WEBVTT 00:00:11.439 --> 00:00:14.179 Today on Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram. 00:00:14.240 --> 00:00:17.820 How do you come to grips with the real you? I 00:00:17.820 --> 00:00:20.800 mean down deep. How do you discover who am I 00:00:20.800 --> 00:00:23.800 really and where do I belong and why did God 00:00:23.800 --> 00:00:26.420 put me on this planet and am I going to discover 00:00:26.420 --> 00:00:29.339 it and actually do it? If those are questions 00:00:29.339 --> 00:00:33.179 that nag in the back of your mind, don't miss 00:00:33.179 --> 00:00:37.840 today's broadcast. Welcome to Living on the Edge. 00:00:37.939 --> 00:00:40.520 I'm Dave Drewy. And today, Chip Ingram continues 00:00:40.520 --> 00:00:43.100 our series called God's Dream for Your Life. 00:00:43.240 --> 00:00:46.380 How to get it, keep it, and give it away. We're 00:00:46.380 --> 00:00:48.259 exploring one of the most pressing questions. 00:00:48.740 --> 00:00:52.060 Who are you, really? Not the version you project 00:00:52.060 --> 00:00:54.640 to the world. Not the one shaped by what your 00:00:54.640 --> 00:00:58.020 parents said. Who does God say you are? Well, 00:00:58.039 --> 00:01:00.359 to get started, let's open our Bibles to Genesis 00:01:00.359 --> 00:01:05.049 3, verse 8, with the story of Adam and Eve. Here's 00:01:05.049 --> 00:01:07.590 Chip Ingram with his message titled, How to Come 00:01:07.590 --> 00:01:11.409 to Grips with the Real You. They heard the sound 00:01:11.409 --> 00:01:13.489 of the Lord God walking in the garden in the 00:01:13.489 --> 00:01:16.689 cool of the day. And the man and his wife hid 00:01:16.689 --> 00:01:18.750 themselves from the presence of the Lord God 00:01:18.750 --> 00:01:21.790 among the trees of the garden. Then the Lord 00:01:21.790 --> 00:01:23.469 God called to the man and said to him, Where 00:01:23.469 --> 00:01:25.450 are you? By the way, this is not an informational 00:01:25.450 --> 00:01:28.170 question. This is diagnostic. God knew where 00:01:28.170 --> 00:01:30.489 he was. He's going to ask a series of questions 00:01:30.489 --> 00:01:34.599 to help Adam discover where he's really at. Adam 00:01:34.599 --> 00:01:36.280 said, I heard the sound of you in the garden. 00:01:36.439 --> 00:01:40.140 I was afraid because I was naked, so I hid myself. 00:01:40.459 --> 00:01:42.319 If you've got a pen, will you pull it out and 00:01:42.319 --> 00:01:46.079 circle afraid, naked, and hid? That'll come back 00:01:46.079 --> 00:01:48.420 later. You're going to find there's a relational 00:01:48.420 --> 00:01:51.439 pattern in that that you have and I have and 00:01:51.439 --> 00:01:54.260 every human being has. And God said, who told 00:01:54.260 --> 00:01:55.760 you that you were naked? Have you eaten from 00:01:55.760 --> 00:01:57.700 the tree of which I've commanded you not to eat? 00:01:58.140 --> 00:02:01.200 And so he's going to answer God, the woman that 00:02:01.200 --> 00:02:04.079 you gave me to be with me. She gave me from the 00:02:04.079 --> 00:02:06.260 tree and I ate it. Then the Lord God said to 00:02:06.260 --> 00:02:09.060 the woman, what is this that you have done? And 00:02:09.060 --> 00:02:12.460 the woman being a very quick study says, the 00:02:12.460 --> 00:02:15.580 serpent deceived me and I ate. Three obstacles 00:02:15.580 --> 00:02:18.000 you'll see in this passage about why it's so 00:02:18.000 --> 00:02:21.039 hard to come to grips with the real you. First 00:02:21.039 --> 00:02:24.639 is fear rooted in shame. Notice he says, I was 00:02:24.639 --> 00:02:29.259 afraid. Well, why? I was afraid because now for 00:02:29.259 --> 00:02:32.400 the first time ever, Adam realizes he's naked. 00:02:32.990 --> 00:02:35.590 And don't, of course it's physical, but well, 00:02:35.590 --> 00:02:38.590 well beyond. What he realizes is he's exposed. 00:02:39.610 --> 00:02:41.550 Notice the second thing that happens in this. 00:02:41.750 --> 00:02:44.409 Not only did they say I was afraid, he says hiding 00:02:44.409 --> 00:02:47.689 rooted in insecurity. See, when you're naked, 00:02:47.770 --> 00:02:51.449 you feel insecure. You feel inadequate. And so 00:02:51.449 --> 00:02:54.550 you hide. Not only were you afraid, but I hide 00:02:54.550 --> 00:02:57.169 the real me from you and you hide the real you 00:02:57.169 --> 00:03:01.860 from others and from God. The third. is blaming 00:03:01.860 --> 00:03:04.800 rooted in denial. The man says, it's the woman. 