Will Sopwith challenges our celebrity culture by exploring why Paul called Jesus "the name above every name." In a world full of disappointing heroes and self-promoting influencers, discover why Jesus stands completely apart - authentic, God-endorsed, and worthy of our ultimate trust. A refreshing look at what makes one name truly supreme.
01Talk notes
Have you ever felt let down by someone you really admired? Maybe a hero turned out to have feet of clay, or a brand you trusted disappointed you with shoddy quality. We live in an age of influencers and self-made celebrities, all clamouring for our attention and promising to be the next big thing.
Will Sopwith shared something that cuts right through this noise. In a world saturated with people trying to make a name for themselves, there's one name that stands completely apart - the name of Jesus.
02When Heroes Let Us Down
We're constantly bombarded with claims about who or what deserves our trust. Politicians promise the earth, brands claim to be the ultimate solution, and social media influencers position themselves as experts on everything. But scratch beneath the surface, and there's nearly always an ulterior motive - growing their following, making money, or gaining power.
Will confessed something many of us can relate to: he's become weary of "ultimate" claims. He's had cheap, unbranded items that lasted years and expensive, "premium" products that fell apart. The world's track record on delivering what it promises isn't exactly stellar.
Even Paul, the writer of Philippians, knew about impressive credentials. He was from the right family (the tribe of Benjamin), went to the right school (taught by the respected teacher Gamaliel), belonged to the right club (the Pharisees), had a useful profession (tentmaker), and held the ultimate passport - Roman citizenship. His CV was impeccable.
Yet Paul called all of this "rubbish" compared to knowing Christ. What could possibly cause someone to dismiss such an impressive background?
03The Name That Changes Everything
In Philippians 2:9-11, Paul makes an extraordinary claim:
"Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father."
Paul gives us three reasons why Jesus's name stands above all others:
First, Jesus is utterly authentic. Unlike our heroes who eventually disappoint us, Jesus had no skeletons in the closet. Paul followed him for nearly thirty years and could still make this assessment. There were no hidden scandals, no secret agendas. Jesus was completely upfront about who he was and what he was about.
Second, Jesus wasn't self-proclaimed. We're naturally sceptical when someone tells us they're the greatest of all time. But Jesus wasn't like a modern influencer building a personal brand. In fact, his family thought he was hurting his career by staying in the cultural backwater of Galilee instead of going where the action was in Jerusalem. It was God who raised him up, evidenced by his resurrection from the dead.
Third, Jesus fulfilled over 300 prophecies. Will started putting sticky notes in his Bible to mark all the Old Testament prophecies that pointed to Jesus, but ran out of sticky notes. The sheer number of historical and spiritual pointers that aligned with Jesus's life is staggering.
04What's In A Name?
The name Jesus literally means "God saves" - it includes the ultimate Hebrew name of God. But Will points out that when Paul talks about "the name above every name," he's thinking about more than just what Jesus was called. In Hebrew culture, a name represented someone's nature, authority, and reputation.
This isn't about using Jesus's name like some magic incantation. It's about recognising what that name represents - that Jesus is the Christ (anointed by God) and Lord (in authority over all things).
05The Only Appropriate Response
Paul says that at Jesus's name, every knee should bow. Now, Will acknowledges that bowing isn't particularly popular these days, except perhaps in protest. But he identifies three different reasons why people might kneel:
- Out of coercion and fear - like someone with a gun to their head
- To get something - like begging for a chance
- Out of respect and reverence - recognising that someone is greater than you
Will is clear that the first two aren't what Paul has in mind. If Christianity has been presented to you as an angry God who must be appeased, he apologises - that's a complete twisting of the gospel message. And if you've been told that doing the right religious things will get you salvation, that's treating Jesus like a vending machine.
Instead, Paul is talking about pure acknowledgement of Jesus's greatness. It's a recognition of supremacy, but it's also a loving recognition of thankfulness. It's almost like a spontaneous response to encountering true majesty - the only possible conclusion when you truly see who Christ is.
