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Episode 6: Bringing Context Back with Landon MacDonald
269 Plays11 months ago
In this episode, @pastorlandon and I bring context to the 6 scriptures that are taken most out of context.
Scriptures talked about:
- Philippians 4:13
- Jeremiah 29:11
- Matthew 7:1
- Romans 8:28
- Matthew 18:20
- 1 Corinthians 10:13
Be sure to like and subscribe to this channel and follow Landon on all things social media.
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Transcript
Misinterpretation of Bible Verses
00:00:02
Speaker
I think the way that people proof text it, to answer your question specifically, is exactly the same way that people proof text Philippians 4.13. They apply it to a non-spiritual thing. They apply it to marriage. They apply it to what I desire to be married, so that means blank. And it's like, no, no, God's not promising your plan. He's promising his plan.
Introduction of Podcast and Guest
00:00:26
Speaker
Hey, well, welcome to the Office Theology Podcast. I'm with the one and only Landon McDonald again. Welcome back, sir. Thank you so much. I would just like to state that I'm more likely to say yes to a thing if you make amazing memes. So that is the reason.
00:00:48
Speaker
No pressure. No pressure. Honored to be invited back. This was a lot of fun and I would thank you personally but I'm not allowed to say your name. That's fair. I'll probably say it a few times throughout the podcast as I normally do and I just have to edit it out.
Landon McDonald: Pastor and Content Creator
00:01:05
Speaker
But this time we are tackling the hot take of I'm bringing context back Which comes from of course from the Justin Timberlake song. That's right And so if you don't know Landon, he is the lead teaching pastor at Mission Church in Arizona teaches courses on Theos U and you just launched major prophets on there, right?
00:01:27
Speaker
Yes, yes, I did. They just, I filmed that a long time ago. Sometimes I forget that I make courses because they like put them in a, you know, they're releasing them when they want to release them. So one time they released a course and I was like, I don't even remember doing that. And it was like over a year before. And I was like, this is fantastic. Oh, wow. This is fantastic. Yeah. So it's a lot of fun. It's a delayed little gift. That's right. I just want to say I, all of your like subtle
00:01:54
Speaker
like remarks and jokes you make throughout or like my love language. So I was listening to Isaiah one and you were saying, I remember what you were saying, but you go, sir, this is a Wendy's. And like I died laughing listening to that. And so big fan of your approach
Landon's Projects and YouTube Channel
00:02:11
Speaker
and how you do that. Thank you so much. He also has a wonderful YouTube video or page channel, excuse me, covering many topics. So make sure you go check that out. And also you just started
00:02:23
Speaker
Star Wars theology. That's right. That's right. I was drafting off of you and I love a lot of the stuff that you've done. So I actually had a sizing problem because I posted all the memes in the wrong size. So if you go there right now, there's nothing on the page, but by the time this podcast comes out, it'll all be back up. So I probably shouldn't have even said that.
00:02:43
Speaker
Uh-oh. So hopefully I take my sweet time editing this podcast. Yeah, totally. I just make myself sound bad. Yeah. Yeah. No. Is there, is there anything else you'd like to share about you that for people that haven't listened to episode one?
00:02:57
Speaker
No, I just remember this podcast. No, thank you for inviting me back. I'm honored to be invited back. I think this is a great podcast. And if you would like if you're a pastor or you want any free curriculum or Bible study content, just go on my YouTube channel. It makes me really happy and brings me a lot of joy. When people tell me that they're using that, because that's my heart is just to give people free study content. And then I just make a lot of memes for fun.
00:03:27
Speaker
It's a perfect balance. Yes. Nice.
Top Misinterpreted Bible Verses
00:03:32
Speaker
To intro this topic a little bit, probably over the past month and a half now, I've been asking all my Instagram followers which versus are the most taken out of context. These are the top six that were voted on, and I'm going to go from the most voted to the least. Nice.
00:03:57
Speaker
Everybody was like it's either Jeremiah 29 11 or Philippians 4 13 But flipping for 13 is the most that was voted followed by Jeremiah 29 11 followed by Matthew 7 1 followed by Romans 8 28 then Matthew 18 20 and then lastly first Corinthians 10 13 I know a cruise past those but we're gonna read them. We're gonna break them down. We're gonna talk through them and
00:04:24
Speaker
But before we dive into this, let's lay out how this is going to go. This is going to be a little more, it's going to be a fun one to do. So we're going to read the verse and then we're going to discuss how do people typically proof text it? Like what do they do? Then we're going to bring the context back and says, what does this text actually mean in the proper context?
00:04:46
Speaker
And then you and I get to go and we get to take turns how we should not preach that. So we're going to give a little 45 second full send sermon and
00:04:59
Speaker
Um, in post-production, it's going to be good. It's going to be, so picture, this will be the scene that will set for each one of those will cue spiritual piano. It'll come in. It's the last 45 seconds of the sermon on this specific text.
00:05:16
Speaker
And then we're going to preach it, how we should not preach it.
Understanding Philippians 4:13
00:05:20
Speaker
And then we'll redeem it after that. And then we're going to say, how should you actually preach this, this passage? These are like, these are like really good ideas. Like I rare, I rarely hear ideas and I'm like, wow, that's a, that's a good idea. Like this is going to be really funny. And I did not prepare on purpose because I wanted to just spontaneously do it. So I'm really, uh, this is going to be, this is going to be a lot of fun. And I have one.
00:05:45
Speaker
take on one of them that I think you might disagree with. So that'll be fun. Jeremiah 29, 11. That's right. That's right. Old Testament. I knew it. Um, and also from our last conversation though, too, we touched on, I think we touched on Jeremiah 29, 11 a little bit. Oh, we did. It's the last time. My favorite things to talk about.
00:06:04
Speaker
All right, so let's dive in, shall we? Let's do it. So Philippians 4.13 reads, I can do all things through him who strengthens me. And all of these are ESV, just so everybody listening knows. How do people typically proof text this? Yeah, totally.
