Bryce Carver
Appearances
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
what's going on guys welcome back to another episode of the bryce carver podcast i'm bryce and today i have an awesome guest on recently became friends johnny ching johnny how are you doing bro appreciate you my pleasure do you think do you go by like i know some people call you pastor because you like do like an online church do you like do you call yourself pastor or i go by minister cool minister more than anything or just johnny okay yeah i'm not too big on the labels
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
There's some days where I'll have a thought that I don't know if it's a bad thought or a good thought. Like, I just don't know where it's coming from. So you're using the word of God to discern that. Yeah. How would you compare that? Like, I guess I'm trying to find an example. Like, what if it's like, should I buy the red truck or the blue truck? You know, like something like that.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
So if you had to briefly summarize how God encountered you, what your life looked like before and afterwards, what would you do?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
Yeah, for sure. I think it's something that I struggle to wrap my mind around. There's a verse, I think it's in Proverbs, where it says a righteous man falls seven times and then gets back up. And I have a hard time understanding that because every time I hear that verse particularly quoted, it's from people that abuse the grace of God. Sure.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
That literally do the total opposite of what Paul says in Romans 6. Yeah. Of course. So what does that verse mean when it says a righteous man falls seven times but gets back up? And then the follow-up question, how can we live in grace without abusing it? Good question.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
Dang, I feel like the one thing I'm struggling with, though, to understand the identity thing, I understand what you're saying. And it feels powerful to me. But I feel like if I told myself consistently, I'm just trying to think. Because I'm not going to lie. I did this a lot in 2023. I was telling myself, oh, I'm righteous. I'm perfect. I'm righteous. I'm perfect. Which I believe that.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
I really do believe that. Sure. But then I feel like there was a part of me that got prideful. Like my head got big. I was like, oh, yo, I'm chilling. And then I was like, yo, I'm straight up sinless. And then I'm not going to lie, in 2023, at the end of 2023, I made a knucklehead decision and I felt the most condemnation I've ever felt in my life.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
Because I kept telling myself, oh, you know, I'm righteous, I'm perfect, I'm righteous, I'm perfect. And I got this big head. Then I made a knucklehead decision and I felt awful. And so like, I guess I'm trying to figure out how to wear that label without getting a big head. Because like part of me kind of understands like,
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
Like, I guess when I say like the identity of a sinner, like when I think of salvation, I come to Christ, I'm like, OK, I acknowledge that I am a sinner. When I'm surrendering my life to God, okay, I'm acknowledging right now I'm a dirty sinner and I need you right now. But is there not a part of it that keeps you humble, knowing that you're a sinner?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
No, that makes so much sense. So that, so like that whole 2023, 2023, I was like doing that and then that happened and I was like, oh, that sucks. So then all of 2024 to, I don't know if you remember when we did the group podcast with George, that's what I was opening up to. I was feeling so much pressure and like, because I'm like, I kind of like, For me, I'm hardwired super logical.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
So I'm just like, it's got to be one extreme or the other. So then I'm like, if that didn't work, let me just try to like strongman all my faith, just being how much I can know and learn. And so now I feel like from start of January, like December, November, January, I'm on this slow process of trying to like figure out there's got to be a balance of both, you know? And that was all super helpful.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
Thank you, bro. So something I struggle with a lot personally is overthinking. I'm a very big overthinker. And it will ruin moments. It'll ruin things. Something so innocent can be shared with me and then I'll take it to the extreme in my brain and then it'll make me sad or it'll make me feel confused or make me feel like, oh, this person doesn't care about me. How can...
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
How can I take action steps to overcome the overthinking?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
Is there like an action step that you're doing to draw the line? Are you like praying? Are you like speaking life over you? Are you quoting scripture?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
so when we were in phoenix at like george's house and we were all hanging out it blew me away i've never seen anyone do this the way you did it and that's why i'm asking this question um this is before the podcast everyone's talking we're in group settings talking and you're just sitting there listening you're observing yeah and i even asked you about you said you were a big observer and listener
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
And even when we're on the podcast, you're just kind of listening and listening. And it was very specific in what you said. It was like very, almost like calculated, like just like very precise this and there it is. And then you were done or, or like we would be on the podcast and it was kind of awkward. Cause George was like, you just speak whenever you want. And it was be kind of awkward.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
And you and I think Angela spoke at the same time and you go, no sister, you go. And I know like me, like I know any group setting, it's like the natural human nature is to, I gotta say what I gotta say. You know what I'm saying? I've never seen anyone be so slow to speak. How did you, I'm phrasing the question like it's like a math equation, but how did you master that?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
I've never seen anyone do it like that.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
Dang. Yeah. That was, that was something I really admired about you. Um, It was just so, yeah, it was so interesting. I feel like it's very rare now. I think my last question I had for you, I'm kind of selfish because I'm asking questions for myself. No worries, man. You move in peace, man. You're so calm. What does it look like to move in peace? Like how can we move in peace?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
Because something I'm still trying to wrap my brain around is, I feel like this correlates. Like I was telling Cliff, even on the podcast, I was like, yo, I struggle with my frustration and my anger. And then Cliff was like, you don't make me angry. I give you the power to make me angry. And I was like, shoot, like that kind of makes sense.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
But how can I continue to move in peace or how could I move in peace and be calm and things like that? Or, um, yeah, I don't know if that makes sense.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
Yeah, okay, cool. Yeah, that was actually something I wanted to talk to you about later. Yeah, I'm super excited about this. My favorite thing that I admire about you is your knowledge on the Word. It's just so crazy. I feel like that's such a beautiful compliment and such a beautiful thing to have.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
Yeah. I feel like you just spoke my language because I'm deathly afraid of airplanes, especially like with everything that's going on. Like, dude, I'm telling you, I was getting on a plane and I looked at your Instagram story and it was like the most beautiful sunset outside the window. And bro, I'm freaking out. I'm like, dude, this is not, that's not me.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
Like if you ask Maddie, my girlfriend, like how I'm on planes, like I'm not brave. I am not brave. Like it is not good. I'm like shutting the window. Everybody else got their window up and mine is shut. Like, yeah, it's crazy.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
And so, and, and, you know, I'm going to be honest, like, I don't like living like that because like, you know, it's an airplane and it's, I feel like right now, if I'm being honest, Satan is using all the stuff that's happening with airplanes right now. Of course. To instill the fear of like, that's going to be you. Absolutely. And it's so, it's so hard not to think that way because I,
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
I feel like he's disguising it, not as like his voice, but as like bad news. And so because it's bad news and because it's happening all the time, it doesn't, it's, it's hard for me to discern him planning that. You see what I'm saying? You're like, well, it's not from him.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
And in my mind, I'm like, I'm recognizing, I'm seeing that now, but it's hard to be like, it's not like a, you know, a handsome guy trying to whisper in my ear. It's like, oh, I open up my phone because I'm waiting five minutes to board, and oh, crap, someone reposts a video of this airplane. And I'm like, are you kidding me? And it always happens right there.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
And I'm like, that's the thing that I'm struggling with the most. I resonate with everything you're saying, and that's the hard thing that I'm wrestling with right now is how can I discern that when I feel like it's all packaged in such a way it doesn't seem— It's subtle.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
So dang, that's really helpful. Sorry, I got another question because it came to my mind. So I read Psalm 63 and King David's like, yo, I long to be with you, Lord, but I'm in a dry and thirsty land. And I've noticed in my own life, I could feel so close to Jesus than I before, feel his presence, everything. And then I wake up and I'm like,
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
bro what is going on yeah how do you win the morning as a christian and not let's say because i feel like when you wake up when you wake up and at like at the end of the day your willpower is decreased and then in the morning like you're kind of like you know until you get sharp it like takes a second to get sharp how do you win the morning as a christian
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
wouldn't be thankful for because you know you'd want more and more and more it's sensational right yeah dang that's encouraging especially with the thing in africa like i didn't even know you were on a mission trip have you ever talked about that before i have really yeah but it's not i don't talk about it often Yeah. That's so powerful. Um, it's so, I feel the same way.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
I've been on like a couple of out of country mission trips and, and it's like, it's just so crazy. The gratitude that they have, it's insane. And it was, it's always like, and I only went for a week. I didn't, I never did six months, but it was like with my school. And at the beginning of the week, it was like, really like it's high.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
And then by the end of the week, I was like, I don't want to leave this place. Which is so crazy to think about, but it's, for a lack of better terms, like the charisma, the energy, the positivity that they carry, the gratitude, it's contagious. Promise, last question.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
How do you deal with, I think what I notice, like, whenever I go home and I have an amazing pastor, and whenever I look at pastors and churches and things like that, I feel like oftentimes from a Christian leadership perspective,
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
a lot of stuff is transactional with relationships in the sense that like, to some extent, a lot of people that talk to you or talk to pastors, it's I'm going through this right now, or I need my spiritual health. And it's like transactional. And then technically for you, I mean, like you're leading the core of the heart and all these things.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
And for you, you're not like gaining anything out of it. How, how do you, I don't know. Cause I'm not, I don't think anything is an eye for an eye, but like, how does it not get draining? You know?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
Yeah, yeah. What does it mean to, another question. No worries. I always hear, so when I read John 8, he says, and you know the truth and the truth will set you free. And then he says, a slave is temporary, but a son is forever. And I think that's so powerful. What does it mean to be free from sin? Does it mean sinlessness or does it mean just the fact that it's got a hold on you?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
Yeah, I guess that makes a lot of sense. That's encouraging. I appreciate that. Thanks for explaining that and answering my questions and giving your time because you can't get it back. So thanks for coming on. No worries, bro. My pleasure, man. Yeah, I love you, man. It was so fun to get to hang and chat and Phoenix and get to know you better. Yeah, for sure. Spend some time. Yeah, man.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
Thanks for coming on. Thank you guys so much for watching. Listen to the episode. If you guys like listening to these episodes, follow us on everything. Bryce Crawford podcast. Johnny, thanks for coming on. Appreciate you. And we'll see you guys next time. Guys, thank you so much for watching and tuning into these episodes.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
Guys, if you love watching and listening to these episodes, aside from following us along on Instagram, TikTok, Spotify, YouTube, I want to ask you guys, would you guys consider partnering with our ministry financially? Your guys' radical generosity is actually what continues to fuel and produce these podcast episodes and our evangelism videos.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
Dang. Insane. I mean, praise God. I didn't even know that about, um, about you being Muslim for like a time period. From what I know, like for, for like people that are raised Muslim, at least, I think there's an average, like it takes a Muslim seven years to leave Islam. What was, what was your deciding factor of like leaving that essentially?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
So if you guys feel a burden to support this ministry financially, reach lost souls with the gospel through digital and in-person ministry. Go to jesusinthestreet.org. Pray and ask God, how should I partner with Bryce and their ministry and Jesus in the Street ministry? Should I partner with them in prayer? Should I partner with them in finances? Should I partner with them in support?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
Whatever it may be, pray and ask God, how should I support Jesus in the Street ministry? Love you guys. See you guys next week for the next episode.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
The way that you quote Scripture and the way that you remember it on your heart, it's like every time you get asked a question, it's the first thing to come off your tongue. So I highly respect that. Thank you. And I also highly respect the work that God has done in your life. I mean, it's so crazy how you can hear something about someone.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
no no i understand that i could right before so i i tried to take my life when i was 17 and like a couple months before that i always heard well if you got some religious structure in your life then you know you'll be good you'll be good and it just like i just so i kind of like feel you for for a sense and like it just doesn't work yeah it just does not work um thanks for sharing that i know you get to share that a lot um and it's always encouraging to hear
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
I wanna shift gears to a lot of questions that I have and I wanna hear your perspectives and things like that. I think my first question would be, yeah, I hear it a lot. I hear the sin being an identity thing. But then I think of like, I literally just got a phone call last night from a friend. He's like, I literally am struggling with this certain sin habit or this addiction, this stronghold.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
How does someone break a sin stronghold in their life?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
And like whenever I hear your story, right, when I see videos and things like that, the Johnny that I know is not that old Johnny. So it's hard for me to imagine what your life was like before. And so I just really admire your heart, your character, and your dedication to Scripture. So I appreciate you. Thank you, bro. Yeah, man.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
Dang. So I guess like something that I have a hard time thinking sometimes is like, and even I have a hard time sometimes for myself is that trusting in that word. And I have a hard time reading my Bible sometimes. I think it'd be a universal thing that people struggle with reading their Bible.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
How can people take the step to read their Bible more? Like what if someone were to say, Johnny, I don't have motivation to read my Bible. What would you say to that? Because I get asked that all the time. What would you say to that?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
Um, I bet a lot of times when you do interviews, do you get asked to like share your story a lot? Yeah.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
Whoa, whoa. That's encouraging. So this is a thought I've been having recently, which is, and it was a conversation I was having with Josh literally last night. Can you be a Christian and be depressed? Absolutely.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
Yeah. I'll let you kind of summarize that quickly because I want this to be different. I want us to just like ask questions about the Bible and stuff like that. Cause I think there's, there's a lot of value to that, but I don't want to undermine what God's done in your life.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
The Johnny Chang Interview (EP 87)
Is that how you discern the thoughts? Because I believe that if Jesus lives inside of me, that he consumes my thoughts. So I kind of describe it like if I'm walking down the sidewalk and I see a homeless guy and I feel the unction to give this guy five bucks, I'm like, okay, I selfishly would not do that. But...
