As we mark the third anniversary of the Two Fish podcast, we find ourselves returning to the enduring wisdom of 1 Thessalonians chapter 4, exploring the themes of temptation and the transformative power of Scripture. Throughout this episode, we express our heartfelt gratitude to you, our devoted listeners, for walking this journey with us. Together, we uncover the strength that lies in communal Bible study and the myriad of perspectives that deepen our understanding and unite us in Christ. By revisiting biblical principles, we affirm that navigating life's challenges is not just about personal growth but is fundamentally an act of reverence towards God's sanctity.
This anniversary episode does more than just look back; it addresses the pressing issue of sexual immorality, a slippery slope from minor indiscretions to significant moral failings challenged by today's cultural norms. We discuss the impact of modern platforms like OnlyFans and the broader consequences on relationships and family dynamics, drawing from the potent narrative of David and Bathsheba. The conversation then shifts to a message of hope and comfort found in Christ, reminding us of the resurrection promise and its profound influence on how we live our lives, love our neighbors, and stand as distinctive testaments to the redemptive power of faith. Join us as we encourage each other in the transformative journey of sanctification and community.
As we mark the third anniversary of the Two Fish podcast, we find ourselves returning to the enduring wisdom of 1 Thessalonians chapter 4, exploring the themes of temptation and the transformative power of Scripture. Throughout this episode, we express our heartfelt gratitude to you, our devoted listeners, for walking this journey with us. Together, we uncover the strength that lies in communal Bible study and the myriad of perspectives that deepen our understanding and unite us in Christ. By revisiting biblical principles, we affirm that navigating life's challenges is not just about personal growth but is fundamentally an act of reverence towards God's sanctity.
This anniversary episode does more than just look back; it addresses the pressing issue of sexual immorality, a slippery slope from minor indiscretions to significant moral failings challenged by today's cultural norms. We discuss the impact of modern platforms like OnlyFans and the broader consequences on relationships and family dynamics, drawing from the potent narrative of David and Bathsheba. The conversation then shifts to a message of hope and comfort found in Christ, reminding us of the resurrection promise and its profound influence on how we live our lives, love our neighbors, and stand as distinctive testaments to the redemptive power of faith. Join us as we encourage each other in the transformative journey of sanctification and community.
Welcome back to the two fish podcast. My name is Nick, I'm Aaron and this week we're going back to first Thessalonians, chapter four, talking about walking with God even through temptation.
Speaker 2:Welcome back to fish community, man. It is a new year and a new, you right. That's what we like to say.
Speaker 1:That's true.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it is 2024 who would have thought we would have got here?
Speaker 1:How many? I think it's been three full years. Yeah, that's so exciting.
Speaker 2:Oh, what we joke about this, not in an episode not too long ago, but like when we first started. We were like we're going to get past seven episodes, like that was like 80% of podcasters drop off after seven episodes, and then like there's a percentage for the first year not getting through that. Here we are, three years in and I don't know how many episodes, but quite a few.
Speaker 1:It's over 100. I know they're not all posted anymore because some of the early ones were taken down because, as we looked back, the content was good but the presentation of it was not that great. It's not as polished as we are now Not that we're even that polished, but it was pretty bad. So for any oh geez, out there the old guys that have been with us from the beginning Thank you for sticking around. Thank you. I'm sure you've liked and subscribed and shared these episodes and that has helped God grow this ministry into what it is now and we're excited for this next year.
Speaker 2:Now it's been a huge blessing and we're excited to keep going and keep chugging along with this and seeing where it goes and since it's the beginning of the year, let's start start the episode off.
Speaker 1:We usually wait until the end to say stuff like this but make sure you are subscribed, make sure you do like it, or whatever the button is, on whatever platform you're listening to this and hit the share button. Put it on all your social stories, your social media accounts. Help us spread what God's doing here in the two fish community. If there's something you'd like us to talk about, we can consider it. We're not theologians. We've always said that where this is more of sitting around a campfire studying God's word, talking about conversations that we've had through the week, just diving in together. And so we are not theologians. We have not studied. For years and years gone to seminary to study God's word, but we feel God's called us to go through the, through the Bible, together.
