Episode 24: Kingdom Realities Part 1 - Yielding

This is the first episode talking about one of the four realities that every Christian should be experiencing on an everyday basis. This is how you can determine if you are positioning yourself to experience and receive all that God has for you. Listen in as we talk about yielding. 

Transcript

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We have access to all that now, not based on what we have done or based on what we have accomplished, it's based on who we're grafted to, who we're connected to, who we are united with, and that is Christ. This is Nathan Horn. I'd like to welcome you to the breakdown when we are pursuing practical steps for spiritual results. So over the last three episodes, over the last three episodes, we have been talking about these three kingdom principles. We've been laying the foundation, setting the stage for uh what we're about to start talking about today. There are but before I get to before I get to the four realities that every Christian should be living on, I do want to do a quick review over the last three episodes. If you have not listened to the listen to episodes 21, 22, and 23, I highly encourage you to go back and look at them because they set the stage of what we're about to start talking about. Uh what I mean by that is this. What we're going to start talking about are four kingdom realities that every single Christian should be should be experiencing. But before we get to those realities, there have to be these these principles, these characteristics of the kingdom that we must grasp. Why is that? Because we have to understand how the kingdom works in order for us to actually properly navigate it. So there are three main principles that I bel that uh I've come to understand about the kingdom. The first one is this is that the kingdom of God is your residence. We talked about this in episode 21. The kingdom of God is your residence. What does that mean? It's the place you live, it provides you your structure and it provides the boundaries for the Christian life. Okay, so everything that we know about the kingdom we get from scripture. So again, the scriptures, like we've already talked about, it provides us our structure and it provides us our boundaries for the Christian life. What we're supposed to be doing, how we do it, what we can do, what we cannot do, all that sort of thing. Okay, it is the place, it is the place in which we live. The second thing is that the kingdom of God is now, so the place that you live is now. It's not something that you're going to go to in the buy and buy. No, yes, there is a spiritual heaven, there is a heaven that we will go to when we when we pass, when we go on to glory. That's true. But there is a kingdom, there is the kingdom of God right now that is present now. It's not something that it's not just something that you're going to go live in when you go to heaven. It is something that you are living in now. And because you're living in it now, the structures and the boundaries, the principles, and the applications, opportunities, all of this that is specific to the kingdom is with you now, right? Now, the third one is that the kingdom of God is within you. We talked about this on episode 23, the last episode. Basically, what this means is that the place where you live, the kingdom, the community of God, the kingdom, the place where you live, not only is it now, not only are you living in it now, but you have access to everything freely at all times. So everything that the kingdom possesses, the provision, healing, deliverance, sound mind, joy, love, peace, all of these things that was wrapped up in Christ when you received Christ is present right now. You have free access, free reach into these things at any given time. So if you are going into a business meeting and you're struggling with confidence, you have confidence, you have access to confidence right now. If you're going into a family issue, whether you're expecting drama, you have peace, you have security, you have all these things that you have access to right now. Scripture says that we lack no spiritual gifting or endowment. In other words, everything that we need that pertains to life and godless is accessible right now, okay? In the kingdom because we are in Christ. Okay, so that is the format, that is the foundation of everything that we that we have been talking to. Now, I just want to make sure that you remember that these three characteristics, these three principles that we have been talking about over the last three episodes, they set the foundation for everything that we're gonna talk about now. Okay, this is the the the heartbeat, this is the reality of the kingdom, that it's where you live, you're living in it now, and you have and it's within you. In other words, you have free access to it ever at all times. Okay, now what we're gonna talk about is these four kingdom realities. Now, in my opinion, every single Christian, because again, this podcast is about being practical, this is where we really start getting practical, guys. Okay, so in every single, every single Christian, no matter for no matter how old they are, as far as how long they've been a Christian, from the moment they got born again to the moment that they go on to heaven and they and they go into glory, okay? The these are the four realities that every single Christian should be experiencing on an everyday basis. If not on an everyday basis, at least a couple of these on an everyday basis. I'm gonna make this even more simple. You