One of the greatest dangers during financial uncertainty. is a hidden monster called greed. We think only about ourselves. It poisons our soul.
Now is the time to be free of greed that we might help others. We are the salt and the light of the world. But how does that really work? That's today. Welcome to this Edition of Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram.
Our mission is to inspire Christians to be genuine followers of Jesus and to empower them to be active disciple makers in our world.
Now I'm sure it's no surprise that the idea of keeping up with the Joneses is a source of significant anxiety for many.
So today Chip will explain what you can do to avoid the trap of materialism and fully embrace the practice of contentment. He has a lot to share, so here's Chip with his talk in Financial Uncertainty. If you have a Bible, go again to the book of Philippians chapter 4, beginning in verse 14. How many people know what I'm talking about if I say a scouting report? What's a scouting report?
You look at the film, you watch the other team, and what do you do? You figure out what their strengths are, what their weaknesses are, so you come up with your game plan. If you have small children and someone says, Can your little girl come over and stay overnight with our house? And it's someone from school and you don't know them, what do you do? You make phone calls to find out about these people.
You go on the internet and find out if there's any sexual offender predators in that neighborhood. I mean, you check out what's going on. And students. You guys do scouting reports. You know, you see that girl and she kind of catches your eye, or that guy, and he kind of catches your eye, and you think to yourself.
You know that might be sort of one of those. And so you ask so-and-so who asks so-and-so, asks so-and-so, and you find out all about her to see whether that's worth pursuing. On a less slight note, I had a very, very good friend in my years in Dallas who was a squad leader in Vietnam. And he would take 12 to 15 men out and they would do a little circular about three to four miles and make a loop. And he said the most terrifying thing, because he was the leader and he had about 10 to 12 men in his care.
And he said, we would go out and we'd make this loop, but just not every day, but very frequently, we'd find ourselves where we'd be in jungle, jungle, jungle, and then we'd have to go across the space of about 100 yards, maybe 200 max, and it would be wide open, just rice patties. But you were completely exposed. And so he says, I'd get a couple of my scouts and they would literally, I mean, get down, belly with their rifles, go all the way. And then he says, when they made it and had everything checked out, they'd get up on one knee. And motioned us, and he said, I mean, you watch guys with packs.
We would run across there as fast as we could with our hearts pumping because we know the exposure in that 100 yards. And said if we had a good scouting report, it wasn't a problem. But he said, There were times where I ran across there and then I heard bam bam, ba-bam, bam, ba-ba-ba-ba-ba-ba-ba. And I would watch as one of the men I was responsible for. would be hit and we would all hit the ground.
And I had men with bullet holes and blood coming out of them that died in my arms because the scouting report was inaccurate. We're going to talk about contentment's greatest competitor. We're going to talk about how to beat it. And the Apostle Paul, inspired by the Spirit of God, is going to give you a scouting report. And this scouting report is just, in fact, it's more serious than my friend in Vietnam.
If he got a bad scouting report, people could lose their physical life. The scouting report that you're going to get, if you don't understand it and heed it, You can lose your soul. You can lead your kids and your friends. for all eternity off the wrong path.
So this is a serious message. The Apostle Paul gives us a scouting report in 1 Timothy 6, verses 5 to 10. And a good scouting report does about four basic things. It says, well, who's the foe? How formidable is the foe?
What are his tactics? And then where are we vulnerable?
So let's follow along. The context is: some false teachers are moving through the church. And so he says in verse 5: false teachers produce. Men of corrupt minds, that's the product of false teaching, who have been robbed of the truth and think that godliness is a means to financial gain. That's the context.
Paul is writing to his son Timothy, and he writes this letter and he says, Timothy, when you receive this, you've got to understand these false teachers are going around. They've been robbed of the truth. And what they teach, they actually teach. Can you believe this, Timothy? That walking with God, serving God, loving Christ is a way to get rich.
