WEBVTT - More Than Survivors – Part 1 0:00:00.760 --> 0:00:03.680 Today on Bold Steps, Mark Jobe explains that no matter 0:00:03.680 --> 0:00:07.360 what you've gone through, God's power and plans are bigger. 0:00:08.400 --> 0:00:11.360 God is able to take the broken pieces of your 0:00:11.360 --> 0:00:14.200 life and turn something good out of them. I want 0:00:14.200 --> 0:00:16.320 to guarantee you that. I want you to know that. 0:00:16.320 --> 0:00:20.759 That God will squeeze good out of every single thing 0:00:20.760 --> 0:00:23.400 in your life that's done wrong to you. That's the 0:00:23.400 --> 0:00:26.080 promise of God. He works all things to the good 0:00:26.079 --> 0:00:27.720 of those that love him. 0:00:40.280 --> 0:00:43.519 I welcome you to Bold Steps with pastor Mark Jobe, 0:00:43.560 --> 0:00:46.639 president of Moody Bible Institute and senior pastor of New 0:00:46.640 --> 0:00:50.480 Life Community Church in Chicago. Now, Mark, Romans eight, of course, 0:00:50.520 --> 0:00:52.839 is a powerful chapter for believers when it comes to 0:00:52.880 --> 0:00:55.440 understanding just who we are in Christ and the access 0:00:55.440 --> 0:00:57.720 we have to God. Today, you're going to help us 0:00:57.720 --> 0:01:00.640 understand how we can live as more than just survivors.. 0:01:01.000 --> 0:01:03.280 Wayne, we live in a world where there's a lot 0:01:03.320 --> 0:01:10.920 of bad things that happen trauma, abuse, violence, difficulty, disappointment. 0:01:11.319 --> 0:01:16.560 And oftentimes people wonder, why is God doing this to me? 0:01:16.560 --> 0:01:18.720 So I want to be clear that God is not 0:01:18.720 --> 0:01:23.400 the author of anything evil, but God can take what 0:01:23.400 --> 0:01:27.280 was meant for evil and turn it around for the 0:01:27.280 --> 0:01:30.200 good and for his purposes. God has a way of 0:01:30.200 --> 0:01:33.760 being able to redeem even the bad that's done to us. 0:01:34.200 --> 0:01:36.320 And so this message is going to just give you 0:01:36.319 --> 0:01:41.000 a glimpse into that. So be encouraged. Even your bad experiences, 0:01:41.319 --> 0:01:43.160 God can squeeze good out of them. 0:01:43.160 --> 0:01:46.520 Let's learn together from Romans chapter eight the message more 0:01:46.520 --> 0:01:47.680 than survivors. 0:01:49.480 --> 0:01:51.240 If you're taking notes today, I want you to pull 0:01:51.240 --> 0:01:52.840 out your pen. I want you to write down the 0:01:52.840 --> 0:01:56.960 first truth that helps you become more than just a survivor. 0:01:57.320 --> 0:02:01.850 Number one, I want you to understand and acknowledge and 0:02:01.850 --> 0:02:05.650 grasp the fact that if God is the pilot of 0:02:05.650 --> 0:02:09.090 your life, if he's flying the plane, that there is 0:02:09.130 --> 0:02:17.010 nothing that is random. There is nothing that is random. 0:02:18.730 --> 0:02:21.490 It tells us in the beginning of verse 28, and 0:02:21.490 --> 0:02:27.730 we know that in all things, in what all things, 0:02:27.930 --> 0:02:31.730 God works for the good of those who love him, 0:02:31.730 --> 0:02:35.369 who have been called according to his purpose. I want 0:02:35.410 --> 0:02:38.690 to say, first of all, that if you understand that 0:02:38.690 --> 0:02:41.610 God is the sovereign God of the universe, sovereign means 0:02:41.610 --> 0:02:45.730 that he holds power and control over all things. Then 0:02:45.730 --> 0:02:49.929 you understand that nothing that happens in life is random, 0:02:50.169 --> 0:02:54.810 and that God has the ability to take whatever happens 0:02:54.810 --> 0:02:59.610 in your life, good and bad, and ultimately orchestrate the 0:02:59.610 --> 0:03:03.450 pieces so that it turns out for your good and 0:03:03.450 --> 0:03:08.410 his glory. You say, pastor, does that mean that God 0:03:08.410 --> 0:03:12.489 is making tragedy happen in my life? Does that mean 0:03:12.490 --> 0:03:16.090 that God allows or is causing evil to happen in 0:03:16.090 --> 0:03:19.169 my life? I want you to understand the difference. God 0:03:19.169 --> 0:03:23.810 is never the author of evil. It is never God's will. 0:03:23.850 --> 0:03:28.810 Some people blame God for things that he never desired. 0:03:29.530 --> 0:03:34.250 God is never the author of evil. Tragedy happens. Sickness happens. 