When It Actually Is Spiritual | Divine Dismantling | Judah Smith

Hey, welcome to church home this week. I'm so glad you joined us. We are in the middle of a series called What do you do when it actually is spiritual? Now, if you're watching this broadcast for the very first time, um I'm Judah and I have been teaching from the teachings of Jesus for about 30 years and dedicated my life to living, loving, and looking like Jesus.

This is a community of people who are endeavoring to go on a spiritual journey. And ultimately, you'll find out that our inspiration, our leadership, and our guidance comes from Jesus. And this ancient, magical, mystical book called the Bible. And I'm so excited to share it with you. Now, I'll admit before we turn on the camera, we laughed a little bit because this week's message is pretty intense. in a moment.

Don't get caught up too much with these sophisticated and weighty words. We're going to talk about dismantling strongholds in your life. Um, one of the reasons you might feel peculiar or unusual during this chapter of your life is because perhaps it's more spiritual than natural. There are some seasons of your life that's just like you got to brush your teeth.

You got to drink some water. You got to brush your tongue too so your breath smells better. There's some some things in life that are just pay your bills. Um yesterday we blew a fuse in the house. I had to go to the circuit breaker and correct it and turn the the power back on.

I could pray and ask God to turn our power back on or I could go to the fuse box and, you know, turn turn the fuse or flip the fuse, whatever it's called. I don't even know what it's called, but we got power back on and the circuit uh re-engaged.

Some things are just more natural than they are spiritual. Then there are those seasons where unexplained attitudes, emotions, agitations, and frustrations settling over your life like a dark gray cloud, and you're wondering what's going on. Well, perhaps it's more spiritual than it is natural. That brings us to a passage of scripture that was kind of brought back to my memory uh last month when I was facing what I was wondering like, God, is this spiritual?

What's going on? And here's the five verses I got. I want to read them. I'll read them very quickly. Don't get hung up on uh all the details of these verses. We're going to explain one aspect of these verses here in the remaining few moments. We have Paul who's got about six or seven years left to live.

He is an apostle as the scripture calls him which means he's a leader of leaders and he plants a bunch of different faith communities in the ancient world just like this one in the ancient city of Corinth. If you know anything about Corinth back in antiquity, Corinth is a city that likes to party.

Corinth has a lot of sex, a lot of drugs, a lot of drinking. And now it's starting to affect the church at Corenth. And Paul is writing them. He says, "Now please listen. I need to address an issue. I'm making a personal appeal to you by the gentleness and self forgiveness, self forgetfulness of Jesus.

I'm the one who's humble and timid when face to face with you, but bold and outspoken when a safe distance away." They were saying those things actually in a hurtful way about Paul. He says, "But listen, I want to plead with you when I come. Now, don't force me to take a hard line with you, which I'm going to do, by daring to confront those who mistakenly believe that we are living by the standards of the world, not by the spirit's wisdom and power.

For although we live in the natural realm, we don't wage a military campaign employing human weapons, using human weapons like manipulation to achieve our aims. Instead, our spiritual weapons are energized with divine power to effectively dismantle the defenses behind which people hide. We can demolish every deceptive fantasy that opposes God and break through every arrogant attitude that is raised up in defiance of the true knowledge of God. will be captured like prisoners of war every thought and insist that it bow in the obedience to the anointed one.

So beautiful. I want to take you back to verse four just for a moment and listen again what it says. Though we live in a natural realm, we don't wage a military campaign employing human weapons using manipulation for instance, one of many human weapons we use. Instead, our spiritual weapons are energized with divine power to effectively dismantle the defenses behind which people hide.

I want to talk to you about divine dismantling. Like, how spiritually impressive does that sound? Divine dismantling. But it's actually pretty basic. Um, the stronghold spoken of here by Paul is deeply ingrained thought patterns. deeply ingrained thought patterns. Thought patterns that are false beliefs, ideologies built on lies, and they get deeply ingrained in our brain, and we start to believe it's true.

