Living on the Edge

Chip Ingram: Can you think of someone that used to be a really strong, vibrant follower of Jesus, but today isn't walking with him at all? What happened and why? That's today. Stay with me.

Dave Druey: Paul warned Timothy plainly. In the last times, some will fall away from the faith, not gradually and obviously, but quietly, through what they pay attention to. Today on Living on the Edge, Chip Ingram opens 1 Timothy Chapter 4 and gets specific about what causes spiritual drift and what it takes to go the other direction.

I'm Dave Druey, and we're continuing our series, You Can Make Disciples: Personal Coaching from the Apostle Paul. If you have your Bible, please open it now to 1 Timothy Chapter 4. Now, here's Chip with a message he's calling Step Out.

Chip Ingram: Are you ready to dig in and get a little more coaching from the Apostle Paul? We're going to look at Chapter 4, and each time, we want to get a little tip. You can fill this in at the very top. Tip number four from the Apostle Paul is this: Adversity will either make you or break you. The only question in all of that is how you're going to respond.

Some of you have had lives that have not been scarred very much. Fasten your seatbelt. I don't mean that badly, and it's not some fearful life of waiting for the other shoe to drop. In this world, according to the greatest authority, you will have tribulation. But he said, "I've overcome the world." Adversity comes into people's lives and it literally creates two very clear paths: victims, survivors, and thrivers.

Adversity comes and some people blame God, they blame other people, they blame themselves. Sometimes it causes you to persevere and do things and overcome things and build character in your life. It causes you to see things you never saw, causes you to take steps you would have never taken, forces you to relocate or think differently about everything. You'll go back to multiple windows in your life where that adversity was the worst thing in the world on the front end, and you look in the rearview mirror and you think, "Wow, where would I be if that had not happened to me?"

The Apostle Paul now is going to do some coaching with young Timothy. What he wants to do is he wants to help Timothy build resilience. So with that, let's look at Chapter 4. He opens it up with a description of false teachers and where the evil comes from. "But the Spirit explicitly says that in the latter times,"—here's this phrase again, he's talking about church people—"some will fall away from the faith." Why? "Paying attention to deceitful spirits and the teachings of demons."

Before you get paranormal and think that's got to be really bizarre stuff, or it was like where I lived in Santa Cruz and we had audio and visual manifestations of demonic activity and witches and warlocks—it was the most bizarre place in the world—I would suggest to you much of the teachings of the enemy are as simple as "follow your heart," "you deserve to be happy," or "if you do good, everything good will come your way." The number one means of spiritual warfare is not bizarre stuff. It's three little letters: L-I-E. It's lies.

Lie: "I'm not in love anymore. I must have married the wrong person." No, you just stopped doing the things that built intimacy, and so you've drifted apart. You're going to have to go back to the things that you did in the beginning. You need to own your part, and you need to ask for forgiveness and extend forgiveness. But instead, we believe the lie. We take some steps and make some decisions. Paul says they come by the means of hypocrisy of liars, seared in their own conscience as with a branding iron. These lies are coming through people inside the church.

Are you telling me that deceitful spirits and the teaching of demons by the hypocrisy of liars who are seared in their conscience with a branding iron are actually teaching things like "they forbid marriage" or "they advocate abstaining from some foods," what God has created and trying to take people away from a knowledge of the truth? Yes. It was happening then, and it's happening now. Paul gives a corrective. For everything created by God is good and nothing is to be rejected. It's received with gratitude, for it's sanctified by means of the Word of God and prayer.

Paul started with the false teachers and said this is what you need to do. Chapter 2 was how we need to address it. Chapter 3, we need a long-haul strategy. We need to develop really godly men with character who are going to lead the church in the future. Now, Timothy, you need to understand that the source of these lies aren't just these bad people. They're energized by the enemy. The enemy is energizing false teaching inside the church. It has the appearance of godliness. They're super disciplined. They don't eat these foods or they don't worship on these days.

It's some works religiosity to somehow put burdens on people instead of experience God's grace and forgiveness. Paul is telling him everything that God gives us is good. If you receive it with thanksgiving in the Word and prayer, it sanctifies it. Then in verses 6 through 10, he gives him a prescription to be a good teacher. "In pointing out these things to the brothers and sisters, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, constantly nourished on the words of the faith and of good doctrine which you have been following."

The people who were genuine followers at one point started paying attention to deceitful spirits and the teachings of demons. Paul says Timothy will do well by pointing out these things, and he's constantly nourished on the words of faith and good doctrine. You are the product of your thought life. As a man thinks in his heart, so is he. How you think, how you view yourself, your emotions, your perspective, and your worldview is a product of your thought life. That's why Colossians 3 says, "Set your mind on the things that are above, not on the things that are on earth."

