Latest / Chip Ingram Sermon Podcast / Baby Steps that Change the World

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Baby Steps that Change the World · Chip Ingram Sermon Podcast

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Today on Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram.
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Do you long for a life of joy and focus and actually
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impact? I mean, everyone wants to make a difference,
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but how does it really work? What are the baby
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steps that you could take today that would actually
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bring joy to your heart? Well, that's today on
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Living on the Edge. One of the most significant
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things you ever do for God happens on an ordinary
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day in an ordinary place. Well, I'm Dave Drewy,
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and today on Living on the Edge, Chip Ingram
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continues his series, The Jesus Revolution. In
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Acts chapter 3, Peter and John are just keeping
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their routine, going to the temple, when a man
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crippled from birth, 40 years old, gets up and
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walks. Not because Peter was extraordinary, because
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Peter was available. And speaking of available,
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later in the program, we have details about a
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very special opportunity called our mid -year
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match. Stay tuned for that. Now let's join Chip
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with his message, Baby Steps That Change the
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World. What's the dream inside your heart that
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if you had unlimited resources, you could see
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anything happen in the entire world that you
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knew would glorify God and help people and bring
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about real change, what would it be? What would
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be the dream inside your heart that you'd want
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to see God do in your lifetime? My dream is that
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God would launch a movement first in this church.
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and around America where Christians would live
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like Christians. Sounds kind of novel, wouldn't
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it? And then I thought about the kind of churches
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that would produce. Churches that would be warm,
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caring, non -legalistic, non -self -righteous,
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authentic, passionate followers of Christ. The
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broken, the irreligious, the people that are
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different, the people that are unlovely would
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come to churches like that and feel loved. and
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welcome. I'm dreaming of a day when churches
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would measure success by the depth of their love,
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not by the size of the church, the beauty of
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their buildings, and the size of their budgets.
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I'm dreaming of a day when Christians would stay
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married when things get tough, that forgiveness
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would be sought and granted, and those predictable
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struggles that we all have in our marriage would
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be followed by getting wise counsel, heeding
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God's word, getting some help. and making it
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through the struggles. I'm dreaming of a day
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when parents would model holiness and purity
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and set boundaries for their children to protect
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them from the seduction of the world that promises
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them everything and delivers death. I'm dreaming
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of a day when parents would eat together. Novel
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idea. With their kids. That they'd laugh. They'd
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tell stories at bedtime. They'd tickle each other
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to the point of tears. They'd spill popcorn on
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the floor. And together as a family, they'd pray
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about everything. They'd pray about their neighbors.
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They'd pray about tests. They'd pray about friends.
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They'd pray about sports. Pray about grandpa
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and grandma and other people that don't know
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the Lord yet. And that their house would be the
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most fun and exciting place on the entire block
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to be. I'm dreaming a day when Christians know
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their neighbors and have hamburgers in the backyard.
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And where people would get the idea that these
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Christian people are just friendly and kind.
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And when you have a crisis, they're always available,
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it seems. I'm praying for a day when churches
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would work together to paint schools and clean
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parks and build houses in the tough part of town.
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And no one would care who gets the credit. A
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day when Christians would be known for what we're
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for instead of what we're against. And a day
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when we would actually believe that prayer is
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more powerful than politics. And people would
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be valued and treated with dignity even if how
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they live and what they believe is the exact
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opposite of everything that Christ said and stands
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for. I'm dreaming a day when Christians would
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cease to be so concerned about being in and cool
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and hip and relevant and just be flat out consistent,
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caring, and committed to be like Jesus and do
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what he says. I have a picture in my mind of
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a day. When nine out of 10 Christians in this
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church and around America and then around the
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world would think it abnormal and strange if
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they didn't come before God every day. If they
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didn't do life in community authentically in
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a small group. And if they didn't see themselves
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as on mission 24 -7 getting up every day in their
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home, in their dorm, at work, in their neighborhood
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and say, God, what's the assignment? You live
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inside of me. I'm dreaming a day that The world
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would really change. And I got to tell you, I
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can't shake this. I wake up thinking this. When
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I pray deeply, I think it. I know it's humanly
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impossible. I know I don't have the resources,
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the power in and of myself in any way for this
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dream to become a reality. But it's the passion
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of my heart. And I will tell you this. I think
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it's the passion of my heart. Because it literally
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isn't my dream at all. This is Jesus' dream for
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his church, isn't it? This is his dream for you.
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This is his dream for me. When he said, when
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he taught his early disciples to pray, what did
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he say? Ask the Father for his kingdom to come
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and his will to be done. How? On earth, the same
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way it gets done in heaven. And to me, that's
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just us Christians living like Christians. And
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when we do that individually, not that we're
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perfect, but we make progress and when we blow
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it, we own it and we're authentic and we're real
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and we're changing. Everyone in this room, everyone
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in this church has the potential to literally
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transform the world around you. And the question
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I want to talk about is how does that happen?
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How does that really work? Right? I mean, is
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that just pie in the sky? Is that just rhetoric?
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Like, oh, well, wouldn't that be great someday,
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someway? How actually does God change the world?
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And I want to suggest that God, by the Holy Spirit,
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puts inside of you and inside of me dreams and
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desires and opportunities. And that there isn't
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some great hero coming someday, someway to make
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all that happen. That it happens organically
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and small like a little mustard seed through
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ordinary people. That's why Jesus chose the disciples
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that he did. I mean, you do some hard study of
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the background of those people, you're thinking
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this is not a good group to change the world
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with. They're not educated. They don't have much
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leverage. They don't have any political power.
