Purpose FULL - Difficult Good, Part 1

The late missionary, Elizabeth Elliott, once said, In my life I can honestly say that out of the deepest pain has come the strongest conviction of the presence of God.

So how do we draw close to God when you're experiencing hurt and hardship and pain? That's today. Stay with me. Welcome to this Edition of Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram. The mission of these daily programs is to intentionally disciple Christians through the Bible teaching of Chip Ingram.

I'm Dave Druey. Thanks for joining us as we're nearing the end of our new series, Purposeful, led by our guest teacher Ryan Ingram. Before he continues, let me encourage you to use the message notes while you listen. They include a brief outline of what you're about to hear and all the supporting scripture Ryan references. To download these message notes, just go to the broadcasts tab at livingontheedge.org.

App listeners tap fill in notes. And let me also remind you that Ryan and Chip will be here in studio after today's message to share some deeper application for this important subject. So be sure to stick around for that. For these last two programs, Ryan's tackling the tough subject of pain and how it impacts our call to live purposefully. If you have a Bible, turn to the book of Acts as Ryan begins his message, Difficult Good, with a few meaningful questions. How do you live a purposeful life through the difficulties of life? Like, can you really live a purpose-filled, purposeful life through the difficulties, the hardships, the pain, the brokenness of our world? You know, we'd all agree life's hard, isn't it?

It's difficult. Maybe for some you would say this last year maybe knocked the wind out of you. You ever have that happen?

Do you remember that? Anybody have the wind as a kid? You have the, you just, you're running, you get hit or you follow something and then you're just, you're gasping and you feel like you're never gonna breathe again, don't you? And then all of a sudden, you get that air. And I think for many this last year has felt like that, hasn't it? It's been a sucker punch to the gut. You feel like your legs got taken out.

You feel like you've maybe been knocked out or knocked down or you're losing hope. How do you live a purpose-filled life in the midst of the difficulties of life? Now here's what's so important. The pathway, listen up, the pathway of a purpose-filled life always involves difficulty. The pathway of a purpose-filled life always involves sacrifice and suffering. In fact, the sermon title today is simply this, A Difficult Good.

See, in our day today, those are an oxymoron, right? You don't put difficult and good together. You just have difficult and get through it and then you have good and happy and fun and comfortable and yet there is a difficult good that we need to embrace in order to live a purpose-filled life. In fact, I think there's many today, this sermon's so important, there's many today who are pursuing a comfortable life and as a result, missing out on a purposeful life because you haven't yet embraced the difficult good God has for you. Over the series, like I said, we've been studying Paul's missionary journey in the book of Acts and what I want to do today rather than take you through more of that, I want to zoom out. I want to zoom out and let you kind of see all the missionary journeys. He went on three missionary journeys and an apt title, if you had the title, All Three Missionary Journeys, would be A Difficult Good and you'll see why in just a second that it was something incredibly difficult, incredibly hard, a lot of trials and tribulation and suffering and yet so much good came out of it.

If you got your notes, open it up. Let's look at Paul's missionary journey. His first missionary journey, you can find that in the book of Acts chapter 13 and 14.

This happened somewhere around the time of A.D. 47 to A.D. 49. His traveling companions were Barnabas, if you remember Barnabas, the encourager who came alongside Paul when no one else would come alongside and then John Mark, who's Barnabas' cousins, you remember, and they start off and they go to the island of Cyprus. Well, they immediately encounter difficulty. It's spiritual opposition from Ilimas, the sorcerer, and then they travel to Perga and that they travel by ship there and when they get there, John Mark can't handle the difficulties and so he desserts them.

And you can only imagine when you're starting off on something and feeling deserted or betrayed in that moment. Well, you travel on Antioch, Pisidia, Jewish leaders drive Paul out of town. They go to the next town, Olystra, and actually they thought because of the miracles Barnabas and Paul were doing, they interpreted them as being Greek gods in the flesh. They're like, oh my gosh, Barnabas and Paul, and this is how fickle the human heart is. Eventually, they realized they weren't gods. Some Jewish leaders came and persuaded them and they dragged Paul out of sight of town and they stone him. I mean, you went from being almost worshiped to then having rocks hurled at you.

That's a bad week for anybody right there. Antioch, Jerusalem, as they head down at the end of their missionary journey, they experienced the internal opposition of Judaizers who were saying that you have to be saved, you have to become Jewish. So, this first missionary journey, you see this good that came about. Churches planted people coming to know Christ and yet incredible difficulties along the way. Second missionary journey, you can find on Acts, in Acts chapter 15 through 18.

