Yes! You Really CAN Change - Is a "Changed Life" Really Possible?, Part 2

You know, we've all seen those advertisements about instant weight loss, you know, getting in shape for five minutes a day.

The problem is those quick fixes don't last. So what does it take to experience real, lasting life change? I mean the kind of life change that helps you become the person you've always longed to be. Well, today I'm going to give you some specific steps from God's Word about how that really happens from the inside out. Stay with me. Welcome to this Edition of Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram. The mission of these daily programs is to intentionally disciple Christians through the Bible teaching of Pastor Chip Ingram.

I'm Dave Drew. Last time, Chip started a series called Yes, You Really Can Change. Before he continues, let me encourage you to try using Chip's message notes while you listen. They include his brief outline and all the supporting scripture references. To download these message notes, just go to the broadcasts tab at livingontheedge.org.

App listeners tap fill in notes. Okay, let's dive in now to part two of Is a Changed Life Really Possible? Here's Chip. Christians are transformed in community. The reason many Christians who genuinely have come to Christ, who honestly love God, who have some initial outward changes and a few inward ones, and then plateau and never deal with the deep, deep issues of the heart, dysfunction, family origin, fears, rejection, workaholism, all the things they pass on to friends and kids.

The reason those deep issues never change is they are not in community where the real them shows up meeting real needs for the right reason and the right way and where they're vulnerable and someone loves the broken parts of you and loves you enough to encourage you and accept you and at the same time hold you accountable and not let you keep being the same person. See, it's the Jesus inside of their body extending the love of Christ. And Jesus' love is always soft and tender and sometimes very hard and tough depending on what we need. Because his goal is the outcome, not just that you feel good. And so he says this is how transformation works.

Justification. This is what God has done. Sanctification, you start on a journey.

The journey is first my beliefs and behaviors. It is an oxymoron for a person to come to Christ and their life not change. I mean it's just unheard of in scripture. Only in America and around the world now could we ever create this world where a Christian is someone who comes to meetings intellectually acknowledges that Jesus is a savior that died and rose from the dead and we tip him with a few hours of our day and our week and we live our life completely differently and say this is working. So he calls us, let his life live in and through you. Isn't that different from trying really hard to act like Jesus? Isn't that different from I'm going to try and quit cussing and then I'm going to try and be more generous and then I'm going to quite dream that it's so selfish and then pretty soon because we know how a Christian is supposed to act, I think a lot of us and let me start with me. In seasons of my life I've spent more energy appearing loving and appearing Christianly than I really was. Just so that the other people would think I'm making progress.

This is getting way too convicting. Let me get back to my notes. There's a reason however and the reason is really critical. He says there's one body, one spirit just as you were called and one hope that you were called. One Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father. Every time the word one is used here could you underline that? There's seven of them so let me give you a minute.

One, one, one, one, one, one, one. Where it says there is where you put a box around there is because and again our English Bibles are absolutely fantastic but just now and then the Greek text is there in a way that's a little bit more in living color. The there is isn't in the original text but it makes the sentence make sense because what Paul has done is used a very unusual grammatical device. And basically what he's saying is three chapters of all that God has done for you. Therefore walk in a manner worthy. Let your life and lips tell the same story.

Here's how to do it. Get together in deep authentic community and treat each other with humility and gentleness and patience and put up with stuff and and the only way you'll do that is draw on his resources and then literally he goes off. There's seven staccato words bam, bam, bam, bam, bam, bam. It's like you've got to understand how important this is and this is so important it's not about your happiness. It's not a it doesn't work for you.

It's not that it improves your life. He's gonna do seven staccato one, one, one, one and did you notice there's four alls. All, all, all, all. There's a focus of unity. There's a focus of consistency and then he does something where it's in triads. There's three ones followed by three ones followed by another three ones and the Trinity is in this. And usually we think of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit but he doesn't go that direction.

It's very unusual. He's talking about the church. He's talking about what Christ has done.

