Today I'm Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram. Do you long for a life of joy and Focus and actually impact. I mean, everyone wants to make a difference, but how does it really work? What are the baby steps that you could take today that would actually bring joy to your heart?
Well, that's today on Living on the Edge. Yeah. What if the most significant thing you ever do for God happens on an ordinary day in an ordinary place?
Well, I'm Dave Druy, and today on Living on the Edge, Chippingram continues his series, The Jesus Revolution. In Acts chapter 3, Peter and John are just keeping their routine, going to the temple, when a man crippled from birth, 40 years old, gets up and walks. Not because Peter was extraordinary, because Peter was available. And speaking of available, later in the program we have details about a very special opportunity called our mid-year match. Stay tuned for that.
Now let's join Chip with his message, Baby Steps That Change the World. What's the dream inside your heart that if you had unlimited resources? You could see anything happen in the entire world that you knew would glorify God and help people and bring about real change, what would it be? What would be the dream inside your heart that you'd want to see God do in your lifetime? My dream is that God would launch a movement first in this church.
And around America, where Christians would live like Christians.
Sounds kind of novel, wouldn't it? And then I thought about the kind of churches that would produce. Churches that would be warm. Caring. non-legalistic, non-self-righteous, authentic.
passionate followers of Christ. The broken, the irreligious. The people that are different, the people that are unlovely, would come to churches like that and feel loved. and welcome. I'm dreaming of a day when churches would measure success by the depth of their love.
Not by the size of the church, the beauty of their buildings. the size of their budgets. I'm dreaming of a day when Christians would stay married. When things get tough, I'm dreaming a day that The world had really changed. And I got to tell you, I can't shake this.
I I wake up Thinking this? When I pray deeply, I think it. I know it's humanly impossible. I know I don't have the resources, the power in and of myself, in any way for this dream to become a reality. But it's the passion of my heart, and I will tell you this.
I think it's the passion of my heart because it literally isn't my dream at all. This is Jesus' dream for his church, isn't it? This is his dream for you. This is his dream for me. When he said, when he taught his early disciples to pray, what did he say?
Ask the father. for his kingdom to come and his will to be done. How? on earth the same way it gets done in heaven. And to me, that's just us Christians living like Christians.
And when we do that individually, not that we're perfect, but we make progress, and when we blow it, we own it, and we're authentic, and we're real. And we're changing. Everyone in this room, everyone in this church has the potential. to literally transform the world around you. And the question I want to talk about is: how does that happen?
How does that really work? Right? I mean, is that just pie in the sky? Is that just rhetoric? Like, oh, well, wouldn't that be great someday, some way?
How actually does God change the world? And I want to suggest that God, by the Holy Spirit, puts inside of you and inside of me dreams and desires and opportunities. And that there isn't some great hero coming some day, some way, to make all that happen, that it happens organically and small, like a little mustard seed, through ordinary people. That's why Jesus chose the disciples that He did. I mean, you do some hard study of the background of those people, you're thinking this is not a good group to change the world with.
They're not educated. They don't have much leverage. They don't have any political power. They don't have any money.
So that everything that happened, we could know it's God at work in them. He sent the Holy Spirit to live inside of them. And in living inside of them, instead of Jesus walking on the earth and loving and caring and feeding, he came inside of every true Christ follower.
So Jesus is living out all those people. And so 120 turned into 3,000 devout followers that he planted these dreams and these desires and placed them in all these different backgrounds. And they begin to change the world. But I'm going to talk today about, well, how does it really work? Acts chapter 3 is the answer.
What you're going to see is just, are you ready? The answer is baby steps. The answer is not some big thing, someday, some way. How many people have seen the movie, What About Bob?
Sort of the classic. If you haven't run it, it's clean, that's great. But there's this great line in this movie, and this is a story of a guy with deep psychological problems that makes this psychiatrist crazy. And the one thing he gets is baby steps. You know, how am I going to change?
How am I going to change? He has all these issues. And so, just baby steps. And you know something? That's how God works.
Just, you know, all you need to do is say, you know what, there's a big picture, and Chip said all those big things, all these churches, and all that.
Well, you know what? You know where it starts? Baby steps. Open to Acts chapter 3. And what we're going to see is how God.
Begins with Peter and John and helps them take baby steps. And he's going to give them just a very specific baby step game plan. And they change their world. He just lays it out for us. The chapter is broken into two parts.
The first 14 or 15 verses are a story. And what we're going to find is that Peter and John, you know, it's like Monday morning, everybody has a Monday morning, and they're just doing what you're supposed to do on Monday morning. In their case, it's a prayer meeting they're going to. And something happens. And then the second half is what happens is going to create a stir, and thousands of people are going to be drawn to this temple open area.
Much like maybe a big park open area like Times Square, and thousands of people are kind of pouring in because of this event, and Peter uses it and then he gives a sermon, his second sermon.
