Choosing how to handle our battles from a spiritual perspective. That's today's topic on Bold Steps with Mark Jobe.

Choosing how to handle our battles from a spiritual perspective. That's today's topic on Bold Steps with Mark Jobe.

Now, some of you are slower than others. You may be shuffling, but you need to run out of certain places, run out of certain parties, run out of certain situations because Paul tells Timothy, Timothy, flee, run away from. Understand the weakness of your own flesh.

Now, some of you are slower than others. You may be shuffling, but you need to run out of certain places, run out of certain parties, run out of certain situations because Paul tells Timothy, Timothy, flee, run away from. Understand the weakness of your own flesh.

And welcome to Bold Steps with pastor Mark Jobe. Mark is the president of Moody Bible Institute and senior pastor of New Life Community Church in Chicago. I'm Wayne Shepherd. You know, life is full of different battles, and while some are worth fighting for, there are others that are better avoided. So, Mark, when it comes to knowing the difference, where do we start with all of this?

And welcome to Bold Steps with pastor Mark Jobe. Mark is the president of Moody Bible Institute and senior pastor of New Life Community Church in Chicago. I'm Wayne Shepherd. You know, life is full of different battles, and while some are worth fighting for, there are others that are better avoided. So, Mark, when it comes to knowing the difference, where do we start with all of this?

Well, Wayne, I mentioned in this message, if you've been married for some time, you know there's battles that are worth fighting and then there's battles you just want to leave alone and you have to choose your battles. That's true. Paul is mentoring this young leader, and he basically tells Timothy, Hey, Timothy, there's certain battles that you need to fight. And one of those battles is the battle of purity dating and so forth. But the battle of peace and the battle for people as well. And so this is going to, I think, speak to a lot of people.

Well, Wayne, I mentioned in this message, if you've been married for some time, you know there's battles that are worth fighting and then there's battles you just want to leave alone and you have to choose your battles. That's true. Paul is mentoring this young leader, and he basically tells Timothy, Hey, Timothy, there's certain battles that you need to fight. And one of those battles is the battle of purity dating and so forth. But the battle of peace and the battle for people as well. And so this is going to, I think, speak to a lot of people.

Will help you choose your battles today. Let's go ahead and begin today's study fighting the battles that matter. Choose your fight.

Will help you choose your battles today. Let's go ahead and begin today's study fighting the battles that matter. Choose your fight.