The reason you walk with God is he's going to make everything turn out great and you'll be wealthy. Does that sound familiar? And then he'll give his thesis. By contrast, godliness with contentment is great gain. That's our word.
The fact of the matter is, walking with God and knowing God and loving God when there is this sense of supernatural sufficiency in Christ is a great gain. And then he'll give two facts. Why is this true? First, for we brought nothing into the world and we can take nothing out of it. Timothy, these guys are promising and people are wasting their lives.
But Timothy, you need to remember, you come in as this little naked baby. And you go through ups, downs, but you know what? They may put clothes on you, they may put you in a big expensive casket or a wooden box, or burn you up and put you in an urn. But you come in with nothing and you leave with nothing. And it's 100% true for 100% of the people.
So, it doesn't make a lot of sense to follow these false teachers. The second fact you need to remember is that if we have food and clothes, we will be in the encircle the word, it's our word, content. If we have food and clothing, put a line under the word clothing because literally it means covering. The Apostle Paul says Their teaching doesn't make sense. But if we have food and covering, the idea is covering for your body, clothes to keep you warm, and a covering, a roof, it could be a tent, it could be an RV.
It could be a house, it could be a condo, but if you have something over your head to protect you from the elements and you have food. With Christ, Paul says, You got all you need. If he gives you more, great. Be a wise steward of it. That's all you need.
To be content with that. And then verse 9, he's going to get the scattering report. In contrast to that mentality, People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap. and into many foolish and harmful desires. And what do those harmful desires do?
They plunge men into ruin and destruction.
Well, why and how does that happen? Verse 10, for the love of money is not the, but the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil.
Some people Eager to get rich or eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.
Now, I said a good scouting report answers those four questions. Let's take this text. And let's answer those four questions. Question number one: who is our foe? Technical name is Philo Gorea.
The little phrase there, who want to get rich, the phrase love for money, eager for money, the root word behind those, phyllo, to love, remember like Philadelphia, the city of brotherly love, phyllo, goria, greed. Uh the the street name is just materialism. Greed. The belief more, more, more, gotta have, that will satisfy. But love of money.
Age old. That's who our foe is. How formidable is our foe? If you have a pen, pull it out. I want you to circle a few words that tell you how formidable this foe is.
Circle the word plunge. Circle the word ruin. Circle the word destruction. Circle the phrase a root of all kinds of evil. In other words, the love of money, it's not just a financial problem.
60% or more of most marriages that fail are rooted in Some financial issues. It is a root of all kinds of evil. Circle the word wandered, circle the word pierced, and circle the word griefs. This foe is formidable. It is a deeply deadly, powerful, ruthless enemy that wants to destroy your physical life, your emotional life, your family life, your spiritual life, and take your soul.
That's how formidable. What are its tactics? Put a box around the word temptation. Put a box around the word trap. Put a box around the word foolish.
and put a box around the word harmful desires and you will see the tactics. The word temptation. What's temptation? Temptation is simply usually offering a good thing in the bad way. Temptation is missing the mark.
Temptation is a temptation that uses a parallel word, allure. The word for lure or trap here, it's that shiny thing that a fish sees that gets its attention, but behind the shiny little lure is a hook. And so, money promises power, position, popularity, self-image. Money will give you this. Money, you can live like this.
People will love you, they will like you, you'll be significant, you'll be of value. And so, you chase money, and then It's what the word is. And that hook will plunge you into destruction in relationships. It'll alienate you from God. It'll, like Jesus said, it'll be like the worries of the world and the deceitfulness of riches.
It'll take the work of the Spirit of God and the Word of God in your life, and little by little, it will strangle you. But notice the tactics. Did you notice some of the words? Trap Temptation Foolish, harmful desires, and then the product is.
Some For their eager love or money, have wandered. It's in the passive voice. You don't wake up and make a willful decision one day to say, you know, I love God and I like being a student at this school and I want Him to really use my life or I'm married or I'm single and I'm glad God's giving me these kids and this is what really matters. You know what, I am just tired of living this way. I think I'll just chase money and throw all that away, and I'll go hog wild and try and get rich.
