I Choose Peace - In Tests of Faith, Part 1

One of the greatest challenges I faced in my life is when God tests my faith by directing me to give money to help other because here's what happens with me.

I think to myself if I give away that money is going to take care of me.

The issue is how do you choose peace when you're afraid God will provide for you that's today welcome to this Edition of Living on the Edge with your favorite drip survival teacher for this international discipleship were nearing the end of our series, I choose to quiet your heart. Life for these last two programs chips unpacking LPs is connected to art to be compassionate and generous oftentimes officially government what about me. They will learn how to change that mindset and respond more like Jesus. If you have a Bible open to Philippians chapter 4.

Let's join Chip for his message.

In tests of faith who we are going to go on little journey together and if history and my experiences in the indicator of the future. Some of you will literally mark this weekend in this room as a major turning point in your life is going to be the final installment on contentment getting me the last secret. The last part but at the end of the service you know I hate it when people sneak things up on you at the end of the service. I will give you an opportunity to make a very specific decision and that decision will activate the faith component in this process of contentment and many of you will take it and you will experience peace and contentment in the beginning of a journey in your Christian life that most believers never experience and so it's a little bit of the heavy morning but it's one of those great opportunity so I want to pray for you and pray for me as we begin Lord God, I pray that you would fill me afresh with your spirit that you would open people's hearts and minds not to hear my voice, but to hear yours.

I asked that I could be clear that you would give me a sensitivity to what you want to say and then Lord I pray would you give us the grace and the faith and the courage to believe that what you say is true to the point of acting on it. In Christ name, amen. Number one on the checklist by way of review is it we need to understand contentment is learned. Philippians 410 to 13.

There is a secret that it can be learned and you can actually be at peace regardless of circumstances being good or bad checklist number two from the Philippian church we learned that greed must die before contentment can live that was verse 14 to 18 in the way that greed dies is by developing personal compassion. We learn we give our wants give up our wants to meet some other people's needs is by a generous spirit where we begin to release the very thing money that can consume us. And third is by developing an eternal perspective, coming to believe and understand the spiritual decisions and financial decisions. Instead of being in two different camps are literally connected at the hip third thing in our checklist we need to remember is that our treasurer both reveals and directs the affections of our heart. Matthew 621 Jesus would say wherever your treasure is with what's valuable to you, wherever your time goes wherever your energy goes wherever your money goes wherever your talent goes wherever your treasure is, your heart is like connected with the chain to your treasure and if your treasure goes there. It reveals where your heart is, but also has the power to direct different times in my life. I realize that you and I needed to shore up some priorities were you, I needed to work on an area my marriage with one of my kids and here's here's the thing, try this. I started putting my treasure toward that area. I put my time, my money in my treasure toward my wife for a season and it's amazing how God change my heart or I put my time in my treasure, my energy toward one of my kids going through a tough time and I saw my heart follow your money your time, your talent always reveals and directs wherever your heart is, peace is great when we all wanted intellectually the way to get there is very counterintuitive. The way to get us to give and that raises a problem you know some of your thinking yourself becoming more generous in being more compassionate, that's good except I got a stack of bills. This hi I get tens of thousands of dollars in debt. If I if I actually took serious what you said last week who's going to care me to pay my bills is you I got needs. There's college. There's retirement you know this is like church stuff.

Does this really work who's going to take care of me. That's the problem and what I want to suggest is God has a solution and the solution is at the very end of Philippians chapter 4 it's verse 19 in verse 19 he says, and my God. Paul says to this Philippian church will meet all your needs according to his riches in Christ Jesus, if you will pull out a pen and underline the word my God, that's the who behind this promise and I want you underline all your needs and put a circle around all this essay finances does it. This is a generous church. They don't have a lot of money.

They love Paul they see what's happening and they've got some wants, but they had see he has a bigger need so they can give financially to him and he looks back to him and says you know it's what you model this is how people learn contentment and then almost a reassuring sisters on what you know when you're generous like that when your priorities in order and you're afraid I want you know, my God, personal God, not the force, not some invisible set of factors that operate, but a very personal God who loves you what you gonna do, he'll supply all your need, your spiritual need your emotional need your financial needs. Your relational needs. How he's going to do it according to the glorious riches what's in Christ. And so the promise he gives them and he gives us is God's provision.

God's provision. God says if you learn to live this radical give rather than get compassion and generosity. He says okay what you relax and I'll take care of you all make sure you have what you need to take care of you. But with every promise.

There's also what I call a premise and there are three conditions here towards my God will supply all your needs according to his riches. You can say that's great I mean God's faithful. He's big and I got needs.

He'll take care of those but some of you said yourself, wait a second I been in church for a while. I read the Bible.