00:06:27
Speaker
people, you know, yell this before they go skydiving. And it's like, you know, I don't think that that's what God was talking about. Diane. I mean, it's classic Diane skydiving. Yeah, it's just like, I think that similar similar to similar to to Jeremiah 2011. I think that people effectively utilize this verse as kind of like a
00:06:58
Speaker
positivity, a mental positivity type of verse in the context. In the context, obviously, it is a verse about Paul in prison. That being said, I do think people can do all things through Christ who strengthens them. I really do. It just
00:07:17
Speaker
it isn't, it's talking about all spiritual things. So I just feel like, yeah, like, I think it's really dorky to like, yell that before you jump out of an airplane or before you like play a football game, or whatever. It's like, it's like, Oh, yeah, it's like, listen, listen, Keith, the kid in the other locker room is praying the same thing. Like, what kind of situation are you putting God in here?
00:07:39
Speaker
Well, who gets the all things as you or Keith? Exactly, exactly. And I think that the promise is much greater. And I think it shows, I have a lot of sympathy for people. It shows how many people are really struggling emotionally that they effectively turn this verse into a positivity talk kind of thing. It's really sad. It makes me sad.
Preaching Philippians 4:13 Correctly
00:08:05
Speaker
What do you think?
00:08:07
Speaker
Man, I think that it is... I'm trying to think of how I've heard it the most. I think that what I see most in this scripture being used is for some sort of shallow, immediate gratification.
00:08:29
Speaker
And shallow might be a bit harsh, but maybe temporary is a better word. So when I've talked to people, you know, I'm just trying to grow my business and I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.
00:08:48
Speaker
Okay, you know what I mean? And so I think the pieces that I hear about this are mostly on temporal things and not character things or not sustained things.
00:09:01
Speaker
And so I feel like I have only seen online people say Philippians 4.13 for sports stuff. I don't know if I've ever personally ran into somebody who believes that for whatever sports event they're doing. It's mostly that I want whatever I'm doing to succeed. So I'm going to throw this on top of my plans to succeed. Yeah, totally.
00:09:26
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I would really hope that someone's like, man, Flippian's 413, this three-pointer, like, okay, well then if you miss it, can Christ not do all things through you? You know? Yeah, that's so funny.
00:09:43
Speaker
Yeah, yeah, it's like it's like when you used to play NBA jam and the announcer sometimes say ugly shot but then sometimes it would go in because there was something broken in like the announcer system on that game. Yeah, so just because he said ugly shot didn't mean it wouldn't go in and you're like praying and you're like,
00:10:00
Speaker
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me, except make the three pointer that I just missed. Then you just hit yourself with the, oh, you of little faith. I said, no faith for it to go in. Exactly.
00:10:15
Speaker
Yeah, so I think the biggest thing I've seen with this verse is it's put on people's agenda for their personal success, typically. Yeah. And that's a pretty general sweeping statement. I'm not saying everybody who quotes it has impure motives like that. I think that'd be unfair to say. But for the sake of conversation, a generalized approach I see a lot is that. So now switching to...
00:10:40
Speaker
What does this mean in the proper context? You kind of started to allude to it, but what does it mean in proper context? Totally. It means something really beautiful, which is that there is no physical need that God will not meet. And if you need another verse for that, you know, Paul also says, my God will supply every need of yours in Christ Jesus.
00:10:59
Speaker
And I think that that's really, it's really awesome. And I think that that's a baseline belief that is incredible. And I think brings a lot to people who choose to believe it. I will never be without my core needs.
00:11:16
Speaker
which are very few things. It's just food and a baseline level of support from God. Obviously he gives much more, but I think that that's really beautiful. And I think that the verse is in context about God. God, there is no thing spiritually that you cannot do
00:11:44
Speaker
with the help of God, to which I think that a person may reply immediately, well, you can't, you can't heal everyone, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. And I agree with that. I think that that is only the only thing that hinders or minimizes or hit the ceiling of that, of course, is the will of God. So inside, inside the will of God,
00:12:06
Speaker
there is nothing that you cannot do spiritually. And I think that people leave a lot on the floor as they leave a lot untaken as it pertains to joy, specifically, I think a lot of people live without the level of joy that God wants them to have overflowing from their heart in the Holy Spirit.
00:12:26
Speaker
And I believe that God brings that to us often through our surrender, which often comes through deeply believing a verse like this, like I, I can, you know, I've struggled severely with depression, and I've been diagnosed with depression, generalized anxiety disorder and obsessive compulsive disorder. And at some point I was reading, Jesus said, I came that you may have life and have it abundantly. And I, man, I
00:12:55
Speaker
I had a really holy discontentment with where I was at. And I believe that God has brought so much to me through my refusal to accept those things and to believe that the joy of the Lord is my strength and the joy of the Lord pierces through those things, which I really believe. And so that I think is what it is in context. Yeah. Oh, I love so much what you said about that holy discontent.
00:13:24
Speaker
Um, and it's, it's interesting, probably about it a year and a half ago. Um, I personally started counseling and I feel like sometimes depends who you talk to. Uh, they have different, different approaches on, on therapy and counseling. Um, but really it kind of came from two specific things. One, my loving wife being like, I think this would be good. And two, um,
00:13:53
Speaker
Like this discontent for that same promise you talked about, a life in life abundantly, your life to the full, that is found in Christ alone. And I'm like, if I'm promised a life to the full,
00:14:09
Speaker
I don't, I'm not experiencing that. You know what I mean? And my issues that I found and I walked through with my wonderful Christian counselor, she's like the sweetest lady ever. She prays before, she prays in the middle. There's something I bring up, she goes, hold on, we need to break that oppression. She stops and she prays over it. Like she's legit.
00:14:32
Speaker
But I say all of that because the context of this verse, verse 12, I know how to be brought low and I know how to abound in any and every circumstance. I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. Yes. And what is, what is the, what is the, how do we find this contentment is that I can do all things through him who strengthens me. Amen.
