Today I'm Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram. Do you long to feel close to God? I mean, you know he loves you, but you're missing that emotional connection, that sense of his presence, and you don't know how to break out of it.
Well, I'm gonna share today a spiritual practice that God has designed to unlock your heart. To create that intimacy or emotional connection with him.
So stay with me, you're not gonna wanna miss it.
Well, Christmas Day has come and gone. family has returned home. The emotional spike has subsided. and were returning to a normal rhythm of life.
So how do we avoid a post-holiday funk that sometimes follows Christmas Day?
Well, there's a secret power that Jesus spoke about that transcends human wisdom. It's a doorway into intimacy with God that cannot be accessed any other way. A friendship so rich, so adventurous, that it transforms everything we touch. On today's edition of Living on the Edge, Chip Ingram describes a powerful biblical principle that turns stewardship from burden into breathtaking adventure. And later in the program, Chip and I will explain how you can take advantage of the December match, allowing you to multiply the size and impact of your donation at livingonthege.org.
The deadline is quickly approaching on December 31st. But right now, let's resume our study about the principle with secret power. This is the principle that has secret power. I call it the oi kanamia. principle.
Oika'o is a Greek word for house. You can almost hear the word, we get our word for economy. Uh literally, the word has to do with um being a steward. Uh it's translated to being a guardian. It's translated to being a manager.
And the oikonomya principle simply stated is all that we are and all that we have belongs to God. And he is temporarily entrusted to us. to manage according to his wishes. This phrase or this word or this concept The oikonomia principle is way, way beyond. Money.
Notice in Psalm 90 our time. is a gift from God. Every good and perfect gift, everything you have, just in case we missed something, James 1.17, every good and perfect gift comes from above, from the Father of lights, with whom there's no variation or shifting shadow. And so at the heart of it, notice the passage there at the bottom, 1 Corinthians 4, 1 and 2, here's the responsibility of a manager or of a steward. Let a man regard us, the Apostle Paul says in this manner, as servants of Christ, and, here's our word, stewards of the mysteries of God.
And then in the next verse, he gives the number one Priority with God of a steward. In this case, moreover, it is required of stewards that one be found. Say it out loud with me. trustworthy. Circle it in your notes, will you?
This is the issue. This is the issue in your life. God has given you time and talent and people and money and opportunity and leadership. And what he wants you to do is say, Lord, I want to be found trustworthy. I want to spend my time, my money.
In a way that I realize it's really not mine. It's your time. It's your money. It's your opportunity. And I want to honor you in it.
And here's the thing: as we do that, God's promise is He's a heavenly Father. He wants the very best for you. And so the real issue when it comes to this. The real issue is not stuff. The real issue is not what percentage.
Darot issues trust. The reason some of us don't have opportunities, the reason some of us are not experiencing even financially all the things God wants for us, is you know what? We're not faithful. with what he's given us. And you're a parent, right?
You have one of your kids, they wreck the car three times. Do you give them the keys to the next car or not? No. Why? Because they've already demonstrated.
Until they demonstrate they can be faithful with what you gave them here, you're not going to entrust them with. And so here's the question for believers, for followers of Christ. Can God trust you? Can he trust you with a big opportunity? Could God trust you with more financial resources?
Could God trust you with a great friend that's going to be loyal to you? Could God, when He looks at your life and your character, could He trust you with a spouse right now? Or would he know, you know what? The way you treat people now, I'm not going to give a spouse in your life. You just produce pain in that person's life.
Well, when all this issue of stewardship and trust came up, Jesus was speaking to the religious leaders. And unfortunately, the religious leaders in that day have exactly the same problem as a lot of religious leaders in our day. They loved money. They were warped. If you open your Bibles, turn to Luke chapter 16.
And Jesus is going to give a corrective about money and about stewardship. And he's talking to the religious leaders and the disciples are there. And the religious leaders at the time, they had this false formula. It's actually been picked up by the prosperity gospel on our day. That you know, if God really loves you, He blesses you with material things, and the more righteous you are, the more material things.
