Knife Jokes And Holy Week Setup

SPEAKER_05 0:24

What's up everybody? Welcome to Earth Theology of Pieces. Where will else did we build your theology? That's the world of the church. Somebody has a chart of pieces and we have Slim had.

SPEAKER_03 0:40

If you're wondering why I responded to the way that is, because Slim pulled a knife on me in the middle of the podcast. There's no video to this podcast that you can't see. Then he just flipped out a knife.

SPEAKER_05 0:52

See, we asked people if they wanted video. No one responded. Goodness.

SPEAKER_01 0:56

I just gotta let them know what they're an aggressive way to start a podcast.

SPEAKER_05 1:01

I thought we were friends. That was a very violent. I'm sorry.

SPEAKER_04 1:06

Uh hey, Theology and Pieces world. Uh some refer to you as the tip. Theology and Pieces.

SPEAKER_02 1:15

All right.

SPEAKER_05 1:19

We are so excited to have this conversation today.

SPEAKER_04 1:23

Because today we have we have a lot to get to, Malcolm. All right, let's do it. Did you know that today we are catching up on, I think, three months worth of mailbag? Oh, wow. We've missed some mailbag stuff. Oh gosh. Um, and we are, you know, this is we're recording this on the Wednesday before Easter. So we are in Holy Week.

SPEAKER_02 1:43

Holy week. Yeah. Holy week.

SPEAKER_04 1:45

So uh wanted to have a little Easter themed as well. And so I wanted to ask the question: Is Christ actually king?

SPEAKER_03 1:53

Hmm.

SPEAKER_04 1:54

We like to say Christ is king.

SPEAKER_01 1:56

It's a good question.

SPEAKER_04 1:57

But what does that mean? Do people mean that in a different way? Because I hear some people saying Christ is king and it seems like it's a threat.

SPEAKER_00 2:05

Yeah. Yeah.

What Would Your Walkout Song Be

SPEAKER_04 2:07

Or what do we do with that? So we'll we'll we'll talk about that uh here in a minute. Um before we get there, uh Malcolm, you just preached a sermon um for Palm Sunday saying, Are you ready for the king? I did. So it sounds like we already know where you're at on this this question.

SPEAKER_03 2:20

Big fan of the kingship of Christ.

SPEAKER_04 2:22

Okay. Cards on the table already. I guess I'll take the opposite position. Oh goodness. Um uh the icebreaker I gave for our our small groups, uh, and you could you can plan yours now. So Jesus comes out and uh to to Jerusalem and they're throwing the palms down and they're shouting Hosanna in the highest. Um if you had a grand entrance song uh when you walked into a room, yeah, what song would that be?

SPEAKER_03 2:50

It's a good question. Um I gotta think about that because it it it changes, it changes on occasion. Uh I need uh it's gotta be the bootmaker's ballad. Yeah, I it's gotta be even more hype. It's gotta be even more hype than that. Yeah. Um there's a rapper, there's a rapper named Big X the Plug. Um who's who's got some got some songs that I mean, you know, there's there's varying levels of uh vulgarity to them. But that's another point. That's another point. Uh there's just some great, there's there's some great hype. There's some great hype hype music out there. Yeah. Um I gotta think about that. I gotta narrow it down to pick what is my what's my one hype song right now. I gotta think about that.

SPEAKER_04 3:36

All right. I'll I'll give you a second. Uh you're come back with it.

SPEAKER_03 3:39

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 3:40

Um in college, I did a intramural uh baseball league, and uh we uh each we all came up with our own uh hype song to walk out to to come to bat with.

SPEAKER_01 3:52

There you go.

SPEAKER_04 3:53

And so everyone else was coming out with, you know, like Ener Salmon and you know AC D C Thunder and uh whatever it may be. And I just thought, let's change it up because it's just we're working a little too hard to be intimidating when we're playing intramural college baseball, softball, or whatever. It's like underhand pitch.

SPEAKER_05 4:09

So like so I just I was like, I'm walking out and the hit play goes, why can't we be free?

SPEAKER_03 4:16

Oh man. Oh man. I mean, I think my the one I like right now is uh it's uh walk by uh Holy and uh Lecrae. Um this is great. That's a that's a great hype song.

SPEAKER_04 4:30

Uh I Googled before this podcast, can we use other is uh musicians' songs on the podcast to get away with it?

SPEAKER_05 4:37

It's like you need permission. Gross. It's like dang it. Gross. Even if we're like hyping it, say go listen and buy it. Yeah, no.

SPEAKER_02 4:45

Yeah, no, that's not gonna, that's not gonna fly. Sorry. Copyright.

SPEAKER_04 4:49

Yeah. Um, but other than that, uh, so hype. Uh what is called walk. Walk. Um for me in high school, the the hype song that got me ready for uh my my high school football career, because I I took that super important. Uh I was as you should. I was that was the era of POD. Did you ever listen to POD? Oh man. Youth of the Nation, Southtown. Um, I think Alive was the one that was was getting me going. Um there's a couple other Christian uh uh Zayao and uh Project 86.

SPEAKER_02 5:25

Now that's where it's oh man, I don't know anything. I don't know anything about those. I don't know anything about that scene.

SPEAKER_04 5:29

Yeah, you gotta go to Project 86.

SPEAKER_02 5:30

Okay.

SPEAKER_04 5:31

That's all man. All right. It's hardcore. It's hardcore. All right. Um well yeah, yeah. So the so Jesus probably walk walked out to something like that. Oh, for sure.

SPEAKER_02 5:41

I look, I okay, let me see. Okay, what was what was Jesus's hype music? Or or what will or what will be oh there are so there's so um what will be his hype music?

SPEAKER_03 5:52

So okay, one of my favorite Instagram sets of Instagram videos is um uh is when is when people when people are like uh people are they're they're make videos about what the what the trumpets are gonna sound like when cool when Christ returns. And it's all these like it's all these like 90s and 2000 uh uh hip-hop songs that have really great like horn sections. So it's there's I'll send you some of the I'll send you some of the examples. Um but anyway, that's it's it's hilarious. Sweet. It's hilarious.

Two Tweets On Injustice And Anger

SPEAKER_04 6:27

Sweet. Um well I think it's time it's been too long. Some of y'all have been uh begging for it. Uh I think it's time for a little.

SPEAKER_02 6:36

Two tweets. Dun dun dun.

SPEAKER_04 6:40

Yeah, yeah. So, you know, this thing Twitter. We're just committing to call it Twitter.

SPEAKER_01 6:45

It's yeah, I don't care what happens, it's Twitter. It is Twitter.

SPEAKER_04 6:49

Um, a lot has happened, man. I don't know if you know. Um there's just things. Some of this goes into our our discussion on Crisis King, but uh just some of the things that are just terrible. Um where do we begin? Where do we begin? How about just today? How about just today?

SPEAKER_03 7:07

What's what's happened today, Slim? Even today.

SPEAKER_04 7:10

And just like that, Robert Morris is released. Robert Morris, four years of sexually abusing a minor, 43 years of lucrative ministry, six months of jail time. And now has nine and a half years of probation in a lake house worth six times the ordered restitution after he sexually abused a 12-year-old. Yeah. He pleaded guilty. Oh he gets six months.

