03/28/21 Christianity Is an Amazing Religion (Church)
03/28/21 Christianity Is an Amazing Religion (Church)
Your problem is not drugs or issues, but hatred of the heart. Don't judge yourself or others. The Son is the image of the invisible God.
TODAY’S SERVICE: YouTube | Facebook | Periscope/Twitter | Audio podcast at links below
Church with Jesse Lee Peterson, Sunday, March 28, 2021: To an activist couple: Be careful out there! A "drug addict" worries about the future. The problem is not drugs, but the hatred of the heart. A young lady overreacts to issues, believing her thoughts, and then judges herself to punish herself. Christianity is an amazing and simple religion; but a Buddhist cannot connect with the Father without believing in the Son. Let nothing be too important to you — not even grandkids.
Biblical Question: Colossians 1: 15-17 says the Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. What does that mean?
TIME STAMPS
0:00 Stream start
0:50 Welcome to Church
2:53 Buddhist
6:49 Agnostic
8:51 Activist couple
18:48 'Drug addict' – CLIP: Drugs Are Not Your Problem (10 mins)
30:42 Christians' wrong focus
34:47 Date gone wrong?
39:16 Overreact, feel guilty
48:39 Husband talks
50:36 Christianity vs others
55:51 God will draw you
58:14 Samuel has changed
1:01:56 Buddhism vs Christianity
1:07:27 Nice family
1:08:40 Attached to grandkids
1:13:20 Non-Christian employees
1:15:51 Biblical Q: Colossians
1:21:34 Blow your afro off
1:23:39 Clarifying activism
1:25:03 Wish others well
1:28:02 What is compassion?
1:30:20 Satan shoes? Speak up!
1:34:59 Don't be afraid
1:35:42 Announcements
1:36:21 Support BOND
Church Notes
(We started Church stream a few minutes after 11:00 AM U.S. Pacific Daylight Time today.)
Jesse greets first-time visitors after we begin. One man is a Buddhist, and is disappointed in the leftist academic Buddhists here in America. He was raised Hindu by sort of hippie parents. Jesse asks him what good it’s done for him to be a Buddhist.
Another man, age 22, raised Christian, became agnostic, but he wants to be a Christian. He describes endless arguments with his father.
An activist couple: Be careful out there!
A third man seeks to bring Christianity back to L.A., speaking the truth without anger. Jesse asks him if he’s still getting into trouble, because he gets in people’s faces, he says. (Later he says that he does not, but they come up to him. They hold rallies and others come up to them.) He does not know why he does it this way, but thinks that it’s God. In talking about people’s reactions, he says he catches more hate from the right than the left.
The man’s girlfriend also talks about what she’s doing alongside her boyfriend in being an activist. They’re trying to “redpill” people and wake them up. They do political protests, and catch anger and threats. He says he loves it. But Jesse tells him that he’s not supposed to be loving it, and urges him to be careful out there.
(Later, toward the end of service, he clarifies that he’s thankful and not out looking for a high.)
A "drug addict" worried about the future
CLIP: Drugs Are Not Your Problem (10 mins)
A man says that his parents do not want to talk with him. So Jesse urges him not to hold it against them. Forgive them so that it does not matter. Just move on. He says that he has a hard time forgiving in general. His fiancée’s family, half of them are not Christian. He’s worried he may tear the family apart, like he did his own, with past “nonsense” with drugs. He “just got out of the hospital again,” talking about professionals addressing his “mental health.” Their idea of “help” makes things worse, so he does not trust them.
Jesse asks: Which is worse, being a drug addict, or to hate? Hate is worse than being a drug addict. Jesse urges him to overcome the hate, and the drug problem will disappear. Once you have love in your heart, that’s the power of God within you, and you can overcome all things. You’re focused on the wrong thing; the drugs are not the problem. Forgive yourself.
Jesse makes a statement about Christianity. Anyone with anger is not a Christian. After the people had done all kinds of evil to Jesus, he said on the cross, Forgive them. So with this “drug addict,” salvation is of the heart. Love people who do evil by realizing they can’t help themselves, just as you cannot. You’re no better than the person you hate, who hates you or does evil. Evil runs deep. Forgive them so God can forgive you and make you free.
