WEBVTT 00:00:00.900 --> 00:00:04.559 This is the Chip Ingram Sermon Podcast, brought 00:00:04.559 --> 00:00:07.719 to you by Living on the Edge. In this podcast, 00:00:07.980 --> 00:00:10.560 you'll hear Chip's teaching unedited and from 00:00:10.560 --> 00:00:14.039 beginning to end. Here's Chip Ingram with his 00:00:14.039 --> 00:00:17.920 message, Love Obeys. I want to share a leadership 00:00:17.920 --> 00:00:20.260 lesson that I learned many, many years ago that 00:00:20.260 --> 00:00:23.519 really reshaped my life, and it's one that I 00:00:23.519 --> 00:00:25.850 have to keep on learning. On the very front of 00:00:25.850 --> 00:00:28.589 your notes, you'll notice I've written, our expectations 00:00:28.589 --> 00:00:33.869 powerfully shape our relationships and our responses. 00:00:34.409 --> 00:00:37.689 Circle the word expectations. Our expectations, 00:00:38.009 --> 00:00:40.729 they're so subtle. We have them often we don't 00:00:40.729 --> 00:00:43.630 even know what they are. I grew up in a home, 00:00:43.649 --> 00:00:47.429 and no ladies feel guilty, but my mom was really 00:00:47.429 --> 00:00:51.049 into breakfast. At about 6 .15 or 6 .30, I could 00:00:51.049 --> 00:00:53.950 smell. bacon and eggs every single morning and 00:00:53.950 --> 00:00:56.170 our whole family ate breakfast together. It was 00:00:56.170 --> 00:00:59.289 really wonderful. Well, I got married and I don't 00:00:59.289 --> 00:01:01.450 know why, but I just expected that we would have 00:01:01.450 --> 00:01:05.230 breakfast every morning. And I, early in our 00:01:05.230 --> 00:01:06.909 marriage, after our honeymoon, I came home and 00:01:06.909 --> 00:01:09.349 said, breakfast. And she goes, well, the cereal's 00:01:09.349 --> 00:01:10.870 up there. I think there's some milk in the refrigerator 00:01:10.870 --> 00:01:17.569 and go to it. It was like, what? I mean, you 00:01:17.569 --> 00:01:20.109 don't understand. And it was just like, Now, 00:01:20.129 --> 00:01:21.969 we never talked about, now, when we get married, 00:01:22.069 --> 00:01:26.849 you got to fix breakfast. Safe to say, we don't 00:01:26.849 --> 00:01:29.709 do breakfast in our house quite like my mom. 00:01:30.469 --> 00:01:35.010 By contrast, my wife had a father who was very 00:01:35.010 --> 00:01:40.569 handy. He could fix just about anything. the 00:01:40.569 --> 00:01:44.230 car, the gas, the motor. And so she actually 00:01:44.230 --> 00:01:47.250 had this expectation that me being a man and 00:01:47.250 --> 00:01:49.769 her father being a man, that the car would be 00:01:49.769 --> 00:01:52.209 filled with gas. If it didn't work, I could fix 00:01:52.209 --> 00:01:55.489 it. And so there's a carburetor in here somewhere. 00:01:55.650 --> 00:01:59.290 You know, I knew nothing. And she was like, now 00:01:59.290 --> 00:02:02.150 I could give you a hundred other expectations 00:02:02.150 --> 00:02:04.810 that aren't trivial, that have caused really 00:02:04.810 --> 00:02:07.329 painful issues. But here's what I want you to 00:02:07.329 --> 00:02:12.080 get. Notice in your notes. Our personal history 00:02:12.080 --> 00:02:16.979 is paramount in forming our expectations. She 00:02:16.979 --> 00:02:19.879 thinks every husband can fix cars because her 00:02:19.879 --> 00:02:22.199 dad did. I thought every woman cooks breakfast 00:02:22.199 --> 00:02:25.879 because my mom did. Your personal history, it 00:02:25.879 --> 00:02:28.860 just loads you up with a set of expectations. 00:02:28.919 --> 00:02:31.800 Now, if we do that in our relationships with 00:02:31.800 --> 00:02:35.960 people, imagine how we do that in our relationships 00:02:35.960 --> 00:02:41.340 with God. Two critical questions emerge when 00:02:41.340 --> 00:02:44.060 we think about God and expectations. The first 00:02:44.060 --> 00:02:46.479 is, what can we expect of God? And the second, 00:02:46.620 --> 00:02:49.740 what does God expect of us? I mean, what can 00:02:49.740 --> 00:02:52.699 we expect of God? Some people come from backgrounds 00:02:52.699 --> 00:02:54.879 that we can expect that God will make life happy 00:02:54.879 --> 00:02:57.840 and wonderful, will be healthy, wealthy, wise, 00:02:57.939 --> 00:03:00.439 if we just believe, that just love Jesus and 00:03:00.439 --> 00:03:03.219 your life is gonna be great and trouble -free. 00:03:03.719 --> 00:03:05.979 And so when trouble comes, they really wonder, 00:03:06.060 --> 00:03:08.419 where's God? There's another group of people 00:03:08.419 --> 00:03:10.360 that are really super sober and it's going to 00:03:10.360 --> 00:03:12.860 be hard and it's all about suffering and like 00:03:12.860 --> 00:03:14.840 God brings blessing into their life and it's 00:03:14.840 --> 00:03:16.620 like they feel guilty when good things happen. 00:03:17.639 --> 00:03:20.340 So the question I want to ask you is, what's 00:03:20.340 --> 00:03:25.300 your expectations of God? What do you expect 00:03:25.300 --> 00:03:27.699 of him? And are you ready to flip it over? Have 00:03:27.699 --> 00:03:30.979 you ever thought seriously about what God expects 00:03:30.979 --> 00:03:35.400 of you? And just like our personal history shapes 00:03:35.400 --> 00:03:39.400 our expectations with one another, history itself 00:03:39.400 --> 00:03:43.080 shapes our expectations, depending on our backgrounds, 00:03:43.199 --> 00:03:45.500 of how we think God's going to respond. What 00:03:45.500 --> 00:03:48.139 does he want? What does he give? How do we receive 00:03:48.139 --> 00:03:50.639 it? How do you know when you're okay with God? 00:03:51.599 --> 00:03:53.960 What's God's part in this relationship and what's 00:03:53.960 --> 00:03:56.319 my part? And then notice on the bottom of your 00:03:56.319 --> 00:03:58.139 notes, I want you to write this word in. Remember, 00:03:58.219 --> 00:04:03.439 our history always shapes our