Speaker 2:I think God's called us all to do that right and I think, yeah, I think when we started this like we discovered pretty quickly One we do, bible study group similar.
Speaker 2:Nick does not anymore. Nick dropped out, dropped out. But we do this and it's very similar to what we were doing there. And, yeah, you discover very quickly like God wants you to go through the Bible, like things are going to stand out to Nick that don't stand out to me, and how we I don't want to say interpret it but the conversation around that subjects and be a little bit different for Nick because of his life.
Speaker 2:It's because of his life experience isn't a little bit different for me, because mine God stays consistent in the midst of it all. Yeah, but those conversations leaves you down a road that I don't know. It's been good.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it has to continue that the word of God is living and active. The Bible says living and active and so what, like you were saying, is my season of life, might be different than yours. And as we're reading through this, realize I'm going through something now that maybe you've already been through and you can speak into that as we get in here to first. That's as long as chapter four talks about sexual sin. Maybe you're not dealing with that area in your life right now, but you have, and someone in your life, within, let's say, a small group or Bible study, is God's called us to, and God's called us to do life together. He's to be the church, that being walking through those things with people, and that's what's awesome about those kind of Bible studies is you end up doing life together and it's all comes out of these conversations, come out of God's word and I think that's his that was his plan and I think we're going to dive a little bit into that here in first Thessalonians, chapter four.
Speaker 2:So, as always, we encourage you, if you can read along or go back and read through this and maybe grab a friend and read through it with him.
Speaker 1:Yeah, first Thessalonians, chapter four, verse one. Finally then, brothers, we ask and urge you in the Lord Jesus that, as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God, just as you were doing, that you do so more and more, for you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus, for this is the will of God your sanctification that you abstain from sexual immorality. Alright, let's stop right there for a second before he goes on and lists those things that are a part of sanctification. He's. He's writing to the church again and he's saying hey, as you heard it, you need to live it out, and I like the phrase that he uses.
Speaker 1:Mind says to please God, like this is our calling, this is what God's called us to do. These things, please God. And it sounds like the church is doing that and they're doing it well, just as you are doing. He said my version says and then he goes on to list some of the things that God specifically says okay, this is God's will to do these, to make sure you're checking these boxes off.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I think that once again, this is Paul, paul writing them right. And I think, when you, you think about last week and how Paul talks about Timothy going and getting the report and bringing it back and being encouraging, and now he's telling them finally, dear brothers and sisters, we urge you, in the name of Lord Jesus Christ, live in a way, continue to live in that way that pleases God. Right, like Timothy had came back with a good report and Paul saying, basically, here he's saying live in that way that pleases God, not that pleases you, right? Not, I don't want to live away, the pleases Aaron, I want to please God. And then myself, like God needs to be the first thing you're trying to focus on. And and Paul saying we've taught you that we and you need to follow in those steps. Like Timothy reported back to me, you need to continue to do that. Don't fall into the temptations to turn from what you were doing.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's good, and yeah, and here in verse 3 he gives us specific, a list of specific things. That is the will of God, that pleases God. God doesn't always do that and sometimes I can. We've talked about, we've done that's those on parables. Sometimes I wish I just want to say Jesus, I get it, you're telling a story, you're trying to make it reliable, but it'd be much better if you just tell me exactly what you, what you're trying to say here. This is a list.
Speaker 1:Right here Paul writes, and to the Thessalonian church these things Exactly names him by name, verse 3 for this is the will of God, your Stification, that you abstain from sexual immorality, that each of you know how to control his own body in Holiness and honor, not in the passion of lust like the Gentiles who do not know God. Okay, we'll stop there. Sexual immorality it's the very first one and I would say that is one of the hardest ones, because it is so prevalent in our society. Like it's like. God said okay, this is the first one. And the devil said alright, that's the one I'm going after.
