WEBVTT 00:00:01.159 --> 00:00:03.859 In his classic book, Life Together, the late 00:00:03.859 --> 00:00:06.179 Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote, The Christian needs 00:00:06.179 --> 00:00:08.660 another Christian who speaks God's Word to him. 00:00:08.820 --> 00:00:11.480 He needs him again and again when he becomes 00:00:11.480 --> 00:00:14.740 uncertain and discouraged, for by himself he 00:00:14.740 --> 00:00:17.500 cannot help himself. He needs his brother as 00:00:17.500 --> 00:00:20.140 a bearer and proclaimer of the divine Word of 00:00:20.140 --> 00:00:23.140 salvation. Coming up on Living on the Edge, Chip 00:00:23.140 --> 00:00:26.019 will unpack the influence and necessity of Christian 00:00:26.019 --> 00:00:29.079 community. I'm Dave Drewy. Thanks for joining 00:00:29.079 --> 00:00:31.399 us for this special program. And I'd like to 00:00:31.399 --> 00:00:33.659 welcome in our Bible teacher, Chip Ingram, to 00:00:33.659 --> 00:00:36.119 give us a bit of context for this message today. 00:00:36.679 --> 00:00:39.359 Thanks, Dave. If you've listened to Living on 00:00:39.359 --> 00:00:41.979 the Edge for a very long time, you've heard us 00:00:41.979 --> 00:00:45.619 talk about BIO, B -I -O. It's an acronym. It's 00:00:45.619 --> 00:00:48.799 for life. Throughout church history or today, 00:00:48.880 --> 00:00:51.939 you meet a man or a woman that is a lot like 00:00:51.939 --> 00:00:54.770 Jesus. And I will tell you for sure. Three things 00:00:54.770 --> 00:00:56.469 are happening in their life, in their practice. 00:00:56.670 --> 00:01:00.189 They come before God regularly, probably daily. 00:01:00.469 --> 00:01:03.170 And then they're doing life, I, in community. 00:01:03.289 --> 00:01:05.670 They're connected to other believers. There's 00:01:05.670 --> 00:01:07.890 support. There's accountability. There's real 00:01:07.890 --> 00:01:11.109 love. And finally, on mission. The heartbeat 00:01:11.109 --> 00:01:14.310 of this ministry is believers, not just hearing 00:01:14.310 --> 00:01:17.359 God's word, but actually living it out. That's 00:01:17.359 --> 00:01:19.739 absolutely right, Chip. And because we are focusing 00:01:19.739 --> 00:01:23.200 in on the I of that acronym today, I wanted to 00:01:23.200 --> 00:01:25.519 share an email we received that really drives 00:01:25.519 --> 00:01:27.980 home the importance of being in community with 00:01:27.980 --> 00:01:30.120 other believers. Here's what a listener named 00:01:30.120 --> 00:01:32.670 James wrote. Over the last six months, I've been 00:01:32.670 --> 00:01:34.930 part of two Living on the Edge group studies 00:01:34.930 --> 00:01:37.790 at church. I deeply appreciate your emphasis 00:01:37.790 --> 00:01:40.370 on the importance of a solid relationship with 00:01:40.370 --> 00:01:43.609 God over doing Christian things. Your teaching 00:01:43.609 --> 00:01:46.909 has challenged me and changed my life. I continue 00:01:46.909 --> 00:01:49.790 to do my best to live as a Romans 12 Christian 00:01:49.790 --> 00:01:53.170 and trust God to work in and through me to accomplish 00:01:53.170 --> 00:01:56.230 His purposes. Such an encouraging story, Chip. 00:01:56.519 --> 00:01:58.560 Well, there's few things that motivate me like 00:01:58.560 --> 00:02:01.620 when men step up the way James has. And James, 00:02:01.719 --> 00:02:05.420 way to go to every James out there because you're 00:02:05.420 --> 00:02:08.479 living in a world that is diabolically opposed 00:02:08.479 --> 00:02:11.379 to everything that God wants to do. And when 00:02:11.379 --> 00:02:14.300 you get in the word. When you get into a small 00:02:14.300 --> 00:02:16.919 group with authentic community and then you mobilize 00:02:16.919 --> 00:02:20.360 like this man is, the world changes. And, you 00:02:20.360 --> 00:02:22.620 know, sometimes we forget that it takes time. 00:02:22.639 --> 00:02:25.340 It's organic. And, you know, I think of 1996, 00:02:25.759 --> 00:02:29.020 we were on two radio stations and we just had 00:02:29.020 --> 00:02:31.240 a dream to help some people. And then, you know, 00:02:31.240 --> 00:02:33.780 now what is it, 900 radio stations or so and 00:02:33.780 --> 00:02:37.050 then TV around the world. But I'm probably most 00:02:37.050 --> 00:02:39.710 encouraged by all the small groups that grew 00:02:39.710 --> 00:02:42.289 out of that. Did you notice what he said? I did 00:02:42.289 --> 00:02:45.069 two studies. This is what's happening because 00:02:45.069 --> 00:02:48.530 he's connected. He's growing and applying. And 00:02:48.530 --> 00:02:50.569 we developed those studies because people gave 00:02:50.569 --> 00:02:53.069 generously. And I just want to say thank you 00:02:53.069 --> 00:02:54.870 to those of you that have partnered with us in 00:02:54.870 --> 00:02:57.770 the past. And I would like to ask you, if you 00:02:57.770 --> 00:03:00.189 have not done that, would you partner with us? 00:03:00.289 --> 00:03:04.050 It's just an amazing time. God is working. We 00:03:04.050 --> 00:03:07.129 just need to see more James in more homes. We 00:03:07.129 --> 00:03:09.729 need to see more small groups and more churches 00:03:09.729 --> 00:03:12.550 living it out, serving their community, and we 00:03:12.550 --> 00:03:14.860 can get there together. Let's do it. Good word, 00:03:14.919 --> 00:03:17.039 Chip. Well, if you want to help us create small 00:03:17.039 --> 00:03:19.539 group materials and get believers into authentic 00:03:19.539 --> 00:03:22.379 community, pray about becoming a financial partner. 