WEBVTT 00:00:11.439 --> 00:00:14.179 Today on Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram. 00:00:14.259 --> 00:00:17.600 What do you give the person that has everything? 00:00:18.199 --> 00:00:21.019 Every time that comes up on my Christmas list 00:00:21.019 --> 00:00:23.379 or birthday list, I get stumped. But here's a 00:00:23.379 --> 00:00:26.899 bigger one. How do you give God what he wants 00:00:26.899 --> 00:00:29.820 the most? Have you ever thought of that? You're 00:00:29.820 --> 00:00:32.039 going to learn exactly what he wants and how 00:00:32.039 --> 00:00:36.759 to give it to him. That's today. What does the 00:00:36.759 --> 00:00:39.179 creator of the universe truly want from you? 00:00:39.579 --> 00:00:42.299 It's a question that haunts every honest seeker. 00:00:42.439 --> 00:00:45.000 Well, today on Living on the Edge, Chip Ingram 00:00:45.000 --> 00:00:47.520 answers it head on. Through gripping stories 00:00:47.520 --> 00:00:50.020 of treasure hunters and priceless discoveries, 00:00:50.380 --> 00:00:53.479 he reveals a pattern Jesus used to shake people 00:00:53.479 --> 00:00:56.899 awake to spiritual reality. You'll discover why 00:00:56.899 --> 00:00:59.399 God's invitation to total commitment isn't about 00:00:59.399 --> 00:01:01.740 losing your life. It's about finally finding 00:01:01.740 --> 00:01:04.760 it. This teaching challenges our deepest assumptions 00:01:04.760 --> 00:01:07.980 about what matters and exposes the plastic pearls 00:01:07.980 --> 00:01:10.439 we desperately clutch while missing the real 00:01:10.439 --> 00:01:13.180 treasure. Well, here's Chip Ingram with today's 00:01:13.180 --> 00:01:16.000 message, How to Give God What He Wants the Most. 00:01:16.400 --> 00:01:19.180 If I ask you kind of over a cup of coffee, where 00:01:19.180 --> 00:01:22.659 did your spiritual journey really begin as an 00:01:22.659 --> 00:01:26.180 adult? What would you tell me? Where were you? 00:01:26.340 --> 00:01:29.719 What were the circumstances? For me, it was the 00:01:29.719 --> 00:01:33.799 night I graduated from high school. After being 00:01:33.799 --> 00:01:37.400 with some friends at a party, I realized I was 00:01:37.400 --> 00:01:42.900 a workaholic. I had academic success. My dream 00:01:42.900 --> 00:01:46.599 of a basketball scholarship was in hand. I was 00:01:46.599 --> 00:01:50.099 all league in baseball. I had a really pretty 00:01:50.099 --> 00:01:57.760 girlfriend. And I sat alone and empty and just 00:01:57.760 --> 00:02:02.969 wondering, what in the world am I here for? My 00:02:02.969 --> 00:02:08.030 little formula of success will make you happy 00:02:08.030 --> 00:02:11.650 didn't pan out. I remember that night sitting 00:02:11.650 --> 00:02:13.430 on my bed, looking out my bedroom window. It 00:02:13.430 --> 00:02:16.509 was a very starry night, I remember. And I started 00:02:16.509 --> 00:02:20.629 asking the real questions that adults ask. Why 00:02:20.629 --> 00:02:26.069 am I here? Is there a God? What's my purpose 00:02:26.069 --> 00:02:30.449 in life? Is there more to life than just setting 00:02:30.449 --> 00:02:34.900 goals and achieving them? And that night, although 00:02:34.900 --> 00:02:37.039 I had a lot of childhood prayers of, you know, 00:02:37.060 --> 00:02:39.300 get me out of this jam and please help so and 00:02:39.300 --> 00:02:42.560 so. And I prayed what I think was my first adult 00:02:42.560 --> 00:02:47.199 prayer. And I remember looking at the stars and 00:02:47.199 --> 00:02:53.419 I said, God, if you exist, reveal yourself to 00:02:53.419 --> 00:02:57.219 me in a way that I can understand. And then I 00:02:57.219 --> 00:03:00.020 figure everybody wants something. And I remember 00:03:00.020 --> 00:03:03.879 praying, God, what do you want from me? If you 00:03:03.879 --> 00:03:08.819 exist, what do you really want from me? And that's 00:03:08.819 --> 00:03:10.419 going to be the question we're going to ask and 00:03:10.419 --> 00:03:13.080 answer today on our journey toward true spirituality. 