Does someone need you to believe in them today?
Is there someone you know that a word from you,
an affirmation, a compliment, it'll change the
course of their day and maybe the course of their
life? We're going to learn how to do that today.
Stay with me. Thanks for listening to this edition
of Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram. We are
an international teaching and discipleship ministry
that motivates Christians to live like Christians.
We're in the middle of our series, Spiritual
Simplicity, Doing Less, Loving More. And I hope
you learned a lot so far from Chip's study. And
to help others learn as you have, take a minute
after the message and share it. You can do that
through the Chip Ingram app or wherever you listen
to podcasts. Thanks for spreading the word about
how series like this one are impacting you. All
right, if you're ready, go in your Bible to 1
Corinthians chapter 13 as we join Chip for the
remainder of his talk, looking for love in all
the wrong places. Who in your world, who in your
world needs you to look them into the eye and
say, you know, yeah, you blew it, or there is
a struggle, or this is a pattern in your life,
but I believe in you. I care about you. I believe
in you. There's a friend of mine. who's an extraordinarily
gifted guy. And just kind of, you ever watch
people kind of get a lot of darts here and darts
there? And I've seen him recently. He's kind
of discouraged and was more discouraged. And
as I was praying one morning, God just prompted
me, you need to go sit down and talk with this
guy. And so I did and asked him a few questions.
And as he began to share, I said, well, time
out. Do you understand in your field, you're
probably one of the top three in all of America?
Okay, maybe top five. I think three, two. Do
you understand God has used you to do this, this,
this, this, and this? Yeah. Do you understand
that these things that are getting you down are
about this big? You know, you're starting to
believe the criticisms that you're getting. I
just want to tell you something. I believe in
you. I'm behind you 100%. And whatever you decide
to do with your life, I want you to know I'm
in it with you. And you know what? It wasn't
a big deal, but I watched his countenance change.
And I watch what happened to him the rest of
the week. Who in your world needs to hear from
you? I believe in you. That mistake, that divorce,
that abortion, that dropping out of school, that
not making the team, that lie, it doesn't have
the power to define you. I believe in you. Who
needs to hear that from you? and maybe change
the course of their life. You know what it's
called? It's called love. And what we're gonna
learn is when you do this, see, love never fails.
Love never fails when you bear with one another
and cover the sin. Love never fails when you
believe in people. Third, love hopes all things.
Word is used 32 times in the New Testament. 18
times it's translated trust. 10 times it's translated
hope. A handful of times it's translated hope
for. It has the idea to wait for and have confidence
in deliverance. Usually it has the idea of salvation.
Deliverance not just from the forgiveness of
your sin, but deliverance out of this world and
all of its evil. And our great, great hope is
heaven. The return of Christ, the anchor of our
soul. There is coming a day that no matter what's
happening, how unfair it may be, our ultimate,
ultimate hope is that we have a savior, the God
-man Jesus, who died, was raised from the dead,
and those who trust in him have an eternal hope.
And practically, it's not hope and hope. When
people speak kind of in English or, you know,
in a sort of casual way, they use hope I would
translate it wishful thinking. It goes something
like this. So what are you going to do? Meeting
someone at work. I'm going to Vegas this weekend.
Really? Yeah. What are you going to do? Get married.
Really? How long have you known him? Two weeks.
Hope it works out. Good luck. How'd those last
two marriages go? Not very good. But I'm hoping
for the best. Hope, hope, hope, hope. I mean,
it's just hoping and hope. There's no basis.
It's like writing checks without a bank account.
By contrast, this is confidence. This is absolute
confidence, not that this person has the power
to change, not that circumstances are going to
change and work everything out. This is a hope
that's rooted in the promises of God, the character
of God, and the sovereignty of God, that he's
in absolute control. And even though these are
situations where someone's been struggling with
addiction, and you've tried and tried and tried,
and they've been to a couple of rehabs. Someone
who's, you know, you've got a kid, they lie,
they lie, they lie. You've done everything but
stand on your head. And guess what? They still
lie. This is a problem in a marriage that you
can't even get them to go to counseling and you
hope and hope and hope. And I mean, this is just
where you got a coworker that, I mean, they just
make everybody crazy, but they happen to be your
supervisor. And you get to the point where you're
just out of emotional gas. And you get where...