And it's a give-to-get mentality.
Well, the Pharisees wanted to appear very righteous, and so they were very, very greedy. Jesus described them as philogorea, lovers of money. And they would, I mean, they would tithe, oh man, they would do, they followed all the rules, but they would actually even change some of the rules and the traditions to get more money for themselves.
So they felt like the more wealthy they could be, it would indicate that they must be righteous and experience God's blessing. And Jesus is going to just cut through, and here's what he's going to ask and answer. Write in your notes where it says, Can God trust you? You might write this question. And this question is...
How do you become a wise steward? I mean, isn't that the $64 question? How do you become a wise steward? How do you become the kind of man or woman or student that God could look into your heart? Because that's where He looks.
and say, I can trust you with more time. I can trust you with more opportunity. I can trust you with more money. I could trust you with more leadership position. I could trust you with the souls of a handful of people.
You'll be faithful. And what you're going to learn is in Luke 16, he's going to take. The good example of a bad person to teach a timeless lesson. Here's the setting. correction to the Pharisees and instruction of his disciples concerning wealth.
And here's the story. We pick up the story, Luke 16, verses 1 and 2. Mismanagement occurs, and the steward or the manager. is going to get fired.
Now he was also saying to the disciples, there was a rich man who had a manager. and this manager was reported to him as squandering his possessions. And he called him in. And he said to him, what is this I hear about you? Give an account of your management, for you can no longer be my manager.
So, as you're following along in your Bible, your iPad, or mobile device, whatever you're using, you know, just understand: this is a guy who was given oversight like Joseph. and he was squandering it. He wasn't a good manager and he's going to get fired.
Now the second thing that's going to happen, he's going to say, so what are my options? He's going to come up with two options, decide neither of those are very good, and then he comes up with a very creative third option. Picking it up in verse 3. The manager said to himself, What shall I do since my master is taking my management away from me? Option number one, I'm not strong enough to dig.
In other words, I can't do just labor. I'm ashamed to beg. Option number two can't do that one. I know what I shall do, so that when I am removed from the management, people will welcome me into their homes. And he summoned each one of his master's debtors and he began saying to the first, How much do you owe my master?
And he said, A hundred measures of oil. And he said to him, Take your bill, sit down quickly, and write. fifty. Then he said to another, How much do you owe? And he said, 100 measures of wheat.
And he said to him, take your bill, write in 80. And his master praised the unrighteous manager because he had acted shrewdly. For the sons of this age are more shrewd in relation to their own kind. than the children of light. And then he makes an application.
And I say to you, make friends for yourselves by means of wealth. Of unrighteousness, so that when it fails, they will receive you into eternal dwellings. The commendation is not that he's a crook. Here's the spiritual principle. I put it in a box so that we wouldn't miss it because this passage has been often very poorly interpreted.
The dishonest manager used his present temporal opportunity his stewardship with a view of receiving future reward. This made good business sense, and according to Jesus, It makes good spiritual sense.
So what what Jesus' saying is Here's someone who realized I'm only going to have this job for a little bit more time.
So, I'm going to do in this limited time something that will allow me, once I get fired, to have. These guys, uh his boss apparently was in commodities, olive oil and wheat. And he says, then they'll be indebted to me. And I can say, hey, guys, you know, I need some money, or I need a place to live. Remember what I did for you?
In fact, if you don't. Remember, I could maybe let my master know what you did. And so he's just operating. He's shrewd. He's saying, I'm going to take this little window of time and set myself up for the future.
And Jesus' application is If you could understand eternity, And you can understand that this tiny little dot called time, and inside that tiny dot is a microscopic little dot of your life that's maybe 70 to 90 years max. He said, You want to take this present temporal little opportunity and the wealth that God gives you, and what you want to do is you want to leverage that so that. After you die, and there is a real heaven, and there is a real hell, and there is a real thing called rewards. that you will be like John Saville, who right now, I am sure, Has hundreds, if not thousands, of people saying, John, I was that teenage girl and I met that chip guy, and you know, he wrote that check. I didn't know you're the one who did it.
