Principals of Obedient Inversion

TNG Radio, where today's culture and timeless truths come together. It's reasoned relevant content apologetics, worldview, and answers to the questions that you need to know. From Alex McFarland Ministries, this is Truth for a New Generation Radio.

And now the man who preached in 50 states in 50 days, speaker, writer, and advocate for Christian apologetics, Dr. Alex McFarland. In the famous Shakespearean play Julius Caesar, Brutus and Cassius are talking about a war. And these two leaders, Brutus and Cassius, are opposite their two enemies, Octavian and Marcus Antonius. Now, they've been thinking about going to Sardis to fight, and Brutus advocates that they go to Philippi and try to cut off Octavian before he recruits more men. And Brutus makes a point that really could be said of the American church and those of us now that are constitutionalists.

In other words, if you love God and country, this might be a sentiment that you can relate to. But Brutus says, quote, the enemy increaseth every day, and we at the height are ready to decline, end of quote. And so Brutus is trying to convince Cassius that they've got to act right away and do the thing that will hopefully give them advantage.

And if they miss it, there's really no hope for the future. And here's the quote, very famous quote, I'm certain that you've probably heard it before. But Brutus says, quote, there is a tide in the affairs of men, which taken at the flood leads on to fortune, omitted, and all the voyage of their life is bound in shallows and miseries. On such a full sea we are now afloat, and we must take the current when it serves or lose our ventures, end of quote. Hi, welcome to the program.

Alex McFarland here on Truth for a New Generation radio. And you know, that quote really reminds me of where we are as a country, because I firmly believe that we are at a point that we must, we must have a revival, a spiritual awakening, where we're absolutely in danger of losing all of our freedoms, the future of the country in grave jeopardy, and the Constitution hangs in the balance. And yet at a time when our nation has never needed the church more urgently, so many pastors reprimand me, and they'll say, Alex, I'm not called to make Americans, I'm called to make Christians and make disciples.

Well, yeah, I get that, of course. Our calling is to win the lost and make disciples of all nations. That's Matthew 28, 18 through 20. The fact is, while Christianity can operate anywhere, even underneath a communist regime, and Christianity can exist in the most oppressive of conditions, the fact is, it is in a free, safe, stable, prosperous America that we are most likely able to engage in ministry. You can be a Christian locked up in a communist jail cell, but you're not going to do a lot of evangelizing or winning other people to Christ. And so while we know America may not always exist, we know the church always will. However, America for the last 240 years has been the world's greatest engine of benevolence, of not only improving the human condition, but the greatest engine for world missions. Why have we been the powerhouse for world missions, specifically so in the last century?

The torch of missions had really brightly been lit in Britain during the time of the Westleys, but easily for the last 125 to 140 years America has surpassed Great Britain in being a force for world missions, and that was because we were a country of liberty and prosperity and stability. And so for all of the Christians who say, well they are not patriotic and don't plan to become so, even pastors that in the last election were telling their parishioners not to vote, my goodness I understand our primary loyalty is to heaven, but we ought to care about America because we live here, and we ought to be engaged in the political process. For those that like to piously say that they don't sully themselves with politics, tell that to William Wilberforce, who ended child slavery in Britain. Tell that to people like Sojourner Truth and Corrie Ten Boom, and people throughout history that have made a difference in the world through the tool of politics, but they've done so. They've taken a stand and they've taken the stands they have because of their biblically informed worldview. So what I want to do in this program for a few brief moments that were together, I want to talk about some principles of what I call obedient inversion.

I want to talk about some things that might prima facie seem counterintuitive, but they are really important for making a difference right now in the world for Jesus Christ. And so I think these things are worth talking about because our nation really does hang in the balance. I don't know if you saw this week that the National Archives have been putting warning labels on our founding documents, including the Constitution, Declaration of Independence, Bill of Rights, saying quote harmful language alert. And one of the archivists of the National Archives says that this harmful language alert is because some of the materials presented in their catalog, in other words, their catalog of our American documents, show quote violent or graphic language, offensive language, violent language. And so they put the warning labels on our founding documents.

Now the archivist said this, we don't censor or alter original documents, but we do put a warning label so quote researchers are not surprised when they encounter such offensive content end of quote. For goodness sakes, for God and country, we have got to pray. Look, when the Constitution becomes unconstitutional, and when our Declaration of Independence is detrimental to the state or whatever they want to say, it's no wonder that everywhere I go, young adults, teens and 20-somethings and younger, at best, at best, they're neutral about America.