That they're going to change, that there's going
to be some big thing happen. You lose hope in
their capacity or in your ability to fix the
situation. This is a hope where you say, you
know something? I've done all I can do. This
person, I'm not putting my hope that someday,
someway, under the right conditions, they're
going to have this aha moment and everything's
going to be wonderful. But I refuse to give up
hope because this is a book where Saul became
Paul. This is a book where Rahab went from prostitute
to being in the line of the Messiah. This is
a book, as long as the resurrection of Christ
is true, failure is never final. And I'm not
gonna trust in this person. I'm not gonna trust
in this program. I'm not gonna trust in my ability,
but I'm gonna trust that the all -knowing, all
-powerful, sovereign, loving God cares about
this person. And I'm gonna trust that he's gonna
work. had a really, what I thought was a pretty
good illustration right at this point in my message,
which I would share right now, but I'm not going
to. Last night we were singing, and as we were
singing, the third song was The Greatness of
Our God. And as we were singing that song, it
was just like God, bang, hit me. And I just remember
knowing the songwriter of that song. And that
song now was introduced at Hillsong. There was
100 ,000 worship leaders from all over the world.
And it's coming out on four or five major albums
with major worship leaders. I mean, it's just
sweeping the globe. And as I was sitting there
last night and singing the song and hearing just
people embrace the greatness of our God, I just
thought, you really are great. Because see, when
that songwriter was 16, I lost all hope. that
any of my parenting in any way could ever make
any difference. When that songwriter was 17,
we were so butting of heads and he was rebellious
and he had a dad that was young and afraid and
was too hard on him at the wrong times. And we
just had a horrendous situation in our house.
And I got to where, I mean, he told me, he said,
dad, I got to tell you, I kind of like you as
a person. I just don't believe in any of the
Christianity. That's where you're going. I'm
not buying it. I'm just rebelling. And I mean,
it broke my heart. And Teresa and I would sit
up in bed and pray and talk and cry. And he had
no desire. I came to where, you know what? I
have lost all hope that he will change. And I
have lost all hope that I have any. parenting
technique that will bring about change. And I
had just absolute hope that the God who changed
Saul from Paul, the person that you think it's
impossible for God to reach or change. The issue
in your marriage that you think is stuck forever
or something with one of your parents or one
of your kids or a close friend. And I just came
to, you know what? As long as Jesus rose from
the dead, God still does the impossible. And
God, I'm asking you for your glory and for your
name that you do something special in that boy's
life. And about late 17, it's a long story, he
did. By 18, he was leading worship. By 19, he
had a band. By 20 -something, he was going around
the country. And then pretty soon, he just started
writing music. And to think that someone I had
no hope could change, and I saw my failure in
my parenting to think that God would have him
write a song, that millions of people would talk
about how great God is. That, my friend, is biblical
hope. See, that's what Jesus did for Peter. I
mean, I don't know. There's lots of sins, and
I think sometimes we categorize them probably
a little differently than God does. I think with
God, betrayal is like way up there on the top
of the list. You know, people that love you,
give their life, they care, and you turn your
back on them, and you just totally diss them.
That's what Peter did. Under pressure, I don't
know him. In fact, it was blankety, blank, blank.
I've never seen the guy. And the blankety blanks
are cuss words for those of you who wonder what
that means. And he turned away completely. And
Jesus had such confidence. You know, one, he
told Peter, you know, you're going to blow it.
My trust isn't in your bravado. My trust isn't
everyone else will let you down. I'll never let
you down. My trust is not in the Peter of your
willpower and what you think you can do. My trust
is in what God can do, the acts to Peter. And
then after Peter, you repent, go back and strengthen
your brothers. I believe in the Peter, the statement
that upon this rock I'm going to build my church,
and the rock isn't your personality, your ability.
It is my word and my promises through you. And
so in John 21, we have this amazing picture of
this betrayer, and he feels like he's ashamed,
and he's blown it, and he's betrayed the Lord,
and he's heard about the resurrection, and he
feels like a heel, and my life's over, and I'm
not going to be any good, and I've blown it.
