In this episode of the Authentic Podcast, Christian Searer discusses the topic of freedom and specifically focuses on the fear of man. He shares his personal experiences and highlights Jesus' perspective on this issue. Christian emphasizes the importance of overcoming fear of man and surrendering to God's opinion above all others. The episode concludes with a prayer for freedom from fear of man.
Takeaways
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:tuned into the Authentic Podcast, where we
explore the transformative power of
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:embracing the reality of Jesus Christ.
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:As we embark on this journey together, we
will navigate the depths of faith and
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:discover the profound impact that Jesus
has on our spiritual walk.
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:In this space, you will find real and
inspiring conversations about faith and
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:how as a believer we should navigate the
Kingdom reality.
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:We are excited that you are part of an
adventure where authenticity and faith
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:intersect.
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:Welcome to the Authentic Podcast.
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:me go live on the radio with Toledo's one
and only Yes FM.
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:I was blessed with the opportunity to be
on the morning munch with Chris Shannon,
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:and I got to share a devotional on the
fear of man.
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:I hope you enjoy be blessed by it and
stick around.
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:There's a prayer at the end.
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:Yeah, excited to find out what we're gonna
find out more about you here in a minute
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:and what you do our devotional front the
morning.
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:excited to see what you bring.
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:You're a new voice to us so it's great
meeting you.
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:Nice meeting you as well.
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:I'm very excited to share with what the
Lord has downloaded.
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:Excited, excited.
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:All right, over to you, sir.
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:Awesome.
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:Yeah, so the Lord has given me four words
for this week.
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:I get to be with you guys every day
throughout the week, Tuesday to Friday.
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:And what greater topic to discuss this
week, none other than the topic of
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:freedom.
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:Each day we'll focus on that new word, but
the underlying theme is going to be
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:freedom.
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:So the first of the four words that I
present to you is fear of man.
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:The Bible references fear of man in
Proverbs 29, 25 saying, Fear of man will
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:prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in
the Lord is kept safe.
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:A snare isn't something I want to be
caught in, and neither do you.
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:So what specifically is fear of man?
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:Fear man is defined as an epidemic of the
soul that can be characterized by peer
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:pressure, worry and codependency.
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:Simply put, it is the act of placing
others before God in your life.
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:Some because you depend on them and vice
versa.
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:Or maybe because you are afraid of what
they may think.
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:You're afraid that if you go against the
grain they may say you're weird, they may
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:not be your friends anymore, they may even
condemn you.
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:Jesus said, a servant is not greater than
his master.
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:If they persecuted me, they will also
persecute you.
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:Jesus is telling us that persecution will
come to those who believe in him.
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:We should already have some level of
expectancy that we will receive opposition
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:in our Christian walks.
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:But why is it that we are so taken back
when it happens?
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:Why are we so protective of our walk that
we never allow the chance for opposition
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:to come?
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:It's fear of man.
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:So Jesus does an incredible job tackling
fear of man in Luke 12, 4 and 5.
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:I say to you, my friends, do not be afraid
of those who kill the body and after they
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:have nothing more that they can do.
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:Jesus says hello guys, don't fear man,
you're eternal remember?
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:But he does tell us who we should fear in
verse 5.
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:Fear the one who after he has killed has
authority and power to hurl you into hell.
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:Yes, I say to you, stand and great all of
God and fear Him.
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:God is love, but He is also a judge and
just.
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:Yes, He is our Father and He is our
Creator.
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:He is our sustainer.
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:But above all else, He wants us to obey,
respect, and worship Him.
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:I personally, I grew up in a Methodist
church and in that church raising your
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:hands and praising Jesus was unheard of.
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:So when I started to find
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:the real Jesus, not just a picture on the
wall Jesus, he started calling me to
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:worship him.
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:I was now attending assemblies of God
church where raising your hands and
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:worshiping Jesus was acceptable but I
couldn't bring myself to do it.
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:I believed the lie people would think I'm
a freak, that I would be embarrassed, it
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:would draw attention to me, I wasn't
worthy enough, blah blah.
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:I remember the first Sunday service that
the Holy Spirit told me to raise my hand
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:to worship the Father.
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:I told him no with the battle of all of
those lies on continual repeat in my head.
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:The following Sunday the Lord spoke to me
again, raise your hand, worship me.
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:No, what will people think?
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:I can't and I didn't.
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:Afraid of others opinions about my life,
afraid that in a place of brotherhood,
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:fellowship, and love, I would be judged.
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:Ridiculous, right?
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:So the third Sunday came and the Lord said
to me again, raise your hand and worship
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:me.
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:By now, I'm sure you can guess my
response.
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:I said no, but he said, fine.
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:If you won't raise it, I'll raise it for
you.
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:And at that moment, my right arm felt like
a negative 15 pounds.
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:I assure you and most solemnly I tell you,
there was helium in my arm.
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:Up in the air, my hand went.
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:and I started worshipping God.
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:I said, if my right hand is up, I might as
well put up my left hand too.
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:This was such a valuable lesson to me
about the Father's heart for his children
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:and Satan's lies to prevent that.
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:God wants us to worship him, however we
are led, without worrying or caring what
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:others think, in spirit and in truth.
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:The fact is, fear of man is a spiritual
immobilizer, a paralyzer, a destiny
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:stealer.
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:When you have fear of man, you are not
completely surrendered to Jesus.
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:Satan knows if there is a part of you that
isn't surrendered to the Lord, there's a
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:part of you he can manipulate.
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:This is a lot to think about and there
could be so much more said on this topic.
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:But let me leave you with this last
statement to meditate on before we segue
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:into a moment of discussion and prayer.
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:My pastor told me this before and it took
me several months to allow it to go from
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:head knowledge to heart knowledge.
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:He said, Christian,
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:There's only one opinion that matters.
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:That is the father's.
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:Is he pleased with you?
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:Does he approve of your decisions?
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:There's only one opinion that matters
folks and it's not your sisters, your
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:parents, your followers on Instagram or
even your friends on Facebook.
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:Ultimately, you answer to the father.
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:It is his opinion of you that matters.
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:It is who he says that he is and who he
says that you are.
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:So let's just.
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:Go into some prayer right now and we'll
bless this.
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:Father, I pray that your Holy Spirit
searches the hearts of all of those
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:listening, bringing to the remembrance
areas they haven't yielded to you.
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:I pray that you would spring forth courage
and faith in them to give those unyielded
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:areas over to the King that is greater
than any force, any power, or any ruler.
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:In Jesus' name I
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:sever snares laid from fear of man that
are wrapped around the lives of those
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:listening, and I cancel all assignments on
their lives designed to destroy their
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:calling.
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:Reveal to us and allow us to recognize
that you are God, that you are good, that
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:your mercy and loving kindness last
forever.
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:It is only your opinion that matters,
Father, so set us free from fear of man
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:and bind us to your identity that is only
found in you.
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:In Jesus' mighty name, amen.
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:Amen, amen.
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:Onward Christian Sear from 85 Frames
Ministry.
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:Now he's a new voice for many of us.
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:And Christian, it was great about
introducing.