No one wakes up and does that. Remember what did Jesus say? Deceitfulness of riches. You understand what deceit means? It means that when you are loving money and when you are wandering away from Christ.
The only person that doesn't know it is you. They have wandered from the faith. It's a picture of like two people talking in a boat and there's a current in the stream and they get talking and they're in a good conversation and as they're talking the dock is right here and as they're talking whoa, how's that going and how's that going? And they're so engrossed in the talking, but the boat is being pushed down the stream and when they stop talking they look up and they're two miles away from where they thought they were. That's this word.
You just wake up one day and you're far away from Christ and your priorities are out of order and there's tension in your marriage and your kids are seeing things in you and you are driven and work is totally out of proportion and things and what's new and what you got to have and your debt continues to rise and to grow and pretty soon you have rationalized your way and you have pierced yourself with many a grief. That's his tactics. And where are you vulnerable? first and foremost in your heart. The heart is deceitful above all else.
You're listening to Living on the Edge, and Chip will be back to continue our series, I Choose Peace, in just a minute. But let me quickly tell you, we are more than a broadcast ministry. We're passionate about supporting pastors globally, developing helpful resources, and sharing the gospel with this next generation.
So if you'd like to partner with us in these areas, go to livingonthege.org.
Well, here again is Chip. Can I just let you in on something? The issue this morning is not. If you have a problem of phyllogoria, the issue is not if you're being deceived, the issue is not if you are greedy. We're just going to try and find out how greedy you are and how greedy I am.
All right? We are living, we're vulnerable not only in our heart, but you are living in a culture, and I am living in a culture with every commercial and every magazine and every advertisement and every new style and every new car. We are the people. The goal of an advertisement is to what? Produce discontent.
Those old shoes aren't good enough. That old car is not good enough. You don't want that house. Those kinds of sinks aren't in anymore. You know what?
The skirts are too long.
Now they're too short.
Now they go to the middle. The heels are high.
Now they're flat.
Now they're red.
Now they're white. Pink is in this year. Light blue is going to be next year. Lime green, really coming in. And so we got closets full of stuff that we don't wear that's good because.
We've been hooked and deceived.
So the issue today is not, are you greedy? It's not, am I greedy? The only issue is to what extent is the hook in your mouth, and what are you going to do about it? And what am I going to do about it? Because the implications Ruin.
Plunged. Pierced. Destruction. I mean, this is way heavier than my Vietnam story. Because you might jot on the bottom of your notes Luke 16, 13 through 15.
When Jesus took the whole area of spirituality, he said, you know what? There's basically two options. You can either worship me or you worship what he called mammon or money or greed or materialism or consumerism. You are either in this camp or in that camp. And so, what I want to help you by God's grace and His Spirit through His Word, I want to help you, and I want to help me.
Break the grip of greed in my life and in yours. This isn't something you can just grow into someday, some way. It is possible to come to a point spiritually where you can say, when times are terrible or where times are great, as I learn to be grateful, as I learn to be teachable, as I learn to be flexible, and as I learn to be confident, I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength, it is possible to be completely content. In this life. By the power of the grace of God through your relationship with Christ.
And it's that's priceless, as the commercial says. I mean, that is really priceless. I think it was John Paul Getty, who, at the very end of his life, had amassed millions and millions and millions. And they asked him, What's it really take to be satisfied? His answer: just.
A little bit More. And so what we're going to see from the Philippian church, they are going to be a model for us. We're going to look at the Philippian church and how they related to Paul, and they will model how that you can break the grip of greed from your heart and life and how I can do it as well.
So after saying he can do all things through Christ who strengthens him, he's going to say, here's how to break the grip of greed. Develop personal compassion. See at the heart what greed does is it hardens your heart What your focus on money does is things, things, things, things become important in God, God, God, and people, people don't. And so, the only way to combat that is, you've got to get your heart tenderized so it's soft toward God and soft towards people so you care. How do you develop compassion?
