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Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram Daily Podcast - No Revival Without Repentance, Part 2 · The Word On Demand

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Today on Living on the Edge, Chip welcomes guest
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pastor John Dickerson. Biblically, when we talk
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about repentance, this is not about your perfection.
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This is about your relationship with God. Revival
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is all about relationship. This week, we learn
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that revival begins with repentance. Hello, I'm
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Dave Drewy, and this is Living on the Edge with
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Chip Ingram. We're in a new series called Hearts
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on Fire, A God Sparks Revival, with guest teacher
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John Dickerson. If you've ever thought that needing
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to repent often must mean you're a bad Christian,
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today's message may turn that idea upside down.
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John shows us why ongoing repentance is actually
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a hallmark of a mature believer and a gateway
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to real intimacy with God. He shares the story
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of Peter's greatest failure. and a tender moment
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with one of his own kids that paint a beautiful
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picture of a restored relationship. Here's John
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continuing his message titled, No Revival Without
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Repentance. Well, I want to share with you today
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three truths about this kind of repentance that
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leads to revival. Because I don't know about
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you, but when I hear the word repentance, I think
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of shame and guilt, and I kind of don't want
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to think about repentance. Maybe you feel that
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way too. So here's three things, we'll unpack
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these. First, you need to understand, biblically,
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when we talk about repentance, this is not about
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your perfection. This is about your relationship
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with God. When you view repentance through a
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lens of, am I perfect or am I falling short?
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Then it becomes very discouraging. But when you
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view repentance through a lens of, I wanna be
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in right relationship with God at all times,
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then it becomes a joyful thing. God's heart is
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to be in loving relationship with you. He invites
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you to break up the hardened soil of your life
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and your heart because joyful relationship follows.
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And that's the second thing. Repentance ends
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in joy, not in shame. If you just associate,
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maybe as you began this message, when you hear
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the word repentance, you just thought of shame
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and guilt and self -condemnation. No, no, repentance
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is all about God, you admitting what's wrong,
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receiving what Christ did on the cross and then
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him washing those things away. Repentance might
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lead through shame, but shame is not the destination.
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If you will let God break up the hard soil of
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your heart, sorrow will not be your destination.
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Well, what happens if Christians who are saved
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by grace choose to say, hey, my sins are forgiven.
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My place in heaven is secure. I'm not gonna repent
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as a lifestyle. It's too dirty. It's too self
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-condemning. I don't ever wanna repent. Well,
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when repentance is not part of your daily life,
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here's what will happen. You will stop experiencing
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God's power in your life. This is not because
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God stopped loving you. It's because the joy
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and the life of a dynamic relationship with God
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have gotten blocked by what? by your own sin.
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They've gotten clogged. Here's a great visual
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of it. If you've ever used a bathroom sink and
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you turn the water on and it's just not going
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down the drain fast enough, this is what's happening
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underneath the sink. Sink has that little curve
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there and it fills up with debris, all sorts
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of gross stuff, you know, hair and slimy stuff.
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And at first, as the debris builds up, the water
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can still pass through. But eventually enough
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debris adds up and the water can no longer pass
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through. Unconfessed sin of any kind blocks our
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ability to have a flow between us and God of
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his love, his direction, his voice. It's like
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cholesterol in an artery. It's like hair and
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gunk in a drain. And before we know it, God feels
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very far away and distant. Now the flip side
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of that, is when you confess your sin, it's like
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clearing out the drain. When you sin, don't go
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days or weeks or months, run right back to God.
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This will keep the flow of his peace, his joy,
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his power, unhindered and unblocked in your life.
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You see, repentance is not about shaming yourself.