00:03:14.120 --> 00:03:18.379 How do we give God what he wants the most? We're 00:03:18.379 --> 00:03:20.180 going to walk through this journey, and this 00:03:20.180 --> 00:03:22.360 journey is going to take us to a point of a very, 00:03:22.379 --> 00:03:25.039 very important decision. And so I want to introduce 00:03:25.039 --> 00:03:28.620 you to a book that I read. It was by a Yale law 00:03:28.620 --> 00:03:32.479 professor called Risk Reason. and the decision 00:03:32.479 --> 00:03:36.580 -making process. And it's a series of true stories 00:03:36.580 --> 00:03:40.139 that are case studies, and they read the case 00:03:40.139 --> 00:03:42.240 study, then they get in small groups, and they 00:03:42.240 --> 00:03:44.800 talk about, okay, what were the risks involved 00:03:44.800 --> 00:03:47.919 in making this decision? What reasons did people 00:03:47.919 --> 00:03:50.280 make this decision? And what would you do? And 00:03:50.280 --> 00:03:52.919 so they sort of peel it out, give a case study, 00:03:53.120 --> 00:03:55.340 let the groups talk a little bit, and then give 00:03:55.340 --> 00:03:58.639 them more information. So let me actually, I've 00:03:58.639 --> 00:04:00.740 got a couple case studies here, because here's 00:04:00.740 --> 00:04:04.259 the deal. The goal was to teach them to make 00:04:04.259 --> 00:04:07.580 skillful, wise decisions. And we're going to 00:04:07.580 --> 00:04:09.620 be talking about a very, very important decision. 00:04:10.259 --> 00:04:12.419 And there was just some great insight about making 00:04:12.419 --> 00:04:14.300 great decisions. So case study number one. They're 00:04:14.300 --> 00:04:17.319 brief, but they're kind of fun. A 32 -year -old 00:04:17.319 --> 00:04:19.699 engineer named John loves to go to estate sales 00:04:19.699 --> 00:04:22.620 to look for antique furniture and other potentially 00:04:22.620 --> 00:04:25.639 valuable items. One weekend, he goes to an estate 00:04:25.639 --> 00:04:27.480 sale in the southern part of the United States. 00:04:28.009 --> 00:04:30.250 All the items in this particular house are being 00:04:30.250 --> 00:04:33.629 sold together for a single price. Visitors are 00:04:33.629 --> 00:04:36.189 welcome to make a bid, and John learns that the 00:04:36.189 --> 00:04:39.389 winning bid will be about $95 ,000. The house 00:04:39.389 --> 00:04:41.910 is old and disrepair, probably built during the 00:04:41.910 --> 00:04:45.990 Civil War period. John, a self -confessed geek 00:04:45.990 --> 00:04:49.410 and history buff, recognizes a collection of 00:04:49.410 --> 00:04:51.290 rifles that seem to be from that time frame. 00:04:51.870 --> 00:04:54.529 He then goes downstairs to a damp basement using 00:04:54.529 --> 00:04:58.410 a small pocket flashlight, finds an old roller 00:04:58.410 --> 00:05:01.470 top desk, and going through the desk, he discovers 00:05:01.470 --> 00:05:04.810 a false drawer. And in the false drawer is a 00:05:04.810 --> 00:05:10.110 small leather pouch that contains 22 very rare 00:05:10.110 --> 00:05:13.829 pure gold coins minted by the Confederate Army 00:05:13.829 --> 00:05:17.069 during the Civil War. They could be worth millions 00:05:17.069 --> 00:05:20.790 of dollars, he believes. John has to make a decision. 00:05:21.370 --> 00:05:24.209 What should he do? He has $10 ,000 in savings. 00:05:24.410 --> 00:05:26.990 If he can sell his car, his house, and everything 00:05:26.990 --> 00:05:29.069 he owns, he believes he can come up with the 00:05:29.069 --> 00:05:32.370 $95 ,000 and make the winning bid. What would 00:05:32.370 --> 00:05:34.870 you do? Students at Harvard's business school 00:05:34.870 --> 00:05:37.410 and MIT and other universities discuss this. 00:05:37.949 --> 00:05:42.670 So face value, what would you do? Think about 00:05:42.670 --> 00:05:48.300 that. Case study number two. Sheila, a 20 -something 00:05:48.300 --> 00:05:50.420 college art teacher at a community college, was 00:05:50.420 --> 00:05:52.800 traveling in Europe over the summer. She had 00:05:52.800 --> 00:05:56.079 even started a small collection on her limited 00:05:56.079 --> 00:05:58.839 salary. And while in a small village in southern 00:05:58.839 --> 00:06:01.720 France, well off the beaten path, Sheila went 00:06:01.720 --> 00:06:04.660 to an auction where the locals had all donated 00:06:04.660 --> 00:06:07.839 family art to be sold to help finance the construction 00:06:07.839 --> 00:06:11.300 of a much -needed school. One painting topped 00:06:11.300 --> 00:06:14.379 the list and was said to be a rare but highly 00:06:14.379 --> 00:06:17.360 valued copy of Picasso's work. It was deemed 00:06:17.360 --> 00:06:20.639 as a non -original because the signature at the 00:06:20.639 --> 00:06:22.860 bottom was different from all of his other works. 