Join Rick Hughes in this thought-provoking episode of The Flatline as he delves into the concept of the FLOT line, a methodology designed to help Christians build a spiritual defense against life’s adversities. Learn about the spiritual dangers of reversionism and the importance of understanding and implementing God’s unique problem-solving devices in your daily life.
Welcome to the Flatline with your host, Rick Hughes. For the next 30 minutes, you’ll be inspired, motivated, educated, but never manipulated. Now, your host, Rick Hughes.
SPEAKER 01 :
Good morning and welcome to the Flatline. I’m your host, Rick Hughes, and for the next few minutes, stick around. It won’t be long, just about 30 minutes of motivation, some inspiration, education, and always without manipulation because we don’t con people. We’re not seeking money. We’re not trying to sell you any products. We’re just going to give you some information. What you do with it is between you and God, but you’ve got two ends, one to sit with and one to think with. And success in your life is going to depend on which end you use. So I think you know it’s heads you’ll win, but if it’s tails, you’re going to lose. If this is the first time to listen to the FLOT line, you may be wondering what in the world is a FLOT line? Why would anybody name their radio show the FLOT line? FLOT is a military term for Forward Line of Troops. What I’m presenting on this radio show consists of learning God’s 10 unique problem-solving devices that act like a main line of resistance or a forward line of troops in your soul so that if you learn them and use them, that’s the key to it, then you can individually stop the outside sources of adversity before they ever become the inside source of stress. That means there’s a way to live without worrying. There’s a way to live without being afraid. There’s a way to live without being intimidated. There’s a way to live without bitterness and unhappiness and self-pity. It’s called the Christian life. It’s a unique life. It’s a wonderful life. And it’s yours if you want it. But that’s up to you. I mean, you can go on living like you’re living if you’re happy. But I think maybe, just maybe, you might want to hear some of the things I have to say. We base all of our information on scripture. We’re not trying to hustle anything up. And by the way, most of these concepts I learned from my very own pastor many years ago. The flat line was his concept. He taught me how to have a flat line in my soul, how to live like this. That’s what we’re trying to communicate on to you today. So thank you for listening. Hang with me for a few minutes because I want to introduce you to a term this morning that my pastor did coin many years ago. And that term is a term called Reversionism, reversionism, you think, what, what, what? Reversionism, you think, what is that? Well, reversionism describes a Christian who goes down the my way highway in a frantic search for happiness. And as a result, his spiritual progress stalls out and he loses his momentum and then he begins to slide back into his pre-salvation lifestyle. It’s been interesting to watch and notice, I’ve been in the ministry over 50 years and I have seen a lot of movements, I’ve seen a lot of response, even in my own days when I got saved, the people that I was associated with, some of them are no longer to even be found anywhere, and they’re still alive, but they walked away from the Christian life. They got all excited, they got emotionally fired up, and this is something I’m seeing on the internet more and more, spreading around college campuses, is an emotional decision to believe in Christ, and I think it’s probably a real decision. I think many people are accepting Christ as their Savior, but they never go on to live the full Christian life. They never go on to understand what God has for them. That’s where the problem comes in, because God said, I’m looking for people that not only know me, but understand me. And if you’re going to live the Christian life, you understand there’s a process you have to go through. You have to learn the protocol plan of God. Without that, you’re going to be doing all the right things but you’ll be doing them in the wrong way, and they’ll all show up at the judgment seat of Christ as wood, hay, and stubble. It’ll just be a bonfire. It doesn’t glorify anybody, even though they’re the right things, you did them in the wrong way. By that I mean you can do it in the energy of the flesh, and that’s called human good, or you can do it under the power of the Holy Spirit, and that’s called divine good. And it is divine good that’s rewardable. It is divine good that God appreciates, and it is divine good that glorifies the Lord Jesus Christ. So these Christians that I’m talking about, they get saved, maybe in an emotional movement, in a large congregation, maybe in a crusade. But four, five, six years later, you can’t find them anywhere, and they’ve gone back into the world. But they’re still saved. They’re going to heaven. That’s not the problem. The problem is they never grew to spiritual maturity in their life. So remember, as a Christian, I want to remind you of this this morning. We have three different enemies trying to slow us down, three different enemies trying to capture our thoughts. The first one is