Today on Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram. What is it that gives you the will to stay in a fight when every fiber in your body wants to quit? What is it that gives you what you need when you're scared to death and yet you step out and do exactly what God wants you to do?
Well, it's one word. courage. How do you get it? That's today on Living on the Edge. What barriers are keeping you from experiencing God's breakthrough power in your life?
Today on Living on the Edge, Chippinggram identifies five specific obstacles that prevent us from stepping into the impossible. Using powerful stories from the Gospel of Mark, Chip shows how Jesus deliberately taught his disciples to overcome each one. And at the heart of it all is one word. courage. We're in a series called Experience Breakthrough: Learning to Stop Feeling Confined by Life's Biggest Barriers.
If you're ready to break through the barriers that have held you back, this message is for you.
Well, here's Chip Ingram with his lesson, Courage, the Catalyst to Breakthrough. Mark chapter 6. 5,000 people are fed. Notice what Jesus does. He uh Sends the disciples off.
Immediately Jesus had his disciples get into the boat. go ahead of him. while he dismissed the crowd, and after they left he went up on the mountain to pray. When evening came, the boat was in the middle of a lake and he was alone on land. And this, by the way, when you're ready to take some steps for God, I mean notice The disciples get on the journey.
And there is a stiff wind, and they're straining at the oars. It's what it's like when you start taking steps for God. And so about the fourth watch of the night, he went out to them. And this is trying to increase their faith.
So he's walking on the water. And as he comes by and has decided to pass by, they see him and think he's a ghost, and they're terrified. Immediately, he spoke to them, and notice what he says to them. He says to them, he says to us: You're taking a step, you want to do what God wants you to do, and you're thinking, Yes, okay, we're going to go to counseling, or okay, oh my lands, I'm going to really go public in this situation, I'm going to share my faith with this person, or you know what, I'm going to confront this issue with one of my kids, and I'm scared to death because maybe she's going to. And what's he say to him?
Take courage. It is I. Don't be afraid.
Now, we're in Mark's gospel, and Matthew, Mark, and Luke are what's called the synoptics, and they're speaking to different audiences. And so, Mark is written to the Roman audience, Luke to a Greek audience, and Matthew to the Jewish audience. And so, they all tell the same story, but they add all correctly. the full picture, but in ways that help their audience understand. And so Matthew, during this exact same time, he adds something.
And he lets us know that right when Jesus is walking on the water and is going to pass by, Peter, you know, I love Peter. You know, he's like impulsive. Let's give it a whirl. What the heck? You know, you only live once.
Lord, if it's you, tell me to come. And so Jesus says, come. And so Peter takes, you know, it's like, this is amazing. He walks on the water, I walk on the water. And then his courage evaporates, and he sees the wind and the waves, and there's fear.
He starts to sink, and literally, quick prayer: save me, and Jesus reaches out. Pulls him up. They get into the boat, They worship him. And that metaphor, that picture of stepping out unto uncertainty, which, if God doesn't show up, you're paralyzed by your fear and you don't do it is courage. And Jesus is going to use this little picture, and then the author is going to take us through a series of barriers to breakthrough.
Because in your life, I can tell you this: God wants you to get out of the boat, and I don't know what the boat is for you. But he wants you to get out of the boat of your fear. and take a step of courage. And that's the catalyst for the power of God. The issue is not, does God have power?
The issue is not, is He willing to help you? He wants to. But the issue is, do you have the courage rooted in faith to take the step that even when you can't see what's going to happen? to obey and then watch him work. What keeps us from taking that sort of dynamic step that causes the chain reaction of God's power to come into our life?
Now, I want you to know that sometimes. You know, when we're. Teach the Bible, or when I read it, I'll get into one passage and just a paragraph, and I'll spend all of our time there. But what we miss often is that the author has put sometimes story after story and miracle, and he'll let you know it all fits together, and he wants you to see the structure of what's happening.
So that's what I'm going to do. My prayer is that you read chapter 6 through chapter 9 a little bit later today and put your feet up and get a glass of iced tea. I'll give you. the highlights and I'll narrate it because what I want you to catch is the big picture. Barrier number one.