SPEAKER_03 7:43

That's just okay. So, like, here's the and and here's the thing about this, and this this goes to our general upsetness about seeing people uh not face consequences for profound evil. So, like for example, everybody in the Epstein files, uh, which we're still apparently just not kind of doing anything about. Um, you know, there's the I think there's the part of there's the part of us, especially when we see injustices like this, where uh we get really mad because it seems like people get away with stuff. Yeah, and the psalmist, the psalmist deals with this often. And and we have to be a people who are deeply who, because of our belief in a in a just God, we really do believe that nobody gets away with anything. With anything. And that includes us too, but it also but but um but it's one of these truths that we need to remind ourselves and one another uh um and remind ourselves and one another. Because uh, especially now, especially as we become more and more aware of profound evils that that that folks commit and get away with, or at least apparently get away with, that that temptation to be overwhelmed with those kinds of injustices is gonna be a stronger temptation as the days go on.

SPEAKER_04 9:03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 9:04

So it's hard.

SPEAKER_04 9:06

It's discouraging. It sucks. It's it's hard, hard to read that stuff. Um uh another another uh terrible tweet. This is from uh your good buddy, oh Phil Visher.

SPEAKER_01 9:18

Which buddy?

SPEAKER_04 9:18

Oh, okay, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 9:19

Big big fan of that guy.

SPEAKER_04 9:20

Break the Phil out. I like that guy. Um the the Philharmonic uh what's the yeah, I don't know what you're the orchestra?

SPEAKER_01 9:27

Orchestra. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 9:28

I should have gone there.

SPEAKER_01 9:29

Anyway.

SPEAKER_04 9:30

He just quotes the worst of the worst. Okay and then he's uh quote tweeting the Christian post Oklahoma pastor deported to Mexico after decades of ministry. Oh no. The worst of the worst are getting deported.

SPEAKER_01 9:44

Oh, yeah. Uh-huh. Yeah, those Oklahoma ambassadors.

SPEAKER_04 9:48

Yeah. And business own leaders and people who they never thought. Um so it's just there's there's some of that. Um Bro. We're gonna we're we're gonna get to more uh more of the more of the terrible tweets here in a second, but let's let's go to our mailbag because I just Yeah, man. I need I need Bring us up, man. To not be encouraging dark mood right now.

SPEAKER_03 10:09

Hopefully you guys love this podcast.

SPEAKER_04 10:10

Is there like a yeah? Okay, now I got the music in me. I got I got this feeling inside my bone.

SPEAKER_05 10:19

Oh boy. All right. Oh boy, I'll just see like the wing of emotions in this life is the worst. I hate it all. Let's sing some Justin Timberlake.

SPEAKER_03 10:32

There's no emotional consistency in this podcast. If that's what you came here for, uh sorry. We're gonna stir it all up. Sorry to disappoint.

SPEAKER_04 10:39

All right. We we have three three uh emails, and they're all from different states in the United States.

SPEAKER_03 10:45

Love that, love that for us.

Good Samaritan As Economic Love

SPEAKER_04 10:47

National. Um, here we go. This one is from Burlington, North Carolina. Ooh. Hey, Malcolm and Slim. I just listened to the re-release of the Anti-Greed Gospel interview. My Sunday school school class is going through the parables, and we just covered the good Samaritan.

SPEAKER_01 11:02

Let's go.

SPEAKER_04 11:03

After listening to your interview, I'm definitely going to read your book, but it got me thinking is the parable of the Samaritan who showed mercy not just about who is my neighbor, but also our financial responsibility toward our neighbors. What say you, Malcolm?

SPEAKER_03 11:19

What a question.

SPEAKER_04 11:20

Does it requ does it implicitly, uh explicitly um affect our financial responsibility, or is it just about who is our neighbor?

SPEAKER_03 11:30

Yeah. I mean, I think it it ex Oh go ahead.

SPEAKER_04 11:33

Should we shall we read the Samaritan? Let's let's let's do a little Bible study. Let's do a little Bible study. Alright, we're at Luke 1025. And behold, a certain lawyer stood up and tested him, saying, Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? And he said to him, What is written in the law? What is your reading of it? So he answered and said, You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself. And he said to him, You have answered rightly, do this and you will live. But he, wanting to justify himself, said to Jesus, And who is my neighbor? And then Jesus answered and said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho and fell among thieves, who stripped him of his clothing, wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a certain priest came down that road, and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. Likewise a Levite, when he arrived at the place, came and looked and passed by on the other side. But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was, and when he saw him he had compassion. So he went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine, and he set him on his own animal, and brought him to an inn and took care of him. On the next day, when he departed, he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said to him, Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, when I come again, I will repay you. So which of these do you think was the neighbor to him who fell among thieves? And after he said, He who showed him mercy, then Jesus said to him, Go and do likewise. And what does the man do? He's discouraged, right?

SPEAKER_02 13:14

Well, no, that's what the rich young ruler is. Turn the page. Yeah, yeah. Thank you. Thank you.

SPEAKER_04 13:21

All right. So does this implicitly, explicitly uh speak to uh our financial um uh decisions and responsibilities? Malcolm.

SPEAKER_03 13:32

It's good. Um you know the word for mercy uh and almsgiving in in Greek is this is the is the same. And so for especially in the Eastern tradition, there's been this this real significant link between when we think about what it what it means to uh what it means to show mercy, that is a that's a material, like that's a material commitment. Similarly here, I mean like the commandments are love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, without with your heart, soul, strength, and mind, uh, and your neighbor as yourself. And and basically when Jesus is asked to explain that, when he narrates love, he narrates somebody stopping, somebody bandaging somebody's wounds, taking the putting them on on their own animal, taking them to an inn, paying for, paying for their stay. Like it's the it's it's that love is fundamentally a material commitment. And so you could say that love is also a deeply economic economic commitment. And this is what uh and this is what I think, you know, Paul is mirroring this in um uh, you know, in uh in Romans 12, um, but also in uh in 2 Corinthians uh 8. Uh and then you know, James, James does this when he's talking about the faith and works thing. John talks about it when he when he defines what love is. I think it's it's just it's really it's really important that even when you read that in John or in James or in others, like what they're doing, and this is what all the apostles are doing, what they're doing is just expounding on Christ's own ministry, uh, because they're speaking with the same spirit. And that's and and and and uh and and so that's that's I think really important to note. I I I look I love to encourage people that when they read, especially the gospels, pay attention to how much money shows up because it's all over. Um and here, one of the things to take from this is that you know, if you want to show love for God, you show that through your love of your neighbor, which uh which is most clearly expressed through your material and economic decisions. Um like it's just like it's just right, it's just right there. Um he's he's he's moved with compassion, and so as a result, he spends his time, he spends his resources and all like and all these things in in in love of his beaten and stripped neighbor.

