Selling and Buying Fear

0:02 Looking at our world from a theological perspective. This is the Theology Central podcast making Theology Central. Good morning everyone. It is Friday, September the twentieth, twenty twenty four. It is currently ten thirty six am Central Time, and I am coming to you live from the Theology Central studio located right here in Abilene, Texas. Now, a lot of times I like to begin a broadcast by asking you a question, right, and I try to use the questions to get you thinking about a particular topic. So I'm going to ask you a question. A lot of times I tell you to get a piece of paper and write some things down. I know most people don't actually participate, but if you can, I want you to grab a piece of paper, and I want you to ask this question.

0:52 All right, I want you to answer this question. I'll ask the question. Okay, I don't need you to ask the question. I'm answer. I'm going to ask the question. You answer the question, all right. We got at least get that straight. We don't get that straight. We're never going to get anywhere today. Okay, but I'm going to ask the question. I want you to write down or I'll ask the question this way What have you purchased today? What have you bought today? What did you go out and buy today maybe? Or what have you ordered online today? What have you purchased today? Write down the four things five things you've purchased or bought today. Now, maybe you haven't bought anything yet, or maybe you have, but I really want you to think about it, because I believe, and this is kind of the thesis of everything, that you and I over and over and over buy something that we really don't need, we should not want, And I think when we buy it, we're being manipulated. And I'm not talking about something you go buy in a store.

1:53 It's something that you buy sitting in your house, driving in your car. It's what's being sold. It's what they are selling it. And the people selling it are politicians and in many cases pastors and ministries. They're selling it, and we are buying it over and over and over and over again, and we're being manipulated. We're being used. They sell it, we buy it. The only people who benefit are the ones selling it, not those those who buy it. We are worse off. And you may say, well, what are you referring to. I am referring to how politicians and how many pastors and how many ministries sell fear.

2:43 They sell coming apocalypse, they sell a coming destruction, they sell panic, they sell fear, they sell worry, they sell anxiety, and there's a public out there just buying it, just buying it, buying it and buying it, over and over and over and over again, and the cycle continues. They sell it, we buy it, they sell more, We buy more, and then we find ourselves filled with fear, anxiety, worry, panic, concern. And at some point it has to stop. Because it's been going on, at least my entire Christian life. I've watched it, but it's been going on forever, and I just think it continues to increase, and it gets worse and worse and worse. So what did you buy today? Now, obviously, now you know I'm not referring to you know, if you bought food or if not a tangible product. What I am referring to is did you buy fear today?

3:49 Did you buy panic today? Did you buy some scare tactic that's being sold to you by some politician or some ministry. Now, my entire Christian life, I've watched this play out in the church right. I mean, we've talked about it many times on this podcast. In the nineteen eighties, the Great Satanic Scare was sold by church after church after church. Satanists are everywhere. Satanists are out to get your kids. Satanist are going to kidnap your kids on Halloween and offer them as a Satanic sacrifice. And it was the Great Satanic Scare and many of much of it or some of it was driven by the Satan Seller, written by Mike Wark, who was a supposed Christian comedian who was supposedly a former high Satanic priest. And then well he sold it and Christians bought it, and they bought it, and they were all and it was like, Satan is out to get us everywhere. Remember the Great You know, if you play if you take your album and play it backwards, there's hidden messages from Satan in the song. You may not hear the message forward, but if you play the message backwards, you will hear it.

4:57 And see when you listen to it, ford your mind, here's that hidden message inside the music. Oh and then there were burning records and oh no, Satan is out to get us. We were all told it was the end Okay, over and over and over this has happened in Christianity. And let me tell you, I bought it over and over and over at different times in my Christian life. Oh this is this, Oh what are we going to do? This is so bad? Oh no, this is happening. Oh this is happening. Oh, this is happening. And every single time I would think it's and well, just things just kind of continue moving on. In fact, I a lot of my early ministry was kind of I had bought into man, the churches in trouble, the church has just done the well, what's going to happen?

5:42 And well, in many cases I was buying the fear and the panic and the next big disaster. I was buying into it. How many times did I see books in Christian bookstores about the coming economic collapse We're all going to be in the Great Depression and it's over, or the coming persecution. We're all going to be put in FEMA camps and they're going to take away our Bibles, and they're going to shut down our churches, and they're gonna shut down our Christian broadcast and it's all and we're all going to be locked up and it's coming, it's going, and well things just continue and continue and continue. Churches love ministries love this because almost inevitably they sell the fear. They sell the panic, and in what is the solution, Well, you need to buy their book, you need to subscribe to their ministry. It's usually they're selling something.

6:36 See they sell the fear, you buy the fear. But what they're also selling is a supposed solution. So they sell fear, they sell a solution, and the solution is always they get money, they get something from it. You need them. The Satanic Bible and the beginning of the Satanic Bible has what the nine statements of a satanists to say, I'm looking for or my I don't know where my Satanic Bible is. I don't have it, but one of the statements in it, yeah, I don't know where it currently is. It's somewhere in this room. It is. Satan is the best friend that the church has ever had, because it's kept it in business for all these years.

