Hey guys, Today's a special day.
Because I'm gonna do a short Bible study with you. This is going to be informal - just
me and you spending time together. It's not going to be a lot of editing,
it's just friends - brothers or brothers and sisters in Christ.
And to make it more special,
I'm gonna go to the first day of the 90-day devotional of my new book called Bold Pursuit.
And we're gonna read that together. And it's about putting God first,
no matter the cost. To truly follow Jesus Christ.
And there's nothing more important than that. Now, the book is already out on pre-order by
the time you watch this video. Maybe it's already out.
And if you can't get the real book in your country, then you can also get the e-book
version or you can also get the Audible version if you like to drive and you don't have a lot
of time to read, then that's perfect for you. I've done the voice over personally and I'm
sure you'll enjoy it - all the details are in the video description down below.
And also on our website. But before we just jump into this, let's pray.
Father, I want to ask that you would just be here with us in this Bible study and
I know your Word says that where two or more are gathered in my name, there I am.
So I know you are here and I want to thank you.
I want to thank you that we can spend time with you and with each other.
And that we know that we can fully trust your Word to be the truth.
And while we're going through your Word today. please talk to us.
We are here, we are open, we are listening. Bless this meeting Father.
In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.
Alright, let's get into it. So I've got the e-book
here - it's - just so you know if I'm looking here - it's just not open space.
I'm reading from the e-book here so let's get right into it.
Day One: No matter the cost, fight the good fight of faith.
1 Timothy 6 verse 12. It's just six words but it is so important.
Fight the good fight of faith. We are in a battle, whether you like it or not.
There are a lot of people who call themselves Christians who are sitting
on the sidelines and doing nothing. Who don't know that they are in a fight.
And the devil laughs. He likes it - he loves it.
Because they're not in the fight, so he does not need to worry about them.
But we are in a fight and you need to fight every day/
You need to put on the armor of God. That's why He's given it to us,
so that we can use it to fight.
Life is short. And each of us
must decide how we will spend our time. The Apostle Paul said : So then, be careful how
you walk not as unwise people but as wise making the most of your time because the days are evil.
The day and age we live in now - you know, we're living in evil times.
Therefore do not be foolish but understand what the will of the Lord is.
Ephesians 5:15-17. This is so important,
the day and age we live in today - truth itself is being attacked from all fronts.
It feels like all fronts, but it's actually just the devil,
his demons, and people's sinful nature. They want to change what truth is.
They can't even define what a man is and what a woman is.
And it won't stop. But that doesn't mean that you should
stop and just sit on the sidelines. You should stand for truth.
The devil is relentless in his efforts to undermine God's work and advance evil.
God's will is for us to take a stand - to push back against the darkness.
Paul said be on the alert - stand firm in the faith - act like men - be strong.
Not be weak, be strong.
1 Corinthians 16 verse 13
Are you on the alert? Do you stand firm?
Some think they do, but they're actually standing firm according to their self-life.
They want to live the way they want to, they even want to do religion the way they want to,
They do not want to deny themselves, pick up their cross, and follow Jesus.
To stand firm in the faith means we need to understand God's Word.
Because how can we live and stand firm in the faith if we do not understand what faith truly is?
If we don't understand God and his Word,
if we don't change our lifestyle according to God's Word, because
there are a lot of people who want to change God's Word according to their lifestyles.
No. Because Proverbs 3 verse 5-6 says:
I'll talk about this a little bit later on but let's continue for now.
I want to read this again. Paul said be on the alert - stand firm
in the faith - act like men - be strong. 1 Corinthians 16 verse 13.
That bravery and strength can take many different forms.
It is crucial that we fight through the Spirit, not the flesh.
This is so, so important.
There are many Christians out there who even try to do things for Christ.
Or for Christianity, for God, in the flesh. And they do more harm than good.
Fighting through the flesh gives power to the enemy.
Even when we fight in the name of God.
If we fight through the flesh we will do more harm than good.
Only the Spirit can help us fight the right battles effectively.
You know, for you preachers out there,
if you stand on that pulpit and you preach everything according to to
sound doctrine, you preach the Word. But if you do it through the flesh,
you can bring death over a congregation. Spiritual death.
