Ep 1134 | Uncle Si Thinks Heaven Will Turn Him Into Superman & Building Faith Worth Dying For

Summary

Unashamed with the Robertson Family – Episode 1134
Title: Uncle Si Thinks Heaven Will Turn Him Into Superman & Building Faith Worth Dying For
Release Date: July 28, 2025

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Introduction to Episode Themes

In Episode 1134 of Unashamed with the Robertson Family, hosts Phil, Al, Jase, and Zach Robertson delve deep into profound theological discussions surrounding the death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ. The episode, titled "Uncle Si Thinks Heaven Will Turn Him Into Superman & Building Faith Worth Dying For," combines biblical exegesis with personal testimonies, aiming to inspire listeners to build a faith resilient enough to withstand persecution and adversity.

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Jesus' Death and Resurrection: A Pivotal Moment

The episode opens with Phil Robertson setting the stage for an in-depth discussion on the significance of Jesus predicting His own death. At [01:06], Jase Robertson boldly states, "I am unashamed. What about you?" signaling the episode's commitment to unabashedly sharing Christian faith.

Phil elaborates on the "Son of Man" title Jesus uses to describe Himself, emphasizing its Old Testament roots and prophetic significance. He references Isaiah 52:13 to explain how Jesus' sacrificial death was foretold, stating, "He will be raised and lifted up and highly exalted" [03:52]. This underscores the interconnectedness of Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection as foundational to Christian belief.

Jase adds depth by explaining how the resurrection is crucial, noting, "A lot of religious people end at the cross, which is a mistake. You can't have the Gospel without the resurrection" [05:19]. This highlights the essential nature of Jesus not only dying but also rising, affirming His divine mission and victory over death.

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Theological Insights on the "Son of Man" and Divine Glorification

The conversation deepens as the Robertson family explores the dual identity of Jesus as both the Son of God and the Son of Man. Al Robertson brings in Isaiah 53, connecting prophetic scripture to Jesus' mission: "He was pierced for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities" [19:37]. This linkage reinforces the belief in Jesus' role as a sacrificial servant.

Zach Dasher interjects with reflections on Jesus' ascension, stating, "Jesus ascended bodily and sat down at the right hand of the Father" [08:14], which Al expands upon by describing the theological implications of Jesus' exalted position and ongoing intercession for believers [08:32].

Phil introduces the concept of glorification, citing Isaiah 6: "Father, glorify your name" and God's response, "I have glorified it and will glorify it again" [16:35] [16:32]. This dialogue underscores the perpetual nature of God's glory, even amidst human suffering and misunderstanding.

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Personal Testimonies and Reflections on Martyrdom

The episode shifts to personal reflections as Phil Robertson shares his own journey with weight loss, demonstrating vulnerability and the transformative power of faith [03:00]. This segment, although brief, sets the tone for later discussions on enduring faith through physical and spiritual challenges.

Jase Robertson then transitions back to biblical narratives, discussing how Jesus’ actions exemplify true leadership through sacrifice. He reflects, "Jesus said, No one takes my life, but I give it as a gift for you" [20:57], emphasizing the voluntary nature of Jesus' sacrifice and its implications for believers.

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Guest Segment: Todd Nettleton and Voice of the Martyrs

Midway through the episode, guest Todd Nettleton joins the Robertson family to discuss the critical work of Voice of the Martyrs (VOM). Todd shares his personal background as a missionary’s child and his experiences in Papua New Guinea, detailing how these shaped his passion for supporting persecuted Christians [30:26].

He highlights the mission of VOM, stating, "We talk about the Voice of the Martyrs ministry to persecuted Christians in 70 plus countries. And yes, that is part of our ministry, but part of our ministry is to American Christians to tell the stories so that we can know what's happening with our family around the world" [28:02]. This segment underscores the global scope of Christian persecution and the importance of raising awareness and support.

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Stories of Persecuted Christians: Sister Nada's Testimony

A poignant moment in the episode is the recounting of Sister Nada's story from Iran. Todd describes Nada’s transformation from frustration with her surroundings to a bold declaration of faith: "I would just do the ministry" after overcoming her fears [43:35].

He elaborates on her courage, saying, "She read the story of this persecuted Christian who was courageous, even though they were fearful. And she said that encouraged her" [44:00]. This narrative serves as a powerful testament to the impact of faith in the face of extreme adversity.

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Application and Encouragement to Listeners

Wrapping up the episode, the Robertson family and Todd emphasize the importance of stepping out of comfort zones to share the Gospel. Jase encourages listeners, "Don't make any hay. And you know, that's from the evil one because our whole mission is to declare Jesus as Lord" [51:37].

Todd reinforces this by inviting listeners to support persecuted Christians through practical means like donating to Bible smuggling efforts: "When you buy that hat, you are a Bible smuggler because you funded a Bible to be delivered" [50:30]. This call to action empowers listeners to contribute tangibly to the mission of spreading the Gospel.

Phil concludes with a heartfelt thanks to Todd and Voice of the Martyrs, reminding listeners of the global Christian community and the ongoing struggle for faith amidst persecution: "That's what Voice of the Martyrs is about, is developing that fellowship in the body" [53:00].

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Notable Quotes

• Jase Robertson [01:06]: "I am unashamed. What about you?"
• Phil Robertson [03:52]: "He will be raised and lifted up and highly exalted."
• Jase Robertson [05:19]: "You can't have the Gospel without the resurrection."
• Al Robertson [19:37]: "...he was pierced for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities."
• Zach Dasher [08:14]: "Jesus ascended bodily and sat down at the right hand of the Father."
• Phil Robertson [16:35]: "Father, glorify your name."
• Jase Robertson [20:57]: "No one takes my life, but I give it as a gift for you."
• Todd Nettleton [28:02]: "Voice of the Martyrs ministry to persecuted Christians in 70 plus countries."
• Jase Robertson [51:37]: "Our whole mission is to declare Jesus as Lord."

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Conclusion

Episode 1134 of Unashamed with the Robertson Family weaves together rich theological discourse with real-world applications, highlighting the enduring relevance of Jesus' sacrifice and the ongoing persecution faced by Christians globally. Through heartfelt stories and robust discussions, the Robertson family and their guest Todd Nettleton inspire listeners to embrace a steadfast faith and actively support the spread of the Gospel, no matter the challenges.

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For more inspiring stories and to support persecuted Christians, visit Voice of the Martyrs.

Transcript

[Phil Robertson]

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[Todd Nettleton]

I am unashamed. What about you?

[Phil Robertson]

Welcome back to Unashamed. We, Maddie, our wonderful producer, had a big idea. So since we just got here so fast, we just had a whole.