00:15:00
Speaker
And for me, I'm like, oh, the context of this verse, just quoting this verse out of context actually robs it of its fulfilling power. You know what I'm saying?
00:15:13
Speaker
I'm like, yes, it's a good verse, but it's better in the context it was written in than what you're giving it to now. And so I think the beauty of having the proper context and what it means in proper context is it allows the word to do what it can do best. And that's to dive deep and separate bone and marrow to get to the deep core of us, that contentment is found in the strength of Christ within us. And I'm like,
00:15:40
Speaker
Don't get me started. We didn't even start preaching yet. I felt the same way. I was like, oh no, I'm already doing the other part. I know. That's totally fine. But yeah, so I think the proper text, the context is so good. And I'm sure this will be a repeated thing throughout our conversation, is that the context actually gives more weight to the scriptures that are being quoted outside of its context. Yes.
00:16:07
Speaker
All right, here we go. Now, how should we not preach this? So, this is a curve ball that you don't even know about in the show notes, so I hope you're ready. I'm gonna set the context for where you're preaching this message at. So, it's night three at a summer camp. Okay, great.
00:16:33
Speaker
And we're not going to do any, we won't do any names of any specific people in those contexts, right? Okay, great, great. Nope. Yeah, we're gonna honor and respect people. Fantastic. Okay, so night three of a summer camp, the worst way you could preach it.
00:16:48
Speaker
Yep. And so post production, I'm going to enter, I'm going to cue spiritual keys right now. Bring us there, Landon. Yes. And so for many of you, you're dealing with consequences in your life. You're dealing with consequences of real choices that you've made.
00:17:05
Speaker
And God is saying that you can do all things through him, meaning God will bring you through and past these consequences of your terrible choices. Like many of you have gotten addicted to drugs and drank too much. And you're like, I don't want these feelings anymore. God's going to take those away. Many of you have real trauma in your life. Like God is going to erase that.
00:17:35
Speaker
If anyone is in Christ, he is new creator, that means that any consequences that you deserve, you won't have because God is going to erase them in this moment right here. And so if you feel like you have been brought to a place where you are reaping what you have sown, I want you to know that Philippians 4.13 supersedes that.
00:18:06
Speaker
Borderline feels like wrong to do this. Yeah, you'll give it the good context, but I'm like, oh my gosh. Yes. Yeah. This will not be a solo promo clip on my Instagram. Totally. Exactly. That was good. Yep. Every eye closed, every head bowed. That's right. That's right. Okay. Music queued. We're on the third night of summer camp. Yeah.
00:18:35
Speaker
Okay, here it goes. I know many of us have come in here tonight and it's night three. We might be a little tired and from all the things going on, but I want you to know that you can have a supernatural attention in this moment through Christ who gives you strength.
00:18:56
Speaker
It's kind of like when you're eating food and you're like, man, this is so good, but I'm full. And you want to just keep eating the strength and the power of Christ will give you the strength you need to overeat, to finish that food.
00:19:13
Speaker
to run the race well, to get to the finish line and say, well done, my good and faithful servant. So I wanna encourage you as you're here tonight, with every eye closed and every head bowed, that you're saying, Jesus, I need to get to that finish line, just like eating the last portion of a really good dessert. I hated that so much.
00:19:35
Speaker
Yeah, exactly. Exactly. Like if tonight, if tonight you are, you're about to jump out of an airplane, not emotionally or spiritually, physically, because you want to go skydiving. I want you to know that God will give you the strength to do that. God will give you the strength to jump out of that plane to his glory.
00:19:58
Speaker
oh gross dude it's like made like made how i should not preach this my mate my mind's like trying to auto correct to like the proper way to communicate it same and it's like actively like
00:20:14
Speaker
Same. I mean, I guess it's nice that it takes intentionality to have bad theology. But okay, now let's redeem this text. We don't have to do the same preaching style, but if you were to preach this this Sunday morning, how would you approach it?
00:20:32
Speaker
Yeah, I would preach it exactly the way that I did before, which is that God will bring you and will lead you through difficult times. He will give you what you need and letting go of a deep, deep desire for what you want as a thing is exceptionally valuable and important.
00:20:56
Speaker
and going through your life and thinking and thinking, I actually don't need that. I actually don't need that. I may have that. I may get that. God may bless me and praise God if he does, but I don't need that, but I will have what I need.
00:21:09
Speaker
And I would encourage people, teach that to your kids. Teach your kids, we never worry about needs because God will give us what we need. If we're worrying about needs, we are living outside of faith in God. And so we trust God, especially for someone who has lost a job or something like that. This is the moment, teach your family, teach your kids, we are not afraid, we will have what we need.
00:21:39
Speaker
That's really a powerful gift to give your kids Yeah, oof Yeah, amen. I love that man. I love that Yeah, because you said Jesus when he talks about don't worry about the things what you need He goes these are the things that dominate the thoughts of the unbelievers is worry. Wow, that's so good. That's so and that's And I'm like, oof Yeah, if I was to preach this real quick, it would be
00:22:08
Speaker
that no matter the circumstance you may find yourself in, you are not beyond the contentment of the Lord. Yes. So it's a contentment that supersedes circumstances. And yeah, we'll leave it there also. Keep going. Yes, exactly. All right. So Jeremiah 2911 says this, if you do not know.
Jeremiah 29:11: God's Plan vs. Personal Success
00:22:33
Speaker
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord.
00:22:37
Speaker
Plans for welfare and not for evil to give you a future and a hope. You may know this in a different version because you have a Hobby Lobby sign of it in your house somewhere, but that's the text from ESV. We're gonna do this a little bit different in the sense of what are your thoughts on this?
