Breakthrough - The First Step to Breakthrough, Part 2

God wants to do something impossible for you.

Let me say that again God wants to do something possible. Not hard, not unlikely, not difficult, but impossible. He wants you to experience a super natural power in ways that are literally unimaginable. The question is how does that work. What do you need to do in order to experience that kind of life changing. That's what will cover today stay with thanks for joining us for this Edition of Living on the Edge with your finger tips are Bible teacher of this international discipleship program and I this program ship tells us there's a premise we have to believe before we can experience the first step to breakthrough Jesus believe it and we need to to break just before we jump in. Let me encourage you to get chips message notes for this one. He's got a unique fill in for you if you difference in your take away trips notes are a quick download of LivingontheEdge.org under the broadcasts tab Listeners Fill in notes in your set okay open your Bible. If you have one to the book of Mark, let's join shift for part two of his message first step to breakthrough. He begins a preaching tour and in chapter 2 what to do.

He heals a paralytic mean that they people that you paralyzed. You must've done something wrong. Seal bad karma so he starts out healing people declaring war on demons, many heals this paralytic and in the end of two and the early part of three calls the disciples deals with some theological issues and in chapter 3. Notice you into a synagogue. Again, and there's a man with a shriveled hand. His popularity is mushrooming and now the Pharisees are jealous as I hear someone out. If you have a shriveled hand your unclean.

You don't measure up. They want to see what's he going to do what to do. He speaks doesn't attach. He speaks and the man is healed. Afterwards, the Pharisees religious people are plotting how to kill and then the crowds follow Jesus skip down if you will.

Verse nine of chapter 3 it says because of the crowds, he told the disciples have a small boat ready for him to keep the people from crowding him, for he had healed many so that those with diseases were pushing forward to touch him. Did you hundred. What's the message it's a new preacher and you yourself what's he do it he just keeps healing people and tequila people touching people touching people that no one thinks is worth anything. It's good news.

This isn't measuring up.

He just keeps loving people. If you're one of his early Jewish boys discipleship on this is really different and did you notice it's not about how many services they have or how many buildings are building what is his power the world today doesn't need to see more church buildings or more services for our numbers increase for that sake.

They need to see the power of God in you and in me in our homes, in our work in our neighborhood, unleashing the power that doesn't that's the gospel and that's what he wants to teach them will notice he appoints the 12 and they come with him and in chapter chapter 4, he begins to do some teaching, which is always very important. So he teaches them about the kingdom and then after he teaches them about the kingdom.

He wants them to understand that they are agents to bring breakthrough in the lives of people and we don't have time to go into debt. Encourage you to read it on your own. Chapter 4 he teaches about the kingdom about trusting God about that the soil it's responding to God's word and he talks about how grows with the mustard seed and how we don't respond in truth we get we don't get more truth in it talks about how it's a supernatural thing that happens in and of itself it will grow the power of God's word as the Holy Spirit uses it in the hearts of people that are open and willing. And then he says let's go to the other side because what he wants to do now. He has helped them see this is my message. It's good news. But now he wants them to understand this is who I really am and I'm not only good but I'm powerful enough to handle anything that ever comes up any time with anyone. And so he says let's go to the other side in these professional fishermen get into an impossible storm and what's he do you know the story he's at peace. He's asleep, they cry out he speaks and what happens to breakthrough and they go. Who is this guy and then I go to the other side and is not just a guy with demons. If you read it later today very carefully. It's a demonic attack that has a legion of demons in him and no one another words it's impossible. No one can control is God so anybody have demons in your life. I don't mean necessarily literal ones, but I mean we talk about the demons from our past her family of origin.

My addiction and maybe some little ones and what's he do he speaks is healed and wants him to know that it really happened so demons get into pig so visually you can see this is reality, and then they go back across Tennessee's going he hears is a little girl is very sick and as he's walking, there's a woman who's an impossible situation when the author makes it very clear she's used up all her money. She saw all the doctors you can find nothing works, but she believes there's goodness in this man, she's hurt. She's seeing if I could just touching when she got the goodness of God is so great that Jesus unaware when someone draws near to the goodness of God by faith. Supernatural things happen. She's healed on the spot and did you notice what he said her daughter your what made you well. Your faith, but she got to the point that George Mueller talk about. I'm I'm bankrupt.

There is nothing I can do this, Jesus can help me if I don't get a breakthrough. There's no hope and is on the way to help the little girl servants, it's too late, don't bother.

She's dead and this might be worth putting your nose in Mark chapter 5 ignoring verse 36 what they said, Jesus told the synagogue ruler. Don't be afraid just believe restart to get the gospel to declaration. It's an announcement.