06Conversation Street Wisdom
During our discussion, some brilliant questions came up:
What about when religious leaders let us down? Jenny pointed out that we have a tendency to put people on pedestals, and leaders can sometimes encourage this. The key question is: are they pointing you to themselves or to Jesus? We all fail, so while we can appreciate good leadership, our ultimate trust must be in Jesus alone.
How do we navigate a world full of competing claims? In our age of disinformation and expert-bashing, it's hard to know who to trust. The answer is to test everything against Scripture and maintain direct relationship with God through prayer and Bible reading. All the podcasts, books, and Christian content (including this blog!) should be secondary to one-on-one time with God.
Can we have our own Damascus Road experience? Jenny shared about a friend who encountered an angel during her conversion, while acknowledging that her own faith journey was more gradual. Both experiences are valid. If you're seeking God, it's worth asking him to reveal himself to you - he wants to be known, not just understood intellectually.
07A Name You Can Trust
In a world where politicians last a year before being discredited and influencers come and go like fashion trends, Jesus's name has stood the test of time for over 2,000 years. As Tom Holland (the historian, not Spider-Man) demonstrated in his book "Dominion," one man wandering around the backwaters of Galilee literally transformed our entire value system - the way we think about human dignity, charity, and compassion.
Jesus didn't promote himself, didn't try to make a name for himself, and yet he has changed the world more than any other figure in history. He's shown himself trustworthy not through marketing campaigns or social media presence, but through a life of perfect love, sacrificial death, and victorious resurrection.
08Your Response This Week
So what's your response to Paul's extraordinary claim? In a culture that's sceptical of authority and tired of being let down, Jesus stands as the one name that truly is above every name.
If you're investigating whether Christianity is true, why not ask Jesus to reveal himself to you this week? If you're already following him, perhaps it's time to examine whether there are any other "names" competing for the ultimate place in your life.
Because here's the truth that Paul discovered and that countless others have found over the centuries: Jesus is the only one who will never let you down. His name isn't just above every name by accident - it's there because he alone is worthy of that place.
The question isn't whether Jesus deserves to be Lord. The question is whether you'll recognise what's already true and bow your knee in loving acknowledgement of the one whose name truly is above all others.
Topics in this talk
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(250) The Name Of Jesus (Philippians 4) - YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ulV6nEGdk5I
Transcript: (00:00) good evening and welcome to crowd church tonight it's lovely to see so many of you here I am joined tonight by Jenny Mara hi Jenny hi it's lovely to be with you this evening fab what have you been up to today and the good oh I went to a friend's house today who's brought one of those pizza ovens the ones you can have in your back garden and like doing homemade pizza in a back Garden Pizza Oven I was like this is a life of luxury that is not something that I would ever consider buying for myself so it was Wonder treat and like ambitious in (00:32) November as well I think but anyway the coat was on but it was good yeah awesome I had a roast cooked for me this afternoon so that was also very nice by my husband um so anyway enough about our social lives uh we should probably tell you what we're up to this evening um so we've got will uh stop with who's going to be sharing the next part of our series um and he's going to talk about the name of Jesus tonight and then after that we're going to be um discussing it for a little bit so we'll go to conversation Street where we'll have a bit of a discussion um Jenny and I will (01:08) try and unpack it and we'll also try and answer some of your questions so if you um have got any thoughts or comments while that talk is rolling then please just um put them in the chat bar um post your comments and we will pick them up afterwards and talk about them answer them as best we can won't we absolutely great okay well we will um roll with the talk then and then we'll come back to you very soon at least I think we're roll with a talk this evening we've got will with us brilliant [Music] hi a little reflection exercise to start with take a moment to think the first (02:28) one that comes into your head should be feeling think of a name of great influence take your first thought do whatever psychoanalysis you need to do on yourself later but the name that name that first comes to your head and that name it might just come because of a uh it might just be a reflection of what you're currently reading where you are right now Current Events maybe someone in the news it might be a famous name it might be an Infamous name okay second exercise take a moment to think of a name that is good great truly up there in your life (03:10) for the right reasons go on now this might be the same as the first it might be much more personal might be a hero historic figure have a little think about what makes that name stand out so much in your thoughts how have you formed the opinion you have about that name assuming that's the name