The Cure for "I" Disease - Part A

The church were part of our society is anything but like the society we are in fact to be countercultural, countercultural, we are the antithesis of everything the world thinks is GK Chesterton wrote, we do not want to charge the world we want to church that will move is all about DVD today on connect with Skip Heitzig Scriptures why it's vital for you to live a life that's focused on others and motivated unity before we begin to let you know about a resource that will help you pray with more boldness and bearing and take your faith to another level. Ready to radically upgrade your prayer life still stuck in blessing mode, you have come to the right place you are ready for dangerous prayers really start playing three new players and I will warn you. These are not easy. Prayers does not say prayers benign prayer, recalling the dangerous prayers, but there dangerous in a good way and that just my opinion. Most people I know in this part of the world most people's prayers are way to say that Craig Rochelle from his book dangerous prayers. And this is our summer resorts offer.

If you are ready to get out of your comfort zone was some prayers are not safe to pray no going into the when you pray this prayer to really ask God to do something that will take you out of your comfort zone. Unlock your potential with Craig Rochelle's book dangerous prayers our gift to you when you give $35 or more today to help keep this ministry on the air. Request your copy when you get online securely connectwithskip.com/offer or you can call 800-922-1888 another clip from Craig's book dangerous prayers talk about God.prayer.the last thing and it was one of the other side of brokenness is a real intimacy with God and a dependence on him, you cannot get any other way will have enough encouraging books yet one that will grab you by the throat and get her attention, replaced send me know what I want to do this I got a blank contract basically whatever went over however whatever you want to do.

My life is your son connectwithskip.com/offer call 800 9218 Romans chapter 15 for today's static so much joint-the message that I want to bring today based on our track is secure. I cannot envision talking about us ourselves by me, my cure for eye disease. Somebody once said that a man wrapped up in himself makes a very small package.

There are millions of such packages. Everywhere we look, I came across an article of study in the Journal for social psychology and personality science, and it was an article on clinical narcissism.

You know, narcissism is this is a clinical narcissism defined by heightened feelings of entitlement, decreased morality and a dog eat dog mentality sort of sounds like politics and but according to this article. This condition has increased by 30% in the past 20 years. What really got my attention. Is it said toward the end of this article. Two out of every three people now measure high for the disorder. Two out of three. If you have two out of three people living for themselves altogether in a society knocking to be pretty. There is even a book out put out about four years ago called the narcissism epidemic written by two psychologists Jean twins and Keith Campbell. But here's the take away statement as they explore narcissism in America. They said we live in a culture that not only tolerates narcissism. It encourages narcissism of the book cites several examples and I'm not cannot divulge everything in the book were not here for that to give some examples.

One example is on a reality TV show, a girl planning her 16th birthday party wants a major road in town blocked off so that a marching band can precede her grand entrance onto the red carpet K this is living with a heightened or an exaggerated idea of one's own importance. Now it is also possible according this book to hire fake paparazzi to follow you around snap photographs of you and you go out at night so that you can even take home a fellow celebrity magazine cover featuring all the pictures of you. Our society has eye disease is all about.

I called on me all about my that's not even a coincidence, I think that we have devices like by phone. I pad my Mac because that's really what it's about.

I told you before and bears repeating that this age has been called the age of the selfie will know itself is I will have the phones it takes selfie's.

According to Google 93 million selfie's are taken every single day.

93 million soffits every third photo taken by those aged 18 to 24 and want to disparage any age group. Which is the this is Google after all, every third photo taken by those ages 18 to 24 is a selfie that's that's a preoccupation with oneself. Page 16 to 25-year-old women will spend 16 minutes taking an average of three cell fees per day, which totals up to be five hours a week spent on this endeavor.

Now what is this all come from out of this all come about it simply the result of a culture who asks and answers the question, what is the meaning of life. Why am I here. Everybody asked that question. What is the purpose of life.

