WEBVTT - Thou Shall Not Steal – Part 2 0:00:00.720 --> 0:00:04.600 Today on bold steps with Mark job, we're discovering rock 0:00:04.600 --> 0:00:05.480 solid living. 0:00:06.080 --> 0:00:09.280 You're not defined by your background. You're not defined by 0:00:09.280 --> 0:00:13.360 your social status. You are not defined by those things. 0:00:13.360 --> 0:00:17.400 You are defined by the presence of God. You have 0:00:17.480 --> 0:00:21.160 something to give. You're a giver and you're not a taker. 0:00:21.320 --> 0:00:24.759 That's the value of the Kingdom of God. 0:00:37.320 --> 0:00:40.520 Welcome to Bold Steps with Mark Jobe, president of Moody 0:00:40.520 --> 0:00:43.280 Bible Institute and the senior pastor of New Life Community 0:00:43.280 --> 0:00:47.080 Church in Chicago. And Wayne Shepherd, in your life, are 0:00:47.080 --> 0:00:49.599 you more of a giver or a taker? It's an 0:00:49.600 --> 0:00:51.440 honest question to ask. Given that we live in a 0:00:51.440 --> 0:00:55.120 consumer driven culture, we're often reminded to take care of 0:00:55.120 --> 0:00:58.000 number one at all costs. But is that what God 0:00:58.000 --> 0:01:00.840 wants from us, or is he calling us to more? 0:01:01.440 --> 0:01:04.679 That's the question Mark answers today as we continue our study. 0:01:04.680 --> 0:01:07.840 Rock solid living. If you've missed any of the messages 0:01:07.840 --> 0:01:10.480 in this series, you can catch up online at Bold Steps. 0:01:11.360 --> 0:01:14.959 But right now, here's Mark Jobe with today's message titled 0:01:15.000 --> 0:01:16.600 Thou Shalt Not Steal. 0:01:18.480 --> 0:01:22.880 In Deuteronomy chapter 27, verse 17, it says, cursed is 0:01:22.880 --> 0:01:28.920 the man who moves his neighbor's boundary stone. Now, in 0:01:28.959 --> 0:01:35.400 an agrarian society, your land is your most important source 0:01:35.400 --> 0:01:39.080 of income. You plow you till you plant and your 0:01:39.080 --> 0:01:42.119 income comes from that. So if you lose land and 0:01:42.120 --> 0:01:44.280 what some of the ancients would do is they would 0:01:44.280 --> 0:01:47.160 move the boundary, they would move at night, they would 0:01:47.160 --> 0:01:50.440 move the rocks that mark the boundary of their land. 0:01:50.440 --> 0:01:52.400 And if they could move it over 3 or 4ft, 0:01:52.400 --> 0:01:55.400 they would gain a whole stretch of land and increase 0:01:55.400 --> 0:01:58.880 their income. But it was robbing their neighbor. And God says, 0:01:58.880 --> 0:02:04.290 cursed Is the man that moves the stone. In other words, 0:02:04.290 --> 0:02:08.370 when you rob your neighbor, there's a curse that comes 0:02:08.370 --> 0:02:12.330 upon your life. The withdrawal of the favor of God. 0:02:12.970 --> 0:02:16.170 First Corinthians chapter six, verse ten says, do you know 0:02:16.169 --> 0:02:19.810 the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do 0:02:19.810 --> 0:02:22.250 not be deceived. And then he lists a whole bunch 0:02:22.250 --> 0:02:25.570 of things that will not inherit the kingdom of God. 0:02:25.570 --> 0:02:30.250 And he among them he says, nor thieves, nor the greedy, 0:02:30.290 --> 0:02:34.490 nor drunkards, nor the slanderers, nor swindlers will inherit the 0:02:34.490 --> 0:02:39.090 kingdom of God. What I'm pointing out to you is 0:02:39.090 --> 0:02:41.850 that God takes seriously the breaking of the Ten Commandments, 0:02:41.889 --> 0:02:44.650 the Ten Commandments, but he takes seriously the breaking of 0:02:44.650 --> 0:02:48.649 the eighth commandment that violates the nature of God's heart, 0:02:48.650 --> 0:02:52.570 which is the heart of giving and turns us into takers. 0:02:53.570 --> 0:02:55.410 One last verse I want to give you under this 0:02:55.410 --> 0:02:58.490 is Malachi chapter three, verses eight and nine. It says, 0:02:58.490 --> 0:03:02.250 Will a man rob God, Yet you rob me because 0:03:02.250 --> 0:03:05.170 you ask, how do we rob you in tithes and offerings? 0:03:05.169 --> 0:03:07.770 You're under a curse, the whole nation of you, because 0:03:07.770 --> 0:03:10.450 you're robbing me. God is saying anything that you take 0:03:10.450 --> 0:03:13.450 that doesn't belong to you. Anything that you owe someone else, 0:03:13.610 --> 0:03:16.530 including what you owe to give to God. And yet 0:03:16.530 --> 0:03:21.970 you do not give, becomes a curse to you. I 0:03:21.970 --> 0:03:25.970 believe that giving and releasing jumpstarts a Kingdom of God 0:03:25.970 --> 0:03:30.970 cycle in your life that counters the enemy's cycle of destruction. 