of a person okay so our reading today is in Philippians and is all about a name names and more significantly the reputations are important you could say one thing that unifies the worlds of Commerce art sport music politics even (04:02) crime is the drive and desire to make a name for yourself because with a name you can climb to the top of the Heap you become known recognized followed maybe it's a source of self-fulfillment having a name uh maybe it enables you to influence we are bombarded with Brands and broadcasts options and opinions constant battle for our attention and agulation how do you daily filter such a barrage we may grow cynical with the claims made or perhaps we should there's almost always an ulterior motive when you scratch beneath the surface of any proclaimed name to (04:53) trust that might be someone's need to grow a fan base so they are recognized as an influencer it's very often to part you with cash for the growth of their particular business it might be to gain political power on the back of your support now confession for me that any claim of this is the ultimate in fill in the blank lands not so much with interest and excitement as a a bit of weariness and weariness for me I've had some very cheap unbranded possessions that have lasted amazingly well and also some expensive with the right name items (05:32) that have been a disappointment and not lived up to the hype and in general ultimate Claims can be rather misleading but hey I recognize I'm squarely not in the adopter camp the early adopter camp and this may just be me but we might therefore conclude as many do that you can only really trust in yourself and that's a mantra you frequently hear you're the only one who really knows knows your needs and can supply them to be honest I even let myself down very very frequently and if that's the best the world can offer I'm stuffed Paul the Apostle and writer of (06:15) our reading today knew something of name and pedigree we see from various bits of his writing that to kick off he was from the right family The Tribe of Benjamin it's considered at the time to be the most Jewish of Jews the tribe from which the original line of kings came he was from the right School taught by a widely respected teacher called gel he was involved in the right Club the religious authorities of the time the fares Ultra moral upstanding pillars of the community well thought of he was also a skilled worker with a profession making tents from (06:58) leather and finally he had the ultimate passport Visa combo giving him access to the whole of the Known World both culturally one of God's chosen people a Jew but also born into Roman citizenship and that brought various Privileges and protections uh across the world so with all this what did Paul think of this impressive CV and pedigree a bit later in his Philippian Ian letter which we're reading at the moment he confesses that all this was quote rubbish compared to knowing Christ so let's read our scripture today (07:44) Philippians 2 verse 99-1 and this is Paul writing therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name that at the name of Jesus Jesus every knee should bow in heaven and on Earth and under the Earth and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father with all this going for Paul steeped in the cultural importance of name reputation pedigree he categorically and boldly concludes in these verses Jesus is the name above every name what happened for him to dismiss all else that he previously would have (08:40) held so dear as rubbish it must have been absolutely earthshaking and it was of course his Supernatural meeting with the spirit of Jesus on the road to Damascus and this single event ignited a whole reassessment of everything he had so passionately pursued up to that point in his life life we have to take notice of such a dramatic turnaround and Paul gives us three pointers in these few verses as to why we might draw the same conclusion as he did even if we don't have the same kind of dramatic Damascus Road experience so the first point he (09:19) makes that on encountering someone truly extraordinary Paul came to realize the emptiness of what previously seemed so impressive in himself he saw that his pedigree and CV was really not so great how often do we get let down by our heroes or even brands names that we thought were wonderful but became tarnished perhaps a very public Fall From Grace where some carefully hidden aspect of life or character becomes apparent and politicians face this all the time or some greedy overreach by a company we rely on where quality perhaps is sacrificed for profit or even the pursuit of wealth (10:06) above loyalty for a sporting or cultural hero the truth is that putting anything or anyone on such a high pedestal all too frequently results in them toppling but Paul had followed Jesus Christ for nearly 30 years when he wrote when he wrote these words through thick and thin but he could still make this astonishing assessment there were no skeletons in the closet there was no secret history on Earth to change his view there was no witness of Jesus's life telling a different story Jesus was utterly authentic uh in Paul's View and (10:44) the fact that he didn't neatly fit the stereotypes of what the Jewish Nation including Paul were expecting from a messiah somehow adds to this authenticity he was absolutely upfront on his agenda and it was good so the second Point Paul draws is another part of Jesus's credibility he was not self-proclaimed for me hearing someone someone else's view of something