SPEAKER_04 16:05

Um yeah, so no, I mean that that's I mean, this is the the James passage, right? This is the you know, you you know, go and be well fed. Um and like is that I mean, but I feel like that's like the what we think of when we're like, man, I just you know, love your neighbor. Love God, love your neighbor. Like, yeah, it's simple, it's easy. And you're like, so that mean that's gonna require you to actually spend this much money for someone who's I mean, the Samaritans, uh you know, Israelites, we know that that there's the rift, there's this cultural rift, racism, there's this, this, you know, classism that that that that is present there. And you're gonna be able to spend that on someone you really don't like.

SPEAKER_03 16:50

That's the gospel, man. That's that's what a life uh changed by the Holy Spirit. That's what we uh that's how our lives, that's how our lives look. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 17:00

Um and so I just yeah, I think I think we as the church would love for this good Samaritan to be limited to only who is the Samaritan.

SPEAKER_00 17:09

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 17:10

Um we go like, yeah, yeah, that's like okay, let's let's go there. Let's let's yeah, let's start, start there. Sure. But then the fact that the minute we start saying like it actually means something for your pocketbook.

SPEAKER_03 17:21

Yeah. So like what does the Samaritan do? And and and most of this, I mean, really like half of this, half of this story is about the very specific things that this Samaritan did in order to care for this, in order to care for this man. Um, and that's I mean, you know, he's Jesus is giving an example of what like this is what love, this is what love looks like.

SPEAKER_04 17:44

Yeah. Um I think I I I won't I've I wonder if our the the Christian church is not necessarily against it being about money. Um, but if this were the occasion, we just go, oh, I can't, I'm too busy.

SPEAKER_00 18:00

Yeah. Like yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 18:02

I'm thinking of like anytime someone yeah asks you to do something, yeah, you're you're gonna be like, uh I got a lot of stuff going on.

SPEAKER_01 18:07

Sorry.

SPEAKER_04 18:07

I'm I'm not I'm out of town, or I'm doing that, like it it is we're just so perpetually busy.

Busyness As A False Virtue

SPEAKER_03 18:13

Oh, let's handle this. Okay, so let's get at this slim because I was thinking about this. Let's do it. I was thinking about this.

SPEAKER_04 18:18

What are we unpacking? Like it is let's blast something.

SPEAKER_03 18:20

It's also our favorite way to respond to how are you is we respond with I'm busy.

SPEAKER_04 18:27

I want to stop asking the question, how are you?

SPEAKER_03 18:29

We we we we should or or or or at least kind of start articulating our expectations when when we ask that question because we also treat bus treat busyness like it's a virtue, yeah. Um and it's and it's not. Um and and but but but it's like that's our general like we just kind of assume that that's gonna be that that's gonna be a response. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 18:52

Um and then yeah, so I yeah, it's I mean going to that parable, like the uh the the priest, the Levite, they're on the other side of the road, and like you could think of their reasons for doing so. I've got I've gotta go prepare the sermon. Yeah, I gotta right, yeah. I've got to I've gotta go do these things for God.

SPEAKER_00 19:09

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 19:10

Um so they they even out of good motivations and maybe good reasons, they're like, I mean, there's like there's a always a balance of like uh I I I consider with like, well, I have I've got family obligations. And so you're like, well Amen, hallelujah. Yeah, and uh as a as a pastor, I want to make sure I protect the that time. Yeah at the same time what is who is my neighbor? Yeah, and then what's required of me of me in that moment of seeing someone in in that amount of need, someone bleeding to death on the side of the road. Um and so I just think there's just times you have to go like, no, and I I need to lay my priorities down, I need to lay my plans down. And then there's also times just I think we could get better. We we we need to get better and not over scheduling our lives to have some planned boredness for the health so that opportunities like this we can we can come to, but also for our good and our our our own health, because I think it's so easy to plan our lives every minute of every day.

SPEAKER_03 20:10

And and uh a lot of it is not even our planning, it's the fact that we live in an in an attention economy where where corporations are constantly fighting for every minute of our attention, yeah, um, and looking to monetize every minute of it. And this is why the TikTok algorithm and these other algorithms look the way that they do, it's to keep you to keep you on it for hours.

SPEAKER_00 20:31

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 20:31

Um and and and taking taking actual control of your time and your attention is something that is really, really, really important to do. I mean, I try to value my, I try to value my time as a price, like as a somewhat priceless commodity. So I like I try to think about, okay, like what what is it that I really want to spend my time doing? And I still end up wasting hours doing things, like whether it's on whatever. But like, but I'm but I'm trying to be better about, you know, our I mean, our time is limited. And so I'm like, am I am I using it to you know to grow in the ways that in in the ways that the Lord has called me to it's called me to grow? Because there's so much. There's there's you know, the the horizon of the work that the Lord wants to do in and through us is so vast. Um and if we would just if if we would just like live our lives in pursuit of that, we we could we could see so much. Oh so much so much great so much great stuff.

SPEAKER_04 21:42

Yeah. Well, uh you in uh Burlington, North Carolina. Sorry we didn't get to your answer your your before your Sunday school class, but uh you're on the right track. All right. Uh next we're moving, we're we're going west, young man. Uh we're going to Jackson, Tennessee. Okay. Uh, and so now one quick one quick. Is it west of us or is it east of us? Well, Jackson, Tennessee is gonna be northeast. Yeah, it's north. But from North Carolina, it'd be um Oh from North Carolina. From the last question.

SPEAKER_03 22:09

Oh, from the Oh, oh, okay. Oh, okay. Okay, yeah, okay, gotcha. Okay, yeah. What's from the yeah, okay, gotcha.

SPEAKER_05 22:15

I know directions.

SPEAKER_03 22:15

I know directions. I know directions, people. All right. Gosh. I was thinking from my current location, not from not imagining that we had traveled to North Carolina. It's fine.

SPEAKER_04 22:26

I absolutely love my son Jordan. He's recently found out that his phone has uh the compass. Yeah, yeah. And it's just consistently telling me which direction we are facing and heading and driving at all times.

SPEAKER_05 22:39

I'm like, thank you, thank you, thank you. I needed to know that.

SPEAKER_03 22:43

Um, you know, we've lost our connection with the land, so if I'm randomly in the woods or something, I have no idea what direction I'm going. That's if I don't find myself in the woods.

SPEAKER_04 22:51

Just know where the sun's at and what time of day it is. Generally, that would be helpful.

SPEAKER_03 22:55

I don't go outside, so what a statement.

SPEAKER_05 23:00

What a statement. I don't go outside. I don't know. I don't really go outside. Mess around with that.

Building Wealth And Christian Limits

SPEAKER_04 23:07

All right, from Jackson, Tennessee. One question that a quick story. I recently watched an interview by Benjamin Watson, interviewed Boyce Watkins on the just life. I'm curious how you think his thinking fits into capitalism versus socialism. I can understand how he is encouraging people, especially ones with lower incomes, to build wealth. I do not know where he stands on the Christian faith, but it seems to be in response to the lack of money management teaching to people in a lower income bracket. The story is a young 20-year-old, I was thinking one day about what if I won the publishing clearing house sweepstakes, one million dollars. Of course, I have some to charity, but began thinking about how I would spend it. And as I continued at one point, I said to myself, I need more money. Then uh laughter at myself and real laughed at myself and realized as much as I wanted to do some good, I was enamored by the money.