0:03:32.090 --> 0:03:36.050 Notice what the Apostle Paul told to the Ephesian believers 0:03:36.050 --> 0:03:40.770 in Ephesians chapter four, verse 27 through 28. I want 0:03:40.770 --> 0:03:42.410 you to listen to this. This is huge. I want 0:03:42.410 --> 0:03:45.890 you to grasp this because some of you may be arguing, well, pastor, 0:03:46.090 --> 0:03:51.890 I don't see what the big deal is. Okay, so 0:03:51.890 --> 0:03:54.370 I checked out a half hour early at my job 0:03:54.370 --> 0:03:57.330 without working. I don't see what the big deal is. Okay, 0:03:57.370 --> 0:03:59.730 so I lied a little bit on my income tax. 0:03:59.730 --> 0:04:01.900 Do you know I need the money a lot more 0:04:01.940 --> 0:04:07.860 than the US government needs the money. Okay, so I 0:04:09.100 --> 0:04:13.900 took a few tools from my job. Our tendency could 0:04:13.900 --> 0:04:17.140 be to excuse it. What I want you to understand 0:04:17.700 --> 0:04:21.660 is that it's not just about the quantity. It's not 0:04:21.660 --> 0:04:25.540 about the dollar amount. What it's about is the seeds 0:04:25.540 --> 0:04:29.539 that you are planting in your life, and the negative 0:04:29.540 --> 0:04:33.460 effect that they can have. And you may be sowing curses, 0:04:33.460 --> 0:04:36.820 so to speak, into your life without even realizing it. 0:04:36.860 --> 0:04:40.740 Upon the violation of the eighth commandment, I want you 0:04:40.740 --> 0:04:45.260 to see this. Ephesians 427 through 28. It says, the 0:04:45.260 --> 0:04:51.140 apostle Paul says, and do not give the devil a foothold. 0:04:53.420 --> 0:04:55.140 Now how many of you know what a foothold is? 0:04:56.460 --> 0:04:58.140 If you don't know all you all you have to 0:04:58.140 --> 0:05:01.979 remember is when you were in junior high And your brother, 0:05:02.020 --> 0:05:05.180 your older brother was chasing you around the house because 0:05:05.180 --> 0:05:10.099 mom was out buying groceries and he's chasing you around 0:05:10.100 --> 0:05:11.539 the house. I'm going to get you. I'm going to 0:05:11.540 --> 0:05:14.060 get you. And you run into your bedroom and you 0:05:14.100 --> 0:05:17.060 slam the door closed and you think you're safe. But 0:05:17.060 --> 0:05:20.500 you realize that although the door is almost closed, it's 0:05:20.500 --> 0:05:23.540 not closing all the way. And so you slam it again, 0:05:23.540 --> 0:05:25.740 only to realize as you look down that he's got 0:05:25.740 --> 0:05:29.380 a foot in the door. Oh, and you can slam 0:05:29.380 --> 0:05:30.980 it and slam it, but once there's a foot in 0:05:30.980 --> 0:05:34.140 the door, then what comes next? Oh, you know, once 0:05:34.140 --> 0:05:35.580 he's got a foot in the door, then he's going 0:05:35.580 --> 0:05:37.820 to put his hand in there, his shoulder in there. 0:05:37.820 --> 0:05:40.100 And before you know it, he will overpower you to 0:05:40.140 --> 0:05:42.500 open the door, because when there's a foot in the door, 0:05:42.620 --> 0:05:45.420 it gives room for more to go in the door. 0:05:45.460 --> 0:05:50.380 And pretty soon he's in there beating you. And spiritually, 0:05:50.380 --> 0:05:52.020 what God is saying is that when you give a 0:05:52.020 --> 0:05:56.420 foothold to the enemy, it means that the door is 0:05:56.420 --> 0:05:59.140 wide enough open so that more and more can start 0:05:59.140 --> 0:06:03.029 slithering in through that foothold that you've given to begin 0:06:03.029 --> 0:06:06.390 to bring about an atmosphere of destruction upon your life. 0:06:06.390 --> 0:06:08.710 And so the Apostle Paul says, and do not give 0:06:08.710 --> 0:06:11.190 the devil a foothold. And then he says, he who 0:06:11.190 --> 0:06:16.270 has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work 0:06:17.310 --> 0:06:22.070 doing something useful with his own hands, that he may 0:06:22.070 --> 0:06:26.910 have something to share with those in need. Hold on 0:06:26.910 --> 0:06:32.469 a second, he says. If you've been stealing. Stop the stealing. 