When's the last time when you were talking to
God personally and intimately, you thanked him
for the great progress you're making in your
faith? I find people that no matter how much
progress you make, you never feel like you measure
up. And behind that is the sense that God is
down on you. How do we work out what God has
already worked in and be thankful for? Stay with
me. That's today. Thanks for listening to this
edition of Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram.
Living on the Edge is an international teaching
and discipleship ministry motivating Christians
to live like Christians. Well, in this program,
we'll pick up where Chip left off in our series,
I Choose Love, with part two of his talk, Love
Obeys. But before he begins, if this is your
first time listening to our broadcast or you
want to learn more about the work this ministry
is doing globally, visit livingontheedge .org.
There you'll also find countless resources and
programs to enjoy. Or check out the Chip Ingram
app. It's a great way to get plugged in with
our ministry. Well, today Chip explains why it's
important we acknowledge the work God is doing
in us so He can continue working through us.
Well, let's learn more about how to do that.
Grab your Bible and go to Philippians chapter
2 as we dive into the remainder of Chip's message.
I came up around a group. You came up around
a group. And these groups have thoughts about
the sovereignty of God and the responsibility
of men. And I would just say, you know, some
of you struggle with guilt because no matter
how much you do, it's never enough. Because you
live with this, you know, there's never enough.
God's down on you. Now, that's extreme. That's
not what should be taught. Some of you are, like,
laid back to the point of you're not doing what
you need to. And, but you have this subtle of
God's in control. He really is in control, but
that doesn't excuse you. And so what you want
to do is you want to say. I don't want what Calvin
taught, and I don't want what Jacob Arminius
taught. I want what Jesus taught. I want what
the New Testament says. I want what the Word
of God says. And there's going to be certain
times and certain passages. I've been doing this
for quite a while. I don't fully understand.
I don't think anyone fully understands. But I've
got plenty of truth to know this. I will stand
before God as a follower of Jesus and give an
account for my time, my energy, my money, and
my decisions. And I've been around long enough
to know this. is that despite my mistakes, my
difficulties, the times even that I've sinned,
the times when I knew what was right and I didn't
even do it, there's this patient, kind, loving,
sovereign God that's working even those difficulties
and things that people have done to me and circumstances
I can't understand because he's such a, are you
ready? Good, good father. And so becoming like
Jesus and following him is a cooperative effort.
Your effort and discipline to mine, not earn,
but to mine out the grace that God's given you.
Well, the question then becomes is, how do you
work out what God worked in? I mean, it's nice
to hear that. I kind of gave you the theory and
the history. Well, practically, how do you do
it? Well, Paul, this is a really amazing thing.
After chapter 2, verse 12, and after verse 13,
guess what comes? Verse 14. And 15 and 16 and
17. So guess what Paul's going to do? He says,
I want you to obey to be the kind of follower
of Jesus fully by his grace, even if I come or
I don't come. But the goal is I want you to be
under the hearing. So I'm going to give you very
specific things to obey so that you have unity
and that God uses you in this perverse generation.
So are you ready? Get your pen out. Keep your
Bible open. Here's command number one. He says,
do everything without complaining or arguing.
So the command is, be a grateful servant. Be
a grateful servant. If, not to be overly technical,
but if you had the Greek text in your hand, you
would read it and you would go, oh, wait, the
word order. It's completely out of order. They
took the word. everything and do everything and
it belongs in the back of the sentence and they
put it all the way in the front of the sentence
for what? Emphasis. Drive your car. Pay your
bills. Live with your mate. Respond to the government
and pay your taxes. How? Do everything without
complaining. Or arguing. Word for complaining
here is basically grumbling. It's that infectious
negative attitude. It's really about be a grateful
servant in your speech and your attitude. Don't
whine. Don't complain. Don't talk about your
boss or your supervisor behind their back. Don't
be negative. Don't be critical. Don't be sarcastic.
Don't put people down. This is getting pretty
convicting, just me saying this to myself. But
not only don't complain, but don't argue. It's
a legal term. It has to do with dissensions and
disputing and taking sides. Can you imagine what
would happen, just hypothetically, if every genuine
follower of Jesus obeyed this with regard to
their social media? No complaining. No arguing,
no dissensions, no name -calling, no attacking
other people. See, this was happening in the
Philippian church, and is this happening in anybody
else's home? Is this happening at work? Anybody
else's small group? This is happening everywhere,
isn't it? See, what he's going to say is, you
want to work out your salvation? You want to
go into training and practice? Begin with your
speech, because... Jesus said, the good man out
of the good treasure of his heart brings forth
what is good. The evil man out of the evil treasure
brings forth what is evil. For the mouth speaks
by that which fills the heart. The two most vivid
ways to know where you're at in your journey
with the Lord Jesus is ask, what does my money
say about my values? And what does my speech
say about my heart? And those two things are
just pretty black and white. If it's negative,
if it's complaining, if it's putting people down.