Some I've tried this a done work okay coming down deep, you never say it out loud is not like you go to Bible study and say I don't think verse 19 of chapter 4, plus I believe that one you don't say that Bible studies but down deep in your heart you're praying you say you know mom I'm framing does not provide and I got needs and I get a bill overhearing a problem over here. He's not doing it for me. I like to suggest that sometimes we get needs and wants confused, got enough to eat in your warm God says really that that's all you need me, that doesn't have 401(k) does mean you own your own home zoning have a second car doesn't mean you have all the fancies close doesn't mean you we say that intellectually, but unconsciously in America's standard of living skill up up up up up what we do is we make a little bit more money in the wind of our expenses go up and we start thinking that God's promise that we always live at this level all the time and something happens with a God, what's the deal. When I was in in seminary, I had a very interesting experience in God takes you through things before you teach.

And so I'm going to school full time, working full time and I'm on the straight commission job where I make about $900 a month and I'm back in 1980 that still wasn't very much money family of five.

I'm in your live in tight and so every now and then I was in a straight commission job and if someone didn't pass their physical I didn't get my commission and it would be like a whole man on canvas, and so someone would and then I have my rent and need some food. I don't have any money. We were digging quarters out of the backseat and praying and begging God and claimant.

Philippians 419 and you know and I can give you. I could stand up here for an hour of stories of how God provided, and built my faith I could take the story of a time were a good friend who went to be a missionary from India and you get a figure if God prompts him. He knows what's happening over here by the time they decide to send you some money goes all the way overseas and you get this I mean I do have enough money for rent guy failed his you know the medicals I can get the commission I get a $500 check from a missionary in India, when missionaries are sending you money. You know God's hearing but no matter where you're at, you can get thinking and I love to hear the stories, but we can confuse needs and wants and when a particular situation where I think God wanted to teach us a big lesson and there was a lady upstairs in our apartments and her husband walked out on her and she had a brand-new baby and then a little boy the same age as my older boys and I was you know, just like you get up in the morning read my Bible and this outrageous thought came to my mind. She's going to get kicked out of the apartment chip you and Teresa you should pay her rent and I said surely you just God I said, you know, I figured it out when we pay our rent will have $10 left in the bank chip.

I want you to pay her rent and I you know sometimes people get up in their pastors and you think they're real obedient rural holy in the make these outrageously sacrificial. I argue with God a lot so I mean I said no I don't think this is a good idea. I think this is my imagination. This could not be the Holy Spirit. I mean I mean when you get thoughts that help other people are highly sacrificial bring glory to God coming on.

I guess the probably not from you and so about the third day. Finally I give in and say okay God coming. This is a reluctant giver. I'll do it and you know my heart went out to her. So we took all her money out of the bank and we paid for her rent, and so you know, about nine days later, our rents due and I'm thinking okay flipping 419 you can supply all my needs my rents due my rents due Gabriel communication problem. You know money comes the first time in my life.

I mean, I've seen miraculous things happen now for about two years is no money. Next day I get a three day grace period. No money. Third day I get paid today's the day or it's late now God, your reputation, what you doing flipping 419 does this work or not. I'm really pretty upset and I'll never forget walking in units of little tiny was a government-subsidized little housing project and and a member walking toward the living room and I looked I saw not an expense of it all, but a TV and I thought TV is that a need or want want that. I looked over at a stereo system that had for a few years and asked when a basketball trip to Hong Kong is pretty nice.

Is that a need or want and then I thought, you know, as a paperboy I saved all my silver dollars in the silver dimes and back in the 80s member when silver got real valuable. I thought you something. Maybe God has supplied all my needs and I'm asking for something and I shared it with my wife and now we loaded up in our car. My TV my stereo my silver dollars, my silver dimes. Teresa went back and she didn't have any real expensive jewelry, but she had a couple three nice rings and a couple necklaces we went to a pawnshop and we turned in everything we could got about $447 or something.

We paid our rent and have enough money for food for that month. I knew what I learned I learned often, God has supplied our needs, but we unconsciously tell them that what standard of living. He has to come through you know God, I can't do that because I have make that car payment and you have to have that late model car got. I can't do that I would. I would really follow you, except I have this house payment so everyone has to own your own home right you taking your home with you to heaven and right and have to live in this neighborhood with this ZIP Code with the apostle Paul's going to say if you're serious about contentment you need to be serious about God's promises and said there's three conditions about verse 19 condition number one. This is not for unbelievers. This is written to a church notice he will supply according to his riches in Christ Jesus. I'm not income to Christ until I was 18. God is not commit himself to meet the needs of those outside of Christ. The second condition is I don't believe this passage is for all believers.

I don't think every Christian can claim this. I don't think my priorities can be out of whack.

I can be disobedient. Major areas of my life, especially my finances and claim this verse. This verse is written to the Philippian church were doing what they're sacrificially giving up of their wants to meet a need in Paul's life and the answer is, my God will supply all your needs according to his riches in Christ Jesus for people like you who are doing what have their priorities in line 3rd condition is I think this is only for believers who chosen to walk by faith evidenced by sacrificial giving God will meet the needs of his children who say Lord I want to obey you.

