True Spirituality - God's Dream for Your Life, Part 2

As parents we all have a dream for kids. And yet there's times when they make decisions and they get on the wrong path and it breaks our heart. I want you to know that that happens to us as Christians as well.

You have a heavenly father wants to stop help you turn around and point you in the right direction put his arm around you and help you experience like don't miss this message. Thanks for joining us for this Edition of Living on the Edge shipping services or by the daily discipleship program just continues a series throughout Romans 12 is focus in this message is to remind you that God actually read for you message include his brief outline and all supporting scriptural references yellow these message notes just go to the broadcasts have ever LivingontheEdge.org helplessness's of you have a Bible turn out to Romans chapter 12 for part two of chips talk God's dream for your life. There are few positions.

I think in all the world that are more miserable than a legitimate born-again follower of Jesus, in whom the Spirit of God lives who lives with 1 foot and walking with God and the other foot in the world system. I happen to be an expert on this. I've done extensive personal research. I know what it's like to be at Bible study on Thursday night and hit every bar on Friday night. I have been over here arrive all Bible study in talking about sexual purity and lusted like crazy over here until he got on never do this this this or that.

Again, I know and I will tell you I was the most miserable Christian in the world for the first three years. That is the place the great majority of believers live in, we forfeit cuts piece the guilt and the shame of logging on the guilt and the shame of flirting over here the guilt and the shame of all the kind of stuff that you are lured into is the world conforms your thinking to a bankrupt system that never delivers see God loves us too much for that wording to learn ready working to learn how to break that cycle, God's spirit and God's power can help you live the kind of life belong to them that he wants for you and will learn that's how you get is best.

Beginning in verse three, and through a we learned that in a relationship to ourselves. God desires a sober self assessment noticeable phrase for by the grace of God.

What I want you here in all where he sorta sets the bar of holiness and righteousness and what it means to have true spirituality you hear behind at this compassionate heart of love for by the grace of God I say to every man among you don't think more highly of yourself than you ought to think. But think is to have sound or sober judgment as God is allotted to each measure of faith he talks about how you get that now you're part of the body and will discover that he's deposited a supernatural gift. If you look at verse six. The rate will cover all those later but he wants you in your relationship to yourself to look in the physical mirror and to look in the spiritual and the relational mirror and say like that person God made them that personality that gifts that high that eyecolor those struggles that family background in the sovereignty of God. He what you have an accurate sober view of yourself and that one verse that word sober, think, think, think, or different times. God wants you to see yourself the way he sees you dearly loved valuable precious forgiven and in unit of the big question this answers Heidi come to grips with the real you and you realize how much time and energy and money and posing an image management. We do just as normal human beings, even as Christians to try and project all these different people that I'm like this on like this and I'm dressed like that. I'm cool like that and I know this and did you know I know so-and-so and this is how many people report to me or my son and my daughter get I got this on their SAT scores and she hit two home runs and I want you know I went to an Ivy League school in this person is not a knockoff. It's really real. This watch it really is. I got promoted and he and then you spiritualize it on to get a Bible study. Well according to some commentary when I was reading the Greek text literally or in preparation for this we do and we do it we do it we do it. This section will teach you how to come to grips with the real you. And then it supplies the missing ingredient verse one supplies the power. When you understand it. Verse two supplies the piece in verse three, supplies your purpose to see God made you specifically you are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto a good work we prefer the foundations of the earth. So guess what he's gifted you to do something specific in his sovereignty he has human relationships that have been difficult in some ways, and empowering others. But God has a purpose for your life when you're always pretending to be someone else or comparing yourself with someone else and not accepting these are my strengths.

These are my weaknesses. These are my guess this is my background. This produces some difficult independency. This produces some great things and to get a sober self assessment unit playing games your life you try to fulfill your mom's purpose. Your dad's purpose of the cultures purpose of the company's purpose or what other people think you how freeing is understand.

This is why I'm here.

My purpose is this and this is what I'm good at and this is what I'm not good at this is where I need help and this is where I need to step out and let God use me this revolutionary, it's absolutely revolutionary. Have a good friend over in Santa Cruz and he was a fellow entrepreneur. He ran half of United States of one is really really giant companies in Saul that he was kinda losing touch with his family and the travel and so he decided that he would start a business of his own and so he developed these but 26 of these stores around that you know, like Joanne's or Michael's buddy called by his wife's name, which I thought was very nice and that he became a mentor of mine had spent a lot of time and he would help me and I was teaching through sort of an infant stages of my journey about a sober self assessment and a part of that understanding what your primary spiritual gift is in and he went through that and and you know what this people are people and in his world. Okay, he was a good business guy. He became very successful when you're very successful business. He made a lot of money, so there is a good leader and thought about above about casino what is hold like 25 years of church experience was sitting on committees in meetings where I wanted to talk about money and then counting money afterwards.