This happened around 8049 to 8051. His companions were Silas and Timothy, Luke, and later on Priscilla and Aquila. Some of the notable events is before they even set off on the journey, Paul and Barnabas split way because of they were divided on whether to bring John Mark or not. And so now your traveling companion and partner in the ministry is now going separate ways, incredibly difficult. In Phrygia and Galatia, Paul is actually, it says, he's kept by the Holy Spirit to going into Asia. He's going like, I want to go this direction, but the Holy Spirit's keeping me.

And there's this, he gets this vision, this Macedonian call. And here's what's fascinating when we think about like the call of God and the will of God. We so often interpret the will or call of God based on our circumstances, right? Open door. An open door is, you know, that everything's going easy. That's kind of how we talk about open doors instead of, okay, God called me here.

It's going to still be difficult, but I'm clear on my calling and what he's called me so I can lean in through these difficulties. That's what happened here. Called to Macedonia, but they show up in Philippi. Paul and Silas end up through the preaching and seeing what God was doing in his work, they get flogged and in prison. In Thessalonica, Jewish leaders try to arrest Paul and Silas. In Berea, there's even more opposition where he ended up, Paul had to get out of town and go to Athens. And then finally in Corinth, this is Jewish leaders try to arrest Paul. And while he's there, he actually pens the letters first and second Thessalonians to the church in Thessalonica. Think about these letters to encourage and equip the churches that he started. His third missionary journey, Acts 18 through 21, it's really his longest time away.

It's between AD 52 to 57. His companion is Timothy, his protege, Luke, who was the author of the book of Acts and others along the way. Notable events, preaching the gospel in Ephesus. He was so effective. Think about this. He was so effective that the silversmith start a riot in the city because his effectiveness in the gospels impacting their bottom line.

Because people aren't buying idols anymore or silver idols. And so they throw a riot in Corinth or in Ephesus. Paul actually writes the first book to the church in Corinth, 1 Corinthians there.

Macedonia in Greece, Paul then writes 2 Corinthians and a letter to the church in Rome called Romans. And Ptolemus, the prophet, this is on his way back to Jerusalem, says your difficult good isn't quite over yet. In fact, when you get to Jerusalem, you're going to be in prison there. See, a difficult good, the pathway of a purposeful life always involves difficulty, always involves sacrifice.

It always involves some level of suffering. I want you to notice something. God did incredible good, and we are here today because of the efforts that Paul went out in those missionary journeys. In fact, we have this new, what we now call the New Testament, 1 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, Ephesians, Galatians, Philippians. These are letters that the apostle Paul penned, many while he was in prison.

And today we have them now because he leaned into this moment. Churches were planted, the gospel was spread, people gave their lives to Christ, and it was difficult, and it was hard. So how do you live a purpose-filled life in the difficulties of life? How do we do that as a church?

How do you do that as an individual? Well, I can think of nobody else who I'd want to hear about how to do that than the apostle Paul. In fact, as he was describing as he was describing his difficulties to the church in Corinth when he was defending his apostleship, listen to what he says about what he experienced.

This is amazing. I just want you to kind of think about what you're walking through and then understand what Paul walked through. He says, I've worked much harder and been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again. Five times I received from the Jews the 40 lashes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was pelted with stone. Three times I was shipwrecked.

Man, that's a lot of shipwrecks. I spent a night and a day in the open sea. I've been constantly on the move. I've been in danger from rivers and danger from bandits and danger from my fellow Jews and danger from gentiles and danger in the city and danger in the country.

It sounded like a country song right there. And danger in the sea and danger from false believers. I have labored, I've toiled and often gone without sleep. I've known hunger and thirst and often gone without food.

I've been cold and I've been naked. Besides everything else, I faced daily the pressure, my concern for all the churches. His heart was heavy for those churches and people that he planted.

He felt and was their spiritual father. And what I want to do with our time is actually give you four keys to navigating this purposeful life through the difficulties of life. They come from the letters that the Apostle Paul penned to, one, his protege, Timothy, and also to those churches as everybody gets to watch and see how he's gone about his life and what he's done. And he's saying, listen, I want to help you navigate this well. I want to help you live a purposeful life no matter what you are facing. And so when life is difficult, when life is hard, first thing the Apostle Paul is going to tell us is get clear on your purpose or get clear on your why and don't be surprised by suffering.

Don't be surprised by problems. Listen to what the Apostle Paul says to his young protege, Timothy. He says, you, however, know all about my teaching, my way of life, my purpose, faith.