By putting others' needs ahead of our wants. That's how you do it. You take some of your wants. And you find someone who has a real need, and you say, I'm going to let go of that want, and I'm going to take the time or energy or money for that want, and I'm going to give it to this need. Watch how the Philippians model this.
Verse 14, after he says he can do all things through Christ who gives me strength, he says, yet. It was good of you to share in my trouble. Moreover, as you Philippians know, in the early days, it was about 10 years ago. And best you can piece it together, the church was planted plus or minus around 10 years ago. And if you want to get the story, jot on the corner of your notes, Acts 16.
That's where Lydia, the church, started there by the riverbank. And then the Philippian jailer, you know, he comes to Christ and Paul gets in trouble like usual.
So they built this bond, and this is a real connect. And he goes, it was good of you. Literally, it was beautiful. It was winsome. It was a thing of beauty, the way that you were to coin a kneel with me.
You shared with me. We became partners. And he said, when did we become partners in my troubles? And the word for trouble, there is a technical word in the New Testament for the afflictions or the pain that would come on a person's life for sharing Christ. And he goes on to say, You know, you remember the old days when you were first acquainted with the gospel?
And then I set out for Macedonia? Not one church shared or literally partnered with me in the manner of giving and receiving except you only. And Paul basically is saying, Is you know, this is a thank you letter, and Epaphroditus brought the financial gift, and I'm in prison, and I just want you to know. Thank you so much. I've learned to be content, so I didn't really need it.
Yet it was good of you to help out. And then he goes on to say here that, moreover, you know, you were the only church to share. You were this poor little church, and you saw my need, and you generously gave to supply my needs. You put. My needs ahead of your want.
And uh that's how you do it. This idea of giving and receiving, it's all through the New Testament: those who supply spiritual food for us, giving, need to receive financial. provision so the ministry can go forward. That's well, Paul will make that point in all the churches. And um I thought to myself, ha.
Where or how? Did this most profoundly get worked out in my life. And I was in Dallas Seminary. Because when you see a principal like this, you think to yourself, well, you know, when I really get a lot of excess, then I can help some other people. But, you know, what you know is that everybody is mentally middle class.
You do know that. I don't care what you make. You make $100 million, I mean the billionaires, they're rich, not me, right? You know, you make 80,000, you make 30,000, somewhere, I don't care what you make, whoever makes more, they're rich and you're kind of in need. It's life.
And so I thought of a time when I learned this when in my mind at least I was very poor. And so we're in seminary and I'm making just under $1,000 a month and I have three kids and going to school full time. And a guy comes to chapel, I'd never heard of the group, called World Vision. And he came and there was about a thousand students in this chapel and he showed a video thing where, you know, I'm crying and thinking of these poor kids and saying, boy, I wish I could help them, but I mean, I can barely pay my rent. And the guy gets up and he said, You know, you're probably wondering why I would come to Dallas Seminary to show you this.
And I'm thinking, Yeah, I'm wondering. I mean, first of all, I'm glad I know now. But I thought, boy, I sure would love to help him, but I mean, I can't. And he said, A lot of you are probably thinking that, you know, you got two jobs, you're barely making it, your wives are putting you through, you don't make any money, so why would I come here? And he said, before I answer that question, can I just ask you a little quick question here in the group?
And I still remember this. He said, How many of you, I know you don't have. Hardly any money. But how many of you, just as a little treat, maybe at least once or twice a month, take your families out to McDonald's? And like 95% of the hands went up.
I went up. I mean, that was big time. I mean, three kids, two and a half happy meals. We split the cheeseburger. Everybody gets water.
I can get out of here for $14, $16. I mean, and that's, you know, whoa, hey, kids, here we go, right? Ronald, we're going to have fun. Golden arches. I mean, that was.