00:22:59
Speaker
Yeah, I think this is a fantastic verse. I think this is like the, you know, one of the more meme diverses, you know, with like the sideways Willy Wonka. And he's like, Oh, really? Tell me about when you were in Babylonian captivity. And I think that that is a fair criticism. I think that it has a lot of validity. I think that that being said, you never hear anybody criticize people's universal application of
00:23:29
Speaker
the heart is deceitful and desperately wicked who can know it or your righteousness is as filthy rags before God. So I think first of all, you have to be consistent. So either either Jeremiah 2911 and your righteousness is filthy rags, either they both apply to Christians today or neither of them do. So you can't just take all of the negative verses.
00:23:50
Speaker
and do it that way. I think that that is a mistake. Yeah, I think the way that people proof text it to answer your question specifically is exactly the same way that people proof text Philippians for 13. They apply it to a non spiritual thing. They apply it to marriage, they apply it to what I desire to be married. So that means blank. And it's like, no, God's not promising your plan. He's promising his plan.
00:24:17
Speaker
Now, I think the part where the other people mix it to answer the next question is people miss it because they're like, No, it doesn't apply to you at all. Well, yes, it does. You know, we are grafted into the tree of Israel. We there the I don't believe in replacement theology, but I do believe in fulfillment. And I believe that these things apply to us spiritually. Absolutely. Does God not have a good plan? Does to the people who criticize it, I would say, well, does God not does God not have a good plan for the people in your church?
00:24:46
Speaker
And to people who are poor in spirit, to people who have been crushed in spirit, does God not say, does Jesus not say, blessed are you, because to you belongs the kingdom of heaven. And so who are we to restrict appropriate encouragement from people who find it in the text out of our, you know,
00:25:12
Speaker
I went to Bible college for two semesters in the 80s, so that doesn't apply to you because you're not in the Babylonian captivity type of thing. Yeah. Yeah. Man, and this hit on a little bit, and if you've not listened to episode one with Landon, I want to encourage you to go do that because you talk about the importance of reading and studying the whole Bible, and this kind of relates to it as well. Yeah.
00:25:37
Speaker
Let's call it what it is. It's proof texting in an opposite way as well. If Jeremiah 2911, you refuse to quote proof text, then why do you proof text? The heart is deceitful and wicked. No one can understand it. You know what I mean? And so it's interesting. I think the piece, you hit the nail on the head. I don't really have much to add. But beyond the, yeah, I've seen that as well. It's when these texts are applied,
00:26:06
Speaker
to individual plans and purposes, not the plans he has for you, it's the plans I have for myself. Totally. Like, so I think the proof texting way people may not read it, but they mean is, for I know the plans I have for myself, and the Lord plans welfare and not for evil, and they give me a future and a hope. It's whatever I hope and whatever future I want. And so, yeah, so if someone comes up to you and goes,
00:26:36
Speaker
Man, I hate that verse because it gets so proof texted. Your response would be, well, what?
00:26:43
Speaker
What other texts do you read from Old Testament that apply to you? Is that kind of how you'd respond to them? Totally. Or I would say, do you think that the New Testament doesn't teach that? Do you think that the New Testament doesn't teach that God has a good plan for everyone who trusts in him? Is that not what Romans 828 is teaching? I'm not saying that someone who's cheating on their wife every day and gambling all of their money
00:27:10
Speaker
You know, that's not what that's not even what Jeremiah 29 11 teaches because I believe that God still does have a good plan for that person. God just allows us free will in a way that supersedes those things because that's what he chooses. I would just say to the person, you know, like, do you do you not think that that the New Testament teaches that? And if it does, do you really need to dunk on someone theologically whose name is Sharon and is 75 and uses Facebook five hours a day? Can't you just let her be encouraged this morning?
00:27:39
Speaker
like, do you really need to flex? Like, I don't think that what she's saying makes theological sense. But I do think that the where she ended up with it is true, regardless. So maybe like dunking on people on the internet isn't really maybe that maybe even if you examine your heart, you'd recognize that that your desire isn't to bring glory to God, perhaps maybe your desire is to
00:28:03
Speaker
show the intelligence that you have and praise God for that. Praise God for that. That's awesome. But, you know, maybe it's not the best thing to do. Man, you just, I think you just hit, hit the, uh, like structured court. I think just from pure observation, when I make any joke about Calvinism, um, it here's, here's a little insider for social media traffic. If I am not getting very
00:28:30
Speaker
very much traffic on my account. I just make a Calvinism meme and all of a sudden it blows up because I posted one the other day and within an hour there were 60 comments and people arguing about Calvinism. Totally. And it's just like, but what it feels like is what you hit on. Are you trying to glorify God or just prove that you know more and you're right? That's the piece that it's like,
00:28:57
Speaker
Totally. Thanks to all the Calvinists for giving us engagement on our posts so our posts can have better traction. Yeah. Shout out. There's a few that are great. We disagree. We have great conversations. There's a few of them that are really pleasant. They're not trying to argue with me. Even though I tell them I'm a credentialed AG pastor, they're like, what? I'm like, yeah. It's cool.
00:29:26
Speaker
All right, so how should you not preach this? Okay, set it up, set up a scene. You are praying with someone after church and they are needing prayer and encouragement. Does that work? That's not really preaching.
00:29:56
Speaker
I mean, teach, preach, we can use it interchangeably. Yeah, okay.
Importance of Biblical Context
00:30:00
Speaker
What's the improper context for this? Okay, then a better one for this would be you are teaching at your church Bible study or Sunday school. And someone asks someone asks you to explain this verse. You want to go first?
00:30:21
Speaker
Maybe. Okay, let's go. I need to get in the mindset of poor teaching. Okay, I think I'm there.
00:30:33
Speaker
That's a great question of trying to dissect this scripture and try to really understand how it applies to you and your life and how your future and hope can be secured. You know, we all have desires in our heart. And I think that it's important to realize that no matter the desire we have, God put it there. And so chase that desire. That desire that you have is given from above. And so,
00:31:00
Speaker
That is a plan from the Lord and it's going, it's not evil. It's not going to produce evil, but what it's going to do is give you the future and the hope and the life that you're looking for. So keep hanging on to that desire that you've been given. Yes. It's so good. Yes. Yes. I echo my brother. Follow your heart.