00:06:23.899 --> 00:06:26.680 Sheila, however, wrote her master's thesis on 00:06:26.680 --> 00:06:29.399 Picasso and was aware that in the first year 00:06:29.399 --> 00:06:32.040 of his work, he did not sign his name but only 00:06:32.040 --> 00:06:35.149 put his initials there. She looked and studied 00:06:35.149 --> 00:06:37.870 the painting carefully and came to the conclusion 00:06:37.870 --> 00:06:42.069 that she actually was in the presence of a priceless 00:06:42.069 --> 00:06:45.029 piece of art. It was believed there were only 00:06:45.029 --> 00:06:47.529 two or three of these paintings in existence 00:06:47.529 --> 00:06:50.730 anywhere in the world. If this were so, Sheila 00:06:50.730 --> 00:06:54.329 was standing before something worth a very great 00:06:54.329 --> 00:06:57.730 deal of money. The $25 ,000 asking price was 00:06:57.730 --> 00:07:00.389 a joke with regard to what it was worth, but 00:07:00.389 --> 00:07:03.360 it was a bigger joke with her income. What Sheila 00:07:03.360 --> 00:07:05.800 would have to do would sell her Volkswagen Jetta, 00:07:05.879 --> 00:07:08.839 sell her entire art collection, and withdraw 00:07:08.839 --> 00:07:13.220 her entire savings of $600. What should Sheila 00:07:13.220 --> 00:07:17.339 do? What would you tell her? Now, I want to give 00:07:17.339 --> 00:07:19.060 you three principles that flow out of these case 00:07:19.060 --> 00:07:20.720 studies. Here's where the meat is for you and 00:07:20.720 --> 00:07:25.620 me. In every big decision, and I mean big, important, 00:07:25.680 --> 00:07:28.959 life -altering decisions especially, the number 00:07:28.959 --> 00:07:30.920 one thing you need is just write this word down, 00:07:31.060 --> 00:07:35.490 truth. Truth. The issue here is the validity 00:07:35.490 --> 00:07:39.750 of the find. If the coins are legit, if they're 00:07:39.750 --> 00:07:43.129 true, if it's a Picasso, if it's true, and for 00:07:43.129 --> 00:07:46.269 you, when you're trying to figure out what you 00:07:46.269 --> 00:07:49.329 should do with your life and the relationships 00:07:49.329 --> 00:07:52.350 that you're in, you need to first and foremost 00:07:52.350 --> 00:07:56.889 say, what's true? And after truth and knowledge, 00:07:56.949 --> 00:07:59.290 the last thing, just write the word faith. These 00:07:59.290 --> 00:08:01.050 are the three keys to making great decisions. 00:08:01.949 --> 00:08:05.709 What's true? Do you have the inside knowledge? 00:08:06.670 --> 00:08:08.949 And then faith is literally the courage to pull 00:08:08.949 --> 00:08:12.069 the trigger. There's a great deal of people that 00:08:12.069 --> 00:08:14.589 never have the faith or the courage to pull the 00:08:14.589 --> 00:08:17.670 trigger and act on what they absolutely believe 00:08:17.670 --> 00:08:21.670 is true. And so they don't make good decisions 00:08:21.670 --> 00:08:24.490 or they make no decisions, which is really a 00:08:24.490 --> 00:08:27.670 decision of itself. Turn the page, if you will, 00:08:27.730 --> 00:08:30.629 because these two remind me of a case study. 00:08:31.160 --> 00:08:36.139 by Jesus that teaches us also about risk, reason, 00:08:36.279 --> 00:08:40.179 and the decision -making process. When Jesus 00:08:40.179 --> 00:08:42.259 is teaching this, it's out of Matthew chapter 00:08:42.259 --> 00:08:46.240 13, verses 44 and 45. He says, the kingdom of 00:08:46.240 --> 00:08:48.919 heaven, in other words, following me and how 00:08:48.919 --> 00:08:51.320 life works with me as the king of your life, 00:08:51.460 --> 00:08:54.860 is like a treasure hidden in the field, which 00:08:54.860 --> 00:08:58.460 a man found, then he hid again. And from joy 00:08:58.460 --> 00:09:00.820 over it, he goes and sells all that he has, and 00:09:00.820 --> 00:09:04.379 he buys that field. So look at verse 45. Again, 00:09:04.440 --> 00:09:06.720 the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking 00:09:06.720 --> 00:09:10.480 fine pearls, and upon finding one pearl of great 00:09:10.480 --> 00:09:13.639 value, of exquisite value, of over -the -top 