Courageous steps that overcome this barrier. Our first barrier is our traditions. We open it up in Mark chapter 7. The context is: they get out of the boat, and now you need to know that things are swarming. Look at the very end of chapter 6.
If you have your Bible or iPad, whatever you're using, look at the very end of chapter 6. Peter's walked on the water, he's now fallen in, they're in the boat, they get to shore, and when they get to shore, notice this very carefully. People are running to villages and places all over and every single person who brings them to the marketplaces, anyone who touches Jesus, it says, all of them are healed. Jesus is communicating, I am the good shepherd. He's doing these miracles to let people know, I want to help you.
And physical healing is a way, you know. He lets him know, I'm here. I'm the healer. I love you. I'm for people.
And so his popularity is mushrooming. And now the religious leaders are threatened, and so we pick up that story in chapter 7. The Pharisees and some of the teachers of the law who'd come from Jerusalem gathered around Jesus, and they saw that some of his disciples were eating with hands that were not washed. The Pharisees and the Jews always washed their hands ceremonially. When they came back from the market, before they ate, and at a special time.
So, this is not like wash your hands for germs. This was a spiritual issue. There was a tradition that, you know, when you went out into the market and you were around those Gentiles and all the evil in the world, you should clean yourself.
Now, you can scan the passage, but I'm going to tell you what's in it. Seven times the word tradition is there. The tradition of the elders, the tradition of the elders, the tradition of men. Tradition, tradition, tradition, tradition. And basically, what they say is, you know, you're not playing by the rules.
And for years and years and years, we've been told we have these rules made by men. And Jesus says, your traditions nullify the truth of the Word of God. And Isaiah was right. Look in the text. What's he say?
Isaiah was right. Your lips. Say one thing, but your hearts are far from me. And he said, You have your traditions. And then he points out that you actually, the barrier of your tradition keeps you from obeying what God actually says.
And so by that time, the Pharisees, who were very greedy, by the way, and very religious, so a lot of things haven't changed. people that were to support their parents in their old age. Like we're supposed to. And what the Pharisees did is they came up with a new tradition: just say the money is corban or dedicated to God, and so you would keep the money and you wouldn't have to. Support your parents.
And Jesus just rips them. And it says, your traditions made by men, your rules made by men. Nullify the Word of God. And then he says, you know, anything, no food is unclean. If you're thankful for it, it goes in you, because everything you put in your mouth, it comes out of you eventually.
He's pretty graphic here. He says, if you want to know what makes you unclean, it's what comes out of your mouth, because that's what fills your heart. Greed, malice, Envy, sexual immorality. Using people, corruption. He said, it's the things in your heart.
That's what separates you from God. And what all of us have is, we have some baggage and traditions and rules that we have equated with Scripture over time. And it's a barrier. It keeps you and keeps me from stepping out and being courageous. The fear of man, because people tell us, well, you have to do it this way all the time.
I was. Getting interested in Teresa. Uh she, many of you know, she uh was not a Christian and was married before. She would find out later that her husband was having an affair with another woman for about a year. that she was unaware of.
She got pregnant with twin boys, and when he found out that, he left with another state with another woman. She was, you know, absolutely just. Devastated, and her boss, a few weeks later, let her to Christ. And after multiple attempts to contact him, and bring restoration a couple years later there was nothing. And so she got a divorce.
and had two little boys, and I met her when the boys were just she came in a Bible study, so two and a half, three years later. And so, you know, I certainly was attracted to her, but a young woman with two kids was not on my radar, so I began to pray that God would give her a husband. I prayed for two years. And I just didn't have any idea that I would be, you know, like the answer. And it was really hard.
Because I, at that point in time, I was a basketball coach, and I was a teacher, and we were doing this college ministry, and then I got this, like, oh my gosh, God, you got to be kidding. You want me to be like. a pastor or a missionary or something and Little by little, Teresa became one of the most godly women I'd ever met, and I got to know those kids. God said, Okay, I want you to. That's this is my plan.
