Introduction to Hamilton Corner and the Role of Believers as Ambassadors in a Dark World
Abraham Hamilton III Darkness is not an affirmative force. It simply reoccupies the space vacated by the light.
Abraham Hamilton III This is the, Hamilton Corner on American Family Radio.
Abraham Hamilton III It should be uncomfortable for a believer
Bishop EW Jackson to live as a hypocrite, delivering people
Abraham Hamilton III out of the bondage of mainstream media and the philosophies of this world.
Abraham Hamilton III God has called you and me to be his ambassadors even in this dark moment. Let's not miss our moment.
Abraham Hamilton III And now, the, Hamilton Corner.
Bishop EW Jackson And once again, folks, it is my pleasure, my honor, to be sitting in for Abraham Hamilton III.
The Importance of Christian Participation in Voting and Political Life as Stewards of the Nation
This is Bishop E.W. jackson. Great to be with you again today. And as always, thank you for your prayers, your support, your contributions, for all that you do to make this network possible and all that you do to support the whole constellation, the whole family of American Family association organizations that are, and supported and aided and helped, and are actually a part of the organization. We could not do it without you. So thank you very, very much. And of course we praise God for you because we know that the Lord put this in the heart of Brother Don many, many years ago. And, that seed, that vision has borne great fruit. And we're not done bearing fruit, folks. It's. And I really believe that, as Jesus said, our fruit will remain which is pleasing to Almighty God. Well, look, today I want to talk to you, about a subject and in a way that I rarely do. You know, we've got a big election coming up and we've talked about the various reasons why so many Christians across this country are not going to vote. Many aren't registered to vote. those that are registered, in fact, half are not registered to vote.
The Parable of the Talents: A Metaphor for Christian Engagement and Political Responsibility
Those who identify as believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, half of them are not registered to vote. Of those registered to vote, only half of those will show up. That's about par for the course for the general population. About half the population is unregistered. About half the population of registered voters actually votes. and of course we know that in off year elections and in local elections, the percentages drop rather remarkably. but Christian participation pretty much mirrors that, and it shouldn't. We ought to be first and foremost in casting our vote and participating, in the political life of our country as stewards of, of this nation's present and future. you know, I had never thought about this before and I'm trying to remember now who I heard make the analogy. But I thought, man, that, that really works.
The Consequences of Christian Inaction in Political and Cultural Life: A Call to Be Salt and Light
It really resonates with me, which is the parable of the talents. God said, the Christian who Doesn't vote. The Christian who doesn't get involved, the Christian who takes no interest in the. In the political and cultural life of the nation, is like the man who buried his talent in the ground. he just did nothing with it. What that suggests, of course, is that he did not value it and was not willing to put any time or energy or effort in growing and expanding it. all he did was to bury it, which is. I, mean, think about what that means. You bury something, what are you trying to do? You're trying to put it, away from you. You're trying to get it out of sight, out of mind. And I thought, boy, that is a really good analogy for what it means for a Christian not to vote, not to participate, not to get involved in what's going on in our nation. Because, after all, this is the nation in which you're going to raise your children. Well, now, not raising them, but in which your grandchildren are going to be raised. This, is a nation which your children are going to go to school, or my grandchildren will now go to school. And it seems to me that since we live in a free nation and you have an opportunity, in fact, you have an obligation to be salt and light.
Abominations to God: Examining Societal Issues and the Christian's Role in Impacting Culture
It seems to me that you want that salt and that light to be felt, particularly in those areas that, you know will affect you and affect your family. Right? I mean, that only makes sense. And of course, the. The. What happens in politics will intrude itself on our lives. It is coming home. There's no question about it. It's coming to your school, it's coming to your home. It's coming to your neighborhood. I liked what, I believe this was Brother Jonathan Falwell, because we're, in fact, we're going to be preaching, another town hall meeting, tomorrow. actually. Well, not tomorrow. Today, actually. We're going to be doing another town hall meeting in Virginia beach today. Because, you know, we have two referenda on the ballot. One that basically calls for unrestricted abortion up to the moment of birth, and another that enshrines homosexual marriage in the Virginia Constitution, both of which, in my view, are an abomination to God. We know the homosexual marriage is, but I would argue that snuffing out the life of an innocent unborn baby is equally an abomination to God. The Bible says in, Psalm, 139, I believe it's verse 16. But somewhere in there, all our days were fashioned, when as yet, there were none of them. And you have people Stepping in and snuffing out the days of, of this unborn child that God's already fashioned a plan for. I mean, what arrogance. What, what total hubris. What pride. I said people really do want to be their own God. That's. That's what that boils down to. And so we've got to make sure that we are impacting the culture and trying to move it in a direction that is pleasing to God, because these kinds of things we know are not pleasing to Him. And they cannot possibly bring a good harvest for the country. They can only bring the curse.
The Church's Abdication of Responsibility and the Devil's Influence in National Affairs
They can only bring a bad harvest. But for a Christian not to get involved is to disregard all of that and say, well, you know, whatever happens, happens. That's not the way God expects us to do it. Well, one of the things that I've mentioned every time I have a chance is I'm convinced that part of the reason why we are in the position we are in, because we are in the position we're in because the church at large, at least the body of born again Bible believing Christians, has abdicated its responsibility to get involved in these areas and has left it, frankly, to the devil to just hold sway. I mean, he is the God of this world. I don't want him to be the God of my country. I want America to be a blessed nation because our God is the Lord, not a cursed nation because our God is the devil.
The Ultimate Spiritual Explanation: The Failure of Discipleship Among Pastors and Its Impact
And, again, many explanations for why this has happened and m. Why so many Christians have disengaged. But I'm convinced of this as the ultimate spiritual explanation. The failure of discipleship. The failure of discipleship. That the pastors themselves have not been discipled. I know, boy, that's a strong statement. And of course, I'm not talking about every pastor. There were many wonderful pastors in our country. Praise God for them. The man I'm sitting in for, Abraham Hamilton iii, I have no doubt, is a wonderful pastor. And we have some of them on our air. Wonderful pastors, Pastor Jeff Schrieve, Pastor Parker. I mean, wonderful men of God. So we know that they're great. And there are many, many others. Obviously I just mentioned the ones who happen to be on our air. There are many great pastors out there, but we know they are in the distinct minority. According to George Barner, only 10% of pastors in America, 10%, believe that the Bible is the authoritative word of God in all matters of faith and practice. And only 10% of that. 10%. Only 10% of that 10% are willing to say so and willing to apply, in other words, to the, to the issues of the day. They believe as we believe, but they're not willing to say so from the pulpit. They're not willing to instruct their congregation in these matters. M. And I think part of the reason is that they've never been discipled themselves.
The Distinction Between Churchgoers and Disciples: Focusing on Maturation and Purpose in the Body of Christ
I mean, we entertain Christians, we program. You know, we have a lot of great programs for Christians and we a lot of great programs for children. but we're not doing a whole lot of discipling. I want to remind you, Jesus didn't say go into all the world and make churchgoers. And of course we should go to church. So I'm in no way suggesting that going to church is worthless or something we shouldn't do. It is something we very much should do. But we should do that as a byproduct of who we are as believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, not the definition of who we are. A byproduct of who we are. I mean, we're told not to forsake the assembling of ourselves together, as is the matter of some, but all the more as we see the day approaching. So we don't forsake the assembling of ourselves together. Why? Because we are followers of the Lord Jesus Christ. I mean, church is really not an end in itself. The end is the maturation and discipleship of the body of Christ to fulfill its purpose in the earth. That's really the end. That's really what it's all about. Encouraging people in their relationship with God. Encouraging people in the word of God, encouraging people in prayer and praise and worship and honor. Encouraging people in righteous conduct. That's really the end result. Not going to church.
The Significance of Church Attendance as a Byproduct of Christian Identity and Faith
Going to church is what we do because we are followers of the Lord Jesus Christ. And church ought to be a place where that who we are is affirmed. Ah. And strengthened and that we grow in that faith.