SPEAKER_00 23:53

Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 23:55

So uh do you know this uh interview that he's he's referring to? I haven't seen the interview. Yeah, okay.

SPEAKER_03 24:01

But uh I mean speak to kind of generally the language of of of building wealth. Uh it's it's fascinating because like part of it is me trying to remind myself that like building wealth is not a good thing. Because like because it's a it's a pursuit, and the pursuit is the pursuit of wealth, and that's not good according to the scriptures, and so like, but like I said, we're in a society that treats it as either good or morally neutral, and so it is it sounds weird to people to say something like building wealth is not a good thing. Um because it also goes to like what is the purpose of money? And in this current economy, really, what the purpose of it is to meet your needs and the needs of, and insofar as you have more than you need, this is what I take from, and you guys try keep hearing this from me, but from from Boswell Great and from John Chrysostom, is that if the Lord gives you more than you need, it's meant to meet the needs of others. And this is something that I try to remind myself of because I feel that same, I feel that same temptation, especially, you know, especially in a in a nation with a significant uh racial wealth gap where there's a history of, you know, we're we we have this history of exploitation, um where especially like, you know, the the the the comparison of wealth between black households and and white households in the in the uh in this country is a matter of like it's it's the the disparity is huge. And that and and one of the temptations in that in that situation is is to then lean into well that just means that we need to really pour into building generational wealth. Um and I'm like, I'm just but from the stuff that I've been reading and been and been uh and been steeped in, I'm just like that's not like that's not a goal, like that's not a goal. Like it's just not because what it it's subtly the assumption, hey, if I build this general with this generational wealth, I'm gonna be fine, my kids are gonna be fine, my grandkids are gonna be fine, and all this kind of stuff. And and actually Basel Basel has in his servant to the rich, he's he he did back in the fourth, fourth, fifth century, he comments on this um on this mentality, and he's like, You have no idea how your kids are gonna use that money, it could be deeply corrupting. You have no idea how your graph how your grandkids are gonna use, it could be deeply corrupting. You need to spend time focusing on building Christ-like character so that whatever it is that the Lord gives you, that you can use it to his glory, because you're just giving your kids a bunch of money in it the the risk is actually higher that you destroy them by that. Um but that's not none of us want to hear that. Um and especially, but especially when folks come from uh come from a background of poverty, you you you have this, you have this uh you have this feeling, you know, well, I never want I never want to experience that. And so then your pursuit, you end up pursuing wealth for the sake of security and safety. And uh and Mammon doesn't Mammon claims to give you that, but it it can't. It can't really.

SPEAKER_04 27:28

Um Yeah, to to your point, um some of the data um our deacons are going through, uh poverty, poverty by America. Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes. What's his name? Uh Matthew Desmond Matthew Desmond's book. Um and he cites in 2019, the median white household had a net worth of$188,000. So the median median household net worth of$188,000 compared with$24,000 the median black household. That is wild.

SPEAKER_03 27:57

Yeah, it's a factor of eight.

SPEAKER_04 27:59

That is wild. And so it's stats like that that make me go, well, yeah. Um and I can't I can't um I can't go against someone saying, well, let's uh let's work out of that. I mean, that this is uh also to his question here, um, of saying, you know, like what do we do about like you know, teaching money management to people lower income bracket, like this is where I'm like I think idealistically I I as our last episode we talked about kind of socialism, um but realizing the system we are in is capitalism, and so idealistically I'm like let's let's lean there, let's let's let's meet everyone's needs as much as we can through the church, but also because we live in this capitalistic system, I do think it's good to teach m basic money management skills to folks.

SPEAKER_03 28:52

But it's also the fact that like there are many situations where the poor have much better money management skills than than these middle and upper class folks because they have to in order to survive. Yeah. You get a you get a bunch of you get a bunch of uh uh middle and higher income folks that just don't do any management at all because they're like, well, we don't have to, I mean, we don't really have to. Like there's a certain amount of freedom that we can operate with. But you but you but but but when you're when you're dealing with a situation where prices are continuing to rise, your wages are stagnating, and they're under essentially under a living wage, in order for you to live, you have to pay attention to where every single dollar goes. And so then so then for us to turn around and act like, well, you know, no, if you just manage this better, you'll be no the fact the fact of the matter is that you don't have enough, and prices are continuing to go up, and you're being actively exploited, and you're in it, and you're in a society that often paint penalizes you for being poor. Like that's that's that's those broader those broader issues. Um, and this we we were having a little bit of this conversation before about the relationship between uh personal responsibility and uh you know and and systemic issues. And um, and this is one of these situations where we love to kind of lean on the lean on the personal responsibility thing and be like, hey, if you just manage this better, you'll be in a situation, you'll you'll be in a better situation. But sometimes that's just not sometimes that's just not true. Sometimes you just like you just actually need more to be able to, you know, to be able to.

SPEAKER_04 30:24

Yeah, you don't have the the wealth to absorb when something, uh a medical bill, uh you know, a gas thing or a restaurant that or whatever, a ticket, just you're like, wait, how much was that meal?

SPEAKER_03 30:37

Yeah, look, and the and and and the most significant uh uh source of bankruptcy in this country is medical debt. Yeah. And like you don't control if you get some kind of injury or something, and then you're suddenly thousands of dollars in debt. Yeah. And that's a US thing. Like there are other countries where that's not that's not true, but because of this, because of the particular system that we're in, especially when it comes to healthcare, it it puts a bunch of people in in in delicate, delicate situations.

SPEAKER_04 31:08

I was talking to my brother uh last weekend, and it was just one of those like just such a genuine moment of like you know, sometimes you just have like surface level conversations. Yeah, man, he was just like, Man, I I'm making the most money I've ever made in my life. Um my wife works full time, I work full time, yeah. And I'm barely making rent. The prices in Austin keep raising. Like he's like, you know, all these expenses, like he's just he's just like, I don't know, I don't know what to do. Yeah, everything like I'm doing everything I'm supposed to be doing. This is kind of the point of kind of your to your point of like, is it money management? Like it's it's it's I'm doing everything, I'm climbing that social ladder, but at some point you've maxed and you go, Well, what do you do now? Um, and then you go, okay, well, maybe you know, whatever. Um, or we eat the rich, is that what you would encourage? Maybe we start a revolution, Malcolm.

SPEAKER_03 32:04

We can't eat them because they're gross. Um But yeah, it's a lot.

SPEAKER_04 32:10

Reader in Jackson, Tennessee. Um, uh I think you're wrestling with the the uh it well, and uh I'd I'd be interested to go back to listen to that interview with uh Ben Watson and uh Boyce Watkins on that. Um but uh I have a feeling um they lean uh he leans more capitalistic um just by the way some of those things were said.

SPEAKER_03 32:31

Even just in the sense of building wealth, and people people can have all kinds of kind of seemingly innocent reasons to build wealth and stuff, but I think so much of our lives uh are actually defined by what it is that we are chasing, what it is that we are pursuing, or as Jesus would say, what it is that we are seeking. Um and so uh and the fact of the matter is is that if we prioritize the building of wealth, then we are seeking after the building of wealth. And that is not, and the Lord tells us you can't serve two masters. If you like you gotta seek after first one thing, what is that one thing gonna be? It ought to be the kingdom of God and God's righteousness. Um and then and and what does it then look like to trust the Lord to provide for you when you have that single-minded, that single-minded focus?