expectations. And 00:04:03.439 --> 00:04:06.479 historically, people have answered those two 00:04:06.479 --> 00:04:09.860 questions very, very differently. With that, 00:04:09.879 --> 00:04:12.759 open your notes if you would. And I'm going to 00:04:12.759 --> 00:04:17.060 give you a very brief history lesson. That if 00:04:17.060 --> 00:04:19.100 you are strong in either one of these camps, 00:04:19.180 --> 00:04:21.860 you'll be frustrated. I'm purposely going to 00:04:21.860 --> 00:04:25.439 sort of push or polarize to the extremes of two 00:04:25.439 --> 00:04:29.379 historical positions. In the 16th century, John 00:04:29.379 --> 00:04:33.579 Calvin was a great, great theologian. In Geneva, 00:04:33.680 --> 00:04:35.779 he began to teach and there was a whole goal 00:04:35.779 --> 00:04:38.399 of what would be like for a Christian city. And 00:04:38.399 --> 00:04:42.379 he had a very strong view of God and about his 00:04:42.379 --> 00:04:46.240 sovereignty and his power. But it was pushed 00:04:46.240 --> 00:04:48.319 to extremes by some of his followers. And so 00:04:48.319 --> 00:04:51.740 about 80 or 90 years later, a fellow named Jacob 00:04:51.740 --> 00:04:54.490 Arminius came along and he said, boy, you know, 00:04:54.509 --> 00:04:58.410 we've strayed beyond the Bible. And so he began 00:04:58.410 --> 00:05:00.670 to teach some things. And so what you have is 00:05:00.670 --> 00:05:04.069 two basic camps and I'm going to push the extreme. 00:05:04.129 --> 00:05:07.009 So if you are a Calvinist, you'll say he's not 00:05:07.009 --> 00:05:09.670 representing us well. I understand that. If you're 00:05:09.670 --> 00:05:11.870 more Arminian, you're going to say he's not representing 00:05:11.870 --> 00:05:14.810 us well either. Good. Both will be unhappy with 00:05:14.810 --> 00:05:17.810 me. What I want to do is show you the extremes 00:05:17.810 --> 00:05:20.569 because you have been impacted historically. 00:05:21.450 --> 00:05:25.569 You have certain expectations about what God 00:05:25.569 --> 00:05:28.430 is asking of you. If you come from a, let me 00:05:28.430 --> 00:05:30.810 just call it a hyper -Calvinistic background, 00:05:31.089 --> 00:05:33.310 you believe God is sovereign and in control. 00:05:33.689 --> 00:05:37.350 You believe that he's predestined and predetermined 00:05:37.350 --> 00:05:40.389 just about everything in life. You focus on verse 00:05:40.389 --> 00:05:43.709 13 of Philippians 2, it is God who is at work. 00:05:44.360 --> 00:05:48.579 In extreme Calvinism, God not only chooses people 00:05:48.579 --> 00:05:51.420 for heaven, he chooses people for hell. So it's 00:05:51.420 --> 00:05:53.839 called double predestination. And so you actually 00:05:53.839 --> 00:05:56.360 had people in churches going, I believe I've 00:05:56.360 --> 00:05:59.079 been chosen by God to honor his name to hell. 00:05:59.240 --> 00:06:03.240 I mean, it was crazy. But it was this idea that 00:06:03.240 --> 00:06:06.060 since we can have no part in our salvation, it 00:06:06.060 --> 00:06:09.040 is all of God with no sense of our responsibility. 00:06:09.139 --> 00:06:12.819 It was this extreme. that turned into fatalism. 00:06:13.040 --> 00:06:16.860 You were eternally secure and a hyper, hyper 00:06:16.860 --> 00:06:18.920 Calvinist would say in terms of our responsibility, 00:06:19.139 --> 00:06:22.800 just let go and let God. In essence, whatever's 00:06:22.800 --> 00:06:25.420 gonna happen is gonna happen. The joke when you 00:06:25.420 --> 00:06:28.300 tease hyper Calvinists is when they trip, they 00:06:28.300 --> 00:06:32.019 get up and say, I'm glad that's over. Think about 00:06:32.019 --> 00:06:36.480 it, it'll come to you. Arminius, by contrast, 00:06:36.939 --> 00:06:39.680 said, no, no, no, no. It's, yeah, God is sovereign, 00:06:39.759 --> 00:06:42.519 but we're responsible. We have a free will. We 00:06:42.519 --> 00:06:46.399 make choices. He emphasizes the verse 12, work 00:06:46.399 --> 00:06:49.660 out your salvation. Our choices have consequences. 00:06:50.620 --> 00:06:52.920 Therefore, as a result of it, if you came from 00:06:52.920 --> 00:06:57.420 this side, eternity's not certain. You know, 00:06:57.439 --> 00:06:59.160 you might be a good Christian for a while, but 00:06:59.160 --> 00:07:04.689 if you mess up, you're out. Finally, The idea 00:07:04.689 --> 00:07:10.829 is let's go and let's get with it. I jotted down 00:07:10.829 --> 00:07:13.709 a couple thoughts. If you're a Presbyterian, 00:07:13.709 --> 00:07:16.790 Anglican, mini Baptist, a lot of Bible churches 00:07:16.790 --> 00:07:20.110 are reformed in your tradition, strong Calvinistic 00:07:20.110 --> 00:07:25.449 roots. If you are Methodist, Wesleyan, Nazarene, 00:07:25.550 --> 00:07:28.290 charismatic, four square assembly of God, church 00:07:28.290 --> 00:07:33.269 of Christ, strong Arminian roots. Notice in your 00:07:33.269 --> 00:07:36.430 notes, here's what I wanna get. God's word rejects 00:07:36.430 --> 00:07:39.449 both extremes and holds God's sovereignty and 00:07:39.449 --> 00:07:43.930 man's responsibility in biblical tension and 00:07:43.930 --> 00:07:46.769 balance. In other words, if you read through 00:07:46.769 --> 00:07:48.569 the scriptures, what you find is the Bible's 00:07:48.569 --> 00:07:51.149 really clear. God is sovereign, God is in control. 