Telling the Truth

Guest (Male): On today's Telling the Truth program, Stuart Briscoe brings us a message he's calling, "When We Are Becoming Careless." It's the latest in our current series about how you can know God personally. So many people read their Bible, go to church, serve on mission trips, and go through the motions, yet still struggle to find God. Jill Briscoe has a surprising and deeply encouraging answer to this dilemma, which she shares in her three-message series titled Finding God.

The Finding God series is our thank you for your gift today to help more people experience life through the teaching and resources of Telling the Truth. And if you're able to make your gift monthly, we'll also send you a special Telling the Truth travel mug to remind you God is always with you. So request your resources when you give today. 1-800-889-5388. That's 1-800-889-5388, or you can give online at tellingthetruth.org. Now, here's Stuart with today's message called "When We Are Becoming Careless."

Stuart Briscoe: Before I had the privilege of coming to Elmbrook, part of my responsibilities in the ministry in England included running a Bible school for young people. It was simply a six or eight-week intensive course when young people would come from many different parts of the world simply to immerse themselves in the study of the Scriptures.

I was very, very impressed with these young people. I was impressed first of all that they were interested enough to take a couple of months out of their normal schedules simply to study the Scriptures. I was very impressed with the way that they gave themselves to their studies, and I was particularly impressed with their ability to sit still for hour after hour after hour just listening and taking notes, something that I am constitutionally incapable of doing. That's why I'm a preacher. I get to stand up while everybody else sits down and listens.

It occurred to me on one occasion that they were absorbing so much material that I wondered if they were getting the opportunity to put any of it into practice. It's rather like having a highly nutritional diet but not burning any of the calories up. So I talked to some of my friends who were working in churches in Manchester. Manchester's the industrial city in the north of England, and this is what I asked my friends in these churches: "Are there any jobs in your churches that need doing that nobody will do?"

They laughed and they said, "Yes, of course." I said, "Well, if I brought down about 100 or 120, I forget how many students from our Bible school and put them to work doing in your churches the jobs that nobody would do, would you house them and feed them for the week?" They said, "Yes, gladly."

So I went back to the students and I said, "Now, we've been having a tremendous time here. We've been reading about the Acts of the Apostles and all the great stuff the early church did. We've been studying the Epistles, and we've been finding out what really happened when people took their Christianity seriously. We've been filling our notebooks full of information. This is what we're going to do. We're going to go down to Manchester, and we're going to put all this into operation. We're going to go to a lot of little churches where there are all kinds of jobs that need doing, all kind of outreach that needs doing that nobody's doing, and we are going to do it. Isn't that exciting?"

The reaction made it abundantly clear that it was not exciting at all. In fact, there was a considerable degree of trepidation on people's faces. Then a remarkable thing happened: an epidemic broke out. It was a very unusual epidemic in that whilst everybody got sick, there was a wide variety of sicknesses. They were rather unusual sicknesses.

One young man came up to me, big fellow from California. He said, "I can't go." I said, "What?" "I can't go." "Can't go where?" "Can't go to Manchester." "Why not?" "I've lost my voice." "Well, why would that preclude you from going to Manchester?" "I can't communicate." "Well, you just communicated you'd lost your voice."

Then I had a flash of inspiration or something, I'm not quite sure what it was. I'd never had one before or since. I said to him, "You haven't lost your voice. You're chicken." "No, no, no, I've lost my voice." I said, "You're chicken. The reaction of this whole group here is we're just a big bunch of chickens."

I said, "We won't call it the Capernwray Bible School anymore, we'll just call it Chicken Bible School. We're great at sitting here taking notes and having lectures and studying our Bibles, but when it comes around to getting out there and doing it, everybody is backing off." I said, "You're chicken. These students are all chicken, and I am chicken."

As soon as I said, "I'm chicken," the most remarkable thing happened. He said, "You're not." I discovered two things: I discovered that I had the gift of discernment, and I also had the gift of healing.

We didn't give our students any option; we took them anyway. We pushed them into situations that they were very reluctant to do. They all studied the Acts of the Apostles. They all heard about missionaries. They all heard about exciting things that Christians do, but they were less than enthusiastic about accepting the challenge themselves, even though they all agreed the challenge needed to be faced.

