Today on Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram.
Did you know there is a universal lie, a formula
that most of us believe that destines us to forever
search for significance but never find it? It
goes like this. Other people's opinion plus my
performance equals my value. Today we'll learn
how to defeat that lie. What would it look like
to stop measuring your worth by what you achieve
or what others think of you? and start living
from a completely different foundation. On this
weekend edition of Living on the Edge, Chip Ingram
helps you discover the new you by learning your
worth as a child of God. Today's message is titled,
You Are Valuable. And if you miss any part of
this important lesson, be sure to catch up online
at livingontheedge .org. Well, now here's Chip
with today's message. As we look at Ephesians
chapter one, the first three chapters, this idea
of in Christ, in Him, in Christ, everything I'm
going to say is for anyone who a certain point
in time has recognized I've been a rebel and
a sinner against a holy God and I recognize that
and confess that and I turn from my sin and in
the empty hands of faith, Lord Jesus, I believe
and trust in you and you alone that when you
hung upon the cross, you paid for my sin, you
rose from the grave. You forgave me and then
you came into my life. I've been taken from the
kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light and
I'm on this journey as you live your life through
me. Everything I'm gonna say only applies to
those genuine followers or believers. Number
one, I wanna tell you that you are chosen. You're
not only chosen but you're adopted. God is your
father and he's committed to protect you and
provide for you and cherish you as his child
forever. What if that got from your head 18 inches
down to your heart? God is my Father. Regardless
of what your parents were like. Regardless if
you've been through a marriage that didn't work.
Regardless if you've been fired from a job. God
is my Father. He promised to provide for me and
protect me. And He cherishes me. He sings over
me with His love. I'm valuable because He made
me. And third, you're redeemed. means you've
been purchased out of the slave market of sin
by Jesus and underline this, you are infinitely
precious and treasured possession. I mean, is
that the opposite of you only matter if you can
look good or you only matter if you can do this
or do that? It's the opposite of your performance.
There's one person's opinion, your heavenly father.
You are infinitely valuable and you are precious.
Do you really believe that? Do you believe it
to the point where you can say, you know, I'd
love people's approval, and I know this was my
folks dream for my life, and I know everyone
at work feels like unless they do this and do
that, and until they live in this neighborhood
and get this zip code, and unless their kids
go to this school and that school, and unless
this and that, unless my two -year -old is a
star on the soccer team, I understand everyone
thinks that way. I don't need their approval.
It would be nice, but I'm... I'm the precious
treasure of my Heavenly Father, so my priorities
and my family and my future isn't dependent on
what my parents think or thought or what anyone
else does or what anyone ever says is cool or
in or right or wonderful. I'm human, it would
be nice, but the Bible says in Him, Christ, you
have been redeemed. How? Through His blood. What
is redemption the forgiveness of our trespasses
literally the word is is when you know what's
right and you cross a line According to the richness
of his grace which he lavished upon us This is
a very interesting passage especially for the
Apostle Paul if you lived in the first century
And you heard this letter read you would immediately
hear the word redemption and your your mind would
go. Oh That's the exact same word that when you
would go into the streets, into a marketplace,
it's called the Agora. And the Agora is a marketplace
where they would sell, and you could go there,
and there would be a little platform, and there
would be men and women, and they would be slaves,
and you could buy them. That's where you went
to buy a slave. And you could buy a man, or you
could buy a woman, you wanna buy a servant, you
wanna buy a whole family, and they would cost
so much money, and the money you would pay to
redeem the slave is this word. You ransom them
and He says, are you ready? You and I and every
single person in the human race has been in the
slave market of sin You know what's right to
do and you don't do it You know some things you
ought to do want to do find yourself not doing
it You can make up rules and you can't even keep
your own rules. Let alone God's We have fallen
short of being perfect. We are slaves to sin
and Christ came and when he died upon the cross,
he atoned, literally he ransomed, he paid for
it. The purchase price of your salvation and
freedom was the death of the perfect Son of God.
Now I've got a little illustration because you're
not quite, the emotional impact of this, okay,
you guys are not getting it. Okay, I know it's
theology but if you understood theology is what
really creates right thinking and right thinking
is what changes emotions and right emotions is
what motivates right behavior and right behavior
is what produces great consequences and great
consequences of the things that totally transforms
your life. So let's get back to the theology.
Okay, you ready? There's an imaginary box. I'm
gonna put it right up here as though I was an
illusionist. It's floating. Have you got it?
On the top, are you ready? It says box number
one. Keep your eyes there. Over here, box number
two. They're exactly the same size. On the front
of this box, the cost of this box says $1 ,000.