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
You didn't even grill me about the porn shit yet. I think that's why people cheat, is because I watch porn.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Let's go. Well, thanks for coming back on guys. Yeah. I just, I love you a lot. Our last conversation, I just had like a lot of respect for you and, um, and everything we talked about.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Yeah, so I think you and I could agree that there is a, from what you're saying, that there is a standard of truth. But I guess, you know, I would get my standard of truth from the God of Christianity. Where do you get your standard of truth from? That's what I'm asking.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
So I know we're going to probably rehash some stuff back there, but I still want you to give a little bit of background of like where you came from and how no jumper started and things like that before we dive into everything that we'll talk about.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Yeah. Yeah, I see what you're saying. I feel like everyone has like a nature built inside of them. But I think that that nature comes from God. And then aside from like the moral system that's built into us, I think that the sinful nature we're just born into, according to Christianity, everyone's born with a sinful nature. How like when I was four years old, Right.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
I remember I was on a trampoline with my buddy and I had like a plastic Pirates of the Caribbean sword and I just smacked him in the face with it. Right. Like hit him. No one taught me to do that. I just did it. And like, you know what I mean? I just heard him without like no one teaching me that. And so that was in me. And I recognize that, but also the standard.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And so I guess like even from an extreme thing, because we can talk about like the the female genital mutilation. We can talk about, you know, underage prostitution in foreign countries. We can talk about all this grand stuff. But even if you go down to a T of like, like if you punch me in the face and I punch you back in the face, Jesus would say, don't do that.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
But literally last night we're playing basketball and two of my friends are chirping at each other. And this random guy that was playing was, was like, yo, you better catch a fade with him. So even he was like, well, this is how we settle things. You guys just fight it out. And so even that is embedded in culture, whereas Jesus would say, like, actually, don't do that.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And, you know, even that was the challenge at the time that this is in like Matthew chapter six, where Jesus is given like one of his most famous sermons. And he says, you know, society says an eye for an eye. Like, if you hit me, I hit you harder back. But he says, if.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
someone hits you on the cheek turn and give them the other cheek basically presenting this idea of not repaying evil with evil which is so hard in today's society like i can get so heated and things like that and i bet you can't too because we're all human like i do that but but having that ideology challenge me i don't know i guess when i took on the moral standard of the bible it it made me live a fuller richer life it wasn't like god being a cosmic buzzkill in my opinion
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Before we get into this amazing episode with Adam 22, I've got a huge announcement for y'all. We're doing our second live podcast show ever in my hometown, Atlanta, Georgia, on May 18th. Guys, go get your tickets at jesusinthestreet.org. Get them now. It's going to be a powerful night of worship, and I believe God has a specific word in store for you. for the room on May 18th.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Yeah, no, I understand exactly what you're saying. We've definitely adapted in society to where we can understand things a little bit more, not over-hyperspiritualize things, I guess you could say. There's a verse in Proverbs, I don't know the exact quotation, but... he basically King Solomon supposed to be like the wisest guy ever.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
He said, there's a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death. And I can relate to that in a sense where I feel like whenever Bryce tries to handle things in Bryce's way, I ended up doing more damage than actual good. Or when I try to like white knuckle, I call it white knuckling or like muscle on my way through things like,
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
If I've got a problem in my life, I try to fix it myself or out of my own knowledge and own strength. And what you just said about recoding your brain is literally what the Bible tells us. There's a verse in Romans 12 where he says, do not be conformed to this world. But Paul writes Romans. He says, don't do exactly what everyone else is doing. But he says, be transformed by renewing your mind.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
You literally have to change the way that you think. Like literally that's what he's doing. So like, yes, there's a sense that the Bible and like what Jesus teaches and his morality, this morality that the Bible presents is something you do have to recode. Cause then now it's not like after reading the Bible, I go, dang, I shouldn't just go hit my friend in the face with a sword.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Even though I'm 21 years old, I shouldn't do that. Or last night at basketball. Oh, this kid's chirping at me. I shouldn't go catch a fade with this kid. I should just take a second, think, and calm down. It's just a basketball game. You know what I mean?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
So I really clinged on to that because I feel like when I reflect on my own life, I feel like I do more damage than good when I try to fix things out of my own strength. Don't get me wrong. I think there is some good to people. I've definitely done good things out of my own strength, in quotation marks.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Yeah, I mean, with this actually comes from like a sincere place in my heart, like with all respect, like, I feel like I feel like as as I get older, I have more of a motivation to believe in something. I love Jesus. I've been a Christian since I was 17.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
But the more I get older, I love the fact that I believe in something for you, you label yourself as an atheist, you're like, I don't really believe in anything. I don't care to believe in anything. I mean, I mean, Like, do you, I don't know, I kind of asked you earlier, but like, do you want to? Like, you know, I feel like as I get older, I love that I have faith in something and it motivates me.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
I mean, like right now, as you get older, God forbid something happens, timer ends tonight. What do you think happens?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Yeah, I respect... I have other atheist friends as well, and I respect them. To me, I feel like it takes more faith for me to be an atheist than it does for me to be a Christian, in my perspective. I feel like, at least for me, trying not... I guess, well, maybe you're not trying because this is genuinely how you feel.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
But for me, I feel like if I was trying to be an atheist, it would take more of me to try to not believe in anything than for me to search out what what evidence is the most reliable. I don't know if I told you this last time we talked, but like, I can't fully prove to you that God is real.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
I can't fully prove to you that Jesus is real, and I can't fully prove to you that he's God, but I feel like out of everything across the board on religion, there's more evidence that Christianity is the most reliable than anything across the board. That's why I decided to put my faith and trust in Jesus. Aside from what I feel the reliability,
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
I mean, it's just totally different than everything we kind of talked about, like Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism. Like I have friends in all these religions, but they're working for everything. They're working to enlightenment. My Muslim friends are working to please Allah.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And every time I talk to them, they have no idea where they're going, even though they're some of the most respectable in the sense of they give alms to the poor. They pray five times a day. They pray more more than most Christians do. They believe more about Jesus than most Christians do. They give more alms to the poor and help poor people more than Christians do.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
So I can respect that aspect of Islam. But even them, they don't know where they're going. And all of these things, you got to work, work, work, work, work. And my story is I was going to take my life when I was 17 years old because I had a broken heart, depression, and anxiety. And a bunch of people told me, you need religious structure in your life, Bryce, to fix your life.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And so I looked into everything because I went to a private Christian school, but I kind of hated God. And I had a bad taste in my mouth with... because these pastors would tell me what to do with my life. But then I would see them doing the total opposite of what they were telling me to do. And like people were cheating on their wives and it was like super hypocritical.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And I looked into it and none of this stuff helped me because all of them, you had to work to perfection. And I was so broken inside. I thought if I'm this broken and I can't even fix in this wicked world to fix my broken heart, how could I ever work to perfection? Seemed impossible. I want to take my life.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
But that's the other reason why I love about Jesus, because out of every labeled religion, Jesus Christ is the only God that humbles himself and comes down and meets the broken people where they're at, whether it's instead of a broken person working to get his approval. God looks down and says, I love these people so much.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
I'm going to humble myself and become a human, a God that exists outside of time, outside of space, intervenes into time and space, takes on flesh. He lives this perfect life. So now the moral code of the Bible is achievable because I watched someone show me how to do it instead of just telling me how to do it and expect me to do it without showing me. And then...