called the world in the Bible. And we are commanded in 1 John 2, 15, do not love the world nor the things in the world because if anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. Loving the world is the cosmic system, is Satan’s world. The cosmic system will offer you a mirage. It’ll tell you this is where happiness is, and it’s not. You can have all the money in the world and still not be happy. You can read about lottery winners that won a lot of money and they’re not happy. Movie stars, celebrities that have been rich and they’re not happy. Even Elvis Presley said, no, I’m lonely. I’m not happy. And so what is the world? The world is the lure of the world, the mirage of the world, the mirage like a desert, telling you, come over here and do this and you’ll be happy. Come over here and do that and you’ll be happy. And that’s not true. That’s a lie. Jesus Christ himself said, happiness belongs to those people who hear my Father’s word and keep it. But you can get caught up in the details of life, chasing the details of life in the lure of the world. I love to fish. Fishing was always one of my hobbies. And, uh, you know, topwater bait, especially when you try to twitch, twitch, twitch it around and make a little frog, jump around and make a little sputter, fog, jump around and a bass to come up and get interested in it and snap it. Well, that’s the way the lure of the world is. Everything twitches around in front of you and you think, oh, I need that. Oh, I need that. Oh, I need that. And when you get it, you’re hooked and you’re not happy. So the world you’re worn, look out. The world is there. The world is luring you. The world is a distraction. There’s nothing wrong with being successful in life. There’s nothing wrong with having a good career and nothing wrong with having a good marriage and a good family and a good business and a good job. But that’s not where happiness is. Don’t love the world. Don’t fall in love with the world. The Bible says we love God because God first loved us. And I tell you, you can’t love somebody you don’t know. You understand that. If you don’t understand God, you’ll never love him. You may have an emotional attachment to him, but you won’t love him because you don’t understand him. The second enemy you have is called the flesh, Galatians 5, 17. The flesh fights or wars or lusts against the spirit and the spirit against the flesh. And these are contrary one to the other so that you cannot do the things that you wish. That’s why you feel like two different people. Some days you feel like a nut, some days you don’t. That’s right. There’s two of you inside there. There’s the sin nature, the old man that was always there from the day you were born, and there’s the new man in Christ Jesus where the Holy Spirit now resides, and your life is determined, your happiness is determined, your day has to be determined by which one you’re going to let control your life. Are you going to let the flesh control your life and the lust of the flesh like power lust, ego lust, money lust, sexual lust, alcohol lust, drug lust, Are you going to let that control your life or will you allow the Holy Spirit to control your life? Because the Bible clearly says be filled with the Spirit. The Bible clearly says walk in the Spirit and you won’t fulfill the lust of the flesh. So the flesh is a genuine enemy that you have. And if you’re not very careful, you’ll fall back into the patterns of your lust patterns of the flesh. And the third enemy you have to be aware of is a.k.a. Oh, Mr. Devil. Ephesians 6.11 says, put on the whole armor of God so you can be able to stand against the strategy of the devil. He has a strategy for you. What does that mean? It means he knows your weaknesses. He knows your attractions and things you shouldn’t be into, and he knows how to tempt you. And so keep in mind, he’s not omnipresent. He cannot be in Asia and America at the same time. But he does have a G2 operation, and they do know who you are. and they are able to tempt you, but why would they fool with tempting you if you can’t get past the lure of the world? If you can’t get past the lust of the flesh, why would Satan worry with you? You’re never gonna glorify God because you’re falling victim to those two things. But if you overcome the world, if you overcome the flesh, then maybe, just maybe, you better understand the strategy of Satan in regards to you in Ephesians 6, 11 through 17. So with these three enemies I’m talking about, They will attack your daily thinking, and it’s not unusual for many young believers to be blindsided and distracted from ever growing up and becoming spiritually mature individuals. I saw that in my life as a Christian when I got saved. Many of those that were saved with me in that same time never grew up. They just walked away from it eventually and went down the my way highway. So thank goodness for the grace of God that has provided a way for you and I to overcome these temptations. The grace of God has provided a way for you and I to overcome these distractions. And Galatians 5, 16 says, I say then walk in the spirit and you will not, you will not fulfill the lust of your flesh. So if you use rebound problem solving advice, number one, when you sin, remember this, when you sin, you break fellowship with God. When you sin, you