Greed Talk Without Antisemitic Tropes

SPEAKER_04 33:23

Well, Malcolm, uh, you will be very uh happy to hear that the the three questions we have, um first one, uh you know, the who is my neighbor and financial responsibility. Yeah. Are they all the same thing? This one is about capitalism, socialism. Our third question from Flowery Branch, Georgia, um, says, when talking about greed, uh we've changed this into the uh anti-greed gospel podcast. It's just such a salient topic for people that people it's all over the scriptures, like you you argue. Um when talking about greed, especially given these volatile times with Israel and anti-Semitism, how do we properly separate legitimate discourse on greed from Jewish tropes baked into much of Christian thought throughout the centuries? Yeah. I included a reference uh post from Rabbi Dania Rutenberg, although you probably don't need it. Um so um what are your thoughts?

UN Reparations Vote And US Shame

SPEAKER_03 34:20

Yeah. Um and yeah, it's really it's really dangerous, especially in the history of uh of Christian Jewish relations, there's a lot of uh kind of I mean violence in a in addition to kind of uh bad stereotypes and stuff like that. Um but but I don't want any of that to hold me back from naming greed where it actually where it actually exists. I like as with as with the category of race, which is fundamentally a lie, like I don't I don't want to um I don't want to levy accusations at quote unquote categories of people because that's that's false. Like it's just false. Everybody's different, everybody's got their own stuff to deal with. Um but um and also like I deeply believe that that that that greed is a uh greed's and greed's an equal opportunity exploiter. Um and so I was well so so like I want I I even try to apply that when I when I think about greed, especially in the context of race, because I'm like I'm not saying that white people are the only greedy people in the world. Like I've I really do deeply believe that this is something that we all that we all struggle with. Um and so so yeah, I you know I it's it's never the case that we apply as much as there are these really harmful and dangerous stereotypes about, you know, um uh and anti-Semitic trope tropes about about Jews controlling the world and like and all this and all this kind of stuff, we can we can very vocally condemn those things. Um but I also want us, I want us to continue to have the freedom to call uh to call things what they are when we see them. So for example, you know, if the if the nation state of Israel is um, let's say uh doing these land grabs in Lebanon so that they can essentially build a mini empire. Like that, I should be able to say that because it's going like it's happening. I can you can point to it happening. You can point to you know the brutality of of a law where now you're celebrating the fact that you can um that you can submit folks, specifically Palestinians, to the death penalty by hanging and like you're just like celebrating that. Like I'm like, that's that's not good. Like I mean, saying that that's not good is not it's not a bigoted thing to say. It's just like I'm just like you don't you know to celebrate killing people. Like I'm just like that's not no. Um and and uh you know we I mean we do it here in the US too. Um yeah, and so you know, I I I don't want us to be I don't want us to be afraid to be voices of moral clarity. Um speaking of which, this is along the along these same themes. There was a recent news story that I'm gonna that I'm gonna I'm gonna bring up a news, I'm gonna bring up a news story. Whoa, whoa. I'm gonna bring up a news story. Everyone.

SPEAKER_04 37:21

Everyone.

SPEAKER_03 37:21

So a week ago, um made some Malcolm.

SPEAKER_05 37:26

Malcolm's bringing it.

SPEAKER_03 37:28

Look, okay, so I I and and and and I talked about this on um on uh on Esau's podcast this week too. But I'm gonna wait a second. But I want to talk about it with you, Slim. You are uh this is I this is this is me shaping the conversation of the podcast for once.

SPEAKER_04 37:44

Getting seconds?

SPEAKER_03 37:45

Yeah, no, but I want to talk to you about it. Talk to me because I love you. It's fine. It's fine. So this was like a week ago. Yeah. Um uh so the UN the UN met and they had a resolution that was, I think it was uh written by by Ghana, I think it was, but basically they they wanted to kind of formally say, hey, slavery was a grave um crime against humanity, and we need to be thinking together as the world, thinking about what what reparations could look like. So you get a hundred and I think it was 123 nations affirmed it, 50 or so abstained, a lot of European countries just abstained. Three countries said no. And those three countries that said no were Argentina, Israel, and the United and the United States. And the U and the United States, the guy who's who's representing us at the uh at the UN, two of two of the things that he said, he said first that uh Donald Trump has done more for black Americans than any other than any other president, which is also just an entirely it irrelevant thing to say. Yeah, um, but but also but also but also he says he said something like um you know the US doesn't recognize um uh and I'll I'll find the I'll find the quote in a minute, but basically they don't they don't recognize any any legal liability for anything that uh basically and anything that wasn't illegal at the time. And so what what was essentially a global like what was essentially meant to be just kind of this global statement of moral clarity for the US are just like no, there's just there's so much that's problematic with that statement. And so I'm like, oh I oh, oh really? But but it's it it's interesting because I mean the whole world can see it. Yeah. I mean, the world already now thinks that basically the US and well and and Israel too, both of both of us, that we're like the most significant threats to world peace and security. Like we're the we're the baddies now. We've been the baddies for a little bit, but like now, like the whole world especially sees us as a threat.

SPEAKER_04 40:05

If you were to take a guess, and I don't know the list of countries that actually have um a nuclear weapon, but if you were to take a guess, the odds, and we uh we decided to go polymarket this, um which country would drop the ne the the next nuclear weapon?

SPEAKER_03 40:28

It feels like it's the United States or we're the only ones who ever have in the first place for Israel.

SPEAKER_04 40:33

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 40:34

It's wild, man. It's wild. And the thing is, like, we especially as people who live in probably the most heavily propagandized country in the world, besides like North Korea, but north, but they're also like cut off from the rest of the world. Like we have access to all that stuff, and yet the stuff that we believe are the stories that we tell about ourselves. Um, but like but but uh but yeah, man, it's it's it's wild. Yeah, that is so it's wild. But what did you want to talk about?

SPEAKER_04 41:05

Well, Easter week. Yeah, you know, um the most important m most important part of our faith, uh, as Paul says, if Christ has not been raised from the dead, then uh our faith is is futile or useless, and we are still in our sins. And so Christ is king um is is an important phrase, and it's being used everywhere right now, um, on social media, in political rhetoric, um, and even in moments of controversy. And so um here's the question I want us to wrestle with today is what do we actually mean when we say Christ is king? Uh, and maybe more importantly, what should we mean? Uh, but Malcolm, you you as I pulled a knife on you earlier and no one knew what was happening, um, while I'm asking this question, Malcolm is flipping out on the other side. What's going on with that?

SPEAKER_03 41:52

Yeah, because my book was named as one of the 67 finalists for the 2026 Christian Book Award. Uh uh Yeah, for the for the 2026 Christian Book Award. Yeah. So I'm in a I I'm in a I'm in a I'm in a run with this is in the in the faith and uh in the faith and culture category. I'm one of these, I'm one of these five books.

SPEAKER_05 42:14

Breaking news!

