WEBVTT 00:00:11.210 --> 00:00:14.109 Let me ask you a question. What comes into your 00:00:14.109 --> 00:00:17.530 mind when you hear the word holy? I mean, what 00:00:17.530 --> 00:00:21.489 do you think of when you think God is holy? Is 00:00:21.489 --> 00:00:24.629 it candles? Is it incense? Is it unattainable 00:00:24.629 --> 00:00:27.489 perfection? Well, here's the deal. How can we 00:00:27.489 --> 00:00:30.050 be holy if we can't even define it? Stay with 00:00:30.050 --> 00:00:34.630 me. Welcome to this weekend edition of Living 00:00:34.630 --> 00:00:37.350 on the Edge with Chip Ingram. The mission of 00:00:37.350 --> 00:00:39.729 this daily program is to intentionally disciple 00:00:39.729 --> 00:00:42.189 Christians through the insightful Bible teaching 00:00:42.189 --> 00:00:44.890 of Chip Ingram. Thanks for being with us as we 00:00:44.890 --> 00:00:47.329 highlight another program from our current series, 00:00:47.590 --> 00:00:50.329 The Real God, How He Longs for You to See Him. 00:00:50.549 --> 00:00:53.189 Today we're revisiting Chip's message on God's 00:00:53.189 --> 00:00:56.329 holiness as he offers a perspective on this attribute 00:00:56.329 --> 00:00:59.250 that you may not have considered before. So if 00:00:59.250 --> 00:01:01.450 you're ready, go to Hebrews chapter 12 in your 00:01:01.450 --> 00:01:04.530 Bible as we join Chip for his message, The Holiness 00:01:04.530 --> 00:01:11.359 of God. I'd like to take you back to Exodus 19. 00:01:12.439 --> 00:01:16.579 And imagine if you literally were filming and 00:01:16.579 --> 00:01:20.920 watching and think, I'm always, I guess something 00:01:20.920 --> 00:01:24.680 about me is always drawn to when God does something 00:01:24.680 --> 00:01:28.879 the first time. Seems to me that it's very instructive. 00:01:29.540 --> 00:01:32.420 After 400 years, people don't have a clue of 00:01:32.420 --> 00:01:36.640 who God is. How does he introduce himself? What 00:01:36.640 --> 00:01:40.879 does he want them to know about him first? Exodus 00:01:40.879 --> 00:01:44.799 19 opens up and it says after two months. So 00:01:44.799 --> 00:01:47.659 they've been in the wilderness for 60 days. And 00:01:47.659 --> 00:01:50.819 God says to Moses, I want to introduce myself 00:01:50.819 --> 00:01:55.040 to my people that I have redeemed. These will 00:01:55.040 --> 00:01:58.159 be my people. And it's that picture. And if you 00:01:58.159 --> 00:02:01.480 can just imagine, you know, panning with your 00:02:01.480 --> 00:02:05.310 camera. And seeing 2 million people, maybe you're 00:02:05.310 --> 00:02:08.590 up high so you have a great view. And 2 million 00:02:08.590 --> 00:02:11.530 people on this boundary. And then seeing this 00:02:11.530 --> 00:02:15.669 smoke billow. And then fire. And then, you know, 00:02:15.789 --> 00:02:17.550 it's hard to keep a good picture because the 00:02:17.550 --> 00:02:19.710 ground is shaking. Because there's an earthquake. 00:02:19.870 --> 00:02:22.469 And you watch people fall on their face before 00:02:22.469 --> 00:02:27.669 God. And this thundering voice. I guess I would 00:02:27.669 --> 00:02:31.509 ask you if you were doing a documentary and someone 00:02:31.509 --> 00:02:34.620 said, This God has just introduced himself to 00:02:34.620 --> 00:02:39.199 his people. What's he like? I'm guessing it would 00:02:39.199 --> 00:02:41.879 not be something like, oh, he's the man upstairs. 00:02:44.719 --> 00:02:50.360 He's my homeboy. We have embraced an evangelical 00:02:50.360 --> 00:02:53.639 Christianity in our desire to move away from 00:02:53.639 --> 00:02:58.180 dead ritual, in our desire to know that Jesus 00:02:58.180 --> 00:03:01.629 is our friend. And God, though being transcendent, 00:03:01.629 --> 00:03:06.330 is eminent. We have lost much in our tradition, 00:03:06.409 --> 00:03:09.930 and I would say even in our music, a sense of 00:03:09.930 --> 00:03:13.650 the holiness of God, the purity of God, the righteousness 00:03:13.650 --> 00:03:16.669 of God. And when you see that he's holy, here's 00:03:16.669 --> 00:03:20.389 what you get. You're not. You're not at all. 00:03:21.030 --> 00:03:23.870 Your righteousness is like filthy rags, and so 00:03:23.870 --> 00:03:27.830 is mine. Your motives, your thoughts, your best 00:03:27.830 --> 00:03:33.370 days. The word holy, set apart, distinct, different, 00:03:33.750 --> 00:03:36.330 separate. The word literally means a cut above. 