00:09:13.639 --> 00:09:16.460 priceless value is the idea, he went and sold 00:09:16.460 --> 00:09:19.000 all the pearls that he had, and he bought it. 00:09:19.100 --> 00:09:20.980 So if you have a pen, pull it out. Let's go up 00:09:20.980 --> 00:09:23.419 to verse 44. I want you to see something. Jesus 00:09:23.419 --> 00:09:26.320 isn't talking about money and treasure. he's 00:09:26.320 --> 00:09:29.419 making a very profound spiritual point and principle 00:09:29.419 --> 00:09:32.580 about decision -making. And what he's saying 00:09:32.580 --> 00:09:35.679 is this. He's saying there's certain things that 00:09:35.679 --> 00:09:39.340 we can see and certain things we can't see. And 00:09:39.340 --> 00:09:42.320 the kingdom of God and following me is akin to, 00:09:42.480 --> 00:09:44.539 and this would be in their day, it would make 00:09:44.539 --> 00:09:46.639 sense because this actually could happen in their 00:09:46.639 --> 00:09:49.679 day. They didn't have 401ks. And so you would 00:09:49.679 --> 00:09:51.860 take your treasure and you would hide it, dig 00:09:51.860 --> 00:09:54.340 it someplace on your land. And the goal is you 00:09:54.340 --> 00:09:56.940 would tell your relatives, your sons or daughters, 00:09:57.059 --> 00:10:00.299 where it is. But sometimes people, you know, 00:10:00.320 --> 00:10:02.480 they aren't ready quite to hear it. And they 00:10:02.480 --> 00:10:05.200 die before they tell anyone. And so the people 00:10:05.200 --> 00:10:06.960 realize that this story is really plausible. 00:10:08.080 --> 00:10:11.159 And so he says here's a man who is in a field 00:10:11.159 --> 00:10:13.279 maybe he's walking with a stick and he hears 00:10:13.279 --> 00:10:15.159 something and he opens it up and there's a little 00:10:15.159 --> 00:10:18.759 chest and there's a fortune in it and he covers 00:10:18.759 --> 00:10:21.580 it back up and he is just exhilarated with what 00:10:21.580 --> 00:10:24.700 he's just found so he recklessly with abandon 00:10:24.700 --> 00:10:27.679 sells everything he has that's not worth very 00:10:27.679 --> 00:10:29.679 much to get something that's worth a whole lot. 00:10:30.639 --> 00:10:35.399 Same picture with the pearl. Here's the thesis. 00:10:36.669 --> 00:10:39.830 Jesus is saying when you understand who he is 00:10:39.830 --> 00:10:43.769 and how life really works and what really, really 00:10:43.769 --> 00:10:48.370 matters now and forever, and you get the treasure 00:10:48.370 --> 00:10:51.169 of what it is to have relationship with him and 00:10:51.169 --> 00:10:54.409 the plan that he has for you on this earth, you 00:10:54.409 --> 00:10:57.830 would with reckless abandon and joy forsake all 00:10:57.830 --> 00:11:02.230 else to get that. Put another way, his thesis 00:11:02.230 --> 00:11:06.720 is... Total commitment is the channel through 00:11:06.720 --> 00:11:09.480 which God's biggest and best blessings flow. 00:11:11.220 --> 00:11:14.039 You're listening to Living on the Edge with Chip 00:11:14.039 --> 00:11:16.179 Ingram. We're halfway through today's message, 00:11:16.259 --> 00:11:19.399 so don't go anywhere just yet. Today's insightful 00:11:19.399 --> 00:11:22.019 lesson comes from our series called God's Dream 00:11:22.019 --> 00:11:24.759 for Your Life. Want to dig deeper into these 00:11:24.759 --> 00:11:27.460 truths? Well, the full series is ready for you 00:11:27.460 --> 00:11:41.320 online at Living on the Edge. Well, now let's 00:11:41.320 --> 00:11:44.299 rejoin Chip with today's message. Did you realize 00:11:44.299 --> 00:11:46.639 that? I mean, total commitment. He sold all that 00:11:46.639 --> 00:11:50.220 he had. Motive? Joy. Above the word in your notes 00:11:50.220 --> 00:11:51.539 where it says total commitment, would you write 00:11:51.539 --> 00:11:56.100 the word surrender and put a box around it? Surrender. 