MARVEL AND MYSTERIES- Avoiding Sin Ditches

Matrix of Justice

In this video: Some musings from my upbringing in the Catholic church, and classmates who tried to get me saved...what a vast difference on the understanding of Jesus Christ than between those groups. Also, the divide between legalism versus hyper grace couldn't have been wider. Join me for some memories and serious scriptural stuff in Avoiding Sin Ditches.  For more support:  REST: https://matrixofjustice.org/rest/  UNCERTAINTY: https://matrixofjustice.org/the-appetizer-called-uncertainty/  MAINTAINING BALANCE: https://matrixofjustice.org/maintain-balance/  STRESS: https://matrixofjustice.org/the-physical-effects-of-stress/  Please consider supporting Matrix of Justice via the donate button (https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=T9M4EFHWQBDV4) on www.matrixofjustice.org  Listen to the MOJ podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/29Nwee6qdn4w76kmzWaaxt?si=zrBslSxzTWqdgOcNI5vKqQ   Come say hi: Twitter- https://x.com/matrixofjusticeTikTok- https://www.tiktok.com/@matrixofjusticeInstagram- https://www.instagram.com/matrixofjustice/?hl=enGab- https://gab.com/MatrixofJusticeGettr- https://gettr.com/user/matrixofjusticeTruth Social- https://truthsocial.com/@MatrixofJusticeFacebook- https://www.facebook.com/MatrixofJustice/Other platforms:Bitchute- https://www.bitchute.com/profile/YTUlhLxg6MWbRumble- https://rumble.com/c/c-436225Daily Motion- https://www.dailymotion.com/matrixofjustice  Matrix of Justice (matrixofjustice.org) is a resource center that provides individual Christian equipping with a prophetic edge. My desire is to see spiritual truths birth tangible results in people's lives. Helping others grow into the fullness of their identity as a Son of God and becoming who He created them to be is the fuel that drives me and the heart of Matrix of Justice.   Please consider supporting Matrix of Justice via the donate button (https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=T9M4EFHWQBDV4) on www.matrixofjustice.org

Transcript

00:00and welcome back to Marvel and Mysteries. My name is Tracy. A quick reminder that matrixofjustice.org

00:16is a resource center of videos and articles to help your relationship with Jesus Christ

00:22to grow from spiritual truths to tangible results. That's the purpose of matrixofjustice.org

00:28and then Marvel and Mysteries is one of the shows just to explore the way that God does what he does

00:35from the big things to the small things. All of it is important and then the website Matrix of Justice

00:41is about a place to kickstart or even restart your journey with the Lord whether you have known Jesus

00:47Christ for five minutes or for 50 years because nobody throws a kid car keys and says there you go

00:53best wishes don't wreck you know there's an explanation there's instruction there's time

00:59to drive the car with someone who knows how to there's those steps so it's not formulaic but you

01:06do need some steps to start with so that's the whole purpose of Matrix of Justice and today the topic

01:14this one is a perhaps a bit more personal to me just from the background that I came out of and so

01:22today this podcast is is entitled avoiding sin ditches people in the country know that ditches

01:32are deep and they are wide and if you go in one you're not coming out unless somebody's got a really

01:38killer tractor so the same thing goes for the way that we see sin so for me coming from a Catholic

01:47background sin consciousness was something that became hardwired into my thinking and I cannot say

01:55that the priests or the catechism teachers ever specifically embedded an extreme awareness of our

02:02sins into our minds I think it was more of the environment and culture of the church that spoke

02:10louder than a doctrine of salvation did it's not going to be the same for other Catholics across the

02:17the world this was just my little town my little my little spot so the priests in their garments

02:27seemed very formal and holy to me as a small child and every mass felt like a gathering together to mourn the

02:35death of Jesus and it was more of a weekly reminder that I was a sinner unworthy of the king of kings than

02:42it ever felt like a worship service and the priests seemed like the only ones who knew the Lord and the rest of us

02:50were an unworthy lot who dutifully showed up for God each week as a seven-year-old the dread of having to go into

02:58the confessional to tell the priest what I had done wrong that week along with the pressure of giving a good act of

03:05contrition made me feel all the more nervous and unworthy many of you know what that act of