61% of Americans that 3/5 Americans say the main purpose of life is enjoyment and personal fulfillment that probably doesn't shock you, and it perhaps doesn't shock us because 50% at 61% of Americans 50% of those who call themselves born-again Christians say life's purpose is about enjoyment and self satisfaction. So essentially when you have God's people trying to be like all the rest of the people because after all, we want the rest of the people to think were at school as they are there cool.

We just want them to think were as cool as they are whenever hipness is more important to us than holiness. This becomes the result the church that we are part of our society is anything but like the society we are in fact to be countercultural, countercultural, we are the antithesis of everything the world thinks is important. GK Chesterton wrote, we do not want a church that will move with the world. We want to church that will move the world.

The last time we were together in Romans 14, my son Nate close with an illustration of four chairs that were appear and gave practical tips of discerning God's will in the gray areas of life.

I want to take it a step further, as Paul does in Romans chapter 15 and give to us the cure for eye disease, eye disease, selfish, living, these are practical steps to overcome selfish living Romans chapter 15 verse one. We then who are strong ought to bear with the scruples of the week and not to please ourselves. Let each of us.

Please his neighbor for his good, leading to edification. For even Christ did not please himself, but as it is written reproaches of those who reproached you fell on me for whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope.

Now may the God of patients and comfort grant you to be like-minded toward one another.

According to Christ Jesus, that you may with one mind, and with one mouth glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Therefore receive one another, just as Christ also received us to the glory of God to give you for steps to overcoming selfishness there written for you and your worship folder.

But I'll announce them patient activity is the first personal conformity is the second that is where to conform to an ultimate example purposeful study that his study of the Scriptures and then for this practical harmony and explain each of those four.

Let's begin with the first patient activity that you'll notice verse one says we then who are strong. I wonder if you are evaluating yourself and maybe you're coming out the other end of that evaluation, saying Yep Yep that's me I'm strong, mature, I'm an older believer.

I walked with the Lord for some time off some good.

We then who are strong ought to bear with the scruples the sensitivities the taboos of the week and not to please ourselves. Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, leading to edification of the entire tone of the paragraph that were considering the entire theme is one of patients were to be patient with people infected you notice verse for whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope.

Notice what God is called in verse five now may the God of patients and comfort grant you to be like-minded toward one another. According to Christ Jesus. We who are more mature ought to have a greater level of patients than someone else. It is sometimes a grant you hard to be patient, especially with more legalistic people.

People are described in these chapters a week brother, but that is exactly what we are called to do. Now the week. Christian has certain convictions, strong convictions. Paul calls him scruples of what is allowable and what is not allowable. Now they may not be right, biblically speaking in any you are mature you know that you go – person is so hung up on that and is not a big deal but it is a big deal to the week brother. So what are we to do with about says we are to bear with the scruples of the Lee County today with that doesn't mean it doesn't just mean to put up with okay I'll put up with you man put up with you.

The idea means to bear up alongside means to carry a burden with this poor brother is burdened by what he can or cannot do such a hang up. He saw legalistic about it so come up under him and carry that load and help him or her work through that torts no longer a burden. That's the idea bearing up so it doesn't mean if you have a friend who thinks as a Christian, you shouldn't listen to certain types of music started out loud rock 'n' roll music. You should listen to that your question that is mean you invite them over, turn your stereo up to 10 put on allowed rock songs are doing a dance next year week from that. That's not going to help him or her really suck and help anybody. If you have a believing friend who's a vegetarian, you bring them over and you cook yourself a big stake in your disorder smacking interfaith man I wish you had that liberty DDS that's not love. If you have a friend who thinks Christian shouldn't drink alcohol you opening up a sixpack and downing down in front of him is not showing love to the weaker brother but often our attitude can be well on a more mature and thus I need to be around people who are more mature like me know you need to be able to hang out with the weaker brother or sister and bear up with them and love them. If you are more mature, you will do that by the way, this is a theme throughout all of the New Testament Philippians chapter 2 Paul writes let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in the lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interest of others. Then in first Corinthians chapter 9 where Paul talks all about eating meat sacrificed to idols in certain activities like that, he says, though I am free from all men. I have made myself a servant to all that I might win the more to the week. I became his week that I might win the week I have become all things to all men, that I might by all means save some.