should be experiencing at least a couple of these every single day. If you are not at the best, you should be experiencing all of these every single day. But if you do not experience these every single day, or at least a couple of these every single day, then you are not active in your Christian life. So if you want a practical template, if you want a practical blueprint, a practical picture of Nathan, am I living the Christian life? Am I experiencing everything that the Christian life has to offer? In my opinion, if you are not experiencing these four realities that we're gonna be talking about over the next couple of episodes, you are not experiencing everything that Christ has to offer. Now, I will even go a step further. There is a whole lot even more than these four realities. In my opinion, these four realities are probably the most are probably the foundation. This is the stuff that you should be experiencing, experiencing at all times. Okay, okay. But if you are not, the bare minimum of what Christ is is providing for you, you will not be able to experience. Okay, so all that being said, to put this on a nicely package to base off what we've already talked about in the last three episodes. All four of these realities, all four of these realities, they are with you now. Okay? Which means if you're driving your car listening to this podcast, you should be experiencing them now. If you are sitting down listening, you should be experiencing them now, okay? You should not, and not only are should you be experiencing them now that they're freely accessible. Again, now. Okay? You should not go to bed tonight without experiencing these realities. Okay? So now let's go ahead and get into this. The first thing, the first kingdom reality that I believe that every Christian should be experiencing on an everyday basis basis is this concept of yielding. Now, um this one is really fresh to me because over the recently the Lord has instructed me to memorize Romans chapter six, and it's basically the sin chapter. It is um, I call it the sin chapter. I don't know if it's accepted as the sin chapter, but I call it the sin chapter because it's really all about navigating sin, right? Who we are in Christ when it comes to sin. And the Lord had me memorize Romans chapter six, and it and it has been very revelatory because when you memorize something in scripture, you're spending time trying to remember the wording of the scripture scriptures, and while you're spending time trying to remember the wording, you're digesting it, you're chewing it, you're thinking about it, you're meditating on it. What does it say in Joshua? I believe it's 1 9. Do not let the book of the law depart out of your mouth, but meditate therein day and night, and this is how you make your way prosperous. Okay, that's basically the Nathan translation. Okay, I didn't have it prepared to say. So, but the point is that the meditation, the thinking, the chewing, the the confessing, all of this is about in uh ingraining yourself in the scriptures so you reap, so you bring forth revelation. This is how this works. So while I was spending time meditating on these on these verses, trying to quote and trying to memorize Romans chapter six, which I have been successful at, I have received many such revelation concerning the dealing of sin, but specifically, specifically when it comes to this concept of yielding. Okay? Now, if you look at Romans chapter six, which is where a whole lot of this comes from, if you look at Romans chapter six and you uh go through it, starting in verse 15. There might be a couple in the beg uh in the beginning portions of chapter six, but I believe all of it, if not most of it, is from 15 on to verse 23. When we're talking about when we're in Romans chapter six, there are two main words that are used constantly throughout Romans chapter six. Two main words that are used constantly in the King James Version, and then these two words are obedience and yielding. Okay? The word obedience, okay, the word obedience also is mentioned about four times. Okay. Um, sorry, the word obey is mentioned four times, the word obedience is mentioned one time. So the concept of obedience or obeying, that is mentioned as a total of five times in uh Romans chapter six. Now, when you get to the word yielding, which is very interesting, the word yielding, yielding or yield, or that concept of yielding, that is also mentioned five times. So in the last portions of Romans chapter six, the last half, the two main words, obedience and yielding, both are mentioned at the ex mentioned at the same number of times. In other words, they share responsibility in this chapter, in this chapter that deals with sin. Okay? And so the question is which one's more important? That's probably not the best question to ask, which one is more important? Probably the best question to ask is which one comes first, right? If you know the definitions or the logical simple definitions of yielding and obedience, you can probably assume which one is which one comes first. But to give you scripture, look at Romans chapter 6, verse 16. Okay, well, let me start in 15. Okay, and it says this what then shall we sin because we are not under the law but under grace, God forbid. So it's basically saying that we're not under the law, because it said in verse 14, for sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under the law but under grace. So what Paul is saying here is that because we are under grace, because we are in the New Testament, because we are the new covenant