00:03:04.879 --> 00:03:07.580 The woman says, it's the serpent. But ultimately, 00:03:07.699 --> 00:03:11.659 they both, they blame God. Now here's, before 00:03:11.659 --> 00:03:14.080 we go on, because we're going to talk about Romans 00:03:14.080 --> 00:03:17.699 chapter 12, verses 3 through 8, is actually going 00:03:17.699 --> 00:03:21.020 to help you discover. I mean, the tipping point 00:03:21.020 --> 00:03:24.500 of discovering who you are, where you belong, 00:03:24.740 --> 00:03:27.449 and what you're supposed to do. Verse 3 will 00:03:27.449 --> 00:03:29.210 tell us in just a minute who you are. Verses 00:03:29.210 --> 00:03:31.370 4 and 5 will say where you belong. And verses 00:03:31.370 --> 00:03:33.090 6 through 8 will be the beginning of you getting 00:03:33.090 --> 00:03:36.129 really clear on your role and what you're supposed 00:03:36.129 --> 00:03:39.110 to do. Who are you? Verse 3. For by the grace 00:03:39.110 --> 00:03:41.650 of God given to me, I say to everyone among you, 00:03:41.710 --> 00:03:43.949 do not think of yourself more highly than you 00:03:43.949 --> 00:03:46.270 ought to think, but rather think of yourself 00:03:46.270 --> 00:03:48.770 with sober judgment in accordance with the measure 00:03:48.770 --> 00:03:51.210 of faith God has given you. If you have that 00:03:51.210 --> 00:03:54.569 pen, pull it out, underline the word think. Then 00:03:54.569 --> 00:03:57.699 when you get to... Then you ought, underline 00:03:57.699 --> 00:04:00.400 the word ought, but rather think, underline the 00:04:00.400 --> 00:04:02.500 word think, and then underline sober judgment. 00:04:02.860 --> 00:04:06.500 So you have think, ought, think, and sober judgment. 00:04:06.819 --> 00:04:08.719 You underlined ought because in the original 00:04:08.719 --> 00:04:10.639 language, it's how you ought to think. But as 00:04:10.639 --> 00:04:12.639 they translated it for just a smoother reading, 00:04:12.860 --> 00:04:17.839 they omitted that word. The same root word, think, 00:04:17.879 --> 00:04:20.240 think, think, and sober judgment is all the same 00:04:20.240 --> 00:04:22.379 root word. The word sober judgment gives us the 00:04:22.379 --> 00:04:26.290 best idea. It's don't. Think of yourself like 00:04:26.290 --> 00:04:29.589 someone who's drunk. When a person's drunk, what 00:04:29.589 --> 00:04:32.610 do they do? There's an external influence that 00:04:32.610 --> 00:04:34.850 gets inside of them that cause them to look at 00:04:34.850 --> 00:04:37.310 life in a way that's not accurate. So he says, 00:04:37.370 --> 00:04:39.410 don't be drunk by the world system. Don't be 00:04:39.410 --> 00:04:41.089 drunk by what everybody would think. Don't be 00:04:41.089 --> 00:04:43.230 drunk by what your family tells you. You need 00:04:43.230 --> 00:04:46.750 to have a sober self -assessment. You need to 00:04:46.750 --> 00:04:49.750 think accurately about yourself. That's the first 00:04:49.750 --> 00:04:52.449 command. You need to come to the point where 00:04:52.449 --> 00:04:55.449 physically, relationally, spiritually, emotionally, 00:04:55.709 --> 00:04:58.290 your soul, you can look in the actual mirror 00:04:58.290 --> 00:05:01.290 and say, I'm fearfully and wonderfully made. 00:05:01.970 --> 00:05:04.149 And come to the point where these are my strengths, 00:05:04.350 --> 00:05:08.649 these are my weaknesses, God -given, this is 00:05:08.649 --> 00:05:11.129 how he's given me, but where you think accurately 00:05:11.129 --> 00:05:15.290 about yourself. Notice, don't think too highly 00:05:15.290 --> 00:05:20.300 of yourself. Don't think too lonely of yourself, 00:05:20.500 --> 00:05:23.740 but to think of a sober or accurate judgment. 00:05:23.899 --> 00:05:25.959 And then this little phrase, notice it says, 00:05:26.100 --> 00:05:28.399 according to the measure of faith that God's 00:05:28.399 --> 00:05:31.620 given you. Newell, in his commentary on Romans, 00:05:31.699 --> 00:05:34.879 really puts it well. He says faith in this situation 00:05:34.879 --> 00:05:37.680 is not a subjective faith. In other words, it's 00:05:37.680 --> 00:05:40.579 not faith in Christ, it's the faith. He says 00:05:40.579 --> 00:05:42.800 it's a standard by which we're to evaluate ourselves. 00:05:43.579 --> 00:05:46.300 This objective faith is the biblical view of 00:05:46.300 --> 00:05:49.759 ourself. It's who you are in Christ. It's how 00:05:49.759 --> 00:05:52.319 God has gifted you. It's understanding his plan 00:05:52.319 --> 00:05:55.160 for you. It's like the first three chapters of 00:05:55.160 --> 00:05:58.079 Ephesians. It's you need to see yourself as loved, 00:05:58.220 --> 00:06:02.060 adopted, sealed by the Spirit. You have a purpose. 