03:13contrition is you could probably still say it right now and I was always concerned about not doing things

03:18well so the printed act of contrition prayer card that was inside the confessional was of little solace

03:25to me I didn't want to cheat from and read from it and if I missed going to confession for several weeks

03:32it was not fun to have to tell the priest when my last confession was as part of the protocol

03:39I can remember like it's been six weeks since my last confession like nothing makes you feel more

03:48sinful than having to say how long it's been since you told the priest all of the things you did wrong

03:55so there's there was a formality to things there's fear fun fallacy like it just had everything

04:03everything and so the the formality of the confession process really dissuades one from realizing just how

04:11precious the gift of repentance is we're to confess our sins one to another that is true however it's

04:19meant to be in a family or community of believers hello like a kingdom of priests rather than in a

04:25confessional which though that's made for privacy can be a little scary for a child and our priest was a

04:33very gentle man so I was not afraid of him I was never afraid of him but it made the idea of running

04:40to God when we mess up a little nerve-wracking when the feel should really be like help me pa I messed up

04:48help me dad I messed up help me father I messed up and instead it didn't really feel like that it was

04:53like oh no swallow hard now you have to go into the little booth and you have to do this wonderful

04:58performance uh through your act of contrition confessing your sins and then they would say

05:05now give me a good hail mary and then you know go back out and for your for your penance and you can

05:12you know do another for hail mary or whatever it was whatever it was uh so

05:18that was my experience in this and there was also the humor that only religion can produce

05:26and I recall the shock and abject horror when the most fashionable lady in town wore jeans to mass

05:35it was like jeans to mass like the absolute horror this was a scandal like no other and the way that people

05:44responded to it you would have thought that God would have come down and nuked her right there in

05:48front of everyone there were other amusing situations like the one woman who would sing

05:53her heart out but one beat behind everyone else and then all of the dads trying to not break wind in

05:59church because any sound would resonate through that place so fast then there's all of the fun with

06:05the holy water and being panicked when it was time for the blessing of the throats with a candle

06:11and I was little and it's not like they exactly explain these ceremonies and rituals to you so

06:17I'm thinking oh no this blessing is going to be done with a lit candle and thankfully it was not

06:25and again I was a I was a child so I had no idea that God doesn't care for the practice of religious

06:31hierarchy in the way it has been interpreted for and demonstrated to the body of Christ it just

06:38really appeared like he did now there is an order he has set forth for the perfecting of the saints

06:45for the work of the ministry from Ephesians 4 but this order can become a top-down rulership

06:52complete with enforcers and some of you know exactly what I mean by that if you've ever been bounced out

06:59of a church service but human beings are suckers for belief system power structures the reality and

07:08model ought to be Jesus Christ the head of all things stooping down to wash his disciples feet

07:14the reality and model is servant leadership not clergy versus the laity and so being so aware of this

07:24chasm between what I perceived as the holiness of the priests and my disqualification due to sinfulness

07:32led to feeling guilt-ridden and unworthy and experiencing a lifetime of apologizing for everything

07:40even when I was not at fault conversely other kids had grown up hearing about the grace of the Lord

07:48and those kids were those born-again types you know those weirdos who were so excited to tell me about

07:54Jesus and even in my young brain religion had me thinking wait you want to introduce me to Jesus

08:01like I know Jesus I'm Catholic and we are the true religion and we know Jesus better than anybody else

08:08it was like we've got the lockdown on Jesus Christ okay and it's like holy arrogance Batman how in the

08:16world does a child automatically think things like that I know that no adult expressed any of that to

08:23me in any manner whatsoever so how in the world did I come up with that and those weirdo born-again

08:31Christians heard about the work Jesus completed on the cross that their sins were forgiven and forgotten

08:37and that he took the punishment upon himself so that we could freely accept the adoption of sonship

08:44offered to us that's what they were hearing that's what they were hearing about that's what they were

08:49seeing that it's by grace that we have been saved through faith and not of ourselves but a gift from

08:55God they were taught that the law was fulfilled by Jesus Christ that he abolished in his flesh the law

09:03of commandments and decrees and created in himself one new man that's the things that they were learning