7:18 Where there's a little bit of truth to that, Hey, Satan's out there to get you. You need the church, you need us, you need us, and so the church sells fear. It sells panic, it sells coming disaster. Now. I know there's a balance here, right, because sometimes as a pastor or as a Christian broadcaster, you've got to turn on the microphone, stand behind the pulpit and say, hey, guys, we got a problem here. This is not good. This is this is this is definitely not good. So you but but the thing is, you gotta see you And I even hate the word selling. You got to share it. You got to speak of it, but in a accurate way. Right, you can say here's a problem, but you you don't have to sell it as if we've got ten seconds till doomsday. We got five seconds to survive, and we're you know, a black hole is about to engulf the entire planet and you've got fifteen seconds to live. But if you send me nineteen ninety nine, then maybe this ministry will be able to stop it, Okay, don't. That's the problem is we sell it as if the end has arrived. Other than a more rational explanation of what's going on. There are problems. There are issues that must be talked about that people must be warned about. The Christian ministries must warn the people, right, they must warn the people of false prophets, of false teachers. There's things that have to be warned about. How to find that balance, though,

8:49 can be difficult because even as a pastor or as a Christian podcaster, however you're doing your ministry, you can get so caught up into this is a problem, and you're very passionate about it. But in some ways, what you're doing is you're selling almost a hyperbolic idea of what's wrong. And sometimes though you sell it, even though you don't realize that you're selling that you're the solution. Now, of course you think you're the solution, but I think it can be I think it can be problematic. The way it can all be done. I think Christians have to just realize, look, they're statistic and study after study that right now people are more stressed out. Anxiety, worry, depression is just eating away at people across the United States of America. I won't speak for other countries, but all across America people are more stressed out. They have more anxiety, more worry, more discouragement, more depression. They just because they constantly and they feel like things are getting worse and worse and worse. Now sometimes again even based on my own eschatology, I do believe things will get worse and worse and worse. But we have to find a way to ensure that the way we speak of it is somewhat balanced. And I'm not look, don't even look to me as to be the person who is an example of doing it the right way. In many cases, I do it the wrong way. I can be just

10:20 as guilty of doing this, especially over the years. I can turn on the microphone like this is, ladies and gentlemen, I don't know what's going on, and I don't know where the church is going to be. I don't, and I can I can fall into the exact same trap. Where is that fine line, where is that balance? I don't know if I have it, and I don't know if many Christian churches have it. But you just listen to a lot of Christian broadcasts and everything just sounds like it's the end. That it's it's the beginning of the end. It's over, it's over. And I'm not even talking from a look from a from a from the perspective of eschatology or or end times. I'm not even talking about that. I'm just talking about how we just speak about what's going on and culture, what's going on in the world. We have a way of describing it, like in the in the most exaggerated, you know, fear inducing terms that we can possibly come up with. And I think in many cases it's exaggeration, and we're selling fear and people are buying it, and the people who buy it are typically then filled with anxiety, worry, panic, and nothing good comes from it. In many cases we end up looking totally foolish because after a certain amount of time, all of that fear and all of those books that were sold, and all the conferences that happened, and all the DVDs, and I'm utilizing some you know,

11:52 things that are dated now, but all the things that people you know, got to to supposedly protect them from this out to be absolutely nothing like everyone said. And guess what, the people who made the money, they already moved on to the next thing because you got to sell the fear. Now, why am I discussing it, Well, I'm starting by discussing it focusing on the church. But what I have for us is not focused on the church. It's focused more on, well, what's going on in the culture. So let me find this article, because well, it just made me think about how this happens in the church and outside the church. Here is the headline, right, this comes to us from NBC News. It was published September the twentieth, twenty twenty four, at six am Central time.

12:45 So at six am Central time this morning, I would like to refer to that as Texas time or the correct time. All right, at six am this morning, Texas time or correct time, NBC News posted the following headline, Apocalypse delayed. Trump keeps promising a doom that never comes. Trump keeps promising a doom that never comes. Now they're gonna focus on Trump and some of you, who are you know? Trump? Trump? Trump? Trump? You you know you you sleep in a Trump flag. Okay, maybe that's a little bit of exaggeration, right, but the point is you love Trump. Don't get all offended and get all mad because Trump's not the only one who does this. Politicians have been doing it forever. Christians do it, ministries do it, churches do it. Everyone keeps promising and selling a doom that never comes. Here's the story. If the election does not go his way, the economy will tank, Christmas will be canceled, and America as we know it will be finished, Donald Trump promised in the run up to the twenty twenty election, So to the run up to the twenty twenty election, that was twenty twenty. Right leading up to twenty twenty election, Trump was saying, if the election does

14:17 not go his way, the economy will tank, Christmas will be canceled, and America as we know it will be finished. The race did not go his way, of course, and none of Trump's prophesied cataclysms materialized under Joe Biden's presidency, but that has not stopped Trump from recycling some of the same dark predictions about, well, the new election. And I've heard it over and over and over. If this election doesn't go a certain way, it's the end of the country. It's end of America. We're all gonna it's it's And I heard the same thing when Obama, when the election with Obama, the very first one. If Obama's elected, We're all going to be Muslims. The churches are going to be shut down. They're going to take away our bibles. Oh, they're going to take away our guns. Oh. Over and over.