Exploring the Term 'Christian' in the Bible and Comparing It to the Word 'Disciple'
But you know, let me give you an interesting fact. I said Jesus didn't say go into all the world and make churchgoers. Let me give you an interesting fact. Do you know how many times the word Christian is mentioned in the Bible? Three times. Three times. Now by the way, I'm not saying we shouldn't call ourselves Christians, so please don't jump to that conclusion. No, it's a perfectly appropriate word. But two times it was mentioned by non Christians. The people of Antioch, the Bible says in the Book of Acts, were the first ones to begin to call us Christians. And I think it was really intended as sort of making fun of people who were trying to belittle Christ. And I don't think it stuck at that point. But that's what they were calling us. And then I'm pretty sure it's Festus who said to, the Apostle Paul, you almost persuade me to be a Christian. but he wasn't a Christian. He was saying he was using that maybe in the same way the people of Antioch, were using it as kind of a. Yeah, you, you. You almost persuade me to be one of those little Christ like you. But I don't think he was saying that with a great deal of respect because he didn't become a Christian. I think he was kind of making a little bit of fun of Paul. Yeah, you, you know, Paul, you're very persuasive. You almost got me. Not quite, but almost. I said Festus. I always get confused with which. Which one of these it was. It was actually King Agrippa who said that it was King Agrippa, in the 26th chapter of Acts. and so the Antiochians, the only Christian to use the phrase, to the word I should say Christian, was the Apostle Peter, where he says, if we suffer as a Christian or suffer as Christians, or. Let me find that exact reference. I'll, get that in a moment and may come to it when we come back from the break. But that's. That was the only time, the only time that the word Christian is used by a Christian. Now, just think about that for a second. Now, why am I saying this? Well, you say, well. Well, Bishop Jackson. Yeah, here it is. First Peter 4:18. If anyone suffers as a Christian. Well, Bishop Jackson, if you're not saying somehow it's wrong, well, it can't be wrong. The Apostle Peter uses it. He says, if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in this matter. That's the only time a Christian uses that word. Now, what I'm saying is not that there's something wrong with it, because we all call ourselves Christians. I am a Christian. You are a Christian if you are a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ. But I want to. I want to, compare that to the word disciple and decipher the difference. This is Bishop E.W.
Discipleship vs. Christian Status: Understanding the Action-Oriented Nature of Following Jesus Christ
jackson. I'm in for Abraham Hamilton III. You're listening to the Hamilton Corner standby. We want to come back and talk about discipleship and the implications of that. Back in a moment.
Abraham Hamilton III Hello. I'm Abraham Hamilton iii. Did you Know that this content is listener supported. Without people like you, this podcast would not exist. That's why we need you. A generous monthly gift of any amount will help sustain American Family Radio and specifically this podc. Please consider becoming a monthly financial partner today by, visiting afr.net give that's afr.net give.
Abraham Hamilton III Shining light into the darkness. This is the Hamilton Corner on American Family Radio.
Abraham Hamilton III Welcome back.
Bishop EW Jackson I'm sitting in for Abraham Hamilton III. This is Bishop E.W. jackson. As always, great to be with you. Now, you may be thinking, well, if you are not trying to denigrate the word Christian, what is your point? first of all, I'm just pointing out a biblical fact which I just shared with you, which I dare say a lot of Christians do not know, that the only time a Christian uses the word Christian in scripture, a Christian now only the only time is the Apostle Peter, in 1st Peter 4:16. That's it. That is the only time, 1st Peter 4:16. If anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in this matter. Now, why, then why am I pointing this out? Why am I saying this? Because I want you to compare that to the word that is most frequently used to describe who we are. And you guess what that word is. Disciple. Disciple. The word disciple is used 261 times. Now, if you count it yourself, you might find, well, it's 263. Or you might find, well, well, I only counted 258, but it's in that I've tried this a couple of times, a couple different ways, and there are sometimes that the word disciple is used where it doesn't really apply to Christians per se. So I've gotten it down to 261. But whatever number you come up with, if you count it, imagine between say 261 and 1. And here's why I think the word of God does this. Christian is a status word. It is a word that describes our identity in Christ. That's why I say, there's nothing wrong with the word Christian. We are indeed little Christ, if you will, little anointed ones following the Anointed One. We are following Him. We are seeking to be like Him. We are emulating Him. We are seeking to be obedient to Him. We are seeking to fulfill his plan and purpose for our lives. We're seeking to be, play our role in his kingdom. We are part of the Body of Christ. There is no question about it. We are Christians. But it's a Status word. And disciple to me is an action word, because the disciple describes one who thinks, speaks and acts like the one who discipled him. It's an action word. You know, people can think of themselves as Christians simply because they go to church, but I guarantee you that for many Christians, I, trust you, are not among them. All of you, but you in particular. Yes. You listening to me right now? If I called you a disciple of Jesus Christ, you wouldn't say, oh, no, wait a minute, wait a minute. I'm not Peter, James and Jon. Don't confuse me with them. No. The Bible makes clear that all of the followers of Jesus Christ were called disciples. Not just the 12. The 12 were made apostles. But Jesus Christ called all of his followers disciples. That means if you are truly a Christian, you're supposed to be a disciple of Jesus Christ. Now, Jesus defined that in Jon, chapter 8, verse 32, where he said, actually, ah, verses really 8, 30 through 32, where he said, if you abide in my word, then are you my disciples indeed?
The Mandate to Make Disciples: Teaching All Nations to Observe Christ's Commands and Adopt Kingdom Culture
Which, of course, the implication is, if you don't abide in my word, you are not my disciple indeed. Oh, wait a minute, wait a minute, Bishop. Well, what if I'm born again? He said, if you abide in my word, then are you my disciples indeed? So the question would be, okay, you're born again. Praise God. Wonderful. Congratulations. That's a wonderful thing. Are you abiding in the word? Well, no. Well, then you are not his disciple indeed. You see the distinction I'm making? You could. You could actually be a Christian and not truly qualify as what God intends you to be. Which is a disciple of Jesus Christ. As I said, Jesus didn't even say, go into all the world and make Christians. He said, go into all the world and make disciples. People who think, speak and act like me. That's really what he was saying. And then he added to that which. Which I love this. and I think most people don't get the distinction here. But he added to that, teaching them. I'm going directly to it so I can read it exactly as it reads. I'm reading from the new King James Version rather than the old, but they read essentially the same. He says, go, therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, Baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you. Teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you. All things? All things. Not just some things, all things. Everything I've taught you you teach them now that word nations. If you've heard me teach on this, that word nations, there are two words that refer to so what, People, groups, or governmental entities. One is kingdom. As Jesus said, a kingdom divided itself against itself, cannot stand. That is the word basilea. And that's a word that really refers to a state or an organized,
Bishop EW Jackson political entity, a city state, an empire, a kingdom. but the word nations here is the word ethnos. Ethnos, that is a word that refers to people, groups, tribes, ethnicities, groups of people who are culturally bound together rather than governmentally bound together. You know, I'm clear that what Jesus is saying here, you go into all the world and you tell all these tribes and all these ethnic groups that have all their own ways and all their own thoughts and all their own ideas. You teach them to observe what I told you. In other words, your little ethnic identity pales in significance to what Jesus Christ has taught you. So your ethnos may say one thing, but if Jesus says something different, you're supposed to adopt that, not. Not what your ethnos or your ethnicity says. Your ethnic group says. These people have all kinds of traditions and all kinds of ideas and all kinds of customs. They do not comport to the word of God. And as the disciple of Jesus Christ, see, you can either be a status Christian that comports with everything the ethnos tells you because you want to fit in there, or you can be a disciple of Jesus Christ that says, no, no, no, I am conforming to what thus says the Lord, and that is my culture. That is my identity. That is how I see the world, not the way my ethnic group tells me I'm supposed to see the world.
