard this today, God. Father, let them know your warm embrace. Let them know your heart, God, and your mind. And let them never depart from this mind, God, that is in Christ. God, Lord, let them have this transformation. From glory to glory, God. In the name of Jesus. Amen. Amen. Well, thank you for listening to the Everyday Kingdom podcast. And thank you, Amber, for being here with us. What an awesome conversation. Thought-provoking, profound. So good. I mean, so blessed just listening to you guys. It's it's so good, man. When you gather together with the saints, some good things happen. Amen. Well, thank you guys for watching and listening, and uh, we will see you next time. God bless you guys.