00:03:37.030 --> 00:03:40.509 He's in a category. The word holy is he is other. 00:03:41.030 --> 00:03:43.610 There's not a category for him. And when you 00:03:43.610 --> 00:03:46.310 come into the presence of a holy God, you are 00:03:46.310 --> 00:03:50.189 undone. And I don't see many Christians or many 00:03:50.189 --> 00:03:53.729 churches very often undone in the presence of 00:03:53.729 --> 00:03:58.669 God. I think some of the older traditions. actually 00:03:58.669 --> 00:04:01.430 helped us grasp God's holiness. Unfortunately, 00:04:01.689 --> 00:04:05.530 he became a distant, cold God who we would reach 00:04:05.530 --> 00:04:08.409 him through significant rituals, which was never 00:04:08.409 --> 00:04:11.530 the intent. But what you find out in church history 00:04:11.530 --> 00:04:14.370 is the pendulum swings this way, then it swings 00:04:14.370 --> 00:04:16.470 this way. Here's what I want to tell you. It 00:04:16.470 --> 00:04:20.889 needs to swing back this way. We need to know 00:04:20.889 --> 00:04:24.310 that... Jesus is my friend and that he loves 00:04:24.310 --> 00:04:28.189 me and he accepts me just as I am. And he's tenderhearted 00:04:28.189 --> 00:04:31.430 and quick of sympathy. But the morality of the 00:04:31.430 --> 00:04:34.350 average Christian in the evangelical church would 00:04:34.350 --> 00:04:38.089 scream, I don't believe he's holy. You'll notice 00:04:38.089 --> 00:04:40.610 on the front of your notes, Tozer would write, 00:04:40.790 --> 00:04:43.050 we know nothing like the divine holiness. It 00:04:43.050 --> 00:04:46.129 stands apart, unique, unapproachable, incomprehensible, 00:04:46.170 --> 00:04:49.370 and unattainable. I mean, there's a lot of uns 00:04:49.370 --> 00:04:52.680 in there. The natural man is blind to it. He 00:04:52.680 --> 00:04:55.519 may fear God's power and admire his wisdom, but 00:04:55.519 --> 00:04:59.079 his holiness, he cannot even imagine. The first 00:04:59.079 --> 00:05:01.939 time we see this concept of holiness is right 00:05:01.939 --> 00:05:05.740 after the Red Sea is parted, and there's a song 00:05:05.740 --> 00:05:08.339 that Moses sings, and this song, we'll learn 00:05:08.339 --> 00:05:11.500 later, is sung currently in heaven, and notice 00:05:11.500 --> 00:05:14.360 the song is, who among the gods is like you, 00:05:14.379 --> 00:05:19.319 O Yahweh? Who is like you? Answer, no one. Majestic 00:05:19.319 --> 00:05:22.040 in, what's the first word? Holiness. The word 00:05:22.040 --> 00:05:25.360 majestic is the idea of exponential multiplying 00:05:25.360 --> 00:05:30.199 in holiness. Awesome in glory, working wonders. 00:05:30.980 --> 00:05:34.920 My best personal definition of holiness is it's 00:05:34.920 --> 00:05:38.040 both his majesty and moral purity. It's the absolute 00:05:38.040 --> 00:05:42.079 absence of evil. It encompasses what's pure, 00:05:42.180 --> 00:05:46.579 holy, righteous. The English root word for holiness 00:05:46.579 --> 00:05:51.180 has the idea of wholeness or soundness. It encompasses 00:05:51.180 --> 00:05:55.180 the idea of health. And so to be holy isn't just 00:05:55.180 --> 00:05:58.639 candles and a black robe and singing special 00:05:58.639 --> 00:06:02.079 songs with a very low voice with low lights. 00:06:02.220 --> 00:06:06.740 It's about the wholeness or the purity of the 00:06:06.740 --> 00:06:09.920 universe that brings life and brings health because 00:06:09.920 --> 00:06:14.480 as God is, he wants us to become. And so not 00:06:14.480 --> 00:06:17.680 obviously in his essence, but in our character 00:06:17.680 --> 00:06:20.680 that we would be holy like he's holy. How has 00:06:20.680 --> 00:06:23.540 God revealed his holiness? In English, when we 00:06:23.540 --> 00:06:26.800 want to talk about degrees, we say someone is 00:06:26.800 --> 00:06:28.680 good. And then we say, oh, someone else is better. 