00:11:56.139 --> 00:12:00.639 Total commitment. I mean, it was... All or nothing 00:12:00.639 --> 00:12:04.159 in order to gain that land with the treasure 00:12:04.159 --> 00:12:11.139 inside. Now, Jesus told these two parables to 00:12:11.139 --> 00:12:15.840 get into their world in such a way that they 00:12:15.840 --> 00:12:18.700 would get a new set of glasses. Because when 00:12:18.700 --> 00:12:20.919 you talk to people that want to follow God about 00:12:20.919 --> 00:12:23.419 total commitment, it's like, well, I know pastors 00:12:23.419 --> 00:12:25.779 are supposed to be totally committed and maybe 00:12:25.779 --> 00:12:28.379 missionaries. And there's always like a 98 -year 00:12:28.379 --> 00:12:30.899 -old lady who really prays like 37 hours a day. 00:12:31.039 --> 00:12:33.320 And there's only 24 hours. And we know she's 00:12:33.320 --> 00:12:35.879 totally committed. But, I mean, for most of us, 00:12:35.899 --> 00:12:37.519 like, we're just like regular Christians, and 00:12:37.519 --> 00:12:39.940 that sounds really scary. And, you know, I really 00:12:39.940 --> 00:12:41.519 want to love God. I'm glad I'm going to heaven. 00:12:41.600 --> 00:12:43.340 I'm glad Jesus forgave my sins. And, you know, 00:12:43.379 --> 00:12:44.860 I would like to be a good person. In fact, I 00:12:44.860 --> 00:12:46.259 think I'm a little bit better person than most 00:12:46.259 --> 00:12:49.379 people. But total commitment sounds like scary. 00:12:49.940 --> 00:12:52.220 Like, I mean, lock, stock, barrel. I mean, God 00:12:52.220 --> 00:12:54.559 has the say on my time, my money, my future, 00:12:54.580 --> 00:12:59.860 my family. And so what most of us do is we see 00:12:59.860 --> 00:13:03.690 the lens of total commitment negatively. Here's 00:13:03.690 --> 00:13:07.250 what I want to tell you. When Jesus taught about 00:13:07.250 --> 00:13:09.870 surrender or total commitment, it is the channel 00:13:09.870 --> 00:13:14.389 to get God's very best in your life. But he said 00:13:14.389 --> 00:13:18.850 it's for joy. His motivation is positive. It's 00:13:18.850 --> 00:13:21.269 wise. It's logical. It's shrewd. It's not so 00:13:21.269 --> 00:13:25.110 much renouncing as it is a reevaluation. And 00:13:25.110 --> 00:13:28.210 that was Jesus' point. And that's his message 00:13:28.210 --> 00:13:32.960 to you. Remember, this is about how to give God 00:13:32.960 --> 00:13:36.539 what he wants the most. And I told you it involves 00:13:36.539 --> 00:13:41.039 a decision. And before our time is over together, 00:13:41.279 --> 00:13:45.100 we're going to have a very sober and holy moment 00:13:45.100 --> 00:13:48.620 where I'm not only going to explain exactly how 00:13:48.620 --> 00:13:52.940 to give God what he wants the most, but it will 00:13:52.940 --> 00:13:57.840 require a big step of faith, total commitment, 00:13:57.980 --> 00:14:01.039 and surrender. And what you'll have to start 00:14:01.039 --> 00:14:05.299 asking is, is how I hang on to things and my 00:14:05.299 --> 00:14:08.159 view and what I want versus what he can provide, 00:14:08.399 --> 00:14:13.320 which one of those am I going to trust? Reminds 00:14:13.320 --> 00:14:16.320 me of a story I heard many years ago. And it 00:14:16.320 --> 00:14:17.980 was a story of a little girl that went on vacation 00:14:17.980 --> 00:14:21.419 with her family. and it was by the seashore, 00:14:21.419 --> 00:14:23.000 and they had one of those cottages, you know, 00:14:23.039 --> 00:14:24.879 that's right there, and you walk out the door, 00:14:24.980 --> 00:14:27.159 and the sand is there, and you could walk on 00:14:27.159 --> 00:14:28.919 the beach and had a little pier, and at the end 00:14:28.919 --> 00:14:30.559 of the pier was a fishing boat with a very old 00:14:30.559 --> 00:14:33.220 man. It was in a very small town in New England, 00:14:33.279 --> 00:14:37.080 and the little girl, five or six years old, cute 00:14:37.080 --> 00:14:38.940 pigtails the whole bit. You know how they are 00:14:38.940 --> 00:14:41.320 at that age. And she would walk down to the pier 00:14:41.320 --> 00:14:44.019 and walk down, and there was an old, old fisherman 00:14:44.019 --> 00:14:46.259 who was just known in the town as the mean one. 00:14:46.889 --> 00:14:49.210 He was just mean. He was old. He was bitter. 