Some people say love is blind know it's not love is fully aware it is open. I it's open. I did people's faults to people sins to their weaknesses to their phobias to their hangups to their scruples there aware of not only theirs but our own, but then love comes alongside and is patient first Corinthians 13 love is patient, love is kind. Love does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, so that's patient activity bearing up patient activity, I've always loved Mark Twain of of love the way he can turn a phrase I love the way he looked at things loved his writings on, especially when he went to Israel for the first time and only time and he wrote about it was it so humorous. But if you know Mark Twain, Samuel Clemens, the author, you know that he had a problem with God that a problem with Christianity. He was turned off by Christianity.

You know why he was turned off by Christianity because he was turned off by Christians, especially Christian leaders. So when you read is writing you pick up on this and here's the back story as he grew up he knew elders in the church and deacons in the church who own the slaves and abused those slaves, he heard some of the church leaders use foul language. I saw them practice dishonesty during the week while speaking through obviously on the weekend Dennis turned him off is not that he didn't see real Christians in action.

He did his mother was a strong devout believer. His wife was also strong believer, but what bothered Mark Twain was the bad teaching along with the poor example of church leaders that eventually he became bitter toward the things of God.

So Christian liberty.

Your ability to do whatever you feel like doing.

After all, you're an American, you should be able to just do whatever you want. Don't judge me bro right your freedom. Our freedom is curtailed by three basic things that are written about in first Corinthians chapter 6 in chapter 10 I won't have you Turner ability to say what they are. According to Paul the apostle you can do anything you want, but what ever you want to do that is curtailed by three things. Number one is it helpful.

Number two is it addictive and number three is a loving, is it helpful, is it addictive is a loving Paul said all things are lawful for me, loosely translated I can do anything I want but then he said, but not all things are helpful. One translation says expedient. I I may have the freedom to do this, but if I do this will this push me forward, onward to be more like Christ.

Is it helpful for me to reach my goal. Someone is it helpful.

Number two is it addictive Paul said all things are lawful for me, this is first Corinthians chapter 6, but I will not be brought under the power of any. So you you you might feel the freedom to do that but if that thing you feel the freedom to do starts to control you instead of you controlling it. Don't do it. Is it helpful, is it addictive third is that loving that that goes to this point here is that loving first Corinthians 10. All things are lawful for me, but not all things edify buildup. So is this activity showing love to somebody else. So first, then the first cure. According to Paul in this paragraph to the eye disease self is living is patient activity. Be patient with those who are weaker. The second step is personal conformity. Now what Paul does is he he gets off of them and offer himself and onto the ultimate example and whose it was the ultimate example, Jesus Christ. Verse three for even Christ did not please himself, but as it is written, the reproaches of those who reproached you fell on me. He's quoting Psalm 69 verse nine and he's quoting data simply prove the point that Jesus whole life was Mark by selflessness, selfish, not selfishness selflessness. He wasn't selfish at all. Selfless living Jesus. At one point said I always do those things that please the father every time I read that verse, I think. I wish I could say that I can't. I can't in all honesty said I always do those things that please God. Frankly, I probably won't be able to do that. Driving home today but I want to I aim to do that is my desire. She is our example Jesus that I always do those things that please the father but then he said this. You remember this season for the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many words, Jesus entire life was not a selfish life, but a selfless life is a little bit of a background couple examples. When Jesus was born he was not born into an upper-class family, but a really poor lower-class family. Why is that important means anybody can come to him he would intimidate anyone.

I did matter what background you are from, anyone can come to and relate to him second, Jesus was lost at age 12 in the temple, not because he was being bad. Not to dishonor his parents, but in his own words. I must be about my father's business all about serving the Lord that Skip this series, you Skip with the listener letter you want to hear we are excited to share how God is using your soup or to inspire and encourage others to share the good news of Jesus. Listen to this letter.

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