00:31:23
Speaker
It's a cultural idiom, and it's a good one for a reason. You need to follow your heart. The Bible teaches that God makes your heart new. And so if you have a desire in your heart, that means that that desire is from God. So follow it. Like, it doesn't even have to make sense. Historically, you know, practically, just like just just go for it. Just go for it.
00:31:54
Speaker
It's so painful. It's so painful. Every feeling and inkling you have...
00:32:02
Speaker
Even though it may not be popular, I'm thinking about jabbing at some people, but not as individuals, more like a thought. Even though it may be going against traditional biblical orthodoxy, the desire is there, which means it's given from God. So just stray away from that and follow that desire wherever it may lead you. Okay, I have to stop this because I'm about to throw up.
00:32:29
Speaker
Anyways. Oh, I thought you were being serious. I thought you were actually sick. No. No. Oh, man. Okay. How should you preach this? Yeah. I mean, I think when you live in the will of God, God has good plans for you. So, Romans 8, 28.
00:32:52
Speaker
Like if you, you know, if you're out there and you have a problem with the Old Testament, that's okay. Romans a 28, you know, God has a plan. And when you love him, and when you're doing your best, doesn't mean you're perfect doesn't mean you don't sin or screw up or slip up or trip up or fail. Because we all do. But when you are following God, when you're walking in the spirit, when you're living with God, God is turning everything together for good, you know, and I heard an illustration from a pastor one time that I thought was brilliant about Romans a 28. And he said, you know,
00:33:21
Speaker
that he played against a chess master in a park in New York City. And the chess master was playing against 10 people. And no matter what move the person made against him, the chess master knew how to make a move to accomplish his purposes.
00:33:34
Speaker
And so no matter what things we are doing, if we're living in the will of God, God is like the chess master, making the moves to bring about good, the chess master was going for victory, and God is going for good, God is going to bring good into and through your life, if you're living in the will of God, and that should encourage you, you know, so, so deeply, and I really hope that it does. And that doesn't mean our definition of good, it means his definition of good.
00:34:05
Speaker
Yeah. Come on now. How would you do it? I would emphasize greatly the plans that God has. So the plans that give me a future in hope is not the things that I have developed and made and created for myself.
00:34:30
Speaker
that his plans for me produce the hope that I try to manufacture at times. That the plans that he has and he is working out produces the future, the hope, the joy, everything that I've been trying to manufacture or bought from the world is actually going to be fulfilled in submitting to his plan. It would be a heavy emphasis on
00:35:00
Speaker
What you want is not the most important thing in your relationship with Jesus. Yeah. Yes. So that's how I'd preach it. Okay. We'll put a bow on that one. Matthew seven one. Judge not that you will not be, that you be not judged. So judge not that you be not judged.
00:35:26
Speaker
How do people typically proof text this judge not passage? Yeah, you know, I think, man, I think this one is an intriguing one. And I think that I might differ from you perhaps or other people on the way that I see this one. I think that the way that people proof text this is they effectively say don't
00:35:54
Speaker
judge anyone at any time for any reason. And what they mean by judging is effectively disagreement or saying something that they don't like. So they don't even have really the correct definition to start with. And then they're saying this is a universal principle, dot, dot, dot, dot, dot, dot, dot. That's the way I would see people proof text it. Yeah, I think the way
00:36:21
Speaker
I've seen it proof texts personally is
00:36:26
Speaker
a matter of calling people to a biblical standard, but they see that as passing judgment on them. Like, well, you can't hold me accountable or pass a judgment on what I'm doing. You can't make a judgment call on if it's biblical or not, or if it's sin or not. So therefore, don't call me out for doing this. That's just personally how I've seen it. And so it's kind of like used as this defense of
00:36:54
Speaker
To say it more generally, let me be me and let me sin, but don't tell me what I'm doing is sin, is kind of how I've seen it used. Yeah. Well, what's the context of this and what does the text mean in the proper context? Yeah.
Misuse of Matthew 7:1: Judgment and Accountability
00:37:12
Speaker
I mean, start with Paul said, is it not within the church that we are to judge?
00:37:19
Speaker
you start there. So you know that Jesus is not disagreeing with that. And then take the context from Matthew seven. So judge not that you not be judged. I believe that what Jesus is saying is an idiom that is meant to have people think about which is, if I judge, if I, why would I judge when if God judged me accurately, I would go to hell. I think that's a thing that people need to think about.
00:37:45
Speaker
Secondarily, judgment just means saying something is right or wrong. So everyone judges every day, because when you're flipping through Netflix, and you're like, I don't want to watch that, technically, you're judging that you're saying no, that's not right for right now. So people have this very hyper spiritual version of it, and then they apply it. It's so confusing to people. So then what does Jesus say next? For with the judgment that you pronounce, you will be judged with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.
00:38:12
Speaker
He's saying, if you don't judge at all, people won't judge you. And that's literally true, because people literally like to judge judgmental people, and they like to not judge non judgmental people. Jesus is not saying judgment is wrong. Jesus is not saying judgment is not Christian. Jesus is teaching us the way both on earth and in heaven that these things actually functionally work. What do you what do you think?
00:38:42
Speaker
Yeah, I think it's kind of a piece of awareness for the person even making the judgment because it's not even necessarily if the person you are, quote, judging is even in the wrong or the right, you may be very right in the fact that what they're doing is sin and not good. But towards the end of it, you're pointing out the speck in your brother's eye and you have a plank in your own eye, you have a log in your eye.
00:39:12
Speaker
So it's the realization that if I'm judging from the aspect of I am righteous and they are not, it's a humility piece of reminding me I am no better or worse than them. We are all on equal playing ground. But that does not mean I can't say, hey, brother, what you're doing is sin and is destructive for your life. Totally. If it's from a place of me understanding of humility, I have things in my life as well. And so the context that I see it in is it's
00:39:40
Speaker
Maybe it's often done in a top-down in Jesus trying to level the playing field. We all have things that will be judged. Yeah, totally. How should we not preach this? I'll set up the scene for this one. Let's say...