That's why Paul in Romans 8 will say, "The mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace." It is so important. Later in Romans Chapter 12, when he talks about how real life change occurs, he doesn't say go to church, do a lot of good things, and try really hard to be nice or disciplined or godly. He says stop allowing this world system and its lies to squeeze you into its mold. By contrast, allow your mind to be renewed that your life and lifestyle would actually prove, experience, and taste what God's will is—that it's good, acceptable, and perfect.

The most important decision you'll make every single day multiple times a day is what you allow in your mind. What you watch, what you listen to, and how long you linger in this conversation. It's not just media and it's not just culture. It's your friends. Proverbs 13:20 says, "He who walks with wise men will be wise, but the companion of a fool will suffer harm." I remember a mom was giving it to her 15-year-old boy that was letting her know that he knows what life is all about and was hanging with some people that she, being a little older, said, "I see where this is going." She said, "Son, show me your friends and I'll show you your future."

That's true of 14-year-olds and 44-year-olds and 74-year-olds. Paul says you'll be a good servant if you point these things out. But notice again the content. "Stay away from worthless stories that are typical of old women. Rather, discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness." For bodily training is slightly beneficial. Physical training, working out, and eating healthy is super helpful for now, but it's limited. But godliness is beneficial for all things since it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come. It is a trustworthy statement deserving full acceptance.

Godliness, discipline, and going into spiritual training benefits this life and the next. Look at the purpose clause. He says, "For it is for this, becoming a godly man, we labor and strive." That word labor is where we get our word "gymnastic." Athletic training. It's pushing. It's the third set and your arms are shaking and someone has to spot you. But you know it's the third or fourth set where things are tearing down and things are going to build up. We labor and strive because we have set our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of all mankind and especially of believers.

Dave Druey: Stay with me, more from Chip Ingram in just a moment. This is Living on the Edge. Did you know Chip's teaching is also available on YouTube? It's a great way to go deeper or share a message with someone in your life. Just go to YouTube and search Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram. You'll find complete video teaching series, life lessons with Chip, and content you won't see anywhere else. While you're there, hit subscribe so you never miss anything new. That's Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram on YouTube. Now back to today's message.

Chip Ingram: Paul gives him this personal challenge. He says, "Prescribe and teach these things." Listen, this is Paul really coaching individually. "Let no one look down on your youthfulness, but rather in your speech, in your conduct, in your love, in your faith, in your purity, show yourself an example of those who believe." In other words, you need to step out. You need to set an example. You need to be godly in what you say, godly in your relationships, and godly in your thinking. A better word maybe is Christ-like.

Until I come, give attention to the public reading of God's Word and to exhortation and teaching. Again, it goes back to the threads all through this chapter. Where's your mind going? The people who drift away start paying attention to other things. They start drifting. You nourish yourself. Pay attention to the reading of God's Word. Then it goes on: the exhortation. That means putting it into practice. Exhortation takes more than one person. It's like, "Hey, come on, together, let's go!" Teaching is explaining what's true and applying it to real life.

"Do not neglect the spiritual gift within you which was granted you through the prophecy with the laying on of hands by the council of elders. Take pains with these things. Be absorbed in them so that your progress will be evident to all." What progress? You're becoming more like Jesus. You're more loving, you're more patient, you have more joy, and you're more forgiving. You're a better dad and a better husband. Timothy, this is what you need in order to survive the world that you're living in.

"Pay close attention finally to yourself and to the teaching," literally the doctrines, what's true. "Persevere in these things." Some of you that lift weights would love this word persevere. It's everywhere. James 1 says "consider it all joy when you encounter various trials, knowing the testing of your faith produces perseverance and allow perseverance to have its outworking in your life that you might be mature, ripe, perfect and complete, lacking in nothing." He says persevere. It's hupo meno, a compound word. Hupo means to be under, meno under pressure or stress.

Some of you actually pay to be under pressure and stress. Usually you have a partner and you put it on: hupo meno, hupo meno, hupo meno. Then it's "come on, come on, come on," right? You understand how it works. When you get to that third set, what you're doing is you're tearing the fibers of the muscle just ever so slightly. The reason you don't want to lift hard two days in a row on the same muscles is you don't want to tear too much. But what you do is you tear them a little bit. Then if you're smart, you get some protein in you.

In about 24 to 48 hours, as it heals back, your muscles get bigger. Your muscles get bigger because of resistance. Your soul expands with godliness when you go through adversity. God uses suffering. "For Christ has given us an example," 1 Peter 2, that we should follow. Since he suffered, we should also suffer, following in his steps. He says if you suffer for doing wrong, what good is that? But when you suffer for doing what is right, this finds favor with God.

There are things going on in heaven and people high-fiving one another. "Did you see what that brother went through? Did you see how they persevered? They wouldn't give up." What happens is, just like your body gets stronger, your soul and your faith get stronger. That's how you build resilience. That's how you bounce back. We all want to be that person, but we don't want the process. I was giving a guy a hard time who had a tight shirt on, and some of us could tell he lifts weights.