He's talking to them and to us about this transformation and so he starts with well how does it work? The Spirit of God is what convicts us. The Spirit of God is what gives us spiritual birth. We're born of the Spirit. The Spirit of God is our pledge or down payment for heaven and our hope and so notice what he does. They, these are I mean where they're reading this I can imagine them opening the scroll and going bam, bam, bam, bam, bam, bam, bam seven times and basically what it goes there's one body, the church, one Spirit who creates it and one hope. You're the new church. The Spirit does it. He's taking you to heaven and then for what?

Who's the focus? One Lord Jesus, one faith, one baptism. Jesus is the focus of it all. Each one of you have taken a step of faith and each one of you have graphically publicly told the world and said your past is behind you and what you did is you said my old life died and I've been resurrected with him and all the privileges and all the persecution. Think about when this was written.

I'm gonna walk with him. There's one Lord. This was written when there was a God on every corner. There's one Lord, one faith, one baptism and then it goes to the Father. There's one God but he's different than this God that makes everyone afraid.

Notice there's one God. He's the Father. He's kind. He's a dad.

He's an Abba. He's the Father of all and then notice he's sovereign. He's the creator.

He's what? Who is over all and through all and in all and so he gives them this extraordinary high lofty view of who God is and in essence, listen carefully, here's what he's saying. This is what God's done for you, chapters one through three.

Here's the command. Let him live his life through you so that your behavior and your lifestyle match what's true. The way to do that isn't about activity or dos and don'ts or external roles. It happens in community in deep authentic relationships where you give to people what you really don't have to give and so you draw in dependencies. You abide in Christ and you love others. In fact, the way Jesus loves people, he gives you a moment with his spirit. He speaks to you through his word but the way Jesus is going to hug most of us is you're not gonna get like, you know, an angel from heaven at the foot of your bed tomorrow morning going, hey, I need a hug. He's gonna hug you through me.

He's gonna hug me through you. It's gonna be the person in your small group. It's gonna be the Jesus living in this body and he says, as you do that, do you remember what Jesus said? The way the world will know that the father has sent the son is what?

By the authenticity and the genuineness of our love for one another and Paul says that's what at stake. Now, we're gonna be on a journey, okay? So I can't cover, most of you are thinking you've already covered too much. Your head hurts but what I want to do before we go on is I want to give you the three reasons as you flip this text around and when you look at people's life experience, I want to give you some practical tools about so what keeps us from metamorphosis? What are the barriers for all of us? And, you know, as I go through this and, I mean, don't get covered over with, oh, that's me.

I'm a terrible person. No, no, no. God brought us here to say let's go on a journey. If most Christians understood justification and sanctification and how it worked, most Christians would look a lot more like Jesus. And so let me give you these three things.

I'll give it sort of top level and we're gonna be unpacking these. Three reasons we fail to be transformed. Reason number one is spiritual ignorance, not stupidity. This isn't that people are stupid. We just don't know. Our failure to understand our true identity in Christ destines us to the try hard, do good, fail syndrome. The problem is a lack of knowledge. The solution is discover your new identity.

I mean, I didn't know. I kind of grew up in a church that didn't preach the Bible and I became a new Christian and the spirit came into my life and I got around a group of people that were really activity oriented, which was good. And so I tried hard, do good, failed. Try hard, do good, failed.

Try hard, do not so good, fake it. And then I quit trying. I remember I was a Christian just about a year and a half or two years and I had this poster. It was in college. And I had a poster and I had my Bible there and it was some poster about God. So when people came in my room, you know, hey, you know, yo. And I remember like, okay, some things changed and then it's just, you know, playing basketball and baseball and I was an RA. And in my private moments I realized lust had not changed.

My ego really hadn't changed. I was now reading the Bible and I didn't want to be a hypocrite and I knew I was. I, all I knew was I was trying as hard as I could in my energy to be like Jesus because I thought that's what a Christian was. And I got news for you.

You can't do it. No one can live the Christian life but Jesus. And the way the Christian life is lived is when we abide in relationship and the spirit of God takes the word of God in the context of the cocoon of community and he produces the life of Christ.