00:06:02.160 --> 00:06:06.000 You're his workmanship. Everything you need, 00:06:06.040 --> 00:06:10.500 you possess in Christ. You're a son. You're a 00:06:10.500 --> 00:06:13.699 daughter. You're forgiven. You're loved. That's 00:06:13.699 --> 00:06:16.620 who you are. Most of us don't think that way 00:06:16.620 --> 00:06:19.819 about ourselves. That's why the world has such 00:06:19.819 --> 00:06:23.620 pools on us. I'll be accepted. I'll be significant 00:06:23.620 --> 00:06:25.879 if I look like that or if I act like that or 00:06:25.879 --> 00:06:27.600 if I make so much money or if people think this 00:06:27.600 --> 00:06:30.560 or if my kids do that. And it's a losing proposition. 00:06:32.079 --> 00:06:34.379 First and foremost, we need to think accurately 00:06:34.379 --> 00:06:36.459 about ourselves because this is who God says 00:06:36.459 --> 00:06:40.100 that we are. We all know people think too highly 00:06:40.100 --> 00:06:42.769 of themselves, right? It's called arrogance or 00:06:42.769 --> 00:06:46.550 pride. And, you know, they kind of strut in. 00:06:47.810 --> 00:06:51.089 Have you seen my new shoes? You know, I was at 00:06:51.089 --> 00:06:53.870 Nordstrom's the other day. Or, you know, I just 00:06:53.870 --> 00:06:56.930 hate it when it's just, it's so busy this time 00:06:56.930 --> 00:07:02.250 of year in Cabo. You know? The Lexus dealership 00:07:02.250 --> 00:07:04.629 gave me such a hard time. I am just absolutely 00:07:04.629 --> 00:07:07.069 frustrated with, you know, I think I'm going 00:07:07.069 --> 00:07:10.420 to go with the Bentley next time. Now, it doesn't 00:07:10.420 --> 00:07:13.060 take long for us, and by the way, those are our 00:07:13.060 --> 00:07:15.560 mild, funny illustrations. Believe me, we figured 00:07:15.560 --> 00:07:18.079 out how to do that spiritually with verses and 00:07:18.079 --> 00:07:21.180 posing just as well. But that would be too convicting, 00:07:21.199 --> 00:07:23.879 so I didn't want to go there. But we've all been 00:07:23.879 --> 00:07:26.420 around people that, right, the superiority, and 00:07:26.420 --> 00:07:28.639 everything in you goes, I don't want to be around 00:07:28.639 --> 00:07:31.319 that person. They think too highly of themselves. 00:07:32.300 --> 00:07:34.379 See, but actually, they're a scared little boy 00:07:34.379 --> 00:07:36.660 or a scared little girl that's afraid you won't 00:07:36.660 --> 00:07:39.100 like them, and they've learned. That's how to 00:07:39.100 --> 00:07:41.939 hide. And then there's other people that, you 00:07:41.939 --> 00:07:44.439 know, they think too lowly of themselves. God 00:07:44.439 --> 00:07:47.519 could never use me. I'm worthless. I don't have 00:07:47.519 --> 00:07:49.019 any gifts. I know the Bible says there's gifts, 00:07:49.100 --> 00:07:51.000 but I know, you know, like the whole human race, 00:07:51.060 --> 00:07:54.240 and he got to me and goes, oh, I ran out. I don't 00:07:54.240 --> 00:07:56.180 have any gifts. I don't have any value. If you 00:07:56.180 --> 00:07:57.920 knew where I came from, there's no hope for me. 00:07:58.639 --> 00:08:01.980 Now, get this. If you think too highly of yourself 00:08:01.980 --> 00:08:04.720 or too lowly of yourself, who are you thinking 00:08:04.720 --> 00:08:08.680 about? You. See, humility isn't thinking too 00:08:08.680 --> 00:08:11.399 high or too low. Humility isn't thinking of yourself 00:08:11.399 --> 00:08:14.160 at all. The Apostle Paul would say, consider 00:08:14.160 --> 00:08:17.420 others as more important than yourself. It reminds 00:08:17.420 --> 00:08:19.120 me, I haven't done a lot of this, but if you've 00:08:19.120 --> 00:08:21.980 ever gone bowling, sometimes I go bowling, not 00:08:21.980 --> 00:08:23.519 very often, like once every three or four years, 00:08:23.639 --> 00:08:26.199 and those guys on TV, they make it curve. So, 00:08:26.220 --> 00:08:27.519 you know, I'm going to try and make it curve. 00:08:27.819 --> 00:08:29.839 And I've done research on this. I can curve it 00:08:29.839 --> 00:08:33.590 into the left gutter. And just this is an experiment. 00:08:33.669 --> 00:08:36.330 How many pins if you curve it into the left gutter 00:08:36.330 --> 00:08:40.570 do you get? Zero. Well, then I try and overcompensate 00:08:40.570 --> 00:08:42.889 and I try and throw to the right. And if it goes 00:08:42.889 --> 00:08:44.629 in the right gutter, how many pins do you get? 00:08:45.889 --> 00:08:48.049 See, it doesn't matter if you think too high 00:08:48.049 --> 00:08:52.330 or if you think too low. You miss. Those are 00:08:52.330 --> 00:08:56.629 gutter balls. God commands. By the way, this 00:08:56.629 --> 00:09:00.210 is a command. He commands you and he commands 00:09:00.210 --> 00:09:04.399 me to think. accurately, clearly, biblically 00:09:04.399 --> 00:09:10.220 about who you really are. It starts with understanding 00:09:10.220 --> 00:09:12.620 that command, and then it takes a journey and 00:09:12.620 --> 00:09:14.919 a process of renewing your