Living as a Disciple: Conforming to Christ's Ways Above Ethnic, Cultural, or Political Identifications
So I'm convinced that that's what Jesus was saying. You go break all that up and you teach them a whole new culture. I call it kingdom culture. You teach them to think the way I think, to speak the way I speak, and to behave the way I behave. Now, being a disciple, then, is far more impactful than simply claiming the status of a Christian. Yes, I am a Christian, but I live the life of a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ, which means I'm seeking to conform my ways to his ways. I'm not seeking to conform my ways to somebody, says, well, you know, you're black. You're supposed to think like this and behave like this. No, I'm a Christian. I'm supposed to think like this and behave like this. Or you're Irish, you're supposed to think like this and behave like this. No, I'm a Christian. I think like this and behave like this. I'm a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ. I think it behaved like this. And where those two are incompatible, there's not even a contest. I am not going to conform my life to some political party, some ethnic group, some racial group, in order to be accepted. I'm going to conform my life to what the word of God says because I want God to be pleased. And Paul said, if I would please men, I would not be the servant of Christ. See, I think that's where this voting thing comes in. We're supposed to go and vote as disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ. We are casting spiritual seed when we vote. We are carrying out our responsibilities as his disciples and his representatives in the earth when we vote. And I think in many ways that's been lost. Yeah, I happen to identify with the Republican Party politically, but that's not what drives me. That's not what motivates me. I am motivated by the word of God. I'm motivated by what the Lord says is right. Whatever God says is right is right. Whatever God says is wrong is wrong. And I'm not compromising that for political expediency, which both parties would certainly want you to do. And I've experienced it. Oh, you ought to go along with this because the Republican Party needs this. Well, I'm not going along with it. Well, but you don't, know. I do understand. Well, yeah, but see. No, I don't see, because I already see what Jesus said, and that's all I need to know. I said I wouldn't vote for a Muslim. I told you when I was running for office, I had Republicans telling me, oh, you got to go to the mosque. You got to go to the mosque. You got to go talk to the Muslims. No, I don't. But none of you do. Yeah, well, I'm not. Now, if they want to vote for me, that's up to them. But I'm not compromising my spiritual integrity in order to get votes from people by pretending that what they're engaged in is. Is not idolatry, because it is. Now, you may be thinking, well, I see why you never got elected. Right, Exactly. Exactly. You may have just put your finger on it.
Discipleship's Impact Across All Disciplines: Honoring God and Guarding Against Compromise
As disciples of Jesus Christ, we have an obligation to reflect his plan, his purpose, his will for not only for us, but for the body of Christ and for all mankind, reflecting that in everything we do. There are no exemptions. There are no exemptions. There's no exemption in politics, there's no exemption in academia, there's no exemption in science, there's no exemption in, what am I leaving out? There is there are no exemptions, okay? I don't care what discipline you are involved in. You got to bring the truth of the word of God to that discipline, or you are not being faithful to the Lord Jesus Christ. You do whatever you're doing, you do it with integrity, but you do it first honoring God. We had a teacher, for example, here, I think it was in Woodstock, Virginia, who, refused to call. I, don't know whether it's a girl trying to be a boy or a boy trying to be a girl, but refused to call them by this new name and these pronouns. And he said, well, it's a lie, and I'm not going to tell a lie because God tells me I'm not to lie, and I'm not lying. I'm not going to lie. This is a boy, or whatever it was, and that's the way it is. And they fired him. But you know what? They had to rehire him. I think it went. I think that case might have gone to the Supreme Court, but it certainly went up the. Up to the appeals court at the very least. And ultimately he won on constitutional grounds. They could not force him to say something that he did not in his own good conscience want to say. He took a stand. See, that, to me, is a disciple. A Christian might have said, well, you know, I work for the school. and, you know, they want me to say that, and I've got to go along with it. And, you know, I mean, that's just the way it is. And then go to church and shout and hallelujah and glory to God and God delivers me and all that, and then go right back to conforming to what the world wants you to be. There is a difference. Now, every Christian ought to be a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ, abiding in the word free, indeed in Christ. But they're not. You know that, and I know that. I guarantee that every single one of you listening to me right now could probably count numerous people that, you know are lukewarm Christians. I mean, you know, they're Christians. They've accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior and just some, some indications of that. But, you know, it's pretty superficial in terms of their lives and how they. How they live. Pretty superficial. I mean, I know of instances of people claim to be Christians. Claim to be Christians, and shack up and don't ask me how they justify it, but God understands. Well, God calls that fornication and sin. You're supposed to be married, but somehow we're Christians and it's okay. Well, maybe you are Christian, but you're clearly not a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ. Because if you were, you would be seeking to abide in His Word and to conform your life to His Word. Now, I'm not suggesting in the least that E.W. jackson is perfect at this, okay? So please don't take that as my message. It is not. But I tell you what, I'm working at it. And I'm certainly trying not to do or to say or for that matter, to even think anything that I know is not consistent with God's Word.
The Disciple's Commitment: Controlling Thoughts and Actions to Align with God's Word
I can't stop birds from flying over my hair, but I can certainly stop them from flying over my head, but I can certainly stop them from nesting in my hair. That's the way I feel about thoughts that I know are not of God. I cast those things out. I don't ruminate on them. I don't live with them. I don't wallow in them. This is Bishop E.W. jackson and for Abraham Hamilton III. Stand by, folks, because we're going to be back with more on discipleship.
Abraham Hamilton III Hello, I'm Abraham Hamilton iii. Did you know that this content is listener supported? Without people like you, this podcast would not exist. That's why we need you. A generous monthly gift of any amount will help sustain American Family Radio and specifically this podcast. Please consider becoming a monthly financial partner today by, visiting afr.net give that's AF.
Abraham Hamilton III The Hamilton quarter podcast and one minute commentaries are available at afr.net back to the Hamilton corner on American Family Radio.
Bishop EW Jackson Now let's come to the nub of this. I've got a teaching which I call 10 qualities of the True Disciple of Jesus Christ. And I don't have time to go through all of those today. it is my plan to start a new program at some point called Making Disciples, where I teach on being a disciple of Jesus Christ, and really try to help people who want to be that know they really aren't.