I let him know that this is really a very loose shirt and I wear these loose shirts because I'm completely ripped underneath. That would be a lie. But if you've ever gone through that cycle and you get with a buddy and you lift three times a week at 6:00 AM, the first three days you do it and you think this is the dumbest idea in the world. You do it another week and everything still really hurts. About the third week, you look down and you go, "I think a little something's happening there." You do it about three months. Pretty soon you start looking like a different person.

What you're doing physically is willfully taking your body through resistance and breaking it down so that it can grow back stronger. Could you imagine what would happen if you would rethink adversity rather than "Oh God, why me?" or "Life's not really fair," and you saw it more as the hand of a kind and loving God in the midst of a very fallen world of which he allows people the freedom to make decisions, some of which really hurt other people? If you would receive that as "this is a test of my faith: hupo meno."

I'm going to get up each day and like Timothy, I'm going to take pains. I'm going to absorb myself. I'm going to renew my mind and memorize the Scripture. I'm going to get with some guys that really want to do life. I will tell you what, in the midst of that adversity, we will meet you two or five or seven years from now, and you will have people say, "I don't even know you. You used to have a temper. You used to be so negative about everything. What happened to you?" And they're probably not going to say you're so Christ-like, but they'll see it.

This passage has some coaching nuggets to me that are the big takeaways. Here's the truth and drink this in. It's in bold. Some will fall away from the faith. I don't want to sound negative, I want to be realistic. Some of you in this room will fall away from the faith. You'll pay attention to other things. You'll buy cheap substitutes. You'll start with just a little flirting or a little logging on here or there, or a little bit more debt than normal. Two or five years from now, you'll remember what it was like at a time like this and you'll probably pooh-pooh it.

When you fall away from the faith, you always have to rewrite your past history. I've done this for a living for 40 years. I've sat in so many rooms. "Well, what I realized was I never really was in love with her." Well, I can see where your porn addiction and stepping out on her and having a couple of affairs would probably mar your perspective of the past. You'd be surprised how many college freshmen go away to school and everyone else is smoking dope and pretty soon, "I'm not sure if I believe in God anymore. Big intellectual issue."

Dave Druey: You're listening to Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram in a message titled Step Out. It comes from our current series called You Can Make Disciples: Personal Coaching from the Apostle Paul. To revisit any part of today's lesson, just go to livingontheedge.org. Plus, every message in this series is on the Living on the Edge podcast. Subscribe and take it with you. Full-length sermons from Chip are also available on the Chip Ingram Sermon podcast wherever you listen.

Chip said you are the product of your thought life. What you dwell on shapes who you become. And if you've been sensing drift and want a way forward, Chip's book, *Yes, You Really Can Change*, addresses exactly that: how real lasting transformation actually works. This series is about discipleship, and we grow best in community. So with every purchase of Chip's book, we're including an extra copy to read with someone: a friend, a family member, someone ready to grow but not sure how to start.

It's one way that we can help equip you to equip others. So get your copy and one to share at livingontheedge.org/offers. This kind of teaching reaches people because listeners choose to invest in it. If you'd like to partner with us, it's simple. Just go online to livingontheedge.org and make a gift of any amount. Or call us at 888-333-6003. You can also reach us by mail at Living on the Edge, PO Box 3007, Atlanta, Georgia 30302. Chip, you gave some practical guidance in your message today. What are some final thoughts for us to take home?

Chip Ingram: Thanks, Dave. As we close today's program, I want you to pause with me. We heard some very strong warnings, and I think we're seeing some of the fruit of those warnings. The Apostle Paul says no one is immune from falling away, and he ties that with false teaching. We're living in a day where there's a lot of false teaching. The false teaching isn't just this direct "God doesn't exist and you're crazy to believe in Jesus." It's this journey of deconstruction.

There's a whole generation of people that I'm spending a lot of time with right now that don't have clear understanding, and they're deeply, deeply confused. Here's what I want to say to parents, to grandparents, and directly to you that are younger in the faith. You need to determine what you believe and why. You cannot listen to everyone. There are so many voices out there. At the end of the day, there is truth. There is a word from God and we've been given to it in his Word.

I want to encourage you, stand strong and clear on the truth of God's Word. Your friends and what you allow in your mind is going to determine where you land five, 10, or 20 years from now. Ask yourself, what kind of conversations am I having with my friends? What kind of faith do they have and are they walking closely with the Lord? What kind of stuff am I putting in my mind that's either raising questions, developing doubts, or pulling me away from God? You matter to the Lord Jesus. Be steadfast, get into the Scriptures, and get around some fellow believers that are walking close to Christ.

Dave Druey: I'm Dave Druey, inviting you back for Chip Ingram's next message, which picks up right where today ended. More from 1 Timothy 4 and a question you won't want to miss next time on Living on the Edge. Today's program is produced and sponsored by Living on the Edge.