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They don't have any money. So that everything
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that happened, we could know it's God at work
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in them. He sent the Holy Spirit to live inside
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of them. And in living inside of them, instead
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of Jesus walking on the earth and loving and
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caring and feeding, he came inside of every true
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Christ follower. So Jesus is living out all those
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people. And so 120 turned into 3 ,000 devout
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followers that he planted these dreams and these
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desires and placed them in all these different
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backgrounds. And they begin to change the world.
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But I'm gonna talk today about, well, how does
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it really work? I mean, we're sitting here 2
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,000 plus years later, billions of people have
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followed Christ and are making a difference in
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the world. How in the world did we go from 120
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scared people in the upper room who the Holy
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Spirit comes upon into what you see today? Acts
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chapter three is the answer. What you're gonna
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see is just, are you ready? The answer is baby
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steps. The answer is not some big thing, someday,
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some way. How many people have seen the movie,
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What About Bob? Sort of the classic. If you haven't,
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rent it. It's clean, it's great. But there's
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this great line in this movie. And this is, it's
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a story of a guy with deep psychological problems
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that makes this psychiatrist crazy. And the one
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thing he gets is baby steps. You know, how am
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I going to change? How am I going to change?
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He has all these issues. And so, just baby steps.
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And you know something? That's how God works.
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All you need to do is say, you know what? There's
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a big picture and chipset all those big things
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and all these churches and all that. Well, you
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know what? You know where it starts? Baby steps.
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Open to Acts chapter three. And what we're gonna
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see is how God begins with Peter and John and
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helps them take baby steps. And he's gonna give
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them just a very specific baby step game plan.
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And they change their world. He just lays it
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out for us. The chapter is broken into two parts.
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The first, all 14 or 15 verses are a story. And
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what we're going to find is that Peter and John,
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you know, it's like Monday morning. Everybody
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has a Monday morning. And they're just doing
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what you're supposed to do on Monday morning.
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In their case, it's a prayer meeting they're
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going to. And something happens. And then the
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second half is what happens is going to create
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a stir and thousands of people are going to be
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drawn to this temple open area, much like maybe
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a big park open area like Times Square. And thousands
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of people are kind of pouring in because of this
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event. And Peter uses it and then he gives a
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sermon, his second sermon. So follow along. Because
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what I'm going to do is there's four baby steps
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that we learn from the story, and there's one
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or two baby steps we'll look at in terms of a
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sermon. One day, Peter and John were going up
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to the temple at the time of prayer at three
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in the afternoon. Now, a crippled man from birth
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was being carried to the temple gate called Beautiful,
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where he was put every day to beg from those
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who were going into the temple courts. When he
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saw Peter and John about to enter, he asked them
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for money. And Peter looked straight at him,
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as did John. And then Peter said, look at us.
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So the man gave him his attention and he expected
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to get something from them. Then Peter said,
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silver or gold, I do not have. But what I do
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have, I will give to you. In the name of Jesus
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Christ of Nazareth, walk. Taking him up by his
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right hand. He helped him up and instantly the
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man's feet and ankles became strong. And he jumped
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to his feet and he began to walk. And then he
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went jumping into the temple courts and walking
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and leaping and praising God. And when all the
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people saw him walking and praising God, they
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recognized him as the same man who used to beg
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sitting at the temple gate called Beautiful.
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And they were filled with wonder and amazement
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at what was happening to him. Baby steps. Step
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number one for us regular people who have desires
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in our hearts that God wants to use to change
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the world is simply draw near to God. Verses
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one and two, where are Peter and John going?
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Now in Judaism at the time, they had a prayer
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time at nine, a prayer time at noon, and a prayer
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time at three o 'clock. Peter and John, right?
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The spirit lives in them, but it's like it's
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Monday. They're just doing what they normally
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do. They're doing the mundane of life. They're
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just doing what they would do on any Monday,
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but they are faithful in just the little things.
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They're just on their way. I got news for you.
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This guy's been crippled from birth. We learned
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later he's 40 years old. The disciples, most
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of them, were in their late teens or mid -20s
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at best. Peter's walked by this guy a thousand
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times or more. He's been at the same gate forever
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and ever and ever and ever, and yet Peter's just
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on his way doing What are you supposed to do?
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See, being faithful in a very little thing is
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the key to being faithful in great things. We
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think God does things from like a little seed
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into some huge tree of fruitfulness. And the
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fact is, here's what you need to remember. It's
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faithfulness in the ordinary that prepares us
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for the extraordinary. Luke 16 10 says he was
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faithful in a very little thing is faithful also
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much. And he was unrighteous in a very little
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thing is unrighteous also much. You know these
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dreams and desires? The way God works is he's
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gonna change you first and you gotta be with
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him for him to change you. The promise of scripture
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is if you draw near to God, he'll draw near to
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you. Peter doesn't have any more power and John
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doesn't have any more power than ordinary people
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like us. The difference is they got near to him.
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And what they were doing is they were just being
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faithful. We talk a lot about praying or spending
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time in God's word. That's not so you check a
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box and don't feel guilty. It has nothing to
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do with that. It's about relationship. It's like
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recalibrating your soul. It's about understanding,
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oh, you know, God has an assignment for me today.