quench the Holy Spirit and you grieve the Holy Spirit. And we’re told to rebound our sin. In 1 John 1, 9, if we confess our sin, he’s faithful and just to forgive us of our sin and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. That’s you rebounding. When you name your sin, you’re rebounding. Some people say, I can’t keep up with all of my sins. Nobody can, but remember the verse said, if you’ll name them, he’ll cleanse you from all unrighteousness. And I would suggest you don’t wait till you go to bed at night. If you sin at 8.05 in the morning, You should confess that sin to God at 8.06 in the morning. Don’t worry about trying to confess it to somebody else. You are your own believer priest. You can approach the throne of God because you are in Christ Jesus, and he’s your high priest. So you must rebound when you sin. And if you will, then you will allow the Holy Spirit to control your life. And you may be in and out of fellowship all day long, like getting out of a car, driving around town. You get in and out several times a day. It’s possible that a Christian gets in and out of fellowship several times a day. The ones that get into reversionism or start going backwards are the ones that don’t rebound, the ones that fail to name their sin and stay filled with the Holy Spirit. But with the mentorship of the Holy Spirit and the guidance from the living Word of God, and remember what the Bible says, the Word of God is living, it’s powerful, it’s sharper than a two-edged sword, and it pierces even to the division of the soul and the spirit and the joints and the marrow. and is a critic of thoughts and intents of the heart. That’s Hebrews 4.12. With the mentorship of the Holy Spirit and the guidance from the living word of God, then the believer, you and I, we can and we should be able to glorify God to the maximum by reaching spiritual maturity and replicating the life of Jesus Christ and representing him to a lost world. So the issue for each one of us boils down to one simple word. It’s a word you’re not going to like because it’s a word you hadn’t liked all your life. You resented it. It’s a word called authority. That’s right, authority. The issue boils down to the authority of the scriptures and our volitional decisions to whether or not we will be obedient to the instructions and the commands and the word of God. Authority is the issue. There is great protection. There’s great insight and great blessing from knowing and using the scriptures. Because our Lord said in Luke 11, 27, happiness belongs to those who hear my Father’s word and keep it. I said it twice to emphasize that. Third time, happiness belongs to those who hear my Father’s word and keep it. When I trusted Christ in 1967, I was given a small New Testament Bible. And I was told to read the book of John. I did that. And I was fascinated by how much in there it sounded like me. But I did not realize at that time just how fantastic my life could be if I would allow God’s word to be my authority and guide me in my life. Unfortunately, many of my early Christian friends that I’ve been telling you about did not have that same hunger for the scripture that I had. And today, many of them, I can name them, they’ve drifted back into the cosmic system looking for happiness, looking for fulfillment in the wrong places. And yes, they’re saved. Yes, they’re going to heaven. That’s not the problem. But no, they do not possess the happiness and the joy that our Lord spoke about in John 15, 11. In John 15, 11, these things I’ve spoken to you so that my joy may remain in you and your joy may be full. That’s the title of our newest book, These Things. It refers to our Lord Jesus Christ’s farewell message to the disciples the last night he was with them after communion and before he got arrested. These things includes about 12 or 13 major Bible doctrines you need to read and understand. So whenever a Christian deviates from God’s plan, they usually go down one or two ways. The deviation is much like deserting the cause. And it can be brought about by a lot of different things, like failure to rebound, like personal sin, you know, people, conflicts in a local church, people, conflicts in a local church, family demands. I mean, whatever it is, it will pull them away from God’s will for their life. And they desert the cause. They go in reverse. Instead of going forward, they back up. And sometimes they abandon everything they’ve heard and become completely licentious. That means they ignore all of God’s rules concerning sexual deviation and criminality and everything. They just forget everything and do whatever they want to do. And sometimes it could be the opposite. They’re not necessarily licentious but may be legalistic. They might try to go the other way and get into extreme legalism. And here they try to earn God’s approval by giving up something or denying some legitimate activity and calling them sinful. and judging and maligning others who do such activities. Either way, they allow themselves to be distracted and defeated by Satan. So if you’re around somebody that’s sticking their nose in your business, telling you, that’s a sin, brother. You shouldn’t smoke that cigarette. That’s a sin, brother. You shouldn’t eat that chicken. That’s a sin, brother. You shouldn’t drink that Coke. Leave them alone