[Jase Robertson]

We did a podcast that seemed like.

[Phil Robertson]

Five minutes to us. Now was really an hour. So just so you know. But we decided to hold you guys over for a little bit of this, this next podcast because we felt like we got up to the pivotal moment that we've been talking about, and that's the death of Jesus. So thank y' all for coming back for a few more minutes because, you know, on our podcast, we just kind of one discussion picks up from the next one. It's like, Phil, you know, you and I may not talk for weeks, you know, but then when we talk, it's like we picked up the last conversation because you have relationship and friendship. And so in this, we're talking about Jesus predicting his death. And I had loosely mentioned it because I want to get into the name, meaning of names, that this really is a huge moment because when these Greeks, and these are, by the way, probably proselytized Greeks, in other words, they.

[Jase Robertson]

Well, explain that.

[Phil Robertson]

Well, so they became. They were Gentiles, but they became Jews through a purification process. The only reason I think that is because they were there to celebrate Jewish holidays. But they were.

[Jase Robertson]

Where is that, by the way? Called you?

[Phil Robertson]

Zach is on vacation. This. He's on the beach somewhere.

[Jase Robertson]

So he'd be proud that you used the word proselytize.

[Phil Robertson]

It's a hard word to say and.

[Jase Robertson]

Spelled, by the way so they became Jews, but they weren't born right.

[Phil Robertson]

A good example of a proselytized Jew is rahab from Joshua 3. She was. Remember, she was in Jericho, but she saved her whole family because she believed well later she became part of the Jewish heritage because she was in the lineage of Jesus in the physical part. So there's a lot of examples of that. So that's who these guys probably were.

[Jase Robertson]

So just like al. We're all.

[Al Robertson]

The gentiles are all grafted in like wild olives anyway.

[Phil Robertson]

Exactly. Which is Romans 9, 10, 11. So this is a big moment because the Bible doesn't. John just mentions it in like two little verses. In 2022, he said there were some Greeks among those who went up to worship at the feast. This is John 12:20. They came to Philip and we talked about the lover of horses who was from Bethsaida in Galilee with a request. Sir, they said, we would like to see Jesus. Philip went to tell Andrew, which means manliness. Andrew and Philip in turn told Jesus. And it doesn't say anything else. And the whole thing we read last time and talked about was Jesus response to that request. And it was interesting because the Bible, all through the Old Testament, there's these little glimpses that show us that the Gentiles are going to have the opportunity, Isaiah 56 is a great one to show the idea that the Gospel has always been more than just for the Jewish people. I mean, it came through the Jewish nation, but it is for everybody. And aren't we GLAD it is 2,000 years later, here we sit as Gentiles now in the kingdom of God because of these opportunities that were there. And so Jesus response about the Son of Man. The Son of Man came for everybody, not wanting anyone to perish. Peter said in second Peter 2 and 3. So the idea is, it was for all of us and I just this idea. He says the Son of Man must be lifted up, which again uses that same phrase, theology. And the people asked when he said that, they said, well, who is the Son of Man? Yeah, in other words, it's that. Back to that same question.

[Zach Dasher]

Who is he?

[Phil Robertson]

Who is he? Who is the man? Now we've talked about Joseph's phrase before. Must be lifted up. And of course we know he's talking about he was lifted up on a cross, which was, you know, a public execution come up with by the Romans to be the worst possible death you could do. And it was really to shame someone as much as anything else. The idea was you don't want to wind up like one of these guys, you know, you're nailed to a cross, which is basically death by asphyxiation, which.

[Jase Robertson]

A lot of religious people end at the cross, which is a mistake. You can't have the Gospel without the resurrection.

[Phil Robertson]

Exactly.

[Jase Robertson]

And so it's weird that you mentioned that. So a lot. He references isaiah in chapter 12 a couple times, and we can get into that at another podcast, because I did a whole thing on Isaiah, but I did want to read this one. In Isaiah 52:13, he says, See, my servant will act wisely. And he uses Israel as a nation sometimes in Isaiah, referring to the nation of Israel because they were under captivity. Starts off with Assyria. And Assyria was famous for brutality and, you know, think warriors and all that. And also Babylon. So he's writing to them saying, I'm going to give you comfort. But he's also giving you this foreshadowing that Jesus would come and be what Israel should have been as far as reflecting God's faithfulness and promise. But so you have that going on in Isaiah, which is why it's difficult to read. But I think this is fascinating because when it says, see, my servant will act wisely, he will be raised and lifted up and highly exalted. Well, what does that sound like? I mean, how did Isaiah. So that's why the Bible is so fascinating. But just think about that statement. He'll be raised, lifted up. In this case, he has that. Raised and lifted up and highly exalted. I don't think you can take one without the other. So just remember in John 3, right before the most famous verse ever, for God so loved the world. Remember the story about Moses lifting up.

[Phil Robertson]

The snake, the bronze snake?

[Jase Robertson]

What does he say about himself? Just like Moses lifted up, I will be lifted up.

[Phil Robertson]

That's where he first gives us that little clue. But it's more than just the cross, even though that's one implication. Jesus, right? The resurrection and then ascension, because he was raised up, because he literally left the planet.

[Jase Robertson]

Now you're back to that human in the presence of God and representing us. So just think. 1 John 2. When we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense, you're like, well, what's he saying? Just the fact that he's there, a glorified human in the presence of God in our defense, there's a way to make it in the presence of God forever.

[Phil Robertson]

And let's face it, Jay, why do we love Superman so much? Why do they keep making. They just made the 14th Superman in my Lifetime. So.

[Jase Robertson]

Makes me nauseous.

[Phil Robertson]

Why do they keep doing it? You know why? Because he looks like a man, but he can fly.

[Jase Robertson]

Yeah.

[Phil Robertson]

Like, he just.

[Jase Robertson]

There you go.

[Phil Robertson]

He lifts up off the ground.

[Jase Robertson]

They're like, come watch the man. For $18, he's got a red cape.

[Phil Robertson]

But he can fly. You know, he's not really from here.

[Zach Dasher]

Well, no, because you think of that, you know. You know, you know, Jesus ascended bodily and sat down at the right hand of the Father.

[Jase Robertson]

Yeah.

[Al Robertson]

And a cloud hit him from their sight because they were looking up, saying, it's a bird, It's a plant. No, it's Jesus. Jes.

[Jase Robertson]

At the right hand of the Father.

[Zach Dasher]

See? Hey, here's the back to about. Okay. We could not look at God because we had die. Okay. Well, Jesus came so that we could.

[Al Robertson]

See God have that relationship.

[Zach Dasher]

Okay. And now he's up there with the Father. And every time I mess up.