Today, I want to talk to you about fighting the battles that matter. Choose your fight. How many of you have heard that expression? Choose your fight carefully. You know, before I got married, I sat down. I got married at 21, So I was very, very young. And we sat down with a pastoral couple that was coaching us in premarital counseling. And I'll never forget the wise words of this pastoral couple. He said, you know, there's a lot of things to fight about in marriage. Choose your battles carefully. How many married people know that was good advice? And you know it was true. I got into marriage, and I realized there's a lot of things to battle over. And some of them don't really matter that much. Raise your hand if you've ever thought about putting the toilet seat down or up, ladies, put the toilet seat down. Would you put it down? How many of you fight about that? You've had fights about that. Okay. A few of you. Who does the dishes? Come on. Where you put the dirty shoes in the closet or by the front door? How many of you fight about the blanket? Like, I never thought, I thought, wow, I got in bed, got all cozy, got all set. My wife comes in and then, boom, I'm left with no blankets. It's like, whoa. Do you, like, wrap yourself up in that thing? I can I have a little piece. What temperature? The thermostat is set on. How many of you fight about that? A little bit. Like some of you, like, I am sweating and someone. I am freezing here. And it's just some of those battles don't really matter. I remember one young couple that my son Grant was traveling with us, and we were with a young couple that was in ministry and had a long trip with them, a several hour car ride with them, and they start. I asked him, how are you doing in your marriage? They were just newlyweds, and they probably spent the first hour discussing how they fought about washing dishes. He was the cook and she says she was working. He said, I like to cook, but, you know, I view cooking as an artistic experiment. You know, I'm kind of sloppy. I like to use this pan and that pan, and I'm kind of an artist. And it splashes around and she says, yeah, and I have to clean up after all his splashing around. And she says, well, you know, either cook and I clean or you clean. And they went on and on and on about the dishes. My, my son, who was like I say, maybe ten years old in the back of the back seat of the car. Finally, after an hour discussion, he stopped and said, how many dishes are there? Even a 12 year old realized a ten year old realized, hey, we shouldn't be talking about. We shouldn't be fighting battles that really don't matter. Some of you may be before you got here to church, fought a battle, and you're kind of a little bit, uh, ticked at each other right now because you fought a battle that didn't matter. But in the spiritual world, there are battles that matter, and there are battles that don't matter. And so I want to talk to you about that. Today. I'm going to ask you to stand for the reading of the word. We're reading out of Second Timothy chapter two, verses 22 through 26 out of the New International Version. Flee the evil desires of youth and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call upon the name of the Lord out of a pure heart. Don't have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know that they produce quarrels, and the Lord's servant must not be quarrelsome, but must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful. Opponents must be gently instructed in the hope that God will grant them repentance, leading them to a knowledge of the truth, and that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will. Word of the Lord, pray with me. Father, we pray in Jesus name that you would take the word today and make it alive to us. God, I pray that we would fight the battles you want us to fight and walk away from the battles that we should not be fighting. I pray that you would make us wise in how we use our energies. Father. I pray God that you would teach us, instruct us, empower us to touch the lives of people that truly need you and not alienate them. And we ask this in Jesus name. Amen. You may be seated. The first thing that the apostle Paul tells young Timothy in this passage, and by the way, I mentioned it before, but Timothy was probably about 30, maybe approaching 40 years old at the time. He was living in a society that was very anti-Christian. Nero had just supposedly burned Rome down, blamed it on Christians, and now was pursuing this group of people called the way or the Jesus followers or Christians. So the society was very anti-Christian. Timothy was a bit timid. He was physically frail, had some stomach issues, and he was insecure about his leadership. And so the apostle Paul, as this mentor, is speaking to this young man about how to lead in a society that's hard to lead in. And he reaches chapter two, this portion of Scripture. And he really he says, Timothy, there's some battles you need to fight, but there's some battles you need to walk away from. And if you engage in arguments, this is how you are to engage in them. And so he mentions to Timothy that there's really three battles worth fighting for this young man. Number one, the battle for purity. Number two, the battle for peace. And number three, the battle for people. Let's start with purity. Look what he says. Verse 22. Flee the evil desires of youth and pursue righteousness, faith, love, peace, along with those who call upon the name of the Lord with a pure heart. So he starts by saying, hey, we have to. We have to run away from certain things. Now it's pretty interesting because throughout all of first Timothy and second Timothy, it feels like the Apostle Paul is telling Timothy, be a fighter. Be on guard. Stand strong. Be tough. Be a man. Jump into the battle. Don't back off. God has not given you a spirit of fear. Almost like a football coach telling his team, hey, you're going to face an opponent or like a sergeant in an army saying you're going into battle. So in fact, if you read if you read first Timothy chapter six, verse 12, he says, fight the good fight of faith. I mean, this is like rile up, fight. Be strong. Be courageous. Watch out! Stand your guard, man. This is the kind of talk that pumps people up. And you say, Now I'm ready. And then suddenly Timothy says, flee. Run away. Be gentle. Like, whoa, whoa, whoa, what's happening here? I thought you were talking to us about being strong and and jumping into the battle and not being afraid. And then he says what seems to be diametrically opposed to what he's been telling Timothy. In first Timothy and second Timothy, he says, flee. Here's what I want you to know. How many of you know, there's some battles that you engage in and some battles you walk away from. You need to know what battles to fight and what battles to say. You know what? I'm going to walk away from this battle because I am too weak to engage in this battle. And he tells young Timothy, this man, he says to Timothy, this emerging leader, he says, flee the evil desires or lust of youth and pursue. He tells him what to flee and what to pursue. He says, flee the evil desires of youth. Now most commentators, if they look at what are the desires that, uh, attack young men especially, I would put three top ones that young men are drawn into and battle big time at a young age. You know it. I spent a lot of time training young men, mentoring young men, discipling young men. And usually when I sit down with young men, one of the first conversations I had is, I'm going to hold you accountable. We need to hold each other accountable and talk very honestly about sexual temptation. So number one, I think is sexual temptation. Number two, when we talk about the desires of youth. Number two is what I would call overindulgence. In other words, not having boundaries and how much you drink and how much you eat and how much you play video games, and how much you indulge in, how much you pursue after money. So sexual temptation, indulgence, temptation. And thirdly, the drive for fame or glory. Half the young men want to be rap stars or music stars or billionaires. Glory and fame is what oftentimes lures people in. And the Apostle Paul is talking to Timothy, and he's saying, Timothy, I want you to you need to know when you're too weak to fight a battle and when you need to run. And in this passage he says, flee. Uh, in first Corinthians chapter six, verse 18, the apostle Paul, speaking to the Corinthians, says, flee sexual immorality. Every sin a person commits outside of their body, but the immoral person sins against his own body. Let me just I don't want to get off on a tangent here, but if you're a young man here today, look up at me. This is really important. If you're a young man here today and you're trying to live for God and you're single right now, let me tell you, unless you are adamant, unless you are super intentional, Unless you make it a fight to battle for sexual purity, then you will fall. Period.