reinforces someone's self emotion if you tell me that you are a goat for the uninitiated greatest of all time I'm less likely to take it very (11:24) seriously than if I don't know an informed expert says it especially if that informed expert expert says it when you haven't said it about yourself and this is exactly what Paul sees in Jesus it was God who raised him up the evidence being his resurrection from death and yes Jesus did make multiple claims about himself but he was certainly no self-absorbed influencer making a buck from his public profile in fact his family suggested he was rather hurting his career by hanging around in the cultural backgound water (12:00) of Galilee in the Gospel of John chapter 7 uh it says Jesus's brothers said to him leave Galilee go to Judea so that your disciples there might see the works you do no one who wants to become a public figure acts in Secret Show Yourself to the world a final piece of The credibility of Jigsaw for Paul was just how many other cultural historical and spiritual pointers aligned with Jesus's short life on Earth now I began to I didn't complain it I began to put a poit in my Bible of all the prophecies all the (12:38) scriptures in the first half of the Bible that pointed to who Jesus was and to be honest I got a little bit bored of tearing up poits and ran out of poits but yeah that that's just a selection there's over 300 references in the Bible that Jesus fulfilled in his life a little aside what's in name the name Jesus means God Saves yay God sure saves Yeshua the name Jesus literally includes the ultimate Hebrew name of God now this scripture says God gave Jesus his own name the name above every name but I don't believe the name here (13:23) is only what Jesus was called there are lots of people in the world called Jesus before and since the Lord Jesus lived physically on Earth I think here Paul is drawing on The Wider sense of name that a Hebrew man such as him would understand a and that sense is that meaning of name is the sense of of nature of authority of reputation as in open up in the name of the king or she made a name for herself through her kindness now you might gain the impression in some churches that using the name Jesus is like some kind of I know incantation or spell if you say (14:03) the right words powerful things happen but I think the name of Jesus Paul talks about here is much richer than that it's less the verbalized name than the underlying faith of what that name represents and Paul expands this uh in verse 11 in this reading at the name of Jesus indicates not just the name but the underlying faith that Jesus is the Christ which means anointed by God and the Lord in authority over all things so to recap Paul a walking talking high-end brand in the eyes of his contemporaries he had it all points to one who is greater more authentic (14:47) more real the Supreme what's the response he called the first readers of this letter too and by extension what's the response he calls us to bow the knee Heaven Earth underworld get on your knees submit and more than that to acknowledge the supremacy of Jesus Christ the lord now I've noticed and you may have that bowing the knee is not especially popular except perhaps in protest and I just wanted to spend a bit of time exploring this because our response to Paul's claim of Jesus being Supreme is really (15:34) important someone kneeling to someone else physically or metaphorically Cur up three scenarios for me the first one is kneeling out of coercion and fear think someone fearing for their life with a gun to their head second one is kneeling to get something think of someone begging for a chance to get into a soldout show and the third one is kneeling out of respect and reverence in recognition that someone is greater than you now if you have ever had cause to bow down or kneel from coercion or fear where Christianity is concerned I want to profusely (16:23) apologize there are many streams or practices of Christian faith where an angry God that must be appeased is all too apparent and I'm sorry the fundamental character of God and Jesus who has given the name above every name is love God's love does not provoke Terror God's love does not manipulate submission to another's cause for me this is a complete twisting of the Gospel message and I'm sorry I've no doubt that this is not the Bowing the knee that Paul is talking about here sadly another common response in (17:05) religious faith is the begging one if I do the right stuff if I say the right things if I go to the right meetings if I think the right thoughts I will get salvation it's more of a metaphorical bowing the knee I'll adopt whatever pose needed to get the result that I want but this is purely transaction approach to Jesus that I believe goes against not only this longer passage in Philippians but also the rest of the Gospel as presented in the Bible now my belief is that Paul is talking here about response all creation and every sentient being that is pure (17:49) acknowledgement of the greatness of Jesus Christ the Lord he is utterly convinced and I am that Jesus who lives lived died and was raised from Death is without equal every human Kingdom Empire movement ultimately pales in comparison to Jesus and there's simply no alternative but to Bow it's a recognition of greatness a recognition of Supremacy but it's also a loving recognition of thankfulness this is the picture Paul paints it's almost like a spontaneous response to utter Majesty the only possible conclusion to (18:42) who Christ is revealed to be the only appropriate