00:14:49.289 --> 00:14:52.190 His friends had died. He'd had a hard life. And 00:14:52.190 --> 00:14:54.970 so he just shut everybody out. But there's something 00:14:54.970 --> 00:14:56.929 about a little five or six -year -old girl, you 00:14:56.929 --> 00:15:01.789 know. Hi. Hi. Well, after day one, day two, day 00:15:01.789 --> 00:15:04.990 three, day four, his heart starts to melt. And 00:15:04.990 --> 00:15:07.850 no one's ever treated him nice. And every day 00:15:07.850 --> 00:15:10.090 she would get shells and give him shells. And 00:15:10.090 --> 00:15:11.990 she'd sit at the end of the pier with her feet 00:15:11.990 --> 00:15:14.350 dangling. And pretty soon he's giving her a little 00:15:14.350 --> 00:15:17.500 fishing line. And in their seven -day vacation, 00:15:17.720 --> 00:15:21.000 a bond occurred. And he realized, no one in the 00:15:21.000 --> 00:15:22.740 whole world cares about me, and I'm going to 00:15:22.740 --> 00:15:26.220 die very soon. He was in his late 80s. And this 00:15:26.220 --> 00:15:29.059 little girl does. And unbeknownst to others, 00:15:29.139 --> 00:15:32.019 he had a little pouch of over the years of fishing, 00:15:32.080 --> 00:15:36.750 and he found a number of shells and pearls. And 00:15:36.750 --> 00:15:38.370 the thing that he noticed about this little girl, 00:15:38.429 --> 00:15:40.330 she would dangle her feet over, but she would 00:15:40.330 --> 00:15:42.210 always clutch. She had these little, you know, 00:15:42.230 --> 00:15:44.509 plastic beads that you get like at Walmart or 00:15:44.509 --> 00:15:47.309 Target or the CVS pharmacy. You know, you're 00:15:47.309 --> 00:15:49.649 on vacation. Kids always want something. You 00:15:49.649 --> 00:15:55.529 know, $1 .99, you're all set. And so he noticed 00:15:55.529 --> 00:15:57.350 how much she liked him. So he took his pearls 00:15:57.350 --> 00:15:59.090 and stayed up most of the night, drilled holes 00:15:59.090 --> 00:16:02.470 in them, took a piece of fishing line and made 00:16:02.470 --> 00:16:04.870 a necklace. He thought. I'm going to give it 00:16:04.870 --> 00:16:07.610 to this little six -year -old girl. And so the 00:16:07.610 --> 00:16:10.049 next day she came to say goodbye, and the station 00:16:10.049 --> 00:16:12.629 wagon is all packed, and parents are, you know, 00:16:12.629 --> 00:16:15.190 100 yards away, and okay, honey, get ready. Yes, 00:16:15.190 --> 00:16:17.409 you can go say goodbye. She runs down to say 00:16:17.409 --> 00:16:19.610 goodbye, and he says, come here, honey, I have 00:16:19.610 --> 00:16:22.870 a present for you. And she walks up to him, and 00:16:22.870 --> 00:16:25.389 they've been very close, and he says, give me 00:16:25.389 --> 00:16:28.250 those plastic beads off your neck. And then he 00:16:28.250 --> 00:16:30.950 hung out, glistening in the sun, real pearls. 00:16:32.120 --> 00:16:34.120 Now, the problem with being five or six years 00:16:34.120 --> 00:16:37.259 old and you're very immature, you don't know 00:16:37.259 --> 00:16:42.059 what's worth what. All you know is what you're 00:16:42.059 --> 00:16:46.460 comfortable with. All you know is what feels 00:16:46.460 --> 00:16:49.980 right. And so he took another step and he said, 00:16:50.019 --> 00:16:52.559 here, I have these. These are real pearls. Now, 00:16:52.580 --> 00:16:55.210 take those off so I can put them on. And the 00:16:55.210 --> 00:16:57.250 little girl stepped back, grabbed her necklace, 00:16:57.330 --> 00:16:59.690 and ran 100 yards, jumped in the station wagon, 00:16:59.730 --> 00:17:01.669 said, I want to go. That man tried to take my 00:17:01.669 --> 00:17:06.569 pearls. And I want to tell you about eight out 00:17:06.569 --> 00:17:10.950 of every nine Christians that really do sincerely 00:17:10.950 --> 00:17:18.849 love God cling to plastic pearls and are not 00:17:18.849 --> 00:17:21.650 receiving anything close in their life experience. 00:17:22.460 --> 00:17:24.740 their relationships or their eternal impact, 00:17:25.039 --> 00:17:28.460 what God has chosen and destined for you to have. 00:17:29.779 --> 00:17:34.799 Because when he says, give me you, put me first 00:17:34.799 --> 00:17:37.660 in your time, put me first in your future, put 00:17:37.660 --> 00:17:39.859 me first in your decisions, put me first in your 00:17:39.859 --> 00:17:42.079 family, put me first in your work, put me first 00:17:42.079 --> 00:17:44.779 in your money, I want you to trust me wholly 00:17:44.779 --> 00:17:52.450 because I have pearls, not stuff. And if you 00:17:52.450 --> 00:17:55.329 don't believe he's good, if you don't know the 00:17:55.329 --> 00:18:00.750 heart of the Father, then you just stay around 00:18:00.750 --> 00:18:03.930 him long enough not to feel too guilty and semi 