Well, you know, I checked with my parents and had their support, but In that day, As is important, you know, divorce is not like for any reason, any time, anyway. God hates divorce, He wants us to be together. But when you're abandoned by an unbeliever or on grounds of infidelity. Um God provides measures for people who are the victim. But I had a spiritual leader that we have now reconciled all this, but he told me, I don't believe in divorce.
He said, if my wife died, I would still not remarry. You get one shot, one person. And I've been around my spiritual leader in this group for about seven years. And I mean the tradition of this group was That's the way it is. And I remember agonizing.
We fasted and prayed and prayed and fasted. And oh God, I read every book on the subject. I looked at every verse. And it was real clear what the Bible said is: you know, she's an unbeliever, she's abandoned by an unbeliever, it was immorality. Here's what the Bible says, but this group's tradition.
And so uh this man's wife went out for coffee with my wife and said, if you Marry Chip, you'll destroy his life. God has his hand. on Chip's life, and he'll never use Chip's life if you all get married. It's a lot of pressure. And I agonized, and I just realized one day, you know, I'm going to give an account for my life before the judgment seat of Christ.
And it was a real breakthrough for me because that was the beginning of a series of decisions that said, what other people think can't dictate what I do. The fear of man is a snare, but blessed is he who trusts in the Lord. It's Proverbs 29, 25. And you know, there's some of you that you know exactly what you ought to do, and you don't do it because of your tradition. You have a history, as I've talked with one guy recently.
You have a history that your great-great-grandfather, grandfather, grandfather, they're Buddhist or they're Hindu or they're moderate Muslims. Or, you know, God has been speaking to you, and you know, that you're walking with Him now, and you need to go public with your faith, and you really haven't, but it's, you know, I don't want to do that because, you know, my family or my parents, you know, they think that I got baptized as a kid, even though I wasn't a Christian, and God's speaking to me, but I just don't want the hassle. My mom, my dad, it'll offend them. You know, for others, it's just... You know, the tradition, you know, my faith is really private, and you know, I don't want to go too public with that.
I don't want to be fanatical, and that's sort of part of the tradition. Our family, we really love God, but we're not real public about it. And God says, Go into all the world and share the gospel. I love people, and you're my agent. and that tradition holds you back.
Jesus said, you want courage? You want to believe? Then look at some of the man-made rules. The second one, he says, there's a barrier of our unworthiness. Right after this, it's interesting, the issue is whether you're unclean.
And right after this, Jesus is trying to get a little RR, if you will. I mean, he's been bombarded by all these people. They want his time. They want his energy. And so he gets away.
Verse 24: Jesus left that place and went to the vicinity of Tyre. He entered a house and didn't want anyone to know it. Yet He could not keep his present secret. In fact, as soon as As she heard about him, a woman whose little girl was possessed by an evil spirit came. fell on her face And she begged him to heal his little girl.
And so This is a woman the author wants to note, she's a Gentile. Greek origin, she's a woman, she breaks in, she's uninvited, she does everything wrong, but she's passionate. And the conversation goes as you read a little bit later, and he says, Look, I came for the house of Israel. The Jewish nation. And the Gentiles were called dogs in that day, in a slang term.
And Jesus, I think, testing her says, You know, I came for the children and not for the dogs. And her answer of faith was: even the dogs, after the children eat, get to come in and get the crumbles under the table. And basically, what she's saying is: you know what? I believe in you, and I don't have any hope, but I don't care what anyone says. I don't care.
I'm coming, and I need your hand. And then the text says, Daughter, go home. You've answered well your faith, your daughters well. But you know, if I was one of those disciples, I would say, that woman is unworthy. I mean, number one, I mean, culturally, and she's not a Jew, and I mean, who's she rolls herself on the floor and she begs and.
And you know, there's for some of us. You had this little lie. Yeah, I think this is probably true. But for chip, or Maybe a pastor, a missionary, or you know, some Christian you thinks really hot stuff and really lives a life. Yeah, I bet God does that, but not for me.
And so, you know what? You don't take any step out. You know why? Your fear of disappointment. I'm afraid if I take a step out and.
