#395 - Joby Martin // In Christ First

Your identity is never neutral. It either starts “in Christ” or it starts somewhere else, and that starting point quietly decides how you treat people, how you handle politics, and how you show up at church. We open day two of the Daily Blade by lingering on one short line in Philippians 1, and it hits harder than most long arguments: Paul writes to the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi, with overseers and deacons. The order matters, and it exposes what we really pledge allegiance to first.
 
We break down three loaded words that many Christians assume they already understand. “Saint” in the Bible is not an award for spiritual heroes; it is the clean-and-made-right status of every person who has put faith in Jesus. We also talk about the visible church and the invisible church, why church attendance does not automatically equal saving faith, and how that reality should sober us and steady us. Then we clarify church leadership: overseers and elders as qualified shepherds who govern and guard the local church, and deacons as servants by function, not power brokers chasing influence.
 
Then we bring Philippians straight into today’s political climate. When ideology becomes your lead identity, opponents stop being neighbors to love and become targets to crush. We push for a better foundation: Christian first and foremost, shaped primarily by Scripture, not by cable news, political podcasts, or the latest echo chamber. We close with practical next steps for real discipleship, including reading the Word, gathering with the saints in person, listening to gospel-centered preaching, and building community that keeps you grounded.
 
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Transcript

Welcome And The Daily Blade Mission

SPEAKER_00 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 Christians' 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.

Day Two In Philippians Begins

SPEAKER_01 0:20

All right, welcome back to day two of the Daily Blade. We are marching through the book of Philippians. We've only made it through a half of the first verse. And so the second half of Philippians chapter 1 says, To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi with the overseers and deacons.

Who Counts As A Saint

SPEAKER_01 0:36

Now there's a few titles I want you to consider here. Paul says, I'm writing this to the saints and to the overseers and to the deacons. So when the when the Bible uses the word saint, according to the Bible, a saint is anybody that has put their faith in Jesus Christ. So if you grew up Catholic, guess what? I got some good news for you. That if you have put your faith in Jesus Christ, then congratulations, you are a saint. We don't have to vote on it. You can make a necklace with your own face on it. You can call your Catholic grandma and say, guess what, grandma? I'm a saint. Because every believer in Jesus, your status before him is that of a saint, that you have been washed clean and made

Visible Church Versus Invisible Church

SPEAKER_01 1:16

right. Now, that doesn't mean that every person that attends the church is a saint, because what some of the ancient church fathers would talk about is the visible and the invisible church. The visible church is that thing, that location, that gathering of people that you see gather together on a Sunday morning. And within that visible church is the invisible church of all the people who have actually put their faith in Jesus. So again, when the Bible uses the word saint, it is talking to all believers of Jesus.

Overseers And Elders Defined

SPEAKER_01 1:45

Then it says, with the overseers. That word is episcopas. It's where we get the word overseer or elder. This would include the pastors, but also any of the men that are qualified in order to govern over the local gathering of those saints, which is called the church.

Deacons As Servants Not Power

SPEAKER_01 2:02

And then the third group he talks to are the deacons. This word is diaconia. It means servant. But interestingly, it's a different word than the earlier word servant used in the beginning of the verse. That word was doulos. The word doulas is more of a status, a bond servant. This word diaconia is a function. And so if you serve it at a church that is run by a board of deacons, technically, deacon is not supposed to mean power broker. Deacon just means servant. But here's here's what I want you to see more than anything

In Christ First; Allegiance Second

SPEAKER_01 2:35

else. He says, to all the saints in Christ Jesus who were at Philippi. Pay attention to this. He says, You're in Christ first and foremost, and you're at the city that you live in. In Christ Jesus, at Philippi. I want to ask you this question. Where is your first allegiance? Because what's happening right now with the political climate that we live in, and especially people that would listen to the Daily Blade, here's what I want to push you on, okay?

Political Identity And Loving Opponents

SPEAKER_01 3:00

That when your political ideology is your lead foot, then you'll begin to see opponents as objects to be defeated instead of people to be loved. You see, we are first to be in Christ and then at America or at the particular city that you live in. In fact, I think right now we have too many conservative Christians. And let me explain what I mean by that. Some of you may be saying, well, whoa, but Pastor Joby, aren't you a conservative Christian? No, no, no. I am a Christian first and foremost. I am in Christ. And because I am in Christ and because I read my Bible, then I am the kind of person that wants to do what the Bible says, which means that I am to conserve the institutions that God established. First and foremost, male and female, family, church, government, et cetera. And so what we should not do is get those two things confused. Because if you were in your political ideology first and then at church,

Discipled By The Word Not Media

SPEAKER_01 3:54

it will not be enough. If you spend more time being discipled by the world than by the word, then be careful because you will try to use Jesus as an addition to your life instead of the foundation of your life. And so if you're being discipled by the world too much, like your favorite cable news or your favorite political podcast or your favorite conspiracy theory podcast, which they're probably all true, they're just early, or your favorite conservative echo chamber, then be very careful because what will happen is you will find yourself immersed in the political ideology and you'll just be at church. Instead, you've got to be discipled primarily by the word. This means that yes, you need to listen to the Daily Blade, but in addition to that, you need to be reading the Word on your own. You need to be listening to Bible-based, gospel-centered sermons. That means gathering with the saints on the weekend, and then in addition to that, in person. And you can supplement with my sermons or whoever. You need to be listening to Christian podcasts. You need to be in a Bible study group with some other men. Because if you don't, you'll forget to be in Christ and you'll find yourself in the world and merely at church. So to all the saints that are listening to the Daily Blade, may we be the kind of men and women that are in Christ who are

Practical Discipleship Habits And Closing

SPEAKER_01 5:14

at whatever city we live in. Amen.

SPEAKER_00 5:18

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.