Our aim is to encourage, equip, and inspire you to be deeply rooted in Jesus Christ. In each episode, we will discuss relevant topics that help us apply the Gospel to our everyday lives.
Rooted in Christ: What is Evangelism? S1E5
When people hear the word evangelism, some think of street corner preaching or door to door witnessing. Others think it's enough to "preach the Gospel and, if necessary, use words." But Scripture is clear that we all, as believers, are the Sowers. The word of God is the seed, and all we are to do is throw it out there as the opportunities come along recognizing that only 3 out of 4 of the soils will bear fruit. It's our job to share but it's not our job to save.
In our final episode for our "Rooted in Christ" series, we answer the questions:
What is evangelism?
What does it mean?
What role does evangelism have in the life of a Christian?
Should evangelism be burdensome?
Our special guest for this episode is Dr. Glenn Jago. He is the pastor at Church of the Open Door in Fort Washington, Pennsylvania. Glenn is not only Ethan's Dad but is Deeply Rooted's Theology 101 writer and Biblical content reviewer.
NOTEWORTHY QUOTES
“Evangelism comes from the Greek word that means good news: εὐαγγέλιον (transliterated as euangelion. Euon- being good. -gelion being proclaiming the news. The background of it is what a winning army would do when they are coming into a city and the king has won a decisive victory, and they come in proclaiming the good news that they are victors against the enemy that was threatening their life. The good news that we have is the enemy of sin and death has been conquered by Jesus Christ.”
“We are the heralds of good news.”
“I believe the best way to entertain evangelism is by asking them questions not going right to ‘Where will you spend eternity?’ . . . ask them questions about themselves but be intent on listening . . . and then began to ask more pertinent questions relating to their relationship with Christ.”
“What do you do with your guilt?” – R.C. Sproul
“I talked about a personal God who loved us enough, who willingly took on flesh, and walked among us, living a perfect life, fulfilling the law completely, and carrying that all the way to volunteering His own life to die in our place. . . . Jesus Christ took your hell for you, took your sin for you, and gives you something totally different in return and that’s a righteous standing before God and your sins are forgiven.”
“Be sensitive to these [evangelism] opportunities.”
“It’s not our job to get a conversion on the spot.”
“We need to approach it [evangelism] with humility recognizing that it is the Holy Spirit doing the work. We’re just the mouthpiece, the vessel, the ones that are willing to be obedient. And that really takes the pressure off of us expecting a conversion.”
“As a global Church, we know that we are not working on this alone.”
“We all, as believers, are the Sower. The word of God is the seed, and all we are to do is throw it out there as the opportunities come along and recognize that there are three soils that will produce no fruit. The fourth soil will produce fruit. That fruit that is produced is not based on your ability to sow the seed.”
“It’s a responsibility of Christians…it’s a duty, it’s a command, it’s not really optional. But what is so important to understand is that we are not the ones that are able to bend man’s will to Christ . . .”
“We are just along for the ride and the opportunity we get is a gift from God to be able to share Christ.”
“Everyone has a different sphere of influence that they can affect.”
“This is a team effort. It’s not just solely the jobs of the pastors. Its’ not solely the women with platforms or authors or speakers—it’s everybody!”
Scripture References
Matthew 28:19-20
1 Peter 3:15
Matthew 13
John 3:8
1 Corinthians 3:6-8
John 16:7
Numbers 22
CONNECT WITH US
Subscribe to the Deeply Rooted Podcast: on iOS, go to our iTunes page and click subscribe, follow us on Spotify, or use our RSS!
If you loved the episode, please let us know by leaving us a written iTunes review to help spread the word about Deeply Rooted! We would love to invite more people to our conversations.
ASK ETHAN AND DIANNE
We plan on including a bonus episode with some comments and questions from our listeners! Please send us a voice message (no longer than 30 seconds) with any questions or comments on any topic that you want us to discuss! Send your questions via: https://anchor.fm/deeplyrootedmag/message
Rooted in Christ: What is a Disciple? S1E4
This week we discuss what it means to be a disciple and what discipleship looks like in the life of the believer. We break this concept down into five stages/phases. These phases are not a checklist, but merely a way in which you can identify the progression in your spiritual walk and in those around you. Ethan and Dianne touch on the following topics that make up a disciple of Jesus:
Salvation
Spiritual Growth
Serving
Suffering
Bearing Much Fruit
NOTEWORTHY QUOTES
“I just want an instant fix. I want to be sanctified immediately. I don’t want to have to go through the slow process of growth and yet, what does God do when we’re in that process? He teaches us a lot, He calls us to depend on Him, and He helps us realize that our growth isn’t of our own doing. It’s coming from Him.”