Yeah. I'm unworthy. Gotten. He wouldn't do for me. What he does for some other people.
And so Jesus. Very clearly says, you know something I I love impartially. I'm for you, do you believe? You're listening to Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram. We'll hear more from Chip in just a moment.
If you've missed any part of this message or if you'd like to share it with a friend, you can find it anytime online at livingonthege.org. And while you're there, you'll also discover a full library of Chip's teaching series, small group resources, and practical tools to help you grow in your faith. It's all waiting for you at livingontheedge.org.
Now let's get back to today's message. The third barrier is the barrier of our deafness. Right after this, we read that. A group of people come and they have a friend who's deaf and mute, and they bring him to Jesus. Look at your text.
They beg him. Notice the pattern. The people at the end of chapter 6, they brought their friends and they beg Jesus to heal. The woman comes and she begs for her daughter. And now they come and they beg for their friend.
He can't hear, and he's a mute. And so Jesus takes him aside out from the crowd. He heals him.
Some of us, you can't hear from God. You think, you know, I would take a step of faith or I would have a breakthrough, but you know what? I'm afraid because God doesn't speak to me the way He speaks to other people. I don't want to go public with what I really believe and why, because people will ask me questions and I don't know how to answer them. You think you're deaf.
You think there's some special thing that other people know about this book. And every single day, this book. That God speaks to ordinary people is available, and the great majority of Christians never open it. They depend on people like me to give you 30 or 40 or 50 minutes of a little bit of truth, and then you're on this journey of trying hard to be a good person. Totally missed the point.
The living God who created the world says, This word is alive. And I'll speak to you about you and about me, and I will give you promises, and I'll give you direction, and I'll show you what to do with one of those kids and work, and what to do when you're single, and what to do when you're depressed, and what you do when you're struggling, and what to do at work, and when and how to do what. But you've got to listen to me. Because see faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God. And he's saying to his disciples, because the goal of all these things, as the author writes this, The real goal is not just to help these people.
These disciples are going to get the ball and the mission to take it to the world, and they did, or we wouldn't be here. He wants them to learn. He wants them to learn. You know what? No one is unworthy, no matter what you think.
He wants them to learn: I'll speak, I'll speak, and I'll open people so they can then, after hearing, they can speak. And then we get the fourth barrier. It's not just our deafness. But it's our lack of resources. How many have said, you know, I would really do that?
You know, I'd like to go on a missions trip, but you know, if I take the time off, I don't have the money. Or, you know, I see that that's a really big need, and I would love to help people, but phew. You know, I don't have that kind of money. And so we saw the feeding of the 5,000 in the Jewish arena.
Now we have the feeding of the 4,000, but it's a Gentile audience. It opens up in chapter 8: During those days, another large crowd gathered, and since they had nothing to eat, Jesus called his disciples to him and said, I have not are you getting this? I have compassion. The word is splokna. It comes from down deep in your gut.
It's visceral. Jesus sees the needs of people. Gentile, Jew, herding, moral, immoral, Jesus sees the needs and something deep inside of him because of who he is as God, he just cares. And compassion is not sympathy. It's not like I feel for them.
Compassion in Scripture 100% of the time leads to action that actually helps people. And so he says, I have compassion for them. They've been with me three days. It's like a rock concert, except different. It's like three full days and they're hearing him teach.
But there's no porta potties, there's no food. And he says, The three-day seminar is over, and I'm going to send them home. And many of them haven't eaten. They're going to faint along the way. Notice he doesn't say to the disciples, he doesn't say, You feed them.
He just presents the issue. He just presents, you know, here's people that have a need. We ought to do something. And you know, I can just hear Peter. To John.
You know, he did it once. You think he can do it again? What are we going to do? And they go back to the same old thing and they don't know what are they going to do and Of course, they bring what they do have because that's what God wants. The breakthrough comes not when you have it all figured out, not when if I do this, this, and this, not when everything gets lined out, then I'm going to do it.