00:07:51.389 --> 00:07:53.810 The Bible's really clear. You are absolutely 00:07:53.810 --> 00:07:56.370 responsible and will be held accountable for 00:07:56.370 --> 00:08:00.180 your choices. And you say, well, how can that 00:08:00.180 --> 00:08:04.139 be? The answer is, I don't know. But what I'm 00:08:04.139 --> 00:08:06.240 gonna go on record and say is, no one else knows 00:08:06.240 --> 00:08:09.300 either. But what happens is people tend to go 00:08:09.300 --> 00:08:12.399 one direction or another. And so if you're reading 00:08:12.399 --> 00:08:14.379 through the book of Acts, if you're a strong 00:08:14.379 --> 00:08:17.180 Calvinist, it says, and as many as were appointed 00:08:17.180 --> 00:08:19.519 to eternal life believed. And you say, see, they 00:08:19.519 --> 00:08:21.480 were appointed, except if you read the next chapter, 00:08:21.600 --> 00:08:24.860 it says, and Paul spoke so persuasively, a great 00:08:24.860 --> 00:08:29.920 number believed. Which is true, both. Here's 00:08:29.920 --> 00:08:33.299 the tension I want you to get. You can develop 00:08:33.299 --> 00:08:39.120 systems that can remove one or the other, but 00:08:39.120 --> 00:08:42.179 both are true. Imagine, if you will, a telephone 00:08:42.179 --> 00:08:45.840 pole, and imagine guide wires into those cables, 00:08:46.039 --> 00:08:49.259 pulling on each end, and there's deep stakes. 00:08:50.019 --> 00:08:54.159 And this is the sovereignty of God, and this 00:08:54.159 --> 00:08:58.000 is the responsibility of man. And if there's 00:08:58.000 --> 00:09:00.840 slack or you remove one of those cords, you go 00:09:00.840 --> 00:09:04.840 to extremes and push to its practical end. You 00:09:04.840 --> 00:09:07.879 become passive, let go, let God, whatever it's 00:09:07.879 --> 00:09:10.820 gonna be, it's gonna be. Or the other way, you 00:09:10.820 --> 00:09:12.960 get guilt ridden and no matter how much you do, 00:09:13.159 --> 00:09:16.899 God's not in control. If I forgot one time to 00:09:16.899 --> 00:09:18.980 share my faith, that person may go to hell because 00:09:18.980 --> 00:09:21.360 I didn't do my part. The whole world is on me. 00:09:22.169 --> 00:09:24.850 What I want you to know is the apostle Paul, 00:09:25.029 --> 00:09:27.470 interestingly, he's already, he did this in chapter 00:09:27.470 --> 00:09:30.529 one, remember? He said, I'm confident he's gonna 00:09:30.529 --> 00:09:34.450 be executed. I'm confident of this. This is what's 00:09:34.450 --> 00:09:36.970 gonna turn out for my deliverance. Your prayers. 00:09:37.470 --> 00:09:40.669 Oh, man's responsibility and the provision of 00:09:40.669 --> 00:09:43.809 the spirit of God, God's sovereignty. He now 00:09:43.809 --> 00:09:47.389 in verse 12 says, here's, so then my beloved, 00:09:47.549 --> 00:09:51.620 just as you always circle the word obeyed. The 00:09:51.620 --> 00:09:54.059 word obeyed in the New Testament, sometimes we 00:09:54.059 --> 00:09:56.299 feel like, I think our English and our background, 00:09:56.500 --> 00:10:00.559 obey is like ought, should, gotta. And it certainly 00:10:00.559 --> 00:10:04.080 has that thrust, but the word is hupo, to be 00:10:04.080 --> 00:10:07.299 under, akuo, to hear. Like you have an acoustic 00:10:07.299 --> 00:10:10.139 guitar, that's where we get our word. To obey 00:10:10.139 --> 00:10:15.070 is... To be under the hearing of God. Lord, what 00:10:15.070 --> 00:10:17.250 would you have me to do? It's a relationship 00:10:17.250 --> 00:10:20.850 I want to follow. And when you speak about any 00:10:20.850 --> 00:10:24.590 area, I want to listen in order not to just know, 00:10:24.690 --> 00:10:28.110 but to obey. So he says to them, my beloved, 00:10:28.169 --> 00:10:31.029 just as you always obeyed, not just in my presence, 00:10:31.110 --> 00:10:33.649 but now much more in my absence, work out your 00:10:33.649 --> 00:10:36.190 salvation. Would you circle that phrase with 00:10:36.190 --> 00:10:41.529 fear and trembling? Work out is a mining term. 00:10:42.429 --> 00:10:45.090 It's literally like if you owned a gold mine, 00:10:45.190 --> 00:10:48.389 it's work your claim. Continue mining the riches 00:10:48.389 --> 00:10:50.970 of what God has done. When the spirit of God 00:10:50.970 --> 00:10:54.169 came into your life, when you turned from your 00:10:54.169 --> 00:10:57.110 sin and received Christ, all the spiritual blessings 00:10:57.110 --> 00:11:00.210 in heaven were deposited in you. You were sealed 00:11:00.210 --> 00:11:02.509 with the spirit. You have an inheritance. He's 00:11:02.509 --> 00:11:03.889 saying, okay, now what I want you to do is I 00:11:03.889 --> 00:11:06.090 want you to work out what God has worked in. 00:11:06.509 --> 00:11:08.789 Notice it doesn't say work for your salvation. 00:11:09.549 --> 00:11:12.330 You can't earn it. Work out. In other words, 00:11:12.389 --> 00:11:14.809 I want you to cooperate. And just like if you 00:11:14.809 --> 00:11:17.309 owned a gold mine, that gold does nothing under 00:11:17.309 --> 00:11:19.779 the ground. And he says, you cooperate with God, 00:11:19.919 --> 00:11:22.200 work out your salvation. And notice with a sense 00:11:22.200 --> 00:11:25.220 of reverential awe, this is a precious, amazing 00:11:25.220 --> 00:11:28.039 gift, your salvation. Don't let it sit there. 00:11:28.279 --> 00:11:31.539 Don't be passive. Sometimes when people talk 00:11:31.539 --> 00:11:35.679 about grace, they think of grace. is the opposite 00:11:35.679 --> 00:11:39.399 of effort. The Bible says we make every effort 00:11:39.399 --> 00:11:42.259 to walk with God. The Bible talks about the grace 00:11:42.259 --> 00:11:45.080 of God teaches us to say no to all ungodliness 00:11:45.080 --> 00:11:48.779 and live sober, disciplined lives. It takes great 00:11:48.779 --> 00:11:51.879 effort. The opposite of grace is not effort. 00:11:52.019 --> 00:11:56.450 The opposite of grace is merit. Merit is earning 00:11:56.450 --> 00:11:59.370 something. And Paul is saying to these people 00:11:59.370 --> 00:12:02.009 that are having some disunity issues, people 00:12:02.009 --> 00:12:04.049 that are being persecuted, he says, you know, 00:12:04.090 --> 00:12:06.210 I don't know if I'm gonna live or not, but whether 00:12:06.210 --> 00:12:09.830 I get to see you and live or I die, I want you 00:12:09.830 --> 00:12:13.669 to keep on obeying. I want you to love one another. 