[Jase Robertson]

That's right.

[Zach Dasher]

Jesus just points to his Father and said, hey, put that on my towel.

[Al Robertson]

Father, forgive him.

[Jase Robertson]

Look, I was reading that Isaiah 52, and you literally just quoted the next verse. I read the part where it says, he will. He will be raised and lifted up. And then verse 14 says, Just as there were many who were appalled at him, his appearance was disfigured beyond that of any man. You know, he was just beaten and tortured and put on a cross. So will he sprinkle many nations? There's your point about. He wants everybody.

[Phil Robertson]

Yep.

[Zach Dasher]

Yep.

[Phil Robertson]

So at the end of last year, I realized I had a little bit of a weight issue. So I made this decoration, you know, because I'm always looking for something catchy. And I'm a preacher, so I was like, 60 by 60. Epic fail. You introduced me, thankfully, Zach, to a group called PhD Weight Loss. And Dr. Ashley Lucas is the founder of that. The program has taught me what to eat, when to eat, and also it has worked on my relationship with food to show me how I can lose weight for life. So here's a picture of me if you're looking on. Looking at this on YouTube. And this is me at the beginning of the process. Here I am now, £66 later, 29 weeks into this program. You see, I look a lot better. I feel better. My medications have been cut in half. High blood pressure meds. I'm fully expecting when I get to the end of my journey and start maintenance, I will be off of meds altogether. You know, so I'm healthier. There's no gimmicks, there's no pills. There's no side effects, there's no shots and injections which you know, so many diets have. Now you're not eating rabbit food. I feel full because it's protein healthy, it's low carb and they provide 80% of my weekly food at no extra cost. It's worth investment for your health, also for your long term life. Join me on my weight loss journey. Schedule your one on one consultation today by calling 864-644-1900 or you can visit myphdweightloss.com that's 864-644-1900. Tellem Al Robertson sent you.

[Jase Robertson]

And kings will shut their mouths because of him. Because look, if you're a king who can't die, you're going to be able to overthrow.

[Zach Dasher]

That's why you're every other king.

[Jase Robertson]

Yeah, but watch, look then. But this last verse of Isaiah 52, for what they were not told, they will see. And what they have not heard, they will understand. That's what Jesus is saying. If you've seen me, the naysayers.

[Zach Dasher]

Yep.

[Phil Robertson]

And the reason why. And we didn't even read this section leading into it because there's the triumphal entry which was him coming in on the donkey.

[Jase Robertson]

Right.

[Phil Robertson]

As a king. But remember.

[Jase Robertson]

But that's a good thing to read. Zechariah 9, 9 says that it's predicted and he quotes that. Right. But think about what he's doing. The Son of Man, he's a king, but he's a servant king. So every time you read the Son of Man, what about it says the Son of Man didn't come to be served, but to serve.

[Phil Robertson]

Yeah.

[Jase Robertson]

So that's the part they did, they thought, well, I thought he's going to whoop everybody. And he's like, oh, I'm going to whoop everybody. Yeah, don't worry if they don't trust in me. But I'm first displaying my love. And that's why I think the Bible gets tricky because God does overthrow kingdoms who oppress people. Like the whole book of Revelation is about that which we, we've documented. But no deed is loveless. It's all coming from God's love. And look, I want to read a verse before you comment when you say.

[Zach Dasher]

Okay, but that's why you got the three Faith, hope and love.

[Phil Robertson]

Okay, Greatest of these of love, greatest ones, love.

[Jase Robertson]

Exactly.

[Phil Robertson]

And faith and hope are pretty good.

[Jase Robertson]

Well, you can't do without them.

[Zach Dasher]

You've got to have that. You got to have, hey, look at faith in The Son of man.

[Jase Robertson]

Yeah, yeah. Well, look, Isaiah 6 is quoted in John 12. Well, have you read Isaiah 6 lately? I want to read a verse and make a point that's hard to make, but I think we've gone here. So I want to. So in Isaiah 6, and they're under, I think, at this time, Assyrian Captivity. And he says, in the year of this king he died. I saw the Lord seating, seated on a throne. So he sees another vision, which is not unlike Daniel's. Or he sees the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted. And the train of his robe filled the temple, which we've talked about, all this temple language. He would become the temple. In John 12. We would become the temple of God through His spirit. But watch above him were seraphs or seraphim, which are angels. They had six wings, and the wings covered their faces and their feet. And they were flying around and they were singing, calling out to one another, Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty. And this next phrase is really baffling to people. The whole earth is full of his glory. And when I read that, I thought, you know, people have a hard time with that. They think, well, that. Because that causes questions. Well, how could the whole earth be filled with God's glory if there's so much evil and so much pain? But what I would suggest is that's what they were singing. And I know that to be true. And Isaiah wrote it down. So that's why I said, whatever happens, I know it's not a loveless act by God because the whole earth is filled with his glory. And so then he goes on to say, you know, I am ruined. Woe to me. Because it scared him when he saw this vision. He's like, well, who am I to be representing you? And for I am a man of unclean lips. Because when you get this vision of God and him being in the midst of his enemies and offering his love, well, it makes you feel pretty sinful, you know. He's like, well, who am I? I have unclean lips and my eyes have now seen the K. Lord Almighty. Because he was saying, I see him in a vision. And so then it goes on to say, he said, here I am. Send me. And he said, go tell the people, because be ever hearing, but never understanding. Be ever seeing, but never perceiving. Make the heart of these people callous, make their eyes dull. And it's all these difficult passages that he mentions in John. But the whole point was for them to realize that he was who he is. And this is just not how you viewed God. Jesus had a new way of viewing God. He became a human, and they couldn't wrap their head around it. And so what that did was it caused some of the Jews to rebel, but that rebellion caused some of the Gentiles to say, hey, this is good news. God became a man. Because they didn't have all the tradition and the heritage to keep them from seeing God becoming a man.

[Zach Dasher]

Well, when I was getting ready for this, I read somewhere, and I can't find it now because I went everywhere. You know, it said God talking, that I've glorified it and I will glorify it again.

[Phil Robertson]

That was the voice of Yahweh speaking. That's right after thundering to Jesus.

[Jase Robertson]

Well, just read. Just read it. Read it.

[Zach Dasher]

I think he says it well, because I was wondering. And when you say the glory of God. Okay, I take that, you know, the creation.

[Phil Robertson]

Well, here's what he said. So he says in verse 28, he said, Father, glorify your name. So he says that right after he tells exactly what's going to happen. And he says that in response to him saying that he was troubled in his heart. It's almost like he's giving himself the peptide. And then he says, father, glorify your name. In other words, I'm doing this because we're doing this. Then the voice came from heaven. I have glorified it and will glorify it again. Meaning what? My name. Because that's what he said. Glorify your name. The crowd that was there heard it. They said it had thundered. Others said an angel had spoken to him. So in other words, they knew it was something supernatural, but they didn't quite know what it was.