You bring what you do have to the supernatural power of the living God who lives inside of you as a follower of Christ, and you say, I'm going to courageously step out because I believe you'll provide. And so 4,000 people get fed, and then the disciples get clean-up duty again, and guess what happens? There's seven baskets this time. Because for the Gentile or the Greek world, the word seven is a perfect number, and they pick it up and it's not lost on the disciples, and they're realizing He's not just the Messiah for the nation of Israel, He's a light to the Gentiles. Jesus came to save and to forgive all people.
And he'll provide. I wonder how many times those of us, God shows us a need. Need at a local school, a need with an unwed mother. A need was sex trafficking. A need with some people that can't make their house payment.
A need with some people, and we say, you know, God, I would really help out, but I don't have the resources. What's God saying? Courage is the catalyst to breakthrough. Take what you do have, take a step, and start meeting some need. And then what you see?
God will show up. He'll draw other people. I mean, all those great stories we have of miraculous things that happen, they don't happen to people that are waiting for God to line everything up. They happen to people who step out and often don't know how it's going to work. In fact, that's part of making room.
I meet with old and and young people and get talking and After a while, for whatever reason, people sort of get honest with me, which I really like. And I've met a lot of older people who are living together, who are not married, and basically tell me things like, you know. We know this really isn't right, and we can't believe that this is how we're living. But if we get married, we only get one Social Security check. And so, you know, it's just a sheet of paper, you know, and um God understands, really.
You know what they're really saying? The God who created the universe and has the power to raise the dead and take care of everything for them, He just isn't having the power to provide for what they need each month. I talked to another guy recently who's telling me about he works in a tough area and the only way that from his mind you can make it in this tough area, in this tough economy, is that he pays some people checks and some people cash so he doesn't have to report. And he casually turns to me, and we're good buddies, and I like him a lot. And I think he was sort of maybe looking for a pass.
You know, in this day and age, the only way you can do it, you know, the government's ripping us off for all this, and I'd have to pay this, this, this, and this, and you know, so I gotta pay them cash because the workers' comp alone would be XX dollars.
Now, do I agree with necessarily how much you have to pay as a business owner and all the rest? That's not the point. But you can trust God. You're telling me I can trust God to forgive my sins. Rise from the dead.
create a heaven and create the world. But if I'm honest about my taxes, there's no way he could. Give me more business and take care of that. Do you understand God is on the edge of his throne and he wants a breakthrough to happen for you. And you're basically saying, I'm not taking a step because I don't think he'll provide.
And your financial worldview Has you living in a situation where you don't experience God's power? You don't experience answers to prayer. You know what? God doesn't play games. He doesn't provide breakthroughs over here when He says, Now, this is true and right, and this is what I want you to do.
And you say, Well, thanks. I take that as a really good opinion, and I'll consider doing that. That's not how it works. Obedience is the channel through which blessing flows. The fifth is blindness.
After he gives a little reproof to the Pharisees and to the disciples, I'll come back and touch that in verses 8, 11 through 21. Uh he He's going to heal a blind person. They came to Bethesda and some people brought a blind man and Are you getting a pattern here? Begged Jesus to touch him. And he took him off to the side and he put his hands on the man's eyes and he says, Do you see?
And the man says, I see people who look like trees walking around. In other words, he prays. and he gets partial sight and he sees things but it's blurry. And then he prays for him again, and then he sees everything clearly. You have to understand the literary genius and why Jesus does what He does, not only for the disciples, but for us.
Because just like There was an actual deaf man The disciples can't hear God. I mean, the disciples see the miracles, but they don't understand. And so, sandwiched in between these barriers, Jesus is going to have a little talk with his disciples. And he's going to say, I've shown you miraculously Hearing and seeing, and you can trust me. And yet They don't get it.
In fact, notice the two groups that don't get it. Skip back up now to verse 11. The Pharisees came and began to question him. All these miracles are happening, right? I mean, traditions are blown out of the water.
This unworthy woman comes, this deaf man can hear, you know, 4,000 people. And I mean, there's a buzz. And so the Pharisees come and they're thinking, this is really getting out of hand. Allah we're losing control. He's getting way too famous.