00:03:22.680 --> 00:03:25.960 Your gifts fuel our growing library of resources 00:03:25.960 --> 00:03:28.580 to help Christians really live like Christians. 00:03:28.879 --> 00:03:34.599 Visit livingontheedge .org or call 888 -333 -6003 00:03:34.599 --> 00:03:40.259 to give a gift today. That's 888 -333 -6003 or 00:03:40.259 --> 00:03:44.849 go to livingontheedge .org. And thanks in advance 00:03:44.849 --> 00:03:48.009 for doing whatever God leads you to do. Okay, 00:03:48.050 --> 00:03:50.449 let's get started. Here now is Chip with today's 00:03:50.449 --> 00:03:55.569 talk, Why You Need a Small Group. I was reading 00:03:55.569 --> 00:03:58.210 an article recently that talked about the very, 00:03:58.250 --> 00:04:01.669 very best communicators and Steve Jobs, who started 00:04:01.669 --> 00:04:06.830 Apple. He said, information tells, stories sell. 00:04:07.169 --> 00:04:10.300 And what he was saying there was, We can give 00:04:10.300 --> 00:04:13.439 people 10 reasons, 15 reasons. Here's all the 00:04:13.439 --> 00:04:16.459 data. And oftentimes it doesn't make a big difference 00:04:16.459 --> 00:04:19.160 in their life. But there's something about a 00:04:19.160 --> 00:04:22.779 story that captures our imagination, that connects 00:04:22.779 --> 00:04:26.060 to not just our head but to our heart. Let me 00:04:26.060 --> 00:04:28.939 give you a story that I hope will grab your heart 00:04:28.939 --> 00:04:32.160 and maybe really encourage you. Teresa and I 00:04:32.160 --> 00:04:35.699 were in a big, big transition in our life. We 00:04:35.699 --> 00:04:39.680 had moved to Texas. We had two little boys. I 00:04:39.680 --> 00:04:42.779 was just starting seminary and we found a local 00:04:42.779 --> 00:04:45.180 church there in the Dallas area. And this church 00:04:45.180 --> 00:04:47.879 had a couple thousand people. We came from West 00:04:47.879 --> 00:04:52.240 Virginia where a mega church was 250 or 300 people. 00:04:52.399 --> 00:04:55.560 It was very warm. The preaching was excellent. 00:04:55.779 --> 00:04:58.399 The worship was excellent. We would drop off 00:04:58.399 --> 00:05:01.259 our kids and it was just exciting and they loved 00:05:01.259 --> 00:05:03.899 to go to church. The first time we were there, 00:05:03.959 --> 00:05:06.540 people invited us over to their home. We had 00:05:06.540 --> 00:05:09.040 a meal. We ate ice cream. I mean, if you were 00:05:09.040 --> 00:05:12.540 trying to create an experience, we'd say, that's 00:05:12.540 --> 00:05:14.819 what a church ought to do. It would be that. 00:05:15.220 --> 00:05:17.779 And I'll never forget, maybe it was six weeks 00:05:17.779 --> 00:05:21.139 or eight weeks in, of these wonderful after wonderful 00:05:21.139 --> 00:05:23.959 after wonderful after wonderful experiences at 00:05:23.959 --> 00:05:26.839 church. We were opening the door, and I had my 00:05:26.839 --> 00:05:29.360 hand on one of the handles and Teresa did on 00:05:29.360 --> 00:05:32.019 the other. And our eyes met. And I turned to 00:05:32.019 --> 00:05:34.399 her and I said, do you want to go to church today? 00:05:35.019 --> 00:05:37.540 And she said, no. I said, you know, neither do 00:05:37.540 --> 00:05:40.819 I. And there was a Wendy's across the street. 00:05:41.060 --> 00:05:43.540 I said, let's go get a cup of coffee. And we 00:05:43.540 --> 00:05:47.980 sat down and we tried to figure out this is probably 00:05:47.980 --> 00:05:52.800 one of the best churches, best services, most 00:05:52.800 --> 00:05:56.819 friendly, very biblical that we'd ever been to. 00:05:57.319 --> 00:06:01.819 So what's wrong? Why do I not want to go to church? 00:06:02.480 --> 00:06:06.459 We were being taught. We learned a lot. But we 00:06:06.459 --> 00:06:09.939 were ministering to no one. Nobody knows us. 00:06:09.959 --> 00:06:13.040 We don't know anybody else. There was no intimacy. 00:06:13.379 --> 00:06:16.879 No one in the church really felt close. Nothing 00:06:16.879 --> 00:06:19.279 more than casual hellos and passing concerns. 