And at worst, they're activist level wanting to change or eradicate America. It's because academically, spiritually, politically, we've turned away from God and we're paying the consequences. Now stay tuned because I want to give you some principles for helping to make a difference in this prodigal nation, Truth for a New Generation with Alex McFarland. We'll be right back after this. Have you ever wanted to raise your hand during a sermon?

Well, here's your chance. Hi, Alex McFarland here from the nationally syndicated radio program, Exploring the Word. For more than 10 years, my co-host Bird Harper and I have taught scripture and answered hundreds of Bible questions. We've compiled a brand new book of the top 100 Bible questions from listeners of all ages, from questions about supposed Bible contradictions to apologetics facts that prove the truths of scripture. This new book features practical content that will make the Bible come alive for you.

Can we really be sure that God exists? Are there contradictions in the Bible? I need a book that will help me understand the Bible better. There's so much good content in this book.

One hundred Bible questions and answers published by Broad Street Publishers and available at your local bookstores and also through resources.afa.net. Are you tired of liberal agendas ruining our country, but you don't know what to do about it? That's why Truth and Liberty Coalition was founded. We want to equip you to take back our country and impact the world. Here's how we do it. We educate through broadcasts, conferences, and our website with resources that inform, equip, and motivate. We unify by collaborating with like-minded organizations like the Family Research Council, the Family Policy Alliance, and My Faith Votes. We mobilize by providing practical tools you can use to impact your local community.

As Christians, we are called to make disciples of nations. Together, we can change the course of our country for good. Join Truth and Liberty to connect with believers and organizations who not only want to see a change in our nation, but a community that is actually doing something about it. Join us online for our broadcast and subscribe for relevant updates on our website, truthandliberty.net. For apologetics resources, books by Alex McFarland, and to find out where Alex is speaking, visit alexmcfarland.com. Welcome back to the program. We're talking about the principles of obedient inversion, doing things that might sound counterintuitive, but they are vital at this point for having a spiritual awakening and revival in our nation.

Oh, how desperately we need it. That's why you, number one, need to know the Lord, and I hope you do know the Lord. I hope you are a Christian, but if you're a believer to influence others and know how to defend your faith, that's why we do our conferences, the TNG conferences all around America.

They're for all ages to equip people. The next one's coming up, October 15, 16, 17, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, Frank Turek, Sandy Rios, E. W. Jackson, myself. It's going to be tremendous. I want you to be there.

You can go to the website alexmcfarland.com and learn about the TNG conference. But let me give you some principles for making a difference. First of all, you have to care.

You've got to care about the country. A lot of believers say, my home is in heaven. One minister reprimanded me back in the summertime just a few months ago and said, well, Alex, on the elevator ride up to heaven, they're not going to be playing the Star Spangled Banner.

You know, a quote like that is so pedantic and childish, you barely know where to begin to respond. But I said to the man, very respectfully, but I said, well, first of all, we don't ride an elevator up to heaven. And the other thing is, I know that we're not going to be playing the Star Spangled Banner. Hey, if the elevator is owned by the NFL, you'll be hearing an Alicia Keys song, as the left, as I'm sure you've heard, has further divided the nation by having the so-called, quote, black national anthem. And I'm very proud that many of the people pushing back on that have been black Americans who said no, we have our national anthem.

And so the left, because whether they realize it or not, they seem just bent on weakening, undermining, and I fear ultimately destroying this once great nation. Two national anthems. I know when we go to heaven, we'll be in the presence of the King, and all we'll be saying with the holy angels, holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, we'll be honoring Jesus. But it is biblical, there is great historical precedent. Some of the great thinkers of all time, like C.S. Lewis and Augustine, have talked about how we need to have a moral, free world where we can share the gospel. It's only sane to care about America. It's only rational to want to defend and preserve our nation. I just don't get the Christians that somehow think they're being pious and godly when they say they're not concerned about the health and the future of this nation. It might sound spiritual and it might make you feel good about yourself to be nonplussed and say, well, I don't care about America. I'm a Christian. I love Jesus, not America.

That's a false dichotomy. You can love Jesus and love America. In fact, you can serve Jesus by serving America from your biblical world view. Let me give you some principles to think about with the time we have left.