[Jase Robertson]

That should make you pause and say, when God speaks something and you think it just thundered, you've missed it. Which I think that is his point.

[Zach Dasher]

That is a point.

[Jase Robertson]

And he glorified him. But think of the other time that he spoke. Remember at his baptism, when Jesus received the spirit? Well, he was glorified just like we are. I think we get off on this because we. We have this narrative that Zach talks about that I agree with this now, but not yet, because we're glorified when you get the spirit. Well, you have passages like Ephesians 2 that says God seated you with him in the heavenly realms.

[Todd Nettleton]

Yeah.

[Jase Robertson]

At your conversion. And people are like, well, I haven't officially been seated. Well, from God's perspective, you are. He just is. But from ours, we're like, oh, I have the spirit inside. You're right, it is the creation. But Jesus is introducing a new creation.

[Zach Dasher]

Well, no, no, because I've told people that. I said, hey, look, when I go to heaven, I'm gonna ask Jesus, hey, look, can I take about two years off? Take two years off, See the rest of your creation? I said, because, hey, we just think it's just.

[Phil Robertson]

Why not 2000si.

[Jase Robertson]

I think he's.

[Zach Dasher]

I said, I got an eternity.

[Phil Robertson]

No, you're on the clock. Sigh.

[Jase Robertson]

No, you know, can I make a prophecy? I think he's going to say, hey, sigh. Think bigger, think longer, think bigger.

[Phil Robertson]

You don't need oxygen anymore. You can go right into the outer.

[Zach Dasher]

I don't need a plane.

[Phil Robertson]

No plane, no, no. Going to fly. You're a superman, son.

[Al Robertson]

So when I was. When I was looking over this, it's so exciting. And before we leave Isaiah, I want to just say 750 years before this took place, Isaiah is saying, in. In 53, surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows. Yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten him by him and afflicted. He was pierced for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities. The punishment that brought us peace was upon him. And by his wounds, we are healed. And so what we're seeing. And when Jesus is riding in on that donkey, this is fixing to take place.

[Phil Robertson]

Yeah.

[Jase Robertson]

Oh, exactly. This is.

[Al Robertson]

And then I also, I was thinking about the. The nard that Mary poured on his feet, you know, and I thought I started looking at that. And if you go back to the Song of Solomon, that perfume is. Is talked about in there. It's like the finest of the finest, this perfume.

[Phil Robertson]

Very expensive, very expensive.

[Al Robertson]

And then also, while Jesus was going through all the things he was going through, the torture, getting beat, you know, and then even hanging on the cross, I wonder if he could smell that fragrance.

[Jase Robertson]

Yeah, you know what I mean?

[Al Robertson]

That Mary had poured on.

[Phil Robertson]

Well, he even says she had it for the day of my burial. But then she was doing it ahead of time because she recognized a moment that was happening, which is why he loved her so much. You remember then he had that little spat with Judas about it, who was a follower of the Evil One. And so you see that picture clearly, and I do want to bring that up because of the discussion for the rest of this podcast, is that Jesus said, remember, he said they kept the. Now the plot is we're going to kill him. Because they're even rightly saying one man needs to Die so that we don't all die. That's what they kept saying. Well, they didn't realize why they were saying that, but they were right. But you know what Jesus said? No one takes my life to me.

[Jase Robertson]

That's the catalyst.

[Phil Robertson]

That's the catalyst. That's why that.

[Jase Robertson]

Isaiah said we considered him like that. But he. He clarifies that. When he got here, he's like, you know, God's not punishing me. I'm giving my life.

[Phil Robertson]

Exactly.

[Zach Dasher]

No one takes it.

[Jase Robertson]

I'm giving it.

[Zach Dasher]

This is a gift that I receive.

[Al Robertson]

Yeah, you couldn't take it if you wanted to.

[Jase Robertson]

But you know what that means, Because I think the most important passage in this John 12 is when he says, after he hears the voice, and he says, now is time for judgment on this world. Now the prince of this world will be driven out. But when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself. Well, there's the love draw. It's a draw of love. That. The same reason she poured out that perfume on him, she realized he's gonna. He came here to give his life.

[Zach Dasher]

No, no, because that. That. That's what I was trying to say when I said, okay, this. This is the Son of Man. Look at all the times and what he faced, knowing he's fixed to die a horrible death, and he still does it.

[Jase Robertson]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Al Robertson]

And everybody, this is.

[Zach Dasher]

This is not the Son of God. This is the Son of man that's fixed to do this.

[Jase Robertson]

Well, it is the Son of God, and it is the Son of Man. But in his humanity, he was filled with sorrow.

[Phil Robertson]

And like Jason said many times on our podcast before, it's counterintuitive to look at a situation and say, a conquering king, the first thing they do is surrender their life.

[Zach Dasher]

No, no.

[Phil Robertson]

I mean, you were a military guy. You know, surrender is usually not the first thing we think of doing when we're in warfare, but in this particular warfare, when it came to sin, when it came to consequence, when it came to eternal life, we all have a fear of death. It's exactly what we had to have a martyr glory.

[Zach Dasher]

But that. That goes back to when I said, I want military on you. Jesus is missing his mission. That's what it was for.

[Phil Robertson]

Exactly. For us, it was the only way we could survive.

[Zach Dasher]

It was the only way we could come back to God.

[Phil Robertson]

Exactly.

[Jase Robertson]

Well, in. It defined love for us. You know, then getting back into those passages in Revelation where it's like, they didn't love their life to shrink back from Death. But they. Because really if God turn.

[Zach Dasher]

Well, that's why.

[Jase Robertson]

And resurrection is viewed as a narrative that. That is now. It just is.

[Zach Dasher]

When you read, I always tell everybody, I said, hey, look, a human being, a man will not die for a lie. He's not going to do it. He ain't got it anymore.

[Al Robertson]

Not purposefully, not purposely.

[Phil Robertson]

Yeah, that's a good point.

[Zach Dasher]

And I said, and yet, hey, 11 out of the 12 did die and they died. You know, Paul was crucified upside down.

[Jase Robertson]

Peter.

[Phil Robertson]

Peter.

[Jase Robertson]

Yeah, well, yeah, traditionally they all caught.

[Al Robertson]

It though some way size.

[Phil Robertson]

But it cut off Paul's head.

[Zach Dasher]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Because I. That's one of the prayers that I say when I am really tested, Father and Son and Holy Spirit, give me the boldness.