09:10versus the things that I was mainly observing so those kids they tried to share the truth of Jesus with me

09:17however religion answered for me through dogmatic assumptions and pride that presumed I already

09:23knew or had or understood whatever it was that they were trying to share with me and no was I wrong

09:31and there have been a few kids that I chatted with later on in life and apologized for not understanding

09:38who they were really trying to introduce me to and why and I thanked them for trying so hard

09:44and the Lord reminded me of them the moment I got saved the moment I became one of those weirdo born

09:52again Jesus people is the moment that I remembered all of these ones that came to me and the others who

09:58had prayed for me along the way and in that oh my gosh in that moment of receiving the Lord a lot became

10:04very clear so if you want things to get clear in your life and you don't know who Jesus Christ is

10:13get introduced and Jesus I want to know you I want to know who you are I've heard all about you I want

10:23to know you and all and all of that just start there start there and then if you want to make him Lord and

10:31save your Romans 10 9 and 10 you know my goodness so along my journey I saw different groups of

10:38Christians who seem to live their lives according to these different themes you know there were the

10:44the turn or burn types that they were condemning everyone who didn't believe exactly like they did

10:51hell others who did their best to live clean lives and it was by grace through faith that I was saved and

10:58they didn't condemn the world around them and they kind of kept to themselves and just had these very

11:03good clean lives and and then there was this other group who seemed to be saying I was saved by grace

11:09through faith so that I could blank you know just insert any debaucherous act right there and repent

11:16because the Lord loves me and he'll forgive me for my sin so that group did not embrace the healthy

11:23balance that yes God did forgive our sins and that grace without transformation is just deception

11:30receiving the Lord will result in changes even if small and so the idea of just accepting him as Lord

11:38and repeatedly running into sin knowingly as if he gave you a get out of jail for free card is just

11:45intentionally missing the mark there is a mark difference between struggling through a change in your life

11:51and knowingly sinning repeatedly that difference is in the heart toward the struggle think of first

11:59Samuel 16 7 I'm going to look at the kind of the back half of this verse for the Lord sees not as man sees

12:07man looks on the outward appearance but the Lord looks on the heart key thing to remember so things can

12:16look however they look and they can appear however they appear the Lord is looking at the heart of a

12:22situation in the heart of an individual so we need to be careful when we're addressing things with others

12:28because if if the Lord has not shown us their heart on a matter then we really have no business just assigning

12:36what we think is is happening is happening there you know and making a habit of of doing that those who follow

12:44Jesus are dead to sin we need to remember this and made alive in Christ that's from Romans 6 read the

12:51whole chapter we are not to offer any part of ourselves to sin as instruments of wickedness but

12:58to offer ourselves fully to the Lord as instruments of righteousness but that isn't something most God

13:05fearing people spend their time thinking about that we are now saints instruments of righteousness with a new

13:12nature rather than the old sin nature as noted before my observations from earlier years in the Catholic

13:20Church for many there was a focus on sin consciousness and guilt and shame as a result or the focus on being

13:29sinful or you know whatever you know I can do whatever I want because Jesus paid for everything and it is

13:36finished his beautiful expression on the cross it is finished like completely just mired in well it's

13:45done he did everything I don't have to do anything at all I'm just gonna sit here and a lot of those

13:50people end up right back in a whole pile of nasty because they've decided Jesus did everything and they

13:55don't have to do anything and sit down they're like ah I'm going to heaven anyway whatever and then their lives

14:01fall apart one by one they that's what happens to them it's really sad so you could say from all of

14:09this going back to those big old wide country ditches that there are a few sin ditches people can fall

14:16into in this legalistic and hyper grace kind of divide so you've got ditch one legalism it's kind of a

14:25I sinned and therefore I'm a nasty pile of condemned poo now I must perform my way into God's good graces

14:34by as many of my own good works as possible and follow every rule given as to not break them again

14:41that very hard and fast the letter of the law you know and and and just beating oneself up and the

14:50constant reminder of being a sinner kind of a kind of a situation then you've got the other ditch the license

14:59to sin which some people would say it's the the hyper grace kind of thing um hyper grace greasy grace some of