So, follow along, because what I'm going to do is there's four baby steps that we learn. from the story, and there's one or two baby steps we'll look at in terms of a sermon. One day, Peter and John were going up to the temple at the time of prayer. at three in the afternoon.
Now a crippled man from birth Was being carried to the temple gate called Beautiful, where he was put every day to beg from those who were going into the temple courts. When he saw Peter and John about to enter, He asked them for money. And Peter Look straight at him, as did John. And then Peter said, look at us.
So the man gave him his attention, and he expected to get something from them. Then Peter said, Silver? Or gold. I do not have. But what I do have, I will give to you.
In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk. Taking him up by his right hand, He helped him up and instantly the man's feet and ankles became strong. And he jumped to his feet and he began to walk. And then he went jumping into the temple courts and walking and leaping and praising God. And when all the people saw him walking and praising God, they recognized him as the same man who used to beg sitting at the temple gate called Beautiful.
And they were filled with wonder and amazement. at what was happening to him. Baby steps. Step number one. For us regular people, Who have desires in our hearts that God wants to use to change the world is simply draw near to God.
Verses 1 and 2, where are Peter and John going?
Now in Judaism at the time they had a prayer time at 9, a prayer time at noon, and a prayer time at 3 o'clock. Peter and John, right, the Spirit lives in them, but it's like it's Monday. They're just doing what they normally do. They're doing the mundane of life. They're just doing what they would do on any Monday.
But they are faithful in just the little things. They're just on their way. I got news for you. This guy's been crippled from birth. We learned later he's 40 years old.
The disciples, most of them, were in their late teens or mid-20s at best. Peter's walked by this guy a thousand times or more. He's been at the same gate forever and ever and ever and ever, and yet... Peter's just on his way doing What are you supposed to do? Being faithful in a very little thing.
is the key. to being faithful in great things. Peter doesn't have any more power, and John doesn't have any more power than ordinary people like us. The difference is they got near to him. And what they were doing is they were just being faithful.
We talk a lot about praying or spending time in God's Word. That's not so you check a box and don't feel guilty. It has nothing to do with that. It's about relationship. It's like recalibrating your soul.
It's about understanding. Oh, you know, God has an assignment for me today. I want to be in tune. I want my antenna to be up with the Spirit of God and the will of God for my life. And all I want you to know.
God does extraordinary things through ordinary people. But it always begins with just being faithful in the ordinary things. Walk with God. Draw near to him, step one. It's a baby step.
Second is look through Jesus' eyes. Peter is going to the temple. He's been there. He's just doing what he's supposed to do. But the Spirit of God lives inside of him now.
Now, he saw Jesus' example. The Christian life is not seeing that Jesus was this marvelous person and trying to be like him in your own power. That is not Christianity, that's not what Jesus taught. The fact is, a revolution occurs, and the old you dies, and the Spirit of God comes, and literally, Jesus lives inside of us by the Holy Spirit.
Well, now, Peter is walking, and instead of seeing a beggar who's always there, who needs some help, and maybe he's even giving him a little money here and there, all of a sudden, he sees him through Jesus' eyes. Jesus sees his deeper need, not just physically. But spiritually. And Jesus sees him through the eyes of this unlimited resource. Remember the last thing Jesus said to the guys?
All authority, dunamis, our word for dynamite, all power, all authority has been given to me, and I'm going to be with you always.
So, Peter's not going there thinking, what can Peter do? Peter's walking by this guy who has a desperate need, and he realizes Jesus has unlimited resources and he lives in me. And then something happens. He takes a step of faith. You're listening to Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram, and we'll continue our message in just a moment.
Well, something special is happening here in June at Living on the Edge. It's a powerful mid-year match. For a limited time, every gift to this ministry will be doubled in size, meaning twice the reach, twice the impact for every dollar given. You can learn more about it at livingonthege.org, and Chip will have more details after today's message.
Now let's get back to our lesson. Here's what I want you to remember. Never assume the way it is. is the way it's got to be. That's death.
Ephesians 3.20 says, Now to him who is able to do abundantly beyond, Anything that we could ask or think. Jesus, he's able to do. Exceedingly, abundantly beyond what you and I think. Pretty soon, if you're not careful, you start thinking this marriage is going to be now the way it is and ever shall be. You know, this struggle with one of my kids.
My singleness, I'm single. I'm discouraged. I'll always be single. You know, no one really is open at work. I don't think anything's ever going to change.
It's a dark place. We start living as though the way things are today is the way they'll always be. And that just eliminates faith. This guy was absolutely helpless. They had to carry him in.
And he was absolutely hopeless. God wants to do miracles, and you know who He does them through. Ordinary people. Later on we're going to learn when they're going to get thrown in jail for this. The intellects of the day will look at Peter and John and go, these are untrained and uneducated men, but they recognize them as having been with Jesus.
