I Choose Love - Love Cares, Part 1

When the world seems to grow darker and darker, when corruption and violence and hate and prejudice continue to grow, God does something unusual. It says the eyes of the Lord go to and fro throughout the whole world, that He may strongly support those whose hearts are fully His. He's looking for a man, He's looking for a woman, to stand in the gap to make a difference.

Would you like to be that person? 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 Chip Ingram.

And in just a minute, he'll begin winding down our series, I Choose Love, How to Build Lasting Relationships. Chip continues our study in Philippians chapter 2, examining the specific ways God chooses to use people, and why it sometimes feels like He enlists some more than others. As a quick reminder, if you miss a portion of this program, let me encourage you to catch up through the Chip Ingram app.

It's a great way to listen to Chip and Living on the Edge anytime. Well, with that, go in your Bibles to Philippians chapter 2, starting in verse 19, as we join Chip for his talk, Love Cares. I want to share something with you because there's something that God and Teresa have in common.

Are you ready for this? They're both always shopping. When Teresa and I are hanging around downtown Las Gatos, if we go away for a little weekend, if sometimes I travel to Atlanta and there's a number of shops there, she's always looking. She's always shopping.

Now, don't get me wrong. She's not like a, I have to have new shoes, new dress. She's shopping for grandkids.

I mean, there's a birthday like every third day, and then anniversary. So wherever we go, she'll walk in, oh, and then she'll tell me, for this season, this would be perfect for, and then she'll name one of the grandkids and tell me why. Here's what I want you to know.

She cares about each child and its season, and she wants to get the very thing that would help them be and experience the very best. And what I want you to know is that God is shopping. In other words, he is looking. He's looking, and what he's looking for is people that are ready and prepared to fulfill his will. In fact, notice on the front of your notes, I put two key Old Testament passages.

It's the Lord speaking from Ezekiel 22. He says, And I searched for a man among them, who should build up the wall and stand in the gap before me. Why? That I should not destroy it. And this is sad. He went shopping, and he couldn't find anyone.

But I found no one. And then notice the response. Thus I've poured out my indignation on them. I've consumed them with the fire of my wrath. Their way have I brought upon their heads, declares the Lord. We see the evil in the world. We see the tragedy.

We see disasters. And God is saying, in the midst of all of this, this is not my desire. I'm searching for a man, for a student, for a woman, that you could stand in the gap, that I will fill you and use you, and I will bring light and goodness and restoration and healing. The second passage is one that's profoundly impacted me. 2 Chronicles 16, verse 9, the prophet is speaking for the Lord. And he's speaking to Asa, a king who, I mean for years, for 30 years, I mean he was walking with God, making a tremendous impact. And then he felt like, well, my time's over.

And I'm just going to coast. And so God brought a situation into his life, and instead of trusting God, he trusted in himself. And the prophet comes and says, for the eyes of the Lord move to and fro throughout the whole earth, that he might strongly support those whose hearts are completely his. And then he says, but you have acted foolishly in this. From now on, surely you'll have wars.

Here's what I want you to know. When we're talking about I choose love, there's a lot on the line. I'm being a little facetious with this shopping analogy. But our God is looking. His eyes are going to and fro throughout the earth, up and down these aisles in churches across the world. And he's looking for a man or a woman who is ready and prepared so he can use them. And as he uses them, it is in that process that he changes us and he meets the needs of the world. And the hands and the feet and the love of Christ is poured out through us, ordinary, regular people.

So here's the question I want to talk about today. Why does God use some people and not others? Or why does God use some people in a great way and other people not so much? No warning.

I want to tell you that it's not about intelligence or giftedness or education. In fact, open your notes and what I want to show you is that the answer to that question is right out of Philippians chapter 2, verses 19 to 30. We're going to learn why God uses some people and he doesn't use others. The context here is the apostle Paul's in prison. He's waiting execution.

He doesn't know whether he's going to live or whether he's going to die. But he's concerned about this church. They sent a gift through Epaphroditus who's a church leader at Philippi. And he's come and brought a financial gift and he's been an attendant and he's helped the apostle Paul. He's been there and apostle Paul has now heard that they're struggling and there's some disunity. And Epaphroditus, their messenger, got really, really sick and almost died. And so he realizes out of his concern, he's going to send Timothy to help him, to encourage him. And then later we're going to learn he's going to send Epaphroditus. But as you look at this text, what you're going to see is the reason why God uses Paul, the reason why God uses Timothy, and the reason why God uses Epaphroditus.

Follow along. Notice in your notes the purpose for sending Timothy. He says, verse 19, But I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you shortly, so that I may be encouraged.

The word literally is so that I could have joy and be cheered within when I learn of your condition. For I have no one else of kindred spirit who will genuinely be concerned for your welfare. For they all seek after their own interest, not those of Christ Jesus. But you know of his proven worth that he served with me in the furtherance of the gospel like a child serving his father. Therefore I hope to send him immediately as soon as I see how things go with me. And I trust in the Lord that I myself also shall be coming soon. The purpose for sending Timothy?

