True Spirituality - God's Dream for Your Life, Part 1

Did you know that God has a dream for your life. A very specific positive and wonderful plan you want to know what it is. Stay with you and pack that today welcome to this Monday edition of living will be good with Living on the Edges of international discipleship ministry dream.

The Bible teaching of shipping picture begins a new series duality becoming a Romans 12 first over the next couple of weeks you'll discover what it means and what it looks like a Christian who actually only got the thing how to receive the very best. God wants you so let's get started in joint ship for his message from Romans chapter 12 God's dream for your life. I want to know that every parent has a dream for your child. I want you to think that if your parent if not, just listen and think about this is what your parents were thinking every parent want to go back to that firstborn you didn't have any kids in your wife is pregnant or you were the wife and you are pregnant and you thought about all the things that went through your mind about what this little boy or what this little girl might be like the dreams and the thoughts and the hopes and aspirations want to tell you is that God has a dream for his children.

But what we do is we get that sort of theological over therein and somehow we think he's more like the transcendent force out there someday, some way, and there's rules and standard to live up to. And so for you to capture the emotion of how God feels. I want to share a very brief and personal story about when I understood how deeply God plants, desires and dreams for us for our kids. It was our firstborn for Teresa and myself we were to banquet middle to banquet trees assist chip it is time I said Teresa let's go you know you don't know what you're doing. The contractions had been about three hours we go home, get things set up. We go to Baylor Hospital for the next 27 hours Teresa and I will be together, the long labor there's complications for number reasons they can't take the baby they find out something's wrong. They put a monitor on this little boy inside of my life and I sit next to her for 27 hours and that little monitor if you know baby's heartbeat goes like this BBB BBB BBB BBB BBB BBB right and that she would have a contraction and bigger BBB BB be the doctors and nurses would run in BBB BBB BBB BBB BBB BB and we went through that about three times in 27 hours. Not every eight hours. We just stopped and we prayed and we cried and we gave that little boy back to God and I thought we may have them. We may not then I started thinking about Teresa and I may not have for what's going to happen in with 27 hours a lot of time to think about all the dreams I had for that little boy that came to the surface that I thought I might lose, and I want you to know that something deep, deep inside of me was so fearful and grieving at what I might lose and then when that little boy was born 27 hours later that nurse liked him off. Teresa was wiped out. I think she said hi and then they put that baby in my arms and is one of those places where they really thought the dad was important and I got a half-hour with my son and I held that little baby and I just I held that baby with tears streaming down my face thinking. I did note this was going to happen and I thought of all the dreams I might've lost and I still remember it was a linoleum floor and I had such a sense of gratitude.

I remember getting on my knees on the linoleum floor and holding that little boy just crying thanking God and I want you to know why because I made in the image of God and embedded in the heart of the father and embedded in the heart of a mother is a dream and a desire for your kids, because God made you and that's how he feels about you and for many of us when our kids are small, the dreams and work toward a young, immature parents, we have dreams like I hope is a baseball player. I hope she's musical work should be great. If she's not athletic or artistic and and then as you get a little bit older and they go through some stages in life, then you will hope to get a good job and hope they do well in school and a lot of the dreams are are about, what they do, then the older you get, and the older they get. You get to where I don't care what they do. I just I would I want a kid that loves me, loves God tells the truth. Your dreams turn into what kind of person will this be because here's what I will tell you potentially the greatest joys you will ever experience on this earth will be connected to you the relationship with your child and the greatest heartache and the greatest pain. You may ever experience is related to your children. No one can hurt you as deeply as your kids the part of you your hearts tied up in them. And if I can get a microphone and pass it around here tonight and we could tell stories about kids. It made really bad decisions are kids that are in addictions or kids don't talk to you anymore kids that tie what how many of us would say I could care less what school he went to I could care less what kind of job.

If we had a great loving relationship and we were friends as their adult children. I wouldn't care about any of the rest with Casey at the end of the day the real dream in your heart is not about what your kids do. It's about who they become and is about the relation and genuine connection to you and you notice on your notes.