mind because people 00:09:14.919 --> 00:09:17.700 and the media and the world has been telling 00:09:17.700 --> 00:09:20.539 you who you are your whole life, and you've got 00:09:20.539 --> 00:09:23.139 to break out of that. And you say, well, why 00:09:23.139 --> 00:09:26.220 is that so important? Because if you don't understand 00:09:26.220 --> 00:09:28.639 who you are, you'll never understand where you 00:09:28.639 --> 00:09:32.009 belong. Notice the very next verse, verses four 00:09:32.009 --> 00:09:35.409 and five. It says, just as each of us has one 00:09:35.409 --> 00:09:37.750 body, speaking of the physical body, and many 00:09:37.750 --> 00:09:39.850 members like eyes and hands and feet, et cetera, 00:09:39.970 --> 00:09:42.389 and these members do not all have the same function, 00:09:42.549 --> 00:09:47.870 so in Christ we are many, form one body, and 00:09:47.870 --> 00:09:51.009 each member belongs to all the others. Now in 00:09:51.009 --> 00:09:52.830 your notes, right above just as, I want you to 00:09:52.830 --> 00:09:56.789 write the word for, F -O -R. There's a little 00:09:56.789 --> 00:09:59.409 preposition in Greek that when it comes, it means 00:09:59.409 --> 00:10:02.850 reason. And again, to smooth out translation 00:10:02.850 --> 00:10:06.590 sometimes, just as sounds good. But the reason, 00:10:06.769 --> 00:10:11.210 he's saying the reason you must understand who 00:10:11.210 --> 00:10:15.210 you are and think accurately about you is for, 00:10:15.330 --> 00:10:18.269 just as the human body has many parts and all 00:10:18.269 --> 00:10:21.529 don't have the same function, so we who are many 00:10:21.529 --> 00:10:26.039 are one body in Christ and you fit. And if you 00:10:26.039 --> 00:10:27.940 didn't know you were an eye, you wouldn't know 00:10:27.940 --> 00:10:30.879 where you fit. If you don't have a sober self 00:10:30.879 --> 00:10:32.799 -assessment of you, you don't know where you 00:10:32.799 --> 00:10:36.279 fit. If you ask the average person, what are 00:10:36.279 --> 00:10:40.460 your top three strengths? What are your top three 00:10:40.460 --> 00:10:43.899 weaknesses? Oh, three, I got nine. But here's 00:10:43.899 --> 00:10:45.879 what he's saying. Imagine these fingers coming 00:10:45.879 --> 00:10:49.360 out like this are your strengths. God gives you 00:10:49.360 --> 00:10:53.820 strengths. that build your confidence and allow 00:10:53.820 --> 00:10:55.620 you to understand you have a unique contribution 00:10:55.620 --> 00:10:58.700 to help other people. Now, we live in a world 00:10:58.700 --> 00:11:00.639 where we're not even supposed to have any weaknesses, 00:11:00.720 --> 00:11:05.779 and so we sort of avoid, lie, deny, pretend. 00:11:06.360 --> 00:11:10.919 But God gave you weaknesses to create dependency 00:11:10.919 --> 00:11:13.899 and humility so there's interdependency, so other 00:11:13.899 --> 00:11:17.110 people's strengths... Meet your weaknesses so 00:11:17.110 --> 00:11:19.529 they do for you and in you what you couldn't 00:11:19.529 --> 00:11:21.669 do. So you need people. You know what that creates? 00:11:22.590 --> 00:11:25.549 Interdependency or humility. And it creates beauty. 00:11:27.490 --> 00:11:29.889 Your assignment is I want you to really think 00:11:29.889 --> 00:11:31.389 and pray about what are your top three strengths? 00:11:33.330 --> 00:11:35.690 Not what people think, what you think. What's 00:11:35.690 --> 00:11:38.309 God say? Maybe go to a few close people that 00:11:38.309 --> 00:11:41.029 know you well that'll be honest. Some of us want 00:11:41.029 --> 00:11:42.549 to write strengths because we think it would 00:11:42.549 --> 00:11:45.659 make us a somebody. But what are your strengths? 00:11:45.759 --> 00:11:48.080 That's a journey. And then actually write down, 00:11:48.139 --> 00:11:49.539 what do you think your top three weaknesses are? 00:11:50.519 --> 00:11:52.679 And when you get those, what you understand is, 00:11:52.759 --> 00:11:55.059 instead of all this energy of covering them and 00:11:55.059 --> 00:11:57.840 acting like you don't have them, you just realize 00:11:57.840 --> 00:12:00.600 those are invitations by the God who made you 00:12:00.600 --> 00:12:03.220 to let people come into your life and love you 00:12:03.220 --> 00:12:08.659 in ways that you desperately needed. You're listening 00:12:08.659 --> 00:12:11.559 to Living on the Edge, and Chip Ingram will continue 00:12:11.559 --> 00:12:14.799 today's program in just a minute. Today's message 00:12:14.799 --> 00:12:17.340 is part of Chip's series, God's Dream for Your 00:12:17.340 --> 00:12:20.980 Life, and you can hear it anytime at livingontheedge 00:12:20.980 --> 00:12:24.120 .org. Whether you want to revisit what you've 00:12:24.120 --> 00:12:26.860 heard today or pass it along to a friend, this 00:12:26.860 --> 00:12:29.559 message and hundreds more are available online. 