posture and it's the central theme of all the other points Paul wanted to make to this Community of Faith in the letter of the Philippians Jesus is supreme Jesus is truly worthy of worship and our challenge is to explore this for ourselves okay welcome back everyone that was an amazing talk by Willer um just loads of content what did you think Jen oh I mean yeah that was really really rich isn't it and I was thinking beforehand that he was only speaking on three verses that like that's quite a high bar really isn't it but there's so (19:36) much you can say cuz it's such a rich little passage there's so much you can say about three verses yeah definitely I mean one of the things that really struck me was just one of the early points he made about the idea that we have we live in a culture don't we where names are thrown about and abanded about quite a lot today we live in the age of influences online and politicians who are full of themselves and have lots of big claims and I just think yeah it it's so easy to feel quite let down by names PE you know people that make big claims and actually deliver very little and it just really (20:16) struck me as he was talking that Jesus's name that is is above all of that it's um cross-cultural it's throughout time you know it's across all nations it's you know it's Through the Ages it stood the test of time and that's the thing not just in my life and your life but throughout the ages Jesus name has stood the test of time and in a way that you're lucky if politicians stand a year without being discredited in our country at the moment um we'll see with K sta but previous ones what I mean what did you think yeah I mean absolutely and I I I think (20:58) without going bur down the rabbit hole of can you or can't you prove God's existence I think like you look at the life of Jesus and how humble he was and how like they pull that out that passage in John that he didn't go to the places to try and promote himself he didn't do the things to try and promote himself and yet literally he has transformed the world as we know it there was a fascinating book written a couple of years ago um by a guy called Tom Holland who was all about F basically not that Tom Holland a historian Tom Holland a historian Tom Holland not Spiderman Spider-Man doesn't (21:33) have like another separate historical so this guy called Tom Holland wrote this book that's basically all about proving that the whole all of our value system right across the world was transformed by Jesus the fact that we value each human life has been transformed by Jesus our view on charity and compassion has been transformed by like if you think about one guy wandering around in the backwat of Galilee has literally changed the world for the last ,000 years yeah it's pretty amazing it is um I was just looking at the live stream see some of the comments that coming through because there's quite a few so (22:10) um one of them that I thought was really good which was it says um oh let me just find it says we we talk about putting trust in people who ultimately um failers and we've just talked about that but what happens when they are religious leaders especially in big churches and Ministries and we've seen a lot of that sadly in parts of the church over the last few years haven't we so I mean what are your thoughts Jen because you're a church leader yeah I mean I think in our society we have a real desire to follow people I don't know if it's always been like that (22:45) through history but I think we like to find people with skin on to follow whether that's online or in church and I do think we have a kind of tendency as people to put someone up on a pedestal and think they're great equally I think leaders can slot into kind of trying to put themselves up on a pedestal and things get set up to kind of make it about that person and it's interesting to think I think there's a I've got so many thoughts but it's like who's that person pointing you to are they pointing you to themselves or are they pointing you to Jesus because I really like as a church leader myself I really don't want (23:18) to build a church that is about me I just don't think that that is a good foundation so like are you is that person pointing you to Jesus I think another thing is like um we all of us fail don't we so I'm also hesitant of when a leader fails even if if in a spectacular way we then just write off everything they've ever done and they're like well that person's terrible and everything they've ever done must be terrible like well actually no they they might have still said some good stuff you might have still read a book that they've written or heard a talk that they've done that might still (23:50) be great but that humans are imperfect so we shouldn't put ourselves on pedestals we should be careful of putting other people on ped pedestals ultimately I guess Jesus is the one who won't let us down anybody else might so if you find a church leader that you think's great well great but be really careful because Jesus is the one that won't let us down yeah and and they say that quite often don't they that if you find the perfect Church don't join it cuz you know like you'll make it imperfect I mean I (24:22) certainly would it's you know the the point is there is no perfect Church there's no perfect Church leader we're or just imitating Jesus following him as best we can right as Christians and that's what Christianity is it's like following the perfect one imperfectly but trying to learn from him and yeah I mean we live we live in a culture don't we