The thing that makes a difference isn't your personality or your gifts or what you bring to the table. All that under the direction of the Holy Spirit is great. But it's Christ in you. Don't assume the way it is is the way it's always got to be. But you need to look.
You need to start looking at your work through new eyes. You need to look at people in your family through new eyes. You need to look at needs through new eyes. You need to start walking around and realizing Jesus, through the Spirit of God, lives inside of me. And if you could just like take these glasses or you could take a contact and put, I want a Jesus lens.
I'm going to start looking at people at work, people on the highway, people that cut in front of me, people that give me a hard time, people that are in my neighborhood. I want to look at them the way Jesus would look at them if he lived inside my body. And then I want you to just take a quick gulp and say, oh, he does. He does. And it's exciting to see what happens.
When you do that, the third baby step, those aren't too hard, really, is it? I mean, how hard is it? to draw near to God. And then just to look through Jesus' eyes, third is act. On your good impulses.
Now I don't want to read too much into this and I don't want you to go tell people Chip can read Peter's mind and he know what exactly was happening. I can't. But this is a regular guy, right? And he's failed before, like big time. And so, okay, Jesus lives inside of him now through the Spirit.
And he seized this baker. And I I gotta assume that His thought process changed.
Now, we're going to learn a little bit later that this early church was completely Jewish, and when the Spirit of God came, they were expecting the restoration of the kingdom and him to come back very immediately. That's why they pooled their resources very voluntarily. You know, if the nation would have accepted the Messiah, they would see him coming back very, very, very soon. We'll learn that the nation rejects the Messiah. The nation of Israel does.
And they didn't know about this mystery called the church, which they were. But You know, Peter's walking by this guy, and he has the thought that had to come to his mind. You know, I don't have anything to give him. but I don't seem like I used to seem. And then this thought had to be We've got this unlimited power.
I mean, I bet it went through his mind like real quickly. I think I'm going to tell him, walk. That'd be cool. What if I say it and nothing happens? What if I say it in Maybe this isn't me.
You know, I'm kind of new at listening to the Spirit. Maybe this is just sort of a fabricated thought in my mind. See, he came to a little point of time where he had an impulse, a nudging from the Holy Spirit to take a step of faith outside his comfort zone that was really going to help someone and a miracle is going to occur. And just like you and me, he's right on the edge of, am I going to obey this prompting or not? You've got him, haven't you?
You know, like that weird thought, like you're driving by and you see someone walking, and there's this thought, like, I should turn around and help that person. And then the next thought is: well, you know, I'm really kind of busy and I have to do a U-turn and I'll help them later. Or someone out of the blue, like you're praying or you're driving in your car, and someone you haven't thought about, and you ought to call this person. And sometimes you do, and then and what do they say, stuff like How in the world did you know, right? The Spirit's still prompting.
Here's the next baby step. Act on your good impulses. When you have an impulse that comes to you that loves someone, that glorifies God, that helps them, that takes you out of your comfort zone, that probably costs you something, and you're a little afraid to do it, that's probably not you. Right? I mean recently I was in line somewhere and it was like, buy these people's groceries behind you.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. You know, and this lady's gonna, you know. Yeah. Why? I don't know.
I don't have to know. And this was just last week. And they were checking out, and the lady, oh, I'm sorry, and I could tell a little struggle with her son, and I don't have my credit card, and God, I mean, got louder. Just buy her groceries. Just.
Just be my presence. And so, okay, this will help you.
So finally, she found her credit card, and I couldn't get rid of it.
So now I'm acting like I'm looking at the tomatoes over here, and you know, just like, I don't want to do it. She's going to think I'm some weirdo, and this kid's over there, and so I'm chicken out, though, chicken out, though, chicken out.
So finally, you know, and then I finally, okay, I'm going to do it. And I walk up, and it's very uncomfortable, and she gives a credit card, and I blew it. Oh, Lord, I'm sorry. And then he said, do you have cash? Yes, well, give her.
So, anyway, I kind of saw about what it was like, and her and her little boy got in their car. I don't want to read too much in it, but from body language, the boy, the lack of a wedding band, you know, if I was going to make up a story, it looked like a divorced mom going through a hard time who was really struggling about how she was going to pay for this. And I drove around in my car and I said, Excuse me, and I rolled down the window. I assure you, I'm not some weird guy stalking you or your son, okay? But I just got this really weird prompting from God, and He wants you to know that He loves you and He wants to take care of your groceries today.
And I just gave her 40 bucks. And I said, could I give this to your son? And the light on her face was like... It wasn't like, oh, no, no. I mean, it was like.
Thank you. I said, I'll see you later. God is giving you and me those kind of promptings all the time. What if we acted on them? What if we acted on him?