Today, I want to talk to you about fighting the battles that matter. Choose your fight. How many of you have heard that expression? Choose your fight carefully. You know, before I got married, I sat down. I got married at 21, So I was very, very young. And we sat down with a pastoral couple that was coaching us in premarital counseling. And I'll never forget the wise words of this pastoral couple. He said, you know, there's a lot of things to fight about in marriage. Choose your battles carefully. How many married people know that was good advice? And you know it was true. I got into marriage, and I realized there's a lot of things to battle over. And some of them don't really matter that much. Raise your hand if you've ever thought about putting the toilet seat down or up, ladies, put the toilet seat down. Would you put it down? How many of you fight about that? You've had fights about that. Okay. A few of you. Who does the dishes? Come on. Where you put the dirty shoes in the closet or by the front door? How many of you fight about the blanket? Like, I never thought, I thought, wow, I got in bed, got all cozy, got all set. My wife comes in and then, boom, I'm left with no blankets. It's like, whoa. Do you, like, wrap yourself up in that thing? I can I have a little piece. What temperature? The thermostat is set on. How many of you fight about that? A little bit. Like some of you, like, I am sweating and someone. I am freezing here. And it's just some of those battles don't really matter. I remember one young couple that my son Grant was traveling with us, and we were with a young couple that was in ministry and had a long trip with them, a several hour car ride with them, and they start. I asked him, how are you doing in your marriage? They were just newlyweds, and they probably spent the first hour discussing how they fought about washing dishes. He was the cook and she says she was working. He said, I like to cook, but, you know, I view cooking as an artistic experiment. You know, I'm kind of sloppy. I like to use this pan and that pan, and I'm kind of an artist. And it splashes around and she says, yeah, and I have to clean up after all his splashing around. And she says, well, you know, either cook and I clean or you clean. And they went on and on and on about the dishes. My, my son, who was like I say, maybe ten years old in the back of the back seat of the car. Finally, after an hour discussion, he stopped and said, how many dishes are there? Even a 12 year old realized a ten year old realized, hey, we shouldn't be talking about. We shouldn't be fighting battles that really don't matter. Some of you may be before you got here to church, fought a battle, and you're kind of a little bit, uh, ticked at each other right now because you fought a battle that didn't matter. But in the spiritual world, there are battles that matter, and there are battles that don't matter. And so I want to talk to you about that. Today. I'm going to ask you to stand for the reading of the word. We're reading out of Second Timothy chapter two, verses 22 through 26 out of the New International Version. Flee the evil desires of youth and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call upon the name of the Lord out of a pure heart. Don't have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know that they produce quarrels, and the Lord's servant must not be quarrelsome, but must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful. Opponents must be gently instructed in the hope that God will grant them repentance, leading them to a knowledge of the truth, and that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will. Word of the Lord, pray with me. Father, we pray in Jesus name that you would take the word today and make it alive to us. God, I pray that we would fight the battles you want us to fight and walk away from the battles that we should not be fighting. I pray that you would make us wise in how we use our energies. Father. I pray God that you would teach us, instruct us, empower us to touch the lives of people that truly need you and not alienate them. And we ask this in Jesus name. Amen. You may be seated. The first thing that the apostle Paul tells young Timothy in this passage, and by the way, I mentioned it before, but Timothy was probably about 30, maybe approaching 40 years old at the time. He was living in a society that was very anti-Christian. Nero had just supposedly burned Rome down, blamed it on Christians, and now was pursuing this