The 5 Minute Discipleship Podcast

In Matthew 6:33, Jesus says we are to seek God, but he goes on to say that we are to seek him “first.” This is the matter of priority. We all seek something. We might seek opportunity, position, resources, and open doors. We could seek pleasure, enjoyment, comfort, success, and fulfillment. We might seek friendship, family, and connection. We all seek something, but Jesus said that for those who w...

Fear of the Lord is deep respect, awe, and reverence for God.  We give God the glory, honor, reverence, gratitude, and praise he deserves.  God holds this preeminent position in our hearts and lives.  We regard his desires over and above our own. Main Points: 1. We should fear or respect the Lord as one who has authority over us. It is a recognition that we are accountable to Him.  He is so great,...

An interruption can be God’s tool to help us become more patient, more loving, and more understanding. It can be God’s way of guiding our steps and pointing us in the right direction. Divine interruptions can be God’s hand of protection in our lives when we are starting to move in the wrong direction. God’s interruptions are always for a reason. Main Points: 1. As you read the Gospels, you can’t h...

As Christians, our convictions are shaped by biblical principles. Since we believe the Bible is God’s Word and that its truth lasts forever, our beliefs and convictions cannot change regardless of the changes in our society. Main Points: 1. What are your core convictions? Have you ever made a list? A conviction is a firmly held belief. It is part of who you are as a person. It shapes your choices...

Let this truth fill your soul today. You are loved by God. No matter who you are, where you have been, or what you have done, God loves you. And his love is as high as the heavens. Main Points: 1. Have you ever questioned the love of God? Have you ever thought, “How could God love someone like me?” May you wonder if there was a limit to God’s love. 2. When we understand the depth of his love for u...

Any attempts at finding joy, satisfaction, and fulfillment apart from God always leave us empty. Yes, there may be temporary moments of happiness and perceived satisfaction, but it is never lasting. Millions of people can testify that they never knew real joy until they knew Jesus as Savior and Lord. Main Points: 1. As real as our physical hunger is, we have another type of hunger that is just as...

The church of Jesus Christ is not a building and it’s not an event. Sometimes we’ll say we are “going to church” or we “went to church.” But it’s not a building, it’s not an event, and it’s not a worship service. The church is a community of people. Together, you and I are the church. Main Points: 1. The word “church” is a translation of the Greek word ekklesia , which is defined as “an assembly”...

If you fully understand the gospel and what Jesus has done for us, you comprehend that was not just executed 2,000 years ago by the Romans. You recognize that He willingly laid down his life as a sacrifice for our sins. Jesus died for us. He took our place. With his death on the cross, He paid the penalty for our sins, so we would not have to. Main Points: 1. Since God is just, he does not sweep o...

When we come to God in prayer, our confidence is not found in ourselves, our ability to pray good prayers or even the amount of our faith. Our confidence rests solely in God. We are confident in His love, His character, and his power. We are confident in His promises and that He always fulfills his Word. Main Points: 1. It’s possible to bring a lack of confidence into our prayer lives. We pray wit...

Character matters. Your integrity matters. Living by biblical values matters. Our integrity will be tested. It will be tried. But if you remain resilient and determined, you can honor God, and yourself by refusing to compromise your values. Main Points: 1. Integrity is the personal choice to hold yourself consistent with your beliefs and moral principles. It is who you are when no one else is look...

Trust today that your steps are being established by the Lord. When it’s time to take the next step, God will it clear. As you wait, believe that even though the waiting may not make sense, God’s will is being performed in your life. His will, His plan, and His timing is perfect. Main Points: 1. God is never early, never late, but he’s always on time. Our timing isn't God's timing. For u...

I’ve found that often times worry has to do with the fear of what could possibly happen. They haven’t happened. We don’t know if they will happen, but we fear it could happen. This internal stress causes anxiety, fear, and apprehension. Not only can it make us emotionally and mentally unwell, but it can also cause physical illness too.  Is there a cure? Main Points: 1. The dictionary defines worry...

If you read the Bible from cover to cover, you will come away with the knowledge that God is great. There is no limit to His power. There is no end to His creativity. He is a miracle-working God. Main Points: 1. As much as we would like to, we cannot fully understand the greatness of God. We are finite, but He is infinite.  2. Over the centuries, Bible scholars have done their best to describe and...