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I want to be in tune. I want my antenna to be
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up with the spirit of God and the will of God
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for my life. And all I want you to know, God
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does extraordinary things through ordinary people,
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but it always begins with just being faithful
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in the ordinary things. I don't know about you,
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but I get up, there's some mornings, and like
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the last thing I feel like doing is reading the
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Bible. The last thing at times I feel like doing
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is praying, right? Don't you have some late nights
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and get kind of worn out and have some pressure
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over here and a problem over there? You know,
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this morning, I mean, my mind was a bit in a
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fog and I went out and I got a cup of coffee
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and I read my Bible and I didn't have any ooey
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gooey amazing feelings and I thought, well, what's
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going on in here? And I just sat down and I wrote
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down this morning what I was feeling and what
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I was thinking and then I took the top four or
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five things that I was wrestling with and I said,
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God, these are yours. And then as I did, then
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I wrote out a couple verses that spoke to me.
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And it's interesting, just things started to
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change. Walk with God. Draw near to him. Step
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one. It's a baby step. Second is look through
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Jesus' eyes. Peter's going to the temple. He's
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been there. He's just doing what he's supposed
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to do. But the spirit of God lives inside of
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him now. Now, he saw Jesus' example. The Christian
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life is not seeing that Jesus was this marvelous
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person and trying to be like him in your own
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power. That is not Christianity. That's not what
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Jesus taught. The fact is, a revolution occurs,
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and the old you dies, and the Spirit of God comes,
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and literally Jesus lives inside of us by the
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Holy Spirit. Peter is walking, and instead of
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seeing a beggar who's always there, who needs
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some help, and maybe he's even giving him a little
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money here and there, all of a sudden, he sees
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him through Jesus' eyes. Jesus sees his deeper
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need, not just physically, but spiritually. And
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Jesus sees him through the eyes of this unlimited
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resource. Remember the last thing Jesus said
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to the guys? All authority, dunamis, our word
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for dynamite, all power, all authority has been
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given to me, and I'm gonna be with you always.
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So Peter's not going there thinking, what can
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Peter do? Peter's walking by this guy who has
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a desperate need and he realizes Jesus has unlimited
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resources and he lives in me and then something
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happens. And he takes a step of faith. Here's
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what I want you to remember. Never assume the
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way it is is the way it's gotta be. That's death.
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Ephesians 3 .20 says, now to him who is able
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to do abundantly beyond. Anything that we could
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ask or think. Jesus, he's able to do exceedingly,
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abundantly beyond what you and I think. Pretty
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soon, if you're not careful, you start thinking,
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this marriage is gonna be now the way it is and
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ever shall be. You know, this struggle with one
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of my kids. My singleness, I'm single, I'm discouraged,
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I'll always be single. You know, no one really
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is open at work. I don't think anything's ever
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gonna change. It's a dark place. We start living
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as though the way things are today is the way
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they'll always be, and that just eliminates faith.
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This guy was absolutely helpless. They had to
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carry him in, and he was absolutely hopeless.
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God wants to do miracles, and you know who he
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does them through? Ordinary people. Later on,
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we're going to learn when they're going to get
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thrown in jail for this. The intellects of the
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day will look at Peter and John and go, these
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are untrained and uneducated men, but they recognize
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them as having been with Jesus. The thing that
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makes a difference isn't your personality or
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your gifts or what you bring to the table. All
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that under the direction of the Holy Spirit is
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great, but it's Christ in you. Don't assume the
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way it is is the way it's always got to be. But
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you need to look, you need to start looking at
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your work through new eyes. You need to look
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at people in your family through new eyes. You
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need to look at needs through new eyes. You need
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to start walking around and realizing Jesus,
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through the Spirit of God, lives inside of me.
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And if you could just like take these glasses
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or you could take a contact and put, I want a
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Jesus lens. I want to start looking at people
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at work, people on the highway, people that cut
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in front of me, people that give me a hard time,
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people that in my neighborhood, I want to look
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at them the way way Jesus would look at them
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if he lived inside my body. And then I want you
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to just take a quick gulp and say, oh, he does.
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He does. And it's exciting to see what happens.
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When you do that, the third baby step, now those
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aren't too hard, really, is it? I mean, how hard
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is it to draw near to God and then just to look
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through Jesus' eyes? Third is act on your good
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impulses. Now, I don't want to read too much
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into this. I don't want you to go tell people,
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Chip can read Peter's mind and he know what exactly
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was happening. I can't. But this is a regular
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guy, right? And he's failed before, like big
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time. And so, okay, Jesus lives inside of him
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now through the spirit. And he sees this beggar.
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And I gotta assume that his thought process changed.
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Now, we're going to learn a little bit later
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that this early church was completely Jewish,
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and when the Spirit of God came, they were expecting
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the restoration of the kingdom and him to come
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back very immediately. That's why they pooled
18:34
their resources very voluntarily. If the nation
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would have accepted the Messiah, they would see
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him coming back very, very, very soon. We'll
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learn the nation rejects the Messiah. The nation
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of Israel does. And they didn't know about this
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mystery called the church, which they were. You
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know, Peter's walking by this guy, and he has
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this thought that had to come to his mind. You
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know, I don't have anything to give him, but
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I don't seem like I used to see him. And then
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this thought had to be, we've got this unlimited
19:02
power. I mean, I bet it went through his mind
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like real quickly, like, I think I'm going to
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tell him, walk. That'd be cool. What if I say
19:14
it and nothing happens? What if I say it and...