Speaker 2:That very well could be, because you start down that road of sexual immorality and, like it, just leads to a lot of other things. I can think back to when we had Chris Russell from destiny rescue on one of the things he said. Because he goes, their ministry goes overseas and they save girls out of sex trafficking, said a lot of Men that show up there are from the Western world or from the upper classes of other countries, he said. But it didn't start there for them. Yeah, they didn't just one day wake up and say I'm on travel there, I'm gonna find me some young girls.
Speaker 2:It started with something much smaller and in our Country in the world is, I mean, is a worldwide it, it's that magazine, and then it's the videos, and then it's the subscription to, to porn, and now we got the only fans scenario. Yeah, we got. We got teachers leaving education To go join only fans because they can make millions of dollars on only fans that Probably a lot of Christian men are subscribing to and paying these women to do things. Yeah, they really shouldn't be doing.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and, and that goes. You said men and women. That goes for Women and women and men and men. The homosexuality thing like he's not saying Heterosexuals, he's not calling out homosexuals, we as Christians sometimes like to call out the sin of homosexuality, right he's not he's not, he's saying all of it all of you Heterosexuals got your own crap going on.
Speaker 1:Oh yeah and we've talked about. Pull the log out of your own eye before you look over and pull the splinter out of your neighbor's Eye. Yes, there are lots of issues that can be discussed and talked about. A need changed for what he just said your Sanctification, that's, the separation of sin and being set apart to serve God. We all have our own battles and it doesn't matter where you are and what Issue like. If it is sexual immorality, it is sexual immorality, yeah, and that's that can be so hard because it's a broad. That's a broad term Because you could define that so many different ways. Right, pornography is in movies, not just adult films it's in everything.
Speaker 2:I'm sure you're watching TV shows now.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so that's the number one thing, the first thing on the list. This is what God pleases. Don't do this.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I think. Along with that, I really liked how my verse 3 started out, and it's God wants you to be holy, and one of the ways to be holy is to avoid this sexual sin.
Speaker 1:The verse 4 starts that each of you knows how to control his own body. My Bible has a semi-colon there, so it's part of that last statement. But we need to control ourselves. Men, women. We need to control ourselves in that realm, but we also could maybe some of us me included since the beginning of the year should probably control our own bodies in other ways too, like I need to get on a treadmill. I've gained some weight this year because I've not controlled my own body, and my body's starting to slow down.
Speaker 1:It's saying I'm not going to fight as hard You're getting old I am, I'm getting old, but in all of this it's in holiness and honor. It says Verse number 5, not in the passions of lust like the Gentiles. Those are the unbelievers at the time who do not know God. He's saying don't be like that. And I liked how you said right at the beginning it's God's will, not our will. Yeah, because our flesh wants something totally different and that's why the sexual immorality is such a hard thing, because it's so easy, because our flesh wants it.
Speaker 2:And we have really, I think society has done a really good job of twisting this sin and normalizing it.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, verse number 6, that no one transgresses or wrongs his brother in this manner, because the Lord is an Avenger in all these things, as we told you beforehand and solemnly warned you. I think that's still so.
Speaker 2:I'm going to read my verse six. I'm reading out of the every man's Bible NLT version this week. So verse six here never cheat a Christian brother in this matter by taking his wife for the Lord of Inges. All such sins as we have solemnly warned you before.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah. Lots of sin affects just us. Sexual morality affects more than just us. Yeah, and he's called specifically calling it out, saying you're not just hurting yourself here, you're hurting another man's wife or another man's husband and you're hurting me.
Speaker 2:If they have family, you're hurting their kids or their kids kids, Like it causes generational I don't say generational sin, but it causes. There's a generational effect to this sin that can go on for many of years and cause division and a family struggle, Even as simple as holidays, scheduled holidays, I mean it's going to that.