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Because it's like the justice system. You murder someone, you go to jail. My sin and wickedness, my sinful nature, I deserve death and separation. But Jesus goes, I'm actually going to die for you. I'm going to take the punishment for you. I'm going to cancel the debt. And that's the forgiveness aspect.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
If you punch me, instead of repaying evil and I forgive you, I'm canceling the debt of what you just did to me. In the same way, Jesus is like, everything you've ever done wrong in your life, I'm canceling the debt right now by dying for it. And then I'm defeating the very thing that separates you from me.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And so instead of like, yes, like sure religion, I think yes, like I understand what you mean by a safety blanket, but to me it's deeper than that. Like out of all these religions, it's so evident that Jesus wants like friendship with me and you.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Like even though he's God and he's created every human being and there's a bunch of people that he's gotta tend to, he still like somehow wants to be so intentional and intimate with me the same way he like views you. And I even thought for myself, like, I think every human being has done wrong, maybe wrong in their own ways. I've never murdered anyone. I've never stolen from a bank.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Yeah, sweet. And I told you last time, but I've known about No Jumper for like a long time. I mean, I feel like that's like one of the, you know, podcasts I feel like have become super popular like in the last like couple years. But you've been in the game for a long time.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
I've never, you know, whatever. So my wrong may be different from your wrong or whatever that may be. And I always thought that I couldn't, I thought that I always couldn't, like, work. I thought that God never wanted me because that was my perception. We live in this world like where if you don't scratch my back, then I'm not going to scratch yours. Everything's transactional.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And then Jesus brings this idea of unconditional love. Despite how you feel about me, Jesus says, I'm going to love you despite how you feel about me. And so I just thought that like I had to kind of clean myself up before I came to God. But I didn't experience God's love for the first time until I was at my most broken state. That's just my big appeal to it.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And I, and I can't deny, like I have my doubts. I think everyone has doubts. Like one of the most famous Christian, like theologian people ever, he got diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. I don't know if you know anything about that, but there's pretty much nothing you can do about pancreatic cancer. Like it's like just the clock's taken basically. And at that moment he was like,
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
all right, I got a lot of doubts right now. This famous Christian guy, he was like, I just have to make sure that Jesus really raised from the dead. Because if Jesus really did raise from the dead, then he's the truth. And then he died confidently like this really is the truth. And so anyways, I just say all that to say like, you know, I don't think that
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
I don't know exactly how Christianity has been presented to you all across the board. Like I know I've seen clips of people trying to talk to you here, here and there. And you know, that's, that's great. But, but like, I, I think it's just so interesting how Christianity keeps being a topic of conversation to you in some way, shape or form.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Like, yes, it's a labeled religion, but outside of that, you like, you look at Jesus and all the religious people, he's like, okay, you've got the wrong idea about why I'm here. Like,
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
they're trying to get him to follow the law, but then, you know, the moral code, we could go back to the moral code, but then Jesus summarizes the entire moral code under this one truth of love the Lord your God with your whole heart, soul, mind, and strength. He basically just says, you're going to live a morally sound life according to God, according to the moral standard, if you just love me.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Yeah, I mean, I think, I mean, you know, it's like the heaven and hell thing. Like, why is that a thing? You know, why does God send people to hell? God does not send people to hell. People send people to hell. And what I mean by that is hell is both a justice system and a choice in the sense that you mentioned earlier, like,
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
if there is no God, Mother Teresa and Hitler are both in the same place.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Well, it's like a little, like yes and no. Like I can kind of explain that. But if there is no God, we have to understand that Hitler and Mother Teresa are in the same place. And to me, it's like, okay, well then, you know, Hitler needs to be held accountable for the mass genocide and all these other people, you know, the Jeffrey Dahmers, all these people. So,
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Anyways, so that's hell's a justice system, right? You murder someone, you go on trial, you deserve the punishment. Great, and that's what I was mentioning about Jesus earlier, is Jesus's death on the cross, there has to be blood, there has to be a payment for the wrongdoing that's done. But because Jesus is God and he's perfect, he can pay for everything.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
But the Bible is very clear that you have to put faith and trust that he paid the price. So in the sense that it's a justice system, we're held accountable for our sins. God makes the payment. But it's also a choice in the sense that, I mean, you could say, well, God hasn't revealed himself to us. Well, Jesus Christ did 2000 years ago, claimed to be God very clearly, I believe. And
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
There was one week where these people were literally putting palm leaves on the ground. It's a historical event they call Palm Sunday. They're praising Jesus as he's riding a donkey, calling him the Messiah, the savior of the world. A week later, those same people are nailing him to a cross, asking for him to be crucified.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And they're asking for a rapist, a murderer and a rebel to be released from prison. The same people that were just praising him. So we could go on the argument of like, there's even a point in the Bible where these people were like, Jesus, give us a sign, give us a sign. And he looks at them. He's like, you wicked generation. Like I've given you plenty of signs.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
He's like, the sign I give you is the sign of Jonah. And he says, just as Jonah was in the belly of the whale for three days, so will the son of man be in the belly of the earth for three days and come again. He was literally in fancy terms, metaphorical terms saying, I'm going to die for three days and then I'm going to defeat death.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
So he was telling him, that's going to be your sign when I raise from the dead, that I really am who I say I am.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Well, this is why I believe that he did raise from the dead. When he rose from the dead, there was a 40-day period where Jesus appeared to over 500 people. It's not like a spiritual being raised from dead. Like in his physical fleshly body, he's raised from the dead. 500 people saw this guy over a 40-day time period in the flesh. And then he ascended into heaven in front of a group of people.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Some people were like, oh, these people are drunk and hallucinating. It was super early in the morning when they did that. And back in Jewish culture, that was just not a thing that occurred. So we can wipe that out of the thing. Number two, mass hallucination does not happen. That is like a very rare thing. If not, does not happen. No one was on drugs when this happened.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And a buttload of people saw this guy ascend into heaven. Okay, so we're looking at that. And then my third thing is all of these apostles and followers of Christ died for the fact that he raised from the dead. Hmm. They didn't die for the fact that, oh, he lived and died. There's more evidence that Jesus Christ was a real dude than Alexander the Great.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
There was the same amount of evidence that Jesus Christ was a real guy back in that time period for that culture, that Caesar was a real guy. Caesar was a popular figure in the Roman government. There was just as much evidence for Jesus as there was for Caesar. So we can't deny that he wasn't a real person. It's just, was he God? Did he really raise from the dead? And I believe that.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
I mean, if you got guys dying for this stuff, I feel like if you weren't as confident in the fact that he rose from the dead, the guys that claim to have seen him face to face, if they weren't as confident, they wouldn't have died for it. And I mean, the upside down cross on your face. Peter was like, crucify me upside down because I'm not worthy to be crucified standing up. He was willing to die.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
for the fact that Jesus raised from the dead. That blows my mind. So, like, yes, I mean, we need to understand these truths, but I also feel like the same way that the church appealed to your mom in her time of crisis when your dad was in jail and your family was going through it, and she said, well, this is why, you know, like, I understand.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
That's not just the sole reason why someone should just believe in a religion, but it also doesn't shock me that that was appealing to your mom. Because... There's so much transactional things. And you have to understand in that position, that vulnerable position for your mom, there's really nothing that your mom in that position can give to them.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
They're just constantly overflowing her with love and comfort and things. And like, sure, you can find that in a bowling lane, like to an extent. But like this idea of no strings attached, unconditional love, I'm just going to serve you whether you never speak to me again or not. That's just something that the Bible teaches that I just don't see displayed through any other religion or people group.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And the Bible, there's this one verse in Romans where it says, the goodness of God brings man to repentance. That's why I also have an issue with these street preachers that hold up signs with pitchforks. It's like, you're going to burn in hell if you're this, this, or that. It's like, sure, there is biblical truth to that, but no one's going to turn from their ways.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
I've noticed me, it took time for me to slowly start giving things up that the Bible was in opposition to the way I was living. And, and people that I, that I've walked with, it's like when I tell them, Hey, stop doing this thing. They don't really understand why to do it. That's why I like feel for you when all these Christians get mad at you on how you live your life.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
I'm not mad because you don't believe in Jesus. So what he says about stuff really doesn't, you don't care about. So it's like, I, I'm not, I don't understand why these people get mad at you. You know what I mean?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Yeah, for sure. I mean, I think, I guess I think the religion thing first, like, I mean, you've got Muslims in Gaza. Now, if you go over in the middle East, almost all of them are raised Muslim. Like there's, if not every single family and they're devout and they're pretty hardcore in it.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Yes, extremely hard life. Probably a short life. Because what they're getting from the Muslim community is compassion, community, friendship. And so in their mind, they're losing all of that. So if you present Christianity to them, you have to offer them the very thing that they're losing, which is compassion, friendship in Jesus, community with other believers.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