And if there's ever a capital campaign did you do it and he said I had it all and we went through journey and he discovered his spiritual gift and you discover what he likes to do is launch things.

What he likes to do is equip people and would like to do is bring together networks, and so he said you know what I just decide I'm not going be on anymore boards.

This is a spiritual decision. He said this is what I'm going to do and he actually was the one that launch Living on the Edge. It was his idea is him his his his usual guy got it on and I can now tell you 45678 different ministries he's launched. He just is there such joy when you figure out how God made you, and you fulfill your purpose. Do you know yours. Did you kinda start to get what I'm talking about is so different than that Sunday morning or Saturday night we better go to church. This is great to hear about what we ought to do it on not doing very much of it on the try really hard is not really gone so bitter fake it will be better than I'm taken right now. I was really convicted all boys more to do more do they want to do this you to realize how so much of Christendom is like people got like another job and often a job you don't like and often a job you don't like and you actually not doing very well at.

That's not true spirituality. True spirituality is relational's practical it's measurable. It's normal people like us that are surrendered to God on up on on a day where we actually cross that line and then progressively were separate from the world's values and then we develop a sober self assessment and we start to discover purpose and why were hearing it it actually is downright exciting. The fourth thing you see is its relationship of believers is it serving in love true spiritual maturity is love must be sincere and the word literally is without a mask, without hypocrisy. Hate what is evil. Cling what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love and in the rest of that passage will unpack it and talk about honoring one another giving preference to one another and it's it's really about people that actually know each other and like each other and sacrifice for one another and pray for one another and can do whatever it takes to help one another and kiss like doing life in community but you serve and love that it's real love a meeting I go to. It's not okay you know we made it three or four times this month. I'm feeling really good about that checkbox. I read the Bible four times this week. It's so different when it's a relationship with this God who loves you so much and you open his word with the sense of wholly trembling that he would so love and want to speak to you today and he would love to hear what's on your mind and on your heart and actually his spirit lives inside of these other people called other Christians and he's deposited gifts in them and he wants to hug you through them. He was the love you through them was to hold you accountable through them was to encourage you through them and are you ready to want you to do that right and there's this amazing thing in the early church member. What Jesus said a new commandment I give unto you to the early disciples. John 13 that you will love one another. How just as I've loved you this, not by buildings, not by external morality by this world will know that the father has sent me by how you love one another in this section of true spirituality from Romans 12 answers the question that we all struggle with is the how to experience authentic community, whether so many lonely people.

I don't mean just being in a group. I don't mean just being a member of something. I mean how do I experience where there's someone or two or three in my life that I can unzip my heart and I can risk putting it out there and I can tell of things and I won't be condemned and the support me and love me and when I'm going through a horrendous time. Bill be there for me and they know be there for them. You ready having some friends who would literally, not figuratively, not metaphorically friends who would die for you that's authentic community and pay what you get around people to love each other like that is powerful. You know what's missing in most Christians lives not just power. It's not just purpose and was missing most Christians lives experiencing God's presence.

Somehow it's like we do these things and we hope God will do this and what he's out there somewhere somehow someway.

Do you know God's primary plan apart from when you read his word, or you're talking to him or meditating. You know his primary way to manifest his presence is through other Christians humming. If an angel comes at the middle the night at the foot of your bed tonight. Go for tell me about it later. And if he hugged you and fixes you a meal and says he'll tell me what's really going on inside because I really want to hear because I really care God bless you, but for 99.9% of all the rest of us.

You know how Jesus is going to show up in your life.

He's going to show up in the body of another person, a man or woman or a fellow student where there's kind of this chemistry in this safety and this love and your devoted to one another in brotherly love and you give preference to one another in honor and you do life together. The final portion of becoming a Romans 12. Christian is it just your relationship with God or your relationship with the world or yourself are believers, but the evil in the world. Relationships with nonbelievers that are hostile to the gospel and unfortunately sometimes relationships with believers that are evil and hostile toward you, but it supernaturally responding to evil with good. Here the apostle Paul. You can hear them just reaching into the sermon on the Mount by the spirit of God bless those who persecute you, bless and curse not. Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God. Vengeance is mine, I will repay, if your enemy is hungry, what you do for you and if your Emmy enemies thirsty what you do get in the drink. Do not be overcome with evil see more humans evil is going to come into all of our lives on your little journey on this earth.