“We should be striving for our actions, our thoughts, and our minds to be Christ-like.”
“The thing about service is it’s not something we are doing for accolade or to post about and show people, “Look here at what I am doing.” Because naturally—when we think about self—my natural tendency is I don’t want to serve people above myself. Myself comes first. Service is a natural overflow because of our love for Jesus and the recognition of what He’s done for us. That changes the way that we see other people. Our eyes are opened to needs and we begin to see the importance of loving one another. Service just becomes this act that we’re doing for Jesus.”
“As we’re serving one another we are serving Jesus.”
“If God is all-powerful and God controls everything, then God is allowing this [suffering] to happen.”
“We may not ever know why something has come to pass and it’s not our job to know. Our job is to have the mind of Christ. And as Paul says, we need to guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.”
“Everyone gets affected differently by different forms of suffering.”
“Fruit-bearing isn’t just for some Christians and not for others. No, fruit-bearing is the proof for every Christian. It’s our assurance. It’s what proves we are his disciples and the purpose of it is so we can love one another.”
“One aspect of being a disciple . . . is leadership. If we are truly of Christ and we are serving . . . we are demonstrating [what it means to be a disciple] to other people within the Church, regardless of where they are in their spiritual journey.”
“You may think to yourself, “I am not a leader, I am a good follower.” If you bear the brand of Christ, you are a leader.”
“Our fruit-bearing is not dependent upon our circumstances. It’s not dependent upon what’s happening in the world. Whether there’s a global pandemic or not. Whether things are going really well for you or right now you’re walking a really tough road. Bearing fruit is possible in all seasons. And that’s the beauty of a relationship with Jesus. We have access to joy, peace, and patience . . . and all we have to do is ask.”
“Sometimes the best thing as a younger woman is just to go up to an older woman and ask her [to disciple/mentor you].”
Scripture References
Luke 9:23
Colossians 1:9
1 Corinthians 9:37
John 13:12-17
Acts 4:32-35
1 Peter 4:12-13
Philippians 4:6-7
John 15
Galatians 5:22-23
Titus 2
CONNECT WITH US
Subscribe to the Deeply Rooted Podcast: on iOS, go to our iTunes page and click subscribe, follow us on Spotify, or use our RSS!
If you loved the episode, please let us know by leaving us a written iTunes review to help spread the word about Deeply Rooted! We would love to invite more people to our conversations.
ASK ETHAN AND DIANNE
We plan on including a bonus episode with some comments and questions from our listeners! Please send us a voice message (no longer than 30 seconds) with any questions or comments on any topic that you want us to discuss! Send your questions via: https://anchor.fm/deeplyrootedmag/message
Rooted in Christ: What is the Church? | S1E3
This is the third episode in our series titled, "Rooted in Christ." Ethan and Dianne answer the following questions:
What is the local church? What is it designed for?
What is the universal church?
Why is there a huge barrier for people to go to church?
What advice is there for the person hurt by the church?
NOTEWORTHY QUOTES
“What is the local church? . . . The corporate gathering of Believers together.”
“The [local] church is a place for the whole family.”
“We are united [in Christ] even though we are different portions [of the Body]. Church is not a building. The local church is a place where like-minded members of a Body meet together to bring glory to God.”
“The local church does not discriminate.”
“You that are members of the church have not found it perfect and I hope that you feel almost glad that you have not. If I had never joined a Church till I had found one that was perfect, I should never have joined one at all! And the moment I did join it, if I had found one, I should have spoiled it, for it would not have been a perfect Church after I had become a member of it. Still, imperfect as it is, it is the dearest place on earth to us.” – Charles Spurgeon
“There is dissension that happens within the church Body but we are working towards unity. People aren’t perfect . . . no matter where it is that you go, as long they’re sticking with sound doctrine and promoting Biblical principles then we should just expect to resolve things in a humble, loving manner and to be able to move forward.”