Because there's no spiritual power in your preaching.
The devil did the same thing when he tested Jesus in the desert.
What did he do? He quoted scripture.
So understanding how to live - how to act - how to preach in the Spirit - is so important.
Because if we don't do that, then we're just trying to do things on our own.
And God is not with us.
His power is not working in and through us. It says here only the Spirit can help
us fight the right battles effectively. And remember, it is called spiritual battle
for a reason. Spiritual battle.
That is why we need to be led by the Spirit, because it is spiritual warfare.
Most of the Apostles in early Christian leaders were put to death because of their faith.
Paul was beheaded. Peter was crucified.
John escaped being killed but was held as a prisoner on the island of Patmos.
We may never face martyrdom, torture, or imprisonment for our faith as the
early Christians did, but our commitment to Christ should be no less radical than theirs.
Oh... this is so important. Sometimes we think, man,
the Apostles - they were special. Yes they were special because they
denied themselves and they truly followed Jesus Christ, but you need to remember
that they are still humans, just like us. And we now take over from where they left
because, remember, what did Jesus say? Go and make disciples of all people.
So it doesn't stop. It doesn't mean that you
just share the Gospel and then when someone gets saved then they're saved and then they do nothing.
They sit on their couch. No.
They should share the Gospel. They need to make disciples of other people.
They can't go back to their old sinful lifestyle. They have been changed by God.
He spurred in us - now leads us crying out - Abba Father - and everything we do now
we do for Christ. We live for him.
If you say that you're a Christian but you still live for the world,
then you might be a lukewarm Christian. And God says in Revelation 3 that he
will spit you out of His mouth if you're a lukewarm Christian.
That means that you're not really a Christian at all.
God calls us to radical discipleship. I'm gonna read this again.
Most of the Apostles and early Christian leaders were put to death because of their faith.
Paul was beheaded. Peter was crucified.
John escaped being killed but it was held as a prisoner on the island of Patmos.
They didn't live in prosperity. They didn't worship God just because they
wanted God to bless them financially. There's a lot of Christians who are doing that today.
Being a true Christian means that you deny
yourself - you pick up your cross - you follow Jesus.
It means that you don't worship Him just to get stuff.
You worship Him, you praise Him because you know you are a sinner.
That Jesus died in your place on the cross so that you may receive eternal life.
And then you obey His word because you love Him. You want to live holy because He is Holy.
You study the Word.
You just follow Jesus because that is what the Holy Spirit now cries out in your heart.
Oh man. Do you love Jesus?
Do you really love Jesus? Do you follow Him?
Do you put Him first in your life?
We need to ask ourselves these important questions.
The Bible says that we have to examine ourselves, to see whether we are in the faith.
Let's continue. We may never face
martyrdom, torture or imprisonment for our faith as the early Christians did.
But our commitment to Christ should be no less radical than theirs.
Jesus made it clear that there is no place in God's Kingdom for lukewarm Christians.
We cannot live for God and for the sinful world. Jesus said if anyone wants to come after Me,
I've been quoting this verse the whole time, and I forgot that it was in here.
Wow, God, You are amazing. Jesus said if anyone wants to
come after Me he must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me.
For whoever wants to save his life will lose it. But whoever loses his life for my sake
will find it. Matthew 16:24-25.
If we truly follow Jesus Christ we need to destroy our own selfish sinful desires.
We need to give our whole heart, our whole soul, and our whole mind to Jesus.
We need to be like David, who says - here I am Lord.
Search my heart and take out everything that is not right.
That is why God called David and said he is a man after His own heart.
Why? Because right after He says it,
He says because he does His will. He obeys God.
That's what we need to do. To obey everything He says in His word.
Because why? Because we love Him.
Let's continue.
That's easier said than done in this immoral, materialistic world we live in.
Because our sinful nature wants to live in sin.
Remember, you still have a sinful nature in you even though you're a reborn Christian.
Who received new spiritual life. Who now has the Holy Spirit in you.
You also have that sinful flesh in you, still. And now it's a daily battle between good and evil.
And you need to overcome the flesh with the Spirit.
That's why Jesus encouraged his followers to think in terms of investment.
For what good will it do a person if he gains the whole world, but forfeits his soul
or what will a person give in exchange for his soul?