But there were Muslims, hundreds of Muslims in Gaza that had the same dream about Jesus Christ. And they all converted to Christianity. One dream. So I don't doubt that God can't move in these things. And I acknowledge I'm very blessed to have been raised in a country where you can believe whatever you want pretty much without any physical attacks or things like that.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And I understand I went to a Christian school, but I think I also have to acknowledge I was deeply aware of the hypocrisy that was going on around me. And it made me really bitter. And close people in my life that would tell me that they loved God.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And then I would watch very specific things going, going down that made me deeply hate whatever this God they're serving is, is a total hypocrite because they are doing the total opposite of what they're telling me to do. And I acknowledge that. Um, and I understand like, like something that I really wrestle with is I prayed and asked God to take away my anxiety and depression and he did.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And then I have friends that I have prayed for, for God to take away their anxiety and nothing happens. Um, And I don't understand why. Do I think God can heal everyone? Yes. Does he heal everyone? No. I don't know why, but I think the wisdom of God could be literally taking away someone's anxiety.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Or I do think the wisdom of God could be God giving doctors the correct wisdom to prescribe the right amount of anxiety medication to help cope people's anxiety. I think that's the wisdom of God too. And so there's this interesting part where Paul, he's like supposed to be a legend of Christianity. He writes about this thorn in his flesh. And it's basically this thing that he can't shake off.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
It's not clarified if it was like a spiritual thing or if it was like a sin issue that he couldn't stop doing. And he's complaining about how there's this one thing in his life that he can't shake off and it's bothering him. But then at the very end of this passage, he says, but this thorn in my flesh, it keeps me humble and reliant on God. And so I can't speak to everyone's situation.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
I can't say, well, just because God takes away this thing, well, God's keeping it there and this and that. I don't know, because then there's also these verses that say, you know, if you will seek me and find me, if you seek me with your whole heart, are people really crying out to God because they're just doing it to do it?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Or are people really crying out because their heart is hungry and desperate and things like that? Or,
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
maybe for people that are christian that are trying to follow god but they're asking god to take away something and it's not taken away maybe god's not taking it away because if god took that thing away they would stop going to god i don't know i don't know the circumstances so i can't give like a full answer on that and and i do recognize that i've very blessed and very fortunate to grow up in a society where i can choose and really follow what i believe and without repercussions um
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
But there are those instances where the Muslims in Gaza have dreams and things like that, or we chose to go to a Hindu festival, the Festival of the Chariots, where everyone there is Hindu, and we're the only Christians, and we're challenging Hindus on their beliefs. They probably weren't expecting any Christian to come up to them and talk to them.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
You know, maybe they saw people with pitchforks and signs, but they probably weren't expecting someone to come up to them and have a respectful conversation and go, hey, why do you believe what you believe? And well, this is why I believe what I believe. And this is why I think my life has purpose and things like that and challenge them and pray for them and things like that.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And so I guess that's, You know, there's some things I just can't wrap my mind around and I don't have full answers to. But I mean, even in those hard times, like there's things in my life that I pray and ask God to take away and he hasn't taken away. And I don't know why. And it makes me angry and it makes me frustrated.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And there's times where my prayers are like, God, I'm freaking pissed right now. Some people would get so upset for me saying, oh, you're a Christian and you tell God that you're pissed right now. Absolutely, I do, because I'm a human being and I have emotions. But it's crazy how even when I'm frustrated and pissed, God wants me to tell him.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Even though he's all-knowing, the fact that I express to him that I'm frustrated or I'm happy or I'm sad in any moment when I pray, he loves it because it makes it intimate. It makes it personal. And I'm actually coming to him. There's this verse where it says, do not be anxious about anything, but with prayer and supplication.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Supplication is like literally asking God to do something specific about a situation. God, I'm frustrated about this right now. I need you to do something. God loves it when I tell him how I feel about it. And so I fully don't understand why he doesn't take things away all the time. But I love that he doesn't get mad at me when I'm mad about my situations or when I'm sad or when I'm happy.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
He likes to know it all. And again, that's what I love. I don't think the Muslims would agree with being mad at God about something. They would say, well, you can't get mad at him. You just gotta let it be. I said, no. God likes it when you're mad. I'm a human being with feelings. You're a human being with feelings. And just because I'm mad doesn't mean I'm right about what I'm mad about.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
But God likes the fact that I'm telling him how I feel.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Yeah. Yeah. I mean, I think I totally understand how you feel that I could say, well, I think he has made it obvious. You know, we go back and forth on that. But I think that. Jesus Christ through creation, we can look at this house and say, well, it wasn't here yesterday, but it's here today. You'd be like, there's a maker.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
We can look at things, intricacy, order, detail, the fact that flowers have photosynthesis and that the universe just doesn't, the only thing that comes from nothing is nothing. Like something has to come from something. And so like all these things we can look in that. The suffering of the world, Breaks my heart. I don't understand all of it.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
But when I look at suffering, I go, what can I compare the suffering to that's going to make me love God even more? Well, the fact that God loved us enough to suffer with us because we look at Christ, who claimed to be God, who said, I'm not just going to be a guy that tells everyone how to live it and expect them to do it. But he comes. Jesus himself said, I didn't come to be served, but to serve.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
I came to show you how to do it. He serves and then he suffers, too. And so what we have to understand is it oftentimes, like, I bet you felt this way before. I'm going through things right now that no one understands what I'm going through. Like to whatever degree, aside from the shootings, aside from everything, like I'm going through something that no one else understands.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
I felt that way before about some things. Well, Jesus would say, I understand how you feel because as God, I took all suffering to the cross, all physical suffering, all mental suffering, all sin struggles, all everything. So if anyone's going to understand how Adam feels and how Bryce feels, it's me, Jesus Christ.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Because there's this moment in the Garden of Gethsemane where it says that Jesus Christ himself was sweating drops of blood. And I believe that that is a literal representation of Jesus was feeling in his fleshly body the weight of all suffering past, present, and future that he's about to take to the cross. And I think it's just such a powerful thing to understand.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
So go get your tickets at JesusInTheStreet.org slash tickets. Come to the Hometown Show in Atlanta on May 18th. Love you guys. Get your tickets and enjoy the episode with Adam 22. What's going on, guys? Welcome back to another episode of the Bryce Carver Podcast. I'm Bryce, and today... The guest that everyone has been asking for. We got Adam 22 on. What's going on?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
You know, it's like, well, you know, if God is good, he would have intervened. Well, we live in a world of free will where those guys that did the shootings, you know, well, if they read the Bible, they probably wouldn't do it, but they had the choice to make the decisions.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And so like we live in this suffering, wicked world and these people can make free decisions, but God provides the antidote in Christ. And so, yes, essentially, like if that person who committed this mass shooting, they're in jail. And for some reason, one day they wake up and they go, dang, I wish I didn't do that. And that was awful. And wait, those were human beings.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Well, in his eyes, that guy in that moment when he was shooting, he probably didn't think human beings were valuable. So he's like, I'm just going to go do this erroneous act because they're not valuable. And I think I'm more valuable than them. So I'm just going to go take that, you know, whatever his motive may be. But there has to be a part of him that didn't think that they were valuable.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Well, what makes me and you valuable? That's what, how does God think that Adam and Bryce are valuable? And I use the example, my pastor's told me this one time. If you go to TJ Maxx, I don't know if your wife shops at TJ Maxx. My mom shops at TJ Maxx.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Okay. I could respect that. Well, my mom shops at TJ Maxx. And if you go to Macy's, there'd be a fur coat for $100 at Macy's that ended up in TJ Maxx. It's $19.99 at TJ Maxx. And the reason it got downgraded was because people didn't think it was valuable enough to pay $100 for at Macy's. So it got to the retail store for $19.99. And so my thing is, what is the price tag that God puts on my life?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
his own life. God thought that I was valuable enough to humble himself and put his life on the line for me. And that's the price tag he puts on everyone.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Dang, that's so cool. I feel like I feel like that would have been a hard guess to get on when he was big.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Yeah. Well, I think like if we ask God to help us, he will, but there's also action steps on our part to take. Like, I can't just be like, like, I can't tell my teacher, help me with my project. And then my teacher do the whole project for me. I'm not, I'm not going to learn what I'm supposed to learn. Like there's some action steps for me to do.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And so like, like with the people that are living a bad life, but they, you know, they got the money, they got the house or living an outwardly good life. I don't think God is just blessing them for living a bad life. I don't think that's the case at all.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
The Bible says that we're saved by faith, trusting that what Jesus did on the cross was enough for us to be united with him in heaven, have friendship with God. But then there's this verse that says, faith without works is dead. That does not mean that we have to work our way to get God to love us. But it's like, I don't do things because I have to for God. I do things because I want to.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Same way I listen to my dad. I listen to my dad because I love him, not because I have to. And so what he's saying is like, this is why I tell people, you can tell someone really believes in Jesus Christ.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
If they're like, if their life looks different before they claim to have followed Christ to after they have claimed to follow Christ, because Christ makes a very clear distinction of lifestyle and things like that. And so like, I'm not going to say someone is or isn't a Christian, but the Bible says, look at their fruit. Look at the fruit that they're bearing on their tree.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Do they love their neighbors? Do they love their enemies? Are they slow to anger, quick to speak? Do they have love, joy, peace, patience, kindness? Now, I'm a human. I don't always have that 24-7. But if you look from a zoomed-out perspective, what's the fruit on their tree? And so, like, I think that is, like, what...