15:09 I've heard this stuff so many times that I've become absolutely just numb to it. Again. Trump's kind of going doing the same thing this time with the new election. If he's elected. So this is what reading some of the things that he was this is back in October twenty twenty. If he's elected, the stock market will crash, Trump said in October twenty twenty during his only debate with Biden. If he gets in, you will have a depression the likes of which you have never seen. The depression never happened. Stocks rose during Biden's presidency, but Trump recently predicted that a Harris victory would lead to a massive stock market downturn and a nineteen twenty nine style depression.

15:54 The stock market just broke some record, I believe yesterday. But wait, I think stocks have outperformed during Biden's presidency than they did under Trump. But hey, no, it doesn't matter, it doesn't matter. It's it's the end. It's the end. Now you've if you listen to some Trump supporters, we're in a depression right now. It's the end of the world. I don't know how we're good. We're all going to die. I don't know if I'm can make it another day, because that's because you they're selling it and you're buying it. They sell it and you buy it. And twenty twenty President Trump said the election is a choice between a Trump recovery and a Biden depression, and twenty twenty four, he said on Truth Social voters have a choice Trump prosperity or the Kamala crash and great depression of twenty twenty four, saying he's just really, he's selling the same thing.

16:53 He's just selling the You just change the names, Biden Kamala. Just change the names, and it's he's just selling the exact same thing. Predicting the future is inherently difficult, and bluster about the danger of the other side winnings the norm for politicians of all stripes, but Trump's pinch it for hyperbole, over confidence, and a black and white claims has made him particularly an inn accurate nostradamus. The Trump campaign did not respond to a request for comment for this article. If Joe Biden ever becomes president, Trump tweeted in twenty twenty, our country will collapse if we don't win.

17:35 He told New Hampshire voters in twenty twenty four, I think our country is finished four years ago, he warned Michigan voters that a vote for Biden is a vote to completely eradicate your auto industry. On Wednesday, he warned Michigan voters, if I don't win, you will have no auto industry. Within two or three years, it will be gone. He keeps saying the same things over and old and over. He just sells the same fear. He just sells the same panic, and you keep buying it. And Trump's predictions about life under a Biden president's presidency grew more and more apocalyptic as election day drew nigh. In twenty twenty, with the COVID nineteen pandemic raging, Trump told supporters that what with the COVID nineteen pandemic raging? If I can read correctly, Trump told supporters that Biden had plans to impose a blanket shutdown across the country and keep the country locked down to fulfill his plan to kill the American dream. If you vote for Biden, it means no kids in school, no graduations, no weddings, no Thanksgiving, no Christmas, no Fourth of July together, he said in a rally, and goodyear Arizona. If he comes in, he said, at a Nevada rally, the Christmas season will be canceled. Of course, Biden imposed no such lockdowns, and holiday season shopping rows every year of Biden's presidency to our record high last

19:07 year according to the National Retail Federation. So he made all these predictions, not one of them came true, all bogus lies selling fear. Now he can sell all the fear he wants. He can lie, he can exaggerate. That's perfectly okay. What I'm trying to do is, as Christians, we can't buy the fear. Don't buy the fear, don't buy the panic, don't buy the hyperbole. It goes on to say, and his speech at the Republican National Convention in twenty twenty, Trump called Biden a trojan horse for socialism who would give free reign to violent anarchists to completely dismantle and destroy the American way of life. Make no mistake if you give power to Joe Biden, the radical lefl to fund police departments all across America, Trump warned, predicting Biden had plans for immediately releasing four hundred thousand criminals onto your streets and into your neighborhoods. In fact, crime has fallen, and Biden and Biden signed legislation increasing police funding. If the Left gains power, they will demolish the suburbs, confiscate your guns, and appoint justices who will wipe away your Second Amendment and other constitutional freedoms. Trump said in his convention speech, the suburb still stand, and does the Second Amendment, backed by a conservative majority on