Do you got it visualized in your mind? It's floating
right over there. It's white, by the way, for
some of you that are color blind. Over here,
box number two is white, and it costs $1 million.
Now, for those over 50 that still remember, let's
make a deal. If I was asking you, do you want
box number one, you don't know what's in it,
but it cost a thousand dollars, hovering over
here, or would you like box number two, hovering,
and it's worth a million dollars, if you want
box number one, raise your hand. Okay, how many
want box number two, raise your hand. Oh my gosh,
you're geniuses, you're amazing. The whole room
wants box number two, why? Why? If it... cost
more, it's worth more. We always judge the value
of things by how much it costs. If your fiance
gives you a ring that costs $30 instead of $3
,000, it says something about your fiance. Now
let's move our theology to our emotions. What
are you worth to God? You and I cost God. the
precious blood of his son. You are of infinite
worth. I don't care what anyone has ever said
about you. I don't care what problems, what emotions,
what struggles, what pain, what lies. You today
are worth the blood of Christ, a perfect life,
leaving heaven, killed for only loving people
and have never sinned, because that's how much
you matter. You start believing that you are
chosen and adopted and redeemed You will begin
to get the message. The real you is free and
valuable That's who you are Now you can say well,
you don't really understand shit because I had
a very difficult childhood and then my my you
know, then I went through this and then there's
a drunk driver and You know what? I'm not telling
you that life isn't hard and there's sin and
people haven't done you wrong. I'm just saying
you can either believe all of that defines you
or you can believe what God has said about you.
Now, there's not a button you can click. I wish
there was. I would have clicked it long ago.
It's a journey. It's a process. It's replenishing.
It's identifying the lies, calling them lies,
identifying the truth, and replacing the lies
with the truth. And as you do that, As you do
that, it'll go from your head to your heart,
from your heart to your mind, your emotions.
You'll change what matters. You won't need people's
approval. But it gets even better. It's not just
that you're redeemed. He says you were redeemed
for a purpose. There's a lot of people that wonder,
why am I here? What's life all about? Mean for
some of you that have been really really successful
It's like there's got to be more to than so many
patents and so much money and having a second
house And for others, it's like hey, I've tried
this and I've tried that and there's got to be
more than what I'm getting because I feel like
a failure Why am I really here? He explains notice
what he says in all wisdom and insight He made
known to us the mystery of his will by the way,
that's the truth all the words underneath that
are clauses that define what he just said, and
I'll walk through those. Here's what you know.
Okay, remember when we diagrammed sentence in
ninth grade? He, subject, redeemed, verb, you.
Now here's what he says. He, God, made known
the mystery of his will. And the word mystery,
circle it, it just means secret. It's not mysterious.
What it means is that up until this point, There
was a part of his will that no one knew about
and he's now made this secret known to you. He
made known the mystery of his will to you. Now
let's define what his will is and what he says.
How? According to the kind intention which he
purposed in Christ. So whatever this will is
that has to do with you, it was God's kind intention
in bringing Jesus to earth and saving us. Okay,
well then what's after that? with a view to an
administration suitable to the fullness of time.
I know what you're thinking, what in the world
does that mean? Put a box around the word administration.
It's an interesting Greek word that literally
means a household economy. Oikeo, house, namas,
law. In other words, when your children were
like three years old, they had a bedtime. And
so you had laws of the house. They go to bed
like six, 30, or seven. When they're teenagers,
who knows when they go to bed, okay? But it's
not the same. And what he's saying is, in the
progress of Revelation, as God is revealing himself,
the purpose is God revealed this mystery or this
secret. It's all about why Jesus came and what
he wants to do, and in his household economy,
notice it's in the fullness of time, not Kronos
time, but Kairos, this unique opportunity of
all of life, and what is it? It's the summing
up of all things in Christ, things in heaven
and things in earth, so he redeemed you. Made
you adopted as a part of his family Jesus came
to create this brand new thing that no one knew
about and it's called the church as you keep
reading this book Gentile and Jew become the
new agent of blessing in this thing called the
church Old covenant was Israel was the agent
of blessing new covenant the church. So he redeemed
you for a purpose That everything Jesus came
to do in his physical body You are now his spiritual
body. He fed the poor. He told people who the
Father was. He showed them who the Father was.
He loved extravagantly. He was generous with
his time and his money. He demonstrated what
is the salt of the earth and the light of God.