How is he teaching these disciples. But what's he doing. He's demonstrating the goodness in the love of God and then if you would care to skip over to chapter 6 the beginning because hearing about it and watching it never makes it real in your life. The chapter 60 says boys can ascend on expedition but I want you to depend on me and I want you to experience what you seen so no cloaks no second bags no money, no walking sticks. I want you to go to these villages. I'm on a preaching tour and I want you to heal the sick, I want to cast out demons. I want to announce the kingdom and they go do it and God works through oh and they come back to them in their exhausted and they're excited there now agents a breakthrough, Lord demons, they listen to us.

People were healed. He says let's go get a break and they go to get a break. And as they arrive. All my lands. He makes Mick Jagger and every rock star in the entire world seem like nothing because the crowd swell and swell and swell and swell and swell he has compassion on them, and so in chapter 6. Here's don't miss this to chapter 6 the disciples after he teaches him by this time, verse 35 it was late in the day, the disciples came to him in this remote place he said is already very light send the people away so they can go to the surrounding countryside and villages, and buy for themselves something to eat. Notice Jesus response but he answered them, you give them something not about you, but I've seen some miracles. God use them to perform some of miracles. There's been some breakthroughs there's 5000. The way they counted those days were 5000 men, who knows how many people okay listen very carefully. This is what we lost.

Jesus expects you to do impossible things. God expects to do impossible things in you and through you and if you gonna read the story it will symbol. How does it happen what's a daily symbol what you got. I'm not asking to do something with that what you don't have what you got bring it to me. Trust me, and when you understand by faith. How good I am and you're willing to obey what I've already said I will show up in ways that declare and reveal my glory and my goodness to people that have no idea that I love.

That's what breakthroughs about now. When I read things like that. I get very encouraged but also begin to ask questions like number four is there a historical precedent that breakthrough can happen in our day right in other words, this is this is great this is great stuff. It's Bible stuff but does God still do that and I would say if we could do a quick run of church history, which we won't what I'd say as you would see that the book of acts is a picture of a breakthrough in there be many things that will learn about what these very ordinary people did were God through a clear vision of people who believe what he said were very ordinary transformed about the next 300 years, the entire world, and during that time you find guys like Athanasius who stood his ground when all of Christianity was moving away apart from the truth and there was a breakthrough and you see times where then corruption happens in the church and they get connected in this quote, Holy Roman Empire, and everything that Jesus said in all that he taught and who were to be little by little by little would begin to just be so far away from what was happening in the life of the church and so he raised up St. Francis over here in a group of monks over here in the trees of the here and and then John Hoss a check priest to select play second finish the Bible and then Eleuthera. Calvin and Zwingli and a Reformation would be birthed and they did it imperfectly, and they did some wonderful things and they did some really terrible things in the midst of it, because God doesn't use perfect people who have it all together to breakthroughs. They have blind spots and then after that Reformation you have people like Tyndale who said you know something we get this printing press on them start making Bibles in English that people can get an Hoss made a copy and you know breakthroughs are expensive, really expensive. They burned us at the stake as a heretic, probably the greatest breakthrough that happened in the last 500 years with Martin Luther and I in my journey here and was led very clearly by God to study Martin Luther because the parallels of what was happening in 1512 through about 1560 are very akin to what's happening in our world today.

Here's a historical context. The Holy Roman Empire is now in cahoots with the church. There's corruption no Bible for the common people. The only person who could interpret the Scripture was the Pope only priests had access to God, the church and the church laws was the authority not the Bible. People were paying at this point for their salvation in indulgence. He's trying to pay their way out of hell into heaven, and there was ignorance, poverty, a functional caste system with the nobles hierarchy of the church and most of the world, illiterate peasants called the dark ages after Hoss blazed the trail would literally no pun intended.

Martin Luther shows up if you had a tortured childhood very strict strict parents. That's putting it mildly. He had a conscience that he could never get right and he found himself longing to please God and he did get a good education, but in the middle of the education Law school.

We had this horrendous experience some sort of lightning or thunderstorm along with the loss of a friend and he promised God. He prayed, according to church history prayed to St. and if you get me out of this all be a monk and he lived and so he went to be a monk.

Wittenberg got his doctorate's Masters than his became a teacher. Wittenberg and he had no peace in the soul. I mean it was a complete Works orientation. The justice of God the justice of God.

What God demands set Luther in his own words made me hate God. I hated God and he was like obsessive-compulsive over the top.

I'll do whatever it takes.

He fasted, he did all kind of weird things to himself. He went on pilgrimages he prayed for long can I mean he just anything that can earn God's favor and he would always come back. Realizing his own heart's own motives and he just hated God into his supervisor at your monk.