00:06:19.959 --> 00:06:25.379 We were relationally high and dry. And I remember 00:06:25.379 --> 00:06:27.759 praying and I got up one morning and I thought 00:06:27.759 --> 00:06:30.500 to myself, I knew that leaders, whether it's 00:06:30.500 --> 00:06:32.439 a pastor or business owner, were looking for 00:06:32.439 --> 00:06:34.980 people that wanted to make a difference, that 00:06:34.980 --> 00:06:39.129 were willing to step in and serve. So I got a 00:06:39.129 --> 00:06:42.889 3x5 card out and I wrote my name and some contact 00:06:42.889 --> 00:06:45.850 information and then very brief bullet points 00:06:45.850 --> 00:06:48.689 of I've led a college ministry and I've done 00:06:48.689 --> 00:06:51.250 this and I was involved in this, involved in 00:06:51.250 --> 00:06:54.269 that. And then I went to the church office during 00:06:54.269 --> 00:06:56.410 the week and I said, could I have an appointment 00:06:56.410 --> 00:06:59.290 with the pastor? You know, it's a big church 00:06:59.290 --> 00:07:02.250 and I'll never get there. And she smiled and 00:07:02.250 --> 00:07:04.730 looked on some calendars and then she gave me 00:07:04.730 --> 00:07:08.259 a date. He had me meet at a restaurant. It was 00:07:08.259 --> 00:07:11.100 just like a diner, nothing fancy. And so we both 00:07:11.100 --> 00:07:13.699 sat down, and part of what I wanted to do was 00:07:13.699 --> 00:07:16.040 talk about where we might fit in in the church. 00:07:16.180 --> 00:07:19.480 And we had lunch, and we talked, and he asked 00:07:19.480 --> 00:07:22.300 me a few questions about my 3x5 card and this 00:07:22.300 --> 00:07:24.800 and that. Two days later, I got a call from the 00:07:24.800 --> 00:07:28.360 church, and they said, hey, we have a large high 00:07:28.360 --> 00:07:30.800 school ministry, and would you and your wife 00:07:30.800 --> 00:07:33.620 be willing to kind of help team up with the group 00:07:33.620 --> 00:07:35.879 that's there? There's a couple couples that are 00:07:35.879 --> 00:07:38.639 working there and figure out maybe what role 00:07:38.639 --> 00:07:42.519 you could have. And yes, absolutely. And I taught 00:07:42.519 --> 00:07:45.600 here and there, and we connected with the church. 00:07:45.860 --> 00:07:48.519 We connected with those kids. It was like two 00:07:48.519 --> 00:07:51.160 months later. He said, hey, we have a big vacancy. 00:07:51.360 --> 00:07:53.399 We don't really have much of a college ministry. 00:07:53.879 --> 00:07:57.040 Would you be willing to kind of step in and lead 00:07:57.040 --> 00:08:00.620 that? And my wife and I said, yes. And we had 00:08:00.620 --> 00:08:04.120 the time of our life. going to seminary, leading 00:08:04.120 --> 00:08:06.779 this ministry. And as we would meet together, 00:08:07.040 --> 00:08:10.379 I would disciple them and Teresa the girls, and 00:08:10.379 --> 00:08:13.199 we would spend some time eating and sharing, 00:08:13.420 --> 00:08:16.279 worshiping with the guitar, and help the young 00:08:16.279 --> 00:08:18.500 guys learn how to communicate their faith and 00:08:18.500 --> 00:08:21.759 build bridges and love people. And I look back, 00:08:21.759 --> 00:08:24.839 and all of a sudden, our world completely changed. 00:08:24.959 --> 00:08:27.660 I had all this pressure. I was working full -time, 00:08:27.779 --> 00:08:31.209 going to seminary full -time. And the highlight 00:08:31.209 --> 00:08:35.470 of my week was these 10 or 12 college students 00:08:35.470 --> 00:08:39.210 who really love God, who were hungry, and we 00:08:39.210 --> 00:08:41.490 were a part of their life. And, you know, we 00:08:41.490 --> 00:08:43.450 had a baby during that time, and they just all 00:08:43.450 --> 00:08:46.769 gathered around us. And the group grew like crazy. 00:08:46.809 --> 00:08:50.500 And, yes, it was a lot of hours. But I don't 00:08:50.500 --> 00:08:52.360 know if I could have made it through seminary 00:08:52.360 --> 00:08:55.360 apart from that group. And someone asked me, 00:08:55.399 --> 00:08:58.120 how do you do so much? And I thought, I'm learning 00:08:58.120 --> 00:09:01.120 so much Greek and Hebrew and theology and every 00:09:01.120 --> 00:09:04.019 book of the Bible, the joy of teaching every 00:09:04.019 --> 00:09:06.360 week that college group. And if you don't give 00:09:06.360 --> 00:09:09.419 it out somewhere, you go crazy. And two things 00:09:09.419 --> 00:09:12.799 happened. We were using our gifts. We were building 00:09:12.799 --> 00:09:16.220 deep, authentic relationships. And we got to 00:09:16.220 --> 00:09:19.669 be a part of people's lives changing. I had been 00:09:19.669 --> 00:09:21.710 a basketball coach and led a college ministry 00:09:21.710 --> 00:09:25.169 on the side as a layperson, and I knew about 00:09:25.169 --> 00:09:28.610 developing small groups and discipling men, and 00:09:28.610 --> 00:09:30.710 I praised God for the bricklayer who discipled 00:09:30.710 --> 00:09:33.570 me, but I had never done it when there was that 00:09:33.570 --> 00:09:36.450 much pressure. I'd never done it when it was 00:09:36.450 --> 00:09:40.309 my lifeline, and it gave me a completely different 00:09:40.309 --> 00:09:43.639 view of the church. Today, like never before, 00:09:43.860 --> 00:09:47.320 more people are not going to a local church. 00:09:47.519 --> 00:09:49.679 A lot of people have kind of left the church 00:09:49.679 --> 00:09:53.139 after COVID and for some very good reasons and 00:09:53.139 --> 00:09:55.779 for some not so good reasons. A lot of people 00:09:55.779 --> 00:09:58.879 are just online. Others, you know, you go to 00:09:58.879 --> 00:10:02.200 church and you hear someone speak and they're 00:10:02.200 --> 00:10:04.659 singing and there's some worship and then you 00:10:04.659 --> 00:10:06.720 get up and make some small talk and you leave. 