and get away from them. They’re legalistic. They may be saved. They may be going to heaven, but they’re trying to impress God with the way they live and they’re trying to manipulate you to live like they live. Leave them alone, get away from them. That’s where organized religion is full of that kind of stuff. Instead of having some sort of fantastic lifestyle, these individuals I’m talking about that either go to licentiousness or legalism, they revert to a former state, a former habit, a former belief, a former practice, the way they lived before they got saved. And so they’re living in reverse. They’re allowing their sin nature to take control, And it becomes the authority in their life instead of the authority of the scriptures. It might even appear they were never even saved. You may think to yourself, if they was really saved, he wouldn’t do that. Listen to Ephesians 4.18. Having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the hardness of their hearts. This is what happens when you get negative volition. You build up scar tissue in your life. You begin to be ignorant of the plan of God, ignorant of what God’s will is because your heart gets hard towards God. In Proverbs 27, 19, as water reflects a face, so a person’s heart reflects who he really is. What you really are is what’s going on in your heart. Not the one that beats blood, not the cardiac thing I’m talking about, but your mind. That’s what the Bible’s talking about. Your cardia is upstairs between your ears. That’s where you really live. That’s who you really are. What you really are is in your thought life, in your stream of consciousness. And the way you act is nothing more than a reflection of what goes on between your ears or in your thoughts. So what about you? What goes on in your head? What authority do you take your orders from? Because you’re taking them from somebody. What authority do you take your orders from? Do you take your orders from your flesh and the lust of your flesh? Or do you take your orders from the lure of the world? Or have you bought into Satan’s lie? Hook, line, and sinker. What about it? Where do you take your orders from? That’s a legitimate question I have to ask you today. And you have to answer that. You should. Because if it’s any of these things, I can assure you, you will live life in a frantic search for happiness. And you may even die with many regrets. Because once you check into your eternal state, you’re going to discover what a sucker you had been. And you’ll also discover something amazing, that through everything you did, God never did abandon you, and he always loved you even to the end. So it’s much better to get it straight now and get straight and not have to show up in heaven embarrassed. In John 8, 32, the Bible says, you shall know the truth, which is Bible doctrine, and the truth shall make you free spiritually, free from the lust of the flesh, free from the lure of the world, free from the power of Satan, if you have the word of God as your authority and your soul. In Psalm 119, verse 45, I will walk in my freedom, because I seek your word, I seek your doctrines. In Galatians 5.1, it’s for freedom that Christ set me free. Keep standing fast and do not become entangled again in the yoke of slavery. That’s living in the cosmic system under the lure of the world, under the lust of the flesh, under the devices of Satan. You’re free from that if you use your authority of the scriptures. So it’s a fantastic life awaits you if you submit to the authority of God’s word. That simply means you learn it and you use it. Listen to what the Bible says about the scriptures and what’s commanded to you. In 2 Timothy 2.15, be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a workman who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. Be faithful, be diligent, be persistent to present yourself approved to God. If you can be approved, you can be disapproved. Do you understand that? A worker, one of God’s children who does not need to be ashamed. Where does that come in? Ashamed. When will you be ashamed? At the judgment seat of Christ when you find out all those good deeds you did are burned up as wood, hay, and stubble. You’re not going to be sitting there clapping and saying, oh, goody, what a great Christian I was. You’re going to be saying, what an idiot I was. I can’t believe I never took the scriptures seriously. I didn’t listen to the word of God. I went down that my way highway and I lived the way I wanted to live. I was my own authority, you’ll say to yourself, because that’s the question. Who is your authority? Who is it? Who is your authority? We’re told by Paul in 2 Timothy 3.16 that all scripture, every word of scripture is breathed by God. All scripture is given by the inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness. That means from the book of Genesis to the book of Revelation. All of it is for you, it’s for you. And the word of God is alive and powerful. It’s your authority. It’s profitable. It can reprove your actions. It can show you your mistakes. And it can give you instructions in your life. All these sayings are for your very own benefit. And yet, for some reason or another, only you can explain, you continue to submit to the authority of your flesh. You continue to submit to the authority of the world. Or