The Disciple's Courage: Guarding Against Traditions and Embracing Kingdom Culture Over Worldly Influence
That even though they may be born again and really want to be, and to help them to become what they know God wants them to be, which is a true disciple of Jesus Christ, thinking, speaking and acting the way Jesus does. what I had in mind is this what I call really the 10th principle, because there are a lot of spiritual principles that are, ah, the foundation for this. But here's what I call the 10th, 10th principle that the disciple of Jesus Christ has to have the courage to consistently guard against the dangers of religious tradition, cultural traditions, politically popular ideas, new societal norms which undermine our adherence to the word of God. I noticed I covered a lot of things because, look, there's a religious tradition that has nothing to do with the word of God, but people do it anyway because it's. It's a religious thing. There are cultural trends that really are contrary to the word of God, and people do it because, well, I want to get along. Well, I'm going to really touch the third rail now. But look, a lot of people got tattoos, for example, before they became Christians. Now, one could argue, well, Bishop, I don't see anything in the NewSong Testament against tattoos. And you're right, the Bible in the NewSong Covenant does not condemn or mention tattoos. But the old covenant, God told the children of Israel that they were not to have tattoos. We have a better covenant based on better promises. And the NewSong covenant says, you are not your own. You are bought with a price that therefore glorify God in your body. Now, to me, that's inconsistent with decorating my body with a bunch of stuff that God didn't put on it. Just saying, just saying. Is anybody going to go to hell for having a tattoo? Of course not. Of course not. But do people get tattoos because they believe, boy, this is real. God's really going to be pleased with this. This is what the Lord wants me to do? Well, they get tattoos because it's a cultural trend and everybody's doing it. And I do another teaching called the Power of Personal culture, where I, challenge people to step back from cultural trends and to look at the things that even we ourselves, as believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, as Christians, as disciples of Jesus Christ, might be pressured. Not directly or confrontationally or forcefully, but just that kind of subtle, pressure, because everybody else is doing it. And we might be pressured to do it because. Oh, that. Well, you know, actually, that's cool. Actually, that looks good. And then, you know, before you know it, we're. We're caught up in that because we're not giving it a kingdom evaluation. We're giving it a cultural evaluation. And the cultural evaluation we're giving it is the culture of the world. Now, the true disciple must speak, must think, speak, act, model. In every dimension of life, whether that's family or that's culture or that's professional, we've got to model the will of God for our lives. And by the way, with this understanding, that's going to create some conflict, it's going to create some confrontations, it's going to create some resistance, it's going to create some resentment. But as a disciple of Jesus Christ, that's okay with us. We don't take a stand on the word of God because we want to be in conflict with people. I mean, we'd be idiots that want that. We don't want to be in conflict with people. I don't believe Jesus walked around wanting to be in conflict with the scribes and Pharisees or anybody else,
Abraham Hamilton III but he
Bishop EW Jackson understood that the conflict was a natural byproduct of his standing on the righteousness of God. And so we can't run from it. We can't conform and compromise in order to avoid the conflict. So all this stuff we've heard the left is talking about, don't go to Thanksgiving dinner if you know that your parents are voting for Donald Trump. this is insane. It's wicked is what it is. Don't talk to your relatives who, who are conservatives. Don't, don't have anything to do with them. I mean, I said these, these people are like, that's, that's exactly, isn't that exactly what a cult will tell you? A cult will tell you separate yourself from your family. They are the unenlightened, and you don't want to be around them because their unenlightenment might, might, might pollute you. And so you need to stay away from them and you need to immerse yourself in the cult. It's the same thing God m called us through our Lord and savior, Jesus Christ, to be salt and light. Well, you know what? If you've got a wound, if you've got an infection, if you've got a cut and you pour salt in the wound, you know what that's going to do, right? It's going to sting. It will help cleanse the wound, it will help heal the wound, but it's going to sting.
The Role of Believers as Salt and Light: Facing Resistance and Avoiding the Love of Darkness
And when we are salt in an unsalty world, of course it stings people. Of course it does. And what do people do when something stings? Boy, they yell ouch. And they may be yelling ouch at you for the way you vote, for the stand you take, for the principles you hold. Well, that simply comes with the territory. You ever been in a very dark room? Jesus said, you are the salt of the earth. You are the light of the world. By the way, he said, if the salt loses its savor, it's good for nothing. But to be trampled under foot of men. In other words, if you're not being salty, you're nothing but a throw rug to be walked on top of. And Jesus said, you are the light of the world. Have you ever been in a dark room and had the light suddenly turned on? You know what the first thing is that happens? You're blinded. If it's a really dark room and you turn on a really bright light, your eyes can't adjust immediately. It takes a moment. And so the first thing that happens is you are blinded by the light. And it can be a very uncomfortable feeling. I mean, have you ever. You've been in that situation where you go, oh, wow, you know, you, cover your eyes. You know, you. You react, oh, m. Well, you turn on a bright light in a dark life, and people react because that light irritates their eyes and the darkness through which they are viewing the world. Jesus said, wicked people do not want to come to the light because the light reveals that their deeds are evil and they love darkness more than light. Now, most of us, certainly we as believers, if you'll follow the spiritual analogy, when that light turns on and it irritates our eyes initially or it blinds us initially, we don't say, turn the light out. I want it to be dark in here. Because you know that once you make the adjustment, you're going to see to move around in that room. You're going to see what's there, and you want that. But if you love darkness, you'd rather stumble around in the dark than have the light turned on. And that's the analogy Jesus uses. Says men love darkness rather than light. They rather stub their toe. They rather trip and fall. They rather injure themselves stumbling around in the dark and have light turned on so they can see exactly where they're going and can go in the right direction. Well, that's what we are. We're. We're the ones who are disrupting the rhythm of the world.
Disruption and Sacrifice: The Willingness to Follow Christ and Advance the Gospel Through Small Prices
We're the ones who are turning on the bright light in darkness. We're the ones who are pouring salt into the wound, so to speak. And you're going to get a reaction. You know what I say to that? So what? Next issue. I could care less. I mean, first of all, and the Lord has laid this on my heart a few times here in this last year since the assassination of Charlie Kirk, but I've said this many, many times in my ministry. I really believe martyrdom is a calling. I really do. I believe laying down one's life for the gospel of Jesus Christ. I really believe that that is a calling on the life of a believer and that God selects some of us for his own purposes to go all the way and to actually die for the gospel of Jesus Christ. But I don't think most of us are called to that. But I know that all of us are called to be willing. Jesus said, he that loses his life for my sake will find it. He that finds his life for his own selfish desires and interests will lose it. Jesus said, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it cannot bear much fruit. But if it falls to the ground and dies, it will bring forth fruit. And Jesus, of course, is the penultimate example of that. But martyrs throughout the history of the body of Christ, throughout the history of the church, have demonstrated how God has used their willingness to lay down their lives for him to advance the gospel of Jesus Christ. And we see what's happened with Charlie Kirk. I mean, we saw, an already successful organization just exploding, exploded, exploded. And they thought they were, maybe, maybe destroying the whole movement, and all they did was strengthen it.
The Cost of Discipleship: Facing Rejection and Unfair Treatment for Standing for God's Truth
You and I, for the most part, are not going to be called to sacrifice our lives for the Gospel of Jesus Christ, but we are certainly called to pick up our cross and follow him. And going to the voting booth is really a very, very small price to pay. Having people not like you, because you take a stand for what you know is right is a very small price to pay compared to the price that's been paid by so many others because our faith was birthed in blood. Jesus gave his life for us. Of course he was raised from the dead, as all of us will be. But all the apostles except the Apostle Jon, as far as we know, based on the historical record, as far as we know, every single one of them was martyred. Every single one of them died for the gospel of Jesus Christ. You and I are not called, for the most part, are not likely to be called for the most part to pay that ultimate price. But we're certainly called to be willing. We're certainly called to be willing to have people not like us, to have people, say bad things about us and all of that. We're certainly called to have things denied us because people don't like the positions that we're taking. I tell you, I was having a youth meeting one time when I was in Boston to try to quell all the violence that was taking place in the streets of the city. And I had a guy tell me he would not rent his facility to me because he knew that I was pro life. I am not kidding, folks. He said he knew that I was pro life, and I'm not renting my facility. Somebody who's denying women their right to have an abortion. I said, well, I don't know what that has to do with having a youth meeting, but okay. Now, he didn't like me because I'm standing up for the lives of innocent unborn children. Well, that's your prerogative. Hope you change your mind. I'm certainly not changing mine. I had somebody tell me was an insider at a company. I applied for a grant to deal with that very thing. Trying to deal with the rampant violence a lot of young children. This is not something new that I'm doing. Go to America's forgotten children. This is not something new that I've been. I've been focused on this all my life. All this black on black crime that's blamed on poverty and racism. And you got these young thugs raised without daddies, for the most part, who just want to go out and commit murder and mayhem because they're mad at the world, they're mad at their daddies, and they think that this makes them men. We got to get out and vote, folks. People can think what they want to think about us. What matters is what God thinks about us. Don't just be a status Christian. Be a dynamic disciple.
Final Exhortation: Standing Up, Stepping Up, Speaking Up as Dynamic Disciples on God's Side
This is Bishop E.W. jackson. You know what to do. Stand up, step up, speak up, refuse to back up because we cannot be defeated if we will not quit because we are on God's side. God bless everybody. The views and opinions expressed in this broadcast may not necessarily reflect those of the American Family association or American Family Radio. M.