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Does God still love you when you've sinned and
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you don't repent? Of course he does. Jeremiah
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31 verse 3 says that God has loved you with an
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everlasting love. Romans 8 verse 39 says that
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nothing, and God lists out everything you can
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think of, will ever be able to separate you from
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the love of God that's in Christ Jesus. So God
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does not stop loving you when you don't confess
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your sin. Those are powerful promises. But can
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I give you my spiritual opinion after studying
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revival for the last year in scripture and in
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history? I believe in American Christianity today,
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in the American church today, many believers
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misunderstand these promises that nothing will
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separate you from the love of God. And they take
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it as, well, then I never need to repent or confess
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anything again. Quite the opposite. The more
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you love God and understand his love, the quicker
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you will be to repent. Not because you have to,
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and not because you might lose your salvation,
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but because you want to reconcile the relationship
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with the God that you love. Ongoing repentance
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as a lifestyle is a hallmark of a mature Christian.
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You might have an inverted idea of this. You
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might think, man, if I was having to repent all
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the time, that would mean I'm a bad Christian.
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Nope, it actually means you're very sensitive
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and you realize repentance becomes a gateway
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to emotional intimacy with God. It's not about
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shame. Say, John, what's your scriptural support
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for this statement? Well, how about this? Jesus
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said, here's how to pray every day, the Lord's
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prayer. Give us today our daily bread. And? Forgive
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us our sins as we forgive those who've sinned
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against us. So Jesus, not me, Jesus assumes you're
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gonna sin more than once every day of your life.
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Sorry to break it to you. John, who probably
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loved Jesus more than any of the other disciples,
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and I would guess more than you or me, he's the
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one who wrote in 1 John 1, if anyone claims that
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they're without sin, they're lying. He's writing
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from personal experience. Again, if it was all
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about us, that'd be pretty depressing, wouldn't
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it? But our salvation doesn't depend on us. It
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just depends on us being humble enough to say,
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God, I need a perfect savior to forgive this
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sinful servant. David lived this out. Psalm 51,
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David says to God. Would you restore to me the
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joy of my salvation? God, I've been living in
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sin. I've looked to every other thing that could
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fulfill me and it has been empty and it has been
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soul crushing and I'm repenting. Would you cleanse
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me and God restore my spiritual vigor? And then
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what is the result of that? Repentance restores
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joy and then make me willing to obey you. Repentance
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leads to obedience. I asked earlier, what would
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the summary of your life be at your memorial
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service? We say she was this, or he was that,
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or he was always this, or she was always that.
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Could you imagine God himself summarizing your
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life? And according to God, the summary is, he
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was a man after my own heart. She was a woman
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after my own heart. David, the sinner, who sinned
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in some pretty spectacular ways and wrote, The
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chapter on confessing sin in scripture. How does
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God describe David in Acts chapter 13? God testifies
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concerning David, the sinner. He really sinned
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and messed up and let's all define him by that
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for eternity. No, no, that's not how God defines
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David. God's aware of David's sin, but what was
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the... pattern of David's life? What was the
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trajectory? What was the theme of David's life?
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It wasn't sin. It was that he loved God. And
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God says of David, I have found David, son of
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Jesse, a man after my own heart. This is the
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heart of revival, to love the Lord your God with
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all your heart. God, help me love you more. Make
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me a man or a woman of God that God, it would
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be true of me at the end of my life. She was
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a woman after God's own heart. He was a man after
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God's own heart. And what does that mean? It
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means that you will do everything God wants you
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to do. It doesn't say perfectly, but consistently.
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None of us will do it perfectly. You gotta let
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that go. But you do get to decide if you're gonna
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do it consistently. David's life trajectory was
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of consistent obedience, motivated, not out of
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self -righteous perfectionism, but out of love
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for God. And that's the third truth about repentance
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that leads to revival. Repentance is about going
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out to obey God. God, I break up the soil of
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my heart and I invite you to break it up through
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confession, through repentance. That's going
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to require time. You're gonna have to sit down
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and reflect, God, where have I not been living
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out your word? Some you'll know right away, others
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the spirit will reveal to you over time. God,
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break up my heart, make it tender again. And
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then as your word, the seeds of your word get
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back into my heart, I will go and obey whatever
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you show me to do. If you just try to not sin,
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you will drive yourself bonkers. You've got to
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replace the sin in your life with doing what
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is good, doing what is right. Make it your heart
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motive to serve and obey God as a way of life.