And so they come, not to hear, not to learn, not to grow. What's it say? They came to test him, and they asked him for a sign from heaven. And he sighed deeply. Why does this generation ask for miraculous signs?
I tell you the truth, no sign will be given. And then he left them and got into the boat. See, the Here's people that really think they've got it wired. And this is how we do with God sometimes. You know what?
I'm kind of hearing this stuff, God. When you restore my marriage, get me a good job, I get my house back, and my kid's life turns around. And by the way, I've had this chronic pain, take care of that too. When you do all that, then I think I'll believe. Let me tell you Jesus' response.
He sighs deeply. And says, you know, Faith isn't you seeing all the things and then. Faith is choosing to step out of the boat. when you feel afraid in believing what I've said. This is Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram.
In a message titled Courage, The Catalyst to Breakthrough. Chip has one more teaching point to share in just a moment, so don't go away. As you think about which barrier might be holding you back, let me tell you about a powerful resource that can help. It's Chip's free ten day devotional called Psalms of Hope. Each day Chip teaches for ten minutes from Psalms, then you spend ten minutes alone with God, letting His Word sink deep.
just twenty minutes a day for ten days. These devotionals address the very issues we've been discussing: how to stay close to God, how to hear His voice, and how to trust His provision. Get started today at livingontheedge.org. Search for Psalms of Hope and begin your journey. Resources like this are made possible by faithful friends who believe in what God is doing through this ministry.
Now, if you'd like to support this work, give online at livingonthege.org or send your gift to LivingOnthege, PO Box 3007, Atlanta, Georgia, 30024. You can also call us at triple eight three three three six zero zero three.
Well, now here's Chip with a closing point for today's message. As we wrap up today, I think to boil it all down maybe the easiest way to say it is this a lot of things get in the way of breakthrough.
So it's understanding those barriers. It's realizing that we have to overcome them. Breakthroughs mean that you have to get out of, you have to get through certain things. And of course, that's where it requires courage. And let me give you a picture of how breakthrough works.
It was in my lowest moment of the COVID virus. All of us have had probably a couple days or a lot more where I thought, boy, my mental health is bad. I'm thinking not good thoughts. I'm angry inside. I'm resentful.
And in the midst of all that, it was, okay, God, I just can't do this anymore. And the Lord said, well, why don't you think of some people that have a more difficult situation? Get your focus off yourself and help them. And, you know, I was praying for a breakthrough. I was praying for, oh, God, help me.
And so, to make a very long story short, I. I knew that things were really challenging in the Middle East. I scheduled a Zoom call with the head of all the churches in Egypt who has become a friend. I asked him how he's doing. And he just said, Chip, it's um.
We feel like the government is doing a great job, but the pastures are barely surviving. And in the course of the conversation I said, you know, I've actually been sort of pondering a little series on the art of survival. And he goes, Oh, send it to me. I said, No, no, no, I'm just pondering it. I haven't even written it yet.
I haven't filmed it yet. And he goes, Well, when can you get it done? And I, out of sheer obedience, when I didn't feel like it, I called someone to encourage him. And as he said that, it was like a light went on inside of me. I got in an empty room, I looked into a camera, and I did all three messages.
We put a webinar together with all those people from all those churches. It got translated, then we put it in print and gave it to them. And I thought, oh my lands, what a breakthrough. And then the head of international said, No, Chip, you don't get that's the beginning. And then it was 300 cities in India, then it was across Africa, then it was Latin America.
Not because I was smart, not because I had a great vision, it's because I got to the very end of myself, and in my desperation, God took my weakness and He displayed His power. and that's what he wants to do in you. Could I encourage you, just right now, unless you're driving, shut your eyes and open your hands with empty palms and say, God, I'm at the end of me and with the positioning that I will do whatever you say, and you sit quietly, And as you listen to the Spirit of God, just obey. That's where you'll find breakthrough and power.
Now by his grace, go do it. What's the secret to overcoming fear and stepping into courage? I'm Dave Druy, inviting you to find out Monday on Living on the Edge. Today's program is produced and sponsored by Living on the Edge. Um