20:39 the Supreme Court. Speaking at the Village, a massive retirement community in Florida, Trump prophesied that Biden would dismantle your police departments, dissolve your borders, confiscate your guns, and terminate religious liberty. Almost four years in a Biden term, the US Mexico border remains a problem, but it also remains even God was not safe from Biden president's presidency. Trump warned if Joe Biden gets in, he said on Fox News, religion will be gone, okay, and another interview with the network, he said Biden would take away your guns, your oil, and your God. And Ohio. Trump said that Biden is against God and that his election would hurt the Bible and hurt God. Domestic oil production and gun sells both reached record highs under Biden. A practicing Catholic who attended church regularly while in the White House. But Trump's arguing went on with troubling visions of America completely cowed by its rivals. If I don't win the election, China will own the United States. You're going to have to learn to speak Chinese, Trump told conservative radio hosts Huge Hugh Hewitt in August twenty twenty. The number of American college students studying Chinese actually declined under Biden, having peaked in twenty sixteen. Trump even predicted that if he lost the election, he might have to leave the country or retire from public life. If I lose to him, I don't know what I'm going to do. I will never speak to you again, he told North Carolina rally goalers four years ago,

22:10 You'll never see me again. Well, obviously that didn't happen either, he went on to say and Georgia. Days before the election, Trump said he would be so embarrassed to lose to Biden that he'll leave the country. I don't know. Maybe I'll leave the country. I don't know. But there was no chance of that. Trump confidently predicted, telling supporters in Wisconsin his election was basically a sure thing. The only way we're going to lose the election is if the election is rigged. Trump did in fact lose and did not flee the country. This year is Trump faces off against Biden's vice president, he has reprised some of the same gram predictions for the future if he does not win. While Biden was a trojan horse for socialism, Trump's campaign said in a new release last month that Harris is a trojan force, a trojan horse, a trojan horse for a nation destroying spending, a communist, a communist price controls and open border. I mean, he just repeats the same thing.

23:02 He continues to sell it over and over and over again, all right, uh, and reprising his false prophecy from twenty twenty, Trump has been telling supporters that this election, too is a sure thing, and the only way he can lose is if it is rigged. Of course, setting up again more problems and difficulties, just like he did last time. He continues to sell it. And we could go on and on and on, and all the things he keeps selling, he keeps saying the same things over and over, and the things he is selling is just insanity. And no matter how much he sells it. There's the American people out there that will buy it. They buy it, they buy into the panic, they buy into this and this thing, this way of thinking has to stop. Now. I could go through and read a lot more of the article.

23:56 I didn't want to go through all of it because the list is so long. I mean, I could sit here and play audio clips constantly of the things he is saying, the things he is predicting, and everyone knows, just stop it, just stop. I mean, he constantly says there'll be no country, There'll be no country, There'll be no country. He is the only one who can save the country. And if you look on truth social and you look at Trump supporters, that's basically the way they think, and you're like, well, wait a minute, We've had four years without Trump. Why do we still have a country? And Trump was in power for four years? Why didn't he fix all the problems? You could just ask basic questions, but it doesn't matter. The end is here. The end is here. The end is here. Many politicians campaign and even many ministries rely on a fear based strategy to galvanize support. So let's consider the role of fear and pursue Let's consider fear as a tactic and trying to persuade people. Right, did you ever have to take speech and you had to give different kinds of speeches, an informative, a persuasive, right kind of speech? Right? You remember that if you've took a speech class, you know you had to do the different kinds of speeches. Right. Well, let's look at the role of fear and persuasion. Fear can be a powerful motivator. It taps into basic human instincts

25:28 for survival and security, making people more alert to potential threats and more willing to act to avoid danger. Whether in politics or ministry, Presenting a picture of a world in crisis creates a heightened emotional response, which can lead to action. And that's all you have to do. A pastor can walk behind the pulpen and say, ladies and gentlemen, in this particular you know, in Disney movies or in this particular kind of music, Satan is working and he's coming for your kids, and he's going to take your kids from you, and he's going to destroy their lives. And the next tame parents are like, that's it, no more Disney, that's it, no more music. That's it, because Satan's going to get you, and they create the fear, and then you get this crazy overreaction happens constantly within Christianity. Now, let's first, let's look at the role of fear. Let's look at the role of fear and persuasion first, and politics, politicians often emphasize crisis, economic downturns, crime, societal decay, and a promise that their leadership or policies will be the solution.

26:40 By magnifying issues, they create a sense of urgency, encouraging voters to support them as the answer to averting disaster. This is seen in both conservative and progressive politics, with each side identifying different threats crime, immigration, climate change, or economic instability. All politicians do this. They can't just say, hey, things are we got a couple of problems here, we need to fix this, and we got some issues here. But if you look at the statistics, not quite as bad as it's being sold. Well, nobody, well nobody will vote for that person. You're gonna vote for the person's like the end is here. You're going to be murdered, they're gonna burn your house down, You're not gonna have a job, You're gonna be eating cats and dogs because you're not gonna have any money for food. Oh my goodness, what do I do. Vote for me and I will take you to the Promised Land. I will fix all the problems. Life will be glorious. It will be like Heaven on earth, and like, vote for him because we're all going to die. Okay, now, maybe that's a little bit exaggerated, but it's not much. If I've heard every single time that we were on the brink of total and utter annihilation and we're no longer going to exist.