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And as you get busy doing the right things, sin
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will gradually become less and less appealing
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and eventually repulsive. If God had to choose
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between a self -centered rule -keeping perfectionist
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or an eager but flawed servant who messes up
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but is very loving, which would God choose? Well,
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we don't have to wonder because the Pharisees
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were exactly that, self -centered, rule -keeping,
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knew every verse of the Bible. It was all about
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their righteousness, their perfection. And he
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didn't invite any of them to be his disciples.
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He loved them, but their hearts were hard. Who
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did he invite? Peter, who messed up all the time,
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but had this heart of love for God. He wasn't
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perfect, but he was faithful. God chooses the
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eager, loving servant who isn't perfect. The
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story, Luke 15, of the prodigal son who messes
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up. The father loves. You're listening to Living
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on the Edge with Chip Ingram and guest teacher
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John Dickerson. We'll get back to the message
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in just a moment. But first, did you know that
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you can take Living on the Edge with you wherever
11:45
you go? Download the free Chip Ingram app from
11:48
your app store, and you'll have today's program,
11:51
video messages, and daily discipleship tools
11:54
right in your pocket, ready whenever you are.
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Well, now here's John continuing today's message.
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I wanna tell you a story of Peter's spectacular
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failure. When Jesus was being crucified, Peter
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denied Jesus three times. Now it's one thing
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to have the most spectacular sin of your life.
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It's even worse if Jesus tells you, hey, here's
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how you're gonna sin in the next 12 hours. And
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you say, no, no, I'd never do that. And then
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you do. And Peter is swearing like a sailor,
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telling people he has nothing to do with Jesus.
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And then after Jesus is crucified, Peter is broken.
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He has so much shame, so much regret. The disciples,
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most of them were fishermen and they go back
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to fishing. One day they have their nets out
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and they're not catching anything. And a silhouette
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on the shore yells out over the water, cast your
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nets on the other side. They do. And immediately
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the nets fill up with fish. And they remember,
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oh, the last time that happened, oh my goodness,
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it's Jesus. And they rush to the shore. And Peter
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loves Jesus so much, he can't get to him fast
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enough. And then what follows is a painful moment
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of repentance. Jesus doesn't say, hey, Peter,
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no big deal. Don't worry about it. Not a problem
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that you denied me. He doesn't say that. Jesus
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has already died for Peter's sins, Jesus looks
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Peter in the eyes and he says, Peter, do you
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actually love me more than all these people who
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you wanted their approval? Peter says, Lord,
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you know I do. Jesus says, then go feed my sheep.
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Obey me. If you love me, obey me. Go out and
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do my work. Then Jesus asks him a second time.
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Peter, with tears in his eyes, God, Jesus, you
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know I love you. You're Lord. Then Jesus asks
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him a third time in their culture to do anything
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three times, very symbolic, very thorough, very
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meaningful. And what it meant was this hint of
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Peter, you don't love me as much as you think
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you love me. And Peter in tears says, Jesus,
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you know everything. Essentially, you know I'm
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flawed, you know I'm imperfect, but you know
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I do love you. And then what does Jesus say?
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Go feed my sheep. What did Peter then do? He
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went and built the New Testament church. repentance
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leads to obedience. God did not bring revival
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through any of the Pharisees who were self -perfect.
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God brought revival through an imperfect disciple
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who with his whole heart was honest about his
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many failures. And to emphasize that contrast,
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this moment where Jesus is waiting on the seashore,
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that entire story I told, Jesus is... standing
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there next to a fire. He's already cooked a fish
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breakfast. The guys are trying to catch fish.