I want you to know this is that our heavenly father has a dream for every one of his children and God's dream is to make you like his right the word son being mature or fulfill your design Matthew chapter 5 verse 48 says be perfect, even as your heavenly Father is perfect. In Romans 829 he says God uses every circumstance, every up every down every relationship. Everything we ever go through to conform us to the image of a son. She says in Ephesians 4 that the whole purpose of the church is designed so that through the relationships that we have and the gifts that God places in the body is that we would all grow up to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. You need to understand primarily your life with your heavenly father is not about what you do not about what you accomplish. Not will come a job you have not how many point your scoring spiritually.

His primary dream is the kind of person you become the kind of relationship you have with him. He want you to be a loving kind, gentle, holy person who walks in integrity. He wants to have casual conversations and have you talk with him when you're driving in the car and when you come to the crossroads of big decisions and everyone says do this in your heavenly father says do that he want you to say father I want to do it your way. I want to please you. He wants intimate, loving, deep relationship with you. Unfortunately in our day. We have a crisis in Christianity, something is happening, last 40 to 60 years. That is unprecedented and it's awesome and it's amazing literally more millions and millions and tens of millions of people have come to Christ in the last 4060 years than in like the last two or three centuries. The Gospels gone around the world like never before. More people have authentically saved Lord Jesus, I recognize that you are the God of the universe. You paid for my sin.

You rose from the dead. I trust in you and he comes into their heart, but in the words of John Stott, the former great statesman who traveled all around the world.

He said Christianity has never had growth like it's had in last for five decades, but it's about 16 million miles wide and about 1/16 of an inch thick.

He said the greatest need in Christendom today in every country of the world except where there's persecution or focus. Discipleship is spiritual maturity. All the Barna reports all the Gallup reports. Many of our own experiences tell us what about 8/10 people who claim the name of Christ have very little family resemblance know I'm saying mean when you're spiritually mature you think like Jesus and you walk like Jesus and your love like Jesus in your selfless like Jesus in your priorities and your money and your time or just like Jesus living inside your body that for many many many many people.

The great vast majority there words and their intellectual belief system about Jesus and God is over here and their actual lifestyles are over here and that's why there's an awful lot of people that are outside of Christ that look at Christianity and they look at churches and they meet people who are genuine followers of Christ and they say you know something if that's it.

I don't think I want. I think it's the greatest need in the world today is for Christians to live like Christians and here's what's exciting. It's not guesswork it's not about trying hard not about being religious.

God gives us a very clear picture of what his dream is for your life. In Romans chapter 12 God's dream for every child is to become a disciple or a follower and you can write it in a Romans 12 Christian that's his will.

Are you ready his will for every child of God on the face of the earth, regardless of background, nationality, gender, denomination, God's desire God's will for every single follower is that they would become a Romans 12 Christian now I'm not saying that Romans 12 is all there is to being a disciple.

But here's what I'm saying. I'm saying it is the executive summary it's the snapshot. It's like this amazing mind.

God gave the apostle Paul. He takes all the teachings of Jesus and for 11 chapters he writes about the work of Christ and the sin of mankind.

All that God is accomplished and how much he loves people and in chapter 12 he stops and gives us a snapshot and he gives us is very quick on a cliff note snapshot like some of those people in the venture-capital world and someone has a big plan and they got a new product and you what might be 20 or 30 or 50 or 80 pages of research.

My experience when I talk with those guys is if you can't give me on one or two pages the whole game plan what you want to do, how you want to get it done. I won't even read in the apostle Paul gives us the executive summary of what it means to be truly spiritual. What will you learn as we go through it number one ready for this. It's relational looking your notes week when you open your notes and just looking completely open, and if you have a pen circle a few keywords just as we go through the passage already to do is give an overview and will dig into each of the sections but circle the word it says relationship with God. Circle the word God first want to talk about what's the snapshot of spiritual maturity of true spirituality with God then go down it says look at the relationship with the world.