Speaker 1:This kind of especially, this kind of same way saying I do like the way yours read that better but another man's wife, another man's marriage, another marriage like it's going to affect all the way down to scheduling things at Christmas, Right.
Speaker 2:Right, and I mean we can go back to David, right. Look what David and, uh, bathsheba, bathsheba and look what he did to try and correct it. He ended up killing her husband to try and cover it up. Now, in the end, like Paul saying here, god's going to avenge that, and he did it. He brought it, brought it forth and ended up David's son ended up dying, Even though David pleaded for him in the midst of that. But that would be an example of this scenario playing out within the Bible that you could go back and read about.
Speaker 1:Yeah, verse seven continue. And for God did not call us for impurity but for holiness. Therefore, whoever disregards this, disregards not man but God, who gives his Holy spirit to you. That's kind of what I was trying to say there earlier. I got ahead of myself here. You're not just this sexual sin is not just affecting you, it's affecting God. Corinthians it talks about I think it's in Corinthians talks about you were paid for with a price and your body is the temple of the Holy spirit, and for you to go and defile With you know this particular case, sexual morality. You're basically saying God, I don't care that you paid a price for this, it doesn't matter your paint, you're hurting this. This specific one hurts God.
Speaker 2:Yeah, they. I mean, all sin hurts God, right. And I think Another thing to bring up like, if you're a new Christian, just because you became a Christian doesn't mean these type of things go away, right, like it's a, it's a battle with your flesh and this is a huge part of the battle with your flesh. I think for a lot of people, both men and women, that as Christians we struggle with yeah, and it's not. I Became a Christian and it went away. Yeah, now you know you're in a battle.
Speaker 1:Yeah, before you didn't necessarily know you were in a battle. Right, you're in a spiritual battle. Here now your Christian. Here we go.
Speaker 2:Yeah, in more sexual morality and you know, yeah, and part of what you need to think about is the price that was paid for you. Yeah to be forgiven for this sin, but that doesn't mean that you get to continue in that sin without trying to fight it. Yeah, are you gonna fall short some days. Yeah yeah, you are, we all are. But that doesn't mean that you lay there and just accept it. You got to fight it.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and again he's writing to a church that seems to be doing well at a lot of things and he's still saying, hey, we need to make sure you're doing this you need to make sure you're not slipping in this area.
Speaker 1:Verse number nine now, concerning brotherly love. You have no need for anyone to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another, for that, indeed, is what you are doing to all the brothers throughout Macedonia. But we urge you, brothers, to do these more and more and To inspire, to live quietly and to mind your own affairs and to work with your hands, as we instructed you, so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one.
Speaker 2:I like I think verse nine there, but I don't need like Paul saying I don't need to write to you about what Christian love is because God already taught you that. Like I shouldn't have to write, that I Don't need to write about that. When you accepted Christ and your heart Was changed and you were given the Holy Spirit, god showed you what Christian love was. I don't need to teach you that. Go, look in a mirror.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think there's so many Situations, even nowadays. There are so many situations you hear in the news or you see on here on the radio or you whatever. That it's like where did we Forget? Like we all have our opinions and sometimes we can get passionate, but at the end of the day, god saying, yeah, but we need to love each other. Yeah, and I shouldn't like. That's almost one of those things he's saying. We don't need to do that because already God's already done it. It's been written on your heart. When you receive the Holy Spirit as a believer, that stuff starts getting written on your heart and now that's the sanctification thing we need to work through. But sometimes I think words like compassion and empathy. There's a lot of times where I don't want to give that Because I think, whatever the situation is just dumb. But at the end of the day, if I stop and think about my God, these are your Children too, not just me.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:All right, I don't agree, but I need to give some empathy and and compassion and come from it at an angle of that, rather than come from it of Scream and you're wrong and you know. Whatever the reaction is, it's coming from a different Reaction, I think, and I think people see that verse number, verse number 12, so that you may walk properly Before outsiders, like they're gonna see you differently Because you're walking different, because you're acting different, because we have God's love written on our hearts. Now that doesn't mean accept sin. I'm not saying you need to have compassion and just accept things. That's not what I'm saying. We should never accept sin and, like we were saying earlier, with sexual morality it's just become normalized and it shouldn't be.