Introduction to Hamilton Corner and the Role of Believers as Ambassadors in a Dark World
Abraham Hamilton III Darkness is not an affirmative force. It simply reoccupies the space vacated by the light.
Abraham Hamilton III This is the, Hamilton Corner on American Family Radio.
Abraham Hamilton III It should be uncomfortable for a believer
Bishop EW Jackson to live as a hypocrite, delivering people
Abraham Hamilton III out of the bondage of mainstream media and the philosophies of this world.
Abraham Hamilton III God has called you and me to be his ambassadors even in this dark moment. Let's not miss our moment.
Abraham Hamilton III And now, the, Hamilton Corner.
Bishop EW Jackson And once again, folks, it is my pleasure, my honor, to be sitting in for Abraham Hamilton III.
The Importance of Christian Participation in Voting and Political Life as Stewards of the Nation
This is Bishop E.W. jackson. Great to be with you again today. And as always, thank you for your prayers, your support, your contributions, for all that you do to make this network possible and all that you do to support the whole constellation, the whole family of American Family association organizations that are, and supported and aided and helped, and are actually a part of the organization. We could not do it without you. So thank you very, very much. And of course we praise God for you because we know that the Lord put this in the heart of Brother Don many, many years ago. And, that seed, that vision has borne great fruit. And we're not done bearing fruit, folks. It's. And I really believe that, as Jesus said, our fruit will remain which is pleasing to Almighty God. Well, look, today I want to talk to you, about a subject and in a way that I rarely do. You know, we've got a big election coming up and we've talked about the various reasons why so many Christians across this country are not going to vote. Many aren't registered to vote. those that are registered, in fact, half are not registered to vote.
The Parable of the Talents: A Metaphor for Christian Engagement and Political Responsibility
Those who identify as believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, half of them are not registered to vote. Of those registered to vote, only half of those will show up. That's about par for the course for the general population. About half the population is unregistered. About half the population of registered voters actually votes. and of course we know that in off year elections and in local elections, the percentages drop rather remarkably. but Christian participation pretty much mirrors that, and it shouldn't. We ought to be first and foremost in casting our vote and participating, in the political life of our country as stewards of, of this nation's present and future. you know, I had never thought about this before and I'm trying to remember now who I heard make the analogy. But I thought, man, that, that really works.
The Consequences of Christian Inaction in Political and Cultural Life: A Call to Be Salt and Light
It really resonates with me, which is the parable of the talents. God said, the Christian who Doesn't vote. The Christian who doesn't get involved, the Christian who takes no interest in the. In the political and cultural life of the nation, is like the man who buried his talent in the ground. he just did nothing with it. What that suggests, of course, is that he did not value it and was not willing to put any time or energy or effort in growing and expanding it. all he did was to bury it, which is. I, mean, think about what that means. You bury something, what are you trying to do? You're trying to put it, away from you. You're trying to get it out of sight, out of mind. And I thought, boy, that is a really good analogy for what it means for a Christian not to vote, not to participate, not to get involved in what's going on in our nation. Because, after all, this is the nation in which you're going to raise your children. Well, now, not raising them, but in which your grandchildren are going to be raised. This, is a nation which your children are going to go to school, or my grandchildren will now go to school. And it seems to me that since we live in a free nation and you have an opportunity, in fact, you have an obligation to be salt and light.
Abominations to God: Examining Societal Issues and the Christian's Role in Impacting Culture
It seems to me that you want that salt and that light to be felt, particularly in those areas that, you know will affect you and affect your family. Right? I mean, that only makes sense. And of course, the. The. What happens in politics will intrude itself on our lives. It is coming home. There's no question about it. It's coming to your school, it's coming to your home. It's coming to your neighborhood. I liked what, I believe this was Brother Jonathan Falwell, because we're, in fact, we're going to be preaching, another town hall meeting, tomorrow. actually. Well, not tomorrow. Today, actually. We're going to be doing another town hall meeting in Virginia beach today. Because, you know, we have two referenda on the ballot. One that basically calls for unrestricted abortion up to the moment of birth, and another that enshrines homosexual marriage in the Virginia Constitution, both of which, in my view, are an abomination to God. We know the homosexual marriage is, but I would argue that snuffing out the life of an innocent unborn baby is equally an abomination to God. The Bible says in, Psalm, 139, I believe it's verse 16. But somewhere in there, all our days were fashioned, when as yet, there were none of them. And you have people Stepping in and snuffing out the days of, of this unborn child that God's already fashioned a plan for. I mean, what arrogance. What, what total hubris. What pride. I said people really do want to be their own God. That's. That's what that boils down to. And so we've got to make sure that we are impacting the culture and trying to move it in a direction that is pleasing to God, because these kinds of things we know are not pleasing to Him. And they cannot possibly bring a good harvest for the country. They can only bring the curse.
The Church's Abdication of Responsibility and the Devil's Influence in National Affairs
They can only bring a bad harvest. But for a Christian not to get involved is to disregard all of that and say, well, you know, whatever happens, happens. That's not the way God expects us to do it. Well, one of the things that I've mentioned every time I have a chance is I'm convinced that part of the reason why we are in the position we are in, because we are in the position we're in because the church at large, at least the body of born again Bible believing Christians, has abdicated its responsibility to get involved in these areas and has left it, frankly, to the devil to just hold sway. I mean, he is the God of this world. I don't want him to be the God of my country. I want America to be a blessed nation because our God is the Lord, not a cursed nation because our God is the devil.
The Ultimate Spiritual Explanation: The Failure of Discipleship Among Pastors and Its Impact
And, again, many explanations for why this has happened and m. Why so many Christians have disengaged. But I'm convinced of this as the ultimate spiritual explanation. The failure of discipleship. The failure of discipleship. That the pastors themselves have not been discipled. I know, boy, that's a strong statement. And of course, I'm not talking about every pastor. There were many wonderful pastors in our country. Praise God for them. The man I'm sitting in for, Abraham Hamilton iii, I have no doubt, is a wonderful pastor. And we have some of them on our air. Wonderful pastors, Pastor Jeff Schrieve, Pastor Parker. I mean, wonderful men of God. So we know that they're great. And there are many, many others. Obviously I just mentioned the ones who happen to be on our air. There are many great pastors out there, but we know they are in the distinct minority. According to George Barner, only 10% of pastors in America, 10%, believe that the Bible is the authoritative word of God in all matters of faith and practice. And only 10% of that. 10%. Only 10% of that 10% are willing to say so and willing to apply, in other words, to the, to the issues of the day. They believe as we believe, but they're not willing to say so from the pulpit. They're not willing to instruct their congregation in these matters. M. And I think part of the reason is that they've never been discipled themselves.
The Distinction Between Churchgoers and Disciples: Focusing on Maturation and Purpose in the Body of Christ
I mean, we entertain Christians, we program. You know, we have a lot of great programs for Christians and we a lot of great programs for children. but we're not doing a whole lot of discipling. I want to remind you, Jesus didn't say go into all the world and make churchgoers. And of course we should go to church. So I'm in no way suggesting that going to church is worthless or something we shouldn't do. It is something we very much should do. But we should do that as a byproduct of who we are as believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, not the definition of who we are. A byproduct of who we are. I mean, we're told not to forsake the assembling of ourselves together, as is the matter of some, but all the more as we see the day approaching. So we don't forsake the assembling of ourselves together. Why? Because we are followers of the Lord Jesus Christ. I mean, church is really not an end in itself. The end is the maturation and discipleship of the body of Christ to fulfill its purpose in the earth. That's really the end. That's really what it's all about. Encouraging people in their relationship with God. Encouraging people in the word of God, encouraging people in prayer and praise and worship and honor. Encouraging people in righteous conduct. That's really the end result. Not going to church.
The Significance of Church Attendance as a Byproduct of Christian Identity and Faith
Going to church is what we do because we are followers of the Lord Jesus Christ. And church ought to be a place where that who we are is affirmed. Ah. And strengthened and that we grow in that faith.