Thank you. I wouldn't be here except for you. That's what Jesus is saying. He's saying, use this temporal management opportunity. to invest wisely.
Now, notice what he goes on and says, however, the teaching is faithfulness with material wealth. is a prerequisite to being trusted with spiritual wealth and rewards. Notice the axiom, verse 10, he who is faithful in a very little thing is faithful also in much.
Now that's true of finances. But that's also an axiom, that's a timeless principle. He who is faithful in a very little thing. is faithful also much. That that's what people who Look into the lives of stewards.
If you're faithful in this, God entrusts you with more. You're faithful in that, He'll entrust you with more. And whether it's money, or whether it's time, or whether it's your gifts, whether it's your talents. But he was unfaithful in a very little thing. will be unfaithful in much.
Therefore, if you've not been faithful in the use of unrighteous wealth, who will entrust you with true riches? And if you have not been faithful in the use of that which is another's, who will give you that which is your own? No servant can serve two masters, for he will hate the one and love the other, or else he'll be devoted to one and despise the other. You can't serve both God and wealth.
Now notice the commentary to the group.
Now the Pharisees were lovers of money. And they were listening to all these things, and they were scoffing at him, or literally they were sneering. He's talking about, see, they've got this religious pretense like I had, 30%. I wasn't generous. I thought I owned that car.
I thought I owned my gifts. I thought I owned my future. I thought I owned my dreams. I thought I was in control. And I'm going to figure out a little way to use the religious system that I was understanding to promote me.
And God didn't want to take away a car. God wanted to take away an idol. And the only way God gets a hold of the idols in our life often is He asks you to surrender them. The only way you know whether it's really his or not is he taps you on the shoulder and says, You know something? I want you to give that away.
Or I want you to relocate. Or I'll tell you what, I want you to cross a boundary and invite that neighbor, and I want you to love him. Or I want you to take a risk over here. Your time isn't your own. It's not your reputation.
It's my reputation. You're my child. And he says here, They were scoffing. And then this last line, this is a verse I memorized that some of you you might want to jot down. This is what Jesus said to those of us that tend to Have that bent toward legalism, that bent toward performance.
And he said to them, You are those who justify yourselves in the sight of men, but God knows your heart, for that which is highly esteemed among men. is detestable in the sight of God. I wrote that on a card, memorized that, and reviewed it for years and years and years. And just kept asking God for that which is highly esteemed among men. Let me ask you: what's highly esteemed among men?
What you drive? What your zip code number is. What's your portfolio? How many zeros? How many letters behind your name?
Who you know, drop a name here and there. How you look, how you appear, your body. Right? That which is highly esteemed among men. is detestable in the sight of God.
Now When God gives you nice things, when He entrusts you with position and power and wealth and opportunity, and if He gives you a wonderful and nice body and you're on a good diet and all those, and when, as a steward, you're thinking, Oh, God, thank you. I can't believe how generous you've been. And by the way, I just want you to know: anytime, anyway, you want to use any of this, I just, it's in your hands. See, those kind of people, you know what God does? He just keeps pouring more in.
He keeps pouring more in. Because he's like one of those venture capitalists. You know, we invested some money with that group and they made us a hundred million dollars. They're coming back. What do you think we ought to do?
I think we should invest some more.
Next time out, they win us a billion dollars.
Well, they got another great idea. What should we do? I think we'll invest some more. What Jesus is saying is if you could understand That there isn't scarcity, that God owns everything, and that true spiritual wealth. Is not about money or things, but it's about relationships, but the symptom.
The symptom that tells you where you're at in relationship to God and how much you trust Him is your money. We'll hear more from Chip Ingram's message in just a moment. First, we invite you to multiply your year in support of Living on the Edge through an exciting match that's active through December 31st. Every gift is matched. Every dollar multiplied by two.
Every investment maximized for kingdom impact. Double the impact of your gift at livingontheedge.org. From his series called The Genius of Generosity, again our Bible teacher, Chip Ingram. There's a young man that I was uh Spending some time with in Atlanta and just gifted. He was an artist and a photographer and just had all these dreams and wanted to start this ministry.