I'm sacrificially giving them my money and my time in my talent and and I'm out here on the edge and if you'll catch me. I'm in trouble. He says I'll always catch you always catch you and so the way that you unlock the promises of God is by faith by trusting it, would you jot down will probably get to it yet again. But jot down Hebrews 11 six in the corner of your notes if you will more than anything that God wants to develop in your heart and your relationship. It's not activities is not external morality is not how much money you give her how much you serve in the church is not, you know, trying to figure out how you can figure out some little formula what he wants to develop in your heart more than anything else is a son or daughter, or a student who says I love you Jesus and I evidence my loved by you that when you say it. I obey it, and I trust you, even when I don't feel like it because I believe that you are good and you believe that you are real and I believe that your true without faith it is impossible to please God, for he that comes to God must believe two things. One, it says that he is that he exists, and second, he is a rewarder of those who diligently seek him. Did you ever think of God as a rewarder is a good God is for you and loves you and wants to bless you and is longing for each of us children take a step of faith so he could bless God promises he'll take care of you and the evidence of our pile of debt is often an evidence that I have to have immediate gratification, the evidence of our overextension with our time and our finances is trying to get contentment trying to get satisfied by all the stuff out there and over against that God says more more the get get the bigger bigger the choir. The choir the gotta have the gotta have is an empty bed and but he says if you'll learn to release if you'll learn to trust. If you learn to walk with me satisfy all your needs. Let's talk about how that works, because there is a principal here, as some of you are thinking to yourself, you know what I like to believe this but my experience is a much church worked out for me and there's a axiomatic principle behind this promise, and it's in the Old Testament is in the New Testament is from the life of Christ.

It's in the character of God.

It's from Genesis to Revelation. There's an axiomatic principal all the way a kingdom principal about how God is set up life the world and the world system goes this why disking the principal goes this way. It's called the law of the harvest, the law of the harvest some of called it the law of sowing and reaping others. The law of reciprocity below explains in Luke 638 it's from the very lips of Jesus.

It is not a financial passage although it applies there in Luke 638 Jesus gives the law of the harvest, he says, give, and it will be given unto you, good measure, pressed down, running over, shaken together over into your lap. For whatever measure you give in the measure means you know whatever size you know it. If you use a cup if use a bucket if he's a 55 gallon drum.

Whatever measure you use to give in the same measure it. We give back to you. All the harvest, the world says get get get acquire acquire acquire more more more as you acquire and get then you will be significant strong and powerful and secure. God says no. Just the opposite. Give in to be given unto you, good measure. In fact, shaken the shaken.

It's a picture of of someone who shake something to make room for more.

So he explains that the kingdom principal is give so that God might bless it's illustrated throughout nature. Jesus in John 1224 says, unless a grain of wheat fall into the earth and die it remains by itself alone. But if it dies, it brings forth much fruit. I mean it's just an agricultural picture. But God has made the creation declares the glory of the Lord, you can take one or two seeds of wheat stick into the ground.

It seems like the height of foolishness, you could take 10 or 12 and you could grind them up and make at least one little piece of bread and eat it but instead you take one seed and you put into the ground and then you put dirt over it and you give it away and then in a season.

You never reap an essay scene the season that you so it grows up and what comes out of it. Hundreds and hundreds of seeds of wheat, give, and it will be given unto you, good measure, pressed down, running over it's explained in nature. It's it's it's applied to Jesus. Follow along as I read Philippians chapter 2. What does Jesus do, what does he give in order for God to exalt him, beginning at verse eight says and being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. What what he do he gave his life.

He was the grain of wheat that went into the ground. What's the result verse nine. Therefore, God highly exalted him, and bestowed on him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those are in heaven and on earth and under the earth and that every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the father, the law of the harvest, the secret final secret of contentment is that the way to receive is to give. We see it in nature. We see in the life of Christ and then in Luke 924 from the lips of Jesus he applies it to us in verse 23 he says to a large multitude of disciples, if any one of you want to follow after me be my disciple be my follower, you need to take up your cross instrument of death. Deny yourself and follow me. How often you may know, daily. And in verse 24 for whosoever would seek to say or keep his life, get will lose it, but whoever would have his life would find out this point in time the looks on your face as I always love it when this happens there is a conflict in dilemma between your brain and your heart to some of you are thinking through some the applications in your brain is going. Luke 638 that's a principal does clear as a bell. I see it.

Nature farmers use it all the time. You know what Philippians 2 it's true.

Jesus you know that Luke nine passage I mean that is black-and-white. That's not like interpretation. This is an axiomatic kingdom principal.