00:06:28.819 --> 00:06:31.779 And then we say someone else is best. Good, better, 00:06:31.839 --> 00:06:35.639 best. In Hebrew, the way you talk about things 00:06:35.639 --> 00:06:39.000 is you repeat it. So in Hebrew, only one time 00:06:39.000 --> 00:06:43.310 God has called something holy, holy. You see 00:06:43.310 --> 00:06:46.110 it in Isaiah 6. You see it in Revelation 4. You 00:06:46.110 --> 00:06:49.230 see it in Revelation 5. The outstanding character 00:06:49.230 --> 00:06:53.329 of God is his otherness, his complete purity, 00:06:53.569 --> 00:06:57.110 his unapproachable light. He's holy, holy, holy. 00:06:57.350 --> 00:07:01.600 When angelic beings that... have never sinned, 00:07:01.600 --> 00:07:04.839 are in his presence, they cover their eyes, they 00:07:04.839 --> 00:07:08.480 cover their feet, and they fly, and they perpetually 00:07:08.480 --> 00:07:12.639 say, holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, 00:07:12.920 --> 00:07:15.959 who was, who is, and who is to come. And so I 00:07:15.959 --> 00:07:18.860 just want you to get this majestic picture, and 00:07:18.860 --> 00:07:20.740 then I'm going to just highlight how it shows 00:07:20.740 --> 00:07:23.339 up in scripture. And I've given you the passages 00:07:23.339 --> 00:07:26.779 for your study. First, through supernatural encounters, 00:07:27.120 --> 00:07:30.509 Moses meets God, John meets God, Daniel meets 00:07:30.509 --> 00:07:33.209 God. Isaiah meets God. And here's all I want 00:07:33.209 --> 00:07:36.910 to say. Whenever you see someone meet God in 00:07:36.910 --> 00:07:41.050 Scripture, they're undone. Bam, they're on their 00:07:41.050 --> 00:07:45.129 face. They're undone. And so the question I have 00:07:45.129 --> 00:07:47.949 to ask myself and you is, when is the last time 00:07:47.949 --> 00:07:51.589 you were in the presence of God and just you 00:07:51.589 --> 00:07:55.389 were undone of the distance between what you 00:07:55.389 --> 00:07:58.329 know He's like and how you begin to see yourself? 00:08:00.189 --> 00:08:03.410 Second, he reveals his holiness through places. 00:08:03.829 --> 00:08:05.970 What you need to know is wherever God is, it 00:08:05.970 --> 00:08:08.649 instantly becomes holy. It can be a bush, it's 00:08:08.649 --> 00:08:11.389 holy. It can be just a tent, you call it a tabernacle, 00:08:11.470 --> 00:08:13.670 and his presence comes, it's holy. It can be 00:08:13.670 --> 00:08:16.629 a temple that people build, it's holy. Wherever 00:08:16.629 --> 00:08:21.550 God's presence is, it becomes holy. Third, the 00:08:21.550 --> 00:08:24.110 way he reveals his holiness is through the law. 00:08:25.689 --> 00:08:30.399 The first four commands, are all about the distinctiveness, 00:08:30.480 --> 00:08:33.700 the holiness of God. Have no other gods because 00:08:33.700 --> 00:08:36.919 there aren't any. And then no graven images. 00:08:37.059 --> 00:08:40.039 Don't reduce me. Don't make a picture of me. 00:08:40.200 --> 00:08:43.480 Don't have an idol. Don't in any way try and 00:08:43.480 --> 00:08:46.659 reduce me in some form. My name is holy because 00:08:46.659 --> 00:08:50.980 it's my character. Don't misuse my name. Don't 00:08:50.980 --> 00:08:55.070 make vows in my name. This Sabbath, there's this 00:08:55.070 --> 00:08:58.070 gift I've given to man that supernaturally when 00:08:58.070 --> 00:09:03.070 I got done, I stopped to pause and for 24 hours, 00:09:03.190 --> 00:09:06.990 I want you to know I'm giving you a gift so that 00:09:06.990 --> 00:09:09.629 you will be separate, you'll be distinct, you'll 00:09:09.629 --> 00:09:12.129 be different. You'll accomplish in six days what 00:09:12.129 --> 00:09:15.009 takes other people seven and you will rest and 00:09:15.009 --> 00:09:18.129 pause so that you'll know the last six days were 00:09:18.129 --> 00:09:20.809 my hand upon you and you will pause to remember. 00:09:21.720 --> 00:09:26.259 This is God. Remember the Sabbath to keep it 00:09:26.259 --> 00:09:28.960 holy. And then the next six commands on the second 00:09:28.960 --> 00:09:32.259 tablet are about health and holiness in relationships. 