And so you have been called your purpose. is
to take the mission for which you've been redeemed,
and this isn't just about you and your life and
your happiness and your satisfaction, so that
you would actually become an agent of light and
salt and love, and so until the moment you cross
the threshold and see Jesus, you're indispensable.
You're listening to Living on the Edge with Chip
Ingram. Stay with us. We're halfway through today's
message, and there's still more ahead. Today's
teaching comes from Chip's powerful series, The
New You, Claiming Your Birthright as a Child
of God. Want to go deeper? Each of these lessons
is available online at livingontheedge .org,
along with additional resources and discussion
guides to take you further. Find it all at livingontheedge
.org. Well, now let's get back to Chip's message.
I don't care what your job is. I don't care what
your background is. I don't care what your color
is. I don't care what your IQ is. Jesus says,
I'm putting this puzzle together and I'm redeeming
whosoever will. And I'm putting this puzzle together
in such a way that it will become a collage of
the grace of God that people would see who Jesus
is, how much He loves others, and that the people
at your neighborhood and at your work. The people
where you work out the people where you drink
coffee the people where you wash your clothes
The relatives they all through and in you would
understand they can be redeemed if they would
but believe and trust And so what it says is
you are the real you is needed and you are worthy
You're needed You know, it's an interesting thing
If you ever want people to stick around in a
group, don't do everything for them. People come
over to the house, you start a small group. Week
number two, because you know what? We all struggle
with, you know, am I accepted? You know what's
easy to be accepted? Hey, could you bring a salad?
Could you do this? Could you do that? A lot of
them, they'll be going, I don't know if I'm really
gonna go, and I didn't feel all that comfortable.
Now I gotta go, why? Because I gotta take the
salad. Why? Because you know what? We feel a
part of things that we're needed in. We all long
to be needed. Our self -esteem and our worth
comes from not just who we are, but what we do,
but what we do in the right way. You're worthy.
And your worthiness is not about your performance,
it's not about what people think. Turn to the
back page and let's get to how do we get this
from our head to our heart. The principle is
you replace your warped mirrors and misbeliefs
by the truth of God's word. So you write what
I've put in this box on a little card, and then
you make a little stop sign, and you read it
in the morning, and you read it at night. You
don't even have to memorize it. But the misbelief
is I must avoid failure at all cost. I must work
harder and longer to be successful and prove
that I'm not a failure. That's compulsive people
like me. For others, I must avoid failure at
all cost. It's better not to try. than to try
and fail. If people really knew and got to know
me, they would reject me. Stop! You write that
and then you say stop out loud, because here's
what you want to do psychologically. You want
to recognize the lie and you want to pair it
in your brain with stop. Then you flip the card
over and you say out loud the truth. I am now
a righteous person in God's sight since I've
trusted Christ's redemption and sacrifice for
me. I am covered by the robe of his purity and
goodness. Also, since I have a new nature, I'm
a good person in my general practice of life
as I continue to grow in Christ. It's a long
paragraph, but you just read it over. You just
think about it. Wow, I'm a righteous person in
God's sight. I don't have to earn his favor.
I don't have to impress anyone else. Second Corinthians
chapter five says, God made him who had no sin
to be sin for us. You ready for this? So that
we in him might become the righteousness of God.
The moment you trust Christ, there's a declaration,
a legal declaration that you're righteous in
his eyes. And then you start, that's positional
righteousness. And then his spirit living in
you, as you get into God's word, in the community
of God's people, then there's a practical righteousness
where you live this out, and he changes you from
the inside out. Now, there's always a temptation
when you teach on something like this to think,
well, I used to have these issues 20 years ago,
and then I read this passage, and I don't have
any issues. But those of you that know me would
know that's not true. But this is one that I
wrote last year. This is a lie that I believed
as late as last year. And I share this just so
you realize this journey never ends. But you
keep working on it. You actually believe different
lies at different seasons of your life and at
different points of maturity. And I went through
a process reevaluating my life last year. right
after major surgery, and I realize, here's a
lie that I believe. I am a prisoner of the opinions
of the important, influential people in my life.
I agonize when my best judgment and direction
from the Lord is different from theirs. Disagreeing
with them will harm our relationship irreparably,
so I attempt to please everyone creating an unhealthy
lifestyle. I bet there's a lot of people that
could identify with that one. And see, in different
seasons in your life, the important people, they
just change, and there's an important person
in China, and there's an important person in
the Middle East, and there's an important person
here, and there's a very important person on
the front row called my wife, and there's important
people called my kids, and all that, so I'm a
prisoner. No, no, no. People love me and are
for me, here's the truth, and want me to live
a life of joy, rhythm, rest, and fruitfulness
in all areas of my life. I don't need to prove
my worth through hard work or extraordinary productivity.
