Discover Your True Self - You are Secure, Part 1

Dear is a paralyzing emotion. So let me ask you find yourself feeling afraid for your help health of your family afraid of your physical safety for your afraid of losing your job or having the money to live on. How do we find times that. Welcome to this Edition of Living on the Edge Chip Ingram trips are vital to international discipleship program friendship series discover your true self. This program ship explains that it's possible time.

100% secure to be true. I'm glad you're with us because it is true about if you have a Bible but it now is chapter 1. Just before we get started, let me remind you that you don't get to hear the entire broadcast find this message and the rest of the programs in the series on the chip finger map now with his message, you are secure your strip. When we look at our life under pressure, and we think about what what makes us feel secure.

What makes us feel safe. What's makes us feel like were in control. How do we learn that and the more I thought about. I was praying through my office this morning thinking it's actually in the storms of life that God allows you to get a glimpse of how you take things from your head into your heart. I was probably Christian over 20 years when my mother died.

I was really close to her and it happened very suddenly I knew it was so painful and I I came to learn how much I actually believe that there's a real heaven and there's a real God and that you will see people that you love. I remember the biggest failure I ever experience in ministry and of resigning from a job and recognizing that I didn't have the power, the witness or the ability to turn something around and and and and just feeling so distraught and have an experience where the Holy Spirit literally whispered. I just love you for you, and I was in that moment I realized how much of my security or my worth was in what I do my job or how I perform in the member years later us sitting on the couch with Teresa and we had learned that afternoon that she had cancer and I don't about you, but of all the fears that humanly at least I've struggled with his unit of the loose loss of a child or the loss of your wife for a family member and we just we just cried. Then we prayed and then we went through months and treatments, and radiation and we came through all that, but the moment that I can tell you that Jesus promises he'll be enough, with or without your wife or one of your kids. But when you live with it every day and it's just so vulnerable and he shows up in those moments that's when you know by way of deep personal experience arena talk today but I think some things at the root of our being is God is going to tell you and me that your secure on the front of your notes. Pull it out if you will want you to get a deeper understanding of even the word security, it means you're safe. There's a firm foundation means you're not liable to fail means there's a place that's safe.

That set apart. The verb means it's something you are certain of that you obtain that it's it's a sure deal.

It means that there's no outside force that can come in and remove you in this case from God. And yet we all struggled only we all mean I don't I don't need a psychologist to tell me that I'm insecure it it just takes a few circumstances and in the just pops up, but we we tend to have very genuine fears about different things that I I've put four categories in your notes because these fees are human. If you're human, you're going to struggle with some of these and and and until it goes from your head to your heart. You may live with lots of fear and insecurity and doubts and and and and then we learn we have lots of unhealthy ways we deal with the first one is the fear of physical harm or death, or the fear of being alone being rejected thinking I'll never get married or this marriage is never really get better or that or the sense that some things happen. For those of us that have kids that the fear of punishment.

I was the got email just this week from a young gal that we were interviewing for a job and she just talked about. She got some very bad theology and read a few verses in Scripture and was living with this idea that someday some way she might do something or or make a mistake and God would cast her off and she wouldn't spend eternity with him and that every single day that like she was being like held over are you if you mess up. Today this is the worst day of your life to the point that in despair, she said God kill me.

I know I'm walking with you today just kill me so I don't get discarded later. Until she got some good teaching and she got some truth from here down to hear and then to our basic insecurities can produce guilt and condemnation and struggles. So here's the question I have for you is what this is can be a bit of a headache message.

I'm going to give you some real truth that I'm going to get here and then will spend the rest of our time working hard to get it down here. Where do you tend to feel insecure or afraid.

Over 80 times.

The Bible says fear not over 30 times as don't be afraid Jesus last words to the disciples I am with you always.

I will never ever leave you or forsake you, the writer of Hebrews says from God's voice. And yet we struggle so the bottom your notes. There's a question I like you do some real pondering and the pondering I like you to do is and what or whom do you seek to find security apart from Christ. We all do this right, but identify because I'm going to tell you in a fallen world. God is going to allow some storms to come into your life.

But the goal of the storms will be like Joseph, I think Joseph when he was betrayed Joseph in prison, Joseph, loss of reputation, Joseph.

