Today on Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram.
When's the last time when you were talking to
God personally and intimately, you thanked Him
for the great progress you're making in your
faith? I find people that no matter how much
progress you make, you never feel like you measure
up. And behind that is the sense that God is
down on you. How do we work out what God has
already worked in and be thankful for it? Stay
with me. That's today. What does God really expect
from you? Today on Living on the Edge, Chip Ingram
tackles a question that haunts many believers.
We've heard the verses about working out our
salvation with fear and trembling. But what does
that actually mean? Is God standing over us with
crossed arms, disappointed when we fail? Or is
something deeper going on? Through Philippians
chapter 2, Chip reveals the beautiful balance
between God's sovereign work in us and our responsibility
to respond. It's not about earning his favor.
It's about cooperating with what he's already
begun. Well, here's Chip Ingram with today's
message, Love Obeys. So the question I want to
ask you is, what's your expectations of God?
What do you expect of him? And are you ready
to flip it over? Have you ever thought seriously
about what God expects of you? And just like
our personal history shapes our expectations
with one another, History itself shapes our expectations
depending on our backgrounds. In the 16th century,
John Calvin was a great, great theologian. He
had a very strong view of God and about his sovereignty
and his power. But it was pushed to extremes
by some of his followers. And so about 80 or
90 years later, a fellow named Jacob Arminius
came along and he said, Boy, you know, we've
strayed beyond the Bible. And so he began to
teach some things. And so what you have is two
basic camps. If you come from a, let me just
call it a hyper -Calvinistic background, you
believe God is sovereign and in control. You
believe that he's predestined and predetermined
just about everything in life. You focus on verse
13 of Philippians 2. It is God who is at work.
Arminius, by contrast, said, no, no, no, no.
It's, yeah, God is sovereign, but we're responsible.
We have a free will. We make choices. He emphasizes
the verse 12. Work out your salvation. Our choices
have consequences. Therefore, as a result of
it, if you came from this side, eternity's not
certain. You know, you might be a good Christian
for a while, but if you mess up, you're out.
Notice in your notes, here's what I want to get.
God's word rejects both extremes and holds God's
sovereignty and man's responsibility in biblical
tension and balance. What I want you to know
is the apostle Paul, interestingly, he's already,
he did this in chapter one, remember? He said,
I'm confident he's gonna be executed. I'm confident
of this. This is what's gonna turn out for my
deliverance. Your prayers, oh, man's responsibility
and the provision of the spirit of God, God's
sovereignty. He now in verse 12 says, so then
my beloved, just as you always obeyed, not just
in my presence, but now much more in my absence,
work out your salvation. Would you circle that
phrase with fear and trembling? That's your responsibility.
Notice verse 13. Why should you work this out?
For God who is at work in you, both to will and
to work for his good pleasure. History lesson
is over. But I do want you to know that it seeps
in everywhere because what happens is, is that
I came up around a group, you came up around
a group, and these groups have thoughts about
the sovereignty of God and the responsibility
of men. And I will just say, some of you struggle
with guilt because no matter how much you do,
it's never enough. Because you live with this,
you know, there's never enough, God's down on
you. Now, that's extreme. That's not what should
be taught. Some of you are like laid back to
the point of you're not doing what you need to,
but you have this subtle of God's in control.
He really is in control, but that doesn't excuse
you. And so what you want to do is you want to
say, I don't want what Calvin taught and I don't
want what Jacob Arminius taught. I want what
Jesus taught. I want what the New Testament says.
I want what the word of God says. And there's
going to be certain times and certain passages.
I've been doing this for quite a while. I don't
fully understand. I don't think anyone fully
understands, but I've got plenty of truth to
know this. I will stand before God as a follower
of Jesus and give an account. for my time, my
energy, my money, and my decisions. And I've
been around long enough to know this, is that
despite my mistakes, my difficulties, the times
even that I've sinned, the times when I knew
what was right and I didn't even do it, there's
this patient, kind, loving, sovereign God that's
working even those difficulties and things that
people have done to me and circumstance I can't
understand because he's such a, are you ready?
Good, good father. And so becoming like Jesus
and following him is a cooperative effort. Well,
the question then becomes is, how do you work
out what God worked in? I mean, it's nice to
hear that. I kind of gave you the theory and
the history. Well, it practically, how do you
do it? Well, Paul, this is a really amazing thing.