It's too much. It's too long. Peter, have some
fish. Thanks, Lord. Peter, a question. Do you
love me? Yeah. Peter, do you love me? Yeah. Peter,
do you love me? Betrayal, betrayal, betrayal.
Question, question, question. Lord, you know
all things. You know where Peter got? My hope
is not in my ability to obey. But you know my
heart, I've blown it. Peter, feed my sheep, feed
my lambs, feed my sheep. God reinstated, God
restored. Someone you know needs to know that
your hope in God, not their ability to change,
can bring about change. Who's that person? And
what will it look like this week for you to love
them? The final way we learn is we endure. We
endure all things. To endure means to actively
remain, to persevere under misfortune and trial.
I love this. The meaning of the word is to bear
bravely and calmly ill treatment. It means to
remain. You might just jot in your note, love
stays. It's not staying out of an inability to
leave. or inability to set boundaries, or inability
to deliver consequences. It's not an enmeshed
codependency love that says, I have to stay because
I'm an incomplete person, and so I will live
in this dysfunctional situation and continue
in this abuse or continue in this dysfunction.
No, no, no, no, no. Truth and grace. Truth, here's
the boundaries, and that kind of behavior, that
kind of addiction, those kind of things, will
not be tolerated. And here's consistent consequences
and the help from others to maintain those. Grace.
But I'm not giving up on you. See, the opposite
of love is not hate. When there's hate, there's
passion left. The opposite of love is indifference.
You just don't care. Just what the heck. And
often you say that more strongly. Just forget
it. This endurance, hupo meno, hupo to be under
meno, distress, misfortune, pain, difficulty,
and it's an active word. It's not passively I'm
going to endure what's happening around me. It's
an active engagement of remaining healthy and
understanding this is the truth that must be
obeyed. But despite these devastating failures,
and I might have every reason and right, to leave,
I'm going to stay. And I'm not going to stay
because of you. I'm going to stay because what
God has done in me and the strength and grace
he gives me to demonstrate the love of Christ
to you. That's what Jesus did on the cross. He
endured. It wasn't nails that held him up there.
It wasn't the Romans that put him up there. And
it wasn't the Jews that got him there. What held
him on the cross was he endured, love stays.
And he remained because he knew you would fail
badly. And I would fail badly. You're listening
to Living on the Edge. We'll get you back to
today's program in just a second. But first,
did you know that other believers are paramount
to your faith journey? Keep listening after this
message as Chip explains why and highlights some
resources we have to get you into authentic community
today. Stick around to learn more. But for now,
here again is Chip. And you may think you've
messed up a little. When the standard is absolute,
unapproachable light, complete perfection, 24
-7, 365, as long as you live, you fail badly.
And so he endured. And as he endured, the scripture
says, that he became sin or a sin offering on
our behalf. And so your sin, my sin, the sin
of all people for all time, as he hung upon that
cross as an offering, God took all that sin and
he placed it on Christ and then he turned away
because he couldn't tolerate sin. And the wrath
of God for your sin and my sin and all people's
sins. And that's why Jesus cried, my God, my
God, why have you forsaken me? Because there
was a division in the Godhead for the first time
in all eternity. And when he died, he paid or
covered or atoned for your sin and my sin once
and for all. And the gospel is not get religious,
become a Christian and try hard to be moral.
The gospel is you have already been forgiven.
The wonderful happy news is of a God of love
and kindness. And you can receive it by faith.
You don't have to receive it. You can tell God,
forget you. I don't want your free gift, but
you can never earn it. And so those that would
understand the good news of the gospel, that
you have been forgiven and the offer is by faith,
will you receive it? And those who receive it
by faith, by turning from their sin and believing
and trusting on what Christ done, the spirit
of God enters their life. They're born from above
or literally born again. And the spirit is sealed
in their physical body and the life of Christ.
By the power of the Holy Spirit takes up residence
in you and you have been removed from the kingdom
of darkness, placed in the kingdom of light.
Spiritual gifts have been deposited. You're connected
to the supernatural community called the church.