00:10:07.360 --> 00:10:10.679 And these ideas of life change and joy and peace 00:10:10.679 --> 00:10:14.700 and feeling connected, they just are not a part 00:10:14.700 --> 00:10:18.159 of a lot of very genuine, sincere Christians' 00:10:18.440 --> 00:10:21.059 lives. See, the church isn't that building and 00:10:21.059 --> 00:10:23.740 the church isn't what I'm getting out of it as 00:10:23.740 --> 00:10:28.000 a consumer. The church is the living, supernatural 00:10:28.000 --> 00:10:33.639 body of Jesus that's vital and it's organic and 00:10:33.639 --> 00:10:36.299 it's about people and it's about being connected. 00:10:36.940 --> 00:10:40.299 It's not going and listening to a message and 00:10:40.299 --> 00:10:42.960 evaluating that and maybe even putting it into 00:10:42.960 --> 00:10:45.419 practice. That's a very important part of it. 00:10:45.480 --> 00:10:47.840 I mean, I hope it's an important part of it because 00:10:47.840 --> 00:10:51.820 I've spent decades of my life studying hard, 00:10:51.919 --> 00:10:55.000 praying hard, preparing messages to feed God's 00:10:55.000 --> 00:10:58.559 people. But what the Bible teaches is that we 00:10:58.559 --> 00:11:02.639 can't put it into practice alone. To be loved 00:11:02.639 --> 00:11:06.580 and to belong. and to change and to feel God's 00:11:06.580 --> 00:11:10.659 love and to be used by him and to discover spiritual 00:11:10.659 --> 00:11:14.100 gifts. That can't happen by watching online. 00:11:14.639 --> 00:11:17.259 This is not a guilt trip. This is you're missing 00:11:17.259 --> 00:11:21.679 out. That can't happen by simply going to church. 00:11:21.779 --> 00:11:24.759 And I don't mean this as a bad word, but by being 00:11:24.759 --> 00:11:28.740 just a consumer. You have to move to being a 00:11:28.740 --> 00:11:32.659 participant. You're listening to Living on the 00:11:32.659 --> 00:11:35.000 Edge. And before we continue today's program, 00:11:35.220 --> 00:11:37.899 let me ask you, are you in a small group? If 00:11:37.899 --> 00:11:40.740 so, are you looking for a new study to do together 00:11:40.740 --> 00:11:43.620 this year? Well, join us after this message to 00:11:43.620 --> 00:11:46.600 learn more about our library of resources that's 00:11:46.600 --> 00:11:48.860 sure to help you and your group grow in your 00:11:48.860 --> 00:11:51.840 faith together. But for now, here's Chip to continue 00:11:51.840 --> 00:11:56.779 his talk. I'm reading a book on emotions. It's 00:11:56.779 --> 00:11:59.100 by a theologian, and he's a counselor and has 00:11:59.100 --> 00:12:02.980 lots of degrees. But he talks about the deepest 00:12:02.980 --> 00:12:08.919 longings, desires inside every human heart is 00:12:08.919 --> 00:12:11.519 number one, to be connected, relationally with 00:12:11.519 --> 00:12:14.799 other people. And number two, your life making 00:12:14.799 --> 00:12:18.419 a difference. When you go to work, when you go 00:12:18.419 --> 00:12:22.039 to church, when you wake up, it's that idea of 00:12:22.039 --> 00:12:26.019 having purpose and meaning that what you actually 00:12:26.019 --> 00:12:29.429 do. is making a difference. Apart from that, 00:12:29.470 --> 00:12:32.129 we lose hope, we lose meaning. We see it happening 00:12:32.129 --> 00:12:35.230 in young people, in the next generation, because 00:12:35.230 --> 00:12:39.230 once you lose absolute truth and once you have 00:12:39.230 --> 00:12:42.970 no spiritual, religious orientation, well, that 00:12:42.970 --> 00:12:46.929 means there's no why I am here. And so often, 00:12:47.470 --> 00:12:50.190 They don't experience that when they visit a 00:12:50.190 --> 00:12:52.730 church, if they ever do visit a church. And the 00:12:52.730 --> 00:12:54.730 great majority of young people that have left 00:12:54.730 --> 00:12:57.269 the church is because they haven't been connected. 00:12:57.950 --> 00:13:01.809 And that longing and that belonging has not happened. 00:13:01.950 --> 00:13:04.889 It's been, I hear someone talk about Jesus. They 00:13:04.889 --> 00:13:07.149 tell me what Jesus did. They tell me how I'm 00:13:07.149 --> 00:13:09.330 supposed to live. They tell me my morals need 00:13:09.330 --> 00:13:12.509 to be X, Y, and Z. And when I go home or when 00:13:12.509 --> 00:13:14.929 I see my parents who say they're followers of 00:13:14.929 --> 00:13:17.549 Jesus, I don't see a lot of difference in their 00:13:17.549 --> 00:13:22.460 life. And I am being exposed to... Media and 00:13:22.460 --> 00:13:25.139 movies and a culture that's bombarding me each 00:13:25.139 --> 00:13:27.639 and every day that says life really has no meaning. 