And he was trying this and trying that. And he did an art exhibit and got with other artists in the Atlanta area. And everything he tried, it was just like there was no air in the balloon. Just failure. Flat, flat.
And I met with a guy, and he had a heart for God, and he was gifted, and the stuff was amazing. And I just, it was one of those times where you just thought, Um You know, it's like playing basketball with a guy that has a 40-inch vertical and he can't dunk, and he goes, There's something wrong here. And so I went to Starbucks one day and I said, hey, Josh, let's, because he said, what's wrong? Why is God not blessing this? And I said, you know, I don't know, but I read through Luke 16 with him out loud and I said, I don't know, and I don't want to mess with your interior life.
I don't know you all that well, but just let me ask you, what. Like, where are you at in your finances? You know, and this story comes out. He really hadn't worked full-time anywhere for two and a half, three years, was living off credit cards, had amazing amounts of debt, wasn't giving a dime to God in any way. And I said, Josh, do you think it would be wise for God to entrust a ministry to you and people's lives to you and maybe even give you a position of credibility to tell people about Christ when actually you haven't even been faithful with the little thing?
Money? And you know, he's got on a plan to get out of debt. And, you know, it was just an amazing story to watch him turn things around. But see, the test. There's two tests.
We'll talk more about these things a little bit later, but just, you know, here's two financial tests that are just crystal clear that can let us know if our priorities, if in fact, God really were trustworthy. Test number one is generous stewards give the first. and the best to God. There's an Old Testament passage here, and it's all through the New Testament. It says, Honor the Lord with all your wealth.
and with the first portion of your produce or your crops.
So he says, you know, the first fruits would be like the harvest comes in, or the grapes just come off the vine. You take the best and the first and you bring it to the temple. And you say, I'm not sure how many grapes are coming. I don't know how big the harvest is going to be. I don't know if it's going to be a tenfold or a 20-fold or a 30-fold.
I don't know. But God, I want you to know the very first and the very best is yours. And you are the one that's responsible. And I'm a steward. You give your first and your best to God.
And then what's the second half of that say? Honor the Lord with all your wealth and the first fruits of your produce or your crops. then your barns will be filled to overflowing. and your vats will burst forth with new wine. See, there's no scarcity.
When God sees us trust him like that, he says, hey, I'll... The blessing of my hand will be upon you. But you know, there's this faith thing, isn't it? See, when you're not sure how much harvest is coming in, giving the first and the best is a little risky unless God is really real. The second test is that generous stewards.
Give regularly and systematically. Apostle Paul would write to the church, it says, On the first day of every week, each one of you should set aside a sum of money. Notice how much. What's to say? in keeping with his income.
It means rather than looking at just a percentage as, hmm, I've given that, I'm okay. I mean, I've had.
Somehow, God's linked me with some people that have been extraordinarily wealthy and very blessed. I know one friend and You know, he's just so smart and so gifted and really loves God. And yet he kind of has this attitude that and I mean he's worth Well, he's got one piece of property that's worth $10 million. It's just an empty lot. I won't tell you where it is.
And he's got about four different houses. And as we talk, it's like, oh, yeah, I want to be faithful to God, and whatever God brings in, I give the first 10%. And it's like, hey, you know like, I wrote the bill.
So that's it, right? And I'm thinking. Oh man, you really don't get it at all. It says Let each on the first day of the week Set aside a sum of money in keeping with your income. Those that have a lot give a lot.
But those that have a little just can give a little. Saving it up so that when I come, the collections won't have to be made. Paul's saying, I'm coming. You agreed to help the poor there, and the Gentile church is going to help. There's a famine, and I just want you to know, no manipulation.
Boy, the New Testament, when you feel pressured by people or you hear people making this outrageous promises, you know, on the radio, if you give this, then God's going to do this. Just forget all that stuff. The Bible's really clear. It's an issue of the heart. He says, I want you to get before God.