“We are called to good to everyone but especially to those who are of the household of faith. Because if we are all of one body in Christ, we need to show grace and leniency to them, especially when they screw up.”
“We may not have anything in common with the people we sit next to [at church] . . . but when we are there we have one thing in common and that’s Christ!”
On the Church universal: “It’s not even the global church that exists right now, it’s brothers and sisters in Christ from the past, present, and future. These principles that were written in Scripture—Scripture being timeless, inerrant, and applicable to every single generation for all time—it’s super cool that a church can be bonded together and held together by the same principles that the same early church was bonded to in Acts 1, 2, and the rest of the books of the Bible.”
“No matter where it is you go, no matter who you are, we are all throughout the world united in one factor and one factor only: it’s Christ. Whether male, female, Jew, or Gentile. No matter what race you are. There’s no distinction. We are all one.”
“If someone has hurt us, it is not just their job to apologize to us, but it’s our job to lovingly confront in a humble spirit . . . it hurts us [ourselves and the Church Body] when we hang onto bitter feelings.”
Scripture References
Hebrews 10:25
1 Corinthians 12:12-13
1 Corinthians 12:25
Galatians 6:10
Acts 1-8
Acts 1:15
Acts 5:33-39
Acts 8:5
Matthew 7:15
Resources*
Another Awesome Spurgeon Quote on the Church:
“. . .the Church is faulty, but that is no excuse for your not joining it, if you are the Lord’s. Nor need your own faults keep you back, for the Church is not an institution for perfect people, but a sanctuary for sinners saved by Grace, who, though they are saved, are still sinners and need all the help they can derive from the sympathy and guidance of their fellow Believers.” – Charles Spurgeon (from his sermon “The Best Donation (No. 2,334))The Book of Acts
CONNECT WITH US
Subscribe to the Deeply Rooted Podcast: on iOS, go to our iTunes page and click subscribe, follow us on Spotify, or use our RSS!
If you loved the episode, please let us know by leaving us an iTunes review to help spread the word about Deeply Rooted! We would love to invite more people to our conversations!
SUBSCRIBE to Deeply Rooted Magazine and discover beautiful, Scripture-saturated content.
JOIN The Deeply Rooted E-Newsletter club for monthly encouragement, special sales, and more!
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Rooted in Christ: What is Scripture? | S1E2
This is the second episode in our series titled, "Rooted in Christ." We live in a world where many believe that truth is subjective. One person’s truth may not be your truth. The Christian, however, acknowledges a higher standard for truth: God’s Word. In this episode, Ethan and Dianne Jago answer the following questions:
What is Scripture?
What is the Christian’s source of truth?
What role does Scripture have in a Believer’s life?
NOTEWORTHY QUOTES
“Most people … don’t believe there is an absolute truth.”
“If truth is subjective then what I think is right is probably going to think is different from what you think is right.”
“We have our standard, we know what our source of truth is. It’s the Bible. It’s Scripture. It’s the inspired, divine Word of God.”
“When Israel forgot God, they ended up neglecting Him and whole generations fell into sin. We really need it [God’s Word] to be our guiding force 24/7.”
“All truth necessary for salvation and spiritual life is taught explicitly or implicitly—where?—in the Bible. That is why anytime we want to talk about this, we are going to go back to Scripture to see what it says.”
“As we have an intimate knowledge of Scripture not for the sake of having knowledge in our heads but for knowing God and loving Him, that’s when He directs our steps and makes Himself very clear."
“To guard our hearts, to know God’s will, to do all these things, we have to be in God’s Word.”
“You may not feel like reading Scripture, you may not feel like you have a desire, but we can go to God in prayer asking and believing that God will reignite that desire in our hearts and that the Holy Spirit will illuminate the text and give us understanding.”
“We set ourselves up for failure when we think that successful quiet time or a successful time in the Word looks a certain way or is a certain amount of time. We create all these “laws”, in a sense, for our quiet time.”
“He just wants you to come before Him, to ‘be still’, and for you to trust that He will help you put into practice what it is that you’ve been longing for even if you haven’t been able to do it for weeks, months, years . . .”