00:18:03.930 --> 00:18:07.250 -hope you go to heaven and you cling on to the 00:18:07.250 --> 00:18:12.970 plastic, temporal, non -treasure. But when you 00:18:12.970 --> 00:18:14.869 meet the people that get more and more pearls, 00:18:14.930 --> 00:18:16.950 you realize it just weighs them down instead 00:18:16.950 --> 00:18:22.900 it gives them life. Total commitment. Surrender 00:18:22.900 --> 00:18:26.720 is the conduit. It's the channel to which God's 00:18:26.720 --> 00:18:29.720 best and biggest blessings flow. And so what 00:18:29.720 --> 00:18:31.319 I want to do in the remainder of our time, I 00:18:31.319 --> 00:18:35.059 want to define very specifically what total commitment 00:18:35.059 --> 00:18:38.460 looks like. We are not leading up to some emotional 00:18:38.460 --> 00:18:43.500 moment. We're leading up to a wise decision where 00:18:43.500 --> 00:18:45.920 you're going to weigh the risk and the logic 00:18:45.920 --> 00:18:49.740 of saying to God in a few minutes, I surrender 00:18:49.740 --> 00:18:54.140 all to you. I would sign a blank check made out 00:18:54.140 --> 00:18:57.920 to you. I would say to you, from this day forward, 00:18:58.059 --> 00:19:00.380 I'm all in. I may be a little fearful, but I'm 00:19:00.380 --> 00:19:03.980 all in. But in order to do that, you know, what's 00:19:03.980 --> 00:19:06.619 that look like? The answer is in Romans chapter 00:19:06.619 --> 00:19:10.480 12, verse 1. And after 11 chapters of treasure, 00:19:10.759 --> 00:19:12.980 of what God has done, of how much he loves you, 00:19:13.019 --> 00:19:15.779 of his sovereignty, his goodness, his forgiveness, 00:19:16.059 --> 00:19:19.720 his power, his spirit living within you, his 00:19:19.720 --> 00:19:22.619 gifts. all the plans that he has for you. In 00:19:22.619 --> 00:19:26.619 chapter 12, your response to that is, therefore, 00:19:26.619 --> 00:19:31.339 I urge you, brothers, sisters, fellow family 00:19:31.339 --> 00:19:34.000 members, the Apostle Paul writes, in view of 00:19:34.000 --> 00:19:36.900 God's mercy, offer your bodies a living sacrifice, 00:19:37.380 --> 00:19:42.180 holy and pleasing to God. This is your spiritual 00:19:42.180 --> 00:19:45.859 act of worship. Notice the structure. There's 00:19:45.859 --> 00:19:48.960 a command, there's a motivation, and there's 00:19:48.960 --> 00:19:51.799 a reason. I'd like you, if you will, put a box 00:19:51.799 --> 00:19:56.799 around the word offer, put a box around living 00:19:56.799 --> 00:20:00.099 sacrifice, and then put a little box around the 00:20:00.099 --> 00:20:03.619 word holy. And then I want you to put a squiggly 00:20:03.619 --> 00:20:08.579 line under spiritual act of worship. The command 00:20:08.579 --> 00:20:13.079 is to offer your body to God. And this isn't 00:20:13.079 --> 00:20:15.119 metaphorical. This is like your physical body, 00:20:15.220 --> 00:20:17.640 your eyes, your head, your hands, all that you 00:20:17.640 --> 00:20:20.750 are. And the word offer here is in a tense in 00:20:20.750 --> 00:20:23.190 the Greek language that's punctiliar. And what 00:20:23.190 --> 00:20:25.829 that means is on a certain day at a certain time. 00:20:26.089 --> 00:20:28.890 This passage is not explaining how to have your 00:20:28.890 --> 00:20:31.609 sins forgiven. This passage is not explaining 00:20:31.609 --> 00:20:35.670 what it means to be in God's family. Salvation 00:20:35.670 --> 00:20:38.630 occurs at the end of chapter 3, 4, and right 00:20:38.630 --> 00:20:43.450 in chapter 5, the work of Christ by grace. You 00:20:43.450 --> 00:20:48.380 receive the free gift by faith. Chapter 12 is 00:20:48.380 --> 00:20:52.319 saying, how do normal Christians follow Jesus 00:20:52.319 --> 00:20:55.460 out of gratitude? And God says, are you ready? 00:20:55.539 --> 00:21:00.000 This is what I want. I want you on a certain 00:21:00.000 --> 00:21:05.660 day at a certain time to say to me, all I am, 00:21:05.740 --> 00:21:08.920 all I have is yours. That's what it means to 00:21:08.920 --> 00:21:13.839 offer. I will tell you that. Tens of thousands 00:21:13.839 --> 00:21:16.339 of people in America and around the world do 00:21:16.339 --> 00:21:19.039 not understand the channel through which God's 00:21:19.039 --> 00:21:22.960 best and biggest blessings flow. The power for 00:21:22.960 --> 00:21:26.039 the Christian life comes in this moment of offering. 