We have a part. Make every effort. But if you don't know how it works, you can try really hard. And so you have to discover your identity in Christ. I'll give you one verse to get you going and maybe a couple resources. Galatians 2.20 is the Apostle Paul in one sentence saying, if you don't understand the Christian life and you want to know the identity in Christ's truth, here's in one sentence. If you want the longer version, read Ephesians 1, 2 and 3. If you like a more technical version, read Romans 6, 7 and 8.

But let me just give it to you. I mean, you know, this is the elevator pitch on your identity in Christ. Paul says, I have been crucified with Christ.

Nevertheless, I live. Yet not I, but Christ lives within me. And this new life that I live, I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me. See, Paul realizes when he trusted Christ, he died with Christ. His old man died. He was resurrected with him. He's living out of who he already is. And yet he's saying, I still live in this world. But yet not I, but it's Christ lives in me. And the way you appropriate grace, the way you experience the truth of Ephesians 1, 2 and 3, it's a faith walk through grace.

That's why the metaphor of walk is so important. I'm starting to feel like I'm old. I want you to know I'm not really old. I started very young.

And Teresa started even younger. But I can tell you from when my kids were small and now with all these little grandkids, can you remember what it was like when you saw children learn to walk for the first time? Do you remember? Do you remember what it was like, you know, that, you know, they're kind of like this and they're on the coffee table and you know what walking is? Walking is moving out of your comfort zone and getting ready to fall and catching yourself just before you fall and then getting out of comfort zone and ready to fall again. And then you do it again.

And it's amazing. It's an off balance out of where you were from comfort to a moment of fearful indecision. Now, with practice, let me show you something.

It can be done like this eventually. But when your little kids fell down and they took two steps, what did you do? Oh, that was so good. That was so good.

That was so good. Did you focus on their falling down or the few steps they took? Could I tell you the Apostle Paul said walk in a manner worthy because he wants you to know that the Father and God, he rejoices at your steps of faith and he's not shocked when you fall down. And because we've created this pseudo culture of Christianity, the great majority of us spend half our energy trying to hide when we fall down. And what we really need to do is realize God is cheering for every step of faith and we need to be in that cocoon of community where we can be loved through that journey and process.

But you have to learn. You have to learn how to, I call it appropriate grace. You have to learn how do you allow Christ to live his life through you. The second reason we fail to be transformed is spiritual isolation.

Our failure to actively, notice that's the key word, actively participate in deep Christ-centered honest relationships makes transformation impossible. The problem, and please don't feel too bad about this one, but it's pride. I don't mean necessarily just the pride where you stick out your chest and you think it's the pride of self dependency. Because if you don't have deep authentic relationships and whether that's in a small group or whether that's around the table in your family or with a couple guys or a couple gals or two or three couples. I'm not talking about just being in a small group.

That's the container. I'm talking about really doing life authentically and openly and lovingly and people who know what's really going on. And you get accepted even when you blow it and you get kind of kicked lovingly when you know you need kick because they really care. See the reason we don't do that is my agenda is I think is more important than God's agenda. I mean when you tell me we don't have time well just all I have to do is say well tell me what your schedule looks like.

Well I work, work, work, work, work and then we have youth sports and then I have this, then I have this hobby and I work out and you know then I go to the gym and then I oh okay. So all you're telling me is that matters more than what God says is the very place where he's going to transform you. At the end of the day everyone does what matters most period.

We never have a time problem. All of us have priority issues. And for some of you I mean here's the application.

I mean it's very very simple. The solution is do life in community. And for some it's changing how life happens in your home. For others you need to join a small group.

I mean we are off the charts on that because butterflies get transformed in cocoons. Christians get transformed in community. But there's a second application it's not just join a group it's get real in the group. And if you can't do it with a whole group maybe there's a couple people or even one or two you really get close to and you feel like you know what I could really do life at a deeper level with this person. I'm pretty comfortable kind of sharing what's going on. I work with great people.

My wife is very open and we can share things. But it's probably about three or four months ago as I was kind of looking at okay the next year and this next season and see what God's doing at the church. I see what he's doing at Living on the Edge.

I kind of see these things bubbling up. You know when God starts to prick you and you realize you know I need to address some things and well who would I do that with. And I have a friend that I've known for 30 years we did ministry. I mean when I was 28 years old and we were partners together in a ministry together in a church of about 35 in Texas. And we got to work for another 15 years later and he's now a pastor. And we just tried to get on each other's schedule.