The most remarkable thing happened. At the end of the week, we gathered them all together and they began to testify. They began to testify about the sheer reality of their faith and the quantum leaps that they had taken. You know why, don't you? Because it is possible for us to recognize that there's the challenge of being a Christian, the challenge of being a disciple of Jesus Christ. We're eager, we're willing, and we're ready. We make professions, and we say that's exactly what I'm going to do.

But then when we actually face the challenge, it becomes challenging, and there's a natural tendency then to back off. Can you think in your own spiritual experience of some challenge that God's Word has brought you, some challenge that God's Spirit has impressed upon you? You knew that the appropriate response was one of obedience and faith, and you quietly or openly said, "Yes, that's what I will do." You embarked on it, and then it got challenging. You backed off.

Two things happened if you did that. Number one, that to which you were called, that for which you were challenged, never got done by you. The second thing that maybe even more significant is this: that you robbed yourself of the opportunity of discovering new dimensions of the grace of God.

I was up in the Oshkosh Air Show, took some of our grandkids up there. The beginning of the show, there was a flypast, and I was very intrigued to notice that Wycliffe Bible Translators' ancient DC-3 led it. It's flown around South America for years, and I had the privilege of flying in it on one of my trips down there. There it was leading the flypast at the Oshkosh Air Show.

The reason it was there was that they opened a hatch in it and a little dot appeared way up in the blue, blue sky. Then above the dots eventually, there was a bright red, white, and blue canopy, and below the dot was the biggest American flag you ever saw. There was a certain man who had committed himself to going up in that plane and, would you believe, jumping out? He was going to jump out and fly in the American flag to open the whole of the great show.

Suppose he'd accepted the challenge. Suppose he'd gone up there. Suppose they'd opened the hatch. Suppose he'd stood there and looked down and said, "Oh, no way. No way." The flag would never have been flown in, but more than that, he would never have had the opportunity of proving what that canopy can do.

Guest (Male): Don't go anywhere. There's more life-giving truth from the Briscoes headed your way. Tellingthetruth.org and the Telling the Truth app are great resources to help you grow in your spiritual life. Packed with videos like "Ask the Briscoes," articles from Stuart and Jill, and encouraging audio teaching content, you'll find a treasure trove of resources to encourage you and others in your faith.

And while you're there, you can also request this month's featured resource when you give a gift to help more people around the world experience life in Christ. So visit us online or download the app today. We look forward to connecting with you. Now let's rejoin the program as Stuart continues his message, "When We Are Becoming Careless."

Stuart Briscoe: The particular situation that Paul is addressing to the Corinthians has to do with the situation concerning the church in Jerusalem. Paul believes that the church in Corinth has some kind of responsibility for the church in Jerusalem. Let me explain what it was.

On the day of Pentecost, shortly after Jesus rose again from the dead, as was customary, there were thousands, possibly tens of thousands, of people congregated in Jerusalem for the festival. They had come from the dispersion of the Jews throughout the Roman Empire. The Lord Jesus had told his little group of disciples, numbering about 120, that they should stay in Jerusalem and wait till the Holy Spirit was poured out upon them. That happened on the day of Pentecost.

There were some very dramatic, unusual signs manifesting the outpouring of the Spirit, so unusual were they that the populace as a whole was attracted there. Some, of course, did not understand what was going on, so they did what many people do when they don't understand: they ridiculed and mocked. Peter accepted that challenge and got up and talked to them, explained what it was, but went further and explained that Jesus who had been crucified and had risen from the dead was Lord and Savior. He challenged the people to repent of their sins and acknowledge Christ as Savior, and 3,000 people did.

The early church was 120 strong in the morning, 3,000 strong in the evening. That's what you call church growth. We read then that the Lord added to their numbers daily those who were being saved. Then Peter got into trouble shortly thereafter, preached another sermon, and they raked in another 2,000 new believers. This was all heady stuff, all very, very exciting indeed. They'd gone from 120 to 5,000 quicker than you can say "resurrection."

But there were problems involved. One of the things that the early church believed implicitly was that Jesus was coming again, and the historic church has believed that down through the years. Now, they, of course, believed that he was coming very soon. Many of the people who traveled to Jerusalem for the Pentecost celebration decided if Jesus was coming back, there was no point traveling home. They'd rather meet him in Jerusalem. So they stayed.