Why? Paul cared. I mean, it's that simple. You know, we've learned that love gives and love serves and love obeys. I'm just telling you, love just cares. He cared about that church so much that someone that was helping him, he's, I'm going to send Timothy to you. The next question is, well, why Timothy?

I mean, what did he bring to the table? The reason Timothy was chosen was Timothy cared. Look at this passage.

He says, I have no one else of kindred spirit, literally, who has an equal soul. They all are concerned, not about other people, but about themselves. They were self-focused. I mean, this goes back to the very beginning of consider others as more important than yourself.

Do nothing from selfishness or arrogance or vainglory. Timothy, he says, he's genuinely concerned. Literally, it is one and all without exception are bent on their own way, but not Timothy.

Notice, they seek after their own interests, not those of Christ Jesus, but he is of proven worth. In other words, he's been faithful. He's been with me at this point in his life. He's been with Paul for about 10 years. He's a young pastor. He probably was picked up in his very, very late teens or early 20s.

He's probably in his 33 to 35 now. What we know is he's timid by way of personality. He's got a couple strikes against him. He's half Jewish and half Greek. Paul has admonished him. He's kind of a sickly, vulnerable guy.

In other words, by physical standards, by sharp, powerful, got it together, a graduate of a great university, that's not Timothy. But he's faithful. He's loyal.

His heart, he cares. He is willing. As you read through the New Testament, Paul talks about him 10 different times. When there's a need, Paul says, I send him, I send him, I send him.

You know what? He's willing, he's available, he's loyal, and he's a servant. And God greatly used him. He ended up being the pastor even at Ephesus, which is one of the great churches in all of the New Testament. Well, we now know that Paul cares. We now know that Timothy cares. And the story's gonna go on because he wants them to know that, hey, I'm gonna send Timothy shortly, but you have heard that the leader in your church that came to serve me, that brought the financial gift, he came close to death, and so I'm gonna send him immediately so I can learn of your condition and I can put you at ease. Do you know that communicating with people is one of the most important things we ever do to show that we care?

A phone call, a handwritten note, a text, I'm praying for you today. I mean, it doesn't take that much to care for people. Love cares. Love engages.

Love demonstrates by action that other people really, really matter. Notice we pick it up in verse 25. You ask yourself, well, why does he send Epaphroditus? Are you ready for this?

You can get it, can't you? Epaphroditus cares. Verse 25, but I thought it necessary to send you Epaphroditus. Notice the description, my brother, my fellow worker, my fellow soldier, who is your messenger and minister to my need.

Talk about a resume. Because he was longing for you all and was distressed because you heard that he was sick. For indeed he was sick to the point of death, but God had mercy on him, and not on him only, but also on me, lest I have sorrow upon sorrow. Why is a man so deeply moved by the hurt and the heartache and the sickness of someone else? It's because Paul cares.

I mean, sometimes it gets painted in this picture of this flaming apostle, and he brings the truth and messenger and writes 13 books, and he did do that. But he was tender, and he cared. And tasks were important, but people mattered most. How about you? Do you care? You're listening to Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram, and he'll be back to continue our series, I Choose Love, in just a minute. But let me quickly tell you, we are more than a broadcast ministry. We're passionate about supporting pastors globally, developing helpful resources, and sharing the gospel with this next generation.

So if you'd like to partner with us in these areas, go to LivingOnTheEdge.org. Well, here again is Chip. Where you live, your roommate, your family, do they sense, do they feel you care? Does your words communicate? I really care. Do your actions communicate at work? That it's your task and your stuff and what you gotta get done? Or that you care? I mean, one of the things I love about our church is when there are needs, you care. There's been an outpouring of finances and individuals really making a difference. Notice he says, Therefore, receive him in the Lord with all joy, and hold men like him in high regard, because they came close to death for the work of Christ, risking his life to complete that which was deficient in your service to me.

Do you see these characteristics coming out? Commitment. He's my brother. We're in it together. We're family.

He's a fellow worker. We're arm in arm. I mean, we're setting goals. There's tasks. There's work to be done. This isn't about us. We're fellow soldiers. We're doing battle. We do spiritual warfare. We're working out hard things together.

We're in the trenches together. And then he says he's your messenger, and it's a very interesting word. This is a Greek word used in the ancient language of someone during that time who would be called a benefactor and someone who is sort of the benefactor of a city, who might bring a drama to the city or a public works and pay for the majority of it. And what he's saying is, Epaphroditus was a messenger, an apostle, a benefactor, a brother. He was the kind of person who cares.

Hold people like that in high esteem. There's a couple fellas that are gonna rotate off the board. And as we were going through that meeting, I just thought of the endless hours that they've put in and the ministries that they're involved in and the preparation and what they've meant in my life and things behind the scenes that no one knows. Where you talk about fellow brothers, fellow workers, messengers, people that care. Now, here's where I want to go. That's the passage.

You got it? Philippians 2, 19 to 30. What we know is that the command was don't think of yourself.

Put others' interests ahead of your own. The great example was verses 5 through 11. Jesus had this attitude in your cells that was also in Christ Jesus.