The law of harvest and then you think of yourself. All my lands, I would have to think completely differently about how to do life so can I just get, you must take one step at a time you buy okay.

Do you at least intellectually by that the Bible teaches this. This would be, yes, this would be no this would be I don't move my head in church, dude.

Okay, what if you intellectually buy it and here's what I like you to do. Let's go to the next page and I want to walk through the process of how this actually works in a regular person's life, not a missionary, not a pastor, not some famous spiritual person I want to walk through how the law of the harvest actually works in ordinary people's lives so that as you begin to live in a different way you will have super natural stories aren't some of you like tired of hearing stories of you know will quarterback from the end of those something I've thousand dollars in a missionary sending $500 in black attire the time were five bags of groceries with only the kind of food with wheat flour and meat and cheese and no one knew we had any need. Why do you think I get the stories because God is a rewarder of those who do what step out by faith. Faith that does what. Often, counterintuitively, you give when you think of yourself. Only an idiot would give right now that's what I told God, Lord, excuse me, but I have both brain cells working I have like my rent plus $10 and you're asking me to give it to this lady.

It's very nice.

Why don't you give it to her and he said I'm going to through you. The question I want to know is, do you trust me to take care of you and my answer was maybe so I didn't feel like it didn't don't don't don't over spiritualize it. I didn't feel like I didn't want to do it I just obey God's application chose to be listening to the first part of his message. In tests of from his series, I choose peace. Do you feel burdened by life's demands. Are you anxious about the financial pressures on you. Is there a difficult relationship wearing you down if you answered yes to any of these questions, you need a little more peace in your life in the series chip talks about the peace of God, that in the midst of the chaos restores columns and encourages us don't miss a single part of the series. It will change your relationship with God. For additional info on I choose peace, order, order any of the series resources visit LivingontheEdge.org app listeners tap special offers will ship your message today focused on the testing of our faith and how we can lose our peace in those difficult seasons. I think it would be encouraging for listeners to hear how you've struggled especially in this past year with holding onto peace how you get through it or did you turn on days you know I think the thing that I struggle with the most.

It wasn't relationships.

Although the isolation really got to me. I think when I was exposed to what was happening all around the world and I went through a season where I wanted to stay up with everything and I was watching the news and it was like I was hearing every negative thing that was happening anywhere in the world and I went from getting sort of discouraged and down to really depressed I I had a couple days that I got really really depressed and what I don't think people realize is that we are what we eat dinner.

We do some teaching on that. But what you allow in your mind. I literally had to do a media break and I had to take some passages that have been court to me like Philippians chapter 4 in Colossians chapter 3 and begin to memorize those and ponder those and I think what I did is I went back to this series after I taught it to what I wrote in this book, I choose peace into the area of what do you do when you feel like the whole world falling apart and just because you wrote it, or just because you know it doesn't mean he practice it all the time and I had to go back and look at what I had written in the book and practice the very things that people are hearing right now and so I would just encourage people you have to guard what goes into your mind, and I would say maybe this book would be a real help in walking you through a process, not only of the big picture, but relationships anxiety financial pressures we deal with all those things in this book in the series, and our hearts desire Living on the Edge is that you would experience God's peace.

He loves you so much he wants to give you peace even in the midst of whatever you're going through old order your copy of Chip's brand-new book I choose, please visit LivingontheEdge.org or call AAA to 333-6003. If you're ready for more peace in your life get your hands on this resource or order a future study together with some friends you want to revisit the truth in this book again and again, especially when anxiety and worry threatened to overwhelm you to order your copy of I choose peace.

Just go to LivingontheEdge.org or call AAA 333-6003 that's AAA 333-6003 app listeners tap special offers.

No, let's get the chips application in our next broadcast.

We'll talk a lot more about the specifics of this whole idea of trusting God, especially as it relates to when he calls us to give impact, especially when he calls us to maybe give beyond what were normally used to giving. But today this, let me remind you that this didn't come easy for me and it doesn't necessarily come easy for you.

In fact, when God begins to grow your faith I find that often. He tests us and he gives us opportunities to step out and that he comes through and it doesn't mean you feel like giving it doesn't mean like there's some big emotion. In fact, obedience is what brings joy to the heart of God. It's Jesus said he that has my commandments and keeps them, he it is that loves me. I just want you to know it's a journey that doesn't come easy.

But what I do want you to know is you have to take the first step, whatever God is speaking to you about with regard to your finances.

Maybe it's just basically typing, start today trust him.

He will provide.

Just before we close. I want you to know that as a staff we ask the Lord to help you take whatever your next faith step is if there's a way we can be helpful.

We'd love to do that would give us a call a 8883336003 or connect with us@livingontheedge.org water. There you'll find resources on all kinds of topics, many of them absolutely free one. Glad you been with us and until next time, this is Dave Drewry saying thanks for listening to this Edition of Living on the Edge