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Maybe this isn't me. You know, I'm kind of new
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at listening to the Spirit. Maybe this is just
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sort of a fabricated thought in my mind. See,
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he came to a little point of time where he had
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an impulse, a nudging from the Holy Spirit to
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take a step of faith outside his comfort zone
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that was really gonna help someone and a miracle's
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gonna occur. And just like you and me, he's right
19:38
on the edge of, am I gonna obey this prompting
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or not? You've got him, haven't you? You know,
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like that weird thought, like you're driving
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by and you see someone walking and there's this
19:46
thought, like I should turn around and help that
19:48
person. And then the next thought is, well, you
19:50
know, I'm really kind of busy and I have to do
19:51
a U -turn and I'll help them later. Or someone
19:54
out of the blue, like you're praying or you're
19:56
driving in your car and someone you haven't thought
19:57
about, you ought to call this person. And sometimes
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you do, and what do they say? Stuff like, how
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in the world did you know, right? The Spirit's
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still prompting. Here's the next baby step. Act.
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On your good impulses. When you have an impulse
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that comes to you that loves someone, that glorifies
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God, that helps them, that takes you out of your
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comfort zone, that probably cost you something
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and you're a little afraid to do it, that's probably
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not you. Right? I mean, recently I was in line
20:27
somewhere and it was like, buy these people's
20:29
groceries behind you. Yay, yay, yay. You know,
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and this lady's gonna, you know. Why? I don't
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know. I don't have to know. And this was just
20:41
last week. And they were checking out. And the
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lady, oh, I'm sorry. And I could tell a little
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struggle with her son. And I don't have my credit
20:48
card. And God, I mean, got louder. Just buy her
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groceries. Just be my presence. And so, okay,
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this will help you. So finally she found her
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credit card and I couldn't get rid of it. So
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now I'm acting like I'm looking at the tomatoes
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over here and, you know, just like I don't want
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to do it. She's going to think I'm some weirdo
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and this kid's over there. And so I'm chicken
21:09
out, don't. Chicken out, don't. Chicken out.
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So finally, you know, and then I finally, okay,
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I'm going to do it. And I walk up and it's very
21:15
uncomfortable and she gives her credit card.
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I blew it. Oh, Lord, I'm sorry. And then he said,
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do you have cash? Yes, well, give her. So anyway,
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I kind of saw about what it was like and heard
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her little boy got in their car. And I don't
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want to read too much in it, but from body language,
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the boy, the lack of a wedding band, you know,
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if I was going to make up a story, it looked
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like a divorced mom going through a hard time
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who was really struggling about how she was going
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to pay for this. And I drove around in my car
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and I said, excuse me, and I rolled down the
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window. I assure you I'm not some weird guy stalking
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you or your son, okay? But I just got this really
21:52
weird prompting from God. And he wants you to
21:55
know that he loves you and he wants to take care
21:56
of your groceries today. And I just gave her
21:59
40 bucks. And I said, can I give this to your
22:02
son? And the light on her face was like, it wasn't
22:05
like, oh, no, no. I mean, it was like, thank
22:08
you. I said, I'll see you later. God is giving
22:12
you and me those kind of promptings all the time.
22:15
What if we acted on him? What if we acted on
22:17
him? Act on those good promptings. Notice what
22:20
it says to remember. God daily prepares divine
22:24
appointments for you to be the answer to someone's
22:26
prayer. Let your light so shine before men that
22:32
they might see your good works and glorify your
22:35
Father who is in heaven. That's from the very
22:37
lips of Jesus. You know how you do that? You
22:39
draw near to God so you're in tune. You start
22:42
asking, I want to look through. life through
22:44
your eyes, not mine. And then when God, and early
22:48
on, it's okay if you have a few misses. I could
22:50
tell you some other stories that didn't come
22:52
out that well. I thought I had a prompting. I
22:55
think it was a chipting. But you know what? I
22:58
would rather go down swinging, wouldn't you?
23:02
Number four, give God the credit. Notice when
23:07
this happens, because, you know, I think Peter
23:09
is as shocked as anyone else. You know, long
23:11
before these guys got to be in stained glass,
23:13
they were just ordinary blue -collar workers
23:15
trying to figure out what was going on. So you
23:17
pick up the story, look at verse 11. While the
23:19
beggar held on to Peter and John, all the people
23:22
were astonished and came running to them in the
23:24
place called the Solomon's Colonnade. When Peter
23:27
saw this, he said to them, men of Israel, why
23:30
does this surprise you? Why do you stare at us
23:33
as if by our own power or godliness? we had made
23:37
this man walk. The God of Abraham, Isaac, and
23:40
Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified
23:43
his servant Jesus. Now what's Peter do real quickly
23:48
here? Guys, you understand, this isn't about
23:52
us. This isn't like I'm smarter, better, cooler.
23:58
This isn't that I've got all this faith. This
24:00
isn't my gifts. This isn't my personality. This
24:04
is, This is God. God does miracles. He did miracles
24:11
then. He does miracles now. The issue isn't God's
24:14
power, isn't God's will, isn't God's desire.