which is very good at setting people up and then pulling them down like you see it all the time in the Brit the British press is terrible for it like this era (24:53) of celebrity we live in where we raise people up and we glorify them for a year or 10 that we actually like I'm not saying us personally but culture Delights and pulling them back down when they fail and saying oh they you know they've messed up and it's yeah and it just makes you think this is why we we can't put all our faith in individuals and people and hero Sports people slabs Ordinary People yeah and I think I even heard someone say recently it's you know it's stopping people going into politics (25:26) like cuz you know we're putting we're expecting too much of people and then destroying them when they fail and it puts people off going into those jobs and you want good people to go into those jobs but ultimately we can't put our hope like we've just had an election in this country haven't we and people kind of give big promises and then like the Americans are having an election and people give big promises it's like really you know you have to kind of be a bit realistic don't you and think actually okay these people might be great and they might do some great (25:55) stuff but actually where can I put my ultimate hope yeah and it and it's interesting like I don't want to get too drawn into the American elections because I know it's quite polarizing and I'm I'm not you know I'm certainly wouldn't be someone who would Advocate voting one way or another you know I don't think that's Church's place to tell you who to vote for um but yeah I I think it's like when it's um I know when when it's so close it's like yeah it can be I don't know it can be really polarizing and actually in the end it's like it doesn't matter who's leading your country because you (26:34) know it's short term isn't it and I mean it doesn't it doesn't matter who's leading your country I think it's important to vote but ultimately it's not Trump or Harris that America is looking to save it you know it's it's Jesus who will save America and and turn it around and you know and Jesus didn't say follow a political party did he he said follow me and that H has to be our Benchmark I think as Christians and that's something I have to constantly keep going back to it's like who am I following is this Jesus or like a church leader or a politician or someone else (27:12) an influencer like who am I putting my faith in ultimately yeah absolutely I think for me ly there's another question on here about um Paul's impressive credentials and he said that they're rubbish compared to knowing Christ and like we don't you know we look at other people's credentials and get really impressed by them we get really impressed by ourselves sometimes don't we and it's an interesting question isn't it what shifts your focus to the point where you see that actually that none all of that is nothing compared to just following Christ yeah yeah it's it's challenging (27:45) isn't it it's it's quite humbling I um I like this um comment as well it says um I like the way we relate the passage to Modern Life and people wanting to make a name for themselves so it's exactly that it's like you know so many people about making their own name but actually there's only one name that matters this is an interesting question so it says what's the difference between the fear of God as mentioned as a good thing and fearing God like will mentioned CU fear of God is a weird saying isn't it it's a bit religious (28:21) like what do you understand that to mean General yeah I think it's one of those things that doesn't translate very well isn't it from that Jewish context of people who would have really got it but I think there is something that is a inspiring about God if anyone ever read um or watched that The Lion The Witch in the wardrobe there's the book and then there's the TV series it was on when I was little um and there's something about you know is the lion safe and they're like no he's not safe and like there is something about God that is is (28:49) a inspiring that I think we don't want to kind of take too lightly and be too flippant with who God is he is God the creator of the universe but he Jesus clearly teaches that it's not just about approaching in fear and trembling is it that also we can call him ABA father and that we can be intimate and close with God so you're kind of holding two things in tension I think but you don't want to you know because well was talking about why do we bow and I don't think we bow out of fear of God we might bow in (29:25) response to his awesomeness and you know bow out of reverence of like God you are so amazing all I can do is bow before you but I think fear is an interesting word there isn't it because it's not a phrase yeah it's yeah it's not a we think of it as in very negative connotations don't they like we've just had Halloween and it's all fear-based we think of it as a purely negative thing but to me like yeah the fear of God is something different it's like almost an A and A respect and and that's slightly different isn't it yeah definitely um (30:02) this is an interesting question which I think is worth chatting about so um it says in a world that's so saturated with claims of being the ultimate or the Supreme how can you personally navigate who or what to trust especially in areas of faith I think that's a really good question have you got any thoughts on that yeah I think for me again it' be one of the things is what are they pointing you to what are they encouraging