After chapter two, verse 12, and after verse
13, guess what comes? Verse 14. And 15 and 16
and 17. So guess what Paul's going to do? He
says, I want you to obey to be the kind of follower
of Jesus fully by his grace, even if I come or
I don't come. But the goal is I want you to be
under the hearing. So I'm going to give you very
specific things to obey so that you have unity
and that God uses you in this perverse generation.
So are you ready? Get your pen out. Here's command
number one. He says, do everything without complaining
or arguing. So the command is, be a grateful
servant. Be a grateful servant. If, not to be
overly technical, but if you had the Greek text
in your hand, you would read it and you would
go, oh, what is the word order? It's completely
out of order. They took the word. everything
and do everything and it belongs in the back
of the sentence and they put it all the way in
the front of the sentence for what? Emphasis.
Drive your car. Pay your bills. Respond to the
government and pay your taxes. How? Do everything
without complaining or arguing. Word for complaining
here is basically grumbling. It's that infectious
negative Attitude. It's really about be a grateful
servant in your speech and your attitude. Don't
whine. Don't complain. Don't talk about your
boss or your supervisor behind their back. Don't
be negative. Don't be critical. Don't be sarcastic.
Don't put people down. This is getting pretty
convicting, just me saying this to myself. But
not only don't complain, but don't argue. It's
a legal term. It has to do with dissensions and
disputing and taking sides. Can you imagine what
would happen, just hypothetically, if every genuine
follower of Jesus obeyed this with regard to
their social media? No complaining, no arguing,
no dissensions, no name -calling, no attacking
other people. See, this was happening in the
Philippian church, and is this happening in anybody
else's home? Is this happening at work? Anybody
else a small group? This is happening everywhere,
isn't it? See, what he's going to say is, you
want to work out your salvation? You want to
go into training and practice? Begin with your
speech because Jesus said, the good man out of
the good treasure of his heart brings forth what
is good. The evil man out of the evil treasure
brings forth what is evil. For the mouth speaks
by that which fills the heart. The two most vivid
ways to know where you're at in your journey
with the Lord Jesus is ask, what does my money
say about my values? And what does my speech
say about my heart? And those two things are
just pretty black and white. If it's negative,
if it's complaining, if it's putting people down.
See, if you change your speech, your heart has
to change. Our kids, we've had some that were
less negative and some more negative. I had one
that was extraordinarily negative. She came out
of the womb. Oh, I said she. I guess we know
who it is. I mean, she was. I mean, the glass
never got half full. And so we got a jar, and
we wrote missions on it, and Annie's speech,
and all my kids memorized Ephesians 4, 29. Let
no unwholesome word proceed out of your mouth,
but only such a word as is good for edification
according to the need of the moment that it might
give grace to those who hear. And so we started
out with every time a negative comment came out,
she put a dime in the jar. Then we went to quarters.
Then we went to 50 cents a piece. She was a very
generous to missions at the church. But here's
the thing. She went into training. She went into
training. And we talked about it. And then she
began to memorize some verses. Now, you know
what? Part of that was a leadership gift that
she has that when she looked at life, she saw
what was wrong. And then when she thought it,
it came out of her mouth at the same time. She
did not get that from her mother. So we went
into training together to get a hold of our speech.
You might evaluate things and see something that,
oh, that should be over here instead of like
that, or that's not the right attitude, or we
need to fix that at work. That might be a real
giftedness you have. But when it comes out of
your mouth in the wrong context and not in the
right way with the right tone of voice, it's
disunifying. Second, he says, this is for a purpose.
The purpose of being grateful is... so that you
can be a godly servant. God wants us to be godly.
Godly publicly, godly privately, and godly personally.
Circle the word blameless, circle the word pure,
and circle the word without fault. The word blameless
is relationship to the outside world. It means
the people at work, your neighbors, people at
the coffee shop, the dry cleaners. the team one
of your kids plays on. You're listening to Living
on the Edge with Chip Ingram. Chip will continue
today's message in just a moment, so stay with
us. If today's teaching is resonating with you,
there's more where this came from. The complete
series, Choosing Love, is available right now
at livingontheedge .org. You'll also find study
notes, discussion questions, and resources to
help you go deeper. Everything is waiting for
you online at livingontheedge .org. Well, now
let's continue with Chip's message. He says,
be blameless. Be the kind of Christian that they're
not going, oh my gosh, that person says they're
a Christian, but listen to their language, listen
to the put downs, you know, look at their morality.