[Phil Robertson]

Yeah.

[Zach Dasher]

If a guy puts a pistol in my head, 357 says, hey, you're going to deny Christ or I'm going to.

[Jase Robertson]

Blow your head off.

[Zach Dasher]

Waste your bullet, fool. Well, I said, because I got this to tell you. I know the man that raises dead men far away.

[Al Robertson]

Well, everybody had their own agenda. I mean, think about it. I mean, because the humans were like, okay, the Jews were like, let's, let's get Jesus in here. Let's build up this physical kingdom and we fixing to whoop everybody.

[Jase Robertson]

Right?

[Al Robertson]

I mean, and even Judas was like, don't put that, that. The cologne, the perfume. Don't put that. Don't, don't, don't use that. Let me have that money. We'll do something else with it.

[Phil Robertson]

Mainly going his pocket.

[Al Robertson]

He's going to be more suicidal. I mean, come on. No, but everybody had their agenda, but Jesus had his agenda too. And he wasn't going to turn back from that.

[Zach Dasher]

Well, this young man had done something with the kids when he was at the church at White Fairy.

[Al Robertson]

Jase.

[Zach Dasher]

Yeah. When he was teaching, he asked him, close your eyes. And then tell me, how do you picture God? What's your vision of him? It's a good question because that's what problem the humans have. Okay. Number one, we can't look at the Father because the light would be so. It'd kill us. So back to the mission. You know, the Father gave Jesus his son the mission. Hey, go down there and hey, here's what we're going. Here's the plan.

[Jase Robertson]

Yeah. Picture, you know, Israelite from Nazareth, who's a carpenter, just a young guy. That's some image that you should be getting. That was representing the Father. Yeah, I mean that, that is the vision. Well, I know.

[Phil Robertson]

Are you giving no, let's go ahead.

[Jase Robertson]

Well, I thought this was when you. When Philip. It triggered a thought that I think is just very profound, why people can't see this. And everybody has their narrative. It's interesting that, you know, they want to kill Lazarus and they. They want to kill Jesus after this. But in verse 19 of chapter 12, the Pharisees said to one another, this is getting us nowhere. But they make a statement that I think, you know, should. Should really be pondered on. They said, look how the whole world has gone after him. Well, that, that, that is why he came. It's like they see it, but can't see it. And it's.

[Phil Robertson]

They see it as a negative. They're jealous that ever happened.

[Jase Robertson]

Yeah. And you. This is what we want.

[Phil Robertson]

Yeah.

[Jase Robertson]

So I think when you go through life just as a human being who claims to be surrendered to the King, you need the world coming after you in various ways. Good, bad, and ugly, mad, glad and sad.

[Phil Robertson]

Thank you guys for coming back on for another half of podcast. We're going to continue this discussion about persecution and martyrdom for the rest of the podcast. Thank y' all for being.

[Jase Robertson]

Thank y' all for having us fill.

[Zach Dasher]

Up in, sir, 20 minutes or more.

[Phil Robertson]

That's right. And you're ready to come back next time. All right, we're gonna take a break. We'll come back, we'll talk some more about this. I don't know how to describe what just happened.

[Jase Robertson]

We're recovering over a podcast and a half with my uncle.

[Phil Robertson]

We had Uncle Salah and Philip. But now we've brought some calmness and some integrity and I don't know what all we brought Todd Nettleton on. Todd, welcome to Unashamed.

[Todd Nettleton]

Thanks so much.

[Phil Robertson]

Todd is a guy. You've heard us talk about podcast because we've done a lot of ads for Voice of the Martyrs tied in your book when faith is forbidden. 40 days on the front lines with persecuted Christians. And so, first of all, just thank you and Voice of the Martyrs for partnering with our podcast, which has been a great blessing.

[Todd Nettleton]

It's our pleasure.

[Jase Robertson]

Thank you. And you may be the only sponsor we've ever had. Matty, have to check me on this that you are actually offering something to our listeners for free. For free. Which I love.

[Phil Robertson]

That rarely happens.

[Jase Robertson]

It kind of reminds me of God's grace.

[Todd Nettleton]

Well, you know, we talk about the Voice of the Martyrs ministry to persecuted Christians in 70 plus countries. And yes, that is part of our ministry, but part of our ministry is to American Christians to tell the stories so that we can know what's happening with our family around the world, and so we can be encouraged. When you read about someone who says, I would rather go to prison than deny Christ, the inevitable question in your own mind is, well, would I rather go to prison than deny Christ? And so that forces us, it blesses us, it encourages us, but it forces us to ask some hard questions like, where am I at in terms of what would I give up for the gospel?

[Phil Robertson]

Well, when I first read your book, when we first got it, to kind of prep ourselves for you guys being sponsor on the podcast and a partner, I immediately always think of Revelation 12:11, which is one of my favorite passages that says we overcome the evil one by the blood of the lamb, the word of our testimony, and the fact that we don't love this life so much, we would shrink back from anything, even death or prison or, you know, there's other things, too. And so it's always impacted me. And we. We've talked about this before, Todd, so I'm so glad you're here today. That the idea that we understand martyrdom, because it started with our martyred King Jesus, and we were just on the podcast with Sim Philip, before you got here, talking about how he said, no one takes my life, but I give it as a gift for you. And it became his way then to introduce the divine to humanity was the giving of a life which then transforms us and, of course, shows us eternal life. And so it really is just a continuation of that. And you're right. I think as Americans, we sometimes don't realize what's going on around the world. And you have been around the world in many places, which was the point of this book. But tell us a little bit just so the audience can get to know you a little bit, because we had breakfast this morning, so you told me a little bit of your story. But you being a missionary's kid, kind of how that shaped you and all that. Tell a little bit about how that happened and how you came to Christ to begin with.

[Todd Nettleton]

Yeah, so I grew up my early years in Southern California. My dad was a pastor there. And when I was 12 years old, my parents felt the call to go to Papua New guinea as missionaries. And I had one brother at that time, I have another brother since, who was born in Papua New Guinea. But we kind of had a family conference like you do. Oh, hey, we think God is calling us to Papua New Guinea.

[Jase Robertson]

Now, where exactly is Papua New Guinea? I don't even know where that is.

[Todd Nettleton]

Just north of Australia. So it's in the South Pacific. And so they went around the family. Do you think we should go? And yes, yes. And I was the.

[Jase Robertson]

No.

[Todd Nettleton]

I was like, nope. I'm getting ready to go into junior high. I can finally play sports at school. This is not a good time for me. Let's stay in California.

[Phil Robertson]

Middle school is the way. Worst time for any kid to be disrupted, I have to say that. Yes, yes.