15:07that's what's usually get what gets said about that uh but this like idea of this license to sin is like I sinned I

15:15know it doesn't bother me like it doesn't does not bother my conscience or something uh because Jesus

15:21did everything for me and technically I'm no longer a sinner so I can do whatever I like because he'll

15:27forgive me and first John 1 9 does say that you know he's faithful to forgive us he is he is but you need

15:37to think about it are you struggling with something or are you sinning and and slapping him on the face

15:44essentially and just keep on going down the road like that and then there's this other kind of bizarre ditch and

15:50this isn't for your standard everyday believer it's just a different kind of a category that I have run into

15:58particularly in business circles uh but it's this is I say I believe in God but avoid Jesus I say that I'm

16:08spiritual I put bible verses on my business cards but I'm really Christian in theory only and I'm

16:16thinking of Jude 4 here they they are ungodly people who pervert the grace of our God into a license for

16:24immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only sovereign and Lord that seems to be a little less prevalent but

16:32I have seen it and it just always makes me really scratch my head because there'll be the the agreeance

16:39and you could even be at some kind of a meeting where somebody says hey I want to you know I want

16:44to have an opening prayer or whatever and they will pray go through everything and then even this

16:50person will say amen and the next thing you know when you start when you start engaging them in

16:56conversation because you think oh okay this is you know someone who who loves the Lord then you realize

17:02really quickly that oh boy were you ever wrong they don't and as a matter of fact they hate him

17:08and they're running around out there and they're putting their they're putting verses all over

17:13everything that was my first intro to the fact that people do crazy stuff like psalm magic and other

17:18things so anyway yeah just whoo so with all of that in mind let's acknowledge kind of ditch three

17:28first that's that you know I'm gonna say I'm spiritual and I put the bible verses on my card

17:32but they don't have Jesus right so Romans 10 9 and 10 if you declare with your mouth Jesus is Lord

17:39and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead you will be saved for it is with your heart

17:45that you believe and are justified and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are

17:49saved in Acts 4 12 Peter is recorded as having said nor is there salvation in any other for there is

18:01no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved he's talking about the name

18:10Jesus Christ of Nazareth in that passage and the subhedron or subhedron listen to me

18:16the Sanhedrin subsequently responded in verse 17 but so that it spreads no further among the people

18:26let us severely threaten them that from now on they speak to no one in this name oh my goodness

18:36Jesus Christ of Nazareth that was a problem name to the people that were in control that had their

18:44religious system on lockdown my goodness look at that and now let let's look next though we'll go back

18:53to Romans 6 we're going to look at 10 through 14 about the implications of Jesus's death on the cross

18:59and I again I recommend reading all of chapter 6 because there's so much in those next verses to

19:06show why these sin ditches can trap many who aren't comprehending it or they're ignoring what is

19:12written or perhaps that they've even been taught kind of something in in error so starting in verse 10

19:18the death he died he died to sin once for all but the life he lives he lives to God in the same way

19:26count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus therefore do not let sin reign in

19:33your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires do not offer any part of yourself to sin as an

19:42instrument of wickedness but rather offer yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to

19:49life and offer every part of yourself to him as an instrument of righteousness for sin shall no longer

19:57be your master because you are not under the law but under grace and that is a beautiful exposition

20:10on what the truth of this is you're no longer under the law but you're under grace and this reason is that

20:17sin is sin is no longer your master your master is Jesus Christ it's so beautiful and what we need

20:25to remember about sin is that our our mess ups are removed by the Lord according according to Psalm 103

20:32this is 11 12 for as high as the heavens are above the earth so great is his loving devotion for those who

20:40fear him as far as the east is from the west so far he removed our transgressions from us there are so

20:50so many wonderful verses to chew on about the forgiveness of sins and I would recommend that you

20:55that you just do a simple google search and and look some of those up if we confess our sins God is

21:02faithful to forgive them 1 John 1 9 there's also a dire warning not to go around sinning all willy-nilly

21:12though if we look at Hebrews chapter 10 26 or 29 for if we sin willfully after we have received the

21:23knowledge of truth there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins but a certain fearful expectation of

21:31judgment and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries anyone who has rejected Moses's law