00:09:32.679 --> 00:09:35.960 In other words, the path of holiness, Isaiah 00:09:35.960 --> 00:09:38.480 would talk about the highway of holiness. There's 00:09:38.480 --> 00:09:40.879 a path of holiness that you walk on, but the 00:09:40.879 --> 00:09:44.720 result is health and wholeness for you and for 00:09:44.720 --> 00:09:47.440 relationships. So if you want healthy, whole 00:09:47.440 --> 00:09:50.820 relationships, Honor your mom and dad, don't 00:09:50.820 --> 00:09:53.179 lie, don't steal, don't commit adultery, and 00:09:53.179 --> 00:09:55.679 don't covet. Those are the parameters around 00:09:55.679 --> 00:09:59.240 holy relationships with one another. For the 00:09:59.240 --> 00:10:01.740 health of God's universe and his people. The 00:10:01.740 --> 00:10:04.159 prophets, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Zechariah, I just 00:10:04.159 --> 00:10:07.700 put a few down. I mean, prophets' job was pretty 00:10:07.700 --> 00:10:12.539 simple. Stop worshiping idols. Name your prophet. 00:10:13.159 --> 00:10:18.000 Here's the message. Stop worshiping idols. Because 00:10:18.000 --> 00:10:21.840 we all do. You're listening to Living on the 00:10:21.840 --> 00:10:24.480 Edge. We'll return you to today's message in 00:10:24.480 --> 00:10:27.379 just a second. But let me quickly ask you, do 00:10:27.379 --> 00:10:29.840 you often find it difficult to read and understand 00:10:29.840 --> 00:10:32.899 God's Word? If so, join us after today's program 00:10:32.899 --> 00:10:35.879 as Chip talks about our useful resource, Daily 00:10:35.879 --> 00:10:38.919 Discipleship with Chip. This tool has helped 00:10:38.919 --> 00:10:41.879 tens of thousands of people study the Bible and 00:10:41.879 --> 00:10:44.600 develop a deeper connection to God. Stick around 00:10:44.600 --> 00:10:47.049 to learn how to sign up. Well, with that, let's 00:10:47.049 --> 00:10:49.169 rejoin Chip for the remainder of his message. 00:10:49.730 --> 00:10:54.830 But God is holy. He's distinct. And so the prophet's 00:10:54.830 --> 00:10:59.610 job was simple, to afflict the comfortable and 00:10:59.610 --> 00:11:03.750 to comfort the afflicted. They were always intervening. 00:11:03.769 --> 00:11:09.370 You don't understand. God's available. It's your 00:11:09.370 --> 00:11:11.690 sin. It's what's happened. It's where you are. 00:11:11.769 --> 00:11:14.149 He wants to help. That's what the prophets kept 00:11:14.149 --> 00:11:16.190 saying. And to the people who acted like they 00:11:16.190 --> 00:11:19.570 didn't need him, they had some pretty harsh stuff. 00:11:21.370 --> 00:11:24.169 Through wrath and judgment, this may sound odd, 00:11:24.210 --> 00:11:27.529 but the holiness of God demands that just like 00:11:27.529 --> 00:11:31.029 a great surgeon would see cancer that needs to 00:11:31.029 --> 00:11:34.210 be operated on, I'm telling you, these doctors, 00:11:34.309 --> 00:11:38.879 they're heartless. They really are. My wife had 00:11:38.879 --> 00:11:42.200 cancer. That guy didn't feel bad. He took a little 00:11:42.200 --> 00:11:46.480 sharp knife. He's got a huge scar. Pulled out 00:11:46.480 --> 00:11:49.960 that, pulled out a bunch of lymph glands. He 00:11:49.960 --> 00:11:53.840 didn't feel bad about it at all. Why? Because 00:11:53.840 --> 00:11:58.120 it was killing her. God, when he sees that which 00:11:58.120 --> 00:12:01.580 is killing you, killing a nation, destroying 00:12:01.580 --> 00:12:05.750 what he has made, He brings his righteous wrath 00:12:05.750 --> 00:12:09.429 and judgment. Acts chapter 5. Think about it. 00:12:09.490 --> 00:12:13.169 The very first sin in the church was what? Remember? 00:12:14.110 --> 00:12:16.190 It was hiding money, but the heart of it was 00:12:16.190 --> 00:12:18.730 hypocrisy. It was their money. They didn't have 00:12:18.730 --> 00:12:20.860 to do anything with it. But remember, the goal 00:12:20.860 --> 00:12:23.559 was Barnabas had given a generous gift from the 00:12:23.559 --> 00:12:25.320 heart, and a lot of people were going, isn't 00:12:25.320 --> 00:12:28.100 Barnabas wonderful? And I think Ananias and Sapphira 00:12:28.100 --> 00:12:30.539 said, we want our cake and eat it too. We want 00:12:30.539 --> 00:12:33.899 people to think this about us, but we don't want 00:12:33.899 --> 00:12:36.340 to be that generous. And so what we're going 00:12:36.340 --> 00:12:38.080 to do is we're going to make up a story that, 00:12:38.120 --> 00:12:40.519 you know, we sold it for X amount and we gave 00:12:40.519 --> 00:12:43.059 it all. And the fact of the matter is, you know, 00:12:43.059 --> 00:12:46.039 we put the other in a CD over here, relatively 00:12:46.039 --> 00:12:51.629 speaking. And I mean, now think of this. It's 00:12:51.629 --> 00:12:55.750 the very first sin recorded in the New Testament. 