0:06:32.790 --> 0:06:36.070 Get a job. Get a job for what? To pay 0:06:36.070 --> 0:06:39.270 your bills. He doesn't even mention your bills. He says 0:06:39.270 --> 0:06:42.710 get a job so that you can earn income. So 0:06:42.710 --> 0:06:48.310 that you can begin to share generosity into other people's lives. Why? 0:06:48.430 --> 0:06:52.070 Because the Kingdom of God is about giving. The King 0:06:52.110 --> 0:06:55.910 of the enemy is about taking. Anytime you see a taker, 0:06:55.910 --> 0:06:58.870 it's part of the Kingdom of God value system. Anytime 0:06:58.870 --> 0:07:01.270 you see a giver, it's part of the Kingdom of 0:07:01.270 --> 0:07:04.870 God value system. The takers. The Kingdom of the darkness 0:07:05.029 --> 0:07:08.990 value system giver is a Kingdom of God value system. 0:07:09.790 --> 0:07:11.990 And you need to ask yourself, what kind of mentality 0:07:12.030 --> 0:07:16.470 do I have? If you got into marriage thinking, well, 0:07:16.470 --> 0:07:18.870 why did you get married? Well, I have needs. I 0:07:18.870 --> 0:07:21.270 want them met. I need someone to love me. I 0:07:21.270 --> 0:07:24.070 need someone to give me companionship. I need to have 0:07:24.070 --> 0:07:27.870 sex on a regular basis. And I'm thinking maybe I 0:07:27.870 --> 0:07:31.750 have someone to do my dishes. Do my laundry. You know, 0:07:31.790 --> 0:07:33.630 my mother says I'm 30 years old. I should do 0:07:33.630 --> 0:07:35.870 that on my own. She's not doing it anymore. So 0:07:35.870 --> 0:07:38.150 I got married because I have knees, let me tell you. 0:07:38.190 --> 0:07:42.630 Wrong answer. But here's what happens. As soon as your 0:07:42.630 --> 0:07:45.750 needs stopped being met, you will feel like I want 0:07:45.750 --> 0:07:49.190 out of this deal because my needs are not being met. 0:07:49.190 --> 0:07:52.870 And you entered into that relationship with a taker mentality. 0:07:52.910 --> 0:07:54.790 Let me tell you how God wants you to enter 0:07:54.790 --> 0:07:59.190 into that relationship. You enter into that relationship saying to yourself, 0:07:59.430 --> 0:08:01.800 I want to go in. I want to give of 0:08:01.800 --> 0:08:04.200 my love. I want to give of my heart. I 0:08:04.200 --> 0:08:06.800 want to pour into this. I want to serve. I 0:08:06.800 --> 0:08:09.920 want to flow. Give as much to this relationship as 0:08:09.920 --> 0:08:13.280 I can. And the byproduct of you giving was that 0:08:13.280 --> 0:08:16.160 you will receive in return, but you go in with 0:08:16.160 --> 0:08:27.680 a giving mentality. Kingdom of God mentality. We go into 0:08:27.680 --> 0:08:30.880 a community, and our mentality, even as a people of God, 0:08:30.880 --> 0:08:34.960 needs to be a giving mentality, not a taking mentality. 0:08:36.360 --> 0:08:38.720 Even as a believer, as you come to a community 0:08:38.720 --> 0:08:41.960 of faith like this, you could you could take on 0:08:41.960 --> 0:08:45.160 a takers mentality and you could ask yourself, well, I'm 0:08:45.160 --> 0:08:47.160 going to see what I can get out of this service. 0:08:47.160 --> 0:08:48.920 I hope I get a lot. I hope I like 0:08:48.920 --> 0:08:51.360 the songs that they choose. I hope the message is 0:08:51.360 --> 0:08:54.480 for me. And if I if I can get, then 0:08:54.480 --> 0:08:57.440 I'm okay with it. If I don't feel like I'm getting, 0:08:57.600 --> 0:09:00.319 then I'm not okay with it. And you can come 0:09:00.440 --> 0:09:04.480 with that mentality, but I call that an immature mentality. Oh, 0:09:04.520 --> 0:09:06.800 I hope you receive and I hope you get. But 0:09:06.800 --> 0:09:08.680 maybe not every service you're going to get as much 0:09:08.679 --> 0:09:11.719 as the other service. But I believe that a mature mentality, 0:09:11.760 --> 0:09:15.360 a kingdom of God mentality comes into a community of faith, 0:09:15.360 --> 0:09:17.400 not only saying, I hope this will be a blessing, 0:09:17.400 --> 0:09:21.800 but I hope I can be a blessing. And you 0:09:21.800 --> 0:09:24.360 enter in. Yeah, this is how you enter in God. 0:09:25.440 --> 0:09:28.080 I know that every Sunday, with 1400 people meeting at 0:09:28.080 --> 0:09:30.520 our midway campus, I know that there's someone that's going 0:09:30.520 --> 0:09:34.240 to be discouraged, someone that's going to have maybe marital trouble, 0:09:34.240 --> 0:09:38.839 or contemplated suicide, or lost their job, or praying for 0:09:38.840 --> 0:09:41.600 a prodigal son. And so, God, I pray that as 0:09:41.600 --> 0:09:43.360 I go to church this morning, oh God, help me 0:09:43.360 --> 0:09:47.720 to be a blessing to someone I hope I can minister, encourage, deposit. 