Some of you have more than others.

You can get ripped off you getting it betrayed you have mates walk out when you get a kid say terrible things to you you to people who love you loan them money and they promise to pay it back. And guess what, they're not going to and there's evil that sort of systemic you can love God with all your heart, guess what Christians that love God with all their heart, get cancer, they get hit by drunk drivers. They get swooped in to down economies and lose their homes and they been faithful with their finances. Evil is coming your way. So what's true spirituality. What I love about what God says. True spirituality is how the spirit of God lives the life of Christ out in relationship with my heavenly father with the world myself with believers in them with unbelievers when the raw deals are coming my way.

The question and answers is how to overcome the evil aimed that you and the thing that most Christians listen carefully. Most Christians have missing in their life's perspective.

We all could probably take out a 3 x 5 card or get out your mobile device and press little app where it says notes we could probably all list for five people that used to walk with God. The don't walk with God now after their mate walked out on after the car wreck after the got ripped off at work right to. There's a reason that almost 25% of the book of Genesis is dedicated to the life of Joseph because Joseph is a picture of true spirituality of how do you respond at the evil aimed that you and it wasn't easy and I mean he was betrayed falsely accused forgotten sold but that little phrase the Lord was with Joseph and Gino. Joseph had perspective. Joseph Connor took even though they didn't have them in those days follow it. Joseph took the helicopter of spiritual perspective and in those days in prison or falsely accuse you to skip taken the helicopter up really really really high and looking at all of that and saying you know something, there's a sovereign God. These are decreed or allowed this and he loves me and I don't know how it's gonna work out but if I don't bail out and trust him to work it for my good and he'll do in me and through me.

What could never happen and so I refuse to be better.

I refuse to not forgive. I refuse to become a victim.

I refuse to let the world shake me I will trust my God, because I have perspective and he would say to his brothers. At the very end of the book you meant it for evil but God meant it for good. If all those difficult things wouldn't have happened. He would've not been the second most powerful person in all the world and he would've not saved Jewish nation and God has a game plan and you have a Joseph story to live out it'll be a big one for some a smaller one for others. I start to catch what true spirituality is all about about relationships, but it's measurable. I mean, you can measure MI surrender to my separate from the world's values do have a sober self-assessment MI serving in love my supernaturally responding to evil with good minute help ship, ask and answer those questions and little by little, as we walk through this together.

You will begin to experience as you trust and obey thy faith, God's power.

God's peace God's purpose God's presence in God's perspective.

That's why I'm so excited and and you know what you what I love about this. Guess whose book we got this out of this text.

It's just the Bible it's true what Jesus said to them, he said to us. If you abide in my word and that word just means if you take it in for the purpose of the plat by faith, then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free to turn over the notes on it close with this one very important perspective, there is a danger on our journey. Like every journey. There's dangers, but there's a danger on our journey to begin to very subtly begin to think that sort of the R 12 journey of the Romans 12 journey is like a moral code and a set of bars to live up to. Okay I'm to be surrender sober self-assessment think I got that certain low bandwidth you can remember the last one supernatural respond something with something, and you can turn it into the very thing were trying to avoid. And so I want to remind you the true spirituality has nothing to do with living a good life, so that God will love you. True spirituality has everything to do with beginning to grasp the height and depth and length and breadth of how much God has already loved you, has demonstrated that love and you living out of the freedom of that love.

And so I just put little chart of the entire book of Romans. What did he do chapters 1 through three. All of us fall short of the glory of God. We sugarcoat this this is it just being not a nice person.

We have sinned, we betrayed God work people have committed treason and he's holy in his adjuster wrath is upon us for what we have done and that's the problem in chapters 4 and five. There's a solution.

The solution to sin is salvation. Jesus fully man and fully God lived the perfect life, died upon the cross to pay for your sin and rose from the dead and offers a free gift of whomsoever would believe and receive it.

Chapter 6 through eight goes on to talk about how this new life is lived and she didn't leave us alone. It wasn't a moral code. Try hard. He said the spirit of the living God in the new covenant will take up residence inside your mortal body. After he takes out the kingdom of darkness. He places you in the kingdom of light in his spirit takes up residence in the living presence of Christ in the power of Christ by the word of God and the community of God's people births literally. Paul talks about until Christ is formed in you.