perhaps you brought into the live religion And you practice do-goodism as a way to turn God on and appease God. I hope not. If you want to actually have real happiness in this devil’s world, then perhaps you need to hear what I’m telling you right now in Proverbs. Listen carefully. Proverbs 3, 1 and 2. My son, do not forget my law. Let your heart keep my mandates. For length of days and a long life and peace they will add to you. Three things. Length of days, long life, and peace they will add to you. In Proverbs 3, 6 through 8, In all your ways acknowledge him, and then he will direct your paths. Do not be wise in your own eyes. Fear the Lord, depart from evil, and it will be health to your flesh. What these verses are telling you is, where’s your authority in life? Verse 3, chapter 3, verse 1 and 2, keep my mandates. That’s the authority of life. If you learn God’s word and keep the mandates of God’s word, you will live a long life and you will live in peace. In Proverbs 3, 6 through 8, if you will acknowledge him, that’s submit yourself to the authority of the word of God, then he will guide you, direct your paths. Don’t be dumb. Don’t be wise in your own eyes. That’s the arrogant individual who thinks he knows more than God knows. Fear the Lord, that’s respect the word of God, and depart from evil. God’s plan for you is to get away from Satan’s plan of evil, and it will be health to your flesh. These verses guarantee you something called longevity, longevity of life and a good health. But suppose you found a better way. What’s that going to cost you? Oh, well, I found a better way to live a long time. I found this product or I found that product or I found this person or that person and they’re helping me to live a longer, better life. What’s it costing you? That’s the question. Because all this stuff I told you doesn’t cost you one single dime. Just don’t forget his word. Keep his mandates and you will live a long life and you’ll have peace. And if you’ll acknowledge his direction, he’ll guide you and he will keep you healthy. It will be health to your flesh. Verse 8, Proverbs 3. So listen again. Here’s why you don’t need to go to a better way. This is the way. Proverbs 3.13, happiness belongs to the man who finds wisdom. This is the word of God. For her proceeds, that’s wisdom, the word of God, are better than the profits of silver, and her gain, wisdom, is better than fine gold. Wisdom is more precious than rubies, and all the things you may desire cannot compare with wisdom. Length of days is in her right hand, there you go, and in her left hand, riches and honor, isn’t that what you want? Her ways are the ways of pleasantness. That’s what you want. You don’t want to be in conflict all the time. And in her path is peace. She, that’s wisdom, is a tree of life to those who take hold of her. And happiness belongs to all that retain her. That’s wisdom. Wisdom is insight, understanding, and discernment related to the word of God. The word of God becomes your authority in your life. These verses guarantee you a wonderful, long, peaceful, healthy lifestyle forever. When you put yourself under the umbrella of God’s authority, and you step out from under that authority, you’re going to be assaulted by the storms of life. But God’s plan offers you protection. Isaiah 54, 17. No weapon formed against you will ever prosper. And every tongue which rises against you in judgment, you will condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is from me, says the Lord. Isaiah 54, 17. That’s the protection of the word of God. The authority of the word of God provides peace for you, 2 Thessalonians 3, 16. Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace, always in every way. And then the word of God, the umbrella of protection, provides for you a purpose, Jeremiah 29, 11. For I know the thoughts that I think towards you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace, not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. All of this is for you to enjoy. If, if, if you submit to the authority of the word of God, and if you obey the mandates of the word of God. But if you fail to do so, that means you’re gonna stand alone in the devil’s world, you’re gonna be a personal disaster, and you’re gonna be miserable, self-centered believer, never taking responsibility for any of your decisions. So it’s your choice. Please confess your negative volition. Please begin to use those 10 problem-solving devices Please get under the ministry of a well-qualified pastor, either face-to-face or maybe using some streaming study for your own benefit, for your own protection. Come home to God. Come home to God. Let him direct your path before you waste any more days in the cosmic system. It’s there. It’s for you. So what is your authority in your life? Who is your authority? The world, the flesh, or the devil? Or the scriptures? I hope you’re listening. I really hope you’re paying attention. And I hope you’ll come back with me next week, same time, same place. Until then, this is your host, Rick Hughes, saying thank you for listening to The Flatline.
SPEAKER 02 :
Thank you for listening to The Flatline with your host, Rick Hughes. If you’d like to contact Rick, please write to him at P.O. Box 100, Cropwell, Alabama, 35054. Or online at www.rickhughesministries.org.