group of people called the way or the Jesus followers or Christians. So the society was very anti-Christian. Timothy was a bit timid. He was physically frail, had some stomach issues, and he was insecure about his leadership. And so the apostle Paul, as this mentor, is speaking to this young man about how to lead in a society that's hard to lead in. And he reaches chapter two, this portion of Scripture. And he really he says, Timothy, there's some battles you need to fight, but there's some battles you need to walk away from. And if you engage in arguments, this is how you are to engage in them. And so he mentions to Timothy that there's really three battles worth fighting for this young man. Number one, the battle for purity. Number two, the battle for peace. And number three, the battle for people. Let's start with purity. Look what he says. Verse 22. Flee the evil desires of youth and pursue righteousness, faith, love, peace, along with those who call upon the name of the Lord with a pure heart. So he starts by saying, hey, we have to. We have to run away from certain things. Now it's pretty interesting because throughout all of first Timothy and second Timothy, it feels like the Apostle Paul is telling Timothy, be a fighter. Be on guard. Stand strong. Be tough. Be a man. Jump into the battle. Don't back off. God has not given you a spirit of fear. Almost like a football coach telling his team, hey, you're going to face an opponent or like a sergeant in an army saying you're going into battle. So in fact, if you read if you read first Timothy chapter six, verse 12, he says, fight the good fight of faith. I mean, this is like rile up, fight. Be strong. Be courageous. Watch out! Stand your guard, man. This is the kind of talk that pumps people up. And you say, Now I'm ready. And then suddenly Timothy says, flee. Run away. Be gentle. Like, whoa, whoa, whoa, what's happening here? I thought you were talking to us about being strong and and jumping into the battle and not being afraid. And then he says what seems to be diametrically opposed to what he's been telling Timothy. In first Timothy and second Timothy, he says, flee. Here's what I want you to know. How many of you know, there's some battles that you engage in and some battles you walk away from. You need to know what battles to fight and what battles to say. You know what? I'm going to walk away from this battle because I am too weak to engage in this battle. And he tells young Timothy, this man, he says to Timothy, this emerging leader, he says, flee the evil desires or lust of youth and pursue. He tells him what to flee and what to pursue. He says, flee the evil desires of youth. Now most commentators, if they look at what are the desires that, uh, attack young men especially, I would put three top ones that young men are drawn into and battle big time at a young age. You know it. I spent a lot of time training young men, mentoring young men, discipling young men. And usually when I sit down with young men, one of the first conversations I had is, I'm going to hold you accountable. We need to hold each other accountable and talk very honestly about sexual temptation. So number one, I think is sexual temptation. Number two, when we talk about the desires of youth. Number two is what I would call overindulgence. In other words, not having boundaries and how much you drink and how much you eat and how much you play video games, and how much you indulge in, how much you pursue after money. So sexual temptation, indulgence, temptation. And thirdly, the drive for fame or glory. Half the young men want to be rap stars or music stars or billionaires. Glory and fame is what oftentimes lures people in. And the Apostle Paul is talking to Timothy, and he's saying, Timothy, I want you to you need to know when you're too weak to fight a battle and when you need to run. And in this passage he says, flee. Uh, in first Corinthians chapter six, verse 18, the apostle Paul, speaking to the Corinthians, says, flee sexual immorality. Every sin a person commits outside of their body, but the immoral person sins against his own body. Let me just I don't want to get off on a tangent here, but if you're a young man here today, look up at me. This is really important. If you're a young man here today and you're trying to live for God and you're single right now, let me tell you, unless you are adamant, unless you are super intentional, Unless you make it a fight to battle for sexual purity, then you will fall. Period.