SPEAKER_03 42:15

Breaking news. I just got this just got this email. That's awesome. Oh man. Oh, this is great. Every time. So then it'll be oh, you know what? Wow. So like the um the winners will be announced uh April April 28th, but I'll be keeping an eye out for that. There you go. Oh man.

SPEAKER_04 42:35

Is there uh is it that's awesome? Do people get to vote towards this? I don't know.

SPEAKER_03 42:38

I think they've probably got a group of people who are voting on that, but that's awesome.

SPEAKER_05 42:45

Well done, buddy. Oh man. Okay, sorry.

SPEAKER_03 42:47

That's massage. This is real, this is a real exclusive because I literally just got this email from a friend of mine.

SPEAKER_05 42:54

I was waiting for you to be like some political thing just happened. I was just like, No, man.

SPEAKER_01 42:59

That's exciting. Oh man, okay, cool. Okay, anyway. Anyway, sorry, side note.

SPEAKER_03 43:03

Um back to what you were saying, because I was distracted.

SPEAKER_04 43:05

See, Jesus is king, he is.

SPEAKER_03 43:08

It's it's true.

SPEAKER_04 43:08

He makes all of our book dreams come to fruition.

SPEAKER_03 43:12

It's true. Um Yeah, they'll all all that. Anyway, sorry, back to Jesus.

SPEAKER_04 43:16

So yes, um, I'm I'm asking the question, um, is Christ king? And you you you argue earlier, yes. Um, but here I I'm I'm a little little hesitant, um, just like the using the word evangelical, um, because it seems to have been co-opted. And I feel like this phrase, Christ is king, is is being co-opted um to mean something I don't mean.

SPEAKER_00 43:41

Sure.

War Prayers And Taking Jesus’ Name

SPEAKER_04 43:41

Um, and I think what what others are meaning by it is that Christ is king and the American policy is evidence of that, and it's and it's the it's the American policy's administrative and um administering that um the the king's. Policies. Therefore, America is king. Which who's the king of America now? We just had a No Kings protest with 8 million people protesting that we don't want anyone as a king. But we know who is trying. But I'm not going to go there with that one. What's so fascinating is we have a um secretary of defense who loves to pray.

SPEAKER_03 44:30

Yeah. He also loves violence.

SPEAKER_04 44:34

I'm a big prayer fan.

SPEAKER_03 44:35

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 44:36

And he prayed um at uh this uh what what meeting was it? Um at the White House uh uh prayer meeting, uh I believe it was. Um and he's he's he's quoting an imprecatory psalm, um, Psalm 144. Uh and and and he says, Almighty God, who trains our hands for war and our fingers for battle, you who stirred the nations from the north against Babylon of old, make her land a desolation, where none dwell. Behold now the wicked who rise against your injustice and peace of the righteous, snap the rod of the oppressor, frustrate the wicked plans, and break the teeth of the ungodly. By the blast of your anger, let the evil perish, let their bulls go down to slaughter, for their day has come, the time of their punishment, pour out your wrath upon those who plot vain things and blow them away like shaft before the wind. And then he goes on Grant this task force clear and righteous targets for violence, surround them as a shield, protect the innocent and blameless in their midst, make their arrows like those of a skilled warrior who return not empty-handed. Let every round find its mark against the enemies of righteousness and our great nation. Give them wisdom in every decision, endurance for the trial ahead, unbreakable unity, overwhelming violence of action against those who deserve no mercy, preserve their lives, sharpen their resolve, and let justice be executed swiftly and without remorse, that evil may be driven back, and wicked souls delivered to the eternal damnation prepared for them. For the wicked flee when no one pursues, but the righteous are as bold as a lion.

SPEAKER_03 46:09

Dang.

SPEAKER_04 46:10

We ask these things with bold confidence in the mighty and powerful name of Jesus Christ over all kings and amen. What do we do with that?

SPEAKER_03 46:21

Well, there are also some prayers that the Lord doesn't hear.

SPEAKER_04 46:24

Um So that's so yes, this is this was this was Pope Leo's response, I think, to this. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 46:36

It's funny because we're told in the scriptures that there are some prayers that the Lord doesn't listen to.

SPEAKER_04 46:40

He says, This is our God, Jesus, King of Peace, who rejects war, whom no one can use to justify war. He did, he does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war, but rejects them, saying, Even though you make many prayers, I will not listen. Your hands are full of blood. Uh he doesn't, he doesn't uh he doesn't tag Hegseth in this prayer, but I believe it is a direct response to Hegseth. And so my Malcolm is it sounds we it feels like we're living in two different kingdoms here. Yeah, there's Hegseth's kingdom, and then Pope Leo is talking about a different king. What do you do like are Hegeth's prayers not heard by Jesus?

SPEAKER_03 47:20

Yeah. Um I'm gonna say, according to the scriptures, yes, they are not heard by Jesus. Um I think that like that prayer sounds different coming from the oppressed than it does coming from the most powerful military force in the world. Coming from the most powerful military force in the world, it sounds like this is divine justification for the spreading of our influence.

SPEAKER_04 47:51

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 47:52

This is let me claim divine right for murder. Like this is the other thing. Like a lot of people look at this and they're like, this dude is literally he's if you listen to the things that he's saying, he's literally saying, let's go commit war crimes. Like that and it's already happened. Like that's like that's what's going on. It's just you're claiming divine right for war crimes. Um, and there's just like a there's just like a bloodthirstiness to it, which is let every round find its mark. Like it's just uh like that, like that ought to, like that ought to make us it ought to make us uncomfortable. Um because it's just it's just it's just bloodthirsty. Yeah. Um, and that and that's not I mean, it's just not, it's not the way that the Lord operates. We we all everybody we went to church on Palm Sunday, we got the image of Christ coming in on a coming in on a donkey, yeah, as an image of his of his humility and his meekness. And and we but in our but for our current uh administration to see that would be a display of of of weakness. And weakness is not, I I quoted uh Netanyahu's words in the in the sermon on Sunday, too, where where where where he's talking about, you know, like strength and ruthlessness, those are the things that actually win the day. Um and that's you know, that's the logic of empire, and it's the logic by which most every military in the world operates. Uh, and it's the temptation that the people of God have been tempted with um forever. Um and so to have Jesus come and come as the true king of the universe, to take on flesh already in an act of humility, to become obedient, to humble himself, to to become obedient even to the point of death, even death on a cross, like that for the Christian, that is the paradigm of the Christian life in every element of the Christian life. Yep. Like humility is the goal in everything. And when that, when our minds and hearts are, I think, shaped by that ideal, then we we look out at these things and we're like, oh, that's just clearly taking the name of the Lord in vain. Yep. Yep. That's what that clearly, it's just it just clearly is. And then you can just say, oh, well, the Lord doesn't hear you. And I'm sorry, I know you think, I know you might think he does, and I know you might think that even your success in war, um, but in this case, it's not success because we're also a global embarrassment with with what's going on, especially in uh in Iran right now. But um, yeah, I just yeah, it's just frustrating to see people uh misuse misuse the name of misuse the name of Jesus, but uh but I'm also assured that the Lord is more upset about it than I am.