24:16
It's a conduit. He's looking for an ordinary
24:18
person like a Peter or a John or a Mary to just
24:22
say, hey, I'm kind of looking through your lens
24:24
and I'm gonna take a step of faith and I'm gonna
24:26
love in places that make me a little uncomfortable
24:28
and God shows up. But when he does, here's the
24:31
key. Be really careful. Because, you know, I've
24:35
got to tell you, when I drove off after giving
24:38
that lady a little money, and it wasn't like
24:40
a ton of money, but it felt pretty good. I don't
24:45
know why, but when you're generous, you feel
24:47
a little happy inside, you know? You feel kind
24:48
of happy. And I bet if I did a quick news interview,
24:52
I think I could have fallen quickly into, you
24:55
know, I was pretty wonderful today, wasn't I?
24:57
You know, right? Jot in your notes, if you would,
25:01
Isaiah 42 .8. Isaiah 42 .8, I am the Lord. That
25:07
is my name. I will not give my glory to another.
25:11
You'll notice what you need to remember is the
25:13
world has yet to see the extent of what God will
25:17
do through someone who does not care who gets
25:21
the credit. God's waiting for a church like that.
25:26
He's looking for people like that. And it's subtle,
25:29
right? I mean, none of us are immune to this.
25:33
It's when you serve, it's when you care, it's
25:35
when you love, it's when you're generous. Pride
25:37
is really, really ugly and it's deceptive. The
25:43
reason that a lot of people are not very responsive
25:46
to Christ is the package that Christ is coming
25:49
in. And it's a very... tender arrogance that
25:54
we have as people that we got to be careful of.
25:56
And somehow over time, something shifts in our
25:59
brain and you get thinking, well, I'm a have
26:01
and they're a have not. I know what's going on.
26:03
Look at the terrible things they're doing and
26:05
look at this and look at that. And even if you
26:07
don't say it, when you look down on other people
26:09
and you think that you're superior or I think
26:11
I'm superior, there's a vibe that comes off you.
26:15
The reason people were so attracted to Jesus
26:18
is they never got that vibe. And he's the only
26:21
one that had the right to say, I'm up here and
26:23
you're down here. But he was a servant. Now,
26:27
he didn't back away from the truth. I mean, he's
26:29
talking to a gal that's, you know, had five marriages
26:32
and shacked up with someone. But she didn't feel
26:34
condemned. She felt like the truth was there
26:38
and she was loved and she felt convicted. And
26:43
that's what God wants from us. God wants us to
26:46
realize, you know what, you're like one really
26:48
bad decision or doing something stupid from having
26:54
a life where you'd say, well, how did that happen?
26:58
We're all people of flesh. I praise God, the
27:02
spirit of God lives in me. The difference is
27:03
we're forgiven. The difference is he lives inside
27:06
of us and we're the conduit to share and to care.
27:10
The Holy Spirit's job is to convict. You share
27:14
the truth, In grace. Usually you hear people
27:18
that they give people all truth or they give
27:20
them all grace. Love is giving both in balance
27:25
from a heart that really cares. I love the verse
27:28
here I put in Luke 1 .37 because it's so interesting
27:32
who God chooses to use. This is a response of
27:35
an angel to Mary. Remember Mary, the little teenager?
27:39
Scholars believe probably 15 years old, maybe
27:42
17 at the oldest. And the angel says, God has
27:46
a God -sized dream for your life. I know you're
27:48
young, but it's a God -sized dream. He's going
27:50
to show up to the planet and he's going to live
27:53
a perfect life and die for the sins of all mankind.
27:56
He's the Messiah. He's the Savior. And very soon,
27:59
he's going to implant in your womb the supernatural
28:04
seed of the Spirit of God and you're going to
28:06
have a baby. And this little 15 to 17 -year -old
28:09
girl goes, Like, I haven't majored in biology,
28:13
but how can that happen since I don't have a
28:15
husband? And the angel says, Mary, with God,
28:22
all things are possible. He wants you to know
28:26
that. With God, all things are possible. With
28:30
God, at your work, in your marriage, in your
28:32
home, in your singleness, on your campus, with
28:35
God, all things are possible. Do you believe
28:37
it? See, at the end of the day, really what it
28:39
boils down the whole Christian life? You get
28:41
drawn near to God and live before him. You get
28:43
strengthened in community and as you're on mission,
28:45
it's just believing. It's just trusting. With
28:48
God, all things are possible because if that's
28:50
true, you take steps that you would never take.
28:53
If it's impossible, if it's, you know, then what
28:55
you do is you cul -de -sac in your mentality
28:57
and you figure out how can my life and my little
28:59
world, you know, can I get it safe to make it
29:02
work for me? And then we lose. We lose the purpose
29:07
for our living. We lose the purpose for why God
29:09
put us here. The number one priority of the church
29:12
is to build up the life of fellow believers so
29:16
that those who don't know might know. And they
29:21
can know not just by what we say, but by how
29:23
we live. Well, it shifts. And we've got a pretty
29:29
good crowd. And the crowd now is going to hear
29:33
a sermon. We've got the story. And he's going
29:36
to pick up the sermon. And remember, it's a very
29:38
Jewish group. And he's done this right outside
29:41
in the open area of the temple courts. And so
29:44
we pick up the story in verse 13 where he says,
29:46
the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God
29:48
of our fathers, has glorified his servant, Jesus.