A somber warning here on Bold Steps with Mark Jobe, and we'll continue with Mark's lesson on fighting the battles that matter in just a moment. If you're joining us late and you miss any part of today's message, and if you'd like to catch up on another one of these daily programs, remember you can always listen online at Bold Steps. Org or through the Bold Steps podcast. Just go to wherever you get your podcasts, on your phone or smart device, and search for bold steps with doctor Mark Jobe and access all of Mark's past and present sermons. You'll also enjoy our family of other Bold Steps podcasts like The Bold Steps Weekend, The Bold Steps Minute and Our Spanish Minute pesos. Pesos. When you visit our pages and subscribe, be sure to also leave a comment and a five star review. That helps us know how these programs are reaching you and it helps others find them as well. And have you heard about our Bold Steps app? It's packed with Mark's video teaching exclusive Bold Steps content, as well as a convenient Bible feature to help you pull up scripture. While you're on the app. Just open up your favorite app store today and download it for free. Now let's dive into the second half of today's message is titled Choose Your Fight. Here's Mark Jobe.

A somber warning here on Bold Steps with Mark Jobe, and we'll continue with Mark's lesson on fighting the battles that matter in just a moment. If you're joining us late and you miss any part of today's message, and if you'd like to catch up on another one of these daily programs, remember you can always listen online at Bold Steps. Org or through the Bold Steps podcast. Just go to wherever you get your podcasts, on your phone or smart device, and search for bold steps with doctor Mark Jobe and access all of Mark's past and present sermons. You'll also enjoy our family of other Bold Steps podcasts like The Bold Steps Weekend, The Bold Steps Minute and Our Spanish Minute pesos. Pesos. When you visit our pages and subscribe, be sure to also leave a comment and a five star review. That helps us know how these programs are reaching you and it helps others find them as well. And have you heard about our Bold Steps app? It's packed with Mark's video teaching exclusive Bold Steps content, as well as a convenient Bible feature to help you pull up scripture. While you're on the app. Just open up your favorite app store today and download it for free. Now let's dive into the second half of today's message is titled Choose Your Fight. Here's Mark Jobe.

I've coached a lot of young couples dating couples. I've never had a young Christian couple that comes to me, and usually they come to me and say, hey, pastor, we're dating. We really like each other. Yeah, we're. So what are you what, are we going to do it the right way. And they're a little bit awkward around each other, looking at each other and kind of. It's the newness of it. And they'll tell me stuff like, yeah, yeah, we want this to be godly. You know, we every time I take her on a date, I pray before God be with us. And yeah, we share verses the, you know, we text each other verses encouraging each other up. You know, we want this to be God centered. We want it to be really good. Every Christian couple that I talked to starts out that way. There's no couple that I talk to that starts out by saying, hey, guess what, pastor? Three months from now we want to cross lines. We want to get sexually active. We want to cross boundaries. We want to be alone in the car or an apartment and really go all the way. No couple says that. But you know what so many couples actually do. Because they haven't learned how to flee their certain temptations that you just run from. You say, well, what do you mean by that? Well, you know, I think that if you're a young couple listening and you're dating and you are not going to fall into sexual temptation and you're serious about it, then you need to flee from places that you know are places of temptation for you. You're not going to get in trouble in a restaurant. Hello. But in your grandmother's basement when no one's there. Hello. Or that parked car in that dark parking lot. Hello. But you need to know how to flee. It's like the guy that came to me years ago. I remember talking to a guy that was struggling with addiction, and he had done so well. He was a pretty hardcore addict before he'd come to Christ, left the addiction behind, was doing well, was walking in sobriety for about a year and a half, and then one day he calls me up and his speech is slurred on the other side of the phone and he says, hey, pastor, you know, I'm really struggling right now. I said, bro, what happened to you? Where are you? Let me go talk to you. So I drove over, sat down with him. His eyes are all bloodshot. He's ashamed. He's looking down. I said, what happened to you? He said, pastor, I thought I was strong. I said, what do you mean you thought you were strong? He said, yeah, you know, the bar used to always go hang out, get, get, you know, get drunk and high with my buddies. Well, you know, I thought I'm strong now, so I'm going to go witness to them. And I was just going to drink a seven up. And so I sat down and they're all talking. I'm trying to share with them. And you know, I have my seven up and they're all drinking. And I used to get. And then after a while one guy say, hey bro, what's one beer going to do? Come on, just join us. I said, okay, so I got one beer and then I thought he said, hey, what's what, two beers. And so I got another beer and then I got another one. And before I know it, I was drunk. And then when I was drunk, I felt so bad that I had to go out and get high and use a harder drug. This is what happened to me. I said, brother, here's the thing. Your problem is you thought you were strong. There are certain things that you just need to assume. I am weak and so I run from temptation. Someone says, hey, come, come. Hey, bro, have a drink with us. You say, No, I got an appointment. I got an appointment with holiness. I got an appointment with the Lord. You need to run. Do you remember the story of Joseph? Joseph was working in a house, and a married woman came on to him and said he was young and handsome. And she said, I got one here, and she's after him and she's coming onto him. And the Bible doesn't say, he stood there and said, I'm going to be real strong. And she tries to kiss me and caress me. I'm just going to be strong. No, no. The Bible says he ran and he left his coat behind. Listen, sometimes your best fight against temptation is called your two legs. Now, some of you are slower than others. You maybe shuffle. Some of you may be shuffling, but you need to run out of certain places, run out of certain parties, run out of certain situations because Paul tells Timothy, Timothy, flee, run away from. Understand the weakness of your own flesh when it comes to sexual temptation, when it comes to. Overindulgence. And it comes to ego. But you know, he doesn't just tell them to flee. He also tells them what to pursue. You see, some people believe that the Christian life is all about taking things off, not being able to do things. Listen, if you're here today and you say, well, I'm not sure I want to become a Christian because it feels like Christians, there's so many things they can't do. And maybe you're thinking that if you come to church here and decide to be serious about Christ, that we're going to give you a list of do's and don'ts, a rule book. You're still waiting for that. Where's the rule book? We don't have a rule book. In fact, let me tell you, every time God says don't. It's not because he's trying to take away your joy. It's because God is trying to give you greater fulfillment and joy in your life. And so the apostle Paul tells Timothy, Timothy, flee these things. Understand your own weakness. But he doesn't just tell him to flee, he also tells him what to pursue.