27:55 I mean, if I had a dime for every time, I would be rich. Okay, maybe that's a little bit of exaggeration, but there would be a lot of money there. Because I've heard it over and over and over and over. It seems like my whole life now. And within ministries within Christianity, let's look at this idea of fear and persuasion within Christianity. Some ministries may take a similar approach, focusing on the decline of morality, societal values, or spiritual dangers. They may position their message as the solution to restoring faith, protecting the family, or saving people from eternal consequences. The appeal often capitalizes on a fear of judgment, persecution, or loss of divine favor. So ministries used the same tactic fear fear as a basically a strategy as a manipulator to persuade people. And you just scare everyone absolutely to death, and then you get some action, you get some you get some things going. I mean, I could, I could.

29:04 I could play audio of ministries that just do this Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesdays, and it's just the same over and over and over. So there's the role of fear and persuasion. Let's consider the appeal to security. By creating fear, politicians and ministries position themselves or their message as the path to safety. The promise is that if you align with them, vote, donate, follow, you will be protected from the dangers they've outlined. This creates a sense of dependency. For politicians, the message is often the world is chaotic, but if I am in power, I will fix it. For ministries, it may be the world is spiritually dark, but through our teaching you can find the light. That's the way it works. You sell the fear, the people buy it now. The people are filled with worry and anxiety. But you're like dun dun dunda, do not fear for I am here and I have the solution. Vote donate now, follow me, buy this, buy my book, come to my conference. Now. The psychological effects of all of this. What are the psychological effects? Well, fear narrows focus. When people are afraid, they're less likely to think critically or broadly, and more likely to take immediate action that seems to alleviate the fear. Fear just

30:37 causes people to they can't see beyond the fear. And this look give you an example. All right, we'll go to September the eleventh, two thousand and one. Since we're in September, Okay, wasn't too long ago. Remember where you were on September the eleventh, two thousand and one. Remember the fear, Remember the anxiety when terrorists, you know, crash planes into the World Trade Center and into the Pentagon, do you remember that? Do you remember that fear? Do you remember the anxiety, remember that worry? And do you remember some of the way these people acted. There were Christians ministries, pastors who supported the idea of not allowing Muslims to build any more mosque anywhere in the United States of America that they were basically wanted to almost pass rules and laws against Islam. Now they could not think critical. Wait a minute, we live in a country with the freedom of religion. If we deny their rights to build a worship center, to build a mosque, to build a center for learning, or anything deal related to Islam, if we take away their rights, then why would we have our rights to build a church, build a Christian anything right. If we're going to take away their rights, then we're losing our rights. We got to think critically about this. Can we be concerned about Islam? Yes, it is antithetical to Biblical Christianity? Absolutely? And Islamic countries do they hate Christianity and persecute christian Absolutely? So. Can we

32:10 have tangible logical concern but not just throwing out everything the country is built on, like the freedom of religion, like and we're gonna deny people's freedoms while at the same time demanding ours. Do you not see how critical we lose? We are? We narrow our focus. Same thing I can again. You know you know I love Salem, you know I love the city of Salem in Massachusetts. You know, I love that place, right, I love the history, I love the feeling, I love everything about it. So I've been there now multiple times. Every time I go, I go to everything I can to learn everything. I read any books I can about what happened in Salem Fear. Basically, some teenage girls got the entire town to lose their absolute minds. That witches where you know, doing these things to people in the town, and then these adults so they get basically, you know, tricked by bored teenagers. Next thing you know, all the supposed adults in the town lose their everlasting, ever living mind, everlasting, ever living mind.

33:17 And next thing you know, innocent people are being killed for being accused at being a witch. It's the most ridiculous thing you've ever heard of. And it was And guess who. Guess who the ridiculous people were. It was the religious people. It was the religious people. It wasn't the religious people. Well whoa wha wha wait wait wait, wait, come on, now, come on now, let's everyone be calm. Let's think about that. Now. Once you think that witches and spirits are doing things in your town, everyone can lose their ever living mind. You just need to introduce fear. Fear narrows focus. Then people no longer can think critically.

33:58 Polarization is second psychologically, So the first thing fear and narrows focus second polarization. Constant messaging that highlights dangers and division can increase societal polarization. People begin to see the world as us versus them, while the other side is betrayed as a danger. That's exactly what's happened in our country. We're polarized. Why because constantly it's like dun dun, dun, dun't breaking news alert, They're gonna kill us all. It's the end of the world. And people just sit there and just take it in. They buy it, buy it, buy it all. So many people today. You got people you know today, they've been sitting in front of a television watching you know, breaking Fox news alerts all day and they just think it's the end. It's the end, it's the end. It's the end. It's the end. They and and their their perception of reality. What can be so frustrating is when you try to challenge it, like wait, wait, wait, wait, no, no, look at the numbers. No, no, no, no, no check the no check, let's verify, and no, I don't care.