It’s not the drugs; it’s the hatred of the heart
You’re not a drug addict. That’s just what you got into to deal with the conflict. You are a son of God. God is not holding it against you that you do drugs. He’s trying to change your heart, to have you come back to him, so he can take care of you. But Satan is in control of your life right now.
Jesse asks him: How do you feel about yourself? Right now, he’s proud of himself, because about the only thing he’s doing right is… trying again to straighten out his life. Let the anger go, and you’ll be fine. Your focus is on the wrong thing. Stop calling yourself a drug addict, and return to the Father. The world titles things to make you think that’s who you are. You’ve just turned away from the Father by resenting your parents. So forgive them, and let it go. Stop judging yourself.
11:35 Jesse comments more about Christians: Their focus is on the wrong thing. They tell you to stop drinking or doing drugs, but that’s not the first thing. Wish those people well, and live your life — even if they don’t like you. Don’t judge them either. Do the Silent Prayer, and God will help you.
All of that stuff is from the ego, Satan’s nature. There’s nothing in life that’s a big deal. Doubt every thought, and you’ll be fine. Don’t try to make people happy or sad.
It’s very simple. The so-called experts have no clue. Focus on the heart — not the drugs.
Relax; if you force yourself not to do the drugs, you’ll do something else. Your faith has to turn back to the Father.
(Jesse talks with him more toward the end of service.)
More questions
A man thinks that his anger is gone; he went on a date, but the girl showed up in a double mask, and so he soon walked away. He got a feeling of joy, and now feels worried it comes from a bad place. Jesse urged him that it’s enough to see it; if you’re on an ego trip, don’t make a big deal of it. Satan is always trying to get back in, feed your imagination and tempt you. All thoughts in the head are lies.
"You’re a mess!" Young woman overreacts, then judges herself.
Jesse then talks with a young lady who overreacts at times. Once you realize you’re overreacting, why not calm down? Her husband told her to calm down, and she says she tried, but it was difficult, thinking about the future. Know that all thoughts are lies all the time. Do you really believe that all thoughts are lies? She does not. Jesse did not call her back when she called in a state of emergency. God is with you. Trust God.
She feels guilty about overreacting. Just notice you acted like a fool, but don’t judge yourself for acting like a fool. Otherwise you’re still locked into darkness. She feels she deserves to feel guilty, and wants to punish herself. It’s enough to know you should stop acting out.
Chrsitianity is simple, but Satan and the wrong teaching complicates it. Just like with the drug addiction, it’s the lack of loves that’s the issue. Jesse reiterates: I’m not your emergency doctor. The husband doesn’t want to deal with her sometimes, but it’s his job to be patient and honest no matter how she’s acting.
Christianity is an amazing religion.
Christianity is an amazing religion; if Christ forgave the major things done to him, why can’t we forgive the little stuff we deal with? It’s no big deal to be a drug addict, slut or slutmaker; don’t make it a big deal; then you can overcome it. It’s amazing that God allows us to be Christian.
A young lady asks if all other religions also have the same premise. Once you’re born again, you become Christlike. You have peace, and start dealing with things. But the lady thinks that there is a little bit of that in every religion. If the Buddhists don’t believe that Jesus is the Son of God, then they can’t believe in the Father. You can’t be a good human being unless you have the Source working inside you. People who are seekers realize that something is wrong, no matter which religion they’re raised in.
We’re not in control of anything.
Samuel talks a little bit about overreaction among his relatives, starting with his mother. Once you change, even your family members will seek to build an army against you. He does not judge his mother for tripping out for no reason; he realized that women do need men. In the past, he’d have reacted like his mother, screaming and throwing things. We need love back in the world; there’s too much hate, and overreaction. If they can’t control you by yelling at you, they’ll offer you food.
More about Buddhism vs Christianity
The Buddhist man says Buddhists think of Jesus as a totally compassionate man. In response, Jesse says that Christ was not compassionate at all; a compassionate person is a weak, emotional person. Christ is dispassionate. So then the man says that Buddhism is about detachment. But it’s about the spirit, and being born again; you can fake detachment.