00:13:27.759 --> 00:13:31.259 You are whatever you feel. And in all that confusion, 00:13:31.639 --> 00:13:36.059 they struggle. What I really want to say is Jesus 00:13:36.059 --> 00:13:40.139 really cares about you. He loves you. I mean, 00:13:40.139 --> 00:13:43.580 he really loves you and he's for you. And we 00:13:43.580 --> 00:13:46.759 all have some common needs. And those common 00:13:46.759 --> 00:13:51.129 needs. They can't ever be satisfied by what can 00:13:51.129 --> 00:13:54.269 come across the screen. They can't be satisfied 00:13:54.269 --> 00:13:58.009 by even doing a good job or having a great career 00:13:58.009 --> 00:14:01.809 or even marrying the right person. Loneliness 00:14:01.809 --> 00:14:05.470 and depression, the number one health issues 00:14:05.470 --> 00:14:10.830 in our world, can only be solved by deep, enriching, 00:14:10.830 --> 00:14:14.809 honest, authentic relationships. And all of us 00:14:14.809 --> 00:14:18.190 are so insecure. And all of us have so many defense 00:14:18.190 --> 00:14:21.230 mechanisms. And all of us are so afraid that 00:14:21.230 --> 00:14:23.590 people will get to know who we really are. We 00:14:23.590 --> 00:14:28.090 spend so much time posing in relationships. And 00:14:28.090 --> 00:14:32.870 Jesus so longs for us to come in honesty and 00:14:32.870 --> 00:14:36.740 authenticity and transparency. And that can't 00:14:36.740 --> 00:14:40.639 happen in a large group, whether it's 100 or 00:14:40.639 --> 00:14:44.200 500 or 5 ,000 worshiping together. That large 00:14:44.200 --> 00:14:47.159 group worship service has a very, very vital 00:14:47.159 --> 00:14:50.340 and important place. But our personal relationships 00:14:50.340 --> 00:14:55.159 require the container of a small group. Psychologists 00:14:55.159 --> 00:14:58.759 tell us the only way to overcome the stress and 00:14:58.759 --> 00:15:02.759 pressure of life is some sort of small, supportive 00:15:02.759 --> 00:15:06.009 group. We kind of laugh sometimes. You get a 00:15:06.009 --> 00:15:08.149 little bit older, and if you look at teens in 00:15:08.149 --> 00:15:09.909 a high school, and you get the sports group, 00:15:09.950 --> 00:15:12.029 and they dress this way, and sort of the music 00:15:12.029 --> 00:15:13.830 -type group, and they look this way, and the 00:15:13.830 --> 00:15:16.350 more nerdy people look this way. And, you know, 00:15:16.370 --> 00:15:18.830 sometimes we can laugh and say that's what kids 00:15:18.830 --> 00:15:22.809 do, but we want to belong. I mean, it's inherent 00:15:22.809 --> 00:15:26.769 in every single human being. And whether you're 00:15:26.769 --> 00:15:30.269 60 years old and on big Harley Davidson motorcycles 00:15:30.269 --> 00:15:32.950 with long hair, or whether you're preppy looking, 00:15:33.110 --> 00:15:36.090 or whether you're a software developer, or whether 00:15:36.090 --> 00:15:38.250 you play softball on the weekends with this group, 00:15:38.370 --> 00:15:41.629 we all are looking for groups and belongings. 00:15:41.950 --> 00:15:46.409 And then we dress in ways and we speak in ways 00:15:46.409 --> 00:15:50.330 that we are desperate for people to say. I want 00:15:50.330 --> 00:15:54.570 to be in this group because I'm desperate for 00:15:54.570 --> 00:15:58.629 someone to know me and I can know others in a 00:15:58.629 --> 00:16:03.090 meaningful way. Our greatest desire is to be 00:16:03.090 --> 00:16:06.190 known and to discover who we are and that our 00:16:06.190 --> 00:16:09.730 life has meaning and value and that we'd have 00:16:09.730 --> 00:16:12.169 that in love and acceptance with other people. 00:16:12.549 --> 00:16:16.190 Where and how do you get that? What I know is 00:16:16.190 --> 00:16:19.230 that there's a small percentage of followers 00:16:19.230 --> 00:16:21.870 of Christ, and there's a small percentage of 00:16:21.870 --> 00:16:24.529 people who go to church regularly that are in 00:16:24.529 --> 00:16:27.610 what I would call an authentic, deep, relational 00:16:27.610 --> 00:16:30.669 small group. This fall, we're going to really 00:16:30.669 --> 00:16:34.070 cast a vision to say, you need to be in a small 00:16:34.070 --> 00:16:36.610 group. We're going to talk about all of our small 00:16:36.610 --> 00:16:39.070 group resources that we make, some things that 00:16:39.070 --> 00:16:42.559 every believer needs to study. We have it on 00:16:42.559 --> 00:16:45.120 video and we have it in different formats. And 00:16:45.120 --> 00:16:47.460 you can tell me, well, my church really doesn't 00:16:47.460 --> 00:16:49.779 provide that. I'm going to say, fine, you start 00:16:49.779 --> 00:16:52.860 one. I will tell you this, instead of just giving 00:16:52.860 --> 00:16:55.700 you some great content and having you watch a 00:16:55.700 --> 00:16:58.360 video or study something on your own, I will 00:16:58.360 --> 00:17:02.159 lead the small group. You put the video on. Teaching's 00:17:02.159 --> 00:17:05.460 only about 25 minutes. I'll lead the first few 00:17:05.460 --> 00:17:08.539 minutes of that group. You don't have to be alone. 00:17:08.900 --> 00:17:11.700 If you just open your home, invite some friends, 00:17:11.900 --> 00:17:14.740 and you would be shocked if you said to a group 00:17:14.740 --> 00:17:16.880 of people, my house, we're going to do this. 00:17:16.880 --> 00:17:19.500 It's eight weeks or whatever. And why don't you 00:17:19.500 --> 00:17:22.200 come? Ask one person, hey, would you mind maybe 00:17:22.200 --> 00:17:24.480 bringing some drinks and a few snacks? And you 00:17:24.480 --> 00:17:26.619 just do that together. And yeah, it's awkward 00:17:26.619 --> 00:17:29.539 the first week or two. But in all of our small 00:17:29.539 --> 00:17:32.019 group resources that we make, in the back of 00:17:32.019 --> 00:17:34.339 them, We give you, hey, here's how to set up. 00:17:34.460 --> 00:17:37.140 Here's how to kind of lead and facilitate things. 