34:56 The economy is worse than it's ever been. Crime is out of control, and you, well, wait, here's some number. I don't care. I don't care because now it's just us versus them, And instead of looking at it from a biblical perspective like I don't know, love your enemy, show mercy and great no no, no, no no, it's not about winning and my side versus their side, and then you call them nay. I've talked about this on Christian radio, American Family radio, how they use these little derogatory names to refer to Joe Biden or Kamala Harri. If I've said her name incorrectly, I apologize. I've heard it said so many different ways. It drives me crazy when I say it incorrectly, because I want to be respectful, and that doesn't matter who it is. I want to be respectful to who, whatever, politician from left or right.

35:41 It's because you want to show respect to people created in the image of God. And I'm supposed to love my enemy. So whether I agree or disagree with anybody, you want to show respect. But this polarization is insane. Now, look, when the world the world, their focus is narrowed. They no longer think critical, they no longer think broadly, they can't see the facts. They become polarized, polarization, and become polarized in the world. That's okay. The church is where this should not be happening from the as Because of this, we are not to act being manipulated by people selling fear.

36:27 We are supposed to be the ones who say, no, we don't buy your fear. You're selling it. We're not buying it because we are going to try to look at the world from a biblical perspective. Now, are we always going to do perfectly? No, but we have to constantly be struggling. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no no no. I'm not going to allow fear to control my thinking. I'm gonna I'm going to think critically and I'm going to think broadly, and I'm not going to allow myself to become polarized and seeing everything as me versus them type of perspective. So the first psychological effect is fear narrows focus. Second polarization, second desensitizing. It desensitizes everyone over time, constant fear messaging can lead to desensitizing people, and people may either stop responding to it, or they might live in a constant state of anxiety and helplessness, losing sight of hope. People become desensitized to it and you kind of see that over time, or you just find people constantly in a state of anxiety, helplessness and lost all hope. Either way, the psychological effects of this fear selling, fear mongering, whatever you want to refer to it as it is wrong and we can't allow ourselves to do this now. From a Christian standpoint, the Bible often calls believers to reject fear as the primary lens through which they view the world. World right,

38:01 we know this passage. We know this passage for God hath not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, of love and of a sound mind. While the world spends out of control and there's polarization, fighting, fear, wrong thinking, chaos, while Trump is selling all of his stuff, the Christian should be God has not given me a spirit of fear, but of power, of love and of a sound mind. Now, I really want you to think about those three today.

38:45 What does it mean that He's given us. He's not given us the spirit of fear. So first, what does it mean that he's not given us the spirit of fear? But in contrast to the spirit of fear, he's given us power. What is that power? Referring to what is the love? And what is a sound That's what we need to see the world through that, not through the lens of fear, but through this idea that we now have power, love and a sound mind. What exactly is that? Referring to Well, scripture does warn of dangers at the very same time emphasizes hope, redemption, and the ultimate sovereignty of God, which stands in contrast to messages driven solely by fear. Do we truly believe God is in charge?

39:32 Do we really believe He is sovereign? Historically, in politics and in some forms of Christianity, the reliance on fear can be traced to manipulation tactics that prioritize short term gain over long term trust. Historically, within politics and some elements of Christianity, the reliance on fear can be traced to manipulation tactics that prioritize short term gains over long term trust. Fear based messages work in cycles, where new dangers must continually be found or exaggerated to sustain influence, which may erode credibility over time. A good example just if you've ever listened to Alex Jones. That's all he does is sell fear and danger and destruction and the end is near. He sells it over and it doesn't matter if any of it comes to pass, doesn't matter.

40:51 He moves onto the next thing, and he moves onto the next thing, and he moves on to the next thing every day. And if you just listen, if you just listen to talk radio, and I'll just focus on conservative talk radio. But it's constant, it's constant, it's the end is here. It's iver. Whether it's Glenn Beck, Sean Hennity, Tucker, Carlson, you just name Mark Levin, you just go through all of that. It's just by If you just listen to them for one full day, start early in the morning and find find the first, you know, conservative program that's on and listen to it all day. By the end of the day, you may think the world is over, we're finished, we're doomed, we have no hope other than Donald Trump. He will save us. I'm like, well, whn't he president for four years? How come he didn't fix all the problems? Remember what Donald Trump was telling a group of Christians just not too long ago. If you vote for him, you'll never have to vote again. What is that? What are you talking about? As he constantly sells the fear in the end and the end. Now, I'm not saying there's not legitimate concerns on all sides.