These are counterintuitive, but they're biblical and they're godly. Principle number one is this, that the path to greatness is servanthood. Mark 10.44, Jesus said, He who would be greatest among you will be the servant of all. So if you want to be great in God's eyes, have the heart of a servant. Albert Schweitzer, the famous medical doctor and philanthropist, he said, quote, I don't know what your destiny will be, but one thing I know, the only ones among you who will be happy are those who have sought and found how to serve.

Isn't that something? There's a direct correlation between self-contentment and having the heart of a servant, and Jesus said the path to greatness is servanthood. Secondly, the pathway to freedom is enslavement to Christ. Romans 6, 17 through 20, I believe in slavery as long as that means slavery to Jesus Christ.

Paul said he was the bond slave of Christ, and here's the irony. Many people push God out of their lives, and they are the ones that are the least free, and then others embrace Jesus with everything they've got, and we become enslaved to the Savior, and that's the pathway to freedom. That's the pathway to liberty and life and peace and joy.

Thirdly, know this, that the secret to personal fulfillment, quote unquote, is to abandon what you've told yourself about seeking fulfillment. Instead, all that you've dreamed for yourself and more will come about through making Christ the source of your peace and fulfillment. Now there are a lot of scriptures. Jesus says, peace I give to you, not as the world gives, give I unto you, but the peace of God the Father. And in Matthew 16, 25, Matthew 19, 29, we learn about that if we seek to save our life, we'll lose it. But if we lay down our life for Jesus, we'll be blessed.

Jesus said he would in the kingdom to come, give many times over all those that have abandoned houses and land, parents, family for the sake of the gospel, would receive many times over. That's why we are to put Christ first. And it's time that we divest ourselves from this open-ended sentence. We say, well my life would be perfect if... We tell ourselves, you know, my life, I would have it together if I had, what, a better house, a better job, a different car, a different relationship. And we've got, I know you've heard of the bucket list, well to do this or do that, and I think it's fine to set goals, but listen, your heart will be at peace when it is inhabited by the Prince of Peace. It's counter-intuitive, but this is obedience inversion. We're doing things opposite, the world might say, but we're doing things in step with what the Lord has revealed to us.

And then one more principle before we take a break. The priorities of life are to be the kingdom of God and His righteousness. That's Matthew 6-33. Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, right, and all these other things will be added to you. If we seek first all the other things, quote unquote, we're going to be out of God's will, we're going to miss God's best, and we're not going to be fulfilled. Happiness, joy, fulfillment is being right where God wants you.

And the priority must be the kingdom of God, not the agenda of man. Hey, hang on, we're going to take a break. We'll be right back on this edition of Truth for a New Generation with Alex McFarland. We'll be right back after this. For the first time since the COVID shutdowns, it's the 2021 Truth for a New Generation National Apologetics Conference, Worldviews, the Battles You Must Win, featuring Dr. Alex McFarland, Dr. Frank Turek, Sandy Rios, and E. W. Jackson, talking about raising children to come to Christ and stay with Christ in the midst of the woke movement, critical race theory, and Marxism in America.

October 15th through 17th in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina conference and concert by the Birdsong. We keep on fighting and we don't give up. I know we're going to make it all right. So how long would you hate me if I told you the truth? I don't want to see you hurt anymore.

TNG 2021, October 15th through 17th. Register at alexmcfarland.com. Where in the word are you?

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Learn more and donate at scriptureawakening.com. In the midst of a culture obsessed with relativism, Alex McFarland is a voice you can trust to speak the timeless truths of Christianity in a timely way. You're listening to Truth for a New Generation Radio. Welcome back to the program.

Alex McFarland here. We're talking about the principles of obedience inversion. In other words, doing things God's way, not the world's way. We've got a few more principles to share, but I want to remind you about the big upcoming Truth for a New Generation Conference, October 15 through 17, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. I'm going to be speaking on the most important topic no one is talking about.

Seriously, the topic that is the key for the preservation of your liberties and our Constitution, and it's a topic that virtually no one is talking about. There's great music by the award-winning band from Nashville, the Bird Songs. Please go to my website, register.

It's alexmcfarland.com. We hope to see you in Myrtle Beach, October 15 through 17, as we have to pray and do our utmost to defend truth and save our country. Well, a few more principles that are God's principles, not necessarily the world's principles, but here we go. Wisdom begins with acknowledgement of God and reverence to God. That's Proverbs 1, verse 7.