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
The fruit on someone's tree is what determines the genuity of their faith and following Christ and things like that. Because like what I was saying, like if you really do follow Christ, you're going to start listening to what he says. If you really believe Jesus is God, then you're going to say, whoa, hold on a second. I don't care what Bryce thinks. That's what discipline is.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Like stopping what Bryce wants to do now for what I really want to do in the future, who I really want to be in the future. I'm going to stop what I'm doing now and go, what does Jesus Christ think about what I'm doing right now? And that's why I I used to struggle with my temper a lot. And I realized, like, if I got mad, Adam's not making me lose my temper.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
I'm giving you the power to make me lose my temper. So I actually don't have to lose my temper. Same thing last night. If someone packs me at the three-point line, I don't have to get heated about it. I'm not going to give that thing the power to make me lose my temper. So I'm going to have joy and peace and patience and think. Take patience. Slow down for a second and chill out.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
It's not that deep. These fruits are examples of Christ because that's who he was. Mm-hmm. And that's what I also love too about Jesus Christ. It's like Jesus calls people out of the lifestyle they're living. He hung out with the sinners, the tax collectors, the people that the religious people were like, what are you doing? He hung out with those people.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
But when the religious people came around, like there's a moment where Jesus has a dinner at Matthew's house with all these sinners and tax collectors. So the rich sinners, the guys that took advantage of their own people for money and selfish gain, the sinners, which would be the people that disobeyed the moral law, That's what they called the sinners in that time. He's hanging out with them.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And the religious people thought that the Messiah, the Savior of the world, that guy was going to be the guy that wouldn't hang out with those people. That was going to tell them to stop living, the pitchfork and sign. They thought the Messiah was going to be like pitchfork and sign, turn or burn kind of thing. But Jesus says that the healthy don't need a doctor, sick do.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And so when the religious people come around, you don't ever see Jesus going, yo, where's the back door? Let me get out of here. That's what I love about him. He's like, no, these are my people, man. Not because I approve of what they're doing, but how are they going to know what to do if I don't explain to them what they're doing is wrong? On top of that, how am I going to show them?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And that's the fruit of his life. It's like he shows us how to do it. And so that's why I love the church coming around your mom. Because they're not just telling her, hey, believe in Jesus or you're going to go to hell. They're actually showing them what Jesus has done in their life. Those people would not have shown up to your mom, I believe, if Jesus hadn't done something in their life.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Yeah, for sure. Dang, that's super special. Everyone knows we're going to talk about Christianity and things like that. I know last time you wore a shirt that we thought was funny when you came here.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Yeah, definitely. There is this negative connotation. For some reason, people think all atheists are immoral and not good people.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Yeah, for sure. And at the time that off camera kicking it with you and just chatting like, dude, you're a good dude. And the way that you've prioritized your family, I invited you to Chili's the other day. And you're like, dude, I got to hang with my family. I respect that. And I think that anyone can be a good person outside of Christianity.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
But I think this is my challenge aside from being a good person. If you're living to be a good person, at some point, you're going to get tired.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Absolutely. Because I can't just work to be a good person forever. I mean, that's so draining. Because working to be a good person technically means showing unconditional love. But what's the strength of your unconditional love? Just your own willpower. And every human being's willpower decreases over time. The older you get or just from the morning, you're the sharpest in the morning.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And throughout your day, your willpower decreases. So it's like my motivating factor is not being a good person. It's loving Jesus and realizing... Because Jesus says, love God, love people. Quick summary. Love God, love people. Love your neighbor as yourself. It's not saying be selfish.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
It's saying when you see yourself the way that God sees you, then you understand that God sees you just as valuable as every other human being. So it's easier to love and serve other people when you realize they have the same value as you. Not, well, the homeless man is worse than me because he's on the home and every homeless person is a beggar. We're always taught to turn away the homeless guy.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Everyone, that's how I was, like no offense to my parents, but that's how I was raised. Don't interact with the homeless guy. Don't give that guy five bucks. Every homeless guy begs. I've talked to plenty of homeless guys that don't want anything from me. Like seriously, it's super interesting. And so like seriously, like that's, it's like, I don't want to be drained.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And that's where I was drained when I came to my wits end of, I can't even fix the hole up my heart.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
how could i work to please this god or reach enlightenment here this isn't that when it was like god did all the work for me and when i put my faith and trust in him and i trust that he really is god and what he says is true that motivates me his love for me what he did on the cross motivates me to turn away from these things and love people and serve people and love my enemies and pray for my enemies and things like that like like i had a bully from the fourth grade all through high school in christian school yeah he hated my guts for some reason i don't know why and then
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
He left our school and then dropped out and then got involved in gang stuff and was like just selling drugs and stabbing people and things like that and all this other stuff. And so anyways, I became a Christian. I was three months new and I had him on Snapchat and he had posted something about Islam, about how he claimed he was a Muslim now.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And so I just swiped up, hadn't talked to him in a long time. And I said, hey man, you should check out Jesus. And he starts cussing me out. And then I said, hey, let's just get lunch, man. Let's just catch up, see how you're doing. We can talk about this stuff if you want. He was so angry at me, Adam. He said, if you show up to lunch, I'm going to kill you.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Now, this meant a lot to me because I knew how he was living. And I knew this wasn't just some, oh, you know, he's going to kill me. Like, he wasn't living with his parents anymore. He was mobbing with gangs. And I was freaking out a little bit because I was like, this guy's going to hurt me. Well, I show up and we get there.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
and he falls in my arms crying at him because he was lost and hurting and he was trying everything to do. And so I say that to say, how was I able to love my bully who bullied me from fourth grade through high school, never had a nice thing to say about me,
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
the time I reached out to him after he left our high school had even worse things to say about me to the point where he was like, I'll take your life for you. How was I able to do that? Definitely not on my own willpower, I don't think.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And even if someone's in total opposition, and this is why I'm getting at Adam, and this is why I want to tell you, I don't think you're valuable for what you can do for me. I think you're valuable because I think every human being is made in the image of God. And so I'm not having this conversation with you because I think I'm greater than you. I don't know everything. I'm not smart.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
I'm not like a theologian. I can't really go into the, oh, well, this is why the Bible is this either. I'm not that guy. I'm a super simple guy. But I think you're valuable because you're made in the image of God the same way I think my friend was, my bully was. I thought he was valuable because he was made in the image of God.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And I think that's what motivates me to love people and serve people and challenge people.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Yeah, he's good. We keep in touch every now and then we'll like text here and there and then he'll ghost me for like nine months and then we'll text again. But, but, um, but he, he's doing good for the most part from what I know. We're in a time period where he hasn't talked to me in a long time.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
So, um, I'll reach out to him and he'll leave me on red and then he'll, you know, we'll go back and forth. But, um,
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
For sure. Yeah. Well, I'm excited. We can have just like a raw, you know, we're going to have a raw on it. So you could say whatever you want about perspectives, views, whatever, like you don't have to hold back. Like I just want to know like kind of how you feel about everything.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Right, right. Yeah, you just never know how people are doing. A lot of people treat God like that. They treat him like a lifeline. Like, oh, well, my life's going like crap. You know, I'm doing this. But the Bible says in Psalm 23 that God is a good shepherd, which means he wants to be with us at the peak of our life. and at the lowest of our lows. God wants to be with us through it all.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And so instead of like, you know, same way, kind of he, we, we kind of, we kind of go, I'm not going to put all the blame on him. We kind of talk here and there, you know, things like that. It's like, you know, he, he doesn't want friendship just in the lows. He wants friendship in everything. And I think that's,
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
But I definitely know that there's like a lot of there's a lot of there's a lot of clips about you and Christianity on the Internet. And from what I can tell there, you're in a lot of opposition or like you have a lot of.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
That's hard. That's hard to feel like you're only worth what people want from you. And and I think like, yeah, just know like like that's the love that Christ has for you. No strings attached. Like I love Adam for just who he is and Like, I love you for you. That's what Jesus says about you.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And like, if you ever come to a point where you're just like, I want to cry out to Jesus or like, I want to try this Jesus thing or just know like, Jesus is going to go, well, that's it. Nope, it's off the table because you took too long, Adam. Like, imagine if Jesus was on the cross and he's sitting up there and then he jumps down. He's like, I've had enough. You guys are a bunch of bozos.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
There's going to be a bunch of you guys that don't turn to me. This is stupid. This is false. This is a bunch of baloney. I'm done with this because you guys have taken too long. And so a lot of you guys are never going to come to me. It's like, no, that's actually not what Jesus does. He stays up there.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
He says the Bible says for the joy set before him, he endured the suffering of the cross, meaning like you were the joy, meaning like it's on the table. The gift is here. It's for you. He loves you. And if you if you attempt to seek it and experience it, I would bet money on the table that it would transform your life. I mean, it'd be interesting. And so. Yeah.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
I just, I think that's like such a sweet thing to know that like, even if you feel a lot of people, which I bet it has, I've treated you transactionally. I could agree with that. I bet that's happened. Like he's not transactional with you. He's like, yeah, just it's on the table. I love you. That's it. That's pretty wild. That's pretty wild.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
But thanks for coming back on and doing another convo with us.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Did they just give you the word? We could definitely do another half hour.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Well, that's what everyone wants to know. And I want you to know my heart because I do want to come around to it. And we can talk about it now. But I guess my biggest – it's kind of what I said earlier. People grill the crap out of you for it. But it just doesn't shock me because you don't care about Christ.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
So when people get mad at you for it, I'm just like, well, I can't get mad at Adam for doing this because he doesn't care about Christ. So to Christians, they're making a whole big thing about it. But obviously, I disagree with you. But people get so mad at you. And I'm like, well, he doesn't believe in God.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Yeah, so last time we talked, You said that you first got introduced to porn through magazines. And then you said you found something in a bag. What did you find in a bag? How did you first start watching porn? Let's reiterate the question.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Well, there's a lot we got to talk about and all that. First thing I said is the reason why I asked again, how you started, you said about 10 years old, maybe I, you said 10 to 12, eight, eight to 12, something like that is when you kick it around the bag. And then you guys found the magazines. I told you last time I got it.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
I got shown my first porn thing when I was in the fifth or sixth grade, um, on the beach, I was shark fishing, never forget. And then I got addicted to porn from that moment until I was 17. I haven't watched porn since I became a Christian. The reason I said that was because you never forget how you're introduced. I feel like you never forget how you're introduced the same way.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Like with, uh, I'm taking things to the extreme alcoholics, drug addicts. They never forget the first time they drank a drink. They never forget the first time they took drugs. And the reason I said that is because my perspective would be, I don't think porn is healthy at all consumption or things like that. So I brought that up because it doesn't shock me that you remember your first thing.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Because I remember my first... I literally got showed it in a meme. It was a meme. But it was like straight porn on a meme. And someone showed it to me on the beach while I was shark fishing. And then it caused me to go into this spiral. And to be honest... That's what I thought love was. I was so lovesick my whole life. I've been on this quest for love. What is love? What is love? What is love?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And a lot of people would define love as sex, pleasure, things like that. Whereas now I think that God is the definition of love. And I think God defines what love is. God defines what sex is. Sex is a gift from God, but in a different connotation and things like that in regards.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
So things like that, I guess just like, I don't know what that lady's name was that you mentioned about the porn convention and she's got a line wrapped around whatever. whether they admit it or not, there has to be some part of their conscience where they wonder if that's all they're worth, is how they're perceived in their body, how their body is.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Not even just from a woman's perspective, a man's perspective. So I know this guy named Joshua Broom. You know who this guy is?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