Exploring the Term 'Christian' in the Bible and Comparing It to the Word 'Disciple'
But you know, let me give you an interesting fact. I said Jesus didn't say go into all the world and make churchgoers. Let me give you an interesting fact. Do you know how many times the word Christian is mentioned in the Bible? Three times. Three times. Now by the way, I'm not saying we shouldn't call ourselves Christians, so please don't jump to that conclusion. No, it's a perfectly appropriate word. But two times it was mentioned by non Christians. The people of Antioch, the Bible says in the Book of Acts, were the first ones to begin to call us Christians. And I think it was really intended as sort of making fun of people who were trying to belittle Christ. And I don't think it stuck at that point. But that's what they were calling us. And then I'm pretty sure it's Festus who said to, the Apostle Paul, you almost persuade me to be a Christian. but he wasn't a Christian. He was saying he was using that maybe in the same way the people of Antioch, were using it as kind of a. Yeah, you, you. You almost persuade me to be one of those little Christ like you. But I don't think he was saying that with a great deal of respect because he didn't become a Christian. I think he was kind of making a little bit of fun of Paul. Yeah, you, you know, Paul, you're very persuasive. You almost got me. Not quite, but almost. I said Festus. I always get confused with which. Which one of these it was. It was actually King Agrippa who said that it was King Agrippa, in the 26th chapter of Acts. and so the Antiochians, the only Christian to use the phrase, to the word I should say Christian, was the Apostle Peter, where he says, if we suffer as a Christian or suffer as Christians, or. Let me find that exact reference. I'll, get that in a moment and may come to it when we come back from the break. But that's. That was the only time, the only time that the word Christian is used by a Christian. Now, just think about that for a second. Now, why am I saying this? Well, you say, well. Well, Bishop Jackson. Yeah, here it is. First Peter 4:18. If anyone suffers as a Christian. Well, Bishop Jackson, if you're not saying somehow it's wrong, well, it can't be wrong. The Apostle Peter uses it. He says, if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in this matter. That's the only time a Christian uses that word. Now, what I'm saying is not that there's something wrong with it, because we all call ourselves Christians. I am a Christian. You are a Christian if you are a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ. But I want to. I want to, compare that to the word disciple and decipher the difference. This is Bishop E.W.
Discipleship vs. Christian Status: Understanding the Action-Oriented Nature of Following Jesus Christ
jackson. I'm in for Abraham Hamilton III. You're listening to the Hamilton Corner standby. We want to come back and talk about discipleship and the implications of that. Back in a moment.
Abraham Hamilton III Hello. I'm Abraham Hamilton iii. Did you Know that this content is listener supported. Without people like you, this podcast would not exist. That's why we need you. A generous monthly gift of any amount will help sustain American Family Radio and specifically this podc. Please consider becoming a monthly financial partner today by, visiting afr.net give that's afr.net give.
Abraham Hamilton III Shining light into the darkness. This is the Hamilton Corner on American Family Radio.
Abraham Hamilton III Welcome back.
Bishop EW Jackson I'm sitting in for Abraham Hamilton III. This is Bishop E.W. jackson. As always, great to be with you. Now, you may be thinking, well, if you are not trying to denigrate the word Christian, what is your point? first of all, I'm just pointing out a biblical fact which I just shared with you, which I dare say a lot of Christians do not know, that the only time a Christian uses the word Christian in scripture, a Christian now only the only time is the Apostle Peter, in 1st Peter 4:16. That's it. That is the only time, 1st Peter 4:16. If anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in this matter. Now, why, then why am I pointing this out? Why am I saying this? Because I want you to compare that to the word that is most frequently used to describe who we are. And you guess what that word is. Disciple. Disciple. The word disciple is used 261 times. Now, if you count it yourself, you might find, well, it's 263. Or you might find, well, well, I only counted 258, but it's in that I've tried this a couple of times, a couple different ways, and there are sometimes that the word disciple is used where it doesn't really apply to Christians per se. So I've gotten it down to 261. But whatever number you come up with, if you count it, imagine between say 261 and 1. And here's why I think the word of God does this. Christian is a status word. It is a word that describes our identity in Christ. That's why I say, there's nothing wrong with the word Christian. We are indeed little Christ, if you will, little anointed ones following the Anointed One. We are following Him. We are seeking to be like Him. We are emulating Him. We are seeking to be obedient to Him. We are seeking to fulfill his plan and purpose for our lives. We're seeking to be, play our role in his kingdom. We are part of the Body of Christ. There is no question about it. We are Christians. But it's a Status word. And disciple to me is an action word, because the disciple describes one who thinks, speaks and acts like the one who discipled him. It's an action word. You know, people can think of themselves as Christians simply because they go to church, but I guarantee you that for many Christians, I, trust you, are not among them. All of you, but you in particular. Yes. You listening to me right now? If I called you a disciple of Jesus Christ, you wouldn't say, oh, no, wait a minute, wait a minute. I'm not Peter, James and Jon. Don't confuse me with them. No. The Bible makes clear that all of the followers of Jesus Christ were called disciples. Not just the 12. The 12 were made apostles. But Jesus Christ called all of his followers disciples. That means if you are truly a Christian, you're supposed to be a disciple of Jesus Christ. Now, Jesus defined that in Jon, chapter 8, verse 32, where he said, actually, ah, verses really 8, 30 through 32, where he said, if you abide in my word, then are you my disciples indeed?
The Mandate to Make Disciples: Teaching All Nations to Observe Christ's Commands and Adopt Kingdom Culture
Which, of course, the implication is, if you don't abide in my word, you are not my disciple indeed. Oh, wait a minute, wait a minute, Bishop. Well, what if I'm born again? He said, if you abide in my word, then are you my disciples indeed? So the question would be, okay, you're born again. Praise God. Wonderful. Congratulations. That's a wonderful thing. Are you abiding in the word? Well, no. Well, then you are not his disciple indeed. You see the distinction I'm making? You could. You could actually be a Christian and not truly qualify as what God intends you to be. Which is a disciple of Jesus Christ. As I said, Jesus didn't even say, go into all the world and make Christians. He said, go into all the world and make disciples. People who think, speak and act like me. That's really what he was saying. And then he added to that which. Which I love this. and I think most people don't get the distinction here. But he added to that, teaching them. I'm going directly to it so I can read it exactly as it reads. I'm reading from the new King James Version rather than the old, but they read essentially the same. He says, go, therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, Baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you. Teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you. All things? All things. Not just some things, all things. Everything I've taught you you teach them now that word nations. If you've heard me teach on this, that word nations, there are two words that refer to so what, People, groups, or governmental entities. One is kingdom. As Jesus said, a kingdom divided itself against itself, cannot stand. That is the word basilea. And that's a word that really refers to a state or an organized,
Bishop EW Jackson political entity, a city state, an empire, a kingdom. but the word nations here is the word ethnos. Ethnos, that is a word that refers to people, groups, tribes, ethnicities, groups of people who are culturally bound together rather than governmentally bound together. You know, I'm clear that what Jesus is saying here, you go into all the world and you tell all these tribes and all these ethnic groups that have all their own ways and all their own thoughts and all their own ideas. You teach them to observe what I told you. In other words, your little ethnic identity pales in significance to what Jesus Christ has taught you. So your ethnos may say one thing, but if Jesus says something different, you're supposed to adopt that, not. Not what your ethnos or your ethnicity says. Your ethnic group says. These people have all kinds of traditions and all kinds of ideas and all kinds of customs. They do not comport to the word of God. And as the disciple of Jesus Christ, see, you can either be a status Christian that comports with everything the ethnos tells you because you want to fit in there, or you can be a disciple of Jesus Christ that says, no, no, no, I am conforming to what thus says the Lord, and that is my culture. That is my identity. That is how I see the world, not the way my ethnic group tells me I'm supposed to see the world.