00:12:13.850 --> 00:12:16.389 I want you to choose to look up when circumstances 00:12:16.389 --> 00:12:18.769 are bad. I want you to care for one another. 00:12:18.929 --> 00:12:21.230 I want you to be generous. In persecution, I 00:12:21.230 --> 00:12:25.799 want you to be faithful. So work out. Your salvation, 00:12:25.919 --> 00:12:28.059 God's worked in. That's your responsibility. 00:12:28.480 --> 00:12:34.559 Notice verse 13. The little word for, it means 00:12:34.559 --> 00:12:37.740 the reason. Why should you work this out? For 00:12:37.740 --> 00:12:41.799 God who is at work in you, both to will and to 00:12:41.799 --> 00:12:45.059 work for his good pleasure. Would you circle 00:12:45.059 --> 00:12:49.679 the word to work and then underline will and 00:12:49.679 --> 00:12:53.590 good pleasure? Word for work is a very interesting 00:12:53.590 --> 00:12:56.750 word. I did a word study on it. We get our word 00:12:56.750 --> 00:13:00.649 energy. It's never used in the New Testament 00:13:00.649 --> 00:13:04.950 to describe human power. 100 % of the time, it 00:13:04.950 --> 00:13:08.450 is the power of God. It's a word that means effective 00:13:08.450 --> 00:13:11.450 action. It describes action that always achieves 00:13:11.450 --> 00:13:14.750 its desired end results or purpose. In ancient 00:13:14.750 --> 00:13:17.429 Greece, it was a demonstration of inner character 00:13:17.429 --> 00:13:20.929 that always led to an outward virtue. And in 00:13:20.929 --> 00:13:24.309 summary, he's saying for God who is at work, 00:13:24.429 --> 00:13:27.950 he is energizing by his power working in you 00:13:27.950 --> 00:13:31.470 in spirit, both to will, his purpose to create 00:13:31.470 --> 00:13:35.889 both the desire and the power. So God's sovereign, 00:13:36.070 --> 00:13:40.870 I'm responsible. God has gifted me sheerly by 00:13:40.870 --> 00:13:43.529 his grace, this new life in his spirit. It is 00:13:43.529 --> 00:13:47.929 a riches that I now live out and I mine my claim. 00:13:48.490 --> 00:13:53.009 And so to work out grace has been given and I 00:13:53.009 --> 00:13:55.889 could say, all the truth of life is in this book 00:13:55.889 --> 00:13:58.490 and I could hand you this book and you could 00:13:58.490 --> 00:14:00.830 take this book and you could set it on your desk 00:14:00.830 --> 00:14:03.090 and you could never open it. And you could say, 00:14:03.149 --> 00:14:04.929 I just don't know what to do. I don't have any 00:14:04.929 --> 00:14:06.590 truth. I don't know what to do about marriage. 00:14:06.690 --> 00:14:08.129 I don't know what to do about parenting. I don't 00:14:08.129 --> 00:14:09.950 know what to do about my money. I wonder what's 00:14:09.950 --> 00:14:12.149 gonna happen to the end of the world. And all 00:14:12.149 --> 00:14:14.730 the while, all the riches and all the truth is 00:14:14.730 --> 00:14:17.370 on your desk. God will not read this for you. 00:14:18.630 --> 00:14:21.730 Okay? But you have it. And it's the same. In 00:14:21.730 --> 00:14:25.129 other words, work out. So the disciplines of 00:14:25.129 --> 00:14:28.769 being in God's word, the discipline of praying, 00:14:29.070 --> 00:14:31.610 the discipline of being in community and doing 00:14:31.610 --> 00:14:33.990 life and being honest and supportive and accountability, 00:14:34.309 --> 00:14:37.269 the disciplines of suffering, the disciplines 00:14:37.269 --> 00:14:39.970 of some things take time, and the disciplines 00:14:39.970 --> 00:14:42.889 of serving one another, when you, are you ready? 00:14:43.309 --> 00:14:46.830 When you practice those things, it's like, imagine 00:14:46.830 --> 00:14:49.350 tubes coming from this great lake of heaven. 00:14:49.429 --> 00:14:53.289 You're accessing the grace of God. And as you 00:14:53.289 --> 00:14:56.029 practice those things, the apostle Paul says, 00:14:56.210 --> 00:15:01.149 Christ is being formed in you. It's a metaphor 00:15:01.149 --> 00:15:04.429 of a baby growing to a toddler, to a teenager, 00:15:04.710 --> 00:15:08.970 to a mature adult. And he says, our part is to 00:15:08.970 --> 00:15:14.080 utilize the truth, the word. Prayer, the Lord's 00:15:14.080 --> 00:15:18.940 Supper, relationships, to access the grace to 00:15:18.940 --> 00:15:21.519 mine this new life that's been a free gift. Does 00:15:21.519 --> 00:15:26.059 that make sense? History lesson is over. But 00:15:26.059 --> 00:15:29.399 I do want you to know that it seeps in everywhere 00:15:29.399 --> 00:15:33.840 because what happens is, is that I came up around 00:15:33.840 --> 00:15:37.240 a group, you came up around a group, and these 00:15:37.240 --> 00:15:40.639 groups have thoughts about the sovereignty of 00:15:40.639 --> 00:15:43.830 God. and the responsibility of men. And I will 00:15:43.830 --> 00:15:47.690 just say, you know, some of you struggle with 00:15:47.690 --> 00:15:50.529 guilt because no matter how much you do, it's 00:15:50.529 --> 00:15:53.629 never enough. Because you live with this, you 00:15:53.629 --> 00:15:55.450 know, there's never enough, God's down on you. 00:15:56.190 --> 00:15:58.950 Now that's extreme. That's not what should be 00:15:58.950 --> 00:16:01.370 taught. Some of you are like laid back to the 00:16:01.370 --> 00:16:03.590 point of, you're not doing what you need to. 00:16:03.990 --> 00:16:06.389 And, but you have this subtle of, God's in control. 