00:40:09
Speaker
Let's do a small group. Um, yeah, that's, you're in a small group as a group's pastor. Let me just use a real example. I'm just kidding. Um, you're in a small group and someone shares, um, someone's really struggling with, uh,
00:40:32
Speaker
someone in their family doing something they don't agree with. Totally. And they are just bagging on them hard. And go.
00:40:46
Speaker
Yeah, you know, I mean, the Bible says not to judge. So who are you to say that someone's sexual preference is wrong? You know, who are you to say that Jesus is the only way to heaven? I can't even do this. It just makes me feel so horrible doing it. But that is the wrong way to do it. It's to take it and apply it to
00:41:09
Speaker
Well, the problem is what you just said, I'm like, I've heard that 1000s of times on Instagram. Oh, totally. Yeah, people love that. They love doing that. And it's so ridiculous. Yeah, I would probably do the same thing where it's like, no, you made you made me do it. You have to do it too. I know I will. I will. If you go down, we go down together on this, right? That's right.
00:41:33
Speaker
If they're like, Landon, I don't think you could be the teaching pastor anymore. Your theology seems off. Because there's some things you said in a meme-based podcast. You've ruined your life. I hope it was worth it. No. I would say, if I'm in a small group, someone's just going off, I would probably say, well, you know, Jesus said, judge not.
00:42:01
Speaker
And I would leave out the second part as well. Like, it's as simple as that. I would try to just shut it down. Hey, who are you to judge whatever makes that person happy? And so let them be happy, stop judging them and move on. It's probably, if I was broken, if I had a broken theology that was unbiblical, that's what I would say. Exactly.
00:42:28
Speaker
Oh, man, this started as a funny idea. Now it's just making me feel gross. Yeah, me too. I was like, when I read it, I was like, this is amazing. Now that I'm doing it, I'm like, I want to listen to other people do this. I don't want to do it. Okay, well, maybe we'll, we'll, we'll start to turn a corner here and changes up a little bit. How should we preach this? Yeah, I think that, um,
00:42:52
Speaker
Christians are justifiably criticized for being overly judgmental. I think that's fair. I read atheists online all the time that are like, don't be Christians are so judgmental. And I'm like, I agree with that. I think first of all, as a Christian, examine this. Do you believe Jesus? Do you believe that with the measure you use, it will be measured to you?
00:43:17
Speaker
Because a lot of people would change their interpersonal communication style if they truly believed that. And they would change their online premise if they truly believed that. Do you want someone examining your past and present to the same degree that you feel comfortable doing that to strangers? Because I think that that's a pretty big mistake. And I think that you don't, I really do. I think that you don't want that. And I think secondarily, like,
00:43:47
Speaker
Are you willing to apply judgment the way the Bible teaches, which I believe that we are really rarely called to judge outside the church? And are you engaging with politics in your public and private persona in a way that really isn't in the spirit of this?
00:44:08
Speaker
And if you are judging within your church, are you doing it with a spirit of charity? And are you seasoning your speech with salts like Paul teaches? I think these are all good things to examine. And I think, you know, I do, I would encourage, you know, you still preaching wherever you're at to examine your heart in these things. It's probably the way I would do it. What about you? Yeah. Yeah, man, I think with this,
00:44:35
Speaker
I would definitely go off the same one of would you be comfortable with someone judging you the same way that you have judged them. I think social media has made it really easy to make a judgment on an entire person's character and being based off of one interaction or one comment that somebody made. And I don't know anybody that would be okay with that being done to them. And so for me, I would,
00:45:04
Speaker
I would probably poke at the judgment that leads to a quick deciding factor of who that person is, what they stand for, and if they're in right or wrong or in error or not. I just think it's a really toxic approach to
00:45:23
Speaker
people that are made in the image of God. And either I believe that Christ is sufficient and Christ is enough and Christ can redeem us or not. And I think that when I become the ultimate judge or someone becomes the ultimate judge, you were saying, thanks Jesus, I got this one. I'll let you know what I think about them. And so for me, it's actually a huge pride piece as well. Like I know what is best. I'm gonna make the ultimate judgment on them.
00:45:52
Speaker
And so, yes, that's probably the route I would go. I want to expand more on that, but I'll pause. Totally. For the sake of the length of listeners. Yeah, exactly. Okay. Romans 828, you've referenced it several times already today in this conversation.
Romans 8:28: Aligning with God's Purpose
00:46:15
Speaker
And I'm trying to decide if I want to do an audible and we say, how is this typically preached in the wrong context instead of us taking time to preach it wrong? Yeah. I mean, probably just without the...
00:46:28
Speaker
called according to His purpose. So we can't apply this verse to our purpose, whatever our purpose can be. But when we apply our purpose to His purpose and bend our purpose to His purpose, we are just in such an amazing spot to receive so much. It's just such a special place to be in. And so I would just encourage people to say, what are God's purposes for you?
00:46:57
Speaker
And you can like, it's, it's so encouraging. When you align your purposes to God's, like when it says in john 15. What's that verse? He says, if I abide in in in you and you abide in me, ask whatever you wish and it will be done for you. Well, but you can't abide in God without surrendering your will to his so when your will is surrender to his,
00:47:24
Speaker
The things that flow out of you are truly things that you want and they're truly, truly beautiful things. And you can know that they will come to pass. And so I would probably teach it like that. Yeah. And I think just so for the listeners, Romans 8 28 is this, and we know for those who love God, all things work together for good for those who are called according to his purpose.
00:47:50
Speaker
And how teachers, well, it's interesting, I'm just seeing this now, like in real time with so far all the passages we've read.
00:47:58
Speaker
The problem is people are mistaking their plans for God's plans. And when that switch happens, it becomes a proof text that loses all the power that it was meant to have. So I feel like I'm kind of like a broken record. I'm exactly like what you said. We're called according to His purpose, not my purpose. The purpose of my life has ceased to exist, and now the whole purpose of my life is to serve His purpose.