[Todd Nettleton]

But, you know, at the end of the day, and I said at the time, if this is what the Lord is calling us to do, let's go do that. And so we got on the plane, and like I say, I was not very excited about it.

[Phil Robertson]

So you're what, 12?

[Todd Nettleton]

I was 12.

[Phil Robertson]

Okay.

[Todd Nettleton]

And we went and spent four years in Papua New Guinea. And it was hard. It was very hard when we moved. It was very hard when we came back to reintegrate into American society at 16. But as I look back on that now, at 55, I see all the seeds that God planted in my life during those four years. And, you know, one of you know, I wrote a book. Well, in Papua New guinea, we didn't have a television for four years, and so I learned how to read for pleasure. Like, that was my entertainment. Well, if you want to be a writer, you better be a reader. And so that seed was planted there. I love getting on a plane and going someplace I've never been before and figuring out, okay, you know, what do you eat? What do you not eat? How do you find a bathroom? All those things. I love doing that. That's an adventure to me. And that seed was planted when we got on that plane and moved to Papua New Guinea.

[Phil Robertson]

So Papua New guinea is very isolated, like, kind of cut off from the.

[Jase Robertson]

World kind of place it was at that time.

[Todd Nettleton]

It is less so now, but it is. So Papua New guinea is half of the island. The other half is West Papua now, and I think it's part of Indonesia. But Papua New guinea, if I'm remembering correctly, has 700 languages. So literally, you would, like, go over the mountain range and there would be a new people group with a new language. And so there's lots of Bible translations. So very tribal, very tribal setting, kind of jungle setting. It's very jungly along the coast. It's kind of mountainous in the middle, but also tropical. I mean, you know, rainy season, it rained every day. In the dry season, it rained every other day. So it was never good.

[Phil Robertson]

You learn what varmints to be afraid of.

[Todd Nettleton]

We lived in a city, so a city of about 13,000 people. And my parents were the missionary kid, hostile parents. So the kids whose parents were in the bush, they came and lived with us during the school year. So we had about 15 around our table most days.

[Phil Robertson]

That sounds a lot like our upbringing, Joseph out on the river. There were always a lot of people around our table too.

[Todd Nettleton]

But like I say, so many seeds that God planted during those four years. And again, I didn't want to go, like I was not exc. Excited about it, but God used that to plant seeds that now are bearing fruit for the kingdom.

[Phil Robertson]

You were 12 year old, Jonah, but you finally got swallowed up and loaded in the belly of that plague, in.

[Todd Nettleton]

The belly of the plane.

[Jase Robertson]

So were you introduced to the persecution there?

[Todd Nettleton]

One of the books I read there was about a persecuted Christian actually, from the Soviet Union, from Russia. And I remember that story. The other thing that my dad did super well is he would read to us, my brother and I, he would read us stories before bed every night. It was story time. He would read a book. And some of those books were the stories of missionaries and martyrs. And Bruchko is one I remember very well, a book called Lords of the Earth by Don Richardson. He read about Stanley Dale. And so from a very young age it was heroic to me to be a missionary, to be a martyr. And so that's another one of those seeds that the Lord, Lord was planting. And now we see the fruit of that. But yeah, those heroes. And when I get a chance to talk to parents now, I encourage them, hey, your kids are going to have heroes and some of them are going to be great basketball players or great football players, and that's fine. Make sure some of their heroes are gospel. Heroes are people who sacrifice for the gospel, followed Christ wherever he called them. Make sure your kids think that is heroic. Yeah. Because that's going to impact them their whole lives.

[Jase Robertson]

Yeah.

[Phil Robertson]

Well, I, I remember we were in school in the late 80s. Jason and I were in a school of preaching together. And Jason come across Justin's Book of Martyrs.

[Jase Robertson]

Yeah.

[Phil Robertson]

Somehow, somewhere. And I had never heard of the book. And he.

[Jase Robertson]

I think I was just. We had to do chapel lessons.

[Phil Robertson]

Yeah.

[Jase Robertson]

And I was immature at that time of my life because I was. We were so in the weeds of the Bible, but I was so thrilled with just the story of Jesus and it just didn't seem thrilling. So I was trying to like, these people need to be more excited. And so I was like, it's good news. These people gave their life. You know, I was looking at the end of their lives. Like, if we're going to be preachers, I want to be like these guys. Which led to them all but John being martyred and he had multiple. He probably looked like Scarface. And he had endured being bald and old. I mean, just imagine what he looked like. And so that's how I discovered it because I was like, I wanted to get the details.

[Phil Robertson]

And so we would drive back and forth and so we would practice our chapel sermons on each other to see how it worked. And so he was laying that on me. And I had never heard of it, but talking about seed planting, it planted something in me because Jace wound up going back to work for Duck Commander and obviously our paths diverged and I wound up in full time ministry at the church. But I never forgot about that concept of martyrdom. And so one of our dear little sisters at our church that has since crossed over, she came to me one day with a VOM newsletter, Voice of the Martyrs little magazine. And she said, have you heard of this group? And I said, said, what is a vom? She said, voice of the Martyrs. I said, no. And so then I listened to some radio and then we wound up even hosting a conference here years and years ago where you and I talked about this morning. And so I was intrigued and I thought, man, I didn't realize, like most American Christians, I didn't realize what's going on around the world. And so it really impacted me in a powerful way. And it's always reminded me to pray for my brothers and sisters. And we were talking on a recent podcast about Israel and Iran and the conflict that's recently been happening in our. In our culture. And we talked about the idea of looking at countries in different ways because the kingdom being there. And you and I talked about it quite a bit this morning. So you do a radio show as well?

[Todd Nettleton]

Yep.

[Phil Robertson]

That's all across. Which how would folks find is there.

[Todd Nettleton]

Just vomradio.net is the website. You can find a radio station, you can find a podcast stream, you can access it multiple ways.

[Phil Robertson]

So you and you were telling me this morning about just having a guest on. So tell us a little bit about that. Because it really, to me it's. So when you started telling me this morning, I thought, oh man, that's just what we were talking about on the podcast was the idea about sometimes you look at countries as just the regime that controls a country and you forget about the people that are there. So tell me about the one.

[Todd Nettleton]

Well, fastest growing church in the world is in the Islamic Republic of Iran. So. So this is good news. Fastest growing church in the world.

[Phil Robertson]

Did you know that?

[Todd Nettleton]

Islamic Republic of Iran.