church, sin does not have dominion over us. If you need more clarity on that, read the entirety of Romans chapter 6, because it's literally says, for is it literally says that for um any man that is dead is free from sin. Well, what would mean we're dead? We're dead in Christ, we're dead to this. Anyone that is dead or dead in Christ, okay, um, like like we've been our old man has been crucified with Christ, right? That we be that and as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we should walk in newness of life. So that's what that means by dead, not actual dead, but what that our old man has been crucified with Christ, and because they have been crucified, our old man is dead. So we are dead to sin. What does it say? I think it's 2 Corinthians, where it says, The old has passed away, behold, all things have become new. This is the same theme that we're talking about, okay? Now, look, and but in verse 14 says, For sin shall not have dominion over you. Why? Because the sin nature, that old man, is dead. It died when you received Christ, right? We've been buried with him in baptism, raised up. Okay? Now, um, but look at verse 15. What then? So sin is no dominion over us, because we're not under the law, we're under grace. Verse 15, what then? Shall we sin because we are not under the law but under grace? God forbid. In other words, okay, so if if sin does not have no dominion over us, and we're not under the law, but we're under grace, then that means we can just freely sin and do whatever we want. Notice what Paul says, God forbid. Look and look what he says in verse 16, which is where I want to get to. Know you not that to whom you yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants you are to whom you obey, whether of sin unto death or obedience unto righteous. So here's the point, the main concept that to whom you yield yourselves servants to obey. Which word came first? Yield or obey, yield. So the whole point, guys, is that when we are as Christians, when we are living our life, this goes beyond sin, guys. Now, of course, Romans chapter 6 is focusing on sin, but this goes beyond sin. You go, if you spend any time in church, if you spend any time in the Christian world, you will say, God bought you with a high price, he owns your life, which I totally agree with, he owns you, He provide, He provides for you, so you should obey Him. And yet, and what we get from the Christian world is that we should be obeying, we should obey. I mean, you've heard this scripture, this thing, this um concept um uh preached that and I think I think it's 1 Samuel, where Saul was being criticized by Samuel because Samuel told Saul, do not perform the sacrifices, do not perform the rituals until I get there. Well, Saul was freaking out because Samuel was taking his time, and so he disobeyed, he performed the sacrifices, and then because he disobeyed, Samuel basically prophesied to him that at this day, because you did not follow the rules, you did not follow the law, you did not follow the instructions, God is ripping the kingdom from you, right? We remember that story, right? And we have this big, fabulous, wonderful uh statement where it says obeience is better than sacrifice, right? So we hear people say we have to we have to obey, we have to obey, we have to obey, la la la la, have to obey. And I'm not against that, but I am against everyone telling us to obey, but not teaching us how to. You've heard me say this on this podcast. That is one of my pet peeves when we say these big powerful statements, but we don't instruct us on how to do it. So, yes, I'm a firm believer as Christians, we should obey we should be obeying Christ, we should be obeying what he tells us to do, we should be obeying what the scriptures tells us to do. I totally get it. I understand, I am on board, but the problem is that how do we do that? Because here's the thing: while I was quoting, while I was memorizing Romans chapter 6, I had this huge impressive impression that the mandate of the New Testament where we live is not obedience, it's a major part of it, but the focus of it is not obedience. The main focus, obedience being the main focus was in the Old Testament. Why? Because they had a law, they had a set of rules that they had to obey. If they did not follow the law, if they did not follow the rules, they were not blessed. Look at Malachi chapter 3, look at Deuteronomy chapter 28. If they did not follow the law, they were not blessed. But that is not how it works here in the New Testament. We have already been blessed with every spiritual blessing and every place is in Christ Jesus, right? We have been grafted into the vine. We have access to the kingdom, everything that pertains to life and godliness. We lack no spiritual gifting or endowment. Everything that we need that is in Christ, we have access to because we are in Christ. His reality is our realities, right? We you get the whole point. We have access to all that now, not based on what we have done or based on what we have accomplished, it's based on who we're grafted to, who we're connected to, who we are united with, and that is Christ. But the point is this. We've been told to obey, obey, obey, but we haven't been told how to. Well, how do you obey? You yield, you learn to yield. See, here's the difference. In the Old Testament, God would say, obey the law, but that he couldn't, but there was no help. There was no assistance. It was literally, and this is br this is very straightforward and blunt, but it was literally all God can do is just sit there and