00:12:30.259 --> 00:12:33.299 You'll also find small group resources and opportunities 00:12:33.299 --> 00:12:36.100 to help you live out God's dream for your life. 00:12:36.320 --> 00:12:40.740 It's all there at livingontheedge .org. Well, 00:12:40.759 --> 00:12:43.679 now here's Chip. I had two kids in college at 00:12:43.679 --> 00:12:47.120 one time, two kids in Christian schools, and 00:12:47.120 --> 00:12:49.720 at that little window of time, I remember reading 00:12:49.720 --> 00:12:52.100 the paper, Santa Cruz was the most expensive 00:12:52.100 --> 00:12:54.360 place to live in America. More than Manhattan, 00:12:54.620 --> 00:12:58.019 more than San Francisco, and it was just crazy. 00:12:58.340 --> 00:13:01.720 And just trying to make it was just very difficult. 00:13:02.580 --> 00:13:05.340 And so when something broke down in our house, 00:13:05.500 --> 00:13:07.860 calling the repairman wasn't an option. I didn't 00:13:07.860 --> 00:13:09.940 have any money to call the repairman. And there 00:13:09.940 --> 00:13:12.679 was an elder in our church, a very godly man, 00:13:12.720 --> 00:13:15.200 a retired school teacher, but he was a shop teacher. 00:13:15.799 --> 00:13:19.279 He could fix anything. And so when the dryer 00:13:19.279 --> 00:13:21.980 would go out, and we bought a really older home 00:13:21.980 --> 00:13:23.840 that had lots of repair, and when it rained, 00:13:23.940 --> 00:13:25.860 the rain came in through one window, and every 00:13:25.860 --> 00:13:27.559 time the dishwasher, I didn't know why my wife 00:13:27.559 --> 00:13:29.419 had upset her so much, but we just put a towel 00:13:29.419 --> 00:13:31.159 under the dishwasher so it would catch the water, 00:13:31.279 --> 00:13:33.059 take out the dishes. It seemed to work fine to 00:13:33.059 --> 00:13:34.679 me, but she really didn't think that was a good 00:13:34.679 --> 00:13:38.580 plan. And so Dick would come over, and on my 00:13:38.580 --> 00:13:42.070 day off, 60 % of my day off, Dick and I, that's 00:13:42.070 --> 00:13:43.529 what I called it, Dick and I would fix things. 00:13:44.090 --> 00:13:46.389 Which meant I drove to Home Depot with Dick, 00:13:46.529 --> 00:13:50.210 I bought the parts, and then I would kneel down 00:13:50.210 --> 00:13:53.289 next to Dick and hand him the tools and ask a 00:13:53.289 --> 00:13:55.330 few questions. And finally he said, Chip, you're 00:13:55.330 --> 00:13:57.190 never going to understand this anyway, but it's 00:13:57.190 --> 00:14:02.090 okay. I learned more about being a man of God. 00:14:03.029 --> 00:14:05.090 He had grown kids, he was about 20 years older 00:14:05.090 --> 00:14:08.309 than me, about how to be a dad and how to be 00:14:08.309 --> 00:14:11.620 a pastor. from Dick than probably anybody in 00:14:11.620 --> 00:14:17.000 that church. Why? Because I had a need. I mean, 00:14:17.019 --> 00:14:22.679 I can't fix anything. I mean, I literally, I 00:14:22.679 --> 00:14:26.259 can't fix anything. I mean, the iPad came out. 00:14:26.299 --> 00:14:28.679 I can hardly get around an iPad. I'm so untechnical. 00:14:28.779 --> 00:14:30.740 And I mean, you can fall off a truck and use 00:14:30.740 --> 00:14:37.659 one of those. But that need created a relationship. 00:14:39.240 --> 00:14:41.940 What would happen if you came to grips with the 00:14:41.940 --> 00:14:45.299 real you, took off your mask of projection and 00:14:45.299 --> 00:14:48.100 holograms and recognized that God would want 00:14:48.100 --> 00:14:50.600 to bring people into your life? And what if you 00:14:50.600 --> 00:14:52.620 would take away your false humility and realize 00:14:52.620 --> 00:14:55.179 some of you are really good at some things instead 00:14:55.179 --> 00:14:56.440 of going, well, you know, I don't want to say 00:14:56.440 --> 00:14:57.840 anything like I'm good at that because they might 00:14:57.840 --> 00:15:00.000 think I'm trying to, they might think you're 00:15:00.000 --> 00:15:02.860 just trying to love them. I'll tell you what, 00:15:02.980 --> 00:15:07.000 it's God's design. It's powerful. It's beautiful. 00:15:07.639 --> 00:15:12.759 It's amazing. What I just described can't happen 00:15:12.759 --> 00:15:15.960 unless you're relationally connected and people 00:15:15.960 --> 00:15:20.179 know you and you open up and you take those baby 00:15:20.179 --> 00:15:23.500 steps of trust. Being in a small group will not 00:15:23.500 --> 00:15:26.899 make you deep in relationship, but it's the container 00:15:26.899 --> 00:15:30.639 in which happens most often where you really 00:15:30.639 --> 00:15:33.720 share your life and your heart. And so who are 00:15:33.720 --> 00:15:36.220 you? You need to think accurately about yourself 00:15:36.220 --> 00:15:39.250 the way God sees you. Why? Because you have a 00:15:39.250 --> 00:15:42.610 role to fulfill. You have a role to fulfill. 