29:53
Now, for some of us, that's not a real key word.
29:56
But if you would go back and read in Isaiah 42,
29:59
49, 52, and 53, there's a whole section. where
30:03
the Messiah is described as the servant of the
30:06
Lord. So this would very quickly get their mind
30:09
thinking, oh, so you're saying this Jesus was
30:12
the Messiah. Yep. And then when you share with
30:15
people, you need to understand, and let me just
30:18
give you this, and you can listen to how Peter
30:20
does it. There's part of it, part of the good
30:23
news of the gospel is bad news. It's that you
30:26
really have blown it, just like I have, and you've
30:30
sinned. and you fall short of a holy God. And
30:33
we gotta make sure we say that. And then after
30:36
the bad news, there's the good news. But God
30:38
really, really loves you and cares for you. And
30:42
in that good news, there needs to be an explanation
30:44
that Christ died for you, literally as your substitute.
30:49
And then the final part, when you share, as you're
30:51
gonna see Peter, you have to call people to a
30:54
point of decision. It's not just this is what
30:56
he did. I hope you're now aware of it. When you
30:59
share the gospel, you need to say to them, is
31:01
there anything keeping you from putting your
31:03
faith in Christ today? I mean, is it uncomfortable?
31:06
Of course it's uncomfortable. But if people just
31:09
hear, you know, there's a movie. It's free. It's
31:14
the best ever. But you can't get a ticket. Or
31:17
I won't tell you how. You see what I'm saying?
31:19
So listen for the bad news. Listen for the good
31:22
news and then listen as he calls them to a very
31:25
specific response. Verse 14, you disowned the
31:29
holy and righteous one and ask that a murderer
31:33
be released. You killed the author of life, but
31:37
God raised him from the dead. We are witnesses
31:40
of this. By faith in the name of Jesus, this
31:44
man whom you see and know was made strong. It
31:49
is in Jesus' name and the faith that comes through
31:52
him that has given this complete healing to him,
31:55
as you can see. So this man for 40 years has
31:59
been laying outside. He's leaping and dancing
32:02
and praising God. A crowd of thousands of people
32:06
are mushrooming. And now he says, this Jesus
32:10
that you disowned, the author of life that you
32:14
killed, that you, does this sound like good news?
32:18
I mean, I'll tell you what. I mean, this would
32:19
be like, oh my, what if this guy's right? And
32:25
by the way, here's the proof. You see this guy?
32:27
It's in his name. It's not me. It's in his name
32:30
and his power and faith in him that's done this.
32:32
And so they're looking at this miracle. But notice,
32:35
once you share, and I think his tone of voice
32:38
was not condemning. I think it was very matter
32:40
of fact. I think Peter loved these people. And
32:45
so notice, he shifts gears. He goes, now brothers,
32:47
I know that you acted in ignorance. I mean, you
32:51
didn't get it. You didn't really believe he was
32:53
the Messiah, as did your leaders. But this is
32:57
how God fulfilled what he foretold through the
32:59
prophets, saying that the Christ would suffer.
33:02
And so basically, the good news is, if you fully
33:06
understood it all, I don't think you've done
33:08
that. So now here's the option. Here's the call.
33:12
Repent then and turn to God. Why? so that your
33:16
sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing
33:20
may come from the Lord, and that he may send
33:22
the Christ who has been appointed for you, even
33:24
Jesus. He must remain in heaven until the time
33:27
comes for God to restore everything as he promised
33:30
long ago through his holy prophets. Then he quotes
33:33
Moses. For Moses said, the Lord your God will
33:35
raise up for you a prophet like me from among
33:38
your own people. You must listen to everything
33:41
he tells you. Anyone who does not listen to him
33:44
will be completely cut off from among his people.
33:48
Indeed, all the prophets from Samuel on, as many
33:52
have spoken and foretold about these days, these
33:55
messianic days when the spirit would come, when
33:57
the Messiah's promises would be true. And you
34:00
are heirs of the prophets and of the covenant
34:01
that God made with your fathers. He said to Abraham
34:04
through your offspring, all the peoples of the
34:06
earth will be blessed. When God raised up his
34:09
servant, he sent him first to you to bless you
34:13
by turning each of you from your wicked ways.
34:18
I want to encourage you that this gets, it's
34:21
a baby step, but boldly share the good news.
34:26
Boldly share. If you want to know, everyone wants
34:30
to know, what's the real evidence of the Holy
34:32
Spirit? I mean, how do you know the Holy Spirit
34:34
really has a hold of your life? And some people
34:37
will say, well, it's an event like this or it's
34:38
an experience like that. Let me tell you, you
34:40
read all the way through the book of Acts, the
34:42
common denominator when you are filled or saturated
34:46
and controlled by the Holy Spirit is boldness.
34:50
It's boldness. You actually get where you're
34:53
not so afraid of rejection. You get where you
34:55
realize the love of God and your concern for
34:58
people who don't know him outweighs your fear
35:01
of what they're going to think of you. And that
35:02
takes a Spirit of God moment. It's boldness.
35:06
He's bold. I don't know about you, but I take
35:10
a deep breath when I have to tell someone the
35:14
bad news of the gospel. You're lost apart from
35:16
Christ. Oh, am I going to get put in a category?