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And Jesus has that whole conversation. Jesus
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doesn't berate Peter for not being perfect, but
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he essentially goes back to the heart. Do you
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love me? Now that question from God, do you really
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love me more than your mistakes? That is the
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crux of repentance. What if your greatest sin
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struggle became your greatest opportunity to
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experience the relational, unconditional love
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of God. Because instead of distancing yourself
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from God, you started to bring it to him every
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day, every mistake, and you bring it to him over
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and over again. Do you realize every failure
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is an opportunity for you to choose God again?
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And what does Satan, the enemy of your soul wants?
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He wants that when you fail, you run away from
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God. What does God want? That when you fail,
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you run to him and you just be honest about your
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shortcoming and you receive his grace and you
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live in unbroken relationship with him. In my
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life, I've learned this. Because my imperfections
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are so many, I get to make this choice for God
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over and over again. We run to God with our mistakes
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because his unconditional love is bigger than
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our failures. If you don't believe that his unconditional
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love is bigger than your failures, you won't
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run to him. You also run to him with your failures
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because the joy of a restored relationship is
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more powerful than the guilt and shame of the
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alternative, which is to hide and isolate. And
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once you're in broken relationship with God,
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you're gonna want to be away from his people
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because they're gonna remind you of what you're
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missing out on. Well, what happens after Peter
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repents for relationship? That repentance was
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all about relationship. Before Peter became the
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spokesperson for God's revival in the book of
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Acts, I would argue the most significant revival
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in human history. It started the New Testament
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church. Peter's final recorded interaction with
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Jesus is one of repentance for reconciliation
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and restored relationship. Ongoing repentance
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when it's part of your daily habit, you're making
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sure there's nothing between you and God. What
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does that lead to? These benefits, I won't unpack
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them, but if you'll start to live this way, you're
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gonna have a revived love for God. You're gonna
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have joyful friendship with God. You're gonna
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start to overcome evil in your own life and be
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used by God to overcome evil in the world. You're
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gonna start helping others spiritually and you're
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gonna experience God's power. I'll close with
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this story of one of my three kids. I'm gonna
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keep... The Child Anonymous. It involves a cell
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phone and texting, which will not surprise our
17:59
parents of other teenagers in this room. And
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the way the story goes is that one day I got
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home and this child of mine was on their phone
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texting and Mel, my wife, was asking them to
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do chores and they're just totally ignoring her,
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completely ignoring. So then I say, hey, are
18:19
you gonna put your phone down and listen to your
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mom or not? And this child of mine said, would
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you just shut up? Yeah, right? That was my response
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too. I thought, you know, maybe in some families,
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but not here. Here's the thing. I actually have
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a very tender relationship with that child of
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mine. We love each other deeply and it's very
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out of character for that kind of disrespect
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from that child toward me. And this might sound
18:51
wimpy, but it really hurt me deeply. because
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we're so close emotionally, it hurt me. It wouldn't
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hurt me if a stranger said it, but it hurt me
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because we love and trust each other so much.
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Now, did I still love that child of mine after
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those harsh words? Yes. Does your father in heaven
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still love you after you sin? Yes. However, was
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my relationship practically in that moment, was
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it strained? Yes, it was strained. It was strained
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and it was choked and thankfully it didn't end
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there. About 15 minutes later, that child of
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mine found me and in the most tender way, looked
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into my eyes and said, dad, I'm sorry. I was
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in the middle of something important. My brain
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was just trying to finish the thought. What I
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was trying to say is just give me a second, but
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that's no excuse. I love you and I shouldn't
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have told you to shut up. In that moment, what
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happened? Our relationship. practically was restored.
