Exposing the Counterfeit Bride: Ep 4: The Ears, Itching for Lies

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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, family, to the Diary of a Black Woman podcast.

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Church Chronicles, episode four, The Ears, Itching for Lies.

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I'm your host, Connie Morris, And today we're continuing our journey through

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removing the cover, exposing the counterfeit bride.

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We've heard the whisper of counterfeit churches. We've exposed the head being

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replaced by man. We've uncovered the blindness of the church bride's eyes.

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And now the Spirit of God is pulling back the cover on the ears of the bride.

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The Bible tells us plainly in 2 Timothy 4, verses 3 and 4, For the time will

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come when people will not put up with sound doctrine.

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Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number

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of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.

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They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myth.

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John 10, verse 27 tells us that my sheep listen to my voice.

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I know them and they follow me.

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And then in Jeremiah 5, verse 31, the prophets prophesy lies.

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The priests rule by their own authority and my people love it this way.

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But what will they do in the end?

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The bride was meant to recognize the voice of her bridegroom,

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to follow him and him alone. but in counterfeit churches, her ears have grown dull.

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Instead of longing for truth, she craves comfort.

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Instead of heeding correction, she pays for entertainment.

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Instead of listening to the shepherd, she gathers teachers to tell her what she wants to hear.

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And the Spirit of the Lord says, the ears of the bride was meant to be tuned

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in to the voice of the bridegroom. My sheep listen to my voice.

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I know them and they follow me, John 10, 27.

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But instead of listening for his whisper, unoffent churches have developed.

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Itching ear. Well, what does that mean? It means they don't want truth.

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They want comfort. They don't want conviction.

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They want entertainment. They don't want holiness.

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They want hype. Apostle Paul warns us in 2 Timothy chapter 4,

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the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine.

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We see here that the people will not put up with it.

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So instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great

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number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.

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They will turn their ears away from truth and turn aside to myths.

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And family, that time isn't coming. It is here.

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You can hear it in sermons that never mention sin, repentance, or the cross.

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You can hear it in messages that promises blessing without obedience,

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prosperity without purity, and favor without faithfulness.

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People flock to churches.

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People flock to voices that soothe. They flee from voices that correct.

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Jeremiah 5.31 says it plainly, The prophet prophesies lies.

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The priests rule by their own authority. And my people love it this way.

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But what will you do in the end?

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This is a danger of itching ears. It feels good in the moment,

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but it leads to destruction in the end.

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Because when the bride stops listening to the bridegroom, she loses her direction.

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She becomes vulnerable to deception, tossed back and forth by every smooth talker

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who knows how to tickle her ears.

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And the Lord says the counterfeit bride pays for lies, but refuses the truth.

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Where is my bride, cries the bridegroom.

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Where is my bride who loves truth even when it cuts?

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Where is my bride who treasures my word more than the applause of men?

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Where is my bride who leans in to hear my whisper instead of chasing voices that flatter her flesh?

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Proverbs 23, 20, and do not sell it. Wisdom, instruction, and insights are well.

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John 8.32 reminds us, Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.

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My bride does not rent her ears to every prophet for profit.

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My bride does not crave lies that soothe while her soul is starving.

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My bride does not despise correction.

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For she knows correction is love. Where is my bride?

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Not the one who demands sugar when she needs salt.

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Not the one who gathers false teachers like trophies.

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Not the one who mocks holiness because it doesn't fit her desires.

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But the bride who loves the shepherd's voice, who says, Speak,

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Lord, for your servant is listening.

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1 Samuel 3.9.

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Guarding your ears. The ears of the bride our gates.

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What you let in will shape what you believe, how you walk, and who you will follow.

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And that's why the Lord is calling us to guard our ears and tune them back to

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his voice. And here's how to do that.

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Measure every word by scripture.

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Acts 17.11 tells us that the Barians received the message with great eagerness

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and examined the scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.

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If even the Apostle Paul was tested against the word, so must every preacher,

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prophet, evangelist, teacher today.

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Refuse flattery. Romans 16, 18 warns us, by smooth talk and flattery,

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they deceive the mind of the naive people.

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Don't confuse flattery with faith. A true word from God won't always make you

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feel good, but it will make you free.

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Tune out the noise. Not every voice deserves your ear. Just because it's popular doesn't mean it's pure.

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If the message never convicts, never challenges, and never points you to Christ,

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it's not the voice of the bridegroom.

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And finally, number four, practice hearing God for yourself.

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

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Prayer, fasting, and time in the word sharpens your ears. Don't just depend

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on others to hear God for you.

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Cultivate your own intimacy with the shepherd.

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The counterfeit bride chases words that soothe, but the true bride longs for the word that saves.

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She doesn't rent her ear to the highest bidder.

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She reserves them for the bridegroom alone.

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Let's pray. Father, we come before you with a humble heart. Forgive us for every

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time we crave words that soothe us instead of words that sanctify us.

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Forgive us for wrenching our ears to voices that flatter us while ignoring the

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whisper of the shepherd. Cleanse us.

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Lord, cleanse our ears and sharpen our discernment. Teach us to recognize your

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voice in the middle of all the noise.

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Close our ears to deception and open them to truth. Help us to love correction,

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to treasure your word, and to hunger for what is real, even when it cuts.

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And I now decree that we decree my ears are tuned to the voice of my shepherd.

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We decree we will not be soothed by lies that flatter or soothe our flesh.

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We decree we will buy the truth and not sell it. And we decree the bride of

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Christ will love truth, treasure correction, and follow the voice of her bridegroom alone.

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In Jesus' mighty name, amen.

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So family, today we've exposed the ears of the counterfeit bride,

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ears that itch for lies, ears that chase flattery, ears that reject the truth.

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But the cry of the bridegroom is still calling, where is my bride?

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The one who loves truth, even when it cuts. The one who treasures the shepherd's

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voice. The one who says, Lord, your servant is listening.

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This week, I challenge you to guard your ears, test every word by the scripture.

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Refuse the lies of flattery, and lean into intimacy with God so his voice become

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unmistakably in your life.

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

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If this episode spoke to your spirit, share it with someone who needs to stop

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renting their ears to lies and stop listening and start listening for the shepherd's voice.

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You can always connect with me at my website, diaryofblackwomenllc.com or by

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email, diaryofabblackwomenpodcast at gmail.com.

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And don't miss the next episode in this series, The Mouth, Preaching Another Gospel.

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We'll talk about puppets that promise prosperity without purity,

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blessing without repentance, and healing without holiness, and why the bridegroom

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is calling his church back to the true gospel.

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

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This is your host, Connie Morris, signing off with 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 you and not to harm you.

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Plans to give you hope and a future.

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So today we receive that truth. You said when we call on you,

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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.

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So we declare freedom over every place where our listeners feel stuck, silenced, or small.

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

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Music.