00:17:37.380 --> 00:17:40.400 Here's a few things not to do. And I just can't 00:17:40.400 --> 00:17:43.000 tell you how critical and important this is. 00:17:43.380 --> 00:17:46.119 We've just launched hundreds of thousands of 00:17:46.119 --> 00:17:49.079 groups all across America and places around the 00:17:49.079 --> 00:17:52.480 world. And we help people get connected. We help 00:17:52.480 --> 00:17:55.720 people belong. We help people discover that God 00:17:55.720 --> 00:17:58.670 will show up in it. And I told you, you know, 00:17:58.690 --> 00:18:01.109 we've been doing lots and lots of teaching, and 00:18:01.109 --> 00:18:03.930 we just taught through the entire book of Philippians. 00:18:04.049 --> 00:18:06.529 And what I want to encourage you is hearing about 00:18:06.529 --> 00:18:09.769 that is good, but getting that kind of information 00:18:09.769 --> 00:18:13.910 and then a discussion where you share and where, 00:18:13.970 --> 00:18:16.769 yes, the truth of that becomes at the core of 00:18:16.769 --> 00:18:19.390 meeting, but then you begin to share your life 00:18:19.390 --> 00:18:23.170 and your struggles and your ups and your downs, 00:18:23.230 --> 00:18:26.690 and you begin to really authentically and openly 00:18:27.150 --> 00:18:30.150 Pray for one another. And as you begin to go 00:18:30.150 --> 00:18:33.750 on that journey, God will show up. I remember 00:18:33.750 --> 00:18:37.589 I was coming off of one of my many back surgeries, 00:18:37.730 --> 00:18:41.069 and I realized that my attempts getting back 00:18:41.069 --> 00:18:43.769 with it were not doing well. And I'm kind of 00:18:43.769 --> 00:18:46.029 cheap, so I didn't want to pay a personal trainer, 00:18:46.130 --> 00:18:48.430 but I realized I've got to get strong again, 00:18:48.509 --> 00:18:51.089 and I'm not doing well on my own. And so there 00:18:51.089 --> 00:18:52.950 was a place. I didn't know anybody there, and 00:18:52.950 --> 00:18:56.119 I pulled in. said hi to the guy and told him 00:18:56.119 --> 00:18:58.220 what I needed to do. And he said, well, this 00:18:58.220 --> 00:19:00.039 last person's done. Let me do a little interview. 00:19:00.200 --> 00:19:01.900 And he got a clipboard out and asked me a bunch 00:19:01.900 --> 00:19:04.460 of questions. And we got through, I don't know, 00:19:04.579 --> 00:19:08.640 maybe 10, 12 questions, 15 minutes. And he looked 00:19:08.640 --> 00:19:11.259 at me and said, you sound very familiar. I said, 00:19:11.299 --> 00:19:12.680 well, what do you mean I sound familiar? He goes, 00:19:12.720 --> 00:19:14.799 well, I've heard your voice. And then he kind 00:19:14.799 --> 00:19:16.319 of looked down at the clipboard. He goes, are 00:19:16.319 --> 00:19:18.460 you Chip Ingram, like the guy that's on the radio? 00:19:18.640 --> 00:19:21.400 I said, well, yeah. And he broke out in this 00:19:21.400 --> 00:19:22.880 big smile. And I said, you've got to be kidding 00:19:22.880 --> 00:19:26.569 me. And he then began to tell me his story. It's 00:19:26.569 --> 00:19:28.990 one of the most powerful stories I've ever heard, 00:19:29.069 --> 00:19:31.990 and we have now been friends well over 10 years 00:19:31.990 --> 00:19:35.069 since. And he told me the story of being involved 00:19:35.069 --> 00:19:37.670 in full -time Christian work and having a huge 00:19:37.670 --> 00:19:42.089 moral failure. Lost his family, later married 00:19:42.089 --> 00:19:43.809 the woman that he was having the affair with, 00:19:43.910 --> 00:19:46.789 had a couple kids with her, and he lived in that 00:19:46.789 --> 00:19:49.730 life for well over a decade. And then God got 00:19:49.730 --> 00:19:53.259 a hold of his heart. And I had met him shortly 00:19:53.259 --> 00:19:56.059 after he had really come back to the Lord. a 00:19:56.059 --> 00:19:59.039 really deep repentance. He had gone back and 00:19:59.039 --> 00:20:01.500 rebuilt bridges and apologies and was making 00:20:01.500 --> 00:20:04.720 amends, was living in a very, very difficult 00:20:04.720 --> 00:20:07.740 situation. You can imagine the struggles, the 00:20:07.740 --> 00:20:10.160 guilt, the shame, the issues he had to overcome. 00:20:10.640 --> 00:20:13.339 In the midst of all this, we would work out three 00:20:13.339 --> 00:20:15.559 times a week, and he was a great trainer, and 00:20:15.559 --> 00:20:18.460 I was making progress, and we shared a lot. And 00:20:18.460 --> 00:20:21.359 as we talked month after month after month, I 00:20:21.359 --> 00:20:23.539 realized that there was something missing, and 00:20:23.539 --> 00:20:25.519 I said, do you know why you can't get over the 00:20:25.519 --> 00:20:28.960 hump? You need a group, man. No one can do this 00:20:28.960 --> 00:20:31.440 alone. You're the most disciplined person I know. 00:20:31.599 --> 00:20:33.680 You're in the scriptures. You're praying. You're 00:20:33.680 --> 00:20:36.339 making every effort. You can't do this alone. 