0:09:47.720 --> 0:09:51.319 I'm going to be looking to do something to give away, 0:09:51.440 --> 0:09:53.960 to help someone out. Because I'm not just coming to 0:09:53.960 --> 0:09:55.760 take man. I'm coming to give. 0:10:01.929 --> 0:10:04.650 While you're listening to pastor Mark Jobe, and we're taking 0:10:04.650 --> 0:10:07.050 a brief pause from today's message to remind you that 0:10:07.050 --> 0:10:10.730 we would love to hear from you. Your encouragement, your comments, 0:10:10.730 --> 0:10:15.210 regardless of what they are, are important to us. And Mark, recently, 0:10:15.210 --> 0:10:17.730 in that light, you made a statement on the program 0:10:17.730 --> 0:10:20.890 that in Chicago, we have one of the most bigoted 0:10:20.890 --> 0:10:23.210 cities in the U.S. and that got some response from 0:10:23.210 --> 0:10:24.089 some listeners. 0:10:24.410 --> 0:10:26.770 Yeah. So let me first of all say that I 0:10:26.809 --> 0:10:30.290 love Chicago, and I've lived here for many, many years. 0:10:30.290 --> 0:10:35.770 My wife was born and raised in Chicago's Southwest Side. 0:10:36.330 --> 0:10:40.450 But when I started pastoring in Chicago, I also realized 0:10:40.450 --> 0:10:46.050 that there is a lot of segregation, and I pastor 0:10:46.090 --> 0:10:51.530 a largely minority congregation there, a lot of different ethnic groups. 0:10:51.809 --> 0:10:54.050 And I came to realize that there has been a 0:10:54.050 --> 0:10:59.890 lot of polarization, racism in the city of Chicago. And 0:10:59.890 --> 0:11:03.970 that's not just my opinion. Sociologists study cities say that 0:11:03.970 --> 0:11:07.449 Chicago has been one of those cities that has struggled 0:11:07.450 --> 0:11:11.170 a lot. I want to say, praise God that he 0:11:11.170 --> 0:11:13.810 is doing a lot in this city, and praise God 0:11:13.809 --> 0:11:17.689 that he's breaking down barriers, but not with a lot 0:11:17.730 --> 0:11:21.570 of fight. And when I look across our congregation on 0:11:21.570 --> 0:11:26.850 Sunday morning or look at our worship team. African American, Asian. Hispanic. 0:11:26.850 --> 0:11:32.130 White worshiping together. It reminds me of a piece of heaven, 0:11:32.450 --> 0:11:35.930 but it also reminds me, as I minister in cities 0:11:35.929 --> 0:11:38.810 like Chicago, there's a lot of places around the US 0:11:39.010 --> 0:11:42.329 that there's still a lot of work to do. 0:11:42.370 --> 0:11:45.850 Amen. Yeah. And thank God for churches like New Life 0:11:45.850 --> 0:11:48.170 Community Church that I think are doing the right thing 0:11:48.170 --> 0:11:49.010 in this city. 0:11:49.050 --> 0:11:53.770 Yeah. I remind our congregation, oftentimes, look around, there are 0:11:53.770 --> 0:11:57.370 people because of their skin color or the background that 0:11:57.370 --> 0:12:00.089 they came from, that in your former life you would 0:12:00.220 --> 0:12:03.140 have nothing to do with. But now you call them 0:12:03.140 --> 0:12:06.740 my brother. My sister. And I think the church should 0:12:06.740 --> 0:12:07.820 be leading the way. 0:12:08.179 --> 0:12:11.460 Well, we thank that listener for contacting us with that comment, Mark. 0:12:11.500 --> 0:12:14.020 You can connect with us on our social media platforms 0:12:14.020 --> 0:12:18.860 like Facebook or Instagram, or contact us through our website boldsystems.org. 0:12:19.580 --> 0:12:21.740 All right. Let's jump back into the second half of 0:12:21.740 --> 0:12:23.020 today's message now. 0:12:28.260 --> 0:12:31.100 If you take on that mentality, do you also say, 0:12:31.100 --> 0:12:33.939 I want to serve, not pay? You know, it was 0:12:33.940 --> 0:12:36.340 hard to find parking today. I hope those parking guys 0:12:36.340 --> 0:12:38.660 get it together. You may want to say, hey, I 0:12:38.660 --> 0:12:42.220 want to offer to serve in the parking lot once 0:12:42.220 --> 0:12:49.140 a month. Bless. Giving mentality says I'm not just coming 0:12:49.179 --> 0:12:51.220 to see how my needs can be met. I'm not 0:12:51.220 --> 0:12:54.980 a consumer. I'm a giver. I'm a part. Jesus. When 0:12:54.980 --> 0:12:58.340 he came to