The folks who lived in Jerusalem said, "No sweat, no problem. We don't need all this stuff we've accumulated here. Let's sell it and we'll pool our resources and we'll just look after these folks. Jesus will be coming again, we don't need all this stuff." Well, he didn't come as soon as they expected, and they ran out of money.

More and more believers came, and they then began to run into problems with the authorities. They did not like this burgeoning Christian movement. So opposition was built up against them. They lost their families, they lost their jobs, and they became desperately impoverished. The church at Jerusalem, the mother church of Christianity, was cold, stony broke.

When Paul visited Jerusalem and saw this and talked to the leaders of the church, they reminded him of something that he didn't really need reminding of: that historically, the Jews who'd been dispersed from Jerusalem still sent money back each year to the temple in Jerusalem. The leaders of the Christian church said it would be appropriate if the new churches scattered around the Roman Empire would do the same to support the church in Jerusalem.

Paul agreed, promised to do something about it, and wherever he went, he not only evangelized and discipled and planted churches, but he taught those Christians to give. He gave them specific projects and encouraged them to give to the church in Jerusalem. When he went to Corinth, the Corinthians said, "That's a great idea. Wonderful, wonderful idea. Something ought to be done. Yes, and we're a resource-rich church. We'll do something about it. Paul, you can count on us."

Paul said, "Great, that's wonderful. Thank you very much." And you know what happened? They didn't do it. They accepted the challenge, they made the commitment, and they didn't come through. So Paul in 2nd Corinthians chapter 8 and 9 writes to them about this, reminds them of the whole situation, and points out to them two basic things.

Because they have not followed through on their commitment and have reneged on what they said they would do, the work is not being done, but more importantly, they have robbed themselves of the opportunity of discovering the depths of God's grace. Let's face it, 2nd Corinthians is all about all kinds of situations which, if they're handled properly, give you the chance to know God better.

Now, how does he handle the situation? Well, he starts off by telling them exactly what he's going to do. Verse 8: "I'm not commanding you, but I want to test the sincerity of your love by comparing it with the earnestness of others." He decides to compare the earnestness of other Christians with the situation in Corinth. Now, if he does that, I suppose it's legitimate for us to do that.

He says, "I'm not commanding you, I'm not telling you what you've got to do, I'm not going to start a fundraising campaign, I'm not going to twist your arm, I'm not going to embarrass you, I'm not going to cajole you, I'm not going to push you into doing anything you don't want to do. I'm just going to give you some examples of what happens when people accept the challenge and follow through on what they say they'll do."

Notice how he describes it in verse 1: "Now, brothers, we want you to know about the grace that God has given the Macedonian churches. Out of the most severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity. For I testify that they gave as much as they were able and even beyond their ability. Entirely on their own, they urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the saints. And they did not do as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then to us in keeping with God's will."

That's quite a mouthful. Let me identify what Paul is saying here concerning the example of the churches in Macedonia. And by the way, that would be the church in Philippi and the church in Thessalonica and possibly some other churches in the surrounding area. We know how they were founded from the Acts of the Apostles; we know more about them from the Epistles written to those churches.

Paul, however, says, "When I go to Macedonia, when I look at the church in Philippi and Thessalonica, I see the grace of God at work in them." Now, how do you see the grace of God at work in people? Well, he gives us two examples. First of all, he says, "Out of the most severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity."

Notice the situation in which these Macedonian churches were operating: severe trial, extreme poverty. Now then, what's a normal sort of reaction to severe trial and extreme poverty? Well, when we're going through extremely difficult circumstances, we can get angry, we can get upset, we can get inward-looking, we can become bitter, etc., etc.

And when extreme poverty comes our way, what happens? We become very much concerned about making ends meet and hoping against hope that we're going to be able to survive. What happened in the churches in Macedonia? It was very, very different from this. Out of the most severe trial, their overflowing joy.

Now, when you come across people who are going through excruciating circumstances and they don't react with bitterness, and they don't react with anger, and they don't react in all the ways that we normally tend to, but in actual fact react with an overflowing joy, you say that's weird. Paul would say, "No, it's not weird, it's the grace of God."