Speaker 2:No, I really yeah, man. Verse 11 it tells you your ambition should be to live quiet life minding your own business. And then verse 12, as you're doing that, outsiders are gonna see you the way you're living. They're not gonna see you because you're loud and obnoxious. They're not gonna see God. Let me rephrase that they're not gonna see God in you because you're loud and obnoxious. They're gonna see God in you because you have changed and you were quiet and humble and living a different way. Yeah, then, society.
Speaker 1:I would agree. I think there's people that wanna. We talked in James. Not many should want to do this. Not many should want to preach. It's hard. You're put up, your judge differently. You're a leader, you're a shepherd. At that point, not many should want to do this. God's calling us. Hey, live quietly, you don't need to be that. Let's laugh and say mega church pastor or something like that. You know you. Yes, you're wanting to do God's word, god's work. He hasn't called everyone to do that.
Speaker 1:Yeah and it might be better for you to just walk the walk out, because other people are gonna see that, which is also hard because our society now is so social media driven. We're trying to be louder and louder than anybody else, so that you get noticed, so that you so your life looks better than everybody else's, and everyone wants to be like you, and you may not be saying you wanna be like me, but that's what you're saying.
Speaker 2:Right, we're really good at posting the photo that amplifies your good situations in your life and you bury the bad ones, so you don't talk about them.
Speaker 1:We can all pull ourselves together for a picture. Yeah, in between all the fighting.
Speaker 2:Right.
Speaker 1:My wife and I have a picture. It's actually hanging in our bedroom and I look at it and I always remember we got a smile on our face. It's a great picture. But I always remember we fought that morning. That was not a good morning but, yeah, we pulled it together and took a good picture and I'm sure we went right back. I don't remember that, but I'm sure we went right back to being mad at each other, but we were able to pull it together for a picture. I think of that here. It's like just live quietly, the world doesn't need to see.
Speaker 2:And I think that, like mine, brings in and you will not need to depend on others to meet your financial needs, Is how he ends that verse. And I think sometimes that's where we struggle with our flesh to get in the next fancy car or the brand new car or the bigger house or the bigger this and like that is a part of being loud right and not living quietly, and I think here in America especially, we fall way short of that and I think a lot of us should all throw ourselves in the categories of being a rich fool.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:I don't know what it's like in other countries, but we're all about building the thing or buying the next biggest car, and I need the $100,000, whatever those things are now. Jeep Grand Wagoneer, wagoneer.
Speaker 1:Is it really $100,000? That's absolutely ridiculous. I think that's the baseline. Gosh, I've been in that. It's not that.
Speaker 2:That's the next big thing.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:It's part of living loudly, perhaps.
Speaker 1:And then the other thing you said depending on no one. You're said specifically financial. It's like that old saying give a man a fish feed him for a day. Teach a man a fish feed himself forever.
Speaker 1:We need to be taking care of ourselves and not relying on other people. Now, of course, there's situations where God calls us in the Bible take care of the widows and the orphans, but we need to be being able to be self-reliant. Version number 13,.
Speaker 1:But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do, who have no hope For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again. Even so, through Jesus, god will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left, until the coming of the Lord will not proceed. Those who have fallen asleep, for those the Lord will descend from heaven with a cry and command, with the voice of an archangel and with the sound of the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are still alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. Therefore, encourage one another with these words. That section in my Bible is called the coming of the Lord.
Speaker 2:Yeah, mine is the hope of the resurrection. Yeah, which I mean what? Like we just got done with Christmas, Thanksgiving, and like this is where our hope is yeah. And Paul is definitely reminding the church of that.