I've coached a lot of young couples dating couples. I've never had a young Christian couple that comes to me, and usually they come to me and say, hey, pastor, we're dating. We really like each other. Yeah, we're. So what are you what, are we going to do it the right way. And they're a little bit awkward around each other, looking at each other and kind of. It's the newness of it. And they'll tell me stuff like, yeah, yeah, we want this to be godly. You know, we every time I take her on a date, I pray before God be with us. And yeah, we share verses the, you know, we text each other verses encouraging each other up. You know, we want this to be God centered. We want it to be really good. Every Christian couple that I talked to starts out that way. There's no couple that I talk to that starts out by saying, hey, guess what, pastor? Three months from now we want to cross lines. We want to get sexually active. We want to cross boundaries. We want to be alone in the car or an apartment and really go all the way. No couple says that. But you know what so many couples actually do. Because they haven't learned how to flee their certain temptations that you just run from. You say, well, what do you mean by that? Well, you know, I think that if you're a young couple listening and you're dating and you are not going to fall into sexual temptation and you're serious about it, then you need to flee from places that you know are places of temptation for you. You're not going to get in trouble in a restaurant. Hello. But in your grandmother's basement when no one's there. Hello. Or that parked car in that dark parking lot. Hello. But you need to know how to flee. It's like the guy that came to me years ago. I remember talking to a guy that was struggling with addiction, and he had done so well. He was a pretty hardcore addict before he'd come to Christ, left the addiction behind, was doing well, was walking in sobriety for about a year and a half, and then one day he calls me up and his speech is slurred on the other side of the phone and he says, hey, pastor, you know, I'm really struggling right now. I said, bro, what happened to you? Where are you? Let me go talk to you. So I drove over, sat down with him. His eyes are all bloodshot. He's ashamed. He's looking down. I said, what happened to you? He said, pastor, I thought I was strong. I said, what do you mean you thought you were strong? He said, yeah, you know, the bar used to always go hang out, get, get, you know, get drunk and high with my buddies. Well, you know, I thought I'm strong now, so I'm going to go witness to them. And I was just going to drink a seven up. And so I sat down and they're all talking. I'm trying to share with them. And you know, I have my seven up and they're all drinking. And I used to get. And then after a while one guy say, hey bro, what's one beer going to do? Come on, just join us. I said, okay, so I got one beer and then I thought he said, hey, what's what, two beers. And so I got another beer and then I got another one. And before I know it, I was drunk. And then when I was drunk, I felt so bad that I had to go out and get high and use a harder drug. This is what happened to me. I said, brother, here's the thing. Your problem is you thought you were strong. There are certain things that you just need to assume. I am weak and so I run from temptation. Someone says, hey, come, come. Hey, bro, have a drink with us. You say, No, I got an appointment. I got an appointment with holiness. I got an appointment with the Lord. You need to run. Do you remember the story of Joseph? Joseph was working in a house, and a married woman came on to him and said he was young and handsome. And she said, I got one here, and she's after him and she's coming onto him. And the Bible doesn't say, he stood there and said, I'm going to be real strong. And she tries to kiss me and caress me. I'm just going to be strong. No, no. The Bible says he ran and he left his coat behind. Listen, sometimes your best fight against temptation is called your two legs. Now, some of you are slower than others. You maybe shuffle. Some of you may be shuffling, but you need to run out of certain places, run out of certain parties, run out of certain situations because Paul tells Timothy, Timothy, flee, run away from. Understand the weakness of your own flesh when it comes to sexual temptation, when it comes to. Overindulgence. And it comes to ego. But you know, he doesn't just tell them to flee. He also tells them what to pursue. You see, some people believe that the Christian life is all about taking things off, not being able to do things. Listen, if you're here today and you say, well, I'm not sure I want to become a Christian because it feels like Christians, there's so many things they can't do. And maybe you're thinking that if you come to church here and decide to be serious about Christ, that we're going to give you a list of do's and don'ts, a rule book. You're still waiting for that. Where's the rule book? We don't have a rule book. In fact, let me tell you, every time God says don't. It's not because he's trying to take away your joy. It's because God is trying to give you greater fulfillment and joy in your life. And so the apostle Paul tells Timothy, Timothy, flee these things. Understand your own weakness. But he doesn't just tell him to flee, he also tells him what to pursue.