Now, the world talks a lot about information and being tech-savvy and things like that, but something everybody needs, and especially nowadays it's a rare commodity, is wisdom. And according to the Bible, the beginning of wisdom is to love the Lord and fear God. Proverbs 1, verse 7. Now, the flip side of that would be foolishness begins with the disregard of God. Psalm 14, verse 1, the fool hath said in his heart, there is no God.

You know, literally, in the original language, it reads as follows, the fool has said in his heart, no God, no. Now, foolishness, which leads to self-destruction, begins with the disregard of God. And so, as we said in the first couple of segments, that the dynamics of God's kingdom is that the path to greatness is servanthood. The pathway to freedom is being bound to Christ. And the secret to life that so many people quest after fruitlessly is to begin with God, His glory, His truth, His kingdom. Another principle is this, that the kingdom of man is really a sandcastle. The world's got to set the things of God and build our life on many things. But according to Matthew 7, 24, the only solid foundation is Christ, that unshakable rock.

And know this, that's why 1 John 2, 15 through 17, says do not love the world, neither the things that are in the world, for all that is in the world, the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh, the pride of life, it's all passing away. And so, the kingdom of man being the sandcastle that it is, being washed away by the waves of time, build your life on that only true foundation, the Lord Jesus Christ. You know, when Paul was traveling to Rome, he was on a ship called Euroclyden, that was the name of the ship Paul was on.

And it means tempest, or typhoon, or even storm. Now Paul got in a storm and they wound up on Malta, as you may recall if you've read the book of Acts. But you know what, you and I are on a ship called Euroclyden, this tempest, this storm of life, really. And the vessel that we're on is taking us across the oceans of time toward eternity.

Now you can change ships from just this fading world to this ship called the ark, the ark of salvation, that's the Lord Jesus Christ. And the Bible says that the wisdom of the world is all foolishness in the sight of God, 1 Corinthians 3.19. What is, quote, the wisdom of the world?

Well, pseudoscience, unjust politics, social media, God's social justice, being materialistic and buying your way toward happiness, which is an impossibility. In the eyes of God, it's all foolishness fading away. Have you built your life on true wisdom and the things that really do count and count for eternity?

I hope you have. Do you know a final thought that I would say is that they tell us that horse races, the horses like in the Kentucky Derby, run out of oxygen within the first half mile, and they run the rest of the way on heart, adrenaline. Isn't that something? The world's sources of strength peter out.

They really do. Jesus must be your source. The Bible says that we are to cast all our care on Him, for He cares for us. We are to know that He will supply all of our needs according to His riches and glory through Christ Jesus, Philippians 4.19.

And so these principles, building your life on Jesus, and it starts with making Him the true Lord of your life. You know, they estimate that a person will say nine million words in a year. The sad reality for so many people is we say nine million words in a year, and for most people, thirty to fifty percent of those words are I, me, and mine. We're very self-centered.

It's no wonder that we're an unhappy people much of the time. We need to take the I, me, mine, and make it Christ, the Lord, the Savior, and we are His followers. I've shared this quote so many times, but it really stirs my heart, A. W. Tozer. It was my privilege a couple of years ago to contribute to a book on Tozer, a book called Inspired by Tozer, T-O-Z-E-R, and A. W. Tozer said, �A real Christian is an oddity to this world. A real believer feels supreme love for one he has never seen, talks familiarly every day to someone he cannot see, expects to go to heaven on the virtue of another, empties himself in order to be full, admits he is wrong so that he can be declared right, goes down in order to get up. A real Christian is strongest when he is weakest, richest when he is poorest, and happiest in maybe some of the deepest valleys of life.

A real Christian dies so that he can live, forsakes in order to have, gives away so that he can keep, sees the invisible, hears the inaudible, and knows that which passeth knowledge. It's no wonder that to the world we're an oddity, but in Christ Jesus we're overcomers, victors, and champions. And so, thank you for listening. You stand strong in Jesus. Thank you for helping us with your prayers and support, helping us to take the message of Christ in the biblical world view to the entire nation and beyond. Keep us in prayer and you can keep up with all that we're doing at alexmcfarland.com. May God bless you and thank you for listening. Thank you. Thank you.