00:16:06.789 --> 00:16:09.049 He really is in control, but that doesn't excuse 00:16:09.049 --> 00:16:12.889 you. And so what you wanna do is you wanna say, 00:16:13.580 --> 00:16:16.279 I don't want what Calvin taught and I don't want 00:16:16.279 --> 00:16:18.899 what Jacob Arminius taught. I want what Jesus 00:16:18.899 --> 00:16:21.899 taught. I want what the New Testament says. I 00:16:21.899 --> 00:16:24.240 want what the word of God says. And there's going 00:16:24.240 --> 00:16:26.440 to be certain times and certain passages. I've 00:16:26.440 --> 00:16:28.539 been doing this for quite a while. I don't fully 00:16:28.539 --> 00:16:30.899 understand. I don't think anyone fully understands, 00:16:31.179 --> 00:16:33.620 but I've got plenty of truth to know this. I 00:16:33.620 --> 00:16:35.720 will stand before God as a follower of Jesus 00:16:35.720 --> 00:16:39.120 and give an account for my time, my energy, my 00:16:39.120 --> 00:16:41.720 money, and my decisions. And I've been around 00:16:41.720 --> 00:16:44.200 long enough to know this. is that despite my 00:16:44.200 --> 00:16:48.039 mistakes, my difficulties, the times even that 00:16:48.039 --> 00:16:49.820 I've sinned, the times when I knew what was right 00:16:49.820 --> 00:16:52.980 and I didn't even do it, there's this patient, 00:16:53.039 --> 00:16:56.220 kind, loving, sovereign God that's working even 00:16:56.220 --> 00:16:58.419 those difficulties and things that people have 00:16:58.419 --> 00:17:00.519 done to me and circumstance I can't understand 00:17:00.519 --> 00:17:03.379 because he's such a, are you ready? Good, good 00:17:03.379 --> 00:17:07.539 father. And so becoming like Jesus and following 00:17:07.539 --> 00:17:11.650 him is a cooperative effort. your effort and 00:17:11.650 --> 00:17:14.930 discipline to mine, not earn, but to mine out 00:17:14.930 --> 00:17:18.789 the grace that God's given you. Well, the question 00:17:18.789 --> 00:17:23.250 then becomes is, how do you work out what God 00:17:23.250 --> 00:17:25.490 worked in? I mean, it's nice to hear that. I 00:17:25.490 --> 00:17:27.029 kind of gave you the theory and the history. 00:17:27.210 --> 00:17:29.250 Well, it practically, how do you do it? Well, 00:17:29.269 --> 00:17:32.690 Paul, this is a really amazing thing. After chapter 00:17:32.690 --> 00:17:36.049 two, verse 12, and after verse 13, guess what 00:17:36.049 --> 00:17:42.000 comes? Verse 14. And 15 and 16 and 17. So guess 00:17:42.000 --> 00:17:44.559 what Paul's gonna do? He says, I want you to 00:17:44.559 --> 00:17:47.859 obey to be the kind of follower of Jesus fully 00:17:47.859 --> 00:17:51.400 by his grace, even if I come or I don't come. 00:17:51.500 --> 00:17:53.799 But the goal is I want you to be under the hearing. 00:17:53.900 --> 00:17:57.480 So I'm gonna give you very specific things to 00:17:57.480 --> 00:18:01.400 obey so that you have unity and that God uses 00:18:01.400 --> 00:18:04.019 you in this perverse generation. So are you ready? 00:18:04.079 --> 00:18:07.619 Get your pen out, keep your Bible open. Here's 00:18:07.619 --> 00:18:10.720 command number one. He says, do everything without 00:18:10.720 --> 00:18:14.839 complaining or arguing. So the command is, be 00:18:14.839 --> 00:18:21.720 a grateful servant. Be a grateful servant. If, 00:18:21.819 --> 00:18:25.559 not to be overly technical, but if you had the 00:18:25.559 --> 00:18:28.279 Greek text in your hand, you would read it and 00:18:28.279 --> 00:18:29.880 you would go, oh, what is the word order? It's 00:18:29.880 --> 00:18:32.200 completely out of order. They took the word. 00:18:32.820 --> 00:18:35.799 and do everything and it belongs in the back 00:18:35.799 --> 00:18:37.640 of the sentence and they put it all the way in 00:18:37.640 --> 00:18:40.839 the front of the sentence for what? Emphasis. 00:18:42.539 --> 00:18:49.559 Drive your car. Pay your bills. Live with your 00:18:49.559 --> 00:18:53.079 mate. Respond to the government and pay your 00:18:53.079 --> 00:19:01.119 taxes. How? Do everything without complaining. 00:19:02.920 --> 00:19:06.920 Or arguing. Word for complaining here is basically 00:19:06.920 --> 00:19:11.839 grumbling. It's that infectious negative attitude. 00:19:13.220 --> 00:19:17.980 It's really about be a grateful servant in your 00:19:17.980 --> 00:19:23.200 speech and your attitude. Don't whine. Don't 00:19:23.200 --> 00:19:25.819 complain. Don't talk about your boss or your 00:19:25.819 --> 00:19:29.420 supervisor behind their back. Don't be negative. 00:19:29.619 --> 00:19:32.660 Don't be critical. Don't be sarcastic. Don't 00:19:32.660 --> 00:19:34.759 put people down. This is getting pretty convicting, 00:19:34.799 --> 00:19:39.380 just me saying this to myself. But not only don't 00:19:39.380 --> 00:19:41.319 complain, but don't argue. It's a legal term. 00:19:41.680 --> 00:19:45.420 It has to do with dissensions and disputing and 00:19:45.420 --> 00:19:47.640 taking sides. Can you imagine what would happen, 00:19:47.740 --> 00:19:51.079 just hypothetically, if every genuine follower 00:19:51.079 --> 00:19:56.140 of Jesus obeyed this with regard to their social 00:19:56.140 --> 00:20:05.289 media? No complaining. No arguing, no dissensions, 00:20:05.349 --> 00:20:08.849 no name calling, no attacking other people. See, 00:20:08.930 --> 00:20:10.410 this was happening in the Philippian church. 00:20:10.549 --> 00:20:13.150 And is this happening in anybody else's home? 00:20:13.630 --> 00:20:16.289 Is this happening at work? Anybody else's small 00:20:16.289 --> 00:20:18.690 group? This is happening everywhere, isn't it? 00:20:19.369 --> 00:20:22.630 See, what he's going to say is, you want to work 00:20:22.630 --> 00:20:25.190 out your salvation? You want to go into training 00:20:25.190 --> 00:20:28.390 and practice? Begin with your speech because 00:20:29.079 --> 00:20:31.359 Jesus said, the good man out of the good treasure 00:20:31.359 --> 00:20:33.819 of his heart brings forth what is good. The evil 00:20:33.819 --> 00:20:36.099 man of the evil treasure brings forth what is 00:20:36.099 --> 00:20:39.420 evil for the mouth speaks by that which fills 00:20:39.420 --> 00:20:43.500 the heart. The two most vivid ways to know where 00:20:43.500 --> 00:20:45.259 you're at in your journey with the Lord Jesus 00:20:45.259 --> 00:20:48.160 is ask, what does my money say about my values? 