Circle the phrase the world there's a world system that were to learn about a world system that's anti-God. It's energized by the enemy of your soul seeking to seduce you away from your love for Christ and then Scott talk about your relationship with yourself. Circle the word yourself Rinne learn a little bit later that God wants you have an accurate sober self-assessment. The notice and we talk about relationship on the second page relationship with believers circle were believers, there's a way that spiritually mature authentic followers relate with other Christians in a way that does amazing things in them and amazing things in others, and finally circle the last one. It's a relationship with nonbelievers, there's a way that people that love Jesus were his spirit lives inside of you respond to the harshest, most difficult, painful evil that comes into your life. The second thing you learn about a Romans 12. Christian is that it's practical and it's measurable to this isn't just legally spiritual feeling. Follow along if you will notice what it says in verse one. Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God this is your spiritual act of worship will look at this, but this word for offer is at a point in time I wanted to say is that here's what you can know practically and measurably a spiritually mature authentic follower is surrendered to God on a certain day at a certain time on their spiritual journey, a man or woman or student has realized how great and how powerful God is and what his will is good and you have bowed the knee and bow the heart and said to God, I'm all in.

I will do whatever you want me to do.

Your word will be the God of my life. I want to arrange my life, my relationships, my priorities around whatever you say and that answers one the biggest questions you ever face in your life and that question is this how do you give God what he wants.

The most ever thought about that God is a person is not some invisible transcendent impersonal force is a person and if you have a good friend and I have a birthday. Don't ask questions like I wonder what he or she would want for their birthday or if you're married you say. I wonder what my mate would want the most are.

If your parent. I wonder how I could really help her bless my kids the most you ever ask yourself. I wonder what God wants the most for me and you what you can learn. He wants you he wants you not your religious activity I'm a there's a place for Bible study. There's a place for church. There's a place for prayer. There's a place for all kind of things, but you can do all those things in him not. Have you.

My observation is in most Christians life. There's a missing ingredient in Romans 12. Not only is relational and practical. It answers this big question, and it also gives us the missing ingredient in every relationship and the missing ingredient in most Christians lives in you just jot this on the side of your notes is power were anemic. So many Christians try really really hard. We had tens of thousands of small groups in America and around the world go through this material. So I've got like research and are still one email that I remember reading and thinking while lady said I was there at the kitchen sink doing the dishes and that morning I woke up and I felt come distant from God have been a Christian about 22 years and for some reason I just thought about.

I wonder if any friend, describe to me if they would even use the word good Christian or someone who really loves God with my name and she said you know, I've tried, failed tried fail tried, failed. II know that I'm born again I'm in a Christian 22 years.

I have an alcohol problem that I presently have right now and I have an immorality problem and a porn problem and I don't like me and those thoughts that guilt because of how I'm living were popping up and I'm doing the dishes and the radio was on and this message comes on about becoming a Romans 12 Christian and it was the one on surrender and she said, as I was doing the dishes. The steep tears just started streaming down my face and she said I never heard that before. I never understood that before she talked about drying your hands going to her bedroom kneeling by her bed and telling God I can't do this. I can't live this life, I surrender to you and the rest of that email was that was foreign half months ago and let me tell you what God did in my life since then power you know if you have been one of those water fights in the backyard and someone starts with a squirt gun right and if you're smart what you do you get the hose and so there you got one of those guns and you get the host should but what does someone really really smart do. If you get the hose they go over here and they grab the hose and they became get and when they can't get how much water comes out. None what I want you to understand is you can be a legitimate sincere born-again believer in Jesus, and if your hose is kinked. If your life isn't surrendered. You don't experience his power and so all it becomes is this moralism and attempts to live a life that's absolutely impossible becoming a Romans 12 Christian begins in your relationship with God by being surrendered to him, but noticed beginning in verse two it says do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, then you'll be able to test and approve what God's will is that which is good and pleasing and perfect.

There's a negative or positive command and working to develop this and talk about it in essence what he says is with regard to this world system that tells you that money and stuff and sex and power and prestige will deliver on security and significant and great relationships. He sang, you got a live separate from the world values. You can't let it but notice he doesn't say try hard to be good Christian. He says let your mind be transformed then you'll test you experience you to the question. The big question like this. First, answers how you get the very best from God how you get the very best from God. Verse one answers how do you give God what he really wants verse two says if God really loves me and he died for many rose from the dead.

He has a plan for my life.

