Jason DeFord, aka Jelly Roll, won a few Grammys this weekend. And then he got in front of a group of pagans and talked about Jesus. Jason seems to be an example of the fruit of righteousness that Hebrews 12 writes about.
Welcome to Politics by Faith. Thanks for being here. I saw the Grammys. I didn't see the Grammys yesterday. I saw that the Grammys took place yesterday and that a one performer known as Jelly Roll won three Grammys, Best Country Duo, Best Contemporary Christian Music Performance, and Best Contemporary Country Album for Beautifully Broken. Here he is during his acceptance speech in front of a bunch of pagans.
I know they're going to try to kick me off here, so just let me try to get this out. First of all, Jesus, I hear you, and I'm listening, Lord. I am listening, Lord. Second of all, I want to thank my beautiful wife. I would have never changed my life without you. I'd have ended up dead or in jail.
I'd have killed myself if it wasn't for you and Jesus. I thank you for that. I thank you for my label, Broken Bow. Country radio, baby! What's up, dawg? Oh, Republic, John McNeely, we did it, baby.
There was a time in my life, y 'all, that I was broken. That's why I wrote this album. I didn't think I had a chance, y 'all. There was days that I thought the darkest things. I was a horrible human. There was a moment in my life that all I had was a Bible this big and a radio the same size and a six -by -eight -foot cell, and I believed that those two things could change my life.
I believed that music had the power to change my life, and God had the power to change my life. And I want to tell y 'all right now, Jesus is for everybody. Jesus is not owned by one political party. Jesus is not owned by no music label. Jesus is Jesus, and anybody can have him. have a relationship with him.
I love you, Lord.
" Read Hebrews 12 this morning. For consider him, consider Jesus, who endured such hostility from sinners against himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls. " You think you have it bad? Let me tell you the story of Jesus. The Bible says, you have not yet resisted to bloodshed, striving against sin. Jelly Roll, Jason DeFord, this is his real name.
I don't like calling people by their silly nicknames, but Jason was in prison from a very young age, 16. Jail for aggravated robbery, drug charges, in and out a couple of different times. We were just, maybe an episode or two ago, We talked about Proverbs 27 .6. Faithful are the wounds of a friend. We just did an episode about Alex Preddy in Minnesota, how if he was arrested the first time he got involved in law enforcement, like he should have been, then it could have saved his life. It could have prevented him from being involved in with ICE either a second or a third time, which was the final time before he was killed.
And we talked about how punishment is good. Discipline is good. And I just read this morning. Hebrews 12. First of all, every sermon I've ever heard about Hebrews 12, it's always on the first part about how Jesus is the author and perfecter of our faith. And that's a great part.
But I've never heard a sermon go a little further down in the text. Hebrews 12 .5. And you have forgotten the exhortation which speaks to you as to sons. My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord, nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by him. For whom the Lord loves. He chastens and scourges every son whom he receives.
When you're going through tough times, here's the authors of Hebrew saying, have you forgotten? Have you forgotten? Don't forget that God is in control of everything. Proverbs 3 11 says, my son, do not despise the Lord your God. or be weary of his reproof for the Lord reproves him whom he loves as a father, the son in whom he delights. Chastening from the Lord is love.
Webster's dictionary, 1828. I looked at the word chastening because we don't use that in our normal language. Chastening means to correct by punishing, to inflict pain by stripes or in other manner for the purpose of punishing an offender and recalling him to his duty. to reduce to order or obedience, to restrain, to repress, to correct, to purify by expunging faults, as to chastise a poem. So I imagine you write a poem and then you chastise it by making it better, improving it, cutting out words, purifying it. But to people too, the Lord does that, God does that to us.
Why?
Because he loves us. Back to Hebrews 12 verse seven, if you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons, for what son is there whom a father does not chasten? But if you are without chastening, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate and not sons. " Let's jump to verse 11. Now, no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful. Nevertheless, afterward, it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.
Wow. Jelly Roll, I don't know his entire biography, but clearly he made, he grew up in a terrible home and made bad choices as a youngin, and he paid for it. He was punished properly. And I bet he would say, thank you, God, for the punishment. Thank you for sending me to prison. And Jesus turned his life around.
We all will experience hard times. We will be punished. God is in control. and it's not pleasant in the moment, but it can yield the fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it. Spurgeon said, many believers are deeply grieved because they do not at once feel that they have been profited by their afflictions. Right?
So we had something terrible happen. I've been, I've been chastened by the Lord. Great. Or I mean, terrible, but okay. I get it. Hebrews 12.
Okay, great. Where's my fruit? I'm ready. Ready for the fruit. Ready for the, uh, where are the good times? Imagine if Jason DeFord was like, all right, God, I went to jail a couple of times, but now I'm out.
Where's my Grammy? It's like, nah, it's not. And Spurgeon said, well, you do not expect to see apples or plums on a tree, which you have planted, but a weak, only little children put their seeds into the garden and then expect to see them grow into plants in an hour. But you must trust God that the fruit of righteousness will come. If, if you follow Jesus and have been trained by it, if you learn your lesson, and if you do that, everyone can experience the joy of redemption. Just as Jason DeFord said there, Jesus is for everyone.
And you can experience that joy of redemption. Everyone can the same way that Jason DeFord not only feels it, but knows it. And is so grateful for it that he will go in front of a group of pagans and proclaim the name of Jesus. Mike Slater . locals . com. Transcript and commercial free on the website. Mike Slater . locals .