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My love never faltered, but our relationship
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was restored. This is the kind of intimacy that
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God wants with you every day. His love for you
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doesn't change, but your sin, it does strain
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the relationship. I would have still died to
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protect that child. I would still provided for
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that child, but the relationship was strained
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and it needed to be reconciled. This is what
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you're going to learn this week in your 40 days
20:23
devotional, learning how to daily live in ongoing
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reconciliation with God so that he's your closest
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friend and so that the joy and the love and the
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power that you've been missing out on surge back
20:39
into your life. You're listening to Living on
20:44
the Edge with guest teacher John Dickerson. and
20:47
the conclusion of his message, No Revival Without
20:50
Repentance. And to explore more of what John
20:53
just shared, including a small group video study
20:56
and more, go to therevivalproject .org slash
21:00
livingontheedge. John reminded us today that
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repentance doesn't end in shame. It leads us
21:07
back to the joy of walking closely with God.
21:10
Growing Deeper in Christ, our 365 -day devotional
21:13
from Chip Ingram, is designed to help you build
21:16
that kind of daily rhythm, with each reading
21:18
helping God's truth move from your head to your
21:21
heart. And this November, it's also available
21:23
in an elegant leather -bound edition, just in
21:26
time to give someone a truly life -changing gift
21:29
this Christmas. Purchase your copies of Growing
21:32
Deeper in Christ today at livingontheedge .org.
21:37
We recently heard from Jill, who's been a Christian
21:40
for 40 years. She wrote, My yearning and cry
21:44
to God in recent years has been not just to fill
21:47
my head with more biblical knowledge, but to
21:49
have that knowledge move me to action. Jill listens
21:53
on the road, driving from patient to patient,
21:55
and catches what she misses on our app. And her
21:58
prayer? That God would plow up the ground of
22:02
my heart and teach me to hear Him and to obey
22:04
His voice. Well, that kind of transformation
22:07
is what this ministry is all about. If God has
22:10
used this program in your life, would you help
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us put it in front of more listeners like Jill?
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Make your gift at livingontheedge .org or call
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our team at 888 -333 -6003. Gifts by mail can
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be sent to Living on the Edge, P .O. Box 3007,
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Suwannee, Georgia 30024. Well, now here's Chip.
22:34
I want to take a moment as we close today's program
22:37
and ask you to pause with me because we covered
22:41
some pretty heavy stuff. I mean, John shared
22:44
some, I mean, really straight, strong stuff about
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repentance, about the barriers that come between
22:53
you. and your Heavenly Father. And then he talked
22:56
about what happens when that is, and he gave
22:59
us that great picture of sort of the clogged
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pipe that the Spirit of God, the love of God,
23:06
your experience, that sense of God's presence,
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it just evaporates little by little by little
23:13
when your spiritual pipe is clogged. Been there,
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and I've done that, right? And then you get distracted.
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You try to pray and you can't think of anything
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to say. You feel distant from God. And if that's
23:25
you right now and you just tuned in, I want you
23:29
to know that God wants to revive, restore, and
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forgive you. Not if or when you do something,
23:37
but right now, today. Peter blew it big time.
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He betrayed Jesus. And when Jesus got with him,
23:44
he didn't say, let me point out the five things
23:47
you did wrong. He asked him a penetrating question.
23:50
Peter, do you love me? Do you love me? See, all
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sin is relational. If you've broken the relationship,
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don't focus so much on what you did. Come back
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to Jesus. Clearly own, this is what I did. If
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we confess our sins, he's faithful and just to
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forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
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But that means you got to get real. Today, I
24:19
want you to pray an honest prayer. Tell God what
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you actually did. Ask him to forgive you. He
24:25
promised he would. And then I want you to get
24:28
out your phone and text the best Christian you
24:30
know. and say, you know, I did some things I'm
24:33
ashamed of. I know God has forgiven me, but I
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got to process this out loud with someone I trust
24:38
and someone who's safe. That's the next step
24:42
for you to repentance that leads to revival.
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That's all for today. Join us again next time
24:49
here on Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram.
24:55
Today's program is produced and sponsored by
24:57
Living on the Edge.