you to your trust in I think the longer I've walked with Jesus The more I've realized that that Jesus is the only thing that I can put my trust in and I think anything else that is (30:40) misdirecting my gaze is worth being aware of I don't know what you think yeah I I think so there's so much distraction isn't there in our culture and I think lots of helpful tools and guides and books and podcasts and Christian content out there like when making Christian content right now aren't we but all of it I think is secondary to actually one on one time listening to God reading his word you know and that direct link with God yourself so I think all of it can be useful tools but yeah absolutely test it and make sure that balances right like for me I think I (31:20) want to make sure that I'm reading God's word directly and listening to God directly as well as listening to other people's opinions on a podcast orbe it you know some great Christian leaders and reading great Christian books that's all good and it can inspire you and challenge you in different ways and and expand your learning but I think there's nothing for me and I've been a Christian a long time like you have Jim but there's nothing for me that's as good as just reading God's word with a few friends and saying (31:52) what do we think like what's God speaking to us now here through this content and sort of doing that with few trusted friends who have everyday access to your life yeah definitely and I think being okay with weighing up what anybody else says prayerfully weighing up like you can take wisdom from other people can't you but again we're getting into dangerous Realms if you think everything somebody says is perfect and then they let you down and you're devastated by that it's having a bit of a healthy kind of okay God this person said this I'm just going to sit with you like you say (32:23) talk to trusted friends it's a bit safer yeah and realizing that it's okay to disagree like like not all Christians agree on every single biblical matter and ultimately we won't have all the answers or know everything this side of heaven so it's okay to have some disagreement some Nuance some uncertainty like I like to have everything squared off and neat and tidy and to be sure of my facts but there are some things that I won't I just won't have answers for this side of heaven and I have to be okay with that and that's part of trusting God as well (33:04) and um yeah so it's okay if you don't agree with everything a leader says or yeah it's good it's good to have discernment and sort of hear God for yourself isn't it yeah I think it's pretty healthy really to just again it's part of taking that person off the pedestal isn't it and not making it all about them yeah yeah definitely let's have a look have we got any other questions someone says here for me the fear of God does not mean living in Terror of him instead it refers to a profound respect and all yeah just said that that's really good (33:37) um someone says I wonder if we fear God enough in our lives I think that's interesting yeah and there's something else on here about bowing being increasingly unpopular and I think that's interesting isn't it because in our society we probably although we put people off in pedestals we're at the same time not necessarily terribly good at respect or honor perhaps I don't know if you've got any thoughts around that yeah I think so um I think we live in a world where we quite like to question don't we and yeah we almost live in this world (34:12) where we like to put people on pedestal like you say but also we don't really trust anyone because there's so much disinformation that we're like always quering it's that even the experts like I work in the healthcare sector with lots of doctors and Senior you know kind of Health people who are very very clever and know an awful lot more than I do about health and how the body works and how to fix people when they're sick and that's great but you know in the last few years we've seen a lot of people not trusting health professionals and quering them on (34:47) vaccines and all kinds of things that you know and so it's a both and isn't it and it's a weird world we live in where it's like yeah we kind of do respect people but also sometimes we think we know better even though we don't know anything about the subjects and it's kind of weird yeah and I think the the thing that Paul's saying here and something you find throughout the Bible is like actually God is the person that you can honor that deserves honor that should be put above all other things that actually you can and should I mean I don't even massively like using the word should around church I don't think (35:26) God guilt trips us but there is a sense of like actually God deserves our worship he deserves us bowing to him he deserves us putting him first in our decision making nobody else does but he does and it's like that relinquishing of control like we we have in particular in the west we have such privileged lives don't we get so many choices about what we do but the call from Jesus is actually because your name is above every name because everyone in Heaven on Earth and under the Earth Earth is going to bow to you I will lay my life down to you and say okay God here it is before you and relinquish some of those choices (36:06) I'm not going to do that to another leader or someone who's great on Instagram but I am going to do that to you God because you're worthy of it it is a bit countercultural it is but I I think that's a really really good point actually