Living as a Disciple: Conforming to Christ's Ways Above Ethnic, Cultural, or Political Identifications
So I'm convinced that that's what Jesus was saying. You go break all that up and you teach them a whole new culture. I call it kingdom culture. You teach them to think the way I think, to speak the way I speak, and to behave the way I behave. Now, being a disciple, then, is far more impactful than simply claiming the status of a Christian. Yes, I am a Christian, but I live the life of a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ, which means I'm seeking to conform my ways to his ways. I'm not seeking to conform my ways to somebody, says, well, you know, you're black. You're supposed to think like this and behave like this. No, I'm a Christian. I'm supposed to think like this and behave like this. Or you're Irish, you're supposed to think like this and behave like this. No, I'm a Christian. I think like this and behave like this. I'm a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ. I think it behaved like this. And where those two are incompatible, there's not even a contest. I am not going to conform my life to some political party, some ethnic group, some racial group, in order to be accepted. I'm going to conform my life to what the word of God says because I want God to be pleased. And Paul said, if I would please men, I would not be the servant of Christ. See, I think that's where this voting thing comes in. We're supposed to go and vote as disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ. We are casting spiritual seed when we vote. We are carrying out our responsibilities as his disciples and his representatives in the earth when we vote. And I think in many ways that's been lost. Yeah, I happen to identify with the Republican Party politically, but that's not what drives me. That's not what motivates me. I am motivated by the word of God. I'm motivated by what the Lord says is right. Whatever God says is right is right. Whatever God says is wrong is wrong. And I'm not compromising that for political expediency, which both parties would certainly want you to do. And I've experienced it. Oh, you ought to go along with this because the Republican Party needs this. Well, I'm not going along with it. Well, but you don't, know. I do understand. Well, yeah, but see. No, I don't see, because I already see what Jesus said, and that's all I need to know. I said I wouldn't vote for a Muslim. I told you when I was running for office, I had Republicans telling me, oh, you got to go to the mosque. You got to go to the mosque. You got to go talk to the Muslims. No, I don't. But none of you do. Yeah, well, I'm not. Now, if they want to vote for me, that's up to them. But I'm not compromising my spiritual integrity in order to get votes from people by pretending that what they're engaged in is. Is not idolatry, because it is. Now, you may be thinking, well, I see why you never got elected. Right, Exactly. Exactly. You may have just put your finger on it.
Discipleship's Impact Across All Disciplines: Honoring God and Guarding Against Compromise
As disciples of Jesus Christ, we have an obligation to reflect his plan, his purpose, his will for not only for us, but for the body of Christ and for all mankind, reflecting that in everything we do. There are no exemptions. There are no exemptions. There's no exemption in politics, there's no exemption in academia, there's no exemption in science, there's no exemption in, what am I leaving out? There is there are no exemptions, okay? I don't care what discipline you are involved in. You got to bring the truth of the word of God to that discipline, or you are not being faithful to the Lord Jesus Christ. You do whatever you're doing, you do it with integrity, but you do it first honoring God. We had a teacher, for example, here, I think it was in Woodstock, Virginia, who, refused to call. I, don't know whether it's a girl trying to be a boy or a boy trying to be a girl, but refused to call them by this new name and these pronouns. And he said, well, it's a lie, and I'm not going to tell a lie because God tells me I'm not to lie, and I'm not lying. I'm not going to lie. This is a boy, or whatever it was, and that's the way it is. And they fired him. But you know what? They had to rehire him. I think it went. I think that case might have gone to the Supreme Court, but it certainly went up the. Up to the appeals court at the very least. And ultimately he won on constitutional grounds. They could not force him to say something that he did not in his own good conscience want to say. He took a stand. See, that, to me, is a disciple. A Christian might have said, well, you know, I work for the school. and, you know, they want me to say that, and I've got to go along with it. And, you know, I mean, that's just the way it is. And then go to church and shout and hallelujah and glory to God and God delivers me and all that, and then go right back to conforming to what the world wants you to be. There is a difference. Now, every Christian ought to be a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ, abiding in the word free, indeed in Christ. But they're not. You know that, and I know that. I guarantee that every single one of you listening to me right now could probably count numerous people that, you know are lukewarm Christians. I mean, you know, they're Christians. They've accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior and just some, some indications of that. But, you know, it's pretty superficial in terms of their lives and how they. How they live. Pretty superficial. I mean, I know of instances of people claim to be Christians. Claim to be Christians, and shack up and don't ask me how they justify it, but God understands. Well, God calls that fornication and sin. You're supposed to be married, but somehow we're Christians and it's okay. Well, maybe you are Christian, but you're clearly not a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ. Because if you were, you would be seeking to abide in His Word and to conform your life to His Word. Now, I'm not suggesting in the least that E.W. jackson is perfect at this, okay? So please don't take that as my message. It is not. But I tell you what, I'm working at it. And I'm certainly trying not to do or to say or for that matter, to even think anything that I know is not consistent with God's Word.
The Disciple's Commitment: Controlling Thoughts and Actions to Align with God's Word
I can't stop birds from flying over my hair, but I can certainly stop them from flying over my head, but I can certainly stop them from nesting in my hair. That's the way I feel about thoughts that I know are not of God. I cast those things out. I don't ruminate on them. I don't live with them. I don't wallow in them. This is Bishop E.W. jackson and for Abraham Hamilton III. Stand by, folks, because we're going to be back with more on discipleship.
Abraham Hamilton III Hello, I'm Abraham Hamilton iii. Did you know that this content is listener supported? Without people like you, this podcast would not exist. That's why we need you. A generous monthly gift of any amount will help sustain American Family Radio and specifically this podcast. Please consider becoming a monthly financial partner today by, visiting afr.net give that's AF.
Abraham Hamilton III The Hamilton quarter podcast and one minute commentaries are available at afr.net back to the Hamilton corner on American Family Radio.
Bishop EW Jackson Now let's come to the nub of this. I've got a teaching which I call 10 qualities of the True Disciple of Jesus Christ. And I don't have time to go through all of those today. it is my plan to start a new program at some point called Making Disciples, where I teach on being a disciple of Jesus Christ, and really try to help people who want to be that know they really aren't.