He used to be a really famous porn star. There's this clip of him where he's like, this isn't a beach, this is a bathtub. It was like a super famous meme. And he won a bunch of porn awards back in the day and all this other stuff. Most of his friends in porn are dead. Most of them took their own life. And it was super intense and things like that.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And the reason I say this is because I think if people are alone and they get honest with themselves, they may not be you because I know you say you have a different perspective, but I think if people are alone and they get honest with themselves, there's got to be a part of them that question, is this all I'm worth? Is this the only way people are going to see me?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Like imagine if that guy flew across the world and they show up in this convention, they get in the line and they get there and that lady is standing there fully clothed. How disappointed would that guy be?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
She's probably wearing something risky, like flaunting, right?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Because it's LA and everybody does drugs. You think that might be the only reason they turn to drugs? Because I think that's, I can't assume, so I'm not putting like this is why they did that. But this is why I think the porn convention is different than the sports convention. The porn is offering a different type of pleasure to a person than sports will do.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And so that's what I'm getting at is like these girls and these guys are only valuable because they're making the consumer feel some type of way that sports can't make them feel. That Pokemon can't make them feel. That comics.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Adam, thanks for coming back on. You guys don't know, but we had recorded an episode. The whole reason everyone's looking for it, we didn't bamboozle you guys. We recorded a full episode, and then we lost all the footage. And so it was so embarrassing. I felt so bad sending you a voice memo.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
you know, I, again, I can't put a label on it, but I could argue, what if we don't know, because unfortunately those people aren't here.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
So with us, but like, what if they were just trying to feel something, you know, the value of these people on that are doing the scenes, the porn screens and things like that, the value that the consumer is labeling them is the pleasure that they're offering them.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
So hypothetically, like I could argue that if this person, and again, I could go so many different routes with this, but these people are going to get older, right? They're going to get old. They're going to get wrinkly. And that's why, again, I don't think you should date and marry someone because they're they're hot quotation marks because they're attractive. There's no depth to that.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
You can't do that. So it's like it's like then what are they worth? They were only valuable in the eyes of people because they offered them some sexual pleasure on a screen and they made them feel some type of way. And oh, now they're old and they can't do it anymore. So oh, I'm just not worth anyone and nobody wants to know me and I'm not valuable in anyone's eyes.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
So I think that goes back again to what makes someone valuable, that they're made in the image of God. So it's not what you offer me. It's not how you make me feel, but it's that you're valuable because you're just made in the image of God. And so when I look at the standard of what the Bible says about sex, I've never had sex before. And
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
and so what the bible says that a man and a woman shall come to be come together and become one flesh right so that the sex is not only this physical act and gift from god in marriage when you're married sex is a gift from god that you can enjoy with the person that you've made a covenant to It's an act of worship towards God when you're honoring him in the covenant marriage.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
But it's also, there's a spiritual aspect if you're binding yourself with someone in that way. It's the most closest intimate form you can get to someone, right? But if you're doing it with so many people, right? And this is a challenge. I mean this with the utmost respect. I don't mean this in a disrespectful way. I want to know what the ring means to you on your hand.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
when you sleep with other people as well or when your wife sleeps with other people as well? What does the ring mean to you and what does your sex life mean to you when you know that you're when your wife knows that you're with other people and you're and your wife's with other people knowing that? I don't mean that in any disrespect. It's genuine. I'm genuinely curious.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Sure. Well, I think you could say in any small tight-knit community that, oh, well, it's not as dark in the community. You could do the same thing with like a cult. The cult could be like, oh, yeah, it's not super dark. And then everybody else is like, what are you doing, bro? You know what I mean?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And so I think like if you zoom out and take a broad perspective of porn, right, I think there's a lot more negatives and positives to it in my opinion. I think that's why people cheat is because they watch porn. Because here's like – I feel like I would probably cheat without porn. Okay, but okay, good, good. Okay, so I think so. Here's why.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
I think when people cheat because their definition of love is the feeling I get, and if you're not giving me the feeling of butterflies and excitement and this rush of dopamine, then I'm not going to choose to show up. And because I... because you don't make me excited, I'm not choosing to show up in the highs or lows. And now I'm questioning the choice I made for you.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Whereas the Bible would say this is reversed. Love is a choice. I choose to love Jesus. So because I choose to love Jesus, I show up in the highs and the lows with Jesus. No conditions. But because I show up, no matter the conditions, it stirs my affections for him. I think in the same way, when I make a commitment to someone, that's why I think sex and love is so special.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
When I choose to love my girlfriend, I want to marry my girlfriend one day. I choose to love her. Despite how hard life gets, despite how great life gets, I'm going to choose to show up for her. And because I choose to show up for her, you understand, like there's days where, you know, excitement and feelings aren't always there.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
But when you choose to show up for that person, those moments, it stirs the affections for them. And so I recognize, like, I recognize that I've never had sex before. And... Hopefully, Lord willing, one day I'm gonna get married and I'm not gonna know what I'm doing. And I think that's okay. I think it's a beautiful thing that I've saved myself for the person I'm committing to.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Yeah. So your entry point to atheism was the Satanic Bible. But when you read it, you were like, I agree with this more than I do the Christian perspective of the worldview.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And then I'm gonna learn and grow and adapt with that person that I've made a commitment to. But from a broad perspective, that's like people watch porn and they go, oh, this is exciting. And I think porn offers this perspective of sex that's just not real. I think porn creates a fantasy that is just not realistic. And then people expect this is what sex to be like.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And then they get there and then they bomb blow up a bunch of relationships that they've got because their perspective of sex and love has been twisted because of porn.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Sure. I think, I think it, I think it just paints that picture. Right. And so for people, so another thing you said earlier was like, you think that there's a healthy view of masturbation, right. And testosterone and things like that. Well, my perspective, why couldn't you just redirect the text testosterone to the gym? Right.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
So last night I played basketball for three hours and I'm just like physically tired. Right. And so like, I just want to go to sleep. Whereas I feel like nighttime, like I said earlier, the human willpower decreases over time. And a lot of people that I know that struggle with watching porn and masturbation from a Christian perspective, they do it at nighttime.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Well, why couldn't they just redirect it in the gym? Like what you're saying, well, it feels good to get this testosterone out. Well, I could redirect that testosterone at the gym for like 45 minutes to two hours. And then I'd be pretty dead set. Then I wouldn't need to do that.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And so the Bible says that a fruit of the Spirit, a fruit of the Holy Spirit living inside of you and giving you strength is self-control. And I think that is a super crucial aspect to not only just regular life, but like sexual urges.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Because you can't, you're a human being and you have to like, as a human being, from zoomed out from religion or Christianity, you have to acknowledge the fact that people have sex drives. But to be able to redirect the sex drive from this, but to be able to have self-control through the spirit of God to say, I'm going to redirect my testosterone now to the gym because I love God.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And I believe God has made sex, this beautiful thing and a covenantal marriage for one man and one woman to do this thing. And so I'm just not going to do this now or even now. Like I bet you would understand too, like from a broad perspective, girls care how guys see them, right?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Now, imagine in a marriage if a girl is trying so hard to make their husband love them by dressing up and putting on makeup and then finding out that their husband is watching porn. They would probably be devastated knowing that their husband is more attracted to girls on a screen than their actual wife. Whereas the husband can have self-control to say, I'm actually not going to watch porn.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
I'm attracted to my wife and I love my wife and I'm going to show up for her. And I just think it's super unrealistic to kind of like... to kind of like create this like thing of like like sex is this this worldview and this and this lifestyle like I, I can't get behind. I think there's just more to life than sex. I think sex is enjoyable in marriage. I think it's a gift.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
But I think to take that outside of this covenant of marriage and this enjoyable thing that you do with a person you make a commitment to and it's an act of intimacy, according to the Bible, making it an intimate act that you do with someone dishing that out to multiple people. to me, devalues the intimacy aspect of it.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
I think intimacy is valuable, right? So if I'm gonna be honest like if I caught my wife if I was married I caught my wife watching porn it would make me not want to be with her if I'm being totally honest with you and here's why it's because if the very thing that we get to do in a marriage is have sex and enjoy this thing and
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
and then you're withholding that from me and finding an avenue somewhere else, finding the sense of pleasure, pleasuring yourself to something that you're watching on the screen versus finding it with the person that you've made a covenant marriage to, my intimacy isn't valuable to you anymore. And so therefore it makes me not want to be with you.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And so I can understand why people could see that. But then you also have to understand like your worldview is different than my worldview. So you're like, well, it's not a big deal to me, but it is a big deal to me because I think intimacy is valuable and I don't dish it out to anyone. And this is what I'm getting at.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
I want to be careful because I don't want to bash people that have had sex in the past. I believe if you come to Jesus Christ, he offers forgiveness, and you can wipe the slate clean as if you've never done it before, and you can wait. I'm not saying that Jesus makes you a virgin again, but Jesus gives you this perspective where I'm going to wait until marriage now for my husband.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
I made mistakes in the past, but I'm going to wait now. I think that's the redemption that happens there. There is redemption. There is forgiveness. There is grace. But like my intimacy is valuable and it's for the person I made a commitment to. And so for me to say, well, you know, well, you know, my significant other, they're just not doing it for me.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
So I need to find a way that makes me feel excited and please myself. Well, you're not making me feel excited, but porn is going to make me feel excited. So I'm going to go watch some scenes and, you know, and pleasure myself. Like, man, I'm just like totally disregarding the beautiful sex that I can have. In a marriage you say, not that valuable to me.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
This is more valuable to me than what you're offering to me. And this is what I think the healthiest definition of sex is. What I've talked to healthy married couples, Christian married couples, they say the best sex is when both parties try to out serve each other. Where the man is trying to make the woman feel good. I'm getting really intense right now.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
and the woman is trying to make the man feel good. That's the best sex is when you try to out serve each other, right? Any sex outside of marriage is selfish, because it's about how you're supposed to feel. And if I, even in marriage, I think it can be sinful in the sense that if I went into marriage and sex is in, I'm gonna make myself feel good, then I would be using my wife for myself.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Do you think any religion could be true? Do you think that there could be one that is true? Or are you just totally against any of them being true?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And I don't think that's okay at all. Cause then that's going to make my wife not enjoy this gift from God in this covenantal marriage aspect. And so that's why masturbation and porn is like such a big thing. It's because like, Oh, well I got to blow off some steam. Why do you have to blow off some steam? Well, cause I need to feel good. I need to get rid of this pressure. I need to do this.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And it becomes a selfish act rather than, all right, I got this testosterone buildup. Let me go hit the gym really quick.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Sure. So that's where I would say the self-control comes in, right? That the love is the choice more than the feeling. I'm getting like, dang, my wife's tired. you know, whatever, but instead of like taking care of my, oh, well, I got this feeling. So I need to, you know, blow off some steam right now. It's just actually the, hold on.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Like what, what if instead of it being like a necessity, it's just become a habit, you know, what if it's just become a habit?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
It's like, why don't you take some self-control and, you know, you know, like, I don't, I don't know the physical repercussions, you know, maybe I'll, I'll hurt or whatever that may be, or I'll be, you know, whatever, uncomfortable for a little bit, but like, I'm just going to like, choose to love my wife. And I'm going to say, you know what? I love my wife. So I got self-control.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And I think that's the whole marriage thing going through the nine months of pregnancy. And then the time after you, cause there's like a time period, like you said, where they're not allowed to, you know, have sex. It's like, well, I've just got self-control. Like I'll wait anything for you because I love you more than this thing. This thing's a gift. Right.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
But I, I love you more than this feeling, this rush, this, this sexist thing.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
I think that there's other things that you could outlet this testosterone because because you could say, oh, it's just a sexual urge. But if you really dial it down, it's testosterone. Right. And so we could like where could we redirect it?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Yeah. Yeah. I think the last thing I want to talk about. And we talked about it a little bit last time. And again, I think this is where I get down to this moral compass with you. As I asked you last time, would you want your daughter to do what you and your wife do? So...