And then God wants through his spirit in relationship
for you to begin to walk by faith and live and
enjoy him. So the Christian life is not how long
you read the Bible, not how much you pray, not
how much money you give, not how many good works.
It's all about. abiding in a relationship with
the Father through the Son and the power of the
Holy Spirit. And then what you find is you love
to be around people that you love. And you begin
to read this because God speaks to you and your
relationship deepens. And then you start talking
to him. And it's not just a little five minutes
or 10 minutes in the morning or at night, but
it's all through the day. And then pretty soon,
the love of God compels you because of what he's
done in you to share that with other people.
And you find yourself taking money out of your
pocket to other people who need it more. And
you don't get little brownie points for it. You
are just following Christ. Why? Because love
never fails. Love never fails. Literally, the
word is translated over 70 times, falls. or to
fall down. It means love never falls down. Love
never gets corrupted. Love never gets ruined.
When you love, situations and circumstances may
not come out the way you want them all the time,
but you will never lose. Why? Because you are
governed by an all -wise, all -powerful, sovereign
God. That's why Joseph, who was betrayed, who
was lied about in terms of the rape, who was
forgotten in prison. At the end of his life,
the difficulty, the pain, he understood, I don't
get it, but I'm not, I'm gonna stay in God's
program. He's in control. And he would say at
the end of his life, after he's made the second
most powerful person and saved the entire nation
of Israel, he would say to his brothers who feared
for their life after their father died, thinking
now Joseph will take revenge. And he says to
them, guys, you still don't get it, do you? You
meant it for evil. but God meant it for good
to bring about this present result to preserve
many people alive. When you love, you can never
fail. Outcomes may not be the way you want them,
but you can never fail. It never fails. Listen
carefully. Nothing will enter your life that
God does not either decree or allow, and nothing
will ever enter your life that if you're willing
to trust him, he cannot work out for your good.
That's what it means when we say God is sovereign.
And his sovereignty and rule in your life begins
when you can just do what we said at the very
beginning, admit, I failed. All the energy of
blaming other people, blaming your past, blaming
your parents, blaming someone else, blaming Hollywood,
blaming, you know, your family of origin. When
you can just face Love requires truth and grace.
And just own up and say, I'm not the dad I'm
supposed to be. I'm not the Christ follower I'm
supposed to be. What's coming out of my mouth
is a failure. How I'm spending my money is a
failure. And this addiction I have, I'm failing.
God, I admit it. I can't do this. Will you forgive
me? His answer will be, I already have. And he
will ask, will you receive it? And your answer
needs to be unreservedly. Scripture says if we
confess, it just means to agree with God. If
we confess our sin, missing the mark, failure,
he's faithful and he's fair to not only forgive
you of your sin, but to cleanse you from all
unrighteousness. For many, that happens at a
very first time, and we call it trusting Christ,
becoming a Christian. For many, many people that
are Christians, you've trusted Christ. The fact
of the matter is, you're just negotiating all
your failures. You're just blaming here and shucking
and jiving here, and you gotta come clean and
be honest and get real and receive His forgiveness
and then follow with His power and His grace.
The truth of the matter is, Christians and non
-Christians alike have one country song in common.
A lot of us are looking for love in all the wrong
places. And when we do, we hurt ourselves, we
hurt other people, and we miss God's best. If
you're going to find love in the right places,
I'm going to tell you where it's at. The intimacy,
the security, the significance, the purpose,
the impact. It happens in the family of God.
It's when his word takes root in your life and
you have relationships that are rich and deep
and you feel connected and there's genuine intimacy
and that aligns your sexual expressions in a
way that are God -honoring and fruitful. That
aligns the spending of your money and your priorities
that are God -honoring and fruitful. That gets
your time redirected in ways that are God -honoring
and fruitful. And we call it becoming a Romans
12 Christian. And in verses 9 through 11, it
says, let love be sincere. Literally, it means
take off your mask. Let love be without hypocrisy.