And I remember realizing no one knows me on this entire planet better than him. I've got issues that could make or break what God wants to do in my life and through my life. And in my self dependency and over scheduled arrogance.

I've not taken advantage of that. And about three months ago I asked if we could have breakfast and it took us you know your schedules three weeks to even get breakfast on one morning. And I asked would you meet with me every other week.

And he said well like for what. I said I need a place of someone who has all my history that I can be as honest with you as I am with Teresa. And I know God wants to do some things to take me to a level. And I don't know where to go. I mean I can go down to you know like a lot pretty deep. But there's a lot of these people now they think I'm way smarter than I am.

They think I'm more holy than I am. And you know the truth of all of that right. It's been 30 years. And the only way I could do it is on a day that I really wanted to reserve for other things and every other week we've been meeting. And we got done this last week early in the morning. He turned to me and we're finishing up at Starbucks. And he just looked at me kind of his eyes wet and my eyes wet. He goes man I'm sure glad we're meeting again. I said me too.

Do you have that? It's not going to be easy. It will cost something. But remember how we started the message?

What's that one thing you'd really like to change about you? It's just reading the Bible more. Coming to more services.

It's got to be community. At a deep level. The third reason we fail to transform is I call it spiritual myopia.

That's a word for nearsighted. And in other words we fail to see the big picture. The problem is our culture of consumerism. The solution is to get a high holy view of God. And here's all I want to say. And I'll try not to go off on this.

I'm going to try and contain myself. The Christianity of the last 30 or so years in America or 40 that we've sent to the world is a consumeristic God is my cosmic vending machine. Jesus is my personal trainer, self-help guru. And the whole goal of the Christian life is am I happy? Am I fulfilled? Do I have a great marriage? Have I found the right person? Do my kids all turn out right?

Are we upwardly mobile? You know am I healthy, wealthy and everything going my way? And if not Jesus you're not coming through for me.

When did you forget that I this narcissistic consumeristic Christian have taken your word and made all of it about me and you're supposed to make me happy and healthy and wealthy and wise and wonderful and someday all my kids around the Thanksgiving table singing Kumbaya and everything turns out right. I never have a problem. Tragedy never happens. Cancer never happens. And if I really believe then everything goes my way.

And we've been exporting that stuff around the world. I got news for you. If he gives you a rich deep marriage, if he gives you health, if he prospers your business, if your kids grow up and love God, all those are really wonderful wonderful byproducts. But I will tell you Christians living like Christians are the acid test of whether God sent his son. There is one spirit, there is one hope, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father over all.

One, one, one, one, one, one, one, all, all, all. And how we live or don't live says to the world God is really God, Jesus is the savior and when we don't live like Christians your happiness and my happiness and our fulfillment is very secondary. He's the creator. It's about him. He has an agenda and we sign up to say how can I serve you O Lord and master and creator who is worthy of glory and honor and power for you have created all things and by you all things have created and in and by you they have their being. And we are finite little people in this teeny, teeny thing called time and time will go away and there'll be all eternity and we will worship a living God in a new heaven, a new earth and what we do now matters for that and forever. And he calls us to live those kind of lives. And like you I'm inundated.

I mean if you thought where did he get that rant and rave about I've done that. We've had cancer in our house. I've had struggles with my kids.

Things have gone wrong and I find myself starting to whine instead of well wait a second. The Bible says those are all the things that are going to help change me. I don't like them but is God good or not? Is God sovereign or not? Is God in control or not?

Is he the center or am I? A sobering reminder to continually put our trust in God. You're listening to Living on the Edge. Chip will be right back with his application for this message, Is a Changed Life Really Possible? from his series Yes You Really Can Change. If you're feeling burdened by your past or find yourself stuck in an unhealthy behavior, don't lose hope. A changed life is not only possible, it's God's will for all of us. So we hope you'll keep listening to this series to learn how to experience ongoing life change. And we're here to help you along the way. Download Chip's message notes, stream our exclusive video content or take a look at Chip's newly revised book. And as always the MP3s are free. Learn more about all the resources for Yes You Really Can Change by going to Living on the Edge dot org or calling 888-333-6003.