00:48:27
Speaker
And I would probably touch on where do you go and who do you go to and what do you lean on to find and feel purpose in your life?
00:48:42
Speaker
because the reality is every single one of us do things and we say things and we interact in ways that we think that have the most purpose. And so what do you do when the purpose you felt like was the right purpose to pursue comes up empty? What do you do with that? And so the problem is to take a few steps back and be like, maybe the purpose that I was pursuing wasn't the one that God
00:49:09
Speaker
as planned. It's not his purpose for my life. And so I would call people to re-examine the purpose that drives their life. Yeah, it's so good. Is what I would do. So good. Yeah. And I would just say, I would not tell people to switch that out, like you said, for his purpose, for your purpose, because that's where it'll get sideways. And it's not good.
00:49:38
Speaker
Okay. We're going to cruise. We're going to stop committing to heresy and false preaching. So did it three times. I feel gross about it. Okay.
00:49:50
Speaker
Matthew 1820, so we'll get cruising because I don't want to keep you too long. For where two or three are gathered in my name, there I am among them. Why do people have issues with this? Why do they think it's proof texted? What do people do?
Matthew 18:20: Reconciliation and Unity
00:50:06
Speaker
Because people, I have to answer the first two because I can't really answer the second one.
00:50:12
Speaker
Like, it's, it is a verse about, you know, overcoming conflict between Christians. Yeah, and so, yeah, it people people apply it to prayer most often, and it's not really like or service. Yeah, it's not really even that it's not true, it is true, but it's,
00:50:32
Speaker
You know, you have to understand the manifest presence of God, you know, versus the everywhere, the omnipotent, the not omnipotence, the omniscience of presence rather of God. You have to see that God is everywhere, but God is not equally everywhere.
00:50:50
Speaker
in the sense that when the Holy Spirit rushes upon people in the Bible, it's not the same amount of God's presence. It's obviously different. Same thing with Pentecost, same thing with the story of Samson, same thing with the story of David. So I think that people preach it wrong and they're like, hey, we're praying together. God is here. And you're like, well, God already was here. God already was here before we showed up and prayed.
00:51:11
Speaker
Um, so I just think it's just a weird application of that. And then people don't even get the good application, which is that God promises when two Christians are trying to reconcile to especially be there. And that's really awesome. Yeah. Yeah. And that's, yeah, that's exactly it. When I hear it, it's usually, um, it's gather oriented almost every time. Yeah.
00:51:36
Speaker
And sometimes if I'm feeling a little feisty, because it can happen, I go, I was like, yes, and amen. I'm like, do you know where that verse is placed in what Jesus is talking about? Totally. I would probably say nine times out of 10, they're like, no. And I'm like, it's actually about conflict with another Christian. And they're like, oh, you know what I mean? And so the proper context, I love it because it's
00:52:05
Speaker
It's showing how much Christ values the unity amongst brothers and fellow Christians and how important it is. Jesus prayed for unity for the disciples, right? And he even says, if you have a sacrifice and bring into the altar and you remember that a brother has offense against you, what are you supposed to do? So he says, leave the sacrifice there and go reconcile.
00:52:29
Speaker
But it's way more easy to talk about it in a worship service than it is in the middle of conflict with somebody. Totally.
00:52:41
Speaker
Yeah, so how would you preach this? Because we kind of addressed how not to apply this scripture. Yeah, I would preach it that God doesn't want any Christians to be living in conflict and God gives a full roadmap to that. And I would say that Matthew 18 applies to personal conflict. So you can't just like be offended by someone's sermon that you've never met and try to invoke Matthew 18. People always do that online. It makes no sense. It's not contextually what it's talking about.
00:53:08
Speaker
If you've never met the person, then Matthew 18 doesn't apply, you need to just let it roll off your back and move on. But for interpersonal conflicts, I think it's beautiful. Go meet with the person, pray about it, you know, even encourage people to bind any demonic forces before you go into a moment of conflict. I know that might strike a certain type of Christian as very erratic or weird, but I think it's a beautiful thing to do. You're not saying you think a demon is oppressing either of you, but
00:53:36
Speaker
you know, where where do demons want wins more than when two Christians are trying to reconcile. And so I would just encourage people like, yeah, I just think that it's a beautiful I think it's a really beautiful thing. And I would encourage you to live like the Bible says at peace with all. Yeah. Yeah. Good. Amen. Yeah.
00:54:00
Speaker
Amen. Okay. This is our last one. All right. And then we're going to jump into two quick pastoral questions before we wrap up this podcast. So 1 Corinthians 10 13 says, no temptation has overtaken you. That is not common to man. God is faithful. How is this typically used? Oh, so hold on.
1 Corinthians 10:13: Misconceptions About Temptation
00:54:25
Speaker
God is faithful and He will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation, He will also provide the way of escape that you may be able to endure it. How do people typically... Yeah, this one brings up all of the like.
00:54:43
Speaker
really difficult. So is the Bible talking about you yourself? Or is the Bible talking about you with God, you know, like, I believe that I am tempted beyond my ability all the time, but I don't believe I'm ever tempted beyond my ability with God. And so I think that's like the place where people really get it confused and really need some additional teaching and some additional help is
00:55:04
Speaker
Like if you have an addiction to pornography, God is not saying that like you alone in the middle of the night with your phone with no one else in your house, you are capable of defeating that temptation. That's not what God is saying. And even with the context of the additional part of the verse,
00:55:22
Speaker
He will provide a way of escape. So I've taught men and and it's a really good teaching that I heard from someone else ask God for the way of escape when you're in temptation. Where is the way of escape? And don't believe that you can defeat temptation on your own, but do believe that with God, you can defeat every temptation is the way I would kind of see it. What about Yeah,
00:55:47
Speaker
Yeah, man, I think, one, I think this is where I've noticed a lot of people get the, God won't give you more than you can handle. This is, I think, the genesis of that Christian-y statement that's not found in Scripture. Totally. Because I got berated by somebody who said they firmly believed that that was in the Bible. They go, yeah, well, that's basically what 1 Corinthians 10 is talking about.