He says, no, no, no, no. You got to be blameless,
not perfect, blameless. When God shows you that
your life is ungodly and it would reflect negatively
on Jesus and his church, you say, I can't live
that way. Second, it's privately. It says blameless
and pure. The word pure here means like undiluted
wine, or it was used of metal that didn't have
a mixture of both like iron and something else
in it. It's pure. This is about your motives.
This is about when no one is around, who are
you really? And then finally he says not only
blameless and pure, but he goes on to say, without
fault and again here it doesn't mean in terms
of perfect but without fault is relationship
to those in the church and especially your relationship
to God the word was used for like an animal without
blemish in your offering and your sacrifice and
so in essence what he's really saying is I want
you to obey I want you to be the kind of Christians
in a really tough world that you're positive,
thankful people. Not positive thinking. You're
genuinely thankful. And your speech and your
actions reflect it. Second, I want you to be
godly. I want you to be godly toward the outside
world. I want you to be godly and have personal
integrity within. And I want you to be godly
in terms of your relationship with God. I love
the next line where he says, so that you can
Do something in a very crooked and perverse generation.
I mean, we all here, we want to see the world
change, right? We all believe the world is, I
mean, it's crazy right now. And people ask me
all the time, well, what can I do? This is what
we can do. Be grateful people. Be godly people.
And notice the result is to be a bold servant
in action and words. He says, when you're godly
in the midst of a crooked and perverse, literally,
it's a twisted generation. And I think it's even
more twisted now than it was then. But in which
you shine like stars in the universe as you hold
out or literally hold forth the word of God.
And so he says to them, this is the kind of Christian
I want you to be. And when you do that, you're
demonstrating something. You're making a difference.
It's like there's this black backdrop and you're
shining in this corrupt world like shining stars.
take notice. I have a very good friend who decided
to leave a very powerful, lucrative job. Had
a great position. Extremely well paid. And there
came a time where the company and those in power
were asking him to make some decisions that lacked
integrity. And he had worked with all the other
people in the company and sort of set a standard
that no matter what, we won't compromise. And
people knew he was a follower of Christ and integrity
really mattered and came to the point where he
crossroads and out of integrity, let that go.
And he told me a little bit about the last day
with all the employees. And these are high -tech,
grown men and women in a fast -paced world, overwhelmed
with emotion. Like a bright, shining star in
the midst of a... cutthroat, make money, fudge
the facts? How do we make it look faster and
better that we can go public or whatever the
goals are? And someone steps and says, there's
something that matters more than money. I'm a
follower of Christ. It's the truth that sets
you free. And I'm going to stand on my convictions
regardless of the consequences. And there was
an entire company that saw a star shining brightly.
Notice you shine like stars and you're bold.
You hold forth God's word. You're not ashamed
to be a Christian in your neighborhood. You're
not ashamed of the Bible at work. Do I understand
you're going to get some flack? Of course. Did
the early disciples get some flack? Did Jesus
get some flack? Did the reformers get some flack?
At some point in time, we have to realize it's
coming. So let's respond in a loving way. Let's
shine like stars. Let's be the church that, oh
my lands, they remodeled another school. Oh my
lands, they're taking in the refugees. We just
had a team come back from India. They did all
that dental work and medical work. Oh my lands.
Who says oh my lands anyway? That must be from
my mother or my childhood. You want to know how
to work out what God worked in? Be a grateful
servant. Be a godly servant. Be a bold servant.
And finally, his whole motive was, I'm not down
on you Philippians. This isn't a list to do all
the stuff of some religion. Be a joyful Christian.
Here's my motive. My motive is that I can, I'm
gonna stand before God and I don't know if I'm
executed or not executed, but I'm gonna stand
before God and boast in the day of Christ that
I didn't run in vain or labor in vain, but I
poured out my life like a drink offering on the
sacrifice and the service. of your faith. And
what he's picturing here is that that's a picture
of getting executed. He's taking this Old Testament
picture of when you would offer a sacrifice and
then they would take maybe wine and pour it on
the altar as it's going up. It's a drink offering.
He says, if my blood, if my life, if I'm a drink
offering, here's the deal. I'm going to be glad
and I'm going to rejoice in dying. So you too
be glad and rejoice with me. Is that amazing?