00:20:36.799 --> 00:20:39.480 You need a small group. And he goes, oh, my schedule, 00:20:39.700 --> 00:20:41.839 I can't do this, I can't do that. I'm working 00:20:41.839 --> 00:20:43.900 multiple times and doing this and doing that. 00:20:44.119 --> 00:20:47.140 And I had a buddy at a church who's doing a real 00:20:47.140 --> 00:20:50.140 early morning small group. Six, 15, 300, 400 00:20:50.140 --> 00:20:52.839 guys were coming to it, and then they would break 00:20:52.839 --> 00:20:54.559 into groups. I said, you need to go to that. 00:20:54.779 --> 00:20:56.859 He's a good friend. He's a great teacher. You'll 00:20:56.859 --> 00:20:59.559 meet great men there. The guy rearranges the 00:20:59.559 --> 00:21:02.380 schedule, and that was the beginning of life. 00:21:03.150 --> 00:21:05.849 of the Spirit of God using other men, of being 00:21:05.849 --> 00:21:09.230 understood, of being loved, of realizing he wasn't 00:21:09.230 --> 00:21:12.630 alone. And that was for two years or so. And 00:21:12.630 --> 00:21:15.450 then pretty soon, they were taking a big, big 00:21:15.450 --> 00:21:17.589 break for like months, and his group didn't want 00:21:17.589 --> 00:21:19.910 to take a break. And so he kept going, and he 00:21:19.910 --> 00:21:22.750 led it. And then after that, there was another 00:21:22.750 --> 00:21:24.650 guy that had a friend, and so he starts another 00:21:24.650 --> 00:21:28.420 group. And all these years later, He leads about 00:21:28.420 --> 00:21:31.720 four different groups. He has led more people 00:21:31.720 --> 00:21:34.619 to Christ, his 88 -year -old father and like 00:21:34.619 --> 00:21:37.039 90 -year -old mother. And if you really think 00:21:37.039 --> 00:21:38.819 about it, the people that really want to change 00:21:38.819 --> 00:21:41.460 have learned this. And whether it's AA or Weight 00:21:41.460 --> 00:21:44.519 Watchers or Gamblers Anonymous or Teen Challenge 00:21:44.519 --> 00:21:48.079 Drug Rehab or smokers that want to quit, any 00:21:48.079 --> 00:21:51.940 group of people have found the secret of life 00:21:51.940 --> 00:21:55.799 change. They realize you got to do it in a group. 00:21:56.299 --> 00:21:58.519 You got to have real people that get to know 00:21:58.519 --> 00:22:01.660 you and you know them. And so here's my plea. 00:22:02.180 --> 00:22:04.640 You need a small group. And if you don't have 00:22:04.640 --> 00:22:07.539 one, launch one. You don't know how, we'll help 00:22:07.539 --> 00:22:10.859 you. But Christians need to live like Christians 00:22:10.859 --> 00:22:14.640 for their good and for the glory of God. And 00:22:14.640 --> 00:22:18.160 Christians cannot live like Christians apart 00:22:18.160 --> 00:22:21.240 from authentic community. And authentic community 00:22:21.240 --> 00:22:25.359 happens in the context or the container. of a 00:22:25.359 --> 00:22:28.059 small group. And that's my prayer. That's my 00:22:28.059 --> 00:22:31.779 longing for you. This fall, don't let one more 00:22:31.779 --> 00:22:35.859 fall go. Don't let importance of meetings or 00:22:35.859 --> 00:22:39.980 of life or of travel or schedule or school or 00:22:39.980 --> 00:22:43.640 family or anything. Make sure, whether it's a 00:22:43.640 --> 00:22:45.759 men's group, a women's group, a couple's group, 00:22:45.940 --> 00:22:48.420 whether it's every week or every other week, 00:22:48.960 --> 00:22:51.460 Teresa and I have an unusual group. We actually 00:22:51.460 --> 00:22:54.920 meet once a month and we have a dinner. with 00:22:54.920 --> 00:22:58.299 people of similar life stage. We just had one 00:22:58.299 --> 00:23:01.400 last night. It went four hours. And because of 00:23:01.400 --> 00:23:03.160 our schedules, it's hard to get together. And 00:23:03.160 --> 00:23:06.380 once a month may not be enough for many. Regularity 00:23:06.380 --> 00:23:09.799 is better. But these are mature people in our 00:23:09.799 --> 00:23:13.920 life stage. And we eat. And we go to a different 00:23:13.920 --> 00:23:16.859 house each time. And then we share deeply for 00:23:16.859 --> 00:23:18.940 three or four hours. And we bring each other 00:23:18.940 --> 00:23:22.829 up to date. And it is an evening. that I look 00:23:22.829 --> 00:23:26.210 forward to every 30 days. And I don't work with 00:23:26.210 --> 00:23:29.769 any of them. I don't report to any of them. These 00:23:29.769 --> 00:23:32.589 are friends. And when I show up, I'm nothing 00:23:32.589 --> 00:23:36.529 more or nothing less than just Chip, Teresa's 00:23:36.529 --> 00:23:40.650 husband. And we have an openness and a transparency 00:23:40.650 --> 00:23:45.329 that sustains me and is changing my life. I so 00:23:45.329 --> 00:23:51.650 long for that for you. You're listening to Living 00:23:51.650 --> 00:23:54.670 on the Edge with Chip Ingram. I'm Dave Drewy, 00:23:54.670 --> 00:23:56.630 and I hope you were encouraged and motivated 00:23:56.630 --> 00:23:59.549 by this special message from Chip, Why You Need 00:23:59.549 --> 00:24:02.150 a Small Group. Chip's back with me in studio 00:24:02.150 --> 00:24:04.529 now, and Chip, it's pretty obvious from this 00:24:04.529 --> 00:24:07.549 program why we as followers of Christ need community. 