It's hard to be a monk and he got. I mean, it's not a good job and so his supervisor had him do his doctoral work in the original languages, where he taught the Psalms, Romans and Galatians and after teaching those courses for about three years on a certain day at a certain time for the first time ever. He read what the Bible said not the indoctrination of the heresy that he heard that the just shall live by faith. Therefore, we have peace with God. Since we been justified by faith in the lights came on and Luther had a what what what he described as an evangelical awakening and he thought it was no big deal. What he realized was I just rescued the authentic gospel and begin to teach it and things started happening.

Wittenberg and he literally the first was 97 theses, not 95, and people were excited and there was a movement and there is conflict with the Holy Roman Empire and God in his sovereignty had this King Frederick who really like Luther and so the Pope didn't want to mess with them and then he did the 95 theses later and I mean all blank broke loose in one man stood very imperfectly, and because of that the Reformation and here's what happened to you because of that breakthrough. All individuals you normal people can have a personal relationship with Christ. Salvation is by faith. Salvation is a gift of God's grace.

You are a priest you can talk to him directly, and God wants to use you marriage was elevated peace and assurance, a joyful life not living under the thumb of this angry God. Scripture is the authority of your life.

No teacher, no church, no organization, the word of God is your authority, the equality of men and the basis of democracy are all rooted in even peasants matter to God you what the message was God's good God is good God is loving God is great God wants to bless people he doesn't think any more of Kings and it is a peasants Germany went through this tumultuous time in the King hit Luther and he translated the Bible into German for the common people.

And despite his horrendous views of Jews and some of his anti-Semitic.

They were terrible early on and that is, he grew in Christ, he moderated them in the near the end of his life. He got frustrated.

He said some terrible things this mean he was a very blunt you would read some his stuff and are you kidding, and the only thing I can tell you is it's encouraging to me because I don't know if the Lord to come back were maybe they'll be another 50 years. But if I'm dead. 50 years from now.

I'm sure there's going be some people little listen to or read a sermon and say how could Ingram be just coming. He seemed like he was really on about this but he was so off my neck because we are a product of our culture and environment, but we don't know it and God can use ordinary people where you are in your life now. So the first question is so what what is this idea breakthrough is, is there a pattern in Scripture. Yes, how did Jesus teach his disciples. Is there historical precedent and I mean it's happening through history and after Luther. It goes on and I mean we could talk about. Then the next generation other than what Carrie did and then Wesley and Whitfield and Edwards in America in the next generation of Moody and Spurgeon and then the end of the century. Amy McPherson at the turn-of-the-century and Billy Sunday and then all of a sudden warned Dawson Trotman and Billy Graham and Bill Bright regular ordinary people like you and me whom God becomes so real and so good they live out of what he's already done for them and they believe it to the point that they begin to look at other people as objects of God's love and mercy and they begin to treat and think and act that way and live with a joy because they don't have to measure up. You already measure up. That's the gospel final question may be the most important one. How do you experience the first step breakthrough and I'm gonna tell you it is so easy to say and so hard to experience a ready it's to believe that God is good. Not intellectually, I mean belief it's to believe that he is willing it's to embrace the God wants to do, not something hard or difficult, but the impossible in you and through you. That's his will. If you are one of his disciples even turned to you even look you right in the eye and say you feed him and you go what you reach your neighborhood what you be a breakthrough at work what you take the first step in the reconciliation is never married. What you break that addiction and bring other people with you what what he expects and all the power is available to do it how I don't want you intellectually love yeah when I was there. It seemed like God really love me cares about me. I'm valued and I'm forgiven in his spirit lives in me and I have gifts he's got a plan for my liking AAA and then Monday morning I want you to read this over and I want you to put your name in it because I want you not to memorize this or say Gotto love me more if I get this down.

This passage was not written just to read at funerals.

This is one of the most graphic pictures of God's goodness in all the Bible and when you personalize it mean just in preparing for this. I just read the Lord's chips Shepherd ship lacks nothing.

He makes Chip lie down in green pastures. He leads Chip beside quiet waters. He refreshes chips so he guides Chip along the right pass for his namesake even though Chip walks through the darkest valley. Chip will fear no evil for you are with Chip.

Your rod and your staff they comfort Chip, you prepare a table for Chip in the presence of chips enemies you anoint ships head with oil chips couple overflow. Shirley goodness and love will follow ship not somebody somewhere sometime me all the days of chips life and Chip talk about promise will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

I want you this week to write your name in there and what you just read it over and and by the way is your reading. If you find just if you slip into start praising God. It's okay it it if problems about oak God would really give me direction or help me get through this and you start thinking and thoughts come to your mind and solve problems. That's okay if you renew your mind next seven days. Okay, at least a couple times a week.