When people forgot them each and every time. If you read that carefully says and the Lord was with him and the Lord was with him and the Lord was with him if you can identify where you can put security because a test is coming and God want you to pass the test. He want to know how be with you. I'll never leave you all never let you down. I am for you and down deep in your psyche.

A lot of us don't believe that. So let me just ask you, is it is your security in yourself. I've certainly had that one your brains, your ability, you figured out you can make it happen. Is it in money, I mean you become fixated with man as soon as I get so many zeros and there's my portfolio and I'll be secure.

Is it family know what really makes everything okay is your family, your wife, your kid, your husband, all that stuff and when that's okay you're okay with that gets is it you were coming. How many of us here's a test, a ready for this. What ever would get taken away or challenged to the level it devastates you that will tell you where you security seeks your securities like a rug and if it gets pulled out from under you. It might hurt a little bit if it devastates you. You know my securities in that job, my securities and me.

My security is not in Christ. So I want you to identify that and they'll turn your notes with me if you will and I will talk about God's plan to give you a security that can't change by circumstances or terrorism or death or abandonment or cancer or rejection or any fear of punishment. God's answer is in first Peter 318. It's a summary of the work of Jesus. For Christ also died for sins put a circle around the word for I'll tell you why once for all, who is the just of the righteous for the unrighteous for the unjust, what was his purpose so that he, Jesus might bring us to God will how do you do it. Having been put to death in the flesh on the cross but made alive in the spirit, the resurrection God so loved the world that he sent his one and only son, God the son, that whoever would believe him shouldn't perish but have everlasting life. God's solution to your security. Is that your valuable he wants to choose you. He cares about you. He's redeemed you and he wants to reconnect you close to him so that no one at any time ever.

Now or in eternity can separate you from him. So then the question is, what must I do to experience that security in the gospel writer John would say as many as received him, Jesus, to them he gave the right or the authority to become children of God, even to those who believe in his name. That little word for means in the place of Jesus came and he died in the place of you all that you deserve and I deserve because of my sin and rebellion or passive indifference.

God took all of that any place that on Christ and now he says you are forgiven, but you must respond as many as not just intellectually believe as many as received him personally to them. He gives the right not to be religious but to become an actual child of the living God. Jesus said, behold, I stand at the door knock of your heart. My heart this is the verse I heard when I trusted Christ 1972. If any man if any woman hears my voice and will open the door of your heart. The promise I will come in to him in the old translation. I will sup with him, or eat within the he with me, and it is Jesus saying I want a relationship. The cross has paid for your sin. It is a free gift. Now, turn from your sin in the empty hands of faith, say Lord Jesus, forgive me come into my life be my Lord be my Savior. In the spirit of God enters your human body, and you start a new life in the old days people call that that's what it's called, to be saved or receiving Christ or trusting Christ know what I want to talk to you about is I'm guessing a great majority of you swear to have down what I just talked about. I'm guessing that those that are watching and those of us that have been around for a while. It's like okay to banks is very helpful. Like I've known this since fourth grade, or for some of us when I was 18, but in 1972. Knowing very little. Having no idea that there was a a personal relationship with God and I invited Christ in my life. I want you to go back when you did that.

I don't think the average Christian has any idea what actually happened. It wasn't just a little experience. It wasn't just now.

Your heaven down. It's not just the you know Christ. What actually happened. That actually is at the source of all the security and every challenge that you'll face of all the fears we talked about so will walk through these all do them quickly, but I want you to get some quote theology member last last time I said your theology informs your thinking your thinking and forms your emotions, your emotions inform your actions, your action actions have consequences negatively and positively bad theology always produces bad actions and what we do. I look for security and sex and looks for custodians addictions.

I look for security and money.

I look for security and jobs. I look for security in all kind of places to take me bad roads and multiply the pain in my life. God says no, no, start thinking rightly the moment you receive Christ, if indeed you have this happen, you were justified.

The word means it's a legal declaration that all my sins are forgiven, past, present, future. This is God is the judge legally. The gavel comes down your before him.

Christ righteousness your sin he looks at the work of Christ.

He says all of your sins are forgiven and the righteousness of Christ is placed in your account you are granted the righteousness of Jesus. You have a new position as is dearly love child. Romans 51 says. Therefore, having been justified by faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ in this this piece this not just an emotional piece.