00:12:57.470 --> 00:13:00.070 Why did Satan cause you, you know, to lie to 00:13:00.070 --> 00:13:02.990 the Holy Spirit? Satan has filled your heart. 00:13:04.169 --> 00:13:09.529 What was the consequences? He died. Do you think 00:13:09.529 --> 00:13:11.389 that sent a message through the early church? 00:13:12.370 --> 00:13:14.350 Or, you know, I'm thinking about becoming a Christian. 00:13:14.429 --> 00:13:15.830 You want to become in that group? I don't know. 00:13:17.779 --> 00:13:20.379 I'll tell you what, authenticity was a pretty 00:13:20.379 --> 00:13:22.940 high value in the early church. You don't have 00:13:22.940 --> 00:13:24.679 to have it together, but you better not fake 00:13:24.679 --> 00:13:30.179 it. But what you see, it's just God declares 00:13:30.179 --> 00:13:35.080 his holiness. See, we're living in a day where 00:13:35.080 --> 00:13:39.259 we actually think that the commands of God are 00:13:39.259 --> 00:13:42.220 like an optional kind of vending machine or salad 00:13:42.220 --> 00:13:45.320 bar. You know, 10 commandments, I'm good with. 00:13:45.919 --> 00:13:49.179 One, two, four, seven, and nine. Could I get 00:13:49.179 --> 00:13:55.700 that to go? But really, it's like we've got a 00:13:55.700 --> 00:13:57.940 whole generation in evangelical churches with 00:13:57.940 --> 00:13:59.559 one of those little knives that, well, you know, 00:13:59.580 --> 00:14:02.580 this one about sexual purity, that's pretty Victorian. 00:14:02.759 --> 00:14:05.139 You know, on this one about greed, I mean, you 00:14:05.139 --> 00:14:09.379 know, we're, no, we're not. And so once it happens, 00:14:09.620 --> 00:14:12.720 we're enough people, we look at one another. 00:14:13.259 --> 00:14:15.620 And since we're all, quote, are sort of fudging, 00:14:15.740 --> 00:14:18.580 and people that we respect, well, I really respect 00:14:18.580 --> 00:14:21.159 so -and -so, and he or they do this or they do 00:14:21.159 --> 00:14:23.279 that. And then pretty soon, it's like a little 00:14:23.279 --> 00:14:28.779 cancer and disease. And then the culture of God's 00:14:28.779 --> 00:14:32.159 people, we're no longer distinct. And what I 00:14:32.159 --> 00:14:34.779 can tell you is part of what God will do is he'll 00:14:34.779 --> 00:14:37.279 bring that velvet vice. I mean, 1 Corinthians 00:14:37.279 --> 00:14:41.279 11, this isn't new. Some in the early church, 00:14:41.379 --> 00:14:43.860 the wealthy would come and they would eat and 00:14:43.860 --> 00:14:46.720 they would marginalize the poor and they were 00:14:46.720 --> 00:14:49.159 disgracing the Lord's table. And 1 Corinthians 00:14:49.159 --> 00:14:51.799 11 says, for this reason, some of you are sick, 00:14:51.980 --> 00:14:54.500 judgment, and some of you are asleep. It's a 00:14:54.500 --> 00:14:57.059 technical term in the New Testament for a believer 00:14:57.059 --> 00:15:00.220 who's died. I'll tell you what, if you were in 00:15:00.220 --> 00:15:02.360 a church where some people died because of their 00:15:02.360 --> 00:15:04.720 greed and lack of concern for other believers 00:15:04.720 --> 00:15:06.379 with the Lord's Supper, I'll tell you what, my 00:15:06.379 --> 00:15:10.769 behavior would change. So where's that God today? 00:15:12.169 --> 00:15:16.210 I don't think he's changed. I would suggest that 00:15:16.210 --> 00:15:19.190 we as Christians often blame the media, education, 00:15:19.509 --> 00:15:25.009 some political party. When the salt gets unsalty 00:15:25.009 --> 00:15:27.590 and when the light gets dim, the culture just 00:15:27.590 --> 00:15:31.570 follows. The shift in the culture is not going 00:15:31.570 --> 00:15:33.950 to happen externally. It's going to happen like 00:15:33.950 --> 00:15:37.759 it always has, inside out. It'll be normal people 00:15:37.759 --> 00:15:40.820 like us that live holy lives. And then we all 00:15:40.820 --> 00:15:43.220 have little networks of relationships. And some 00:15:43.220 --> 00:15:46.159 of you have really big ones. And you'll just 00:15:46.159 --> 00:15:48.200 get bold. And