Your intellectual assent that God is good will move from your head into your heart and you will begin to see differently and you will begin the first step right back with his application for just a quick reminder this message.

The first step breakthrough is from his series breakthrough unleashing God's power into impossible situations. Maybe your impossible situation is a relationship an addiction or a painful event in your past will. Here's the truth breakthrough isn't something we sit around and wait for it happens when we trust God for the impossible and start cooperating with them to make it a reality in the series. Chip helps us take the first steps toward breakthrough in our relationships, our habits and our attitudes.

Breakthrough resources are available in both audio and video formats including online streaming with the study guide for previews and ordering details, check out breakthrough@livingontheedge.org special offers on the chipping remap or give us a call at 8883336003 that's AAA 333-6003 without her strip with a thought-provoking question. I'll be right back in just a minute.

But before I do, let me ask you a question.

Have you ever helped a believer in China or Singapore or maybe Indonesia really grow in their faith or dealt with some of their problems or maybe have you sat across the table from a pastor in Egypt or the Middle East and said let me give you some resources to help you in your church. Well, if you're a supporter of Living on the Edge you've actually done that so much of what we do is not only here in America.

But God has opened unbelievable doors across the world and as you support Living on the Edge financially and as you pray for us. You are actually a part of ministering to those people.

In fact that's what the Bible says because we are a body and what I want you to know is that is that continues to expand one of our greatest needs is for monthly partners.

It's great to have people given worse. So grateful.

But it's the monthly partners that we can know that this amount of money is going to come in each month allows us to plan and strategize because the needs here and around the world are expanding like never before. If you would like to become a monthly partner can I encourage you pray and ask God what he would have you do and whether it's a small amount a big amount you just do what God ask you to do. And as you give monthly. I want you to know were going to help fulfill the great commission together.

Thanks so much for whatever lead you to do. Helping Christians here in the US and around the world is what God is called the Ministry of Living on the Edge to do if you like to help us fulfill that mission would love to have you join the team by becoming a monthly partner to set up a recurring donation. Call us a 8883336003 that's AAA 333-6003. The donate button on the app or donate online at http://livingontheedge.org.

Thanks in advance for doing whatever God leads you to do without her strip with a final word.

As we close today's program and you think about the breakthrough I mean the impossible thing. And right now, you may not really be able to believe that it could happen, but I want you to know that God is good that he is your shepherd that he is for you that as the text says in Psalm 23. His goodness is literally running after you. It's pursuing you.

It's amazing to think about that the God of the universe, all powerful that he knows everything about you and cares about you and he wants to do good things, better things even that you can think or imagine, as I have a little exercise that will help you begin to the little by little start to get that from an intellectual concept to something in your life and heart that you could really believe it's what I want to do is get some 23 out right in front of you and then I want you to rewrite it and I want you to rewrite it where you put your name were ever there is a personal pronoun it will feel a little funny at first to know. Another words the Lord is chips shepherd chip will not be in want you.

You get the idea. And I want you to go through the whole Psalm 23 and I want you to rewrite it.

Putting your first name and then I believe you begin, little by little to understand the goodness of God. You personally know and what I've experienced. And by the way, if you do this one or two days and you're expecting you know lightning bolts go half a chicken to be really disappointed right this on a card or a pad of paper and read it over and then put it near your nightstand and before you go to bed read it over slowly and ponder it and and then emphasize different words. You know the Lord is chips shepherd he's going to lead ship in paths of righteousness.

He restores chips so I mean that's how I've done it.

And as you go through that sort of meditative leg.

You'll thank God, in uniform five minutes just before you go to bed pondering that. And now you've planted that in your subconscious and the Holy Spirit is going to begin to help you conceive and believe that you are precious and valuable and protected. And God loves you. In fact, there is one verse that summarizes Psalm 23 very well in the new living translation.

It Psalm 86, five, and I love the way he puts it, he says, oh Lord, you are so good so kind, so ready to forgive to everyone who calls upon your name I just love that so good so kind, so ready to forgive. And here's the condition. All of those who call upon your name, could you but believe today that the beginning of breakthrough is believing that God is good and he wants to be good to you because he knows the power of the exercise.

He was just describing for Psalm 23 chip included in his message notes for you the full text. Is there with blanks for you to fill in your name like he was suggesting this would be a great little piece to keep in your Bible or someplace and he is a reminder of God's goodness to you personally. Chips notes are a quick download of LivingontheEdge.org under the broadcasts tab Listeners just top field notes will be sure to join us again next time when chip continues a series breakthrough. Until then, this is Dave Drury saying thanks for listening to this Edition of Living on the Edge