As you look at the back page, the first couple
questions are ones you can just do by yourself,
but grab a cup of tea, coffee, Coke, Diet Coke,
and put your feet up somewhere in the next 24
or 48 hours and say, hmm, you know, what expectations
do I have in terms of what I think God's going
to do for me? And are they accurate? And down
deep, what do I think God expects of me? For
some of you, you need a big dose of grace. Here's
what he expects that you receive is love. And
for others, he expects you get off your dairy
air and quit expecting that Bible to read itself
and to discipline yourself to godliness so he
can let you experience what you already possess.
Where do you see growth and progress in the working
out of what God has worked in? You know, some
of you, you just go so negative. Oh, I ought
to be more of this. I ought to do more of this.
I ought to more doing this. How about writing
down, you know, I've become more patient. I've
become more generous. You know what? I'm a better
dad than I used to be. I clean up in my, you
know, with my roommates. Write down where God
and it'll encourage you. And then where do you
need to focus effort and energy to allow Jesus'
life to be manifested in you and through you?
And, you know, these words, right? They come
right out of the text. You know, and just don't
check them all. You'll go nuts. If you already
haven't. But just ask yourself, you know, Lord,
whisper this prayer. Lord, Holy Spirit, would
you show me which one or at the most two, is
it my attitude, speech, boldness, authenticity,
godliness? Just, and check one of those and then
just say, Lord, I can't do this. I can't do this.
But you, can. So I'm telling you, I'm inadequate
and your power will be my adequacy. So would
you help me? Would you help me do that? You're
listening to Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram
and a powerful teaching on cooperating with God's
transforming work. Chip has more to share in
just a moment. As you think about what it means
to obey God out of love rather than duty, I want
to tell you about Chip's newest book that goes
hand in hand with this series. It's called I
Choose Love. Love isn't something that just happens
to you. It's something you can choose. Chip shows
us that the agape love God calls us to isn't
built on feelings or romantic notions. It's a
love that gives, serves, obeys, and cares. It's
the kind of love that transforms every relationship
in your life. Get your copy of I Choose Love
online at livingontheedge .org. You know, every
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live like Christians. Through broadcasts, podcasts,
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for Chip's complete sermons? The Chip Ingram
Sermon Podcast is now available as a feature
on the Living on the Edge podcast. Listen to
full, unedited messages right alongside our regular
episodes. Well, now here's Chip with some final
thoughts. As we wrap up today's program, I would
remind you that the title of this message is
Love Obeys. In other words, when God is working
out through his spirit and we're responding by
faith and obedience, it ends up we obey. We are
obeying what he says in his word. Jesus would
say to his disciples on the very last night on
the earth, he said, he that has my commandments
and keeps them, he it is that loves me. And he
that loves me will be loved of my father. And
we will come and disclose ourselves to him. intimacy
with Jesus at the heart of it is by faith we
obey. In other words, we work out what God has
worked in, the work of Christ in our place. And
as I taught through this, and you heard a little
bit earlier in the broadcast, we talked about
being grateful and godly and bold and joyful.
And, you know, we walk through this passage in
Philippians chapter 2. And then I ask you to
do a little analysis, some reflection. And at
the first part, what I want you to do honestly
is say, where have I made progress? In fact,
this is one of those where you really need to
download the notes. It's livingontheedge .org
and get the notes because all of these questions
are here. And then I listed attitude, authenticity,
speech, boldness, godliness. And then in the
notes, I give a definition. But what I want you
to do is say, where am I making progress in my
attitudes? Where am I making progress in my boldness?
Where am I making progress in my speech? And
then I want you to sit quietly before the Lord
and maybe have the notes out in front of you
and say, Lord, where do you want your spirit
to take more control? Is it my speech? Is it
my attitude? Is there ungratefulness in my heart?
Is there unforgiveness in my heart? Is it a lack
of boldness? Is it that everyone knows I'm a
great guy or a wonderful gal, but they don't
know why? Lord, I pray right now for my brothers
and sisters as we are together saying, Lord,
we want to obey. We know that love obeys. We
long for you to show us where we're making progress
that we might rejoice and thank you. And we long
for you to show us. that one thing or that one
or two things that are very specific that we
could bring to you and ask that by your spirit
and the power of your word through community,
you could transform us more into the likeness
of your son. Lord, that's our prayer. We know
you'll answer it. And so we thank you in advance
for what you're going to do. Amen. What does
genuine care for others really look like in action?
I'm Dave Drury. Join us as we continue exploring
what it means to choose love tomorrow on Living
on the Edge. Today's program is produced and
sponsored by Living on the Edge.