by the way, pretty soon it's not 00:15:48.200 --> 00:15:50.620 going to matter. So you might as well be bold 00:15:50.620 --> 00:15:53.340 now. They're going to whack you. You're going 00:15:53.340 --> 00:15:55.379 to become more and more unpopular. And by the 00:15:55.379 --> 00:15:57.539 way, what we know historically is probably good. 00:15:59.200 --> 00:16:01.039 When they got rid of all the missionaries in 00:16:01.039 --> 00:16:02.940 China and they were persecuted, they went from 00:16:02.940 --> 00:16:07.970 a few million to 100, 120 million today. In Greece, 00:16:08.210 --> 00:16:10.990 Germany, we have some very important relationships 00:16:10.990 --> 00:16:13.590 there. What's happening among the refugees because 00:16:13.590 --> 00:16:16.110 of ISIS? I am telling you, tens of thousands 00:16:16.110 --> 00:16:19.809 of people are coming to Christ. Christians who 00:16:19.809 --> 00:16:23.169 are persecuted, this is historically always true. 00:16:23.289 --> 00:16:25.690 God will purify His church, and He's probably 00:16:25.690 --> 00:16:27.769 going to do that to some degree, and maybe to 00:16:27.769 --> 00:16:30.539 a big degree in America. So we need to get our 00:16:30.539 --> 00:16:33.399 chin strap on and realize this is the spiritual 00:16:33.399 --> 00:16:36.460 NFL and we want to gain yards. And people who 00:16:36.460 --> 00:16:38.299 want to gain yards realize when you come through 00:16:38.299 --> 00:16:40.159 and if it's a good little hole, bam, you get 00:16:40.159 --> 00:16:42.159 hit by a linebacker. Well, you don't go, oh, 00:16:42.240 --> 00:16:45.090 what happened? We've got to quit thinking that 00:16:45.090 --> 00:16:47.970 somehow that we are living in a culture that 00:16:47.970 --> 00:16:50.490 is positive toward our faith and our belief, 00:16:50.669 --> 00:16:52.669 and now we're going to have to learn to love 00:16:52.669 --> 00:16:56.190 people and be kind to people and respond to people 00:16:56.190 --> 00:16:58.809 because good is more powerful than evil as we 00:16:58.809 --> 00:17:03.330 lay out our convictions and live out a life that's 00:17:03.330 --> 00:17:05.250 radically different than probably ever before. 00:17:05.990 --> 00:17:09.829 Because the America that you live in now is not 00:17:09.829 --> 00:17:14.069 the America that was 50, 60 years ago. that was 00:17:14.069 --> 00:17:17.569 very sympathetic, that shared the values. You're 00:17:17.569 --> 00:17:21.490 now intolerant, narrow bigots because you believe 00:17:21.490 --> 00:17:24.470 Jesus is the answer and that there's absolute 00:17:24.470 --> 00:17:27.190 truth. And there's absolute truth about life 00:17:27.190 --> 00:17:30.109 and about eternity and about morality. Now, the 00:17:30.109 --> 00:17:33.809 danger is championing that in a way where you're 00:17:33.809 --> 00:17:39.230 hard -headed, legalistic, self -righteous, saying 00:17:39.230 --> 00:17:41.269 that we're better than other people. We've done 00:17:41.269 --> 00:17:44.009 that before. That didn't work. We need to do 00:17:44.009 --> 00:17:46.730 it the way Jesus did. We need to live this amazing 00:17:46.730 --> 00:17:51.009 life before our world that's pure and righteous 00:17:51.009 --> 00:17:55.289 and take a strong stand and then have people 00:17:55.289 --> 00:17:57.529 who think that we're the enemies be absolutely 00:17:57.529 --> 00:18:00.569 astounded. Why are we driving them to the doctor? 00:18:00.769 --> 00:18:04.130 Why are we loving people that outwardly hate 00:18:04.130 --> 00:18:06.869 us? Why do we give good instead of evil? Because 00:18:06.869 --> 00:18:11.819 that is what turns the life around. And that's 00:18:11.819 --> 00:18:17.119 how holiness brings health. His son, obviously, 00:18:17.279 --> 00:18:21.079 the Lord Jesus, a holy birth, his pure sinless 00:18:21.079 --> 00:18:24.119 life. We get the sneak preview of his holiness 00:18:24.119 --> 00:18:27.900 where the transfiguration, his unholy death. 00:18:28.460 --> 00:18:32.720 You understand that all, I mean, this is a great 00:18:32.720 --> 00:18:35.299 theological truth. 