He didn't think equality with God a thing to be grasped, but he humbled himself, remember? And then love obeys. He says now obey not just in my presence, but now much more in my absence. And now he's gonna say love doesn't just obey, but in the everyday grind of life, love actually cares.

And here's what I want you to get. Notice on the top of your notes, it says Timothy and Epaphroditus exemplify the kind of person God uses to fulfill his purposes. This is Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram, and you've been listening to part one of his message, Love Cares, from our series, I Choose Love.

Chip will be back shortly to share some helpful application for us to think about. You know, one of the greatest delights of God's heart is to witness his children, those of us who call him Lord, loving one another. But as we all know, that's easier said than done and doesn't always come naturally to us. In this short study, Chip walks through four characteristics of love laid out for us in Philippians chapter two. Discover how to apply these truths to your relationships with others and God so you can love more and love better.

To listen to this entire series, visit livingontheedge.org or the Chip Ingram app. Well, Chip joins me in studio now, and Chip, you know, we frequently hear from moms and dads who ask us to pray for their adult kids who have rejected Jesus. Now, what do you say to parents desperate to restore their relationship with their son or daughter? Well, what I would say, Dave, is there is a way to connect with them that you need to learn. There's a way to start conversations in general of really being their friend. There's a way that wisely and shrewdly to begin to bring up spiritual matters that are not going to church, not what they're doing, not about morality, not about politics, not about gender fluidity. It's just spiritual conversations. I mean, everyone wants to belong.

Everyone has a worldview. And there's a way, a plan, a bridge, and then an opportunity once those things are in place to get reconnected to your adult kids and to see God work in their heart and in their life. And this entire plan that I'm talking about is in a book called Not Beyond Reach by Aaron Pierce. I had the privilege to team up with Aaron on this book. I provide some insight in the book to help people coach them along the way. And if you have adult children that are not walking with God and you want help, help is on the way.

Order Not Beyond Reach, get it today, read it, process it, maybe get together with some other people and discuss and then say, hey, let's reconnect with our adult kids and let's see God work. Thanks, Chip. To get your hands on this brand-new book, Not Beyond Reach, visit livingontheedge.org or the Chip Ingram app. Discover the simple process you can follow to share the gospel with those who question or outright reject Jesus. Place your order for this insightful new book, Not Beyond Reach, by going to livingontheedge.org or the Chip Ingram app.

We'll hear again as Chip with some application. As we wrap up today's program, I just have to ask you a question. God is looking for someone and I have to believe that you are one of those people that are saying, I want him to choose me. And if so, let me ask you, are you willing? Are you loyal? Are you a servant?

And maybe more importantly, do you care? I think that came out so strongly. You know, Timothy was not the most gifted guy. He was pretty timid. But Paul saw something in his life and he was willing to be an apprentice. He was willing just to follow along.

He was willing to take some risk. And God really used him. Epaphroditus, I mean, he doesn't seem to be like, you know, the most wonderful person, but he, unlike most others, was willing to take the resources of the Philippian church and go and find Paul and help him in prison and bring food and bring resources and say, Paul, I just want to care.

I just want to help. It's amazing to me how if you just want to care, you really are engaged with people, how God will use your life. You know, most of us, there are some extraordinary people. I mean, there really are. But most of us aren't extraordinary. Most of us are pretty normal. You know, it's funny, as parents, none of us have average kids, right?

Isn't that funny? I mean, mine are exceptional. And then you should see my grandkids. But the fact of the matter is, most of us are average. But God doesn't need super something.

He needs loving, available, ordinary that he could strongly support. And as I read Scripture, I am amazed at how God chooses the weak, the marginalized, the rejected, the people that other people don't think can amount to anything to change the world, because when he does it that way, guess who gets the credit? And so I want to encourage you. You don't have to be famous. You don't have to write a book. You don't have to get up in front of a group of people.

You don't have to have speaking gifts. You have to care. I recently had a trip to Kentucky, and I got a chance to visit my sister. And I came to know Christ, not because I heard a great message.

It's not because my family was a Christian family. I came to know Christ because of my sister, Punky, because she cared. I'd come home with my basketball buddies, and Punky'd say, can I fix you guys some sandwiches? And she would just do that. Or she'd say, hey, Mom's running a little bit late. I'll go ahead and fix up her. And I'll speak someplace, maybe two hours or three hours, and she'll drive there and support me and encourage me. She's my hero, because to be very, very honest, I communicate the Christian life maybe better than she does.

She lives it better than I do. That's how God uses people, ordinary people, like you and me. Go out and care today and see what God does.

Great challenge, Chip. Well, just before we close, I quickly want to thank those of you who regularly give to Living on the Edge. You're making a big difference in helping Christians live like Christians. But if you're benefiting from our ministry in some way and haven't started giving yet, let me encourage you to join the Living on the Edge team. Now, you can do that by setting up a recurring donation at livingontheedge.org or by texting DONATE to 74141.

It's that easy. Text the word DONATE to 74141 or visit livingontheedge.org. App listeners, tap Donate. And thanks for doing whatever the Lord leads you to do. We'll listen to next time as Chip wraps up his series, I Choose Love. Until then, I'm Dave Druey, saying thanks for joining us for this Edition of Living on the Edge.