00:15:43.210 --> 00:15:45.889 And you can't know what that role is unless you 00:15:45.889 --> 00:15:48.950 know who you really are. And third, then you 00:15:48.950 --> 00:15:51.029 say, well, what role is it? Where do I fit? Show 00:15:51.029 --> 00:15:53.909 me, God. He's going to say, I've deposited in 00:15:53.909 --> 00:15:56.450 you a primary spiritual gift. Are you ready? 00:15:56.509 --> 00:15:59.289 A primary spiritual gift so that you can know. 00:15:59.370 --> 00:16:01.169 You can do a lot of different things, but I want 00:16:01.169 --> 00:16:03.309 you to take the lion's share of your energy in 00:16:03.309 --> 00:16:05.370 the body of Christ and focus here. Look what 00:16:05.370 --> 00:16:07.879 he says in verses 6 through 8. What are you supposed 00:16:07.879 --> 00:16:10.179 to do? He says, we have different gifts according 00:16:10.179 --> 00:16:12.840 to what? According to the grace given to us. 00:16:13.039 --> 00:16:15.419 So what they are for given by God, there's no 00:16:15.419 --> 00:16:17.779 room for pride. And then he says, if a man's 00:16:17.779 --> 00:16:19.980 gift is prophecy, let him use it in the proportion 00:16:19.980 --> 00:16:22.360 of his faith. If it's serving in his service, 00:16:22.440 --> 00:16:24.519 if it's teaching in his teaching, if it's encouraging 00:16:24.519 --> 00:16:27.360 or counseling, let him encourage. If it's giving 00:16:27.360 --> 00:16:29.340 or contributing to the needs of others, let him 00:16:29.340 --> 00:16:31.879 give generously. If it's leadership, let him 00:16:31.879 --> 00:16:34.980 do it diligently. If it's showing mercy, let 00:16:34.980 --> 00:16:39.250 him do it cheerfully. Now, we could go through 00:16:39.250 --> 00:16:41.409 and we have a, on the back of your notes, there's 00:16:41.409 --> 00:16:43.309 your divine design and we can help you learn 00:16:43.309 --> 00:16:45.470 and discover what those gifts are and discover 00:16:45.470 --> 00:16:47.970 what yours are. The point of this passage is 00:16:47.970 --> 00:16:51.830 not explaining the gifts. What's the point? If 00:16:51.830 --> 00:16:54.690 you're gifted to teach, no trick question, what 00:16:54.690 --> 00:16:57.750 are you supposed to do? Teach. If you're gifted 00:16:57.750 --> 00:16:59.309 to counsel and encourage, what are you supposed 00:16:59.309 --> 00:17:06.519 to do? Counsel and encourage. Come on. If you're 00:17:06.519 --> 00:17:09.759 gifted to lead, do it diligently, right? The 00:17:09.759 --> 00:17:12.319 point is, there's a lot of things you could do. 00:17:13.160 --> 00:17:15.579 You are gifted and you have a unique something 00:17:15.579 --> 00:17:18.460 to bring to the body of Christ. This is how you 00:17:18.460 --> 00:17:20.980 make a matrix of where to spend your time and 00:17:20.980 --> 00:17:23.519 life and energy and priorities. You don't have 00:17:23.519 --> 00:17:25.339 to be on every committee and help everything 00:17:25.339 --> 00:17:27.079 in the community and everything everywhere all 00:17:27.079 --> 00:17:29.339 the time. You need to have a matrix. These are 00:17:29.339 --> 00:17:30.920 my strengths. These are my weaknesses. Primary 00:17:30.920 --> 00:17:33.019 spiritual gift. These are my priorities. This 00:17:33.019 --> 00:17:35.099 is the season of life that I'm in. Okay, Lord. 00:17:35.660 --> 00:17:38.779 Line me up. And when you do that, you discover 00:17:38.779 --> 00:17:41.299 more and more who you are, and you will discover 00:17:41.299 --> 00:17:45.059 that you deeply belong, and you'll be doing what 00:17:45.059 --> 00:17:47.980 he made you to do. And so the practice here, 00:17:48.059 --> 00:17:50.779 put very simply, is to discover and deploy your 00:17:50.779 --> 00:17:54.599 spiritual gifts. Discover and deploy your spiritual 00:17:54.599 --> 00:17:58.539 gifts. You answer these questions by thinking 00:17:58.539 --> 00:18:01.579 accurately about yourself, getting relationally 00:18:01.579 --> 00:18:04.259 connected, discovering and deploying your spiritual 00:18:04.259 --> 00:18:07.220 gifts, And as you turn to the last page, I just, 00:18:07.279 --> 00:18:09.420 I want to remind you, sometimes, you know, you 00:18:09.420 --> 00:18:11.579 can dig down into these questions. I just want 00:18:11.579 --> 00:18:14.079 to remind you, remember what Jesus said? True 00:18:14.079 --> 00:18:17.779 spirituality. Don't get caught up in the R's 00:18:17.779 --> 00:18:19.900 or, you know, surrender to