35:20
That sounds very narrow. You're saying Jesus
35:22
is the life and the only one? No, no, I'm not
35:24
saying that. He said that. Okay, listen, at some
35:29
point in time, you're either gonna kind of slide
35:32
and sort of try and be okay with everything and
35:35
everyone and sort of have this private, you know,
35:38
I know this is what the Bible says and I know
35:39
what Jesus has done in me and you know, it says
35:41
in chapter four, there's no other name by which
35:43
we must be saved. At some point in time, you're
35:45
gonna realize you're gonna share some things
35:48
with some people in love with tears rolling down
35:51
and they can be nice people, good people, moral
35:54
people, but the God who made them The second
35:57
person of the Godhead came to the earth and lived
35:59
a perfect life and died in their place. And there
36:02
is only one way to have a relationship with a
36:04
perfect, holy God and be righteous. And that's
36:07
the atoning covering of Christ. If you have the
36:11
son, not if you have religion, you have life.
36:14
If you have the son, not if you try to be a good
36:16
moral person, you have life. And that means that
36:20
there's a time where you and I talking with people
36:23
need to move beyond the comfort level, and talk
36:27
about the bad news of the gospel. If a person
36:30
never sees their need, they can never hear the
36:34
good news. And I would guess that the great majority
36:38
of us struggle with being bold. Think about the
36:41
people that, I mean, if someone you know that
36:45
you care about at work or in your family or in
36:47
your neighborhood or in your network or who you
36:50
chat with, what if you knew They had cancer and
36:56
they got three days to live. Would you today
36:59
relate to them the same way for the next three
37:02
days as you are now? They're gonna slip into
37:07
eternity. Would you? Because at some point in
37:13
time, I gotta get out of being so worried about
37:16
what people think or what I can answer or what
37:17
I can't answer and I need to boldly share the
37:21
gospel. And the gospel has a promise. of eternal
37:24
life, but it begins with bad news and the problem
37:27
is sin. And then it goes to the good news is
37:29
that Christ has paid for your sin. And it has
37:31
an explanation that he's our substitute. And
37:34
then there's an action call. You need to repent.
37:37
You need to leave and turn from your sin and
37:41
put your faith in Christ and what he did. And
37:44
that's when the spirit of God comes inside of
37:46
people's lives and they're sealed by his spirit
37:48
and they have new life and eternal life. And
37:52
that's not pastor's jobs or missionary jobs or
37:54
Christian books jobs. It's us. I'm always shocked.
38:02
I remember the first time as an early Christian,
38:04
some guy came up to me and said, you know, you're
38:07
the greatest Christian I've ever met. And I thought,
38:09
man, this guy's in trouble. I mean, this guy's
38:12
in really big trouble. Because, you know, I mean,
38:15
if I'm the greatest Christian he's ever met,
38:17
you know, the percentages look a little bit low
38:19
for how much of Jesus he's really going to see.
38:22
And then I just realized, you know what? That's
38:24
true of all of us. You are someplace at work,
38:27
people you don't even know. I was in, played
38:30
a little basketball and a guy I've kind of got
38:32
to know. And I've not talked with him directly,
38:34
but built a relationship. And then I went out
38:36
to lift and he was lifting. And out of the blue,
38:38
he turns to me and goes, can I tell you something?
38:41
I said, sure. He said, I started going to church
38:44
here recently. I said, great. You're a pastor,
38:48
right? I said, yeah, how'd you know? I heard
38:50
those other guys talking. Okay. He said, can
38:55
I ask for your help? I said, well, what do you
38:58
need? He goes, I'm going to church in this group
39:00
I'm with. There's a Bible study midweek. Have
39:03
you ever heard of those? I said, yeah, we do
39:05
some of those. And he said, so I'm going to church.
39:08
I'm in this Bible study. And I stopped. I mean,
39:10
I knew I was doing stuff that was really wrong
39:12
and I'm not doing the external stuff. But he
39:14
said, man, I got stuff going on in my head that's
39:16
really bad. He said, is there any help for that?
39:19
I said, you bet. By the way, we all have that
39:22
stuff. Really? Yeah. So I said, give me your
39:24
email address. And anyway, I sent him the book,
39:26
The Miracle of Life Change and a book that most
39:28
men would understand about how to overcome the
39:30
dragon of lust. And you know what? It was just
39:33
a divine appointment. But some point in time,
39:36
you got to cross a bridge and get a little uncomfortable
39:39
and share the truth with someone realizing, you
39:42
know what? It may not 100 % go well. Notice what
39:47
the remembrance here is. How will they know if
39:51
we do not tell them? And if not you, then who?
39:56
And if not now, then when? Paul would write in
40:02
Romans 10, how then will they call upon him?
40:05
Christ, in whom they have not believed? And how
40:09
will they believe in him whom they've not heard?
40:14
And how will they hear without a preacher? You
40:20
know, one of the things I'm praying just for
40:22
me, these baby steps for me, I'm praying, God,
40:26
will you please, please help me begin to see
40:30
people through your eyes, see their need, not
40:32
their exterior. And I'm practicing, kind of going
40:37
into practice to act on those good impulses.
40:41
And one of the things I'm praying for me is just
40:43
rather than an odd or should or guilt, I guess
40:46
we could rub each other up for a couple weeks
40:48
and let's love lost people, let's, you know,
40:49
and then kind of sink back to the normal. I've
40:52
been there, done that. I could get real emotional.
