SPEAKER_01 0:01

Welcome to the Daily Blade. The word of God is described as the sword of the spirit, the primary spiritual weapon in the Christian's armor against the forces of evil. Your hosts are Joby Martin and Kyle Thompson, and they stand ready to equip men for the fight. Let's sharpen up.

Honoring Uncle Kevin With Psalms

A Life Of Serving Others

Jesus Redefines Greatness Through Service

Give Your Life To Christ

Closing Thanks And Share Request

SPEAKER_00 0:20

Alright, let's close out the week. So I dedicated the episodes of the Daily Blade this week to the memory of my Uncle Kevin. As I've said, he passed away here recently, but I had the honor of being at his bedside just hours before he passed, and I read him Psalm 23 and Psalm 116. Psalm 23 is an appropriate psalm for those about to cross over, and Psalm 116 is a very comforting psalm for those mourning the death of a Christ follower. So after I read the two Psalms to him, I spent some time sharing with him what he means to me and what he taught me growing up. And I can't know for sure whether or not he could hear me or whether he was picking up on everything, but I just knew I had to tell him one last time to his face. And today I want to share parts of what I told my uncle Kevin. So the first thing that I told him is that he was the first person that taught me what it means to be a servant. But he didn't do it with his words, he did it with his actions. Because as a kid, I was I was incredibly competitive and, you know, I was driven by food. So even at family gatherings, I would always try to position myself at the very beginning of the line so I can have the first batch of mashed potatoes and the first batch of chicken and whatever the thing was. Like I wanted to be there, right? And I don't know exactly when it happened, but maybe in my 20s or something like that, I started just noticing Uncle Kevin. So here we are in this full house with multi-generations of families and kids and all kinds of things. And he always ate last. So he made sure everyone had a seat. He made sure everyone had food. He and he made sure everyone had their iced tea or their water. He made sure everyone was taken care of. And even in the midst of all that going on, he would be around the house like fixing things or adjusting things. And he was a medical doctor. And so, you know, it wasn't uncommon for him to be dealing with a family member and their ailment at that time or whatever, but he was just constantly serving. And he drove this like old busted up gray Jeep for all these years. That's the only thing I ever saw him drive, other than this big van. But, you know, his wife and his kids, they all had nicer cars than him, but he just had this Jeep. And it's just something that I just watched and I got to see over all these years. He was constantly doing for others. And at his funeral, I heard people talking about the amount of medical care he gave away to people for free just to help them. And so before I even truly understood why Kevin was a servant, he showed me what being a servant is all about. So Mark 10, starting in verse 42, and Jesus called them to him and said to them, You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many. And there it is. That is the why behind the actions of my Uncle Kevin. You see, because my uncle Kevin was a man of faith, literally. But a lot of people are described that way. But what's important is which faith and to whom is that, you know, cosmically attached to. And for my Uncle Kevin, he was a disciple of Jesus Christ. You know, at some point in his life he realized that he had no hope apart from Christ, and he put his faith in the finished work of Jesus for the propitiation or payment of his full sin debt. And that realization andor decision permeated all areas of his life. I mean, it caused him to seek to serve before being served. And again, you know, just think about as a doctor and what you can charge for your services, and he was just reveling in the opportunity to help people no matter what. I mean, family members were telling me that he would go to prayer to God if he had kind of a flummoxing or confusing case, and he would ask God to help him figure out what was wrong with his patient. And he said, and God always led me in the right path. And if my Uncle Kevin were here today, I know that he would tell you to do this. But since he's not, I'll tell him for you. So this is the message give your life to Christ. If you have never done so, today is the day. You simply cannot live up to the standard of perfection required to enter into the kingdom of heaven after you die. It's impossible. Your only hope is to accept God's free offer of grace through faith. Let's look at the first part of Ephesians two here, verse one. And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you once walked, followed the course of this world, followed the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work, and the sons of disobedience, among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the flesh and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ. By grace you have been saved, and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace and kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing. It is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. So if you believe that today, then give your life to Christ. I compel you to do so. And Uncle Kevin, if somehow you're hearing this, just know I love you, and thank you for your example to me, and just thank you for everything you've done for all the people that I love. For all of you, thank you for your attention this week. Stay sharp.

SPEAKER_01 5:58

Thank you for listening to today's episode. Before you go, if you want to help equip other men for the fight, share this podcast around and leave us a five star rating and review. Stay sharp.