00:20:48.319 --> 00:20:51.869 And what does my speech say about my heart? And 00:20:51.869 --> 00:20:54.390 those two things are just pretty black and white. 00:20:54.690 --> 00:20:57.630 If it's negative, if it's complaining, if it's 00:20:57.630 --> 00:21:00.410 putting people down, see, if you change your 00:21:00.410 --> 00:21:05.289 speech, your heart has to change. Our kids, we've 00:21:05.289 --> 00:21:07.170 had some that were less negative and some more 00:21:07.170 --> 00:21:08.869 negative. I had one that was extraordinarily 00:21:08.869 --> 00:21:11.430 negative. She came out of the womb. Oh, I said 00:21:11.430 --> 00:21:14.450 she, I guess we know who it is. I mean, she was. 00:21:14.730 --> 00:21:16.490 I mean, it just, I mean, the glass never got 00:21:16.490 --> 00:21:22.069 half full. And so we got a jar. and we wrote 00:21:22.069 --> 00:21:24.130 missions on it and Annie's speech and all my 00:21:24.130 --> 00:21:29.230 kids memorized Ephesians 4, 29. Let no unwholesome 00:21:29.230 --> 00:21:31.250 word proceed out of your mouth, but only such 00:21:31.250 --> 00:21:34.069 a word as is good for edification according to 00:21:34.069 --> 00:21:35.869 the need of the moment that it might give grace 00:21:35.869 --> 00:21:40.450 to those who hear. And so we started out with 00:21:40.450 --> 00:21:42.410 every time a negative comment came out, she put 00:21:42.410 --> 00:21:45.470 a dime in the jar. Then we went to quarters. 00:21:46.549 --> 00:21:48.549 Then we went to 50 cents a piece. She was a very 00:21:48.549 --> 00:21:52.339 generous to missions at the church. But here's 00:21:52.339 --> 00:21:54.160 the thing. She went into training. She went into 00:21:54.160 --> 00:21:56.220 training and we talked about it. And then she 00:21:56.220 --> 00:21:57.680 began to memorize some verses. Now, you know 00:21:57.680 --> 00:22:00.339 what? Part of that was a leadership gift that 00:22:00.339 --> 00:22:02.980 she has that when she looked at life, she saw 00:22:02.980 --> 00:22:05.359 what was wrong. And then when she thought it, 00:22:05.380 --> 00:22:08.339 it came out of her mouth at the same time. She 00:22:08.339 --> 00:22:16.180 did not get that from her mother. So we went 00:22:16.180 --> 00:22:20.240 into training together to get a hold of our speech. 00:22:21.079 --> 00:22:23.619 You might evaluate things and see something that, 00:22:23.660 --> 00:22:25.819 oh, that should be over here instead of like 00:22:25.819 --> 00:22:28.160 that, or that's not the right attitude, or we 00:22:28.160 --> 00:22:31.440 need to fix that at work. That might be a real 00:22:31.440 --> 00:22:34.500 giftedness you have. But when it comes out of 00:22:34.500 --> 00:22:38.720 your mouth in the wrong context and not in the 00:22:38.720 --> 00:22:41.339 right way with the right tone of voice, it's 00:22:41.339 --> 00:22:46.039 disunifying. Second, he says, this is for a purpose. 00:22:46.720 --> 00:22:49.900 The purpose of being grateful is so that you 00:22:49.900 --> 00:22:54.680 can be a godly servant. God wants us to be godly. 00:22:55.480 --> 00:23:01.099 Godly publicly, godly privately, and godly personally. 00:23:01.720 --> 00:23:04.539 Circle the word blameless, circle the word pure, 00:23:04.720 --> 00:23:09.099 and circle the word without fault. The word blameless 00:23:09.099 --> 00:23:12.640 is relationship to the outside world. It means 00:23:12.640 --> 00:23:15.039 the people at work, your neighbors, people at 00:23:15.039 --> 00:23:19.480 the coffee shop, the dry cleaners, the team one 00:23:19.480 --> 00:23:23.200 of your kids plays on. He says, be blameless. 00:23:24.019 --> 00:23:25.960 Be the kind of Christian that they're not going, 00:23:26.079 --> 00:23:28.460 oh my gosh, that person says they're a Christian, 00:23:28.559 --> 00:23:30.799 but listen to their language, listen to the put 00:23:30.799 --> 00:23:33.819 downs, you know, look at their morality. He says, 00:23:33.880 --> 00:23:36.359 no, no, no, no. You gotta be blameless, not perfect, 00:23:36.460 --> 00:23:40.160 blameless. When God shows you that your life 00:23:40.160 --> 00:23:43.359 is ungodly, And it would reflect negatively on 00:23:43.359 --> 00:23:46.160 Jesus and his church. You say, I can't live that 00:23:46.160 --> 00:23:49.660 way. Second, it's privately. It says blameless 00:23:49.660 --> 00:23:54.420 and pure. The word pure here means like undiluted 00:23:54.420 --> 00:23:58.460 wine, or it was used of metal that didn't have 00:23:58.460 --> 00:24:01.019 a mixture of both like iron and something else 00:24:01.019 --> 00:24:03.740 in it. It's pure. This is about your motives. 00:24:04.200 --> 00:24:07.200 This is about when no one is around, who are 00:24:07.200 --> 00:24:10.460 you really? And then finally he says, not only 00:24:10.460 --> 00:24:13.859 blameless and pure, but he goes on to say without 00:24:13.859 --> 00:24:16.680 fault. And again here, it doesn't mean in terms 00:24:16.680 --> 00:24:20.059 of perfect, but without fault is relationship 00:24:20.059 --> 00:24:25.180 to those in the church and especially your relationship 00:24:25.180 --> 00:24:28.480 to God. The word was used for like an animal 00:24:28.480 --> 00:24:32.099 without blemish in your offering and your sacrifice. 00:24:32.920 --> 00:24:35.400 And so in essence, what he's really saying is, 00:24:35.519 --> 00:24:38.809 I want you to obey. I want you to be the kind 00:24:38.809 --> 00:24:40.910 of Christians in a really tough world that you're 00:24:40.910 --> 00:24:44.009 positive, thankful people, not positive thinking. 