earth, Jesus said, I did not come 0:12:58.340 --> 0:13:01.940 to be served, but I came to serve. He was 0:13:01.940 --> 0:13:04.579 the Son of God. He could have asked that everybody 0:13:04.580 --> 0:13:08.540 would meet his needs, that everybody would bow, that everybody would, would, 0:13:08.580 --> 0:13:12.420 would cater to him in everything. But instead Jesus said, 0:13:12.420 --> 0:13:19.020 I have come to serve. And he, he, he gave 0:13:19.020 --> 0:13:21.939 of himself. He gave of his love. He gave to 0:13:21.980 --> 0:13:24.900 the poor, he gave to the needy, and ultimately he 0:13:24.900 --> 0:13:27.980 gave his life. Why? He's building a culture. It's called 0:13:27.980 --> 0:13:31.420 the Kingdom of God culture. It's a culture that releases. 0:13:31.420 --> 0:13:33.980 It's a culture that gives. It gives. It's a culture 0:13:33.980 --> 0:13:38.820 that thrives in generosity. It's the opposite of stealing, the 0:13:38.820 --> 0:13:42.500 opposite of taking. It's a giving culture that exists in 0:13:42.500 --> 0:13:49.820 the kingdom of God. My prayer is that not only 0:13:49.820 --> 0:13:53.939 in our individual lives, that we would take on a 0:13:54.340 --> 0:13:57.860 giving Kingdom of God culture, but I pray that corporately 0:13:58.020 --> 0:14:02.830 we would give a kingdom of God giving culture. That's 0:14:02.830 --> 0:14:05.670 why my prayer is wherever we plan to campus. My 0:14:05.670 --> 0:14:07.670 prayer is that that that we would be able to 0:14:07.670 --> 0:14:10.390 bless that community because we give to that community, not 0:14:10.390 --> 0:14:13.990 just take from that community. Let me give you an example. 0:14:15.670 --> 0:14:18.870 Our our our team in Little Village realized that that 0:14:18.870 --> 0:14:22.350 there's tons of violence happening in the summertimes and tons 0:14:22.350 --> 0:14:27.630 of especially Latino youth killing one another senselessly. And we 0:14:27.630 --> 0:14:30.910 happen to be in Little Village. We happen to be 0:14:30.910 --> 0:14:34.750 on the border kind of on the on the border 0:14:34.750 --> 0:14:37.670 line of two of the major gangs in the little 0:14:37.670 --> 0:14:40.870 village community. And you know that whenever you're in the border, 0:14:40.870 --> 0:14:43.710 whenever you're on the border line, that that's where the 0:14:43.710 --> 0:14:48.190 friction happens. And so we decided a couple of years 0:14:48.190 --> 0:14:50.790 ago that we were going to start a softball league. 0:14:51.390 --> 0:14:53.870 So we started a softball league in Little Village. It's 0:14:53.870 --> 0:14:58.030 different than more softball, most softball leagues, because 90% of 0:14:58.030 --> 0:15:01.640 the people playing in that softball league are gang affiliated. 0:15:02.320 --> 0:15:07.560 This year we had 20 teams, 300 participants. The great 0:15:07.560 --> 0:15:11.600 majority affiliated with the gang. You say, well, why do 0:15:11.600 --> 0:15:13.600 you want to do that? Oh, we want to do 0:15:13.600 --> 0:15:16.520 that because we're givers and not takers. That's why we 0:15:16.520 --> 0:15:18.400 want to do that. We want to do that because 0:15:18.400 --> 0:15:21.800 we want peace in our neighborhood. So we do one 0:15:21.840 --> 0:15:25.640 softball league on this side and another softball league on 0:15:25.680 --> 0:15:28.880 that side. Some of the highest ranking members of some 0:15:28.880 --> 0:15:31.320 of the gangs are part of that softball league. And 0:15:31.320 --> 0:15:33.920 then at the end, we have a championship in which 0:15:33.920 --> 0:15:38.200 this team plays against that team, against an opposite gang. 0:15:38.280 --> 0:15:40.000 We don't do it in the neighborhood and we call 0:15:40.000 --> 0:15:49.280 a lot of cops. We did it on our own. 0:15:49.280 --> 0:15:51.120 We funded it on our own. This year, the city 0:15:51.120 --> 0:15:53.400 of Chicago saw what we were doing and saying, hey, 0:15:53.400 --> 0:15:55.280 you guys are doing this. You're doing a great job. 0:15:55.280 --> 0:15:58.720 They gave us a $25,000 grant to run the softball game. 0:16:04.600 --> 0:16:07.480 What am I saying? I'm saying that we are givers. 