How do you tap into that will explain from this verse exactly how it works in the missing ingredient. I find in the great majority of Christians that I talked to is not just lack of power because of an un-surrendered life, but a lack of peace prescriptions. It can't come in here to turn on the TV.

You gotta go to the refrigerator when you get in the car you gotta put sound and music on because absolute dead death leave quiet times make you very uncomfortable. 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 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 where I've oh Bible study in talking about sexual purity and lusted like crazy over here and telling.

Gotta never do this this this or that. Again, I don't 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 we forfeit God's peace right back with some specific application for today's teaching but if you're just joining us, you're listening to Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram chip stock today is from his series true spirituality becoming a Romans 12 Christian the six part series is about how to move your relationship with God from an antagonistic performance oriented existence to a loving grace filled delightful life. True spirituality is the core discipleship teaching of Living on the Edge in a chip clearly lays out the profile of what an authentic follower of Jesus looks like. This series is available in several formats, including streaming video with study guide for video previews more format options and ordering details. Just check it out online at http://livingontheedge.org and because we know you're gearing up for fall groups. The group study resources for true spirituality are significantly discounted. Let me say that again for a limited time, the group study resources for true spirituality are significantly discounted. So now would be a great time to jump online and get your group resources ordered. You'll find everything you're looking for@livingontheedge.org or just give us a call at 1-888-333-6003 will chip as we begin the series. True spirituality becoming a Romans 12 Christian I know this is one that holds a special place in your heart you know I think people would be interested to hear just a little bit about how God presented it to. I could spend an hour telling the story because I happen to be in Nigeria.

It was a very unique opportunity.

I've never spoken to 60,000 people and I had 15,000 people on every direction in a big square stage so there was no front there was no back and I was praying about what in the world could I teach on with regard to discipleship that I actually had memorized and as I prayed about that God birthed Romans 12 of what it really means to look like a follower of Christ. What's the profile of a disciple and at the end of that. I gave an invitation to a huge number of people do you want to be this kind of Christian and thousands of people stood up, but what was amazing was the head of the nomination came up and he said I can understand this. Why would not all of the standup and what I realize is that God had given us a picture of a profile of what it really means to be a follower of Christ, one that's rooted in grace and relationship, and it could be that just the pathway for Christians living like Christians.

And since that time it became a video became a book it's been translated in Chinese. It's going all across the Middle East and every denomination background ethnic group is saying the same thing. This is what it looks like to follow the Lord Jesus and better. This is how I am so excited to present this to our listening audience and I pray that you will dig in and you will grow like never before. Will we chose to hear the series now because we know a lot of you are gearing up for fall small groups. So right now our group study resources are discounted. If you've never done a Living on the Edge study. Be sure to visit us online or you can preview the sessions and even get some free video coaching on how to leave your group.

Whether it's the series. True spirituality or one of over 20 other group studies. You'll find the perfect one for your group or your family devotions give us a call at 1-888-333-6003 or better yet check it out online at http://livingontheedge.org without your strip with some final thoughts as we closed today's program I want to remind you that the Christian life is not complex. Jesus taught in a way where the common people heard him gladly, and the apostle Paul takes all the Christian life and gives us a summary and boils it down to those five significant relationships in our relationship to God. What we learned it's being surrendered to him in relationship to the world as being separate from the world's values and relationship to ourselves is having a sober self-assessment in relationship to believers.

It's learning to serve one another in love. And then in those difficult, painful times when evil comes our way. It supernaturally responding to evil with good. As you learn by God's grace and the power of the Holy Spirit to respond the way, the apostle Paul is outlined the Christian life, you will experience something in you that it's fresh and through you. The changes all the world around you. Stay with me on the series. This is going to be a great ride. I expect God to do great things in you and then through you in the next couple weeks. Do you wish you could hear Living on the Edge when it fits into your schedule.

You can for those of you who want to listen to Living on the Edge whenever and wherever you want. Download the free chip Ingram up you'll find the chip Ingram up at the app store or Google play today will be with us again tomorrow as chip continues our current series. True spirituality have everyone here, this is Dave Drury saying thanks for listening to this Edition of Living on the Edge