I'm accepted, loved, and greatly valued just
for who I am. And I've been reading this over
for the better part of the year. And I'm guessing
there's probably some freedom I'm experiencing
that has come at identifying that lie, recognizing
the truth, renewing my mind. A couple that Teresa
put on her cards, these are kind of misbeliefs
that are often people who withdraw. I should
be upset if I make a mistake. Anybody feel like
that way? You get upset, just make a mistake.
Stop! The truth is, as a human being, I'm not
all -knowing. Mistakes are not necessarily sinful.
If people make fun of me, that's their problem.
I need only Christ's approval, and I have it
apart from my works. Another one of hers that
I watched her share these with our daughter for
years. Misbelief. If I cannot do something well,
there is little point in doing it at all. Anybody
feel that way? So it keeps you from taking risk.
Stop. I'm willing to risk trying to do things
without the assurance that it will be a good
job. I can give my best effort and gain good
experience that will help me grow. Review. You
and I are desperately searching for significance
and value and importance. Behavior issues that
you're working on, emotional issues that you
struggle with. Problem relationships and for
many addictions are only symptoms at the core
and at the heart You're still living by the formula
that your value is other people's opinion and
your performance We've come here together to
learn where God says this I chose you I adopted
you I've redeemed you your values. I paid for
you with the blood of my son You're listening
to living on the edge and a message titled You
Are Valuable, part of our series called The New
You, Claiming Your Birthright as a Child of God.
You know, the formula Chip described today, performance
plus others' opinions equals your value, most
of us have been running that equation our whole
lives without even realizing it. And it never
balances. But here's what does. You are chosen,
adopted, and redeemed, purchased at the highest
price imaginable. That's not a motivational phrase.
It's the bedrock of a brand new identity. And
if you want to build on that foundation day by
day, Chip's brand new devotional, Growing Deeper
in Christ, A 365 Day Journey to True Discipleship,
gives you exactly that. Each day, a few focused
minutes in God's Word, steadily replacing the
lies with the truth of who you really are in
Christ. If you've never given to this ministry
before, Or if you'd like to join us as a monthly
partner, we'd love to send you a copy as our
thank you gift when you get started. Make your
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888 -333 -6003. You can also mail your gift to
Living On The Edge P .O. Box 3007, Atlanta, Georgia
30024. And if you want to go even deeper into
Chip's teaching, check out the Living on the
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sermons from Chip anytime, anywhere. Just search
for Living on the Edge wherever you listen to
podcasts and subscribe today. Well, now here's
Chip with some final thoughts. As we wrap up
today's program, let's do a little review. before
we think about the practical way to get these
things from your head to your heart. Because
you are in Christ, you're chosen, adopted, and
we talked about that powerful word, you're redeemed.
You've been bought with a price. And we learned
that the message is the real you is free and
valuable. Think of that. Could you let that soak
in? You are free. You're free of the expectations
of people. You are valuable before you do anything,
accomplish anything, before how anybody thinks
how you look, before how much money you make,
anything. You are free and you are valuable.
And because you are redeemed, you are needed
and you are worthy. You are a person that matters.
And I can just see some of your faces. Believe
me, I can. I've taught this live, and I've looked
into people's faces. And I know some of you in
your heart of hearts are going, well... That
sounds good for other people, but not me. I'm
telling you that if you are in Christ, if you're
a genuine follower of Jesus Christ, these things
are true of you and God wants you to live out
of them. And at the very end of the message,
you know, I went through those misbeliefs, sort
of Teresa's big misbelief and my misbelief. Hers
was withdrawing and she was afraid to try anything
because, you know, I'll fail and I don't want
to look bad and mine was trying to over perform
and over achieve all the time to prove to people
I was a someone. Both of us were prisoners and
as we begin to read daily that misbelief and
then read the truth. I want to tell you that
it can move from your head to your heart. I want
you to know that you are a righteous person in
God's sight. And since you've trusted in Christ's
redemptive sacrifice, you are now covered by
the robe of His purity and goodness. You have
a new nature. Are you ready? You are, in general
practice, a good person as you continue to grow
in Christ. You don't have to impress anyone.
You're a daughter. You're a son of the King of
Kings and the Lord of Lords. I'm Dave Drury.
Join us next time as Chip Ingram continues our
series, The New You, claiming your birthright
as a child of God. That's coming up on the next
weekend edition of Living on the Edge. Today's
program is produced and sponsored by Living on
the Edge.