Notice, abhor what is evil, cling to what is
good. Here's the love. Be devoted to one another
in brotherly love, giving preference to one another
in honor, not lagging behind in diligence, fervent
in spirit, serving the Lord, rejoicing in hope.
persevering in tribulation, contributing the
needs of, it's just talking about doing life
in community with a band of brothers and sisters
where the real you shows up and meets real needs
for the right reason in the right way. And my
passion, and if I'm getting a little excited,
I'd say forgive me, but I don't want forgiven.
The great majority of Christians in America and
around the world think church is an event that
you come to once a week. It's a community that
you join, that you do life with. And where God
changes you from the inside out. What would happen
if you got connected with a group of people and
you got really loved that changed the entire
trajectory of your family? I long for you to
maximize love. Minimize the trivial demands of
life. So you simplify. So you become who God
made you to be. You're listening to Living on
the Edge with Chip Ingram. And the message you
just heard, looking for love in all the wrong
places, is from our series, Spiritual Simplicity.
Chip will join us in studio to share some insights
from today's talk in just a minute. Most of us
live very hectic lives, moving too fast, demanding
too much, and delivering too little. If you're
desperate for an alternative that actually works,
then this study is for you. Chip's teaching will
help you escape this destructive pattern and
reveal how to better prioritize what matters
most and love others in a fresh, revolutionary
way. If you've missed any part of this series,
catch up anytime through the Chip Ingram app.
Well, Chip's joined me in studio now with a quick
word for all of you. Thanks, Dave. As summer
draws to close and vacations wrap up, You're
likely getting ready to jump back into your fall
routine. Whether you're starting a new school
year or a small group starting back up a church,
we want to put resources in your hand that will
help grow your faith. We have a growing catalog
of studies and curriculum on topics like how
to understand who God is, how to grow your faith.
Maybe you want to strengthen your marriage or
become more intentional as a parent. I'm confident
that our small group materials will help you
and your community learn, share, and support
each other. It's about doing life together and
living with purpose, and we want to help you.
Thanks, Chip. Well, we have a growing library
of small group resources on a wide range of topics,
and they're so easy to use. Chip provides the
teaching. Then you'll have time to discuss what
you've heard alongside our helpful study guides.
We also offer some insights for leaders to effectively
lead their groups. If you're not in a small group
yet or looking for your next topic to study,
check out our resources. And as Chip said, for
a limited time, we've discounted all of our small
group resources so you can get into community
today. To learn more, go to livingontheedge .org
or call us at 888 -333 -6003. That's 888 -333
-6003 or livingontheedge .org. App listeners,
tap special offers. Well, with that, here again
is Chip to wrap up our time together with some
final application. As we close today's program,
I just want to ask you two very important questions.
Question number one, is there someone that God
wants you to help overcome the mistakes of their
past? You know, it's one thing to know intellectually
God loves us, He forgives us, it's been paid
for by the cross, Christ has been risen from
the dead, and He offers us free, unconditional
love and forgiveness. But we all need someone
to put a hand on our shoulder, to look deep into
our eyes and say, I forgive you. I love you.
I believe in you. That mistake is behind you.
And God has a future for you. And I want to walk
with you in that. Is there someone you know today
that a phone call, a text, an email, a lunch,
a breakfast, that God is prompting you right
now? Imagine thousands of people making one singular
step to affirm someone who's made a mistake,
the difference that it could make today. And
secondly, there's some of you that you realize
this message isn't for someone else. You've made
a big mistake. and you feel overwhelmed and bad
and guilty, would you right now bow your head,
shut your eyes, and just ask God to help you
receive? His love and forgiveness. You don't
have to earn it. You can't get it back. You can't
work yourself back into some standing. He loves
you. Would you just say, Lord, I believe and
trust as I confess right now. You love and forgive
me. And then today, share where you've been with
one trusted friend so that a brother or sister
in Christ can help you seal the deal that you
indeed are forgiven. Thanks, Chip. And as we
close, I want you to know that as a staff, we
ask the Lord to help you take whatever your next
faith step is. If there's a way we can help,
we'd love to do that. Give us a call at 888 -333
-6003 or connect with us at livingontheedge .org.
And while you're there, take a moment and look
through our resources on various topics, many
of them absolutely free. Well, until next time,
this is Dave Drewy saying thanks for listening
to this edition of Living on the Edge.