The Disciple's Courage: Guarding Against Traditions and Embracing Kingdom Culture Over Worldly Influence
That even though they may be born again and really want to be, and to help them to become what they know God wants them to be, which is a true disciple of Jesus Christ, thinking, speaking and acting the way Jesus does. what I had in mind is this what I call really the 10th principle, because there are a lot of spiritual principles that are, ah, the foundation for this. But here's what I call the 10th, 10th principle that the disciple of Jesus Christ has to have the courage to consistently guard against the dangers of religious tradition, cultural traditions, politically popular ideas, new societal norms which undermine our adherence to the word of God. I noticed I covered a lot of things because, look, there's a religious tradition that has nothing to do with the word of God, but people do it anyway because it's. It's a religious thing. There are cultural trends that really are contrary to the word of God, and people do it because, well, I want to get along. Well, I'm going to really touch the third rail now. But look, a lot of people got tattoos, for example, before they became Christians. Now, one could argue, well, Bishop, I don't see anything in the NewSong Testament against tattoos. And you're right, the Bible in the NewSong Covenant does not condemn or mention tattoos. But the old covenant, God told the children of Israel that they were not to have tattoos. We have a better covenant based on better promises. And the NewSong covenant says, you are not your own. You are bought with a price that therefore glorify God in your body. Now, to me, that's inconsistent with decorating my body with a bunch of stuff that God didn't put on it. Just saying, just saying. Is anybody going to go to hell for having a tattoo? Of course not. Of course not. But do people get tattoos because they believe, boy, this is real. God's really going to be pleased with this. This is what the Lord wants me to do? Well, they get tattoos because it's a cultural trend and everybody's doing it. And I do another teaching called the Power of Personal culture, where I, challenge people to step back from cultural trends and to look at the things that even we ourselves, as believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, as Christians, as disciples of Jesus Christ, might be pressured. Not directly or confrontationally or forcefully, but just that kind of subtle, pressure, because everybody else is doing it. And we might be pressured to do it because. Oh, that. Well, you know, actually, that's cool. Actually, that looks good. And then, you know, before you know it, we're. We're caught up in that because we're not giving it a kingdom evaluation. We're giving it a cultural evaluation. And the cultural evaluation we're giving it is the culture of the world. Now, the true disciple must speak, must think, speak, act, model. In every dimension of life, whether that's family or that's culture or that's professional, we've got to model the will of God for our lives. And by the way, with this understanding, that's going to create some conflict, it's going to create some confrontations, it's going to create some resistance, it's going to create some resentment. But as a disciple of Jesus Christ, that's okay with us. We don't take a stand on the word of God because we want to be in conflict with people. I mean, we'd be idiots that want that. We don't want to be in conflict with people. I don't believe Jesus walked around wanting to be in conflict with the scribes and Pharisees or anybody else,
Abraham Hamilton III but he
Bishop EW Jackson understood that the conflict was a natural byproduct of his standing on the righteousness of God. And so we can't run from it. We can't conform and compromise in order to avoid the conflict. So all this stuff we've heard the left is talking about, don't go to Thanksgiving dinner if you know that your parents are voting for Donald Trump. this is insane. It's wicked is what it is. Don't talk to your relatives who, who are conservatives. Don't, don't have anything to do with them. I mean, I said these, these people are like, that's, that's exactly, isn't that exactly what a cult will tell you? A cult will tell you separate yourself from your family. They are the unenlightened, and you don't want to be around them because their unenlightenment might, might, might pollute you. And so you need to stay away from them and you need to immerse yourself in the cult. It's the same thing God m called us through our Lord and savior, Jesus Christ, to be salt and light. Well, you know what? If you've got a wound, if you've got an infection, if you've got a cut and you pour salt in the wound, you know what that's going to do, right? It's going to sting. It will help cleanse the wound, it will help heal the wound, but it's going to sting.
The Role of Believers as Salt and Light: Facing Resistance and Avoiding the Love of Darkness
And when we are salt in an unsalty world, of course it stings people. Of course it does. And what do people do when something stings? Boy, they yell ouch. And they may be yelling ouch at you for the way you vote, for the stand you take, for the principles you hold. Well, that simply comes with the territory. You ever been in a very dark room? Jesus said, you are the salt of the earth. You are the light of the world. By the way, he said, if the salt loses its savor, it's good for nothing. But to be trampled under foot of men. In other words, if you're not being salty, you're nothing but a throw rug to be walked on top of. And Jesus said, you are the light of the world. Have you ever been in a dark room and had the light suddenly turned on? You know what the first thing is that happens? You're blinded. If it's a really dark room and you turn on a really bright light, your eyes can't adjust immediately. It takes a moment. And so the first thing that happens is you are blinded by the light. And it can be a very uncomfortable feeling. I mean, have you ever. You've been in that situation where you go, oh, wow, you know, you, cover your eyes. You know, you. You react, oh, m. Well, you turn on a bright light in a dark life, and people react because that light irritates their eyes and the darkness through which they are viewing the world. Jesus said, wicked people do not want to come to the light because the light reveals that their deeds are evil and they love darkness more than light. Now, most of us, certainly we as believers, if you'll follow the spiritual analogy, when that light turns on and it irritates our eyes initially or it blinds us initially, we don't say, turn the light out. I want it to be dark in here. Because you know that once you make the adjustment, you're going to see to move around in that room. You're going to see what's there, and you want that. But if you love darkness, you'd rather stumble around in the dark than have the light turned on. And that's the analogy Jesus uses. Says men love darkness rather than light. They rather stub their toe. They rather trip and fall. They rather injure themselves stumbling around in the dark and have light turned on so they can see exactly where they're going and can go in the right direction. Well, that's what we are. We're. We're the ones who are disrupting the rhythm of the world.
Disruption and Sacrifice: The Willingness to Follow Christ and Advance the Gospel Through Small Prices
We're the ones who are turning on the bright light in darkness. We're the ones who are pouring salt into the wound, so to speak. And you're going to get a reaction. You know what I say to that? So what? Next issue. I could care less. I mean, first of all, and the Lord has laid this on my heart a few times here in this last year since the assassination of Charlie Kirk, but I've said this many, many times in my ministry. I really believe martyrdom is a calling. I really do. I believe laying down one's life for the gospel of Jesus Christ. I really believe that that is a calling on the life of a believer and that God selects some of us for his own purposes to go all the way and to actually die for the gospel of Jesus Christ. But I don't think most of us are called to that. But I know that all of us are called to be willing. Jesus said, he that loses his life for my sake will find it. He that finds his life for his own selfish desires and interests will lose it. Jesus said, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it cannot bear much fruit. But if it falls to the ground and dies, it will bring forth fruit. And Jesus, of course, is the penultimate example of that. But martyrs throughout the history of the body of Christ, throughout the history of the church, have demonstrated how God has used their willingness to lay down their lives for him to advance the gospel of Jesus Christ. And we see what's happened with Charlie Kirk. I mean, we saw, an already successful organization just exploding, exploded, exploded. And they thought they were, maybe, maybe destroying the whole movement, and all they did was strengthen it.
The Cost of Discipleship: Facing Rejection and Unfair Treatment for Standing for God's Truth
You and I, for the most part, are not going to be called to sacrifice our lives for the Gospel of Jesus Christ, but we are certainly called to pick up our cross and follow him. And going to the voting booth is really a very, very small price to pay. Having people not like you, because you take a stand for what you know is right is a very small price to pay compared to the price that's been paid by so many others because our faith was birthed in blood. Jesus gave his life for us. Of course he was raised from the dead, as all of us will be. But all the apostles except the Apostle Jon, as far as we know, based on the historical record, as far as we know, every single one of them was martyred. Every single one of them died for the gospel of Jesus Christ. You and I are not called, for the most part, are not likely to be called for the most part to pay that ultimate price. But we're certainly called to be willing. We're certainly called to be willing to have people not like us, to have people, say bad things about us and all of that. We're certainly called to have things denied us because people don't like the positions that we're taking. I tell you, I was having a youth meeting one time when I was in Boston to try to quell all the violence that was taking place in the streets of the city. And I had a guy tell me he would not rent his facility to me because he knew that I was pro life. I am not kidding, folks. He said he knew that I was pro life, and I'm not renting my facility. Somebody who's denying women their right to have an abortion. I said, well, I don't know what that has to do with having a youth meeting, but okay. Now, he didn't like me because I'm standing up for the lives of innocent unborn children. Well, that's your prerogative. Hope you change your mind. I'm certainly not changing mine. I had somebody tell me was an insider at a company. I applied for a grant to deal with that very thing. Trying to deal with the rampant violence a lot of young children. This is not something new that I'm doing. Go to America's forgotten children. This is not something new that I've been. I've been focused on this all my life. All this black on black crime that's blamed on poverty and racism. And you got these young thugs raised without daddies, for the most part, who just want to go out and commit murder and mayhem because they're mad at the world, they're mad at their daddies, and they think that this makes them men. We got to get out and vote, folks. People can think what they want to think about us. What matters is what God thinks about us. Don't just be a status Christian. Be a dynamic disciple.
Final Exhortation: Standing Up, Stepping Up, Speaking Up as Dynamic Disciples on God's Side
This is Bishop E.W. jackson. You know what to do. Stand up, step up, speak up, refuse to back up because we cannot be defeated if we will not quit because we are on God's side. God bless everybody. The views and opinions expressed in this broadcast may not necessarily reflect those of the American Family association or American Family Radio. M.
Guest Host, Bishop E.W. Jackson dives in on the midterm elections
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