40:55
We've got to love lost. Sorry, I'm just kidding,
40:57
just kidding. Right, I mean, have you been there,
40:59
right, you know? You know what instead I'm doing?
41:03
I'm just a little tiny prayer. God, will you
41:06
give me your love for people who don't know you?
41:09
Would you help me love them so much that I wouldn't
41:11
care what they think of me? Would you give me
41:13
sensitivity that instead of it being about how
41:16
much did I share? Did I share the whole gospel?
41:18
Would you just give me your love for them? Some
41:20
of them probably aren't ready to hear this yet,
41:22
but will you help me love them? And whether it's
41:24
groceries today or helping them with one of their
41:26
kids or doing something here or just inviting
41:28
them over. And I don't have to tell them anything
41:30
about Jesus to start out. You know, tell me your
41:32
story. How are you doing? Do you have any kids?
41:34
Where's your biggest challenge? And then, you
41:37
know, would you mind? I met an unbelieving guy
41:41
recently and I don't know how we hit it off pretty
41:43
quickly. And I just asked him, I said. would
41:47
you be offended if I prayed for you? Is there
41:49
one thing I could pray for you? And he looked
41:51
at me like, are you on drugs, man? Are you kidding
41:53
me? I would love you to pray for me. I mean,
41:56
I got news for you. Like there's no atheists
41:57
in foxholes. There's no atheists with people
42:01
that got cancer and whose homes are upside down,
42:03
marriages are falling apart and are under addictions
42:05
and are screaming and needing help. You know
42:07
what they, you know who they need? They need
42:09
Jesus. The one that lives inside your skin. Just
42:14
being you. That's Chip Ingram on Living on the
42:20
Edge with the conclusion of Baby Steps That Changed
42:23
the World from our series, The Jesus Revolution.
42:26
Chip has a word about the mid -year match coming
42:28
up in just a moment, so stay close. If you'd
42:31
like to revisit today's message or share it with
42:33
someone in your life, it's available anytime
42:35
on the Living on the Edge podcast. And for the
42:38
full, unedited version of what Chip teaches,
42:41
find the Chip Ingram Sermon Podcast wherever
42:44
you listen. A 40 -year -old man who spent his
42:47
entire life at the gate, called Beautiful, finally
42:50
walked away. And Peter's response wasn't to take
42:53
a bow. It was to point straight at Jesus and
42:56
start preaching. Draw near. Look through his
42:59
eyes. Act on the impulse. Give God the credit.
43:02
Those four baby steps don't just apply to healing
43:05
the sick and the temple courts. They apply to
43:07
every conversation, every prompting, every divine
43:10
appointment God has been quietly setting up in
43:13
your ordinary week. The revolution doesn't happen
43:16
all at once. It starts with one step, and then
43:19
another, and then another. And here's Chip with
43:22
a word about what happens when ordinary people
43:24
take those steps together. The book of Acts is
43:27
not just history. It's a playbook, a spirit -breathed
43:30
model for what happens when a community of believers
43:34
is genuinely filled and unified and really care
43:37
about the mission. In our study of Acts chapter
43:40
1 through 5, I'm walking through the DNA of the
43:43
early church, prayer that actually moves things,
43:46
community that goes beneath the surface, bold
43:49
witness that doesn't apologize for the gospel,
43:52
and miraculous transformation that no human strategy
43:56
could ever manufacture. Living on the Edge is
43:59
a companion to more than 500 ,000 pastors around
44:03
the world. We're the voice that some of them
44:05
hear in the car here in the U .S. We're the group
44:08
that meets with them in rural India, rural Africa,
44:12
or, and are you ready for this, over 3 million
44:16
pastors and leaders throughout China. legally.
44:20
God has done a miraculous work as we help pastors
44:23
here in the U .S. and around the world get encouraged
44:27
on Monday morning, stay in the game when they
44:29
get discouraged, help them to fight and not lose
44:33
hope when it gets so hard and so difficult and
44:36
what they face is hardships and persecution and
44:40
pain. When you give to Living on the Edge, you're
44:43
not just helping individuals. You are supporting
44:46
pastors here and around the world. world, and
44:49
the impact is a ripple. Every healthy pastor
44:53
causes healthy churches, real disciples, people
44:57
in community, people that walk with God, people
45:01
that have lots of struggles just like you and
45:03
me, but they get shepherded. They get cared for.
45:07
When you give to Living on the Edge this month,
45:09
every dollar is going to be doubled dollar for
45:12
dollar, and we're going to use it for lots of
45:15
good things. But one of the main things is to
45:18
help pastors stay in the game, be very, very
45:21
healthy, and make a difference for Jesus Christ.
45:24
Join the movement. You'll never regret it. Chip
45:28
just described a ripple that starts with you.
45:30
Join the mid -year match today, and every dollar
45:33
you send is doubled, multiplying that ripple
45:35
further than you can imagine. Go online to livingontheedge
45:39
.org or call us at 888 -333 -6003. Or send your
45:45
donation through the mail by writing to us at
45:47
Living on the Edge, P .O. Box 3007, Atlanta,
45:51
Georgia, 30024. Well, I'm Dave Drewy. Coming
45:56
up in Chip's next message, the baby steps have
45:58
been taken. Now it's time to walk in the power
46:01
of God. Join us and find out how next time on
46:04
Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram. Today's
46:10
program is produced and sponsored by Living on
46:13
the Edge.