SPEAKER_04 50:42

Um so and that's that is that is comforting. Um but I if if Hegseth had just prayed these just the the old testament, just like it's one thing to to like there's a good decent theological conversation to have around imprecatory psalms. There's conversations. What are those for? Um and as you kind of began with, like, you know, from the um the oppressed, it's one thing.

SPEAKER_03 51:07

From the oppressor, uh it's you said another God, like God, I need you to act on my behalf, not saying God guide our missiles as we blow people up.

SPEAKER_04 51:17

Right.

SPEAKER_03 51:17

And and yes, sure, I mean some civilians might be might be looped up in that, but like God guide the missiles. I'm like, that's that's insane. Anyway, sorry, go ahead.

SPEAKER_04 51:27

It it's it's it's asking it it's uh putting a crucifix on a on a bomb um and dropping it on people and and having God bless this destruction. And it's it's it's antichrist. Yeah, it I mean this this because he's so if he just if he just prayed this um as you know to to another god, I go, well, that's him following his God, but the he ends it in Jesus' name. And this is the part where I we've said this maybe last time or before, where it's like, just get your name out of his mouth, like like get his name out of your mouth. Like it's gotta stop because Jesus is very clear in the Sermon on the Mount. Blessed are the peacemakers.

SPEAKER_03 52:06

Jesus is also very clear in the Sermon on the Mount that many will say to me, Lord, Lord, and I will say to them, Depart from me, you evildoers. And that they're they're gonna say, Look at all the look at all the stuff that I did, the big things I did for you. I never knew you in your name. Look, do you you see this country, this country that we took back, we took back for you, these wars that we waged for you, the these these laws that we passed for you, all this kind of stuff. I I am afraid that there are people who will go before the judgment seat of Christ and they will say things like that. And God will and and the and the Son of God will say to them, I don't know you, depart from me, you evildoers. Because when he sees them, he does not see Christ like character. What he sees is the is is the pursuit of power, the pursuit of wealth, the pursuit of self-aggrandizement. Like that, that I I there is a part of me that operates in terror for these people. Because what they because what you are doing and and and and what it's it's this is uh language in Hebrews, I think it is, where they're they are storing up for themselves wrath in the day to come. That's what's going on.

Two Kingdoms Power Over Or Under

SPEAKER_04 53:16

Yeah. I mean, this so then this goes into the like the question though, is so what do we mean when we say Christ is king? Because I think like we can put that on our bio. Um, you know, slim, pastor, you know, Christ is king. And then you might look over at Hegess Twitter and I don't know what it will say. You know, d czar of blowing crap up, um, and Christ is king. And like we're saying two very different things when I say Christ is king and when he says Christ is king. Um, where where do we start there? I mean, so I think the difference here to me is best illustrated by um you know who Greg Boyd is? Um yeah. So he's he's written a few books, some good, good stuff. He there's one he's got uh what's it called? Uh The Myth of a Christian Nation. Yeah. How the quest for a political power is destroying the church, which just feels like it was written in 2026, but it was written in I think 2009. Um but it's what I I highly recommend uh go go check it out, the myth of a Christian nation. Um and but he he has uh this phrase that I feel like is consistently being brought in into my head these days. Um and it he he's written written a blog um uh and that it's titled Two Kingdoms, and it's not necessarily how you know some theologians think of the two kingdom way of thinking about this, but he he he refers it in this way. Um the kingdom of God refused to use coerce coercive power over people, choosing instead to rely exclusively on whatever power it can uh to exercise to serve others. Yeah, he says I've often referred to this as the difference between power over versus power under. And this is the transforming power of humble, self-sacrificial, Christ-like love. Exercising power over uh or or under others is about impacting lives by serving them, sacrificing for them, and even being sacrificed by them while refusing to retaliate as Jesus did.

SPEAKER_00 55:12

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 55:12

That to me makes crystal clear the very big difference between saying Christ is king, meaning this king came to die for you, to defeat sin, death, and the devil through nonviolence by taking taking what the the the state gave that that I'm sure that those uh religious leaders said we're doing God's work by killing him.

SPEAKER_02 55:34

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 55:36

As our religious leaders, clerics are saying, we're doing God's work by taking out all these people, by bombing them, and taking this country and the next country and the next country and the next country and the next country. Yeah, like it's they're they believe they're saying Christ is king with um that power over when I don't think that's the this that's who Jesus shows us to be. You you have the imprecatory psalms, we can talk about the Bible study of what that what why those are in there and how to use those. But the most clear command from Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount is to love our enemies, it's to turn the other cheek. You go like, well, what do we do about war? And what do we think about with the state?

Impatience Wrath And The Way Of Cross

SPEAKER_03 56:13

Like it's so okay. So this is okay, so this is it, okay. I'm I'm processing this. Okay, so war and the pursuit of it is an example of the vice of wrath and anger. So, and you can you can you can see this especially in Hexeth stuff. Like he just looks so like that bloodthirstiness comes from like an anger. And the opposite virtue, the opposite virtue of wrath is patience. And I think we are we are a profoundly impatient people. So even with the Crisis King thing uh and our relationship with power, I don't want us like I'm not saying I'm not saying that power is bad. Similar to uh even the way that I talk about wealth, like it's not that it's not that it's not that wealth is bad, it's that pursuing it is bad and keeping it is and and doing everything that you can to keep and hoard it is bad. And like and and and so when I like because there because there is a sense in which what what God had what God reaches out to us with is in many ways a promise to give us infinite power and infinite wealth. That's what he is actually, that's what he offers to us. And he's like, the way to get there is the way of the cross. It's the way of waiting for me to give it to you. And and and this is this is this is our primal issue because even even in the garden, it was look it was, look, I want to give you everything. Just don't take that. Even in talking about the tree in the middle of the garden, he didn't that it didn't say the tree in the middle of the garden was was bad. He just said it's not yours. And and a part of it could have could have also been like it's not yours right now, because you're not ready for it right now. Now, after we have this time together, it might be the case that you can like you can you can you you can have even of this tree, but we're like, no, no, no, no, but I want it now. This this this is this is one of I think also our fundamental issues is we are fundamentally impatient. And so even so, even in thinking about the geopolitically, like uh you you got a bunch of folks, uh, well, I mean, especially um, oh, I forgot the guy's name, but uh he resigned because he's like, Iran is not a threat to the United States.

SPEAKER_00 58:54

Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 58:54

He's not a threat. Uh Joe Kent. Um, he's like, it's not a threat to you. I don't know why we did this. And for him, well, I mean, for him, he's like, well, it's because Israel prompted us to do it. But but but it's just a number of these decisions that we're seeing are also just profound decisions of impatience. And it's and it and and what's really funny is that uh I was listening to uh one of um China's representatives talking about talking about all this stuff, and this guy was like, China's been around for thousands of years. We can we can wait. We can wait. America's a few centuries old. Just just all this, just all this, basically, he's like all this impatience. We can, we can, we can wait. And I'm just like, that is uh terrifying, but also like, but also like it it's just there is a uh, you know, in the in the history of kind of empires, we're a we're a child and we operate with that with that kind of uh infantile impatience. They're like, oh, there are these things I want, I want it now. Like it, it's it and it's and it is and it is in many ways just emblematic of um of of something that lies at the core of our of our depravity as human beings. It's this it's just this this profound impatience.

