Exposing the Counterfeit Bride: Ep 2: When Men Replace Christ as Head

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Music.

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Welcome to the Diary of a Black Woman podcast with your host,

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Connie Morris, where healing has a voice and truth is no longer silent.

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Father God, like Jabez, we cry out that thou would bless us indeed.

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Bless every woman listening beyond trauma, beyond limits, beyond what she thought

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was possible. Enlarge her territory.

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Expand her purpose. Let your hand be upon this moment.

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Saturate every word with oil and truth. break cycles, cancel every curse sent

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to silence her. This isn't just a podcast.

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This is holy ground. In Jesus' name, amen.

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Welcome back to the Diary of a Black Woman podcast, episode two,

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Church Chronicles, The Head, Christ Replaced with Man.

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I'm your host, Connie Morris, and today we're stepping into the second part

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of the series, removing the cover, exposing the counterfeit bride.

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Last time we started with the whisper.

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Today we move to the head because Christ is no longer the head of the church.

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When Christ is no longer the head of the church, everything falls out of order.

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The Bible makes it plain.

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Colossians 1.18, and he is the head of the body, the church.

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He is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything

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he might have the supremacy.

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Ephesians 5.23 reads, For the husband is the head of the wife,

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as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior.

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And then in Matthew 23.8, But you should not be called rabbi,

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for you have one teacher, and you are all brothers.

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Christ alone is the head of the church, but the counterfeit bride replaces him with a man.

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She bows to personalities instead of the person of Christ.

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She glorifies titles instead of glorifying Jesus.

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She trades the supremacy of Christ for the supremacy of celebrity.

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And the Lord is crying out, where is my bride? The bride who knows my voice,

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who follows no other, who exalts me and me alone.

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The head, Christ replaced with man. When Christ is removed as the head,

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the church becomes a body out of order.

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Imagine a body trying to move without a brain, without direction,

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without life flowing from the head. That's what happened when pastors,

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prophets, apostles, and teachers take the place.

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That belong to Christ alone. And the Lord is grieved.

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He says in John 10, 27, my sheep listen to my voice. I know them and they follow me.

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But in counterfeit churches, the people don't follow the shepherd's voice.

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They follow the man in the pulpit.

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They treat the leader's word as law, even when it contradicts God's word.

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This is idolatry in disguise.

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Titles become thrones. Pastors become celebrities.

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Leaders become untouchable while Christ becomes optional.

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And when this happens, the church is no longer the bride.

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It's a stage play where the spotlight is on man.

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The heart of God cries out, where is my bride?

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The bride who lifts up my name above every other name.

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The bride who remembers when I am the sheep shepherd.

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And every pastor, every leader is only an under shepherd. Family, do you feel this grief?

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Because what's happening in many pulpits today is not leadership, it's lordship.

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Leaders are being exalted as if they are the Savior.

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But there's only one Savior, only one bridegroom, only one head of the church,

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and that is Jesus Christ.

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And when man takes a place, the people suffer.

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Abuse flourishes, manipulation grows, blind loyalty replaces true discipleship,

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and the Lord says, I will not share my glory with another.

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So he's removing the cover. He's exposing pulpits that has become thrones.

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He's pulling down idols that wear suits and collars because he wants his bride

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back. He wants his church to bow to Christ.

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Alone and not to man. Where is my bride?

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God whispered to me, they have decapitated my church. They have cut off their

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head and put themselves in my place. Do you feel the weight of that?

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Instead of pointing people to the bridegroom, counterfeit leaders seduce the

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bride into serving them.

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They sell access to their presence, their prayers, their platform.

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They brand themselves above the name of Jesus.

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The pulpit becomes a throne. The pastor becomes a celebrity and the people become

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fans instead of disciples.

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This is spiritual treason. To remove Christ's head is to remove life itself.

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And the cry of the bridegroom thunders through the earth. Where is my bride.

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My bride knows my voice, not another. John 10, 27.

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My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.

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My bride submits to Christ not man's ego. Matthew 23, 8.

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One is your master, even Christ. All ye are brethren.

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My bride exhausts the bridegroom, not herself.

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John 3, 30. he must increase and I must decrease.