God, separate from 00:18:19.900 --> 00:18:21.920 the world, sober self -assessment. Those are 00:18:21.920 --> 00:18:25.259 great. But all those are what? Those are just 00:18:25.259 --> 00:18:29.160 a profile so that you love God with all your 00:18:29.160 --> 00:18:32.309 heart, soul, mind, and strength. You love others 00:18:32.309 --> 00:18:34.529 as the way you're learning to begin to appreciate 00:18:34.529 --> 00:18:41.369 and love you. And you'll never love you until 00:18:41.369 --> 00:18:45.569 you begin to remember and grasp how God sees 00:18:45.569 --> 00:18:49.529 you. Not how you see yourself. Not how your mom 00:18:49.529 --> 00:18:52.509 saw you. Not how your dad who wasn't around did 00:18:52.509 --> 00:18:55.289 or didn't see you. Not how your peers see you. 00:18:55.450 --> 00:18:57.410 And so there's three things I want you never 00:18:57.410 --> 00:19:00.769 to forget, okay? You can look up the verses. 00:19:00.849 --> 00:19:02.589 These are ones if I was you, I would memorize. 00:19:02.690 --> 00:19:06.609 In fact, I have. I want you to never, ever forget 00:19:06.609 --> 00:19:09.910 who you really are. God uniquely created you. 00:19:09.970 --> 00:19:15.369 You are eternally valuable. You are fearfully 00:19:15.369 --> 00:19:18.930 and wonderfully made. This passage will go on 00:19:18.930 --> 00:19:22.029 and talk about when you were in your mother's 00:19:22.029 --> 00:19:25.369 womb, you were being fashioned. In the embryo 00:19:25.369 --> 00:19:27.029 by the creator of the world because he had a 00:19:27.029 --> 00:19:29.650 plan for you and he made you special just the 00:19:29.650 --> 00:19:32.289 way you are. And he not only loves you. Are you 00:19:32.289 --> 00:19:36.970 ready for this? God likes you. I meet people 00:19:36.970 --> 00:19:38.329 all the time that are convinced, oh, I think 00:19:38.329 --> 00:19:39.890 God loves me. I just don't think he likes me. 00:19:43.609 --> 00:19:47.109 He's proud of you. He sings over you. The second 00:19:47.109 --> 00:19:49.289 thing, never forget, is that God placed you in 00:19:49.289 --> 00:19:51.750 his family. You were unconditionally accepted. 00:19:53.179 --> 00:19:58.099 Ephesians 3, Paul prays, I pray that you might 00:19:58.099 --> 00:20:00.380 grasp beyond understanding the height and depth 00:20:00.380 --> 00:20:02.859 and length and breadth and know the love of Christ. 00:20:03.819 --> 00:20:07.240 He loves you. He loves you regardless of where 00:20:07.240 --> 00:20:09.099 you've been. He's regardless of what's happened 00:20:09.099 --> 00:20:11.380 to you. He loves you even no matter what's happened 00:20:11.380 --> 00:20:15.099 because of Christ's work on the cross, his death 00:20:15.099 --> 00:20:17.740 that paid and covered your sin. If you're a follower 00:20:17.740 --> 00:20:20.240 of Jesus, he's redeemed you and he loves you 00:20:20.240 --> 00:20:22.420 and he takes your sins as far as the east is 00:20:22.420 --> 00:20:24.680 from the west. You're the object of his affection. 00:20:25.140 --> 00:20:28.920 If no one else cares about you, he does. And 00:20:28.920 --> 00:20:31.339 third, never forget that God gifted you to fulfill 00:20:31.339 --> 00:20:34.420 his purpose. You are irreplaceably significant. 00:20:36.200 --> 00:20:39.140 You're significant. You're his workmanship created 00:20:39.140 --> 00:20:42.819 in Christ Jesus, Ephesians 2 .10 says, unto a 00:20:42.819 --> 00:20:47.339 good work that no one can uniquely do just like 00:20:47.339 --> 00:20:51.519 you. When you think accurately about yourself 00:20:51.519 --> 00:20:55.170 and it is hard work, it'll change you. It'll 00:20:55.170 --> 00:20:57.069 change your marriage. If you're a parent, it'll 00:20:57.069 --> 00:20:59.049 change your parenting. These are the kind of 00:20:59.049 --> 00:21:01.150 things that you do with your kids. These are 00:21:01.150 --> 00:21:02.710 the kind of things with all the pressures that 00:21:02.710 --> 00:21:05.210 you renew their mind, that you at bedtime and 00:21:05.210 --> 00:21:07.109 sit around the table. These are the kind of things 00:21:07.109 --> 00:21:08.869 you do with a roommate realizing that you need 00:21:08.869 --> 00:21:11.150 to be the right person, not find the right person. 