00:24:44.130 --> 00:24:47.170 You're genuinely thankful and your speech and 00:24:47.170 --> 00:24:49.369 your actions reflect it. Second, I want you to 00:24:49.369 --> 00:24:51.950 be godly. I want you to be godly toward the outside 00:24:51.950 --> 00:24:54.410 world. I want you to be godly and have personal 00:24:54.410 --> 00:24:56.569 integrity within. And I want you to be godly 00:24:56.569 --> 00:25:02.150 in terms of your relationship with God. I love 00:25:02.150 --> 00:25:07.049 the next line where he says, so that you can, 00:25:08.169 --> 00:25:10.529 Do something in a very crooked and perverse generation. 00:25:11.549 --> 00:25:13.490 I mean, we all here, we want to see the world 00:25:13.490 --> 00:25:15.769 change, right? We all believe the world is, I 00:25:15.769 --> 00:25:19.190 mean, it's crazy right now. And people ask me 00:25:19.190 --> 00:25:21.069 all the time, well, what can I do? This is what 00:25:21.069 --> 00:25:25.970 we can do. Be grateful people. Be godly people. 00:25:26.589 --> 00:25:29.410 And notice the result is to be a bold servant 00:25:29.410 --> 00:25:33.089 in action and words. He says, when you're godly 00:25:33.089 --> 00:25:34.970 in the midst of a crooked and perverse, literally, 00:25:35.009 --> 00:25:38.529 it's a twisted generation. And I think it's even 00:25:38.529 --> 00:25:41.430 more twisted now than it was then. But in which 00:25:41.430 --> 00:25:44.569 you shine like stars in the universe as you hold 00:25:44.569 --> 00:25:47.329 out or literally hold forth the word of God. 00:25:48.930 --> 00:25:53.170 And so he says to them, this is the kind of Christian 00:25:53.170 --> 00:25:56.569 I want you to be. And when you do that, you're 00:25:56.569 --> 00:26:00.210 demonstrating something. You're making a difference. 00:26:00.269 --> 00:26:03.400 It's like there's this. black backdrop and you're 00:26:03.400 --> 00:26:06.559 shining in this corrupt world like shining stars 00:26:06.559 --> 00:26:11.240 and people take notice. I have a very good friend 00:26:11.240 --> 00:26:21.339 who decided to leave a very powerful, lucrative 00:26:21.339 --> 00:26:28.700 job. Had a great position, extremely well -paid. 00:26:30.250 --> 00:26:35.250 And there came a time where the company and those 00:26:35.250 --> 00:26:40.089 in power were asking him to make some decisions 00:26:40.089 --> 00:26:45.630 that lacked integrity. And he had worked with 00:26:45.630 --> 00:26:47.670 all the other people in the company and sort 00:26:47.670 --> 00:26:50.150 of set a standard that no matter what, we won't 00:26:50.150 --> 00:26:52.470 compromise. And people knew he was a follower 00:26:52.470 --> 00:26:55.569 of Christ and integrity really mattered and came 00:26:55.569 --> 00:27:01.519 to the point where he crossroads. And out of 00:27:01.519 --> 00:27:06.180 integrity, let that go. And he told me a little 00:27:06.180 --> 00:27:08.119 bit about the last day with all the employees. 00:27:09.839 --> 00:27:13.619 And these are high -tech, grown men and women 00:27:13.619 --> 00:27:18.359 in a fast -paced world, overwhelmed with emotion. 00:27:20.279 --> 00:27:26.180 Like a bright, shining star in the midst of a 00:27:26.180 --> 00:27:30.390 cutthroat, make -money, fudge the facts? How 00:27:30.390 --> 00:27:32.289 do we make it look faster and better that we 00:27:32.289 --> 00:27:34.789 can go public or whatever the goals are? And 00:27:34.789 --> 00:27:37.390 someone steps and says, there's something that 00:27:37.390 --> 00:27:40.849 matters more than money. I'm a follower of Christ. 00:27:41.069 --> 00:27:43.650 It's the truth that sets you free. And I'm going 00:27:43.650 --> 00:27:46.430 to stand on my convictions regardless of the 00:27:46.430 --> 00:27:49.450 consequences. And there was an entire company 00:27:49.450 --> 00:27:54.000 that saw a star shining brightly. Notice you 00:27:54.000 --> 00:27:57.160 shine like stars and you're bold. You hold forth 00:27:57.160 --> 00:27:59.900 God's word. You're not ashamed to be a Christian 00:27:59.900 --> 00:28:02.059 in your neighborhood. You're not ashamed of the 00:28:02.059 --> 00:28:04.599 Bible at work. Do I understand you're going to 00:28:04.599 --> 00:28:06.599 get some flack? Of course. Did the early disciples 00:28:06.599 --> 00:28:09.180 get some flack? Did Jesus get some flack? Did 00:28:09.180 --> 00:28:11.819 the reformers get some flack? At some point in 00:28:11.819 --> 00:28:16.059 time, we have to realize it's coming. So let's 00:28:16.059 --> 00:28:19.589 respond in a loving way. Let's shine like stars. 00:28:19.869 --> 00:28:22.509 Let's be the church that, oh, my lands, they 00:28:22.509 --> 00:28:24.869 remodeled another school. Oh, my lands, they're 00:28:24.869 --> 00:28:27.170 taking in the refugees. We just had a team come 00:28:27.170 --> 00:28:29.750 back from India. They did all that dental work 00:28:29.750 --> 00:28:33.150 and medical work. Oh, my lands. Who says, oh, 00:28:33.210 --> 00:28:37.089 my lands, anyway? That must be from my mother 00:28:37.089 --> 00:28:40.650 or my childhood. You want to know how to work 00:28:40.650 --> 00:28:43.849 out what God worked in? Be a grateful servant. 00:28:44.769 --> 00:28:49.220 Be a godly servant. Be a bold servant. And finally, 00:28:49.220 --> 00:28:52.039 his whole motive was, I'm not down on you Philippians. 00:28:52.099 --> 00:28:56.019 This isn't a list to do all the stuff of some 00:28:56.019 --> 00:28:59.500 religion. Be a joyful Christian. Here's my motive. 00:28:59.740 --> 00:29:02.980 My motive is that I can, I'm gonna stand before 00:29:02.980 --> 00:29:05.420 God and I don't know if I'm executed or not executed, 00:29:05.660 --> 00:29:18.539 but I'm gonna stand before God. And what he's 00:29:18.539 --> 00:29:21.019 picturing here is that that's a picture of getting 00:29:21.019 --> 00:29:23.279 executed. He's taking this Old Testament picture 00:29:23.279 --> 00:29:25.980 of when you would offer a sacrifice and then 00:29:25.980 --> 00:29:27.839 they would take maybe wine and pour it on the 00:29:27.839 --> 00:29:30.440 altar as it's going up. It's a drink offering. 