00:56:14
Speaker
So I think that it's putting the improper ways, it's putting power on your strength and your ability to do what only the Spirit of God can do through you. You see the struggle of sin in Romans 7, Paul's like,
00:56:34
Speaker
I want to do what is right, but I don't do it. You know what I mean? He's like wrestling with the reality that he cannot do what only the risen spirit of Christ can do within us. So the way that I would teach this
00:56:49
Speaker
is that there is nothing, there's no temptation you face that is going to catch Jesus off guard and not provide a way to be free from and escape that situation you're in. Amen. There's literally...
00:57:06
Speaker
There's literally nothing you will run into that Jesus will not provide a way out and empower you to overcome. Amen. And it gets twisted when you forget that He is the one that empowers us because we have no victory or strength over our sin. Amen. So true. And so I would preach it that way that there is
00:57:31
Speaker
There is no strength within me to defeat the depth of the brokenness and sin that still dwells
Risks of Ignoring Context in Scripture
00:57:39
Speaker
within me. And that comes through a humble submission of Christ. Amen. Yeah, that's good. That's good. That's how I do it. Okay. Any other thoughts on those six?
00:57:50
Speaker
No, I think it's a really good conversation. Anyone sees if you're if you're watching this visually, and you see me using this dropper, I'm just taking my B complex vitamins right now. So there you go. I would highly encourage some HGH human growth hormones to get really buff dude, if I was taking HGH, then I should stop because they've failed. Taking some I got a nine. There you go. Yeah.
00:58:18
Speaker
Dude, how I wish I was in Arizona. It's 25 and overcast up here. Dude, it's so beautiful outside. Like after this, I'm going to go walk around. It's amazing. You know what? That's enough of that. I'm going to sign out. I'm just kidding. Okay. So last couple of questions, just pastoral questions. Why does context matter? And what is the danger of making beliefs off of out of context scriptures?
00:58:42
Speaker
Context matters because it's a story or a letter. There always is context in all of scripture. There never is a part of scripture that doesn't exist in context, ever. And just apply it to any other art form, it doesn't make sense. No one would study three seconds of Lord of the Rings for five hours. They would just be like, well, let's just watch the rest of the movie. But people do that with the scripture. Do I mean that there are not rich,
00:59:08
Speaker
theological truths to be meditated on? No, of course not. I believe in meditation. I believe in teaching long sermons on one verse. That's basically Charles Spurgeon's whole preaching career. I believe in all of that. But you can't develop theology out of context. It never works. It never brings you to the right place. Take an argument you have with your spouse. Take a love letter, take it on the positive either way.
00:59:32
Speaker
Could you develop anything about their character from one phrase that they said in that letter if you didn't have the rest of it? Or one phrase they say in an argument if you didn't have the rest of it? Of course not. Of course not. Could you develop a very, very broken picture of a person from one phrase in an argument or one phrase in a love letter? Yes.
00:59:55
Speaker
you could develop a very weird view of someone and that's exactly why context matters. I would encourage people if you've never read through the whole book, don't even quote it. Don't quote it. It's not a good idea. So if you want to quote Jeremiah, read Jeremiah, and that's fantastic. And then quote it all you want. What do you think? Yeah.
01:00:20
Speaker
I think that if the danger of making beliefs off of an out-of-context scripture, it creates a belief in Jesus and a Savior that I have manufactured, not that He says who He says He is. So true. And so I think the danger is when someone goes, well,
01:00:44
Speaker
I believe this and I have this theology built off of this and they have this kind of like hodgepodge of beliefs. And so Jesus has to submit to my beliefs and my broken understanding of scripture. And then I'm curious and I'm frustrated and I'm disheartened of why does Jesus not do what he says he'll do when my entire belief of him is false from the beginning. And so I think what it can do is it can actually discourage people
01:01:13
Speaker
because they're wanting Jesus to be a certain way that he's never been intended to be or do the things he's never intended to do. And so I think the danger is that you create a version of Jesus that the Bible does not illustrate how he reveals himself to be. So good. And so then you're wondering why the Jesus you follow is powerless is because he's made out of your ideas and your thoughts.
01:01:39
Speaker
And actually who he reveals himself to be. Yeah, it's good. And so final question, did we bring context back? Dude, that Justin Timberlake song was so big when I was in high school. I remember like, I just it's so funny now because now it's kind of viewed as like a kind of like regular hit.
01:02:00
Speaker
that and if you want to be my love the one that's like oh yeah dude the production on those records is so amazing but in like a post Britney Spears autobiography world i do see those things maybe differently um
01:02:17
Speaker
If you've ever said your name while doing like, like record scratches, like DJ record scratches, like, take a take a take a Timberlake, if you've ever done that to your own name, like, I do think that you inherently are problematic, probably. Um, did we bring
Inspiring Deeper Biblical Study
01:02:35
Speaker
context back? I don't know. I hope so. I hope so. I just hope that
01:02:39
Speaker
I hope that this content has helped and blessed somebody out there today. And if you're out there today, don't give up. Don't quit. God sees you. God loves you. And yeah, I just, I hope it helps people. Yeah. You and me both. And I think the biggest thing is I hope at the very least we challenge people to question the way that they read certain scriptures. And I love the challenge that you put. Read the whole book before you quote a part of the book.
01:03:08
Speaker
And so if there's someone listening that says, hey, give me some homework, I'd say if you really love Philippians 4.13, read Philippians the whole book at least one time through to make sure you understand the context of that scripture.
01:03:24
Speaker
Yes, sir. Well, thank you, Mr. Landon for being a part of the podcast and make sure you follow him on social media on his YouTube channel, Star Wars theology on TikTok, wherever any media is found. Make sure you go follow him. You will not regret. Thank you. Thank you, my dude. Absolutely. See you soon.