How can you let go of anger if God does not take it away from you. It won’t be taken away until you see that you’re wrong for hating, for playing God. Buddha can’t do that.
(Toward the end of service, Ermias clarifies what Jesse means by “compassion.”)
Let go of your grandkids
Jesse then talks with a lady Rebeccah (sp). She asks how to distinguish between God and Satan’s thoughts. Sometimes thoughts try to make you fix something right away rather than wait and see. In overreacting, you cause things to happen that did not have to happen. She sometimes overreacts, so she is not over her anger. She says she wants to see her special, cute grandkids. It’s too important to her. We can’t let anything be so important that it controls us. Kids don’t like it when you smother over them. Do the Silent Prayer. We can’t change ourselves.
A man runs a business, working with a lot of non-Christian employees. Live in the present, have a wait-and-see attitude, and God will guide you in how to deal with them. One thing may work in one moment, but not in the next. Life is about living in the present. Don’t get angry. If they want to leave, let them. You’ve got to live in the present. Don’t even plan how you’ll deal with them. It’s much easier that way, because God is guiding you.
Biblical Question
12:20 Jesse finally gets to his Biblical Question from Colossians (Jesse jokes about James correcting his pronunciation of the book name). Colossians 1: 15 says: The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. What does that mean?
Jesse asks someone to read Collossians 1: 15-17.
As a side note, Jesse comments on the nappy hair of a woman at a press conference for Joe Biden. He and Mary talk about a part of the head blacks call “the kitchen.”
Jesse then clarifies that as long as you believe that Jesus is God, you won’t be able to get to the Father.
Closing questions and comments
The “drug addict” man asks how you accept people who reject the Son. Wish them well. Don’t hold it against them. Love your enemy; they can’t help it either. You live your life, and stop worrying what other people think. Stop hating yourself and others. Stay with the prayer.
Ermias asks how Jesse defines "compassion": It’s when you look at another person and feel something for that person.
God is renewing your mind, and you’re yourself again. Do the Silent Prayer; speak up but don’t resent.
Start speaking up; don't back down.
You’ve got to start speaking up. Jesse mentions some tennis shoes in honor of Satan, by a rapper Lil Nas X. And white people are now so afraid, and Asians (or Orientals) are accusing whites of racism. Start speaking up, and start businesses! Buy land! Don’t just be caught up with all this mess. Have a little space, and let God work your life. Don’t be afraid. Don’t be caught up in the world.
Christianity is one with the world now. Christians don’t have anybody in government representing them now. As a result, we’re losing our freedom of speech, unborn children, and the Second Amendment.
You have no room for anger. Christ was our perfect example of forgiveness.
ANNOUNCEMENT: We have our monthly Men’s Forum this Thursday, first Thursday of the month, April 1st, 2021, 7 PM at BOND in Los Angeles — for men only.
BOND INFO
Church with Jesse Lee Peterson is live every Sunday 11 AM U.S. Pacific Time at BOND in Los Angeles. Watch/listen online or join us in-person. Doors open at 10:30 AM. Church streams 11 AM through 12:30, Pacific Time. https://rebuildingtheman.com/church
Throwback Sunday Services premiere on BOND YouTube channel Wednesdays at 4 PM US Pacific Time (7 PM ET).
Contact BOND to schedule counseling, set up monthly donation, order books, or join our mailing list: Call 800-411-BOND (1-800-411-2663) or office 323-782-1980, hours Mon-Fri 9-4 PT (Los Angeles). https://rebuildingtheman.com/contact
CHURCH LINKS
AUDIO PODCAST: Apple | Spotify | Castbox | Podcast Addict | TuneIn | Stitcher | Deezer | Amazon | Google | RSS feed
VIDEO ARCHIVE: OLDER Services (2008-2010+) | RECENT Services (2016-present)
WATCH LIVE on YouTube | Facebook | Periscope | DLive | Trovo | Twitch
LISTEN LIVE on Jesse Lee Peterson’s radio player during Church on Sunday
SILENT PRAYER: SilentPrayer.video | Audio on SoundCloud