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Where is my bride? Not the one who bows to men as gods, not the one who builds

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kingdoms for personalities.

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Not the one who turns pulpits into platforms of pride, but the bride who follows me and me alone.

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The charge to the church. So let's bring this closer because it's easy to hear

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about counterfeit leaders out there and forget to ask, what about us? What about me?

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Who's really the head of my life? Who's really the head of my church?

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So here's how we discern if Christ has truly remained the head or if man has taken its place.

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Number one, examine the pulpit.

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Is the message centered on Christ or centered on the man's preaching it?

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Does the word exalt Jesus or does it magnify personalities, titles, and brands.

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A pulpit that glorifies man is a pulpit out of order.

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Test the loyalty. Are people devoted to Jesus or to their leader?

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If a leader's word is followed even when it contradicts scripture,

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that's not discipleship. It's idolatry.

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True sheep follow the shepherd's voice, not the ego of men.

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Number three, watch the glory. Where is the honor going?

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To Christ, the bridegroom, or to man, the stage, the life, the ministry name?

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Isaiah 42, 8 reminds us, I am the Lord. That is my name.

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I will not yield my glory to another or my praise to idols.

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Number four, check your own heart. It's not just about the puppet.

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It's about us. Have we exalted pastors above Christ?

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Do we run more quickly to a man or woman for answers than we do to the Lord?

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Who really sits on the throne of our hearts? Family, this is a charge.

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Return to your first love. Tear down the idols of personality cults.

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Honor leaders, yes, but worship only Christ.

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Follow shepherds, yes, but never forget there is only one head,

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one bridegroom, one Savior, Jesus.

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The counterfeit bride bows to the man. The true bride bows to Christ alone.

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Let's pray. Father, we come before you with a repentant heart.

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Forgive us, Lord, where we have exalted men above you. Forgive us for turning

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popes into thrones and leaders into idols.

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Forgive us for bowing to titles instead of bowing to the name above all names, Jesus.

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Lord, we declare today, you alone are the head of the church.

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Strip away every counterfeit covering, every false headship,

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every stone that has been erected in your house.

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Bring your church back under your authority, your voice, and your leadership.

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We intercede for those caught in blind loyalty. Open their eyes,

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Lord. Break the chains of manipulation.

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Remind them that the shepherd's voice still calls them home.

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And now I speak these decrees.

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We decree that Christ is the only head of the church.

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We decree no man, no woman, no leader will ever take his place in my life.

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We decree I will follow his voice and not the voice of strangers.

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And we decree the bride will rise in purity, refusing to bow to man,

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but exalting Christ alone.

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In Jesus' name, amen. Today we heard the cry of the bridegroom.

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Where is my bride?

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The bride who will not bow to man, who will not replace Christ with personalities,

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who will not allow puppets to become thrones, the bride who follows him and him alone.

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As you go through this week, ask yourself, who is really the head of my life?

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Who is really the head of my church?

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If the answer isn't Christ, it's time to return to your first love.

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Thank you for joining me today on the Diary of Black Women podcast, Church Chronicles.

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If this word stirs something in your spirit, share it with someone who needs

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to be reminded that Jesus and Jesus alone is the head of the church.

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You can always connect with me on diaryofblackwomenloc.com

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or by email at diaryofblackwomenpodcast at gmail.com.

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You don't want to miss the next episode of this series. It's titled The Eyes, Vision Blinded.

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We're going to talk about what happens when church loses their spiritual sight,

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chasing ambition instead of kingdom, and how God is restoring vision to His true bride.

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So next time, remember healing, truth, and faith are found in Christ alone.

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This is your host, Connie Moore, signing off for love, strength,

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and a touch of class. And I'll see you on the next episode.

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Thank you for listening to this episode. And before we close out,

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I want to speak a word of promise over you from Jeremiah 29, 11 through 14.

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Father God, you declared, I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper

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you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

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So today, we receive that truth.

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You said when we call on you, you will listen. So we pray.

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You said that when we seek you with our hearts, you will be found. So we pursue.

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You said you will restore us from captivity. So we declare freedom over every

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place where our listeners feel stuck, silenced, or small.

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Thank you for always drawing near when we show up in faith. In Jesus' name, amen.

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Music.