See, if you change your speech, your heart has
to change. Our kids, we've had some that were
less negative and some more negative. I had one
that was extraordinarily negative. She came out
of the womb. Oh, I said she. I guess we know
who it is. I mean, she was. I mean, the glass
never got half full. And so we got a jar. And
we wrote missions on it and Annie's speech and
all my kids memorized Ephesians 4, 29. Let no
unwholesome word proceed out of your mouth, but
only such a word as is good for edification according
to the need of the moment that it might give
grace to those who hear. And so we started out
with every time a negative comment came out,
she put a dime in the jar. Then we went to quarters.
Then we went to 50 cents a piece. She was a very
generous to missions at the church. But here's
the thing. She went into training. She went into
training. And we talked about it. And then she
began to memorize some verses. Now, you know
what? Part of that was a leadership gift that
she has that when she looked at life, she saw
what was wrong. And then when she thought it,
it came out of her mouth at the same time. She
did not get that from her mother. So we went
into training together to get a hold of our speech.
You might evaluate things and see something that,
oh, that should be over here instead of like
that, or that's not the right attitude, or we
need to fix that at work. That might be a real
giftedness you have, but when it comes out of
your mouth in the wrong context and not in the
right way with the right tone of voice, it's
disunifying. Second, he says, this is for a purpose.
The purpose of being grateful is so that you
can be a godly servant. God wants us to be godly.
Godly publicly, godly privately, and godly personally.
Circle the word blameless, circle the word pure,
and circle the word without fault. The word blameless
is relationship to the outside world. It means
the people at work, your neighbors, people at
the coffee shop, the dry cleaners, the team one
of your kids plays on. He says, be blameless.
Be the kind of Christian that they're not going,
oh my gosh, that person says they're a Christian,
but listen to their language, listen to the put
downs, look at their morality. He says, no, no,
no, no. You gotta be blameless, not perfect,
blameless. When God shows you that your life
is ungodly, And it would reflect negatively on
Jesus and his church. You say, I can't live that
way. Second, it's privately. It says blameless
and pure. The word pure here means like undiluted
wine, or it was used of metal that didn't have
a mixture of both like iron and something else
in it. It's pure. This is about your motives.
This is about when no one is around, who are
you really? And then finally he says, not only
blameless and pure, but he goes on to say, without
fault. And again here, it doesn't mean in terms
of perfect, but without fault is relationship
to those in the church and especially your relationship
to God. The word was used for like an animal
without blemish in your offering and your sacrifice.
You're listening to Living on the Edge. We'll
return you to Chip's message in just a minute.
But first, let me tell you, God is doing incredible
work through this ministry all around the world.
And if you'd like to join us, consider partnering
with us during our mid -year match. Every gift
we receive until midnight on June 30th will be
doubled dollar for dollar. Join us today by going
to livingontheedge .org or call 888 -333 -6003.
We appreciate your generosity. Well, with that,
here again is Chip. And so in essence, what he's
really saying is, I want you to obey. I want
you to be the kind of Christians in a really
tough world that you're positive, thankful people.
Not positive thinking. You're genuinely thankful.
And your speech and your actions reflect it.
Second, I want you to be godly. I want you to
be godly toward the outside world. I want you
to be godly and have personal integrity within.
And I want you to be godly in terms of your relationship
with God. I love the next line where he says,
so that you can do something in a very crooked
and perverse generation. I mean, we all here,
we want to see the world change, right? We all
believe the world is, I mean, it's crazy right
now. And people ask me all the time, well, what
can I do? This is what we can do. Be grateful
people. Be godly people. And notice the result
is to be a bold servant in action and words.
He says, when you're godly in the midst of a
crooked and perverse, literally it's a twisted
generation. And I think it's even more twisted
now than it was then. But in which you shine
like stars in the universe as you hold out or
literally hold forth the word of God. And so
he says to them, this is the kind of Christian
I want you to be. And when you do that, You're
demonstrating something. You're making a difference.
It's like there's this black backdrop and you're
shining in this corrupt world like shining stars.
And people take notice. I have a very good friend
who decided to leave a very powerful, lucrative
job. Had a great position. Extremely well paid.