[Jase Robertson]

But I contributed in or the Lord put me in a situation where I got to speak to some underground churches via technology. Was that a couple years ago from Athens, man. I was telling you from Athens and it was very exciting. But I just wanted to say before you finish your story, they told me, oh, Larry Bowes. And he said, no, you realize if you do this, you're probably going up on a bulletin board somewhere and you were talking about planting seeds. But it made me think, you know, I did start working, work working for Duck Commander, you know, after the school. But I did take one trip to the Ukraine in the early. I GUESS it was 1991.

[Phil Robertson]

Right around 90. Yeah, late 80s, early 90s.

[Jase Robertson]

And I was kind of like your experience. I didn't really want to go and, but I was like, hey, the, you know, the walls come down. These people need Jesus. So I went there and, and we were having little groups every night and it was a whole, you know, three weeks of handing out food. We got ways to handle.

[Phil Robertson]

You're trying to introduce small groups into a culture that were. Groups were outlawed because of communism. We didn't. So they were very nervous about meeting even though now they were free to.

[Jase Robertson]

It was. And that's why I'm getting to this punchline story. But we also played basketball at a gym. They only had three gyms in the whole country, you know, and they thought we were. Because I look like, you know, LeBron James to them because none of them could play. They just weren't very good. And, and we spoke at their English speaking university and we just shared Jesus. But they want. They came to the class, it was full standing room only every time because they wanted to hear they were learning English. But then they realized if you're from Louisiana, that's not necessarily the right out. Anyway, that was kind of the ministry. But one night we were in a group and so we're speaking through interpreters and we had somebody show up that didn't like what we were doing. And, and he basically said, if you keep talking about this, you're going to wind up dead here. But my inter. You know, he said that and I was like, now what did he say? And when he, when the interpreter said that, he basically said, he says, if you keep preaching Jesus, someone's going to kill you here. And I don't know, it's just like it hit me like a ton of bricks and I Thought, well, do I believe this or not? I mean, it was a really good question. And I said, well, you tell him we're ready. We can't die. And just. I kind of got chills even saying that then, because I thought, this, this is real. I mean, this is part of. Part of the equation for following Jesus. But I've always had an appreciation for people who go into those countries because you can say, oh, well, you know, nothing happened to you is good. But in the moment, I'm in a foreign country and I'm being threatened here and I've got to draw a line in the sand. And we're drawing it.

[Todd Nettleton]

So, yeah, I so appreciate our VOM staff that do that all the time. And we're also very conscious, though, that the risk for us is less than the risk for our brothers and sisters that we're meeting with, because, you know, I have a blue passport and I have a ticket home. They're still going to be there.

[Phil Robertson]

Exactly.

[Todd Nettleton]

And so it takes a lot of courage for them even to come and meet with us, like you said, to gather together. But so we just had sister Nada on VOM radio, and she lived in Iran, grew up in Iran. She actually married the goalkeeper for the national soccer team. So he was very well known. His family was very devout Islamic family. But their marriage was in shambles. It was really heading in the wrong direction. And she was frustrated and she said she would turn on her vacuum cleaner so that no one would hear her. And she would vacuum and she would yell at Allah. She would be like, allah, I've been following you. My marriage is in shambles. You're not helping me. When are you going to show up in this? And just really frustrated with Islam, which is very common in Iran. The government of Iran says we're running our whole country according to Islam. And you have one of the highest drug addiction rates in the world. You have an economy that's in shambles. And the people of Iran are like, well, if this is what Islam does, you know, this is not working very well. So Naita's in that boat. She's frustrated with Islam about the time she's running her vacuum and yelling at Allah. One of her relatives who lived in Europe and had come to faith in Christ, had a dream, dream, and God said, go back to Iran and share me with your family. And so he got on a plane, flew back to Iran, which, as a Christian, is a dangerous thing for him to do. Nada talked to him and he led her to faith in Christ and her Heart was changed so much. So now she didn't want to tell anyone this because her husband's from this devout Islamic family. Like, what are they going to say? This is going to not be good for me. But about two or three weeks later, her husband looked at her and said, said, what happened to you? Like, you have totally changed. And she said, he actually said, did you become a Christian or something?

[Jase Robertson]

Yeah.

[Todd Nettleton]

And she said, you know, I didn't want to deny Christ. And so she's like, yeah, I did. I became a Christian. I'm following Jesus. And within a week, he also had come to faith in Christ. They began ministry underground, evangelism, even out on the streets. Evangelism. Very bold. One of the things she talked about in the, in the interview was dealing with the fear, especially as a woman. It, it is common in Iran if you're arrested, sexual assault, sexual abuse happens in the police station, in the jail. And so she said there was that fear of what's going to happen. Like, like I, I'm doing something that I know is going to end up with me being arrested. And I know what happens to women who are arrested. But she talked about how God relieved that fear from her. And one of the ways he did that, interestingly, was with a story of a persecuted Christian that she read that actually VOM had been able to publish and print in Farsi. And so she read the story of this persecuted Christian who was courageous, even though they were fearful. And she said that encouraged her. That was one of the ways God took away the fear. And she said over about a two year span, the fear was completely gone and she would just do the ministry. And like I say, they're out on the street, they're talking to people, they're striking up conversations. That's a good way to get arrested in Iran. Earlier this year, they finally had to flee. They finally got to the point where it was kind of closing in and it's like, okay, we better go.

[Jase Robertson]

Yeah.

[Todd Nettleton]

So they are now she's in America and still doing ministry back into Iran. You mentioned technology. They're using technology to still do that ministry. But just an amazing testimony and I love that we get to share this on VOM Radio because people are, you know, people like you and me, they're driving in their car and they're hearing this testimony from Iran. And then the next time Iran comes on the news, they'll think just what you said. And they say, oh, wow, I have family in Iran. I have brothers and sisters that live there.

[Jase Robertson]

Well, I mean, when you Say that, you know, everybody, we are all mindful of, you know, destroying Iran's nuclear capabilities. And everybody's like, oh, look at this power. And it's great. We don't want them to blow up the whole world. But real power is what you just described. We have a message that literally changes the hearts and minds of people because then you don't have to worry, oh, what if they build it again? You know? And, you know, what Jesus has to offer is that's why when we talked about the kingdom earlier, before you got here, we were talking about when Jesus or one like the Son of Man, would set up his kingdom and it would crush all other kingdoms, it itself would endure forever. And that's what I think. Well, we're part of the greatest kingdom the world has ever known, Jesus kingdom, and it has that power to transform hearts and minds. And I'm glad we're a part of it.