It means we were hostile to God. The word is we have the shalom of God we have the wholeness of God have to favor of God.

We are now in God's family in the space below and to write this down ready God is my father.

I'm getting some theological words but what I realizes most Christians don't know the words anymore, but worse, those who do know them. Sometimes we don't get what they really mean are you ready for this the one who spoke billions of galaxies into existence. He is you are father, you might write down. I am his child. What what what if you started to believe that you what what what do good fathers do. What do good parents to protect and they provide. The second thing that happened to you the moment you receive Christ is regeneration.

That means that I'm a new creation in Christ.

I been given a new nature, fully pleasing to God. It's different from religion is different from morality.

It's you become an actual new person that Nicodemus was a very religious rabbi, squeaky clean, morally, and he came at night because he solve it. Jesus was from God.

The miracles attested to it. And in this night meeting Jesus says to him in John chapter 3, he answered him and said, truly, truly, I say to you know this is a very religious moral man, unless one is born again he cannot enter the kingdom of God said how can a man be born again when he is old taken pretty literally here, he cannot enter again into his mother's womb a second time candy.

Jesus answered, truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water, physical birth, and spirit spiritual birth, he can't enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh physical is flesh that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Jesus taught the most religious, moral, man, we have cited in Scripture that when you prayed to receive Jesus and he enters your life. It's a spiritual birth you're regenerated you receive a new nature jotting your note. Second Corinthians 517 says if any man any woman is in Christ, your new creation the old things notices pass away behold all things. Listen to the tense of the verb are becoming new ninth grade biology right little green caterpillar creates a cocoon and out comes a butterfly.

We call it meta-I love being with such intelligent people. That's what it's called right the DNA in that green caterpillar and the DNA and that butterfly are exactly the same but a metamorphosis occurs where that butterfly is no longer ugly and green and crawls it is beautiful. It gets a new nature gets a new capacity. That's the physical picture in nature of what happens when you prayed to receive Christ. Are you ready for this. Write this down.

God gave me a new nature God made me a new person. You don't have to live with your past anymore. God made you a new person. Do you believe that only Christians are living with well this is how I grew up in. My dad was an alcoholic and I been through this and then this happened. Now I'm a sinner and consequences I'm saying. What if you believed in the tune of metamorphosis in life change.

That is the word of God and time in community and time in his word and your openness and steps of faith give a brand-new nature. You can fly stop crawling with Christians everywhere that are still crawling in your butterflies because you don't believe you have a new nature you've been regenerated not to journey in a process God is my father number one number two God made me a new person and as a result, guess what you might jot down Jesus lives in me something that's what it says Jesus actually lives inside of you in the person of the Holy Spirit. The third thing that happens is reconciliation. That means that although I was once hostile to God and alienated from him.

I am now his friend Paul would right inspired by the Holy Spirit.

Colossians chapter 1 verse 21, 22, although you speaking to these new Christians were formally alienated and hostile in mind engage in evil deeds. Yet he Jesus has reconciled you in his fleshly body through his death. You see how all these keep coming back to what happened at the cross and when what happens at the cross gets received by faith. And then this journey from your head to your heart. You actually not just know about it.

But you know you.just you absorb it you believe it becomes a part of your life, focusing how you see God see the world and see yourself in order to present you this is how he presented you holy and blameless be on reproach the list part chips message, you are secure is serious.

Discover your true self, how to silence the lives of your past actually experience who God says you are chip will be right back with his application, but before is I hope you'll take a second and go online or capture and encourage others to join us for the series 2 we all struggle with doubts about self worth and value, but the facts about who we are change when we put our faith in Jesus chips teaching from the book of Ephesians to help us understand who we are as believers in Christ, he explains the nature of the new creation. We become and how to leave old thinking and doubts in the past for limited time resources for Discover your true self are discounted MP3s are always free to order your copy or to send to a friend visit us online at http://livingontheedge.org for additional information.

Just give us a call at AAA 83336003, which if you talk to in your message today about our safe and secure in Christ.