And there came a time where the company and those
in power were asking him to make some decisions
that lacked integrity. And he had worked with
all the other people in the company and sort
of set a standard that no matter what, we won't
compromise. And people knew he was a follower
of Christ and integrity really mattered. Came
to the point where he, crossroads, and out of
integrity, let that go. And he told me a little
bit about the last day with all the employees.
And these are high -tech, grown men and women
in a fast -paced world, overwhelmed with emotion.
Like a... bright, shining star in the midst of
a cutthroat, make money, fudge the facts. How
do we make it look faster and better that we
can go public or whatever the goals are? And
someone steps and says, there's something that
matters more than money. I'm a follower of Christ.
It's the truth that sets you free. And I'm going
to stand on my convictions regardless of the
consequences. And there was an entire company.
that saw a star shining brightly. Notice you
shine like stars and you're bold. You hold forth
God's word. You're not ashamed to be a Christian
in your neighborhood. You're not ashamed of the
Bible at work. Do I understand you're gonna get
some flack? Of course. Did the early disciples
get some flack? Did Jesus get some flack? Did
the reformers get some flack? At some point in
time, we have to realize it's coming. So let's
respond in a loving way. Let's shine like stars.
Let's be the church that, oh, my lands, they
remodeled another school. Oh, my lands, they're
taking in the refugees. We just had a team come
back from India. They did all that dental work
and medical work. Oh, my lands. Who says, oh,
my lands, anyway? That must be from my mother
or my childhood. You want to know how to work
out what God worked in? Be a grateful servant.
Be a godly servant. Be a bold servant. And finally,
his whole motive was, I'm not down on you Philippians.
This isn't a list to do all the stuff of some
religion. Be a joyful Christian. Here's my motive.
My motive is that I can. I'm gonna stand before
God, and I don't know if I'm executed or not
executed, but I'm gonna stand before God and
boast in the day of Christ that I didn't run
in vain or labor in vain, but I poured out my
life like a drink offering on the sacrifice and
the service. of your faith. And what he's picturing
here is that that's a picture of getting executed.
He's taking this Old Testament picture of when
you would offer a sacrifice and then they would
take maybe wine and pour it on the altar as it's
going up. It's a drink offering. He says, if
my blood, if my life, if I'm a drink offering,
here's the deal. I'm going to be glad and I'm
going to rejoice in dying. So you too be glad
and rejoice with me. Is that amazing? As you
look at the back page, the first couple questions
are ones you can just do by yourself, but grab
a cup of tea, coffee, Coke, Diet Coke, and put
your feet up somewhere in the next 24 or 48 hours
and say, hmm, you know, what expectations do
I have in terms of what I think God's going to
do for me? And are they accurate? And down deep,
what do I think God expects of me? For some of
you, you need a big dose of grace. Here's what
he expects that you receive is love. And for
others, he expects you get off your dairy air
and quit expecting that Bible to read itself
and to discipline yourself to godliness so he
can let you experience what you already possess.
Where do you see growth and progress in the working
out of what God has worked in? You know, some
of you, you just go so negative. Oh, I ought
to be more of this. I ought to do more of this.
I ought to more doing this. How about writing
down, you know, I've become more patient. I've
become more generous. You know what? I'm a better
dad than I used to be. I clean up with my roommates.
Write down where God, and it'll encourage you.
And then, where do you need to focus effort and
energy to allow Jesus' life to be manifested
in you and through you? And, you know, these
words, right, they come right out of the text.
You know, and just don't check them all. You'll
go nuts if you already haven't. But just ask
yourself, you know, Lord, whisper this prayer,
Lord, Holy Spirit, would you show me which one
or at the most two, is it my attitude, speech,
boldness, authenticity, godliness? Just, and
check one of those and then just say, Lord, I
can't do this. I can't do this. But you can.
So I'm telling you, I'm inadequate and your power
will be my adequacy. So would you help me? Would
you help me do that? You're listening to Living
on the Edge with Chip Ingram. And the message
you just heard, love obeys, is from our series,
I Choose Love. Chip will join us in studio to
share some insights from today's talk in just
a minute. One of the greatest delights of God's
heart is to witness His children, those of us
who call Him Lord, loving one another. Yet, we
all know this isn't always easy and often doesn't
come naturally to us. In this short study, Chip
walks through the four characteristics of love
laid out for us in Philippians chapter 2. Discover
how to apply these truths to your relationships
with others and God so you can love more and
love better. To listen to this entire series,
visit livingontheedge .org or the Chip Ingram
app. Well, our Bible teacher Chip Ingram is with
me now. And Chip, you know, from time to time,
we survey our listeners through the Chip Ingram
app and our website. And without fail, the most
frequent thing we hear is, I need help growing
spiritually. Well, take a minute, if you will,
and explain why discipleship is such a big part
of what we do as a ministry. Well, that's absolutely
right, Dave. The fact of the matter is that Living
things grow. Dying things are stagnant. And my
experience is that people long to grow, but they
don't know how. How long am I supposed to read?