[Phil Robertson]

Well, and Christianity has, even from the first century forward. The beautiful thing about reading the Bible is you see all of our early fathers in the faith, all the disciples, and then those that they touched were living this life that you're describing that you've seen around the world. And what did Christianity do in that first century under this Roman rule and this also Jewish persecution? It thrived, it exploded, it went everywhere. And you remember in Acts 8, I mean, the minute they killed Stephen, it exploded even further because it kept pushing them out. And so. Because once it's in your heart, it never changes. And the sister you described, she understands being set free now. And so she wants as many people as possible that she loves to be set free. I think it forces us to think about this when we look at geopolitical stuff that's going on, that God's working all around. And so that's what I love about your book. So your book is basically your 20 plus years with VOM and the places you've been, and you kept a journal. And you have a lot of that in the book, which I found fascinating when I read it. And it really just tells a lot of stories of a lot of people. Right.

[Todd Nettleton]

I mean, that's pretty much the premise of the book. You know, often I would go on a trip, I would sit down with persecuted Christians and hear their stories. And I would come back and in my Wednesday night Bible study or in my Sunday school class, I would say, oh, wow, I just got back from Eritrea and I met this pastor. And somebody would say in the course of that conversation, man, I sure wish I could go with you on A trip. So that's why I wrote the book. The book is an invitation. Yes. Come with me. Let's take a trip together. Let's spend 40 days. Every day, we're going to sit down with a persecuted Christian. We're going to hear their story. And my promise to you, the reader, is on day 41, your faith will look different than it did when we started the trip, because you can't spend 40 days hearing stories of people who got beaten up or they had a family member killed, or they were locked in prison and they still joyfully serve the Lord. If you spend 40 days hearing a story like that every single day, again, day 41, your faith is going to look different because you think differently.

[Phil Robertson]

Differently.

[Todd Nettleton]

You pray differently. When you open your Bible, you say, wow, this is an amazing privilege. There's brothers and sisters who don't have Bibles, and I have multiple Bibles on my phone. So everything looks different after you spend time with our persecuted brothers and sisters. And I go, I'm an American Christian. I've never been persecuted. Nobody's ever put a gun to my head. So I go, as a learner, I go, and I want to bring you along on that trip. And. And there are journal entries. I typically journal. In the early years, I journaled as a gift to my wife. When I would come home from a trip, I would hand her the journal and that was a way she could experience the trip as well. So those journals came in very handy writing the book. There's journal entries of great spiritual import and impact. There's journal entries about how much I don't like squatty potties. There's a lot of variety in these. These journal entries because we all have those stories.

[Phil Robertson]

So I'm wearing a hat that you gave me today because we love hats here on unashamed. And it says smuggler on here. And I have been a smuggler because I've been on many, many mission trips and I've taken stuff into countries for people I love that may or may not could get it any other way, including Bibles. Tell about this if the hat because you told me about today.

[Todd Nettleton]

Yeah. So the Bible smuggler resources from Voice of the Martyrs. When you buy that hat, when you buy a T shirt, there's actually a Bible smuggler Bible you can buy as well. Part of the funding that you've just given for that hat funds a Bible to be smuggled into a hostile area or restricted nation. So when you put on that hat, you are a Bible smuggler because you funded a Bible to be delivered. And voice of the Martyrs, the last several years has delivered over a million Bibles a year to places where you can't. There is no Walmart, there is no Bible bookstore. And so this is a way. Yeah, this is a way for you to be a Bible smuggler. And every product you buy is funding a Bible to be delivered on the other new.

[Phil Robertson]

And can you get to that through VOM's website? Yes.

[Todd Nettleton]

Biblesmuggler.com is the website biblesmuggler.com all that Bible smuggler product is there. And you know, you buy a hat, you buy a T shirt, that's two Bibles. And we don't understand how valuable these Bibles are. Like most of us have multiple Bibles on the shelf. We have a Bible on your phone. Yeah, on your phone.

[Phil Robertson]

Own.

[Todd Nettleton]

I've talked to brothers and sisters who say, I prayed for 10 years that I might be able someday that God would allow me to have my own copy of the Bible. That that's a different perspective.

[Jase Robertson]

The reason why your, your ministry is, I think is from the Lord and, and needed is because when you hear these stories, just like when I went to Ukraine, I mean, you can't help but say, man, I'm just pathetic, you know, because I think the great. That's not the goal. Well, I think it's a good thing. You look at yourself and you realize, you know, our biggest problem, I think in America, from an evil one perspective of temptation, is comfortability. You know, you're comfortable, you don't want to get out of your comfort zone. And it's kind of like the separation of church and state. It's okay for you to believe.

[Phil Robertson]

Just don't keep it to yourself.

[Jase Robertson]

Yeah. Don't make any hay. And you know, that's from the evil one because our whole mission is to declare Jesus as Lord. That's why we're here. And so I think a little bit of that is needed and good and it makes you appreciate what we have.

[Todd Nettleton]

The danger for most of us in sharing the gospel with our neighbor is an awkward conversation.

[Phil Robertson]

Yeah.

[Todd Nettleton]

Like worst case scenario is this conversation is going to get a little awkward. My neighbor's going to stop waving to me when they pull out of the driveway. Probably they're not going to beat you up. Almost assuredly they're not going to shoot you. And we need that inspiration to say, hey, even if they did shoot me, it would be worth it to share the gospel with them. But as an American, that that's probably not going to happen.

[Phil Robertson]

Yeah. When you're when your worst persecution is a bad social media post, you know, we're not quite there with the rest of the world. Todd, it's so good having you on the podcast, and I appreciate what you do. And we just want to thank you for partnering with us with what we're doing because so many people are listening on the same podcast because of our intensity about the Bible. And so, you know, we go together with what you guys are doing.

[Todd Nettleton]

We appreciate you guys, too. And I'd love for people, more people to get the book, not. Not because I wrote the book, because they get to meet persecuted Christians. And that's really what Voice of the Martyrs is about, is. Is developing that fellowship in the body.

[Jase Robertson]

Of Christ and getting more smugglers.

[Phil Robertson]

More smugglers. Come on. Understand.

[Jase Robertson]

I'm going to get one of those hats just for a conversation.

[Phil Robertson]

Yeah.

[Jase Robertson]

And say I'm a smuggler. And they're like, what do you smuggle? Well, I'm fixing to share Jesus.

[Phil Robertson]

There you go. Just like the gospel said. But, oh, look, you've already. Maddie's got you.

[Jase Robertson]

Boy. She got fired up.

[Phil Robertson]

All right, well, we'll. We'll see you down the road, Ty. Keep doing what you're doing, brother. Thank you. Tell everybody at VOM we said, hey, check them out. Unashamed Nation, Voice of the martyrs. Thanks for listening to the Unashamed Podcast. Help us out by leaving a rating and review on Apple Podcast. And don't miss an episode by subscribing on YouTube. And be sure to click the little bell and choose all notifications to watch every episode.