He's got very clear on his purpose and everybody else can see it. And this led to patience, love, endurance, persecution, sufferings. He goes on to say, what kinds of things happened to me in Antioch, Iconium, and Alystra on his first missionary journey?

The persecutions I endured? Like, you know all of those things. You've seen that. Now notice this, yet.

And circle, if you're taking notes, circle that word yet. I love this, by the way. When you're going through something hard, yet the Lord rescued me from all of them. When you're going through something hard, it's so easy to forget the good that God did and his faithfulness in your past. Remember his faithfulness. Remember how he showed up.

Remember how he moved and how he delivered in the past and while you're going through the present suffering. And then he says this, in fact, everyone. That means, by the way, everyone.

So that's all of us included. Who choose to live a godly life in Christ will be persecuted. The first thing that the Apostle Paul wants us to know, navigating this, purpose-filled life in the midst of the difficulties of life, is get clear on your purpose and don't be surprised by suffering. Don't be surprised by problems. You know, one of the things I hear a lot when we're going through things, I can't believe this is happening.

How could this? And yet Jesus said what? In this life, you'll have trouble. So while we're here on this planet, life's hard, isn't it?

It is. Life's difficult. But take heart.

I have overcome the world. Like in this life, the circumstances, the things that are going on, you're gonna have hardship. You're gonna have some of those things, but you can't take heart. You don't have to lose heart.

Why? Because my death and my resurrection has declared victory over anything and everything that's going on, and I've overcome it all. And since you're in me, you are an overcomer. So don't be surprised by it. Be prepared for it. And so what do we do? We get clear on our purpose. We get clear on our why. See, when you hit difficulties, what happens is we often lose our purpose, don't we?

The why gets knocked out of us. My teaching, my way of life, my purpose. I'll just give you a brief kind of big picture purpose for every single person. Your purpose is to know God and then to make Him known. And as you get to know God more, then you get to understand more specifically how God has called and designed you to make Him known in your giftings and who He's made you to be, in the places where He's put you to be.

Get clear on your purpose. I like how Gail Hyatt said it, said, people lose their way when they lose their why. Like, have you lost your why over the last year? Have you lost your why over your marriage? Have you lost your why with your work or why God's placed you there or with that friendship? Have you lost your why? And he says, people lose their way when they lose their why.

Get clear on your purpose. You know, a few years ago, it was a really dark season for me. I actually went through 18-month just depression. And yes, even pastors get depressed. And it just was a season that was so hard.

And honestly, my wife is the most amazing woman on the planet, and she just put up with a lot with me, and she really carried a lot of the weight. It wasn't like I was ever going like, you know, I just want life to be done. I just didn't care about life.

I didn't really see, like, if I died tomorrow, who cares? It's just a really dark place that endured. It's only through our counselor that even began to identify it. I didn't really know what was going on.

And it's interesting. I can be preaching and getting into God's Word and still lose your why. There was a little, not little, but there was a crisis in our family in the summer of 2019, some things that were coming up. And there's just some stuff with one of our kids that just required, like, me to engage as a dad in a way that I'd never engaged and even really never knew how to engage, to like fight for our family.

And what was so powerful about that moment is literally one of those things that shook my soul out of this, like, dark depression. Because in that moment, I saw the power of a father's voice in kids' lives. Dads, don't forget this. Sometimes we think as our kids grow older, they don't need to hear from us. No, they need us more. They need to know their love. They need to hear that you are so for them.

Your voice is powerful. Have you asked your why? Have you asked your purpose? See, when you're traveling through the difficulties of life, get clear on your purpose, get back to your why. You've been listening to the first part of Ryan Ingram's message, Difficult Good, from his series, Purposeful.

He and Chip will join us here in the studio with some additional thoughts and application in just a minute. But what does it really mean to be full of purpose? Is it just being successful at your job, making lots of money, being a good parent or spouse? Maybe you're completely lost when it comes to your purpose, and you're really struggling to find any kind of meaning to your life right now. No matter where you're at, finding purpose is one of the toughest challenges we face. In this series, Ryan Ingram shares what it means to live a meaningful life and unpack God's true calling. Stay with us to learn how you can live out your God-given purpose, even when difficulty, hardship, and conflict come.

You're not going to want to miss a single message. For more information about this series, Purposeful, Discovering God's Calling on Your Life, just go to livingontheedge.org. And if you happen to miss a message along the way, you can always catch up on the Chip Ingram map. Also, let me encourage you to sign up for the new Daily Discipleship with Chip, True Spirituality. Taking part in this free video mentorship opportunity with Chip would be a great next step on your faith journey. For 17 days, Chip will walk with you through Romans 12 and reveal what it means to really follow after Jesus in the ups and downs of everyday life. Pre-register for the study today, and we'll send you our friend Lance Witt's devotional based on Romans 12 called Leave Ordinary Behind at No Cost. Sign up now while this offer lasts by going to livingontheedge.org or by calling 888-333-6003.