00:21:26.900 --> 00:21:30.500 Now, it requires faith. It requires believing 00:21:30.500 --> 00:21:32.460 in an invisible treasure that you can't see, 00:21:32.539 --> 00:21:37.160 but it's a historical living God who's walked 00:21:37.160 --> 00:21:39.099 upon the earth and died in your place and rose 00:21:39.099 --> 00:21:41.240 and sits at the right hand of God and says to 00:21:41.240 --> 00:21:44.250 you, There's an unspeakable treasure who for 00:21:44.250 --> 00:21:50.609 joy says to you, let me give you the best. You're 00:21:50.609 --> 00:21:53.210 listening to Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram. 00:21:53.329 --> 00:21:56.430 And he'll return in just a moment. For over three 00:21:56.430 --> 00:21:58.730 decades now, this ministry has been equipping 00:21:58.730 --> 00:22:01.210 believers with biblical truth that transforms 00:22:01.210 --> 00:22:04.289 daily living. Week after week, Living on the 00:22:04.289 --> 00:22:07.130 Edge brings God's Word into homes, cars, and 00:22:07.130 --> 00:22:09.750 workplaces across America and around the globe. 00:22:10.390 --> 00:22:13.329 Marriages gain traction. Parents discover wisdom 00:22:13.329 --> 00:22:15.970 for raising kids. Believers learn what it means 00:22:15.970 --> 00:22:19.099 to walk closely with Jesus. None of this happens 00:22:19.099 --> 00:22:22.180 by accident. 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You're investing in 00:22:56.160 --> 00:22:58.720 a legacy of biblical discipleship that's already 00:22:58.720 --> 00:23:01.299 spanned three decades and reaches people you'll 00:23:01.299 --> 00:23:04.119 never meet this side of heaven. To give, visit 00:23:04.119 --> 00:23:07.279 livingontheedge .org or send your gift to Living 00:23:07.279 --> 00:23:11.019 on the Edge, P .O. Box 3007, Atlanta, Georgia 00:23:11.019 --> 00:23:18.339 30024. You can also call us at 888 - 333 -6003. 00:23:18.539 --> 00:23:21.039 And don't forget to subscribe to the Living on 00:23:21.039 --> 00:23:23.940 the Edge podcast for full -length sermons now 00:23:23.940 --> 00:23:26.319 available through the Chip Ingram Sermon Podcast, 00:23:26.799 --> 00:23:30.180 available wherever you listen to podcasts. Well, 00:23:30.220 --> 00:23:33.079 now here's Chip. As we wrap up today's program, 00:23:33.460 --> 00:23:36.480 I've really introduced a very different paradigm 00:23:36.480 --> 00:23:40.059 about what God's like. I mean, surrender is not 00:23:40.059 --> 00:23:44.619 this great, huge sacrifice. It really is the 00:23:44.619 --> 00:23:47.490 channel. It's the opportunity. It's the window 00:23:47.490 --> 00:23:49.829 through which God is going to do the biggest 00:23:49.829 --> 00:23:52.990 and best things in you. Now, what I know is that's 00:23:52.990 --> 00:23:55.849 a lot easier said than to believe. And so here's 00:23:55.849 --> 00:23:57.650 your assignment for today, and you can do it 00:23:57.650 --> 00:24:00.549 right now. I want you to ask this one question. 00:24:01.450 --> 00:24:06.200 How do you tend to view God as kind? Or is he 00:24:06.200 --> 00:24:09.480 demanding and hard to please? That will tell 00:24:09.480 --> 00:24:12.000 you why it's hard to surrender. Here's your little 00:24:12.000 --> 00:24:15.079 action step. Get a three by five card and write 00:24:15.079 --> 00:24:20.099 out Romans 8 .32. He that spared not his own 00:24:20.099 --> 00:24:24.900 son for you, how will he not with him freely 00:24:24.900 --> 00:24:28.500 give you all things? If he loves you enough to 00:24:28.500 --> 00:24:31.839 give you his son. How can we not trust him for 00:24:31.839 --> 00:24:34.700 the little stuff like our future, our cars, our 00:24:34.700 --> 00:24:37.880 money, our homes, and our locations? He wants 00:24:37.880 --> 00:24:41.359 to help you. Surrender today. I'm Dave Drewy. 00:24:41.420 --> 00:24:43.660 Be sure to join us tomorrow as Chip explores 00:24:43.660 --> 00:24:46.059 what really happens when we stop holding back 00:24:46.059 --> 00:24:49.500 and finally trust God with everything. Don't 00:24:49.500 --> 00:24:55.579 miss it next time on Living on the Edge. Today's 00:24:55.579 --> 00:24:58.140 program is produced and sponsored by Living on 00:24:58.140 --> 00:24:58.660 the Edge.