Matthew 16 verse 26.
You know, we can get so caught up in the things of this world.
In my life, it took me out of that kind of thinking when people kept dying all around me.
My grandparents, some of my friends, two of my brothers, my dad.
And we should never forget that we will also one day die.
And that will help us to have the right perspective.
To think about the things that are above the eternal things, instead of just the temporary.
Success. Popularity. Comfort. And safety in this world may seem like valuable things to strive for,
but they are all fleeting and ultimately worthless when our lives are over.
Their value pales in comparison to the value of where our souls will be for all
eternity. With Christ, right?
This takes us back to where we started. This world is temporary.
A drop in the ocean compared to the eternal life God has in store for us.
If we invest ourselves in standing up for God's truth no matter the cost,
we will enjoy the rewards forever. Now we've come to the end of this
daily devotional but at the end of every devotional of the 90 that's in the book,
I ask people to dig deep and I ask them questions. This is the moment where people need to look in
the mirror to examine themselves and so I want to ask you to do it as well.
This is a call to action. As a reborn believer you must engage
in a fight against the devil and his forces. There's too much at stake to sit on the sidelines.
Ask yourself the following questions and answer them truthfully.
If you want, you can do that in the comments
section of this video so we can have a bit of fellowship.
And I'm gonna ask you three questions here and I want you to be honest.
One: What would a battle against evil influences look like
in your life? Are you fully committed to God? Think about that a little bit and then answer it.
Two: What is the difference between fighting in the flesh and fighting in the spirit?
I'm not gonna answer it for you. You need to answer it yourself.
Three: How does God equip you for battle?
Hmm... I'm very curious to what some of you will say.
I'm gonna have a look at the comment section just to see.
Now, if you want to get the book, remember it is available on our website.
All the details are also in the video description of this video,
but just to give you an idea to better understand what you will buy,
let me just read a little bit here on the back of the the cover.
You could pursue a lot of things in life. Money. Relationships. Power. But only one pursuit brings
satisfaction on earth, because only one pursuit matters for eternity. Becoming a true man of God.
The action-orientated teachings in Bold Pursuit will challenge and equip you to pursue God
above all else in your daily life. As you dig deep into God's Word,
you'll experience the fulfillment of making your relationship with Jesus your greatest priority.
I mean, what can be more important than that? Nothing.
Through each day's straightforward devotional reading packed with powerful biblical insights,
you'll explore how to worship God in Spirit and in truth.
What it means to engage in spiritual battle - what sin is, and isn't.
And why it matters. Where to find hope when you're feeling hopeless.
Practical ways to overcome destructive habits and addictions.
And how to make Bible study and prayer an integrated part of your life.
There's so much more here. It's a 90-day devotional.
You can buy a lot of books on different topics but in this book, it covers a lot of those topics.
So if you want to boost your spiritual growth and if you want to commit and
say - I want to put God first in my life - then get this book and also buy it
for the people in your life. This is a very good present.
Each daily reading in Bold Pursuit combines a Bible passage with a short devotional that speaks
to the real issues men face at work and home. Prayer prompts.
Reflection questions. And action items bring focus to each day
in an age of distraction and busyness. Every man's true calling remains the same - to
walk with the God who created you for great things and find the meaning and purpose your soul craves.
What can be more important than that? Life is short and so you shouldn't waste yours.
You should pursue the right things and there is no pursuit more important than the pursuit
of God Himself, To find Him.
To know Him. To live for Him.
You can take the whole world but just give me Jesus.
I don't want the things of this world that's just passing away.
There's a lot of evil and darkness in this world, but man, just give me Jesus.
I just want to know Him deeper and fuller.
Because it is so fulfilling, it is so rich. Oh, I can talk about Jesus the whole day.
But guys, we have come to the end of this Bible study, and I want to thank you for spending this
time with me as a brother. I love you guys a lot.
Thank you for the support on my channel. For the support for those of
you who are buying my book. Those who buy the merch who are helping
my team to have bread on the table. Thank you so much.
Please continue to support us and help us to share the Gospel, share the videos on all your social
media platforms and help us to save souls. And always remember, that God loves you.
And I love you too. Bye guys.