00:21:11.730 --> 00:21:13.529 And when you get an accurate view of yourself, 00:21:13.750 --> 00:21:18.470 you're the most beautiful, attractive, winsome 00:21:18.470 --> 00:21:22.529 person on the face of the earth because there's 00:21:22.529 --> 00:21:27.970 no one like you. This is Living on the Edge with 00:21:27.970 --> 00:21:30.529 Chip Ingram, and we'll hear more from Chip in 00:21:30.529 --> 00:21:33.509 just a moment. What does God actually dream for 00:21:33.509 --> 00:21:36.349 your life? That's the heart of what this ministry 00:21:36.349 --> 00:21:39.390 has been exploring for more than 30 years. Week 00:21:39.390 --> 00:21:42.190 after week, Living on the Edge brings practical 00:21:42.190 --> 00:21:45.630 biblical truth into homes, cars, and workplaces 00:21:45.630 --> 00:21:49.349 across America and around the world. Marriages 00:21:49.349 --> 00:21:52.109 are strengthened. Parents find real wisdom for 00:21:52.109 --> 00:21:55.150 raising their kids. And everyday believers discover 00:21:55.150 --> 00:21:57.890 what it truly looks like to walk closely with 00:21:57.890 --> 00:22:00.750 Jesus. You know, none of that happens without 00:22:00.750 --> 00:22:03.069 people who believe this mission is worth supporting. 00:22:03.349 --> 00:22:06.849 Every broadcast, every resource, and every message, 00:22:07.009 --> 00:22:10.109 like today's, exists because partners like you 00:22:10.109 --> 00:22:12.930 make it possible. Your monthly giving creates 00:22:12.930 --> 00:22:15.509 the kind of stability that lets us plan ahead 00:22:15.509 --> 00:22:18.839 and reach further. Your one -time gifts meet 00:22:18.839 --> 00:22:22.039 immediate needs and open doors we never saw coming. 00:22:22.660 --> 00:22:25.839 Here's what sets Living on the Edge apart. Chip 00:22:25.839 --> 00:22:28.400 doesn't just teach scripture. He shows you how 00:22:28.400 --> 00:22:31.200 to live it out from Monday through Sunday. It's 00:22:31.200 --> 00:22:34.059 practical. It's biblical. And after 30 years, 00:22:34.240 --> 00:23:00.519 the fruit speaks for itself. You can also call 00:23:00.519 --> 00:23:06.940 us right now at 888 - One more thing, be sure 00:23:06.940 --> 00:23:09.019 to subscribe to the Living on the Edge podcast, 00:23:09.519 --> 00:23:12.059 where you can also find Chip's complete unedited 00:23:12.059 --> 00:23:15.519 messages from start to finish. All right, here's 00:23:15.519 --> 00:23:18.180 Chip with a final thought. As we close today's 00:23:18.180 --> 00:23:20.160 program, what I have to tell you that is most 00:23:20.160 --> 00:23:23.710 exciting... is the connection between being separate 00:23:23.710 --> 00:23:27.309 from the world and serving in love and having 00:23:27.309 --> 00:23:29.769 a sober self -assessment. This is the aha that 00:23:29.769 --> 00:23:32.289 I've done with multiple, multiple groups, is 00:23:32.289 --> 00:23:35.089 when people discover, oh, this is who God made 00:23:35.089 --> 00:23:37.470 me. And when they get that little three by five 00:23:37.470 --> 00:23:39.769 card I talked about and they say, these are my 00:23:39.769 --> 00:23:42.230 strengths and that's wonderful. And, you know, 00:23:42.250 --> 00:23:44.369 yes, I do have weaknesses. So God has people 00:23:44.369 --> 00:23:47.700 in my life. They invite people into their world 00:23:47.700 --> 00:23:50.119 like never before. And the other thing is you 00:23:50.119 --> 00:23:53.000 don't have to pose. You know, a lot of our conformity 00:23:53.000 --> 00:23:54.880 to the world and we got to look this way and 00:23:54.880 --> 00:23:57.180 act that way and drive this kind of a car and 00:23:57.180 --> 00:23:59.619 have a purse that has this design on it and drop 00:23:59.619 --> 00:24:02.140 names and tell people this and that. All that 00:24:02.140 --> 00:24:04.980 is about we don't really know who we are. And 00:24:04.980 --> 00:24:07.880 so we're trying to project this stuff. When you 00:24:07.880 --> 00:24:11.799 get a sober self -assessment, I'm telling you, 00:24:11.819 --> 00:24:14.680 it not just frees you to be you, but a lot of 00:24:14.680 --> 00:24:17.019 the temptations, a lot of the world that pulled 00:24:17.019 --> 00:24:18.480 on you, you're thinking to yourself, you know 00:24:18.480 --> 00:24:21.000 something, I don't need that anymore because 00:24:21.000 --> 00:24:23.460 the most beautiful person in the world, the most 00:24:23.460 --> 00:24:26.079 attractive person in the world is the one that 00:24:26.079 --> 00:24:29.960 God made. So can I encourage you, thank God today 00:24:29.960 --> 00:24:33.640 for how he made you and look in the mirror and 00:24:33.640 --> 00:24:36.259 literally go ahead, do it out loud with no one 00:24:36.259 --> 00:24:38.880 around. And look in the mirror and say, I am 00:24:38.880 --> 00:24:41.680 fearfully and wonderfully made. Thank you, Lord 00:24:41.680 --> 00:24:46.059 Jesus. Do you ever feel spiritually stuck? Tomorrow, 00:24:46.079 --> 00:24:48.559 Chip Ingram reveals the missing ingredient most 00:24:48.559 --> 00:24:51.500 Christians struggle with here on Living on the 00:24:51.500 --> 00:24:57.140 Edge. Today's program is produced and sponsored 00:24:57.140 --> 00:24:58.619 by Living on the Edge.