And when you find people who in extreme poverty are incredibly generous, you say to yourself, "That's very unusual." Paul says, "No, it's not unusual, it's the grace of God." What Paul is trying to convey is this: that when we get in touch with God's abundant supply of grace that he promises to us if we will be obedient to him, when we get in touch with that, we will be able to behave in ways that are not normative.

But if in difficult circumstances we simply react the normal way, then we will not get in touch with the riches of his grace that he makes available to us. He goes on even further. He talks about their enthusiasm with which these Macedonians had responded to the same appeal. Quite different from the Corinthians.

"I testify that they gave as much as they were able and even beyond their ability." Here were people who said there's a need here, there's an opportunity here, there's a ministry here, there's a challenge here. We will address it. But they not only addressed it, they addressed it in such a way that they gave in a way that was commensurate with their means and then they went way beyond.

You say that's unusual. No, it's the grace of God at work. There's nothing particularly unusual about a Christian who gives. There's nothing particularly unusual about a Christian who tithes. There's nothing particularly unusual about a Christian who gives and tithes and gives offerings beyond their tithe. That's normative, folks, that's normal. What's unusual is people who give up to their ability and then because they're so concerned that they're not giving enough will go beyond. That's unusual, and that's what he was talking about here.

Guest (Male): Stuart, why is it so important that we follow through with our commitments, especially our commitments to God?

Stuart Briscoe: Commitment is a word that's run into hard times I think right now. We see athletes sign huge contracts, and then after a year or two of their contract, they want to refuse to pay unless they can have their contract renegotiated. They've made a commitment, and they renege on it.

We see people getting married, and they make great promises to each other, but then a year or two later, one of them announces to the other one, "I don't want to be married anymore." What this means is that they are demonstrating a lack of faithfulness. Now, society can only function when there is a degree of reliability because we need to function on the basis of trust.

There is a point where we just have to be trustworthy. If we cannot do that in society, then just imagine what it's going to be like if God is calling us to be his faithful people and we won't even keep our commitments to him. That is an insult to him. He is the faithful God; he expects us to be faithful, to be committed, and to keep our commitments.

Guest (Male): Stuart, what are the rewards God gives us when we accept a challenge and follow through with it?

Stuart Briscoe: I'm not sure I can answer the question what are the rewards that God gives us when we accept a challenge and follow through with it. I do know that the Apostle Paul explained that in some way, the enormous challenges that he faced and the fact that he followed through on them was working for him an eternal weight of glory that far outweighed the enormity of the problems and the challenges that he'd faced.

Now, he doesn't go into details, but what he's saying is this: there is a direct connect between what he is going through down here on Earth and the way he handles those things and what will transpire when he gets into the eternal realm of the new heaven and the new earth.

So I don't know what the specifics are; he didn't tell us what the specifics are. I don't know, quite frankly, what rewards God will give us when we accept a challenge and follow through in it, but what I do know is that they are locked up in our eternal inheritance that is undefiled, reserved inheritance for us.

Guest (Male): Thanks for being with us today here on Telling the Truth. We pray today's message encouraged you and helped you experience life in Christ. So many people read their Bible, go to church, serve on mission trips, and go through the motions, yet still struggle to find God. Jill Briscoe has a surprising and deeply encouraging answer to this dilemma, which she shares in her three-message series, Finding God.

In this inspired series, you'll discover how you can stop spending so much energy on finding God and let him find you. By slowing down and putting yourself deliberately in his presence, you'll recognize that he's already there waiting for you. You'll be uplifted as Jill explains how God worked in the lives of men and women in the Old Testament and how he works in your life too, even when you don't see him and feel his presence.

The Finding God series is our thank you for your gift today to help more people experience life through the teaching and resources of Telling the Truth. And if you're able to make your gift monthly, we'll also send you a special Telling the Truth travel mug to remind you that God is always with you.

So request your resources when you give today. 1-800-889-5388. That's 1-800-889-5388, or you can give online at tellingthetruth.org. Thanks for joining us for Stuart's message, "When We Are Becoming Careless." Join us again next time for more sound biblical truth from Stuart and Jill. We hope you'll be listening then.