0:16:07.960 --> 0:16:11.240 That from the very beginning we say, God, you have 0:16:11.240 --> 0:16:15.560 given us something. We operate in the Kingdom of God 0:16:15.560 --> 0:16:19.600 mentality of giving and not taking. We give life. We 0:16:19.600 --> 0:16:23.800 don't take life. We impart hope. We don't take hope. 0:16:25.800 --> 0:16:30.360 We infuse love. We don't just take love. We give 0:16:30.360 --> 0:16:34.240 to people. We don't use people. The mentality of the 0:16:34.240 --> 0:16:38.640 Kingdom of God is a king is a mentality of generosity. 0:16:38.680 --> 0:16:42.360 It's a mentality that overflows. It's a mentality that says, 0:16:42.360 --> 0:16:45.440 I have seeds to sow and I will sow those 0:16:45.480 --> 0:16:48.920 seeds and I will reap a harvest of righteousness, but 0:16:48.920 --> 0:16:52.200 I will sow, because God's heart is a heart of giving. 0:16:52.200 --> 0:16:55.320 And as we give, we know that the byproduct will 0:16:55.320 --> 0:16:59.000 be expansion of the kingdom of God and the values 0:16:59.000 --> 0:17:04.040 of the Kingdom of God. Yesterday we did a community 0:17:04.080 --> 0:17:06.160 fest in our Humboldt Park campus, which is a very 0:17:06.160 --> 0:17:10.679 rough little neighborhood that we're in there. I got a 0:17:10.680 --> 0:17:15.200 couple text messages early in the afternoon about 11:00 or so, 0:17:15.480 --> 0:17:19.320 and they said, hey, pray for us, pastor, because, um, 0:17:19.359 --> 0:17:22.440 we're trying to put on a community fest with music 0:17:22.440 --> 0:17:25.639 and games and stuff for a community that's super dysfunctional. 0:17:25.640 --> 0:17:27.040 A lot of gangs, a lot of violence, a lot 0:17:27.040 --> 0:17:30.040 of stuff going on there. And they said, pray for us, 0:17:30.040 --> 0:17:35.800 because there had just been a drive by shooting on opposite. 0:17:36.000 --> 0:17:38.359 People heard that we were doing a fest there and 0:17:38.359 --> 0:17:40.639 wanted to disrupt it for the people in the community. 0:17:40.640 --> 0:17:42.560 So they drove by and there was a drive by 0:17:42.560 --> 0:17:46.480 shooting in on the block that we're about to do 0:17:46.720 --> 0:17:50.440 a a community fest in. The good thing is the 0:17:50.440 --> 0:17:52.840 alderman had dropped by to see how things were going. 0:17:52.840 --> 0:17:55.000 So he got to experience a little drive by shooting 0:17:55.000 --> 0:17:59.120 of his own. I called Pastor Danny up and said, 0:17:59.119 --> 0:18:02.530 how are we doing, pastor? What's going on there? He said, man, 0:18:02.530 --> 0:18:04.330 I call him up in the afternoon. Later he said, 0:18:04.330 --> 0:18:06.729 we're going full fledged. We got the band going, the 0:18:06.730 --> 0:18:08.609 people coming out, man, that's not going to stop us. 0:18:08.609 --> 0:18:10.650 We're not going to let the enemy stop us from 0:18:10.650 --> 0:18:16.729 what God has called us to do. What is that? 0:18:17.250 --> 0:18:20.889 It's a giving. It's it's it's a giving kingdom of 0:18:20.890 --> 0:18:25.489 God atmosphere. Instead of taking kingdom of God atmosphere. I 0:18:25.490 --> 0:18:28.770 believe listen to me. Well, the reason that we're givers 0:18:29.530 --> 0:18:32.730 is that we have something to give. If you have 0:18:32.730 --> 0:18:34.930 the Spirit of God in your heart and the Holy 0:18:34.930 --> 0:18:37.490 Spirit dwells inside of you, I don't care what your 0:18:37.490 --> 0:18:40.730 bank account says you are, you are not defined by 0:18:40.730 --> 0:18:43.970 the money that is currently in your savings account. You 0:18:43.970 --> 0:18:46.850 are defined by the presence of God in your life. 0:18:46.850 --> 0:18:49.450 And if you have God, you have something to give 0:18:49.609 --> 0:18:52.810 every single one of us here. Listen, you're not defined 0:18:52.810 --> 0:18:56.410 by your background. You're not defined by your social status. 0:18:56.410 --> 0:18:59.980 You're not defined by whether you are employed or unemployed. 