Act on those good promptings. Notice what it says to remember: God daily prepares divine appointments for you to be the answer to someone's prayer. Let your light so shine before men that they might see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven. That's from the very lips of Jesus. You know how you do that?
You draw near to God so you're in tune. You start asking, I want to look through. Life through your eyes, not mine. And then, when God, and early on, it's okay if you have a few misses. I could tell you some other stories that didn't come out that well.
I thought I had a prompting, I think it was a chipting. Yeah. But you know what? I would rather go down swinging, wouldn't you? Number four.
Give God the credit. Notice when this happens, because I think Peter is as shocked as anyone else. You know, long before these guys got to be in stained glass, they were just ordinary blue-collar workers trying to figure out what was going on.
So you pick up the story, look at verse 11. While the beggar held on to Peter and John, all the people were astonished and came running to them in the place called the Solomon's Colonnade. When Peter saw this, he said to them, men of Israel, why does this surprise you? Why do you stare at us? as if by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk.
The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified his servant Jesus. God, you understand this isn't about us. This is God. God does miracles. He did miracles then.
He does miracles now. The issue isn't God's power, isn't God's will, isn't God's desire. It's a conduit. He's looking for an ordinary person like a Peter or a John or a Mary. To just say, hey, I'm kind of looking through your lens, and I'm going to take a step of faith, and I'm going to love in places that make me a little uncomfortable, and God shows up.
But when he does, here's the key. Be really careful. Because you know, I gotta tell you, when I drove off after giving that lady, Little money and it wasn't like a ton of money, but Felt pretty good. I don't know why, but when you're generous, you feel a little happy inside, you know? Felt kinda happy?
And I bet if I did a quick news interview, I think I could have fallen quickly into... You know, I was pretty wonderful today, wasn't I? Right? Jot in your notes, if you would, Isaiah 42.8. Isaiah 42.8.
I am the Lord. That is my name. I will not give my glory to another. You'll notice what you need to remember is the world has yet to see the extent. of what God will do through someone.
who does not care who gets the credit. And that's what God wants from us. God wants us to realize, you know what, you're like one really bad decision or doing something stupid from. Having a life where you'd say, well, how did that happen? We're all people of flesh.
I praise God the Spirit of God lives in me. The difference is we're forgiven, the difference is He lives inside of us, and we're the conduit to share and to care. The Holy Spirit's job is to convict. You shared the truth. In grace.
Usually you hear people that they give people all truth. Or they give them all grace. Love is giving both in balance from a heart that really cares. That's Chip Ingram on Living on the Edge, and the start of a message titled Baby Steps That Change the World. Chip has one more thing to share about the mid-year match and why this moment counts.
So keep listening. Don't miss a single message in this series. Subscribe to the Living on the Edge podcast and take the Jesus Revolution with you wherever you go. And for Chip's full-length sermons, find the Chip Ingram Sermon Podcast on your favorite platform. A man who hadn't walked a single step in 40 years was jumping through the temple courts by the time the chapter was over.
And Peter and John didn't have a program for that. They just showed up to pray, saw a need, and said yes to a prompting. That's the whole game plan. Chip made it so clear today, draw near, look through Jesus' eyes, act on the good impulse, and give God the credit. The revolution isn't waiting for exceptional people.
It's looking for available ones.
Well, here's Chip Ingram with a word about what happens when available people put their resources behind a movement that God is already blessing. Here's something I find fascinating about the book of Acts. The early church was largely a young person's movement. Teenagers and young adults who encountered the risen Jesus and decided their lives would never be the same. And here's what I'm seeing today: a generation of young people who are tired of shallow, comfortable Christianity.
They're actually hungry for something real. And that's exactly what the Jesus Revolution is all about. In Acts chapters 1 through 5, we see how Jesus built a movement of disciples. He wasn't trying to get a group of people to meet once a week, sing a few songs, listen to a message, and keep living the same way. It was a revolution of Christians who actually learned to live like Christians.
They were marked by integrity and holiness and love that extended even to their enemies. The next generation isn't looking for a religion. They're looking for a revolution. Your gift to this mid-year match this June, double dollar for dollar, helps us put the truth of the gospel in front of young people who already want to hear it. Give today, and let's reach them together.
We really can make a difference. What Ship just described is happening right now, and your gift keeps it going. Don't wait Join the Jesus Revolution today by partnering with Living on the Edge through a gift of any amount. Go online to livingonTheEdge. org or call us at 888 333 six zero zero three.
Remember this month only every single dollar you give is matched dollar for dollar.
So whether you give $5 or $500, the impact is doubled and the revolution rolls on. Again, just go online to livingontheedge.org or call us at 888-333-6003 to give today.
Well, I'm Dave Druy, and we'll see you next time for part two of Baby Steps That Change the World here on Living on the Edge Chip Ingramgram. Um Today's program is produced and sponsored by Living on the Edge. Uh