That was the moment. And then I'll never forget. And then he Click the button and put a picture. of what I'd seen. And he said, you know, if you go to McDonald's twice a month, You know what I'm asking you?
That's a want. Would you be willing to give up going to McDonald's once a month and take that $16? to feed and educate that child. And I'll never forget walking home. That was 30-some years ago now, I think, and bringing a little picture of a little girl or a little boy, I can't even remember now.
And that started probably a 30-some-year journey that I thought. Yeah. Uh decision. Am I going to go to McDonald's twice or that kid get to eat once? You see, compassion, your heart gets soft.
When you take your wants and sacrifice your wants for someone else's needs. This is Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram, and you've been listening to part one of Chip's message in financial uncertainty from our series, I Choose Peace. Chip will be back shortly to share some helpful application for us to think about. What does it mean to be at peace? Is it having a thriving career, happy household, financial security?
While many strive for these goals, they often bring only short-term satisfaction, leaving us seeking more. In this 12-part study in Philippians chapter 4, Chip explains where this attitude of discontentment comes from and the ways it steals our peace. Stay with us to learn how to move beyond temporary calmness and develop a lasting, peace-centered life that comes from God. If you've missed any part of this series, catch up anytime at livingonthege.org or wherever you listen to podcasts.
Well, I'm joined in studio now by Chip. And Chip, you know, over the past few years, we've witnessed God bless the work of this ministry in incredible ways. And the primary reason we've had this growth is because of the support of our faithful listeners.
Now, take a minute if you would, and talk about what it looks like for people to stand with us financially to help Christians everywhere live like Christians. I'd be glad to, Dave. What we're really looking for is people who say, Freely, I've received, I want to be a part. We're looking for partners, not transactions. If you have a heart for Living on the Edge, or if we have ministered to you, Would you consider, would you pray about partnering with us financially and especially on a monthly basis?
Where rather than any kind of transaction, paying for getting the teaching every day, no, this is a heart transition to say, God has spoken to me and helped me deeply through Living on the Edge. I want to pass that on. I want the grace that I've received to go to other people. And you know, a lot of people, they're probably like, Me, when I was coming up, I didn't grow up as a Christian. I was in no position to pay for or give or do anything.
I just needed people to love me. In the church world, I used to say, you know, there's some people that create the wave and there's others that ride the wave. And we at Living on the Edge have a group of partners and we want to create a wave where people that don't know the Lord and people that are struggling can ride that wave. And then as they grow and as they mature, every now and then we pause, like today, and I say, would you like to help create the wave now?
So if we've helped you, could you prayerfully consider becoming a monthly partner? Pray about it, and then do whatever God shows you. Thanks, Chip. We believe helping Christians really live like Christians will radically change the world we're living in.
So if you'd like to be part of that mission, we'd love to have you join the team. To become a monthly partner, go to livingonthege.org or call us at 888-333-6003. Again, that's 888-333-6003 or visit livingonthege.org. App Listeners Tap Donate.
Well with that, here again is Chip with his final application. In this message, we're talking about choosing peace in a materialistic culture. And as we wrap up today's broadcast, I just want to remind you of something. How is it that you develop a heart of compassion? And the answer is really easy to say, but it's really hard to do.
It's practice putting others' needs. ahead of your wants. And I told a little story of how I began to learn that even when I was a very poor seminary student. Whenever you start being compassionate, whenever you start to choose to put other people's needs ahead of your wants, you can expect opposition. As we learn to choose to be compassionate, we declare war on greed and we discover God's peace in our heart.
Why don't you just try that in some little things today and see what God does in your life? Great idea, Chip. And as we close, if you're looking for a practical way to grow in your relationship with God, check out the Chip Ingram app. You can listen to our most recent series, sign up for daily discipleship with Chip, and more. We want to help you deepen your faith.
And the Chip Ingram app will help you do just that.
Well, join us next time as Chip continues his series, I Choose Peace. Until then, I'm Dave Druy, thanking you for listening to this Edition of Living on the Edge.