2 Corinthians 5 .21 is that. 00:18:35.789 --> 00:18:38.210 When Jesus was hanging on the cross and he said, 00:18:38.230 --> 00:18:41.309 my God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Do 00:18:41.309 --> 00:18:44.170 you understand what was happening? For the first 00:18:44.170 --> 00:18:49.569 time in all eternity, God the Father turned away 00:18:49.569 --> 00:18:53.049 from God the Son, and there was a break in the 00:18:53.049 --> 00:18:56.990 fellowship in the singular God, but in the person 00:18:56.990 --> 00:18:59.430 of the Father and the person of the Son, because 00:18:59.430 --> 00:19:04.000 in that... Moment of time, your sin and my sin 00:19:04.000 --> 00:19:07.559 and the sin of all people of all time was placed 00:19:07.559 --> 00:19:12.099 on Christ and he became our sin offering and 00:19:12.099 --> 00:19:16.500 he became sin on our behalf. He carried the weight 00:19:16.500 --> 00:19:21.099 of it all. And then the just wrath of God, the 00:19:21.099 --> 00:19:24.880 just anger of God for all sin of all people was 00:19:24.880 --> 00:19:29.059 placed on Christ and he atoned, he covered it. 00:19:30.730 --> 00:19:34.269 There's something so beautiful, so powerful, 00:19:34.309 --> 00:19:36.430 and there's something about the holiness of God 00:19:36.430 --> 00:19:39.890 that scares you to death. There's such power, 00:19:40.210 --> 00:19:44.289 and yet there's beauty. And I think that's what 00:19:44.289 --> 00:19:47.230 the men and women of old, when they got a snapshot 00:19:47.230 --> 00:19:54.140 of God, and it changed them. This is Living on 00:19:54.140 --> 00:19:56.619 the Edge with Chip Ingram, and you've been listening 00:19:56.619 --> 00:19:59.099 to Part 1 of Chip's message, The Holiness of 00:19:59.099 --> 00:20:02.140 God, from our series, The Real God. Chip will 00:20:02.140 --> 00:20:04.200 be back shortly to share some helpful application 00:20:04.200 --> 00:20:07.980 for us to think about. You know, we've all unintentionally 00:20:07.980 --> 00:20:10.339 projected some of humanity's worst qualities 00:20:10.339 --> 00:20:14.099 into our Creator. Many view God as moody, weak, 00:20:14.319 --> 00:20:17.880 unfair, impatient, and merciless. But those ideas 00:20:17.880 --> 00:20:20.789 couldn't be further from the truth. Through this 00:20:20.789 --> 00:20:23.730 series, Chip explores key Bible passages to reveal 00:20:23.730 --> 00:20:26.490 seven fundamental characteristics of our Heavenly 00:20:26.490 --> 00:20:29.549 Father, attributes that reflect the very essence 00:20:29.549 --> 00:20:32.609 of His divine nature. Join Chip on this journey 00:20:32.609 --> 00:20:35.490 to reshape your perspective toward God, which 00:20:35.490 --> 00:20:37.750 will deepen your relationship with Him like never 00:20:37.750 --> 00:20:40.450 before. You won't want to miss a single part 00:20:40.450 --> 00:20:43.369 of this study. Well, before we go on, Chip's 00:20:43.369 --> 00:20:45.750 joined me in studio now to share something with 00:20:45.750 --> 00:20:48.269 all of you. Thanks, Dave. I'll be right back 00:20:48.269 --> 00:20:50.329 to share a few final thoughts for this message. 00:20:50.609 --> 00:20:53.470 But let me pause and ask you a direct question. 00:20:54.009 --> 00:20:56.789 How do you see yourself? And more importantly, 00:20:57.029 --> 00:21:00.460 how do you think God sees you? So often we believe 00:21:00.460 --> 00:21:03.259 lies about ourselves based in shame and guilt 00:21:03.259 --> 00:21:06.019 or insecurities. And I want to give you a divine 00:21:06.019 --> 00:21:08.980 mirror to see yourself the way God sees you. 00:21:09.180 --> 00:21:11.380 Let me encourage you to sign up for our daily 00:21:11.380 --> 00:21:14.240 discipleship series, Discover Your True Self, 00:21:14.440 --> 00:21:17.579 based in Ephesians chapters 1 through 3. This 00:21:17.579 --> 00:21:20.059 is a free video resource where you and I will 00:21:20.059 --> 00:21:22.119 study the Word together for 20 minutes a day, 00:21:22.579 --> 00:21:25.019 10 minutes with me, and then 10 minutes on your 00:21:25.019 --> 00:21:28.069 own. I promise that if you'll join me on this 00:21:28.069 --> 00:21:31.029 20 -day adventure through Ephesians, you'll break 00:21:31.029 --> 00:21:33.069 through the lies that we all believe about ourselves. 