0:18:59.980 --> 0:19:02.740 You are not defined by whether you have a criminal 0:19:02.740 --> 0:19:05.740 record or do not. You're not defined by whether you 0:19:05.740 --> 0:19:08.700 have a BA degree, in Ma degree or no degree 0:19:08.700 --> 0:19:12.180 at all. You are not defined by those things. You 0:19:12.180 --> 0:19:15.500 are defined by the presence of God. And if you 0:19:15.619 --> 0:19:18.500 are a possessor of the Holy Spirit and the presence 0:19:18.500 --> 0:19:23.139 of God, you have something to give. You're a giver 0:19:23.140 --> 0:19:27.020 and you're not a taker. You bless. You don't use. 0:19:27.740 --> 0:19:33.060 That's the that's the value of the kingdom of God. 0:19:34.460 --> 0:19:43.379 Thou shalt not steal. You will never flow from a 0:19:43.420 --> 0:19:46.540 take mentality to a give mentality, unless you first of 0:19:46.540 --> 0:19:52.980 all understand what you have in God. If you view 0:19:53.020 --> 0:20:00.220 yourself as poor, if you view yourself as undeserving, If 0:20:00.260 --> 0:20:04.619 you view yourself as no identity. If you view yourself 0:20:04.619 --> 0:20:08.220 as having nothing inside, then you will have a need mentality. 0:20:08.220 --> 0:20:13.820 In every relationship you're in, every job that you're in, 0:20:13.859 --> 0:20:16.860 you will take more than you give. Every group that 0:20:16.859 --> 0:20:19.180 you're in, you will take more than you give. You'll 0:20:19.180 --> 0:20:22.380 look for opportunities to take advantage of people because that 0:20:22.380 --> 0:20:26.580 is built out of a need mentality. That's not who 0:20:26.619 --> 0:20:32.020 you are. Look me in the eyes. I want you 0:20:32.020 --> 0:20:34.260 just to see the whites of your eyes. That is 0:20:34.260 --> 0:20:38.900 not who you are. You're not a taker. You're a giver. 0:20:40.940 --> 0:20:47.100 Give the power to give. Spirit of God, the right 0:20:47.100 --> 0:20:51.980 to give. The obligation to give. The beauty to give. 0:20:52.420 --> 0:20:55.580 You're a giver, not a taker. Dads, you're a giver, 0:20:55.580 --> 0:20:59.020 not a taker. Moms, you're a giver, not a taker. Employees. 0:20:59.020 --> 0:21:03.260 You're a giver, not a taker. Employers. You're a giver, 0:21:03.260 --> 0:21:08.619 not a taker. That's that's your DNA. That's the Kingdom 0:21:08.619 --> 0:21:14.700 of God mentality. We live in a dog eat dog world. 0:21:14.700 --> 0:21:16.900 We live in a world that's taking, taking, taking. You're 0:21:16.900 --> 0:21:19.180 going to have to fight the culture and be a giver. 0:21:19.180 --> 0:21:21.060 You say, pastor, I don't want to be taken advantage of. 0:21:21.060 --> 0:21:22.540 Let me tell you, there'll be times that you will 0:21:22.540 --> 0:21:24.620 be taken advantage of. But you know what? I would 0:21:24.619 --> 0:21:26.260 rather err on the side of once in a while, 0:21:26.260 --> 0:21:28.740 being taken advantage of as a giver than err on 0:21:28.740 --> 0:21:31.980 the side of being consumed in the kingdom of darkness 0:21:32.020 --> 0:21:33.260 is simply a taker. 0:21:40.420 --> 0:21:42.820 This is bold steps, and you're listening to the Bible 0:21:42.820 --> 0:21:47.020 teaching of pastor, author and Moody Bible Institute president Mark Jobe. 0:21:47.260 --> 0:21:50.180 We've just begun a new series on rock solid living, 0:21:50.180 --> 0:21:52.180 and if you've missed any of the messages in this series, 0:21:52.180 --> 0:21:56.340 you can catch up online at Bold steps. Org. Well, Mark, 0:21:56.380 --> 0:21:58.699 there might be some people out there who say, pastor, 0:21:58.700 --> 0:22:01.870 I'm a violator of the eighth commandment. I take more 0:22:01.869 --> 0:22:04.790 than I give. What's your message to them right now? 0:22:05.150 --> 0:22:08.630 Yeah, I would say that our natural tendency in the 0:22:08.630 --> 0:22:14.390 flesh is to be takers. That's the nature of our 0:22:14.670 --> 0:22:15.990 dark side, so to speak. 0:22:15.990 --> 0:22:17.350 Let's be honest about that, huh? 0:22:17.390 --> 0:22:20.790 But the most famous verse in the Bible, John 316 0:22:20.790 --> 0:22:23.950 For God so loved the world that he gave. And 0:22:23.950 --> 0:22:26.310 I think when you embrace the kingdom of God, and 0:22:26.310 --> 0:22:29.310 the Spirit of God comes upon us and starts to 0:22:29.350 --> 0:22:33.150 transform us, he shifts us from, what can I get 0:22:33.150 --> 0:22:36.869 out of this? To how can I contribute and give 0:22:36.869 --> 0:22:39.910 to this? And so some of you are going wrestling 0:22:39.910 --> 0:22:43.950 through the old habits and nature and trying to put 0:22:43.950 --> 0:22:46.790 on the new self made in the image of God. 0:22:46.790 --> 0:22:49.310 And I want to say, hey, it is it's a process. 0:22:49.550 --> 0:22:52.950 I acknowledge it's a difficult process, but I'm so glad 0:22:53.150 --> 0:22:56.070 that you've engaged in it, willing to say, God, here 0:22:56.070 --> 0:23:00.270 I am. Change me into a giver more than a taker. 