watch. Sit there and watch and see if they obey. If they obey, they got blessed. If they didn't obey, they got cursed. Read Malachi chapter 3. Right? That was the mandate of the Old Testament. But now in the New Testament, God's not saying obey me, obey me, obey me. What's he saying? Yield to me. What's the difference? Obedience means that I tell you to do something and I can easily walk away, be gone for a certain amount of time, and come back and see if the objective was accomplished, if you did what I was doing. Growing up, growing up, my parents, especially my dad, he would say, Take out the trash while I'm playing a video game. Okay, what would happen coming back in about an hour? I'm still playing the video game. Was the trash taken out? Most likely not. Okay, please pray for me. But but the whole point is that my parents would say, Do this, they would leave, come back, and the job is not done, right? Because they were demanding obedience, but there was no assistance. Now, granted, this is not parenting advice. I need to learn to do it on my own. Okay, there you go. But in the New Testament, that's not how God operates. He does not say, Don't sin. He does not say tithe. He does not say love your neighbor. He doesn't just say that. What does he do? He actually tells us and shows us and equips us on how to do it. This is where we get to the obedience piece. How do we obey? We have to learn to yield. So if you are struggling, if you're struggling in today's society, in today's Christian walk, if you're struggling on obeying what the Lord's telling you to do, you don't have an obedience problem. You have a yielding problem. Okay? It's not an obey, it's it's not it's not, oh my gosh, God's telling me to do this, God's telling me to go to Ethiopia. Big thing. God's telling me to do this, God's telling me to do that. And yet you are struggling on obeying, maybe because you're not sure if God's actually telling you to do it. Plausible. Maybe there's a whole lot of things that are popping up around you that is actually the evidence that is contrary to what the Lord is telling you to do. Plausible. The point is, guys, is that if you know that the Lord is telling you to do something and you're struggling to do it, it's not an obedience issue. It's not even a rebellion issue. Okay? It is a yielding issue. In other words, yielding, obedience is just do it, they can leap, come back and see if the objective is accomplished. And if it's not, they might get angry. But in but in the New Testament, in the yielding part, it it's it's like a nudge. It's not with words, it's not with words, obey me, it's with my presence, let me nudge you, let me guide you, let me let me um lead you. That's the yielding. It's not when you someone says obey, it's all on you. It's literally all in your camp. The ball is in your court. But when we're talking about yielding, it's not about it the whole thing is on your shoulders. It's that God is coming alongside you and saying, Let me do this with you, let me yield, let me let me tell you, let me give you the direction, let me give you the steps, let me give you the words to say, let me give you the ministry, let me do the whole thing. I just want you to, I just want you to be fluid. I just want you to be not be rigid, not be so stubborn, but when I say, when I nudge you, I want you to be so tender to my touch, so knowledgeable of my ways, so acquainted with my presence that when I just whisper, you are you your ears perk up, you know who I am, you know my nature, and you just move. Right? Does that make sense? I hope this is this this speaks more of relationship in the New Testament because that is literally how God moves in the New Testament. He's not barking orders, comes back and sees if it was done. That's not who he is. What's he doing? He is whispering, he is leading, he is guiding with a tender hand, he is moving, and he wants his children to move with him. Not because he's yelling and barking orders for obedience. No, it's because we have become enamored and so aware of the way he does things, we just naturally move with him. So my so the whole point of this portion of the podcast, what we've been talking about, you should be yielding to the Holy Spirit every single day. And what does that mean? You should be inquiring. You should be, you should be God, what is your plan for me today? Okay, now that's very exaggerated, because I don't do that, okay? But I do wake up, I do wake up praying the spirit, speak in tongues. I do not a whole lot of time, but just to get my mind uh in tune. I listen to a pod I listened to another podcast by Nancy Defrayne. Totally recommend listening to listen to her, she's phenomenal. Phenomenal okay, but to get my mind to get my posture in alignment, but I'm constantly and I I do my best. I'm not 100% successful at this, but I do my best to spend my day in an awareness. Kenneth Copeland calls it practicing the presence of God. I I do I spend most I do my best to mentally think, okay, God is constantly with me, He is constantly for me, and to have my spiritual antenna, if you will, up, ready to receive any direction, any any correction, guidance, instruction that the Holy Spirit will want me to do. Okay. There have been times where in my church in worship service where we will be worshiping and and and the Lord will just nudge me. I want you to run. Okay? I want you to run and I would run. There have been times where I might be walking, um, I might be around work and the Lord will nudge me and say, I want you to pray for that person. Okay, it's not