What Is Your Obsession?

Every person is obsessed with something.

In fact, obsession is not a bad thing—God made us to hunger and thirst after righteousness.

We were made for obsession.

The question is not are you going to be obsessed—the real question is what are you going to be obsessed with?

In today’s episode, we tackle obsession and the fact that every Christian should be obsessed with Jesus.

Listen to and Download the Episode

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Episode 30 Overview

In this episode, you will …

• discover what every Christian should obsess over
  
• learn why every other obsession fall shorts
  
• hear an embarrassing story from myself on how I obsessed over the wrong thing
  
• listen to a clip from Art Katz sermon “Man’s Petty Kingdom”

Show Notes / Additional Resources

Bible Verses Mentioned:

• Matthew 13:44-45: Again, the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking beautiful pearls, who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it.
• 1 Thessalonians 5:16-17: Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, …
• John 17:3: And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.

Other Notes:

• Quote from Oswald Chambers (from Utmost for His Highest, June 2)

Oswald Chambers: Are you obsessed by something? You will probably say, “No, by nothing,” but all of us are obsessed by something— usually by ourselves, or, if we are Christians, by our own experience of the Christian life. But the psalmist says that we are to be obsessed by God. The abiding awareness of the Christian life is to be God Himself, not just thoughts about Him. The total being of our life inside and out is to be absolutely obsessed by the presence of God. A child’s awareness is so absorbed in his mother that although he is not consciously thinking of her, when a problem arises, the abiding relationship is that with the mother. In that same way, we are to “live and move and have our being” in God (Acts 17:28), looking at everything in relation to Him, because our abiding awareness of Him continually pushes itself to the forefront of our lives.

If we are obsessed by God, nothing else can get into our lives— not concerns, nor tribulation, nor worries. And now we understand why our Lord so emphasized the sin of worrying. How can we dare to be so absolutely unbelieving when God totally surrounds us? To be obsessed by God is to have an effective barricade against all the assaults of the enemy.

• What if our whole lives could be focused on Jesus? Could Jesus be the …
  • the sole word upon our lips
  • the thought upon our minds
  • the delight of our hearts
  • the ache of our soul
  • the tune of our song
  • the drive of our life
  • the focus of our eye
  • the excitement of our day
  • the depth of our being
  • our number one focus
  • our only drive
  • our consuming passion
  • our turn on
  • the beat of our heart
  • the flow of our life
  • the source of our lives
  • in short, what if we desired nothing else but Him?

Other Resources:

• Art Katz Sermon: Man’s Petty Kingdom
• The Bravehearted Voices Podcast

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About NRJohnson & the Deeper Christian Podcast

NRJohnson (Nathan Johnson) is a Christian who has an overwhelming passion for Jesus, the Gospel, and Studying God’s Word. He is a writer, teacher, and communicator who helps other believers understand and apply the Bible as they grow and mature in their faith—desiring that they gain greater intimacy with Christ, experience the victorious Christian life, and transform the world through the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit. Read more about him here.

The Deeper Christian Podcast is the podcast to help you study God’s Word, know Jesus intimately, and discover how you can build your life around Jesus Christ. This weekly audio program, hosted by NRJohnson, dives into Scripture and encourages Christians to keep their focus upon Jesus Christ—equipping believers in how to study the Bible and know God’s Word, grow in their spiritual lives, and change the world. Main discussion topics center around practical advice on Christian living, Bible study, prayer, the Gospel, freedom from sin, evangelism and how to share your faith, the Christian disciplines, and the lives and messages from the Christian heroes from yesteryear such as A.W. Tozer, Charles Spurgeon, Major Ian Thomas, Oswald Chambers, Hudson Taylor, Amy Carmichael, Corrie Ten Boom, C.T. Studd, George Müller, Andrew Murray, Leonard Ravenhill, E.M. Bounds, and others. Learn more about the deeper Christian life.