Speaker 1:Yeah, verse 13 he says don't grieve as others do who have no hope. The Gentiles, the unbelievers, grieve, not that we shouldn't grieve, not that we shouldn't be sad that someone has passed, but the unbeliever grieves Because that's it for them and they don't have the hope that we do as Christians to know, hey, god's got this plan and at the end we're all caught up together At the resurrection and here, in a second, we'll lay it out how he lays it out. But the unbeliever grieves over that. But we have hope to know, hey, there's a good thing coming and they're not gonna be left behind because they're dead. They're gonna be there just as quick as we are. They're gonna rise before we go and then we're gonna all be caught up together.
Speaker 1:I think this is and and this is the order, this is what we as Christians call the rapture that in in revelation, we can. We can talk about it someday. Revelations, a hard book. It is a book we should study sometime, because Bible literally says those who study this are blessed. But at that time when God says, okay, here we go, the trumpet calls gonna come and those who have died and passed they're gonna rise, first in spirit, and then we are gonna catch up with them in the clouds all together and we're gonna enter into his glory. And I think this is just a precursor.
Speaker 1:Hey, this is how it's gonna happen, which is funny because then in revelation, john gets those visions of the things that will happen, verse all the way down to verse 18. Then, understanding all of that, understanding all that, therefore encourage one another with these words. So he started the chapter of hey, these are gonna be some seriously hard things you're gonna have to deal with and it's part of the sanctification. You're not expected to get it right right away. It's a. It's a building process, becoming more holy, like Christ, and that's a lot and that's heavy and there's so much. Even even Sitting here reading this together for the podcast, you start getting sturs of some things that you know. I might need to think about that differently, but we have the hope that it's all gonna be worth it because of what's coming. So he he hits us down and said you guys need to make sure you're doing this, but then he lifts us up at the end saying because we have so much to look forward to, we need to encourage each other with this.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I like how he, I like how he did that. I guess this little section is as a letter to us as a Section, and it's divided up very well. Yeah, and in the end, part of our role is to comfort and encourage each other, one with the hope of Christ to not the only one that struggles, right, yeah. And three, to try and live a quiet life, not to be loud and obnoxious, not to owe anybody anything and, as the Bible continually tells us, to love one another. Yeah, and love your neighbors. And through doing these things, as we do them, as we encourage each other, we should look different to the non-christians and they should look at us and say what do you got that?
Speaker 1:I don't got what's different.
Speaker 2:And you're like well one. I don't have any debt. Bible tells me not to have debt.
Speaker 1:I'm convicted, as I say this Like and it's not that you don't have it.
Speaker 2:You're, you could be working towards that, but that's a goal that's a goal and when you do that, when you reach that point, you have financial freedom. It brings about, probably, a level of stress that is gone, right, and You're like. I got some brothers and sisters that encourage me along the way. They help me. I've gotten rid of sexual immorality to the best of my ability. It's not something that's completely gone. The temptation is still there Temptation still there.
Speaker 1:Just I've learned to fight it. I avoid it and fight it.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and I'm surrounded with friends that are gonna walk with me in that. So, as the two fish community, as we do those things, people should look at us and say, wow, they got something going on. Yeah you should hit the like and share button on two fish podcast and yeah, and share it to everyone.
Speaker 1:You know. All that being said, reread this again. Reread this again together with whoever you know we talked about. Find someone to read this with. Do it, talk about those things. Talk about your life, your personal life. What do you have going on? Accountability was what I was thinking about when you were saying those stuff like have that person to help keep you accountable, to help you with that sanctification. And he ends and he's gonna continue in chapter five. Next week We'll go to chapter five, but he's gonna continue that hope. He's gonna talk about the coming day of the Lord, like here's the actual, here's the end goal. Reread this again. Do life together and, in that, come back next week and join us here on the two fish podcast we'll go to first. That's learning is chapter five. Have a great week.