41:58 The key is how do we express legitimate concern before it turns into a sensationalized, just hyperbolic, crazed approach that just creates fear because manipulation manipulation. You're being manipulated. Using fear as a tool for influence raises ethical concerns. While there may be legitimate problems in the world, the question becomes, are these issues being responsibly addressed or are they being exaggerated for personal or institutional gain. I want you to hear that again. While there may be legitimate problems in the world, the question is this, are these issues being responsibly addressed or are they being exaggerated for personal or institutional gain. The people selling fear, the people that you're the one who's going to buy it, and they're the ones who are going to gain, not you. You're not going to gain anything. They sell it. You're the I hate to say it, you're just being used. Politicians use you.

43:27 They sell you something, whether true or not true. You buy it. You think you're gonna get some sense of everything's going to be fixed. But it's never going to be fixed. It's never going to be fixed. Even even if they win the election, the next election to come, they're gonna make the same claim, Oh, the end is here, you've got to vote for me again. Well, wait, you were just in power for four years. Wine, did not you fix everything? Whine didn't you? And then they'll try to claim, well, I fixed everything. It's all it's just lies and lies and exaggerations, and we have truths and misinformation and we just buy it. The church should not be buying it, whether the message is coming from outside the church, or whether or even if the call is coming from inside the church. Stop buying the fear and the manipulation and the half truth. Stop buying into it. Now.

44:23 I'm not saying that we say I turn on the microphone, go everything is wonderful, everything is great, everything is perfect. No, that would not be accurate either. The key is to say this is a problem, this is a concern, this is an issue. We must address it. But then we try to address it in a rational way. I know that doesn't make Look, that doesn't make for good preaching, that it doesn't make for good podcasting. I know that you gotta sell the fear. You gotta sell that this is a disaster and the church falling apart. You've got and I look, I know I've been there, done that myself, because I bought, into many cases, the exaggerated understanding of the situation. Now I don't know how to balance it out all the time, right, because sometimes you can play down the problem when you shouldn't. Sometimes you can play it up when you shouldn't. How to be accurate, how to be I don't always have the I don't always do it even where correctly. When fear is exploited, it can lead to manipulation and exploitation. For example, ministries or politicians might offer themselves as a sol solution, drawing resources or allegiance from people who are frightened into action. This can breed dependence rather than empowering people to think critically and act independently. We got to have critical thinking, not

45:58 panic thinking. Critical thinking not manipulation. One of the things I often get so frustrated about church camps is you take impressionable teenagers, you send them off to camp where they are isolated. Right, they're isolated and they are manipulated, they have some emotional experience, they come back, and then what happens, The emotional experience finally collapses and gives way to reality. So when you got them, they're isolated, and then you can manipulate them, and then you can indoctrinate them. That's not Christianity. While fear can bring attention to real issues, it is often used as a tool for manipulation, whether by politicians or ministries. The promise of security in exchange for votes, donations, or support is a powerful, often ethically questionable strategy. As a believer, a healthy response is to balance vigilance with hope, not allowing fear to be the driving force behind decisions, and instead seeking wisdom and trust and and more enduring principles of truth and justice. Now we've got what less than fifty days to the election,

47:32 not today. I don't know if if you're gonna keep up with anything going on like, if I was just to go to hang on, I'm just gonna go to the Drudge Report right here. Let's go to the Drudge Report right now. If you just go through some of the headlines, you just by the time you get done looking at this, you may be like, what is happening right here? What is going on? What is happening? All I'm saying is when you look at a news article, there may be an element of facts. Don't take those facts and then create fear and a disconnect from reality.

48:16 Don't allow fear to so narrow your focus that you cannot think critically. For every duntun time Fox News alert, you gotta go wait a minute, wait a minute, wait a minute, wait a minute, wait a minute. Here, let me think critically about this, let me check, let me think, let me process, let me not just react. Enough of this, enough of this. I was listening. I didn't get very full are because the program had all kinds of other stuff mixed in to it. But it was on the sermon's two point oh sermons two point oh app about witchcraft in the church. Witchcraft. Now, I definitely want to listen to what they're warning about. What is this witchcraft?

49:17 Is and how prevalent is it in the church. Do you remember back I don't remember what years it were, but you remember the Illuminati, the Illuminati, the Illuminati. Everything was the Illuminati. Oh that album cover the Illuminati. I remember even Toby Mack, who was a part of the Christian group DC Talk, even one of his albums, Oh, that's the Illuminati, that's the Illuminati, Illuminati, Illuminati. The Illuminati is everywhere. And I'm like, for a secret society, for a secret group, they're sure are known by everyone because everyone's like the Illuminati. The Beyonce, the Illuminati. The Illuminati is everywhere. The Illuminati was in the super Bowl halftime show, The Illuminati, the Illuminati. Everything's the Illuminati. That Christian ministry, I think they're the Illuminati. Oh my goodness, the Illuminati is going to take us off. And now everyone for ready forgot about the Illuminati. I thought we were all going to die. I thought we're all going to be taken over. I thought we're all the Reptilians. We were all going to be you know, micro chipped, and we're all going to be put in female camps. I mean so many time, I'm so sick of it. All I remember, and I got into arguments with listeners way back in the day when when I think, right before the election of Pope Francis, there was this prophecy of the last Pope right, and the last Pope was going to bring in all of that. I've got the book, I think in my closet. I purchased the book because I was going to try to address it on the podcast, and finally I got so sick of arguing with Christians over it. Oh, this is the Pope and he's going to institute this, and this is going to happen, and this is going to happen. It may not even have been it may have been Pope Francis, but it was going to be.