That's called sanctification and it's a journey. And often it's two steps forward and three back then four steps forward, but you grow and then finally, he reminded them that God always keeps his promises. So chapters 9 through 11 is promises to the Jews will be fulfilled that they fumbled the ball in terms of their responsibility as a sublessor, an instrument of God and so he says I'm to take them out of the game and I will fulfill everything I made promises to Abraham and to David, but the church is going to be my age and blessing until I call timeout and bring the very final days of history to a close and after 11 chapters of regardless of where you've been. God loves you died for you puts his spirit inside of you and will keep every promise. Therefore, I urge you, brothers, to what offer your bodies a living sacrifice.

Have you ever placed your faith in Christ personally to forgive your sin is what I've seen over and over is people just unconsciously think I'm trying hard to be this good person and it's interesting and they begin to experience and change. But what sometimes and never realizes you need on a certain day at a certain time to be born from above were to be born again and that's back in chapter 3 being in a chapter 4 and where you come to God on a day like today and you just honestly admit God I need your help. I've violated a holy God today.

I believe your blood paid for my sin in your resurrection proved it's true. And on this day ask you to come into my life forever to forgive me to be my father never done that.

That's the smartest, wisest thing to ever God's dream for your life is a series true spirituality becoming a Romans 12 Christian this six part series sheds light on how to move your relationship with God.

From a performance oriented existence to a loving grace filled life in these messages.

Chip describes the profile of an authentic follower of Jesus, and provides practical steps for how we can get there now for those who don't know true spirituality is the core discipleship teaching here at Living on the Edge because of that we have a ton of great resources to help you get plugged in.

With this series. Whether that's the study guides the DVDs or CDs of trips teaching the book or our free MP3s for limited time.

All of these helpful resources are discounted to order your true spirituality resources today by going to LivingontheEdge.org that's LivingontheEdge.org at blisters tap special offers chip this series.

True spirituality is one of the core series of Living on the Edge know you originally taught it years ago, so it's possible the people of already heard it or read the book word on the small group study and now you just use this material to create your newest daily discipleship award you say to someone who's familiar with true spirituality and thinks they've already gotten older going to get out of all day.

That's a really good question because this is very very different. You know, I've listen to great messages and I've actually read a handful of books but I've never sat down with the author and said hey you think we could spend in a 2 1/2 almost 3 weeks together and would you walk with me individually and apply this to my life and could be sort of walk through this in a way where I learn not just what it says but how to put this into practice in my life with my issues and that's what daily discipleship is and is not a Bible study is not me teaching at people, it's me, meeting one-on-one, individually and mentoring people I speak never more than 10 minutes and then I give them 10 minutes with a very clear outline to do some digging on their own and is just for 17 days at the end of that what I see is people develop a habit people walk with God on their own and what I have seen is people learn to go from in to all in because their view of God gets bigger. They can trust him more life change things that were barriers for years, whether addictions or struggles, relationship issues over and over and over. I watch God melt those away. Dave maybe you could take a minute and what'd you tell them how they can get connected, but strip what were so excited to share with you this new daily discipleship with chip true spirituality based in Romans chapter 12 our heart behind this video series is to really help you dive into God's word and discover how to more intentionally live out your faith for 17 days you and Schiphol walk-through were true spirituality looks like and how you can put these truths into practice.

If you're looking for the next step along your faith journey. Let me encourage you to be a part of daily discipleship with chip. True spirituality can sign up for this study right now and when you do will send you our friend Lance with devotional based on Romans 12 called leave ordinary behind at no cost. Sign up now. While this offer lasts by going to LivingontheEdge.org or by calling AAA 333-6003 that's AAA 333-6003 or go to LivingontheEdge.org hapless nurse just up discipleship. Now here's chip to share some deeper application from this message God's dream for your life, what we've described this dream. It is really normal. Christianity I mean if you had a video camera and you could in the first 30 years, the church sort of just walk around in a like Peter and then later the apostle Paul and and James and John and the boys what you would've seen as thousands of people came to Christ in the midst of a very, very difficult culture and opposition and persecution. What you would've seen as them by the power of God living surrendered lives combating the idols of the world and and being separate from the world and you accurately discovering who God made them to be radically serving one another. It's just amazing what happened in the early church, and if we could take that camera through the centuries of church history.

What we've described in the last two days is simply what it means to be a genuine follower of Jesus, and so can I ask you where you at which of these five relationships you need to say Lord I need your help here. I want to be a follower of Jesus I want your dream to be a reality. My heart, my life, my relationships let me ask you what you ask God to give you.

Clear direction and then join me in our next broadcast as we continue this journey together, just before we close. I want to thank each of you is 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 phone trips teaching helpful which are not yet on the team.

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333-6003, let me thank you in advance for whatever the Lord leads you to do one selects time for everyone this is Dave saying thanks for listening to this Edition of Living on the Edge