21:41dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses of how much worse punishment do you suppose

21:52will he be thought worthy who has trampled the son of God underfoot counted the blood of

22:01the covenant by which he was sanctified a common thing and insulted the spirit of grace

22:10that's a reality check and those verses bring us back to the reality of yes God forgave us and gave his

22:20life to pay for our collective missing of marks however that doesn't mean that we take advantage of his

22:26sacrifice for us and read headlong into debauchery we are alive in Christ and it is from within him that

22:35we can live in the letter to the Galatians Paul wrote this is um chapter 5 16 through 21 so I say walk by the

22:43spirit and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh for the flesh desires what is contrary to the

22:51spirit and the spirit what is contrary to the flesh they are in conflict with each other so that you are not

22:59to do whatever you want but if you are led by the spirit you are not under the law the acts of the flesh are

23:09obvious sexual immorality impurity and debauchery idolatry and witchcraft hatred discord jealousy fits of rage

23:19selfish ambition dissensions factions and envy drunkenness orgies and the like I warn you as I did

23:29before that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God Galatians 5 24 through 25 says those who

23:40belong to Jesus Christ have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires since we live by the spirit let us walk in

23:49step with the spirit if we walk in step with the spirit we know there is no condemnation for us in Christ

23:58Jesus and you know what when you follow Holy Spirit the only ditches he will lead you to are those that

24:06other people are stuck in to help them get out of it though as the people of God we are being called up

24:14higher to know that therefore if anyone in Christ is in Christ he is a new creation all things have passed

24:21away behold all things have become new that's our focus all things have become new and you keep moving

24:28forward and asking the Lord for help and not falling back and stumbling into these self-condemnation

24:35ditches and and and thinking of things like oh it's no big deal um no no with that new creation

24:43is a new nature we were formerly darkness but now we are light in the Lord we're to walk as children

24:49of light Ephesians 5 8 God is patient and merciful and since he looks at your heart he truly knows where

24:58you are in the battle so like why lie to him like he knows he knows but you have to say things to him

25:04say it he already knows what you need a far off before you even say it but a lot of this comes with

25:12our confession and not being confession like these are all the things that I've messed up like what is

25:18going on what is the reality right now for you and telling that to God being raw with God being raw with

25:25God he's a big boy he can take it if you are in him you're a former sinner saved by grace with a new

25:35nature a new creation in Christ Jesus and your new nature is not one of sin and should you sin

25:41please don't fall into a ditch and be guilt-ridden because of it ask for forgiveness

25:461 John 1 9 and please don't fall into the ditch of abusing your free will that costs it came from the

25:55cost of his blood because you are that important to him now he died for you

26:00don't fall into that ditch of abusing your free will intentionally and insulting the spirit of

26:07grace neither of those ditches are going to help you overcome they will only help you stay stuck with

26:13the wrong mindset and heart toward the Lord whoever lives to make intercession for you according to

26:20Hebrews 7 25 we are responsible for what we decide to do with our free will and also for how we respond

26:29to others when they use theirs to violate ours easier said than done yeah but worth it for a daily peace

26:39for recovery and straightening out of ourselves so father I thank you in Jesus's name for every

26:49listener I thank you for your children Lord and that we would collectively come together that we would

26:54overcome our differences that we'd be able to walk in harmony and unity with Holy Spirit together

27:00help one another out of these ditches so that we don't stay stuck in them that nobody stays stuck

27:07that we are the family of God and that we actually finally start to operate like that and not just

27:13pointing fingers and condemning everyone else and and and all of that that Lord that you would show us

27:21exactly who we are in you that we are salt and light that we are the light of the world and as Jesus

27:27Christ is so are we in this earth right now that we have a mission that we have a purpose and that we

27:34would not give up on that and not allow the past sins to yank us into these sin consciousness types of

27:41ditches and that we would also not insult the spirit of grace by just living our lives like the devil all

27:47week and just going to church on Saturday or Sunday or whenever whenever our day to worship him is so

27:54Lord we're asking for your help with this and that we you're going to see it through by the spirit of

28:00truth in Jesus's name amen all right amen thank you so much for listening we will see you next time

28:09you

28:20you

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