Why is it so important for us to not just know that but believe it to the board work, how we think and how we act actually changes because of it all day. We live in a world where people are fearful. It's been a very, very challenging time. People have been separated and we all have these issues and we talked in the series about doing the daily discipleship which is a short little video that I do personally with people for about 20 days. Listen to this. Sandra rights thank you for helping me fight through my hopelessness, depression, and caring for me and for others in your teaching of Discover the real you.

I got clearly that I was chosen of God, bought by Christ, sealed by the Holy Spirit and simply loved doing the daily series reviewing those cards and even the little part of the book that came in audio has absolutely change my life during one of the most difficult times of ever had. The fact of the matter is, as you listen to this series right now about Discover your true self were going through Ephesians chapter 1, two and three.

But if you want to go from your head to your heart if you want to not just believe you're safe but feel safe. Be secure, then this is something you need to take the next step you need to not simply listen and agree but taking 10 minutes every morning and let me meet with you personally help you learn how to study this passage for yourself, and then each and every day will be very simple handout that will take you about 10 minutes to go through where you will begin to engage with God personally not through someone else.

But the Holy Spirit taking his word directly to your life, your mind and your heart.

And this is what I can guarantee because God does kill, change you.

To help you understand that you are loved and valued, redeemed and wanted that you can live from his approval rather than for his approval. Can I encourage you meet with me. The daily discipleship we can do it every day together, and if you stick with me for about 20 days you will build a pattern that will change the way you think the way you feel in the way you live. Let's do this together a great plan.

Thanks for that encouragement daily discipleship with chip is a course of 10 minute videos were chip walks you through how to study a passage from the Bible and really hear God's voice of the sessions are designed to help you get into the practice of doing that every day. The study trips.

Recommending is based on his current series Discover your true self because you see yourself as God sees you, is an essential to overcoming your deepest struggles.

Having healthy relationships living in freedom and fulfilling your life's purpose to find the daily discipleship with chip@livingontheedge.org on the homepage Listeners just tap discipleship as we wrap up today's program I have to tell you I love the conversation that Jesus had with Nicodemus. Jesus didn't shame him for not asking his questions in public you had a quiet personal profound conversation and he loved Nicodemus and what I also like about this is Nicodemus new I mean he was a theologian.

He had major portions of the Old Testament memorize. I mean, he knew his theology and yet he didn't get how that theology connected to real life and real relationship with God, and I I find that really encouraging because that's often the case with me and I think with many Christians you know as I taught today I taught about justification and some of the words I used in some of you might be going wow man this is cut heavy justification, regeneration, propitiation, man, this guy is using a lot of theological words. But here's what I want to tell you is the meaning of those words that if you are a follower of Christ and you prayed to receive him. These things are true of you and here's what I want you to get justification.

I walk through what that means. That's a legal term where God the father has declared you righteous in his sight forever. Not because of anything you've done or I've done but because of Christ's work in your place applied to you and you know what that means. It means God is your father God is your father. You don't have to earn it. Your part of the family and I talked about regeneration. As I talked about Nicodemus and you have to be born again, and that's a big word but here's all of that means. It means that you are a new creation the old you the person you were before you trusted Christ died and Christ now lives in you. Your personalities the same. Your body looks the same but you're completely new creation.

It's like the the same DNA. You know that the story of the little caterpillar of the chrysalis and then it turns into a butterfly. That's what happened to you in May when we trusted Christ, our DNA doesn't change, but there's completely new life, new potential new future. Do you believe that.

Are you experiencing that in our next program.

I'm going to walk through five very specific things that happen to you when you trusted Christ and I will tell you when you begin to believe these you talk about security you talk about feeling safe. You talk about being the kind of person that can walk into a room and walk through life without fear. It's because you know you're a son you're a daughter of the Lord of lords and King of Kings, who has promised to protect you and love you and keep you for himself no matter what. I hope you join me just before we close. I want to thank each of you who's making this program possible through your generous giving 100% of your gifts are going directly to the ministry to help Christians really live like Christians a few friendships teaching helpful, but you're not yet on the team.

Would you consider doing that today to donate or become a monthly partner. Just go to LivingontheEdge.org Donate on the app or give us a call at AAA 333-6003, let me thank you in advance for whatever the Lord leads you to do well and selects time for everyone here is really saying thanks for listening to this addition of living on the