Here's a stronghold. I'm alone, and no one cares. My life is worth nothing. Does anyone see me? No one sees me. I don't have a friend. No one will ever care about me. I am disgusting, deplorable. I am hard to love. All of these can be deeply ingrained in patterns of our thoughts, false belief systems, ideologies built on lies.

So I ask you, have you ever had a stronghold? And I think the answer for you and me is yeah. You might be right now in a season where addressing those deeply ingrained thought patterns that are built on false belief systems and lies are going to be addressed.

That is no small thing, friend. And I want you to give yourself some credit in this spiritual chapter of your life if those strongholds are being addressed. This is going to be wild. You're going to feel probably all kind of ways. In fact, if you're watching this right now and you're like, I have had the wildest sensations and feelings and thoughts in my brain, you are in the middle of a spiritual season that perhaps is confronting strongholds in your mind.

So, the scripture says we are going to experience divine dismantling. We have spiritual weapons that are energized with divine power to effectively dismantle the defenses behind which people hide. So how does divine dismantling work? Now here's the good news. It doesn't work because of your energy, your stamina, your strength, your work, and your effort.

It's divine dismantling. It's not human dismantling. It's not personal dismantling. It's not by effort dismantling. It's divine dismantling. And this is a description of a real spiritual intervention that can happen to your brain and in your body. So, I'm excited. I hope you're excited. How do I know if divine dismantling is in process in me?

Three ways. It'll be energized by God. It'll dismantle defenses and there'll be no more hiding. Now, those three points I want to clarify. Point number one, here's how you know divine dismantling is happening in your life. And it's also a way to know that what you're going through is very spiritual.

You will suddenly have a desire to change. Energized by God. You'll have a desire to change. You'll suddenly be exhausted with that old thought pattern. I don't know how it works. It's God's goodness. But you'll suddenly go, I am tired of being the victim. That's what'll happen. I I am tired of feeling like I am not lovable.

I am tired of feeling like I am all alone. You know what? I want to change. I don't want to stay stuck in this ingrained thought pattern, this false belief, this this ideology built on lies. I don't want to stay here. I have a desire to move on from here.

That friend is the beginning of divine dismantling. Here's the second thing that'll happen. You will have thoughts, new thoughts that will come to your brain that will begin to replace the old thoughts that became ingrained. That's what'll happen. So now instead of feeling like you'll always be alone, the thought hits you.

I think I'm going to make new friends. I think I'm going to join a community. A big reason behind things like church home in the world is that people need a place to belong. Perhaps you suddenly have a desire to change. And now thoughts are hitting your brain like I should become a part of a faith community.

I should when scripture says to have friends, you must show yourself friendly. You have thoughts now of being friendly. Thoughts of asking people how they're doing where before all you could think about was how you were doing. Now, and by the way, I know this thought pattern because when all you could think about is what how you're doing, you wonder why other people aren't asking how you're doing?

And you're like, don't they know that I'm not doing well? Why don't they ask me how I'm doing? But now all of a sudden, thoughts hit my brain that say, I'm going to ask how other people are doing even if they don't ask how I'm doing. All of a sudden, the dismantling of your defenses, it is a replacing thought that starts to occur to you and meet you in your brain.

I'm telling you, God will do this for you. He'll give you a desire to change. He'll replace that pervasive, deeply ingrained thought pattern. Suddenly, you'll have the thought, I'm going to ask how other people are doing, even though no one asks how I'm doing. I'm going to do that.

And then lastly, it says no more hiding these these we dismantle the defenses which people hide behind. You will also have a willingness to share what you've been hiding behind. Here's how it'll work. Divine dismantling working in your life goes like this. You'll suddenly have a desire to change.

You'll have new thoughts replacing those deeply ingrained thought patterns. And lastly, suddenly you'll be willing to be candid, naked, honest, exposed, and you'll say, "Here's what I'm really going through." I'm telling you, often times, this is what God is working on. When you're in the middle of a season you can't make sense of, you're frustrated, you're agitated.

God, what's going on? What are you doing? Where are you going? God will work divine dismantling in us and then he'll use us to work divine dismantling through us. So perhaps while you're watching this, it's occurring to you that you have some deeply ingrained thought patterns, false belief systems, ideologies built on lies.