Or go to livingontheedge.org. App listeners just tap Discipleship. I'll be right back to talk about today's message. But before I do, I want to give you a picture that I got to witness as a young pastor. There was a man there who was a master craftsman. I mean, he was a cabinet maker par excellence. And I remember watching him literally painstakingly with a piece of wood use a lathe and little by little by little by little, he did all these things that I couldn't figure out what was happening. And then, you know, all those little moments led to this absolutely beautiful piece of cabinetry or furniture.

And, you know, sometimes we think little things don't matter, even calling them little things. And one of the quote little things that is the backbone of Living on the Edge are those people who support the ministry monthly. You know, I don't know if you are a current supporter or you've been praying about being a supporter, but let me tell you this, when you give monthly, it provides the bedrock and the consistency and the stability of all that we do here at Living on the Edge.

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And if so, would you like me to do it on a regular monthly basis? And by the way, thanks in advance for whatever God leads you to do. Thanks, Chip. If partnering with Living on the Edge is an idea that makes sense to you, we'd love to have you join us.

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Your generosity is greatly appreciated. With that, let's get to Chip and Ryan's application for today's message. Ryan, you hit on something. It's super relevant for today. It's a message on, you know, how do we change our perspective toward suffering? And I want to focus on one phrase you said. You said, don't be surprised by suffering. Could you take a minute and talk to those who feel caught off guard by hardship or that life really feels unfair right now because of the pain that they're experiencing? Where can they find hope?

And what do you say to that person who says, wow, this is so hard? Or maybe even, God, where are you? Absolutely. And if you're walking in that season, my heart just breaks with you and hurts for you. And there's so much hope in the Gospels and in Jesus. And the first thing, if we're sitting down together and maybe we're at coffee and you're sharing what you're going through and struggling with, or the suffering and the hardship or the heartbreak that you're walking through, I don't think I would say, don't be surprised by it.

Suck it up. What I would say is you have a savior who meets you in your pain. You know, one of the most profound verses in the Gospels is Jesus wept. The context is Lazarus has died, Mary and Martha, they're mourning, and Jesus was late.

And, you know, they're asking, Lord, where are you? And he, he sees their pain, he sees their grief, and he knows that he's going to raise Lazarus from the dead. And he doesn't say, don't be surprised by suffering.

Although we need to stop being caught off guard, life's hard. What he does is he weeps with them. You have a God who weeps with you, who meets you in your pain. He sees what you're going through and his heart hurts as well. Secondly, you have a savior who understands your pain. He knows that you're going through and understands your pain. He not only meets you there, but he understands it.

Think about this. You have a God who weeps and a God who suffered. This separates Christianity from all other religions. Lots of other areas, a God who came for you, died for you, rose again from the grave. Jesus was betrayed. He was mocked. His close friends denied him.

He was beaten and he suffered in the hands of his own creation. In fact, Hebrews 4.15 says, we do not have a high priest who is able to empathize with our weaknesses. Your God doesn't just like meet you there and hurt for you. He's walked through that with you before. And so you have a savior who is with you always.

That's the third thing I would say. You say, where is God? Well, he meets you in your pain. He understands what you're going through and he's with you always. You said, and surely I am with you always, even to the very end of the age, I'm with you.

I will never leave you. You may feel like this is a really dark and really hard season and moment, but my presence has never been withdrawn from you. And hope comes because you have a savior who conquered the grave. You know, we quoted this verse that Jesus said, in this life, you will have trouble, but take heart for I have overcome the world. I have overcome the heartache and the pain and the brokenness and ultimately sin that sin that created the chaos and decay and all that we see that's creating harm in our world. I've overcome it and I'm bringing life and I'm bringing hope. And so if this is where you're at today, I just want to remind you, you have a God, you have a savior who meets you in your pain, who understands your suffering for he suffered himself. A savior who's always with you.

He'll never leave you. And ultimately you have hope because he's conquered the grave. Well, as we close, do you know another great way to soak in biblical truth, like you just heard through the Chip Ingram app? There you'll find this series and many more, all free. Let God's word pour into you in such a way that you get perspective and the freedom he longs for you to enjoy in him. Well, until next time, this is Dave Druey saying thanks for listening to this Edition of Living on the Edge.