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Well, I think the general response would be if you ask me how I'm doing, I'm good. I think everybody does that. But I think if you maybe with that girl in particular, the girl is like, oh, you know, I don't do anything but post what I post on Instagram. I mean, maybe if you had a private one on one deep conversation with them, maybe they would say, yeah, I'm not doing good.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
You never really know how someone's really doing until they get really vulnerable and honest with you. But I appreciate your honesty. I think if we stay logically consistent with, well, I wouldn't want my daughter to do this.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
if you do continue to do it but you feel that way about your daughter technically you're non-verbally endorsing the behavior right and so even though you feel this way and you're like well you know i wouldn't want you to do this and things like that and she still does it but what what you do is like unintentionally setting an example for things to do so like there were things that my parents said growing up that i just like never wanted to do but then i've seen it naturally come out of me
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And I'm like, why did it come? Well, it's like why I didn't want to do those things, but it's just because I've watched it happen so much that it just naturally happened in my behavior and my character. And now I'm like, I acknowledge that came out of me. I'm going to try to fix this, things like that.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Now I know that's totally different than career, but I just feel like if we stayed consistent, wouldn't that make you want to not do it?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And again, that's this conversation. We're having a raw conversation about something that not a lot of people would be willing to talk about on the internet right now in a public setting.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
But I feel like having No Jumper where it's a space of nothing's off the table to talk about versus the other podcasts you do where it's strictly porn and then strictly sex and then you do it afterwards for entertainment on OnlyFans or wherever you guys post it. I feel like that is taking it to another level of extreme where it's like, okay,
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
I think that is very important to me of like, okay, if this is how you feel about your daughter, right, then I think it's a universal thing that every parent's like, well, I want my kid to be better than me. But how can we expect our kids to be better than us if we don't try to set an example to be better from. And I don't mean that as excusing what we do.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
I just mean like when my dad would tell me, well, I just want you to be better than me in this, this, and this area. Well, it's definitely encouraging me to watch my dad try to be better in those areas for me to be better in that area myself. You know what I mean? Or be successful in this.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Um, you know, I, you know, there's, there's money and this isn't that all that, but again, this goes deeper than just the porn thing. And this is why I hate that people honed on you. And that's why I was hesitant to talk to you about it, but I'm glad we got to talk about it. It's like, what's my purpose outside of money? Like who is Adam outside of money?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
No jumper, porn, only fans, your awesome wife, your awesome kid. Who's Adam outside of that? What's my purpose? Am I okay without any of this? I think that is what's deeper to me. And when I go, okay, who's Bryce outside of a podcast? Who's Bryce outside of social media? Who's Bryce outside of his friends, his girlfriend, his family? Who's Bryce outside of that? And if Bryce's identity is...
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
oh man, if I had nothing but Jesus, right? And this is coming from a Christian perspective. If I had nothing but Jesus, would I be okay without ever having sex because I'd never be married if I only had Jesus? Would I be okay with not having friends because Jesus would be my only friend? Would I be okay without a podcast because the only person I'd be talking to is Jesus?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And I know that could be taken to extreme, but if I can be secure in who I am outside of everything that I steward, then it strengthens me to steward things in a different way. And I think the only way we can progress in society and, you know, fix identity and come to a conclusion is if we have these conversations. Like, I love you and I think you're awesome.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And that's why I invited you to Chili's because I was like, yeah, I just want to kick it. Like, outside of, like, whether we disagree on religion and disagree on morals, like, We can still be friends, and we can still hang out. We don't have to hate each other and things like that, whether we disagree.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And, you know, I may have more conversations with you, like, hey, I'd challenge you here, here, here. But, like, at the end of the day, like, who is Adam outside of everything he's got? And if that identity is in the things that you have, then you'll never be fulfilled unless you do those things. Whereas if my identity is in...
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
who Christ says I am and I'm valuable because he made me in his image and God loves me for who I am and I love God, then it doesn't matter what happens to the podcast, my friends, my relationship, my family. It's like I'm secure. I've got the foundation.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And I think that's what I kind of want to end on is there's this story in the Bible where Jesus says, you build your house on the rock versus the sand. He says, if you build your house on the sand, the waves are going to come up the storms and it's going to wash away your foundation. Your house is going to fall apart.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
But if you build your house on the rock, the storms will come, the wind will come, the waves will come, but your house will stand firm on the rock. And so it's what is the foundation of my life and my purpose? And when I believe my foundation is Christ and not the things that I do, then I'm able to stand stable when times get hard. Because the reality is times are going to get hard.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
You know, there's going to be seasons where you make a lot of money and there's going to be seasons where money's not as much that month. There's going to be seasons where family's doing great. There's going to be seasons when family's not doing great. There's going to be seasons when no jumper's successful. There's going to be seasons when no jumper's not as successful in the moment.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
It's like, who am I outside of the numbers, the money, the fame, the people? And that's why I had such a heart for you when you were like... Yeah, it's kind of hard feeling transactional because I'm like, dang, when I know that I don't have to do anything to get God to love me, he just loves me. That makes me feel secure in him.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
And I think that's like my ultimate challenge to you outside of the porn talk, outside of the sex talk, outside of the religion talk is like, who is Adam outside of everything?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Yeah. Yeah. Thanks for saying that. Um, yeah, I'm just stoked because I think like, this is, I just think it's so wild how like out of everything, people challenge you the most on Christianity. And I don't think that's a coincidence. I don't think that's a coincidence at all. I think it's powerful and awesome. And I hope you enjoyed this conversation. I enjoyed it. You're so fun to talk to.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Yeah, this was fun. Could I pray for you before we end? Let's run it. Is that cool? Let's do it. Yeah, Jesus, thank you so much for this day, God. Thank you for Adam. Thanks for allowing us to have another conversation, even though our last one, we lost the footage. It was still great. God, I just pray for Adam. I pray that you continue to send people his way to show him.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
your heart god show him that you love him and that you see him god i just ask that if you encounter adam and dreams and visions could you reveal yourself to him in many different ways that that allows him to start drawing near to you going okay maybe this thing could be real and ultimately god would you continue to show him your love thank you jesus for adam thank you for this conversation we love you and i bless adam in jesus name amen
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Appreciate it, man. Guys, thank you so much for watching and tuning into these episodes. Guys, if you love watching and listening to these episodes, aside from following us along on Instagram, TikTok, Spotify, YouTube, I want to ask you guys, would you guys consider partnering with our ministry financially?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Your guys' radical generosity is actually what continues to fuel and produce these podcast episodes and our evangelism videos. So if you guys feel a burden to support this ministry, reach lost souls with the gospel through digital and in-person ministry, Go to jesusinthestreet.org. Pray and ask God, how should I partner with Bryce and their ministry and Jesus in the Street ministry?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Should I partner with them in prayer? Should I partner with them in finances? Should I partner with them in support? Whatever it may be, pray and ask God, how should I support Jesus in the Street ministry? Love you guys. See you guys next week for the next episode.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Debating Adam 22 About Jesus (EP 86)
Yeah, yeah, yeah. So you mentioned earlier, you were talking about morality, how you felt like that you could live a good moral life outside of Christianity when you were talking to your buddy, and that's how it unfolded. So where do you think people get their standard of morality from?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
What's going on, guys? Welcome back to another episode of the Bryce Carver Podcast. I'm Bryce, and today we're gonna be talking about loving your neighbor. This is a topic that is so heavy on my heart because I feel like in today's society, I find myself constantly asking this question. Where's my neighbor? Where's our neighbor? What does the Bible say about loving your neighbor?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
You can love your neighbor as yourself, the same way a goldsmith purifies gold. The goldsmith knows that the gold is finished purifying when he looks over the pot and sees his reflection in the gold.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
In the same way, you can love your neighbor as yourself when you realize that when Christ looks down on you, he sees his reflection in you, and that motivates you to love people with the same unconditional, no-strings-attached love that Christ shows you. God, I thank you so much for this day, God. God, I just have one request.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
Would you give us the strength to love our neighbors as ourself, whether our neighbors be people that have done us right or done us wrong or people that we've done wrong. God, give us the strength through your spirit to love our neighbor as ourself. In Jesus' name, amen. Guys, thank you so much for watching and tuning into these episodes.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
Guys, if you love watching and listening to these episodes, aside from following us along on Instagram, TikTok, Spotify, YouTube, I want to ask you guys, would you guys consider partnering with our ministry financially? Your guys' radical generosity is actually what continues to fuel and produce these podcast episodes and our evangelism videos.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
So when you interact with other people, you should interact with them with the same love, graciousness, kindness, and joy the way that I interact with you, despite your junk, despite your flaws. Okay, because this is very important. Because in today's society, as we see in Matthew chapter six, he says, have you heard what the earth says? An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
So if you guys feel a burden to support this ministry, reach lost souls with the gospel through digital and in-person ministry, Pray and ask God, how should I partner with Bryce and their ministry and Jesus in the Street ministry? Should I partner with them in prayer? Should I partner with them in finances? Should I partner with them in support?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
Whatever it may be, pray and ask God, how should I support Jesus in the Street ministry? Love you guys. See you guys next week for the next episode.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
Anything society exalts, Jesus Christ is in total opposition to. And anything that Jesus Christ exalts, society is in total opposition to. So where society says, if someone hits you, you turn around and hit them harder than they hit you. Jesus says, if someone hits you on the cheek, give them the other one. He says, if someone takes your cloak, give them the other one.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
Because we don't return evil for evil. And so Jesus says, loving your neighbor as yourself doesn't look like returning evil for evil. Because that's what love does. Love doesn't return evil for evil. Love doesn't clear the record by getting back. Love isn't a get back. Love is grace talking. Love is sacrifice talking. Love is a choice.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
That's why I can't get behind the fact that people say love is sex. Love is drugs. Love is the feeling I get when the booze hits my system. Love is this. Absolutely not. Love is a choice. And when people choose to retaliate against you, you have the choice whether to love them and forgive them. Forgiveness and love cancels the debt of what the person has done to you.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
How can we actively love our neighbor? We're going to jump right into it. The first scripture I want to talk about here is Matthew 22. And in Matthew 22, there's this thing that happens where the Pharisees and the Sadducees, they approach Jesus and they're about to pin him down. They ask Jesus this question that is going to trip him up and give them a reason to call him out for blasphemy.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
So when someone has given you evil and you love them in that moment and forgive them despite retaliating against them, you actually cancel the debt of the very thing that they've done to you.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
And so when Jesus says, love your neighbor as yourself, he's saying, look, the same grace, the same love, the same joy that I have shown you, show to other people because they have the same value that I've put on your life. What is the value that Christ puts on every human being's life? His own. It's not that Christ died for Bryce and not Tom.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