And God is giving you a desire to live beyond and go beyond that old thought pattern. You got a desire to change. Now thoughts are coming to you. God's giving you new thoughts. And suddenly there was a willingness to share. A willingness to be transparent, open, and honest.

Ironically, it typically leads to you telling people the deeply ingrained thought patterns that have been in your head. I have felt scared. I have felt ashamed. I have felt embarrassed. I have felt weak. I have felt alone. It's this is what I've been going through. and people go in community, thank you for sharing.

Let's pray. I'm going to check in on you. And before you know it, divine dismantling is working in your life. I wonder I wonder if you're in this season you're in because this is God's outcome. This is what God is trying to do in your life and in your heart.

I know. I know there are funnier sermons to preach. There are more enjoyable topics to cover. There are funnier stories to tell. But perhaps deep calls on the deep. Perhaps the month of August is a chapter in your life where God wants to work in you some divine dismantling.

And I believe you'll never be the same. One of the ways I think God does this, and I'll end with this, is the same way when you go to the dentist, they give you that shot of Novacane. Now, I don't like the syringe in the shot, so I don't know why I brought that metaphor up because honestly, it's one of my least ones I've ever shared, but um it's a numbing to help before the drilling.

And I think often times God will come and he'll remind us of his beauty, his wonder, and his majesty. That our thoughts would be filled with heaven. That our thoughts would be filled with what Jesus did for us on the cross. That we're forgiven forever. We're loved forever.

We're his forever. I think sometimes I can work like like Novacane, if you will. And suddenly there is a and I know pain is a part of life but there is a lessening of the pain because of the wonder and the beauty and the majesty of who Jesus is and who God is and that desire to change and those thoughts being replaced and that willingness to get candid and share what you're going through.

It just starts to work and God does something deep on the inside of you. This is my passion for the month of August for our community and I pray that it meets you, connects with you. Uh please, please, please jump on pastor chat. There's any way we can pray for you, talk with you.

These are simple truths. I hope. But they're not light. They're not trit. They're not little. They are deep. They are intense. They are internal. But I assure you, what he started in you, he'll complete. He'll finish. He's good at that. Let me pray for you. God, thank you for the moments we share.

Thank you for this letter, this ancient letter which brings us such comfort and guidance and once again brings us back to you. We love you. Bless and keep and watch over your people today and remind them how truly loved and valued they are in Jesus name. Amen. Hey, thanks for watching.

Join me for the last couple of weeks here in the month of August as we will conclude this this study in 2 Corinthians chapter 10. Love you church. ((music playing)) It's been a minute. Where do I again? I've let the distance creep it way back in. I've offered love so inconistently.

((music playing)) Your heart is steady. You won't change. ((music playing)) You're still worthy. You're still crowned in majesty. You're still perfect. You still bring me to my knees. You're still holy. ((music playing)) You're still good beyond belief. King of glory. You're still everything. Oh, everything to me. Oh, help me Jesus. Stir your fire in me.

Renew my faith when doubt is crippling. I'm open and ready. Heart is on my sleep. I need your presence more than anything. You're still worthy. ((music playing)) You're still crowned in mesty. You're still perfect. ((music playing)) You still bring me to my knees. You're still holy. ((music playing)) You're still good beyond belief. King of gloryy, ((music playing)) you're still everything.

Oh, everything is me. ((music playing)) And all that I need is you. ((music playing)) All that I need is you. All of your heart. All that you are. And all that I need is you, Lord. All that I need is you. All of your heart. All that you are. All that I need is you, Lord.

All that I need is you. Oh, all that you are. Woah. ((music playing)) Woah. ((applause)) ((music playing)) Oh. Oh. Woah. Woah. Woah. ((music playing)) You're still worthy. ((music playing)) You're still crowned in mesty. You're still perfect. You still bring me to my knees. You're still holy. You're still good beyond me. King of gloryy, ((music playing)) you are still everything.

Oh everything to me. ((music playing)) Heat. ((music playing)) Heat. ((music playing)) Heat. Heat. ((music playing))