00:29:30.640 --> 00:29:33.680 He says, if my blood, if my life, if I'm a drink 00:29:33.680 --> 00:29:37.160 offering, Here's the deal. I'm going to be glad 00:29:37.160 --> 00:29:41.660 and I'm going to rejoice in dying. So you too 00:29:41.660 --> 00:29:44.700 be glad and rejoice with me. Is that amazing? 00:29:45.400 --> 00:29:48.500 As you look at the back page, the first couple 00:29:48.500 --> 00:29:51.160 of questions are ones you can just do by yourself, 00:29:51.240 --> 00:29:54.279 but grab a cup of tea, coffee, Coke, Diet Coke, 00:29:54.420 --> 00:29:57.240 and put your feet up somewhere in the next 24 00:29:57.240 --> 00:30:00.940 or 48 hours and say, hmm, you know, what expectations 00:30:00.940 --> 00:30:04.970 do I have in terms of What I think God's going 00:30:04.970 --> 00:30:08.049 to do for me. And are they accurate? And down 00:30:08.049 --> 00:30:12.410 deep, what do I think God expects of me? For 00:30:12.410 --> 00:30:14.829 some of you, you need a big dose of grace. Here's 00:30:14.829 --> 00:30:18.390 what he expects that you receive is love. And 00:30:18.390 --> 00:30:22.390 for others, he expects you get off your dairy 00:30:22.390 --> 00:30:26.490 air and quit expecting that Bible to read itself 00:30:26.490 --> 00:30:29.470 and to discipline yourself to godliness so he 00:30:29.470 --> 00:30:31.509 can let you experience what you already possess. 00:30:33.040 --> 00:30:35.740 Where do you see growth and progress in the working 00:30:35.740 --> 00:30:38.500 out of what God has worked in? You know, some 00:30:38.500 --> 00:30:41.220 of you, you just go so negative. Oh, I ought 00:30:41.220 --> 00:30:42.759 to be more of this. I ought to do more of this. 00:30:42.799 --> 00:30:44.480 I ought to more doing this. How about writing 00:30:44.480 --> 00:30:47.339 down, you know, I've become more patient. I've 00:30:47.339 --> 00:30:49.839 become more generous. You know what? I'm a better 00:30:49.839 --> 00:30:52.920 dad than I used to be. I clean up in my, you 00:30:52.920 --> 00:30:55.279 know, with my roommates. Write down where God, 00:30:55.460 --> 00:30:59.319 and it'll encourage you. And then where do you 00:30:59.319 --> 00:31:01.839 need to focus effort and energy to allow Jesus' 00:31:01.960 --> 00:31:05.170 life, To be manifested in you and through you. 00:31:06.170 --> 00:31:09.009 And, you know, these words, right? They come 00:31:09.009 --> 00:31:12.430 right out of the text. You know, and just don't 00:31:12.430 --> 00:31:17.710 check them all. You'll go nuts. If you already 00:31:17.710 --> 00:31:21.609 haven't. But just ask yourself, you know, Lord, 00:31:21.710 --> 00:31:24.349 whisper this prayer. Lord, Holy Spirit, would 00:31:24.349 --> 00:31:27.230 you show me which one or at the most two, is 00:31:27.230 --> 00:31:30.789 it my attitude, speech, boldness, authenticity, 00:31:31.089 --> 00:31:35.490 godliness? And check one of those and then just 00:31:35.490 --> 00:31:39.130 say, Lord, I can't do this. I can't do this. 00:31:39.670 --> 00:31:44.410 But you can. So I'm telling you, I'm inadequate 00:31:44.410 --> 00:31:48.450 and your power will be my adequacy. So would 00:31:48.450 --> 00:31:54.509 you help me? Would you help me do that? This 00:31:54.509 --> 00:31:57.390 is Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram, and we're 00:31:57.390 --> 00:32:00.480 in our series called Choosing Love. If you're 00:32:00.480 --> 00:32:02.740 ready to turn today's challenge into lasting 00:32:02.740 --> 00:32:06.099 change, Chip's newest book, I Choose Love, gives 00:32:06.099 --> 00:32:09.079 you the practical roadmap you need. It doesn't 00:32:09.079 --> 00:32:11.859 just tell you what to do. It shows you how to 00:32:11.859 --> 00:32:14.599 do it. You'll learn to recognize the subtle ways 00:32:14.599 --> 00:32:17.359 pride and selfishness sabotage your relationships. 00:32:17.700 --> 00:32:20.740 You'll discover practical exercises to develop 00:32:20.740 --> 00:32:23.380 genuine humility. And you'll see how choosing 00:32:23.380 --> 00:32:26.440 agape love, the sacrificial, others -focused 00:32:26.440 --> 00:32:29.440 love of God, transforms even your most difficult 00:32:29.440 --> 00:32:32.740 relationships. I Choose Love addresses the real 00:32:32.740 --> 00:32:35.460 issues we all face. The tendency to need the 00:32:35.460 --> 00:32:37.920 last word. The subtle belief that our perspective 00:32:37.920 --> 00:32:41.099 is the truth. The grandiosity that shows up in 00:32:41.099 --> 00:32:44.480 small ways like chronic lateness. Chip gets brutally 00:32:44.480 --> 00:32:46.960 honest about his own struggles, and he shows 00:32:46.960 --> 00:32:49.880 you the path forward. If you're tired of broken 00:32:49.880 --> 00:32:52.559 relationships and ready to experience love that 00:32:52.559 --> 00:32:55.759 actually works, get your copy of I Choose Love 00:32:55.759 --> 00:33:00.259 today. Visit livingontheedge .org. And friend, 00:33:00.380 --> 00:33:02.640 this Bible teaching program is reaching you and 00:33:02.640 --> 00:33:05.119 countless others because of the faithful giving 00:33:05.119 --> 00:33:07.859 of listeners just like you. When you give to 00:33:07.859 --> 00:33:10.259 Living on the Edge, you're multiplying this message 00:33:10.259 --> 00:33:13.759 of transformative love around the world. Would 00:33:13.759 --> 00:33:17.039 you join us? Visit livingontheedge .org to give 00:33:17.039 --> 00:33:22.880 or just call us at 888 -333 -6003. Well, that 00:33:22.880 --> 00:33:25.400 wraps up today's episode. Don't miss the next 00:33:25.400 --> 00:33:27.779 Bible teaching message coming up here on the 00:33:27.779 --> 00:33:34.339 Chip Ingram Sermon Podcast. Today's program is 00:33:34.339 --> 00:33:36.759 produced and sponsored by Living on the Edge.