“Scripture is God’s Word written down, revealed to man, and it is profitable for teaching, correction, and instruction. When we look at what Scripture does for the life of the Christian, it is the backbone, it is the driving force, it is what we as Christians should be consistently referring back to. It should be our whole basis for why we do anything that we do, decisions that we make, advice that we need.”
Scripture References
Psalm 119:105
Psalm 1:2
Deut. 6:8-9
John 17:17
John 1:1
1 Peter 3:15
John 7:16-17
Deuteronomy 6:4-7
Matthew 22:37-40
John 14:15
Hebrews 4:12
Proverbs 16:9
Psalm 119:9-11, 18
2 Timothy 3:16-17
Resources*
CONNECT WITH US
Subscribe to the Deeply Rooted Podcast: on iOS, go to our iTunes page and click subscribe, follow us on Spotify, or use our RSS!
If you loved the episode, please let us know by leaving us an iTunes review to help spread the word about Deeply Rooted! We would love to invite more people to our conversations!
SUBSCRIBE to Deeply Rooted Magazine and discover beautiful, Scripture-saturated content.
JOIN The Deeply Rooted E-Newsletter club for monthly encouragement, special sales, and more!
LIKE Deeply Rooted on Facebook.
FOLLOW on Instagram for the latest updates on the podcast, blog, and shop.
READ The Deeply Rooted Blog for encouragement every single week!
Rooted in Christ: What is the Gospel? | S1E1
This is the first episode in our series titled, "Rooted in Christ." We've been using the hashtag #bedeeplyrooted since the start of our magazine, and our message has always been to be deeply rooted in Jesus Christ (Col. 2:6-7). What encompasses that kind of lifestyle? In this episode, our aim is to answer the question: What is the Gospel? Because this message of "good news" is central to our living and being, it's important that we can clearly communicate exactly what it is. Our founders, Ethan and Dianne Jago answer the following questions:
What is the Gospel?
The word “gospel” simply means good news. But good news about Who? To whom? For what?
Where did the Gospel originally come from?
What problem arises when we ask “What does the Gospel mean to you?”
NOTEWORTHY QUOTES
“The Gospel is what our lives are founded upon.”
“In the Greek New Testament, the noun euangelion (“gospel”) appears just over seventy times and translates into ‘good news’.”
“If we don’t know what the Gospel is, how can we live it out?”
“The Gospel is not of human origin. It’s not something we made up on our own. It’s divine in its nature and it’s divine in its contents.”
“There are just so many opportunities to veer off track, for people’s interpretations to be off the wall or not according to the Scriptures.”
“What is the source where you derive your information from? The reason why we see Paul saying ‘in accordance with the Scriptures’ is because that is constantly what He goes back to. That is what we as Christians should always go back to. That is our source of measurement. That is the standard to which we’re judged and, ultimately, in which everyone will be judged.”
“There’s really no point, no area in your life that the Gospel doesn’t touch, change, or transform. It really informs every decision that you make, every action that you take, every thought that you think. It just permeates everywhere [in our lives].”
“If God is a just God, He has to punish the sinful.”
“The righteousness of Christ has been imputed upon us. When God poured out the wrath of sin once and for all--for the past, the current, and the future--He did that on Jesus. That is heavy.”
“If Christ never rose again, as Paul says then we are the most to be pitied. But He did rise again!”
Scripture References
1 Corinthians 15:1-4
John 3:30
Genesis 3:15
1 Corinthians 15:14
CONNECT WITH US
Subscribe to the Deeply Rooted Podcast: on iOS, go to our iTunes page and click subscribe or follow us on Spotify!
If you loved the episode, please let us know by leaving us an iTunes review to help spread the word about Deeply Rooted! We would love to invite more people into our conversations!
SUBSCRIBE to Deeply Rooted Magazine and discover beautiful, Scripture-saturated content.
JOIN The Deeply Rooted E-Newsletter club for monthly encouragement, special sales, and more!
LIKE Deeply Rooted on Facebook.
FOLLOW on Instagram for the latest updates on the podcast, blog, and shop.
READ The Deeply Rooted Blog for encouragement every single week!
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