50:45 This was the end, the end, the end. Then this was the I can't remember all the parts of the conspiracy theory, but of course none of it happened the way anyone said it was going to happen. Of Course, those people never came back to apologize, of course not, of course not, because they're off to the next thing, the next thing, the next thing, the next thing, and they never stop to go. How many conspiracies have I bought into? How many things have I said this is it, and it didn't happen. Like at some point you think you would be like, snap out of it. Man, what am I doing now? You keep living in that world? You're being manipulated. And guess what. The people manipulating you that don't care about you. They just want you to keep downloading their sermons, downloading their messages, sending them money, buying their books, you know, signed up for their Patreon page or whatever they can they want. They need you or there for numbers and for money and for donations.

51:46 And they keep selling you the fear, and you keep buying it and buying it and buying it. And all politics are is human beings manipulating other human beings by selling fear. They sell fear, you buy it by voting for them. What do they get They get power, they get positioned, they get money. What do you get? Absolutely nothing except used. Now you may say my perspective is very very cynical. It is very very cynical. I have no problem acknowledging that. And look, I'm guilty of some of the same things. I don't know how many times I've turned on microphones going. Man, the church is in trouble.

52:33 This is and look, there are issues in the church, and I do believe every issue that I've ever pointed out was legitimate issues. And I think I and I think I was right to point it out, and I think I was right to condemn some of the problems. I just don't know if I always stated it in a more accurate way, or if I stated it and almost like I was selling fear or panic. Now I've tried to know, Well, maybe as a church I tried to No, I think I can look back. I struggle with you know, I always struggle with all my failures and shortcomings because I have so many. But I always tried to sell my church as an alternative. But there's probably an element where I'm like, hey, all these other churches are messed up. We are the answer. I probably did sell it that way now at times that would try to correct it and say, worthy your alternative. You can go do church anyway you want. Go go, and I and I was very strong on that. Look, if you don't like what I'm doing, go go wherever you want.

53:36 I don't think I ever said that you're not a Christian. Maybe back when I was hardcore in the lordship, maybe I did but but typically I was like you, no, you go do it, and I even do it with the podcast. Look, you've got many of others. Go listen to the other podcasts. You got plenty to choose from. I've always tried to say that I'm offering something different and being an alternative and a unique perspective, which I do believe that's been that's accurately to describe what I've always tried to do. I think when I got pulled into, well not not really pulled in, when I got the opportunity to do something more news based, then I definitely was more like, this is happening right now, This is going on right now, this, and I probably because that's again that's that's kind of how news works, right, I mean, news doesn't just come on, hey today, everything is calm and good and don't worry about anything. Everything's fine, everything's wonderful.

54:37 We got this. No, it's always like, oh, this is this is this is it. It's always kind of sold in a much more dramatic way. Why, because you got to keep people watching, you got to keep people listening. But see, that's a business, and people got to realize you're being manipulated. So I think we need to make it a focus today. I think we do that. Two Timothy one to seven is at least a starting point, right, God has not given us a spirit of fear? What does it mean that we do not have a spirit of fear? And what does it mean? Power? Love and a sound mind? That that tewod Timothy one to seven is where we need to focus today and try to try to see if we can adopt that versus fear.

55:39 So what did you buy today? What did you purchase today? What did you buy? What did you purchase? Did you buy fear? Anxiety, worry? It's fun. I just looked down at my iPad and right here on the Drudge Report, these cities could be submerged by rising seas immediately fear, And now I think that's like an ad But it's someone trying to sell me something, right, trying to sell some kind of fear. Like that's right there. I just happened to look down. It just popped up on the screen and I'm like, there you go. But it's non stop, all right. I don't know if I was able to explain everything in a fair and accurate way, but yeah, the psychological effects we are watching the psychological effects of this approach play out across the country and inside churches, and we gotta find we got to pull people back from the precipice. We got to pull people back from the ledge. We got to pull people back and say, who wha, wha wha. Let's let's let's think about how we're going to perceive the world. And two Timothy one to seven is a good place to start, all right, Thanks for listening. Everyone, have a great day. Hey, don't buy any more fear, worry, anxiety, or panic today. Don't buy any of that. Save save your money for tomorrow. Okay, today, let's try to buy Seco Timothy one seven, right, and

57:13 let's try to consider what that means and think about not having a spirit of fear, but one of power, love and a sound mind. All right, thanks for listening. God bless