saying do this now, it is a nudge. Okay, but if I am fluid, if I'm yielding, if I'm flexible, all he has to do is nudge, and what happens? I move. Did you notice what happens? He's he's he's not demanding obedience, he's just asking us to be yielding, to be fluid. And if you yield well, you will obey well. So again, I just want to release this over you. You don't have an obedience issue. You don't have an obedience struggle, you have a yielding struggle, you have a yielding issue. How do we yield? We learn his presence, we learn his aware, we become aware of him. Okay, in closing, go with me to Galatians chapter 5, and we're gonna look at verse 24. Okay, sorry. Yeah, verse 24. And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. This is basically a repeat of what we talked about in Romans chapter 6. Okay, if we live in the spirit, let us also walk in the spirit, right? So if we live in the spirit, we shall walk in the spirit. It says in verse 16, this I say then, walk in the spirit and you shall now fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the flesh, okay, I'm not gonna go into that, but verse 16, does it say then walk in the spirit and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh? So, in order to not fulfill the lust of the flesh, in order to not do the flesh, we have to walk in the spirit. Well, what's the point? In other words, it says again in Romans, whoever you yield yourself servants to obey, his servants you are to whom you obey. So if you yield to the flesh, you will obey the flesh. If you yield to the spirit, the Holy Spirit, you will obey the Holy Spirit. That's the whole point. Okay? So the question is, how do we determine who we yield to? So again, this is not an obedience issue, this is a yielding issue. So how do we fix it? How do we determine who we yielding to? Look at verse 8, chapter 6, Galatians chapter 6, verse 8. For he that sows to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption, but he that sows to the spirit shall of the spirit reap life everlasting. What's the point? The point is this who you sow to, who you give attention to, who you spend time with is the place in which you will reap from. Okay? So let me put to you this way if you spend more time, if you sow, if you pay, if you are attentive to the ways of the flesh, that is what you're building a reputation with, that is what you're building a connection with, that's what you're building a relationship with. So that when you when it comes time to yield, that is the thing that you will yield, you will most likely yield to. Why? Because there is an awareness connection with it. Okay, if you want to be better at yielding to the Holy Spirit, you have to we have to learn to sow to the Holy Spirit, to sow to the spirit, spend time in his presence, spend time in his word, spend time in prayer, all that. Okay, so I know that that was pretty quick, but that's literally the legit simple answer. How do we yield to God? Okay, we have to become more acquainted with him. Scripture says, My sheep know my voice, right? We have to become more acquainted, more aware, more current with him. The plea, the the part of your life that you're most uh aware of is the part of your life that you will yield with, okay? And depending on who you yield to will determine the outcome, right? Whosoever you yield yourself servants to obey, his servants to whom you obey. Whether obedience to sin unto death or obedience to righteousness unto holiness, right? If if we obey sin, we reap death. If we uh obey, if we obey righteousness or the yielding of the Holy Spirit, we reap everlasting life, right? Okay, and this is not an end of the game going to heaven type thing. This is death on earth, still going to heaven, or everlasting on earth, still going to heaven. Okay? It would be horrible if your life is hell on earth and you were robbed of all the heavenly and glorious opportunities that the Lord has for you because we did not learn how to yield well. So I hope this has probably relieved some of the pressure. God is not saying obey me. What's he saying? Get to know me, become more aware of me. So when I brush over your shoulder, when I nudge you in a specific direction, you yield, and the yielding will inevitably move you into obeying. Okay? So I hope this has been a blessing to you. I hope this has been um beneficial for you. And again, yielding is everything that we're supposed to be doing as Christians. We should be experiencing this every single day. Whether him telling us to go talk to someone, or maybe him or maybe him saying, Do not sign the dotted line. I have a better plan for you. Something as simple as something as you should probably you should probably not eat that, okay? Or you maybe you should not be watching that. It is everyday lingo, everyday reality of the Christian. We should constantly be yielding to the movement, to the instruction, to the guidance of the Holy Spirit. If we are not intentionally being yielded, if we are not yielding intentionally to the movement and flows of the Holy Spirit, we are not living the Christian life that we're supposed to be. So I highly recommend that we that we learn, that we gain, that this is of importance, that we need to learn to yield and move with them. How do we do that? We become more acquainted, more present, more current with it. Spend time with him in prayer, reading scriptures, and just practicing uh awareness that he is constantly with us. I hope this has been a blessing to you. I hope it's been great, and I hope you have the good rest of your day. God bless.