A crucial lesson on fighting the battles that matter here on Bold Steps with Mark Jobe. Today's message is titled Choose Your Fight. And if you'd like to catch up on any part of today's lesson, or if you'd like to share it with a close friend or family member, head over to our website boldsystems.org. You can also learn more about the team making this program possible behind the scenes there as well. Go to Bold steps.org. Mark. Let's talk about our bold step gift. I'm thinking why does God allow bad things to happen? Or is it possible to lose my salvation? What is the Trinity? These are questions people ask all the time, aren't they?

A crucial lesson on fighting the battles that matter here on Bold Steps with Mark Jobe. Today's message is titled Choose Your Fight. And if you'd like to catch up on any part of today's lesson, or if you'd like to share it with a close friend or family member, head over to our website boldsystems.org. You can also learn more about the team making this program possible behind the scenes there as well. Go to Bold steps.org. Mark. Let's talk about our bold step gift. I'm thinking why does God allow bad things to happen? Or is it possible to lose my salvation? What is the Trinity? These are questions people ask all the time, aren't they?

These are some really important topics, and there's a lot of people out there that have wondered about these questions. So I'm excited to tell you that we have a book right here.

These are some really important topics, and there's a lot of people out there that have wondered about these questions. So I'm excited to tell you that we have a book right here.

Called.

Called.

50 Most.

50 Most.

Important Bible Questions written by an esteemed Bible Teacher. Moody professor, my friend, Doctor Michael Ray Dolnick, and he's in the studio with us. Welcome, Michael.

Important Bible Questions written by an esteemed Bible Teacher. Moody professor, my friend, Doctor Michael Ray Dolnick, and he's in the studio with us. Welcome, Michael.

I'm so glad to be with you. Thank you.

I'm so glad to be with you. Thank you.

Michael, you've tackled some pretty heavy hitting subjects in this book. And how did you narrow it down to just 50 specific questions?

Michael, you've tackled some pretty heavy hitting subjects in this book. And how did you narrow it down to just 50 specific questions?

I ran out of space. You know what I was going to do 100 most important Bible questions. And they just said it would take too long. Well, that's the.

I ran out of space. You know what I was going to do 100 most important Bible questions. And they just said it would take too long. Well, that's the.

Sequel, right?

Sequel, right?

That's right, that's right. More questions. Well, I think what I did is I tried to find that the not just the questions that were asked most commonly, but also the questions that had the greatest impact that people were most most concerned about. I find that, for example, people are really terrified of losing their salvation. It is the most common question I get, and I wanted to give a sense of peace and An assurance not in the perseverance of the saints, but in the perseverance of the Savior. With that, once Jesus has us, he's never going to let us go. And and that's that was like one of the most important questions. That's why I included several that relate to it in there. Yeah.

That's right, that's right. More questions. Well, I think what I did is I tried to find that the not just the questions that were asked most commonly, but also the questions that had the greatest impact that people were most most concerned about. I find that, for example, people are really terrified of losing their salvation. It is the most common question I get, and I wanted to give a sense of peace and An assurance not in the perseverance of the saints, but in the perseverance of the Savior. With that, once Jesus has us, he's never going to let us go. And and that's that was like one of the most important questions. That's why I included several that relate to it in there. Yeah.

And Michael, I love these questions that you have in here. And, you know, just I'm looking through the list. Can believers lose their salvation? Why do believers doubt their security? Which version of the Bible is the best one? You know, is the Bible God's word? How can I read the Bible with understanding? I mean, so many questions about God and the Bible. Is there 1 or 2 questions that sort of go above? Like you say, these are the most asked questions.

And Michael, I love these questions that you have in here. And, you know, just I'm looking through the list. Can believers lose their salvation? Why do believers doubt their security? Which version of the Bible is the best one? You know, is the Bible God's word? How can I read the Bible with understanding? I mean, so many questions about God and the Bible. Is there 1 or 2 questions that sort of go above? Like you say, these are the most asked questions.