00:24:08.119 --> 00:24:10.759 and how necessary small groups are. I mean, they 00:24:10.759 --> 00:24:13.119 can forever change someone's life and help all 00:24:13.119 --> 00:24:15.660 of us mature spiritually. And as you mentioned 00:24:15.660 --> 00:24:18.400 today, we have a growing library of study guides 00:24:18.400 --> 00:24:21.200 and video resources for small groups. So take 00:24:21.200 --> 00:24:22.920 a minute, if you would, and highlight a few our 00:24:22.920 --> 00:24:25.470 listeners should check out. Well, Dave, we all 00:24:25.470 --> 00:24:28.069 have special times in our life where there's 00:24:28.069 --> 00:24:30.509 either crisis or we know we need to improve our 00:24:30.509 --> 00:24:33.210 parenting, our marriage, or there's some emotional 00:24:33.210 --> 00:24:35.970 issues. And as people go through, there's plenty 00:24:35.970 --> 00:24:38.930 of small group resources like that. But what 00:24:38.930 --> 00:24:42.170 I think is missing is what historically has been 00:24:42.170 --> 00:24:46.250 called a catechism. A catechism is a well -ordered 00:24:46.250 --> 00:24:50.529 process of truth by which you go through it systematically 00:24:50.529 --> 00:24:54.460 and intentionally. in order to become more and 00:24:54.460 --> 00:24:57.380 more like Jesus and to fulfill more and more 00:24:57.380 --> 00:25:00.000 what Jesus has called us to do. And so if you 00:25:00.000 --> 00:25:02.740 follow Jesus' life, his actual chronological 00:25:02.740 --> 00:25:05.900 life, the first thing is he defined what a disciple 00:25:05.900 --> 00:25:08.880 is. And so the very first study I encourage people 00:25:08.880 --> 00:25:12.160 to do is true spirituality, becoming a Romans 00:25:12.160 --> 00:25:14.779 12 Christian. It'll let them know this is what 00:25:14.779 --> 00:25:18.279 it means to be a follower of Jesus. The second 00:25:18.279 --> 00:25:20.759 thing Jesus did is he took them through various 00:25:20.759 --> 00:25:24.930 experiences to reveal who God was like. What 00:25:24.930 --> 00:25:27.950 is God really like? And so our second study, 00:25:28.029 --> 00:25:30.869 it's called The Real God. And in that, we study 00:25:30.869 --> 00:25:33.410 the attributes of God and how to get them from 00:25:33.410 --> 00:25:36.849 your head into your heart. The third thing that 00:25:36.849 --> 00:25:40.259 Jesus did is he helped them understand. How does 00:25:40.259 --> 00:25:43.160 life change really occur? How do you put it into 00:25:43.160 --> 00:25:45.740 practice? We have a study from Ephesians chapter 00:25:45.740 --> 00:25:49.599 4 called Transformed, The Miracle of Life Change. 00:25:49.920 --> 00:25:51.779 And then the fourth one I'll give you, because 00:25:51.779 --> 00:25:54.019 I don't want to lay it all out, is that when 00:25:54.019 --> 00:25:56.759 you take these kind of steps, all hell breaks 00:25:56.759 --> 00:25:59.400 loose. I don't mean that as a cuss word. What 00:25:59.400 --> 00:26:02.640 I mean is it's challenging. It's difficult. There's 00:26:02.640 --> 00:26:05.160 spiritual warfare. And that's our study from 00:26:05.160 --> 00:26:07.420 Ephesians chapter six. It's called the invisible 00:26:07.420 --> 00:26:10.160 war. What every believer needs to know about 00:26:10.160 --> 00:26:13.319 Satan, demons, and spiritual warfare. So let 00:26:13.319 --> 00:26:16.200 me encourage you, unless there's a critical need, 00:26:16.339 --> 00:26:20.559 a high felt need, consider studying in order 00:26:20.559 --> 00:26:23.869 the catechism. the way Jesus taught his disciples. 00:26:24.329 --> 00:26:26.730 Well, to learn more about the studies Chip mentioned 00:26:26.730 --> 00:26:30.289 or any of our other small groups, go to livingontheedge 00:26:30.289 --> 00:26:35.869 .org or call us at 888 - 333 -6003. And let me 00:26:35.869 --> 00:26:38.430 tell you, these materials are so easy to use. 00:26:38.769 --> 00:26:41.029 Chip provides the teaching. Then you'll have 00:26:41.029 --> 00:26:43.470 time to discuss what you've heard alongside our 00:26:43.470 --> 00:26:46.269 helpful study guides. We even offer some insights 00:26:46.269 --> 00:26:48.970 for leaders on how to care for and guide their 00:26:48.970 --> 00:26:51.430 groups as well. So if you're not in a small group 00:26:51.430 --> 00:26:53.890 yet or are looking for something new to study, 00:26:53.990 --> 00:26:56.769 check out our resources. And for a limited time, 00:26:56.849 --> 00:26:59.950 we've discounted all our small group tools. Visit 00:26:59.950 --> 00:27:04.039 livingontheedge .org. or call us at 888 -333 00:27:04.039 --> 00:27:08.299 -6003 to learn more. App listeners tap special 00:27:08.299 --> 00:27:11.359 offers. Well, from all of us here, I'm Dave Drewy, 00:27:11.359 --> 00:27:13.279 thanking you for listening to this edition of 00:27:13.279 --> 00:27:15.640 Living on the Edge, and I hope you'll join us 00:27:15.640 --> 00:27:16.460 again next time.