In episode 161 of the “No Doubt, No Fear, Only Believe” podcast, host Greg Ryan delivers a sermon‑style teaching that frames the Christian life as a trek up a spiritual mountain with nine “stops.” The final stop, “Well done, my good and faithful servant,” represents the ultimate reward of hearing Christ’s commendation at the judgment seat. Ryan weaves together key biblical passages—Philippians 3:12, Romans 14:10, 2 Corinthians 5:5, 1 Corinthians 3:11‑15, 1 Corinthians 13, and John 15:9—to illustrate four intertwined themes: (1) the necessity of pressing toward the goal of Christ’s approval; (2) the reality of standing before the judgment seat of Christ and the accountability it entails; (3) the importance of discovering one’s gifting and role within the body of Christ, using animal metaphors to illustrate spiritual temperament; (4) the imperative that every work, foundation, and relationship be built on Jesus and motivated by love. Ryan emphasizes that love is the “key to every stop” and that without it, all other spiritual achievements profit nothing. He concludes with a heartfelt prayer, a call for listeners to immerse themselves in Scripture for true freedom, and an invitation to continue the journey together.
Welcome to episode 161, In the Beginning Was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God, and the Word became flesh and dwelt among us. Spending time in the Word of God is the best way to spend time with God. Welcome to No Doubt, No Fear, Only Believe podcast, where we will encourage, inspire, and empower you to live your best life in Christ. Here's Greg.
Welcome to episode 161. Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Well, we are officially finishing the race up of the mountain, and we are at the final stop, which is, "Well done, my good and faithful servant." And I put that at the very top of the mountain because I believe, really, I think that's what everybody that listening to my voice, if you are a Christian, if you've accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, I believe that that is is what most people want to hear from their God. When you're standing before the Lord Jesus, to be absent of the body is to be present with the Lord. That is what happens when you die and you are standing in front of God the Father and his Son, and the Holy Spirit is right there. And you want to hear, well done, my good and faithful servant. And I know I may be imposing what I believe on you right here. I don't know, I can't— I haven't talked to many people that told me, no, you know, that don't, that don't resonate with me. Yeah, I think you're going to want to hear that from Father God. If you are a faithful follower, a fanatic of Jesus, you're going to want to hear, attaboy, when you get here, attagirl, when you get in front of Father God. And so that's why I put that at the very top of the mountain, and it's called finishing the race. It's what Paul had talked about, Philippians 3:12, not that I have already attained or am already perfected, but I press on that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. This is a key scripture because if you're trying to figure out how to hear, well done, my good and faithful servant, at the end, we need to figure out why we are here. And that goes back all the way down to the third stop on the mountain, is find our place in the body of Christ. It ought to be a, an important stop and an important search. You need to take the time to try to figure out where you fit in in the body of Christ, and that will tell you what your giftings are. That'll tell you what your talents— and as we talked about on the third stop, your spiritual animal and what, where you are in the body of Christ, or how God made you and what kind of elevates you, like if you're an eagle, you're soaring, or if you're power and authority like the lion, or the ox for service. If you know early on what it is or why God made you or why he put you in this body, then it's gonna be a whole lot easier to figure out what you're supposed to be doing with your Christian walk. And that's the whole purpose of this trek up the mountain because each one of us is gonna stand before God, 'cause each one of us, none of us are getting out of this thing alive. So our goal, our ultimate goal should be, and we should think about, hey, we're gonna die. We're gonna stand before God at the end of our lives or at the rapture, and we're gonna have to answer for everything that we said, everything that we did, and all that we did for him and all that we did for ourselves. This is called the judgment seat of Christ, and we pick that up in Romans 14:10, But why do you judge your brother? Or why do you show contempt for your brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. For it is written, As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God. So then each of us shall give account of himself to God. And let's go to 2 Corinthians 5, and we'll start at 5. 5:5. Now he who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who also has given us the Spirit as a guarantee. So we are always confident, knowing that while we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord. For we walk by faith, not by sight. We are confident, yes, well pleased rather, to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord. Therefore we make it our aim, whether present or absent, to be well pleasing to him. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body according to what he has done, whether good or bad. Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men, but we are well known to God, and I also trust are well known in your conscience. And as we're trying to pull all this together in the final episode, it is also about laying the— on the foundation. We're talking about being in the right spot in the body of Christ. But also building on the right and correct foundation and building with the correct type of building material. And let's go to 1 Corinthians, and we're going to start 3:11. For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each one's work will become clear, for the day will declare it. Because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test each one's work of what sort it is. If anyone's work which was— has been built on it endures, he will receive a reward. If anyone's work is burned up, he will suffer loss, but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire. Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? And I want to stop there for a minute, and I just want to talk about laying on that foundation and then building with the proper material. And that's what's going to get us to well done. And if we wrap it all up, one big package, we've got to do this in love. And I got to go one more time, we got to go to 1 Corinthians 13, the love chapter. 1 Corinthians 13: Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels but have not love, I have become a sounding brass or clanging cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith So that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing. Paul goes into describing what love is, and that's the part that I memorized, that love is patient and love is kind. And I'm not going to continue to read that, but I just want you to think of all of the stuff that we've talked about. If we do not do all of these things in love, God is love, and if we don't wrap all this up into love, I want you to hear this last part, that even though I give my body to be burned but have not love, it profits me nothing. So if you're doing all this thing, this Christian walk, and you're walking through this life and you don't love people, the way I read this is when you get to stand in front of Father God, it's gonna profit you nothing. And so I just want to tell you, in all of this walk up the mountain of God, I want you to take every step in love. And sometimes that gets a little touchy-feely for us guys. I don't really know, but that's why I think God had me memorize what love is. And that's why I want to continue to read in 1 Corinthians 13:4 and 7. Love is patient and is kind. Love does not envy. Love does not parade itself, it is not puffed up, does not behave rudely, does not seek his own, is not provoked, thinks no evil, does not rejoice in iniquity but rejoices in the truth, bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails. So if you're gonna walk in love, you're gonna have to be patient and kind. Love is the key to every stop on this mountain. If you have not love, it profits you nothing. Things. So I just want to encourage you to get out there and love one another. And let's finish up this episode with John 15:9. As the Father loved me, I also have loved you. Abide in my love. If you love my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love. These things I have spoken to you that my joy may remain in you and that your joy may be full. This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends. And I just want to leave you with that thought, that if we are going to love one another, we are going to have to lay down our lives for our friends. And each one of you is a friend, and each one— I am daily laying my life down here for you. Sound overly dramatic, but for 10 or 15 minutes a day when I record these messages, I it is exactly for you. I can read the Bible and I can teach other people the Bible. I am specifically doing this podcast for you, the listener, and I hope and I pray that you would continue to grow in the Bible and that you would get a— just get a hunger for the Word of God. Just get into the Bible and learn the truth, because that is where you will get true freedom, is know the truth and then the truth will make you free. That's John 8:32. Well, let's pray. God, I thank you so much for this person listening. I thank you that you help us get to the top of your mountain. And Lord, I thank you for each stop. Lord, there is something to learn at each stop. And Lord, each stop is connected together, and not one stop— it's not in a specific order. But as we go up the mountain, that our specific goal is to hear from you, "Well done." God, I pray that you would help us to see the end from the beginning, see things like you see things. God, your ways are not our ways, but you see everything from the end, from the beginning. And Lord, we— help us to seek first your kingdom and your righteousness, then be added to us all the other things in life. God, we thank you, we love you, we ask it all in Jesus' name. Amen. Well, thank you for being a part of this, and I look forward to visiting with you on the next episode.
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