So because Christ only died for Bryce and not Tom, Bryce is more valuable than Tom. False. Christ died for all people. So the price that he puts on every human being's life is his own. And not only that, but if we read the parable of the lost coin, we actually find out that we are of extreme value to him because we're also made in the image of God. We have his imprint on us.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
And in a world where millions and billions of people have and do exist, where we're nothing but a piece of grain of salt in this massive, expansive universe, Christ wants to be extremely intentional and friendly with me and you. Loving our neighbor as ourself gives us an opportunity to show the love of Christ to people that has been shown to us.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
Because with the dirtiest, most broken version of ourself, when we come to the lowest of lows, that's where oftentimes people meet Christ. And then as Christ begins to transform us, take us into new places and new depths and new heights that couldn't have been achievable without Christ.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
And we go to this place and then we begin to meet people that are suffering and hurting and in pain because we live in this world. we get to then love our neighbor as ourself by showing people the grace and love that we wish other people had shown us in the midst of our suffering.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
But Christ showed us, but because Christ showed us and it's unconditional and it's unmatched and uncomparable to any other love, we take that love that has been freely given to us and loving our neighbor as ourself takes that free gift and gives it to other people. Does that make sense? And that's why I wanna talk about James, the book of James, when it talks about the sin of partiality.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
What is the sin of partiality? Favoritism. And Jesus is in total opposition of favoritism. Do you know how easy it is to love people and treat people right when they've scratched your back? How much harder is it? to love and treat people when they've done you wrong or love and treat people when they've just flat out never done anything for you. That's love.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
We live in a society today that defines love as conditions. Well, I'll choose to love you when you choose to love me. False. Jesus Christ shows us a love that has never been exemplified for, that has never been lived out before, and that's this unconditional love.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
I mean, Christ lays his life down on the cross knowing that the gift he is offering is going to be denied by some, and yet he still does it. The offer's on the table for everyone. That is unconditional, without strings attached.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
And they're going to be able to arrest him and crucify him. They ask him, which of all the laws is the greatest? Jesus, which of the commandments is the best commandment? Because they knew if they could get him to say one commandment was better than the other, that they could mark him for blasphemy and crucify him and arrest him. And this is what Jesus says.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
The love Christ shows us and the love that we are called to show other people is a love that has zero strings attached, is a love that if we give it, we must come to terms with the fact that we may never get that love back. That's the love that Christ is asking us to show other people when he says, love your neighbor as yourself.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
The very love that we've been shown is a love with no strings attached. And the very love that we begin to show other people is one with no strings attached, which is very hard to come around on. So James says, steer away from partiality. Don't just show favoritism. And that's why I love the passage in Matthew chapter 25, where there's the comparison of the sheep and the goats.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
And then Jesus is something very important here. He says, for I was hungry and you gave me food. For I was thirsty and you gave me a drink. For I was naked and you clothed me. What you do to the least of these, you do unto me. That passage in Matthew 25 says, put a massive fear of the Lord in my life because it made me go, dang.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
We are naturally taught growing up not to interact with the homeless man. We are naturally taught growing up not to interact with people that smell nasty, don't have shoes on their feet, all of these things.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
Yet when we walk by them today, after reading that passage, I'm looking at these men and women who may be homeless or less fortunate, or maybe it's friends at school or coworkers that are going through a hard time or retaliating in life and making bad decisions. And I look at those people and I go, man, that's someone's son, daughter. And to be quite frank, they're God's children.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
They're made in his image. And if they would just know the love that was out there for them, maybe it would, maybe it would change their heart. Cause like oftentimes these outward expressions of suffering and, and outward expressions of retaliation come from a place of I'm on a quest for love right now and nothing's working. So what is love?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
Well, 1 John tells us, anyone that does not love does not know God because God is love. God is the ultimate definition of love. His essence, his character, it was displayed on the cross. It was displayed in his servanthood. That's why Jesus says, the healthy don't need a doctor. I came to help the sick because the sick need a doctor.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
He says, you shall love the Lord your God with your whole heart, soul, mind, and strength. And then you shall love your neighbor as yourself. And in this powerful interaction with the Pharisees and the Sadducees, Jesus does something very important here.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
This love that is shown is a love that has never been expressed before in the physical realm until Jesus Christ came on earth. And then he actually showed us that the very love that is described in God's character is possible for human beings to reciprocate to other human beings through the strength of his spirit.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
And Paul actually writes something very profound here, which I think really sums up the definition of what it means to love your neighbor more. He says, love is patient and kind. Love does not envy or boast. It is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way. It is not irritable or resentful. It does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love endures.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
never ends why is it now in today's society when the world is going to crap or things are going down that we always go to the worst extreme in our brain like like something is going on and something is happening and going on in the world or in society and we decide to take things to the ultimate extreme of Oh my goodness, something's happening at school.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
So this person is gossiping about me and hates me and this, this and that. So we take it. So we hold grudges against these people and we do all of these things when in reality, like it says, love hopes all things, despite what our brain can convince us of a situation. Love believes the best in people. Love believes the best in a situation. Love is able to see the light in the midst of a dark time.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
Love does this extraordinary thing, and it cancels the debt that has been placed on an earth or in a situation or things. That's the forgiveness of the cross. That's the love of the cross. Instead of it saying, no, Bryce, no, my son, no, my daughter, you've got to work your way to me. Christ's love says, I'm going to cancel the debt.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
Instead of saying one commandment is greater than the other, he sums up all 613 laws and 10 commandments under one truth by saying, love the Lord your God with your whole heart, soul, mind, and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
And I love the NLT translation because it says, love keeps no record of wrong. We're in society today. We hold grudges based on the junk that people have done. And people's junk is like a naughty list that we stack up against them. But then when we reflect on our own life, we're more tolerant of our own junk than other people. So when other people are doing us wrong, we're harsh on them.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
But then when we do someone else wrong and they're harsh back to us, we wish that we had this grace that we didn't dish out ourselves. And Paul says, no, actually love keeps no record of wrong. Love looks past the junk. Love looks past the grudges. Love looks past the times that are gonna continue to happen when people do you wrong.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
It looks past all that, looks at the heart, looks at the human and sees something more than just their actions. It sees that they are made in the image of God and they're valuable. And man, I just want them to know That my love and God's love has no strings attached. And how can people in today's society know the love of God if we're not reciprocating this love through the strength?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
Because this is possible. It is possible to reciprocate the love of Christ. With the strength of God's spirit in our body, we can actually reciprocate this love that has zero strings attached to bring souls to Christ, to know this love. I mean, it's like, man, how can human beings know this love of Christ that seems so strong?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
so unrealistic, so unfathomable, and as Judah Smith said, so scandalous. How can this love be so true and vulnerable? And we can actually display this love through the strength of His Spirit so that people can know this reality. Loving your neighbor as yourself is deeper than you.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
Loving your neighbor as yourself is actually reciprocating and displaying this unconditionable, unfathomable love in a small way, in a unique way that can actually allow a finite human brain to comprehend that there is a supernatural God that loves them, that sees them, and that has made them and has a purpose for their life. The last thing I want to say about loving our neighbor as ourself is
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
Saying, if you love the Lord your God with your whole heart, soul, mind, and strength, then all of the commandments and laws will be naturally obeyed because you love me. And then we're gonna be emphasizing the second half of this. You shall love your neighbor as yourself. When Jesus says you shall love your neighbor as yourself, is he saying to put yourself before other people?
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
our neighbor isn't always gonna be someone that has done us right. Our neighbor is gonna be people that have done us wrong. Our neighbors are also gonna be people that we've hurt. And that's when I reflect on the story of King David and Saul. You know, there's this time where Saul gets jealous and he starts chasing King David, trying to kill King David.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
and there becomes a point where saul takes a rest in a cave and david finds saul sleeping in a cave and david is confronted with this moment where this entire time period this man has chased him trying to kill him out of jealousy and now david is looking over standing over someone who has been attempting to take his life and he's looking over this man sleeping in a cave and he has an ultimate decision to make
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
Am I going to stop this now by ending his life because he's tried to take mine? Or once he wakes up, he's going to continue to pursue David. And David is looking down on Saul. And he does end this battle of jealousy, but not in the way that we naturally think. You see, Saul ends up waking up the next morning and he begins the hunt again and then David sneaks up behind him and he goes, Saul!
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
And Saul turns around and looks at him and in Saul's brain he's looking at the very man he's been hunting and trying to kill and Saul's looking at him and he's confronted with this moment of finally I'm about to kill this guy and all the jealousy and rage is built up, this eye for an eye. David didn't even do anything.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
It's just, you know, David was anointed by God and was called by God and Saul saw something and coveted something that he didn't have and so he's looking at him and And when Saul is filled with this rage and jealousy and wants to act on it, David holds up a piece of Saul's cloth that he cut off. And he said, Saul, look, this is your cloak. I could have killed you.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
And David actually ends this battle of jealousy and this battle of hatred with love, an unconditional love that doesn't say, well, you tried to kill me, so I'm going to kill you. It's actually, no, look, I could have killed you, but good kings don't throw spears. And when I read that story, man, it encourages me so much.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
Just like King David, where he had the opportunity to repay evil in a greater manner, but instead he said, no, look, I'm going to show a love that has zero strings attached. I'm going to show a love that doesn't make sense to the brain. It offends the brain, but it reaches the heart. And if you read the rest of the story, I mean, Saul falls to his knees and begins to cry.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
Is he saying view yourself selfishly? Absolutely not. When Jesus says you shall love your neighbor as yourself, he's saying when you see yourself the way that I see you, then you'll realize I look at everyone else the same way I see you.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
Because Saul, in a sense, is expecting to have returned what he was dishing out. It's like this karma mentality that we convince ourselves. Like he was dishing out jealousy, hatred, and murder, and he was expecting to have that returned. But instead, King David doesn't repay him with evil, but he says, look, your life I could have taken.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
But instead of taking your life, let me give you life with this love that you didn't show me that is accessible on the table. So in reality, this loving your neighbor thing all has to ultimately do with your perception of who God is. And this is something that I'm learning today. Again, I said this a couple episodes ago, but the heart of this stuff is stuff that I'm learning, man.
The Bryce Crawford Podcast
Does Jesus Really Love You? (EP 85)
God is so cool because when I understand God, the unconditional, no strings attached love that he has for me, when I understand this, it motivates me and strengthens me to love other people. So how can you love your neighbor as yourself? Well, my friend, when you see yourself rightly in the eyes of Christ, how can you love your neighbor as yourself?