App listeners simply tap special offers. Chip as I listen to you today, you're really talking about how life is hard and sometimes we can't help but feel stuck. Would you talk to that person who's really struggling with that right now?

Well Dave, that's what this whole series is about. I've spent my last 30 plus years as a pastor watching, helping, coaching, mentoring and writing to help people understand you don't have to live as a codependent or as a private alcoholic or you don't have to live with lust and pretend you don't have it or be a workaholic and looking for meaning and purpose through the things that the world offers. And yet the reality is as people have gone to church, they read their Bible a little bit and they try really hard and that doesn't produce the joy and the freedom and the connection with the Holy Spirit that God wants them to have. The first three chapters of Ephesians are what God has said, this is what I've already done. This is who you really are.

And so this series is this is how you live it out. And my experience, Dave, is people don't understand that. They don't know it.

And so we've put it in the program here. I've written a brand new book where they can go through it little by little at their own pace and we have a small group resource. I long for people to experience the joy, the freedom and the peace. How many Christians know the great promise, I've come to give you life and life to the full and yet they rarely experience it. I want them to know it's available, but we need to understand what Ephesians 4 says and put it in practice.

Super helpful, thanks for that. Well, we're pretty excited about the release of the new revised edition of Chip's book, Yes, You Really Can Change. Let me encourage you, go to our website livingontheedge.org to pick up your copy of Yes, You Really Can Change.

Pick one up for yourself, maybe get one for a friend, and spend some time over coffee encouraging one another on your new journey of life change. Now here's Chip with a final thought. As you think about how big God is, and I hope that as we were listening to this together you thought to yourself, you know, He is big, He is powerful, He is all-knowing, He can change my life and my marriage and He can turn one of my kids around and He can change my attitude, my job, and wow, God could really change me.

And then maybe you thought, so why isn't He? And you know something that reminded me of an interview that I had on a talk show, and this material that you're studying came out in a book. And usually when a book comes out you end up on a number of these kind of live call-in radio programs and people call as you discuss the topic. And we were on this very topic and a lady calls in and basically says, hey, you said in this book that, you know, God is bigger and He can handle all this stuff. And then, I mean, she spent like a long time telling me about the marriage that wasn't working and the kid that wasn't working and the finances and her disappointment and her depression. And she said, basically, if God is that big, how come He's not helping me?

I've asked Him to. And I remember asking her, you know, as gently as I could, ma'am, would you tell me a little bit about your own personal time and God's Word? And she goes, well, you know, I kind of read the Bible. And I said, okay, well, do you spend some time praying? She goes, oh, man, I'm telling God about all this and asking Him for help.

And, you know, I'm thinking I'm kind of running out of possibilities. And so then I said, well, excuse me, are you involved in a local church? And if so, is there really a close community of people that really love you that you're doing life together with? And there was a long pause at the end. She goes, no, I don't go to church.

And I did a couple times, but I'm not close to anyone. And then I thought about the message of today. Life change happens for butterflies in a cocoon. Life change happens for Christians in community. We learned today there are four attitudes and one practice where God changes us. And at the core of it is relational authentic community. As we close today, one question, are you an authentic community? Do you have close, deep, Christ-like relationships?

And if not, that will tell you why change isn't occurring like you want it to and like God wants it to. And in next broadcast, I'm going to help you learn how to get there if you're not there, so don't be discouraged. Join us next time as we learn how to break through the barriers that keep life change from happening.

As we wrap up today's program, just a quick but important thought. Living on the Edge depends on listeners like you to help us continue programming right here in your area. Would you consider partnering with us on a monthly basis so people around you can benefit from the ministry of CHIP and Living on the Edge? To set up a recurring donation, call us at 888-333-6003. Tap the donate button or go to livingontheedge.org. Thanks in advance for doing whatever God leads you to do. Well, CHIP continues his series, Yes, You Really Can Change, in our next program, so make sure to join us again. In the meantime, this is Dave Drouy saying thanks for listening to this Edition of Living on the Edge.