Where do we find absolute truth? We find truth in the Bible.  What God says is true, and it is true absolutely.  There is no wavering in God’s truth.  Truth does not change according to polling data or by decisions handed down by Congress or the Supreme Court.  Why?  It is God’s truth.  Truth is what God says. Main Points: 1. We don’t usually think of a belt as a piece of armor, but the belt was i...

We live in a very loud culture. The sound of our day is filled with the voices of media, news, politics, music, movies, sports, social media, friends, teachers, spouses, and much more. We hear it all, but have we heard the voice of God? God doesn’t have a speaking problem. We have a listening problem. He is speaking and it’s critical to hear what He is saying. Main Points: 1. I believe God is a sp...

Your spiritual gifts determine how God wants to use your life.  Are you willing to allow God to use your life for His glory and to build the kingdom of God?  Are you willing to say “yes” to God? Main Points: 1. The Bible has a lot to say about spiritual gifts.  There are at least 20 of them listed in the Bible.  We don’t have time to define them all today, but you can read about them in these pass...

Every believer needs a secret place. Where is your quiet place? Where can you regularly get alone with God in prayer? I believe the impact of our public testimony and ministry is a direct result of the time spent with God in secret. Main Points: 1. If all we see is the public ministry of Jesus, we miss something very important. It’s not talked about much, but Jesus had a private, personal relation...

Out of all the prayers we pray, there is one prayer that is more difficult than all the others. It is the prayer of surrender. The prayer of submission to God is harder than all other prayers. It requires great trust in God. It demands a letting go of our control. It’s releasing the situation into God’s hands and trusting Him to meet the need as He sees best. Main Points: 1. The reason this prayer...

Here’s the good news. Jesus is our righteousness. By placing our faith in Jesus, and believing he is the perfect, sinless son of God who died and rose again as payment for our sins, we receive His righteousness. Main Points: 1. No matter how many good things we do, no matter how consistent our moral behavior, we all come up short of God’s righteous standard. It’s important to see that our good wor...

Where is our confidence? It is not in ourselves, and it is not in our prayers. Our confidence is in God. This is where we place our faith. Our faith is not in ourselves, in our prayers, or even in our faith. Our faith and confidence is in God.  Main Points: 1. I want to encourage you today to pray with boldness. Not a brash boldness that orders God around. After all, we must remember that prayer i...

Apart from a heart of gratitude, we begin to be self-focused, self-centered, and self-pleasing. But when you and I, as Christ-followers, decide to live with a daily heart of thankfulness, it changes us. A peaceful heart is the result. Main Points: 1. Gratitude causes us to focus our hearts on God as the source of every blessing. Being thankful is a part of a lifestyle of worship. Gratitude keeps u...

Maybe you have wondered why some do not respond to the gospel of Jesus Christ. I have often thought, “If they could only see how wonderful Jesus is. If they could only see how amazing it is to know the Lord and to be forgiven of our sins.” But that’s just it; they cannot see. They are spiritually blind. Main Points: 1. The God who spoke at creation and brought light into the darkness is the same G...

Our efforts at personal goodness, no matter how consistent they may be, will never save us. In fact, good behavior is incapable of bringing us into a right relationship with God. We must be born again. Main Points: 1. Everyone of us, no matter how kind, decent, and respectful we may be, are still sinners. We have sinned. We have violated God’s laws.  2. A newborn baby will need a second birth. It...

We must see that, with God’s help, we have the power to flee and to run away from temptation. If we are hesitant, if we wait and entertain the temptation, we lose power against it. God’s Word teaches us to flee. Main Points: 1. Temptation is something every one of us will face. No one is immune. To be tempted is not sin – it’s what you do with the temptation that’s important.  Even Jesus was tempt...

Think about this truth. God didn’t have to love us. He didn’t have to offer us grace and mercy. Nothing forced God to show us forgiveness. Nothing compelled Him to give us the precious gift of eternal life, but God chose to. He chose to love us. He chose to call us His own. He chose to make us children of God.  Main Points: 1. If you’ve ever been tempted to doubt the love of God, recognize this wo...