00:21:33.390 --> 00:21:36.210 You'll get God's perspective on who you really 00:21:36.210 --> 00:21:38.670 are, and you'll build a life -changing habit 00:21:38.670 --> 00:21:41.130 of meeting with God. I sure hope you'll check 00:21:41.130 --> 00:21:43.710 it out. Thanks, Chip. To learn more about our 00:21:43.710 --> 00:21:46.309 daily Discipleship with Chip series, Discover 00:21:46.309 --> 00:21:50.369 Your True Self, go to livingontheedge .org. This 00:21:50.369 --> 00:21:53.130 free video tool will help you ignore the lies 00:21:53.130 --> 00:21:56.130 the enemy tries to tell you and embrace the unique, 00:21:56.309 --> 00:21:59.369 cherished person God created. Again, to sign 00:21:59.369 --> 00:22:02.230 up for this or any of our other daily discipleship 00:22:02.230 --> 00:22:06.769 series, go to livingontheedge .org. App listeners, 00:22:06.829 --> 00:22:09.990 tap discipleship. We'll hear again as Chip with 00:22:09.990 --> 00:22:13.490 a few final words to wrap up this program. I 00:22:13.490 --> 00:22:16.450 don't know about you, but Tozer's words haunt 00:22:16.450 --> 00:22:21.109 me. He said, We know nothing like the divine 00:22:21.109 --> 00:22:25.549 holiness. Left to myself, I reduce God and I 00:22:25.549 --> 00:22:28.670 take this high and holy and majestic God and 00:22:28.670 --> 00:22:32.390 I make him small. And instead of comparing myself 00:22:32.390 --> 00:22:35.849 to his holiness, I tend to find other Christians 00:22:35.849 --> 00:22:38.650 that are a little less holy than me and I compare 00:22:38.650 --> 00:22:42.549 myself to them. And yet when I gaze, when I get 00:22:42.549 --> 00:22:45.210 those brief moments where I gaze into the absolute 00:22:45.210 --> 00:22:48.880 purity and the sinlessness and the power of a 00:22:48.880 --> 00:22:54.059 holy God, it crushes me. How about you? What 00:22:54.059 --> 00:22:56.640 went through your mind when I described what 00:22:56.640 --> 00:23:00.359 the human heart is like? What mid -course corrections 00:23:00.359 --> 00:23:03.500 might you need to make in light of the holiness 00:23:03.500 --> 00:23:06.900 and the purity of God? You know, maybe you're 00:23:06.900 --> 00:23:10.619 like me, and maybe you need to repent of a low, 00:23:10.799 --> 00:23:13.900 casual view of God that you don't mean to have, 00:23:13.960 --> 00:23:16.869 but you've just slipped into. Maybe you need 00:23:16.869 --> 00:23:19.630 to remember that though God is eager to be our 00:23:19.630 --> 00:23:24.150 friend, that he is immortal, invisible, the only 00:23:24.150 --> 00:23:27.230 wise God, that he dwells in unapproachable light, 00:23:27.390 --> 00:23:33.750 and he and he alone is holy. Almighty God, would 00:23:33.750 --> 00:23:38.109 you please forgive us today as you listen to 00:23:38.109 --> 00:23:41.529 our voice at this moment for reducing you, for 00:23:41.529 --> 00:23:45.200 making you like us. Lord, we say that you are 00:23:45.200 --> 00:23:48.940 totally other and pure, and we ask today that 00:23:48.940 --> 00:23:51.920 you would help us to see you accurately and then 00:23:51.920 --> 00:23:55.819 live appropriately. In Jesus' name, amen. Amen. 00:23:56.299 --> 00:23:59.059 Thanks, Chip. Let me take a quick second before 00:23:59.059 --> 00:24:01.359 we go and thank the generous people who support 00:24:01.359 --> 00:24:04.140 this ministry every month. Your faithful gifts 00:24:04.140 --> 00:24:07.220 help us inspire Christians to live like Christians. 00:24:07.500 --> 00:24:10.220 If you haven't partnered with us, would you prayerfully 00:24:10.220 --> 00:24:12.400 consider joining the Living on the Edge team? 00:24:12.619 --> 00:24:16.000 You can set up a monthly donation at livingontheedge 00:24:16.000 --> 00:24:22.619 .org or by calling 888 -333 -6003. That's 888 00:24:22.619 --> 00:24:29.519 -333 -6003 or visit livingontheedge .org. App 00:24:29.519 --> 00:24:32.250 listeners tap donate. You've been listening to 00:24:32.250 --> 00:24:34.589 a selected program that we wanted to share from 00:24:34.589 --> 00:24:37.210 this past week. To hear more from Chip's series, 00:24:37.430 --> 00:24:41.589 The Real God, go to livingontheedge .org or wherever 00:24:41.589 --> 00:24:44.509 you listen to podcasts. Until next time, I'm 00:24:44.509 --> 00:24:46.730 Dave Drewy saying thanks for listening to this 00:24:46.730 --> 00:24:49.269 weekend edition of Living on the Edge.