SPEAKER_04 1:00:15

Um I think scripture clearly says Jesus is Lord. So we are not gonna uh abandon that like uh some might abandon evangelical, because that's not scripture, but Jesus is Lord, and it's it is intentionally a political thing. Yeah. Um, I mean, it's uh in contrast to Caesar is Lord, right? It it's it's intentionally trying to say like we we belong to another empire. Um, but this empire defines its kingship um in a different way. It like Jesus' throne is the cross, his his crown is thorns, his rule is marked by sacrificial love, not coercive power um or bombing people into oblivion. Um and so right now people are trying to co-opt the Christ as king to make it into you know Caesar is Lord and Jesus is Lord, like as as if these things are the same. And like now I'm speaking for for the Lord. It it it it's the the frustrating thing around when you when you speak with uh folks who say, Well, Jesus told me to say this or Jesus gave me this word. Um, and I hey, I'd love to hear if Jesus is giving you the word. Tell me the word. I want to hear from Jesus, but I also know I I want to test the spirits that as the scriptures encourage us to do. And this is not of the spirit. And when you have like the Pope, obviously I don't believe he's got he's like the final word on things, but when you have him reminding us that um that some prayers are not heard, which is a wild thing. I mean that that to me like is a wild thing, but at the same time, it makes complete sense because if I'm praying for uh Iran to get uh completely obliterated and and Christians in Iran are saying, Lord help save us, yeah, someone's prayer is not being listened to. Obviously, God can hear all the prayers, yeah. But by listen meaning acting on them, like he's not going to act on all of them. So when someone like the Pope says that Hegseth's prayers are not heard, I don't think it's as radical as it sounds. Um I think it's it's more natural. You're going, like, well, these prayers are ridiculous.

SPEAKER_03 1:02:19

But even then, but then there's the then there's the complication of um but Hegseth and the United States may still be able to do those things that they're doing. Like me saying that God doesn't hear those prayers doesn't mean that they are unable to kill the people that they want to kill. Yeah. And that's the like that causes some I mean, like, like that causes some uh uh um uh you know dissonance in the minds of in the minds of some people, um, because they think that what I mean when I'm saying that is that like these things won't happen. Um I know like people can choose to do evil things and they do do evil things. Yeah um but but but but what I'm what I'm saying is that not only does the Lord not approve of them, but the Lord has promised to j like the process to judge us according to our deal. Like this the these are not things that people are gonna get these are not things that people are gonna get away with.

SPEAKER_04 1:03:23

Yeah. Um and it's wild right now. I think um, you know, we don't know how things are going to end. It seems like more and more troops are going and putting being put into the area already done. And so it's it it seems like it's escalating at the same time. Trump, just as recently as uh yesterday or so is saying um how he he's ready to just walk away and that the rest of the world needs to take the Strait of the Hormuz. Um and again, I'm here going let's get out of the war, let's get out of the war, like all war needs to stop. And then you st you you stir the bee's nest and then you go, y'all fix it. Gotta go. I'm like Yes, end the war right now, walk away. But to say to everyone else, like, it's not on us, this is you, it's just so utterly selfish, which is what we talked about a few weeks ago at a church that like it's the epitome of sin, it's just selfishness. Yeah, it's just so ridiculous that this is the world we live in. And so we we do believe Christ is king um and that he will transcend um uh nations that are gonna do some terrible things even in his name. Um and we ultimately believe that God is going to make everything right, that he that is wrong. Uh and so if um if it's not the happy ending, then it's not the end, right? It's not God is going to make all things right, he's gonna wipe away every tear. And if it's if if if things are still the way they are, uh then can be be reminded that Christ is king and he's going to do something about it. Um and it's and it's a different type of kingship. And you can see that kingship in different ways here on earth, uh, that God is is still ruling and reigning in these sacrificial ways, uh, not by co-opted leaders, but by um leaders and and regular um congregants giving up their pre preferences and their rights uh to love and care for the least of these.

SPEAKER_03 1:05:26

Yeah, the primary place to look for the kingdom of God is not in particular laws or in the workings of particular nation states. It's when Jesus says the kingdom of God is among you or within you. He's talking about the work. He's talking about the work that happens like in you, but also in the in the people of God, in the in the people who have been bound together by the Holy Spirit, who are seeking to live lives of of faith and obedience to the to Christ to Christ's commandments. Like that's what the kingdom, that's what the kingdom looks like, and the and the time is coming because we're told in in first. Corinthians five that he that he reigns sorry in First Corinthians 15 that he reigns now and he must reign until he has put all his until he has put all his enemies under his under his feet. And the last enemy to be destroyed is death. And this is the like like the temptation. It goes back to 1 Samuel 8. Like we we want a king to fight our we want somebody to fight our battles and all this kind of stuff. And the people refused to actually live knowing that God is the one who has promised to fight your battles for you. And that's our like that is our that's our thing. Like we we ref in it's instead of focusing on what it looks like for me to be obedient to Christ, we're like, who out there can fight my battles for me? And the Lord says, look, be obedient to me, and I will walk alongside you and fight and fight for you. Um but but but when we when we abdicate that power, we end up going in all kinds of weird and crazy directions.

Waco Event Invite And Easter Sendoff

SPEAKER_04 1:07:01

Yeah. Well some good news, Malcolm. Good news, I love good news. Good news. Uh did you know that in two weeks my good friend Show Baraka is coming to Waco.

SPEAKER_03 1:07:19

Yeah! Yeah, so he's a cool guy.

SPEAKER_04 1:07:22

Uh we uh our our our church mosaic is going to host Malcolm Foley and Show Baraka uh one night, April uh 17th, Friday, 7 to 9 p.m. at uh Mosaic Waco. It's gonna be a fun night. We hope you guys uh can come out to that if you are uh in the in the area, or if you're like, you know, I've got all this endless money to spend. Uh fly to Waco. There you go. Um and and come on out uh to this show. We we're looking forward to having you guys out here for that. It'll be a lot of fun. Uh I hear some uh uh big wigs in Waco are coming. Uh might be. Who knows? Chip and Joanne is gonna just throw his names out.

SPEAKER_01 1:08:03

That's risky. I don't think they've bought any tickets yet, people, just for just for uh honesty's sake.

SPEAKER_04 1:08:10

And Michelle Obama's coming.

SPEAKER_03 1:08:11

Oh gosh. Um, just throwing out names. We want you to come. That's what we we want you to come. If you have yet I will definitely be there. Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 1:08:22

Uh if you have not listened to any show, Baraka, we hope you uh take us take some time. Uh after listening to this podcast, go go check them out. Um pretty good stuff. Hey y'all listeners, thank you so much. Uh, we know it's kind of sometimes a heavy time um and heavy episode talking about some of this, um, but we do think it's worth it. We think it's worth us going through this together, talking about Jesus as Lord. Um, we hope to find a you have a church you can go to and celebrate him as Lord this week, uh uh this Easter week and weekend. Uh, if you don't, love to see you. Come on out. All right, we'll talk to you guys in two weeks on another episode of Theology of Pieces. Bye y'all, I'm gonna go to the house.