Yeah, well, I think probably the most asked questions are about security, about the Savior. But also I think that there are questions about why, if God is sovereign and An omniscient and knows all things. Why did he allow Satan to fall? Why did he allow Adam and Eve to sin? Why are there bad things that happen in this world? I'm sure you've heard those questions all the time whenever something bad happens. And so I one of the things I try to remember when I'm talking to people on the radio is something has spurred this question. I try to address that as well, but also I include it in the book because so many people struggle with the idea of a loving God. And, you know, there's a simple answer that people don't like, and that is that God is good and God is great, and bad stuff happens. Suffering happens. And there's God's going to remedy that one day. The best of all possible worlds is not a world without evil, but a world in which evil has been overcome. And that's what he's going to create.

Yeah, well, I think probably the most asked questions are about security, about the Savior. But also I think that there are questions about why, if God is sovereign and An omniscient and knows all things. Why did he allow Satan to fall? Why did he allow Adam and Eve to sin? Why are there bad things that happen in this world? I'm sure you've heard those questions all the time whenever something bad happens. And so I one of the things I try to remember when I'm talking to people on the radio is something has spurred this question. I try to address that as well, but also I include it in the book because so many people struggle with the idea of a loving God. And, you know, there's a simple answer that people don't like, and that is that God is good and God is great, and bad stuff happens. Suffering happens. And there's God's going to remedy that one day. The best of all possible worlds is not a world without evil, but a world in which evil has been overcome. And that's what he's going to create.

Wow, Michael, we could spend an entire program tackling the issue of why do bad things happen if God is good and sovereign, why do bad things happen? But instead we're going to turn people's direction to the book, and you delve into these topics much more elaborately in the 50 Most Important Bible Questions.

Wow, Michael, we could spend an entire program tackling the issue of why do bad things happen if God is good and sovereign, why do bad things happen? But instead we're going to turn people's direction to the book, and you delve into these topics much more elaborately in the 50 Most Important Bible Questions.

Yes, and we'd be happy to send our listeners a copy of this bold step gift today. Just give a gift of any amount to support bold steps. Give us a call at 800. D.L. Moody or give online at boldsystems.org. You can also send your gift and request the book 50 Most Important Bible Questions by Writing Us in the mail. Our address is bold. Steps 820 North LaSalle Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois 606 ten once again 820 North LaSalle, Chicago, Illinois 606 ten. Now, did you know that you can listen to bold steps at home on almost any smart device, including smart speakers? To access this convenient way of listening, just go to your smart speaker and say, Alexa, enable Moody Radio and then say Alexa, play bold Steps with Mark Jobe. Once you've done that, you'll have unlimited hands free access to all of Mark's teachings right in the comfort of your own home. To learn more about this great listing option, visit Bold steps.org. And one final note that we'd love to hear from you and connect with you in our growing online community on our social media pages. You'll find us there on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, even TikTok. Just log in, search for Bold Steps Radio and be sure to subscribe or follow when you get to our page. I'm Wayne Shepherd signing off, but we'll see you again tomorrow for part two of Mark's lesson on fighting the battles that matter. Titled Choose Your fight for gaining spiritual Perspective on Earthly Battles and learning when to pursue Peace. That's Tuesday on Bold Steps with Mark Joe. Bold steps is a production of Moody Radio, a ministry of Moody Bible Institute.

Yes, and we'd be happy to send our listeners a copy of this bold step gift today. Just give a gift of any amount to support bold steps. Give us a call at 800. D.L. Moody or give online at boldsystems.org. You can also send your gift and request the book 50 Most Important Bible Questions by Writing Us in the mail. Our address is bold. Steps 820 North LaSalle Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois 606 ten once again 820 North LaSalle, Chicago, Illinois 606 ten. Now, did you know that you can listen to bold steps at home on almost any smart device, including smart speakers? To access this convenient way of listening, just go to your smart speaker and say, Alexa, enable Moody Radio and then say Alexa, play bold Steps with Mark Jobe. Once you've done that, you'll have unlimited hands free access to all of Mark's teachings right in the comfort of your own home. To learn more about this great listing option, visit Bold steps.org. And one final note that we'd love to hear from you and connect with you in our growing online community on our social media pages. You'll find us there on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, even TikTok. Just log in, search for Bold Steps Radio and be sure to subscribe or follow when you get to our page. I'm Wayne Shepherd signing off, but we'll see you again tomorrow for part two of Mark's lesson on fighting the battles that matter. Titled Choose Your fight for gaining spiritual Perspective on Earthly Battles and learning when to pursue Peace. That's Tuesday on Bold Steps with Mark Joe. Bold steps is a production of Moody Radio, a ministry of Moody Bible Institute.