Jen that it's all about the object of your trust like it's not wise to just put your trust in anything or anyone like you think about a relationship right like it's not some people don't deserve you to trust them do they but it's about like you think about our marriages it's like our husbands have spent time with us they've (36:37) loved us well they've earned our trust by showing that they're good men by who they are and I I sort of think with Jesus it's the same he's shown us who he is he's like earned our trust and he's shown that he's worthy of us trusting in Him and you know much more say than our husbands have um but yeah for me it's it's like it's not wise to trust in all you know like just blindly but actually that's the point isn't it that the object of your trust matters and you can trust Jesus because he's proven his name (37:11) over you know it's stood the test of time I don't know how much longer we've got but that question at the bottom there strikes me as well that one of the things we pulled out is that Paul had all these credentials himself but he trusted Jesus cuz he'd had an experience one of the questions is do you think that we can have an experience like a Damascus Ro experience for ourselves yeah it's a really interesting question I think yes definitely because I know lots of people who have had amazing experiences where one minute they w a Christian like I I've got a really good Yi friend um who I may name because you (37:48) might not want to be named online but she had a really powerful encounter she didn't come from a Christian background and she had a really powerful encounter one night with like what she believes was an angel appeared to her she had you know she was kind of seeking God and yeah and she just had this experience she had a worship tape on that someone had given her and um yeah she believes like she saw an angel and just that was part of her kind of conversion experience so I think incredible things can happen and people can have all kinds of incredible sort of Damascus moment (38:24) experiences where they encounter God in a really real way in their life but equally I think you don't have to have that like that wasn't my experience of coming to Faith I grew up in a Christian family mine was kind of like a pla plod bit by bit learn about God as I grew up and find him to be slowly real through lots of small things and I think both of those kind of experiences are equally valid what what about you yeah I think I agree with that I think particularly if you're seeking God like talk to him (38:57) about it it's worth asking like I certainly know I've had moments in my life that have been really significant moments in my faith Journey where I don't know I've been in church been in worship been in my room and God has just spoken to me not audibly but almost you know I mean I've had such a sense in my spirit that it's almost like I can hear the audible voice of God it's been so tangible and they've been really significant moments but equally yeah there's also that sense of just a life lived out but I think it's worth asking God isn't it because we can sometimes be (39:29) too cerebral about these things and yet I think I believe the holy spirit is real and powerful and wants us to not just think about God but to experience him I think God does both yeah yeah absolutely and I think that's probably we are running out of time but I think that's probably a really good point to finish on really that it's like if you you know are seeking God if you're not sure if he's real like what a great place to start like just you know challeng this week like ask him to show him more of himself you know call out use the name of Jesus like yeah just ask (40:06) him to show himself to you like and yeah and see what happens and and also just to say as well like you know like if you've got more thoughts on this subject then drop us an email cuz or you know post through the week on social media to us where um yeah cuz we've got a team here available through the week if you've got any prayer points if you want us to pray for you for anything like please just get in touch with us through the website and you know drop us a line I think maybe the details are just coming up on the screen um but yeah we want to hear from you we want to support you in kind of if you've got any (40:42) questions in your journey yeah yeah I wonder if I could just finish preparing for us yeah that would be great yeah just off the back of what we were talking about father I just as we come to an end I just want to pray that you would reveal a bit more of yourself to all of us whether that's through something that we understand in our minds or something that we experience in our hearts and in our emotions Lord we thank you that you are real and you want to us to understand more of how awesome you are no one else is worthy of Our Praise but (41:13) you are so would you reveal yourself a little bit more to us this week Lord amen amen well I really enjoyed that this evening so um yeah thank you all for joining us and crowd today and thank you for joining us as well Jen have you enjoyed yourself thank you yeah this is the first time I've done this and I it's definitely takes some getting used to but thank you you wouldn't know a of this time would you she's been good am I right in thinking that if people want to hang around there are drinks at the (41:45) back yep and we um will be here again same time next week at 6:30 so we'll see you then yeah it's been an absolute pleasure to be with you see you soon everyone [Music] [Music] [Music]