0:23:00.430 --> 0:23:03.230 And how thankful we are for the word that holds 0:23:03.230 --> 0:23:05.070 itself up like a mirror, so we can see these 0:23:05.070 --> 0:23:05.750 things in our life. 0:23:05.790 --> 0:23:08.750 Yeah, sometimes. Sometimes we don't like what we see in 0:23:08.790 --> 0:23:12.150 that mirror. But praise God that if we look intently 0:23:12.310 --> 0:23:14.910 and are willing to submit to God, it's a place 0:23:14.910 --> 0:23:16.670 of great transformation. 0:23:16.670 --> 0:23:19.310 Which leads me, Mark, to mention this brand new devotional 0:23:19.310 --> 0:23:22.310 you've put together called Discovering Who You Are in Christ. 0:23:22.470 --> 0:23:25.430 Sometimes we need to ask ourselves, who am I really? 0:23:25.430 --> 0:23:27.310 And this booklet can help us. 0:23:27.310 --> 0:23:32.070 You know, in so many people, especially younger people, struggle 0:23:32.070 --> 0:23:37.470 with identity issues like who am I really? And your 0:23:37.470 --> 0:23:41.150 identity affects how you walk talk, how you live, how 0:23:41.150 --> 0:23:43.790 you behave, how you think. If you have some labels 0:23:43.790 --> 0:23:48.389 on you that define you in a way that's not 0:23:48.390 --> 0:23:53.630 consistent with how God defines you, then it affects everything 0:23:53.630 --> 0:23:56.750 about your life. And I think some of you need 0:23:56.750 --> 0:24:00.440 to start ripping those labels off, and the only way 0:24:00.440 --> 0:24:03.000 to do that is through the renewing of your mind. 0:24:03.000 --> 0:24:07.879 And so this devotional helps you for 15 days start 0:24:07.880 --> 0:24:10.320 to think of who am I in Christ? What does 0:24:10.320 --> 0:24:12.920 God say about me? What does the Word of God say? 0:24:13.040 --> 0:24:16.080 What is my true identity? 15 days of starting to 0:24:16.080 --> 0:24:17.040 renew your mind. 0:24:17.040 --> 0:24:19.879 And 15 days will lead to a habit, won't it? 0:24:19.880 --> 0:24:23.080 That's our hope, is that you start down this road 0:24:23.080 --> 0:24:26.360 and that you'll start to develop that sense of, I'm 0:24:26.359 --> 0:24:29.840 going to start meditating, thinking and focused on who I 0:24:29.880 --> 0:24:30.560 am in Christ. 0:24:30.600 --> 0:24:33.120 Well, it's called more than a label discovering who you 0:24:33.119 --> 0:24:36.440 are in Christ. It's a powerful look at your identity, 0:24:36.480 --> 0:24:39.480 not through how the world sees you, but how God 0:24:39.480 --> 0:24:41.400 sees you. And Mark, I'm so glad that you've put 0:24:41.400 --> 0:24:43.399 this together. Thank you for doing this. I'll tell our 0:24:43.400 --> 0:24:45.960 listeners how to get a copy, but you see us 0:24:45.960 --> 0:24:47.919 using it every day for 15 days straight. 0:24:48.080 --> 0:24:52.680 15 days in the morning. There's a little devotional thought, 0:24:52.680 --> 0:24:55.800 and then there's some questions right next to it that 0:24:55.800 --> 0:24:58.760 you can answer and fill out. But the idea here 0:24:58.760 --> 0:25:02.359 is that you would meditate every day on your new 0:25:02.359 --> 0:25:04.439 identity in Jesus. 0:25:04.480 --> 0:25:08.160 Sounds great. So if you've ever struggled with self-doubt, insecurity, 0:25:08.160 --> 0:25:11.200 or just wondered why am I here? This study is 0:25:11.200 --> 0:25:12.919 for you and we'd love to send you a copy 0:25:12.920 --> 0:25:14.960 as our way of saying thank you for your gift 0:25:14.960 --> 0:25:18.000 to Bold steps. Request your very own copy today of 0:25:18.000 --> 0:25:20.639 more than a label discovering who you are in Christ 0:25:20.800 --> 0:25:24.720 at Bold steps.org. Look for the devotional tab and click 0:25:24.720 --> 0:25:33.000 on that or call 800 Moody. That's (800) 356-6639. I'm Wayne 0:25:33.000 --> 0:25:35.320 Shepherd inviting you to join us again tomorrow. And Mark 0:25:35.320 --> 0:25:38.439 explains the important meaning of the ninth commandment. The message 0:25:38.440 --> 0:25:41.199 is called thou shalt not lie. And you'll hear it 0:25:41.240 --> 0:25:45.960 right here. Tuesday on Bold Steps with Mark Jobe. Bold 0:25:45.960 --> 0:25:48.959 steps is a production of Moody Radio, a ministry of 0:25:49.000 --> 0:25:50.440 Moody Bible Institute.