Or I don't really know how to pray. Or I've never
met a Christian who's living out their faith
in a way that makes sense to me. And I'm just
stuck. And so when people try hard and try hard,
and they don't understand sanctification, they
don't know who they are in Christ, they can't
open the Word of God for themselves and understand
it, and no one ever sat down. like someone did
with me, and said, this is how to pray. This
is how to resolve conflict. Here's how you find
the right kind of mate. Here's how you organize
and prioritize your finances. And at Living on
the Edge, we fill that gap for millions of people.
We help people grow spiritually, emotionally,
and relationally. And what I want you to know
as a listener of Living on the Edge, if you feel
like you've drawn closer to God, there's a spiritual
principle. Where you receive spiritual nourishment,
there's a corollary that you provide financial
assistance so that we can do this for even more
people. That's right from the Apostle Paul. So
if we have been a source of spiritual growth
and nourishment to you, would you pray today?
Would you just say, Lord, what do you want me
to do? What could I sacrifice? Do you want me
to give a one -time gift? Do you want me to give
on a monthly basis? If that's you, can I invite
you into obedience? And let's make a difference
together. Thanks, Chip. Well, if God has been
ministering to you through Living on the Edge
and you want to get in on supporting us, now's
the perfect time. Because thanks to the generosity
of a group of ministry friends, Every gift will
be doubled between now and June 30th. To partner
with us today, call 888 -333 -6003 or go to livingontheedge
.org. That's livingontheedge .org or call 888
-333 -6003. App listeners tap donate. As we wrap
up today's program, I would remind you that the
title of this message is Love Obeys. In other
words, when God is working out through his spirit
and we're responding by faith and obedience,
it ends up we obey. We are obeying what he says
in his word. Jesus would say to his disciples
on the very last night on the earth, he said,
he that has my commandments and keeps them, he
it is that loves me. And he that loves me will
be loved of my father. And we will come and disclose
ourselves to him. intimacy with Jesus at the
heart of it is by faith we obey. In other words,
we work out what God has worked in, the work
of Christ in our place. And as I taught through
this, and you heard a little bit earlier in the
broadcast, we talked about being grateful and
godly and bold and joyful. And, you know, we
walk through this passage in Philippians chapter
2. And then I ask you to do a little analysis,
some reflection. And at the first part, what
I want you to do honestly is say, where have
I made progress? In fact, this is one of those
where you really need to download the notes.
It's livingontheedge .org and get the notes because
all of these questions are here. And then I listed
attitude, authenticity, speech, boldness, godliness.
And then in the notes, I give a definition. But
what I want you to do is say, where am I making
progress in my attitudes? Where am I making progress
in my boldness? Where am I making progress in
my speech? And then I want you to sit quietly
before the Lord and maybe have the notes out
in front of you and say, Lord, where do you want
your spirit to take more control? Is it my speech?
Is it my attitude? Is there ungratefulness in
my heart? Is there unforgiveness in my heart?
Is it a lack of boldness? Is it that everyone
knows I'm a great guy or a wonderful gal, but
they don't know why? Lord, I pray right now for
my brothers and sisters as we are together saying,
Lord, We want to obey. We know that love obeys.
We long for you to show us where we're making
progress that we might rejoice and thank you.
And we long for you to show us that one thing
or that one or two things that are very specific
that we could bring to you and ask that by your
spirit and the power of your word through community,
you could transform us more into the likeness
of your son. Lord, that's our prayer. We know
you'll answer it. And so we thank you in advance
for what you're going to do. Amen. You'll find
the message notes Chip just mentioned in a couple
of places. Go to livingontheedge .org and click
the broadcasts tab. App listeners tap fill in
notes. You'll get his outline, all the scripture
references, and plenty of fill -ins to help you
remember what you hear. They'll really help you
get the most out of every program. So I hope
you'll take advantage of this resource the next
time you listen. We'll listen in next time as
Chip wraps up his series, I Choose Love. Until
then, this is Dave Drewy saying thanks for joining
us for this edition of Living on the Edge.