I want you to decide in advance. I want it to be proportional to what God has given you so that when I come, there's no pressure. There's no manipulation. It's an act of worship. Because see at the end of the day The Lord really just is wanting to increase the size of your heart and your faith that he's trustworthy.
And he has a plan for you and he wants you to know. If You'll be faithful in little things. I have lots of money. I have lots of time. I have all these positions and opportunities that I'd like to put my children of light into, but some of them I can't put them in those.
Because the position and the opportunity would increase their wealth and their power, and they would just become proud, and they would disgrace my name, and they would ruin the situation. And so, until you can be faithful in the little thing, the little responsibility, And the little thing starts with money, but it's just the training wheels. And then it's relationships, and then it's integrity. And when we're faithful in little things, he gives more and more and more and more.
Well, on the very back, there's three questions that I guess what I'd say is: if there's someone safe, it might be your mate, it might be one of your best friends, it might be your small group. But I would encourage you to ask those three questions. out loud. It's what wise stewards ask. Am I spending the owner, which is God's money in a way that he wishes?
Am I keeping track of the owner's money? If I give 30%, I'm still responsible for the 70%. He owns it all, right? And Am I becoming best friends with the owner? If giving is like I was, where, hey, you know, I got that done, I'm so glad it's an obligation, you.
You may give, but You're missing what it means to be generous. What is it? that God wants to do in your life to entrust to you.
so that you could experience the joy and the genius of generosity. Come on. Giving to God's work isn't something to check off our to-do list. It's an opportunity to experience the joy of generosity. You're listening to Living on the Edge with Bible teacher Chip Ingram.
Chip, there's not a day that passes without someone telling us what they gain from Living on the Edge. In fact, after 30 years of sharing Living on the Edge, we've discovered that our listeners are learners. When today's culture seems divided, there's a growing hunger for knowing the truth about God and His Word. Chip? Thanks so much, Dave.
Here's the reality: a lot of Christians have been treading water in the shallow end of faith for years. Uh they know enough of the Bible to get by, you know, a few favorite verses and some comforting promises, but But when life really hits hard, when tragedy strikes, when doubt creeps in, They just don't have the depth to stand firm. They're sincere believers with shallow roots. And when that first big wind of a disappointment, a bankruptcy, a divorce, those things just knock them out or knock them over. And Living on the Edge exists to build spiritual roots that go deep so that nothing can uproot them.
For 30 years we've been hearing from grateful listeners and they've told us, I've been swimming in the deep end of God's bottomless wisdom as I get into God's Word with chip and Living on the Edge. That's 30 years of impact, all made possible through faithful partners like you. Today, you can join them, and your impact is going to be doubled through this match. Every gift is matched. Every dollar multiplied by two.
Every investment maximized for kingdom impact. The opportunity is now. The need is urgent. Will you give Your best gift today. Living on the Edge is uniquely postured to help listeners grow deeper in their faith.
We're celebrating 30 years of God's faithfulness to Living on the Edge. Remember the first time you heard Chip's Bible teaching?
Well, that moment was sponsored by someone you'll likely never meet. It was made possible by someone just like yourself who has given generously to support the ministry of Living on the Edge. Maybe today's the day you'll decide to do for some unsuspected listener what a generous stranger did for you. All that to say, as you feel God nudging you to respond, please follow his leading. Whatever amount he places on your heart will be multiplied by two because of the match.
To give right now, go to livingontheedge.org or call us at 888-333-6003. To send a check in the mail, write to LivingOnTheEdge, P.O. Box 3007, Atlanta, Georgia, 30024. Because of the match, your $100 gift will become $200. A generous gift of $250 becomes $500.
Double the amount, twice the impact, until we reach the goal. And the deadline for receiving your match gift is midnight, December 31st. Again, write to PO Box 3007, Atlanta, Georgia, 30024. You can also call 888-333-6003 or visit livingontheedge.org.
Well, I'm Dave Druy. Grateful to have you along today and urging you to hear Chip Ingram describe the genius of generosity Monday on Living on the Edge.