0:03:34.290 --> 0:03:41.010 Abuse happens. Divorce happens. Accidents happen. Death happens. God is 0:03:41.010 --> 0:03:44.090 not the author of any of those things, but God 0:03:44.090 --> 0:03:47.490 can take those things and organize them in such a 0:03:47.490 --> 0:03:50.210 way that he brings good out of them, even though 0:03:50.210 --> 0:03:54.370 he's not the author of them. Are you tracking with me? 0:03:55.850 --> 0:03:59.810 God did not create a broken, fallen world. God created 0:03:59.810 --> 0:04:04.180 a pristine, powerful, perfect world. But he put something imperfect 0:04:04.180 --> 0:04:07.660 in that world, and that is human beings. He put 0:04:07.660 --> 0:04:09.660 us in this world, and he gave us the ability 0:04:09.660 --> 0:04:15.460 to choose. We have chosen wrong many times. God didn't 0:04:15.460 --> 0:04:18.260 make the world the way it is. We made the 0:04:18.260 --> 0:04:21.180 world the way it is, and God has given us 0:04:21.180 --> 0:04:24.940 the power to choose. And in our choices, we've pretty 0:04:24.940 --> 0:04:28.500 much messed up this world pretty bad. God is the 0:04:28.500 --> 0:04:31.740 redeemer of what we have. We have messed up and 0:04:31.740 --> 0:04:37.940 so we live in a broken, difficult, dysfunction fallen world. 0:04:37.980 --> 0:04:44.619 Tragedy happens. Injustice happens. Abuse happens. Violence happens. It seems 0:04:44.620 --> 0:04:50.099 like random acts of tragedy that happen against humanity happen 0:04:50.100 --> 0:04:53.380 against your life, your relative, your family. And here's what 0:04:53.380 --> 0:04:59.099 the Word of God says. God says all things in 0:04:59.100 --> 0:05:05.580 God Work together for our good. If God is in 0:05:05.580 --> 0:05:09.740 control for those that love him, that means that no 0:05:09.740 --> 0:05:12.060 matter what's happened in your life, no matter what you've 0:05:12.060 --> 0:05:14.219 been through, no matter how hard it's been, no matter 0:05:14.220 --> 0:05:17.420 how tragic it's been, God didn't create it in your life, 0:05:17.420 --> 0:05:19.779 but God can rescue it in your life. God has 0:05:19.779 --> 0:05:22.700 the ability to take all of the brokenness and fallenness 0:05:22.700 --> 0:05:26.260 and tragedy and craziness that's happened in your life, and 0:05:26.260 --> 0:05:29.980 God is able to orchestrate the pieces so that ultimately 0:05:29.980 --> 0:05:33.500 it is for your good and for his glory. Praise 0:05:33.500 --> 0:05:42.580 God for how he does that in our life. In fact, 0:05:42.580 --> 0:05:45.780 the word that's used here, where it says, and we 0:05:45.779 --> 0:05:49.060 know that in all things God works, that were the 0:05:49.100 --> 0:05:52.860 word works in the Greek is the word synagro, which 0:05:52.860 --> 0:05:55.980 is where we get the word synergy from. That when 0:05:55.980 --> 0:06:00.540 multiple pieces are working together, they have a compounded impact 0:06:00.710 --> 0:06:04.230 on something. And so God is able to synergize the 0:06:04.230 --> 0:06:07.270 pieces of our life and turn them around for our good. 0:06:08.390 --> 0:06:11.950 A great story that illustrates this is the story of Joseph. 0:06:12.830 --> 0:06:15.469 You remember Joseph's story. He was the young man that 0:06:15.470 --> 0:06:19.390 we called Joseph with the coat of many colors. Joseph 0:06:19.390 --> 0:06:24.190 grew up in a super dysfunctional home. His father had 0:06:24.190 --> 0:06:28.950 two wives. He had a bunch of stepbrothers. On top 0:06:28.950 --> 0:06:32.310 of that, his his father had several concubines. So he 0:06:32.310 --> 0:06:37.670 had multiple brothers and sisters. There was a lot of jealousy, dysfunction, brokenness, 0:06:37.710 --> 0:06:42.510 chaos in his house. Joseph's mother had two sons. It 0:06:42.510 --> 0:06:47.029 was him and Benjamin. His brothers were jealous of him. 0:06:47.390 --> 0:06:51.590 They hated him. That jealousy grew so much so that 0:06:51.630 --> 0:06:54.190 one day they decided that they would get rid of 0:06:54.190 --> 0:06:57.510 Joseph completely. And so his very own brothers took him, 0:06:57.710 --> 0:07:01.990 and they sold him as a piece of property into 0:07:01.990 --> 0:07:05.109 slavery so they would never see him again. They told 0:07:05.110 --> 0:07:11.070 the father that a wild animal had killed their son. Joseph, 0:07:11.390 --> 0:07:16.710 betrayed by his brothers, sold into slavery, ended up miles 0:07:16.710 --> 0:07:20.470 and miles away from where he lived, working as a slave. 0:07:21.830 --> 0:07:26.710 The woman of the house tried to take advantage of him. 0:07:26.710 --> 0:07:30.790 When he rebuffed her advances, he ended up in prison. 0:07:30.790 --> 0:07:34.550 So now Joseph is in a dark prison far away 0:07:34.550 --> 0:07:38.990 from home. In a desperate, dark moment of his life. 0:07:38.990 --> 0:07:43.030 And yet God is able to take the circumstances, the abuse, 0:07:43.030 --> 0:07:48.630 the betrayal, the injustice done against them and God steps 0:07:48.630 --> 0:07:52.910 into that, gives Joseph a dream, elevates Joseph to a 0:07:52.910 --> 0:07:57.430 place of incredible power. So much so that his family, 0:07:57.470 --> 0:07:59.950 who begins to starve to death in another part of 0:07:59.950 --> 0:08:04.840 the country, Joseph is able to rescue them from their salvation. 0:08:04.840 --> 0:08:08.200 So Joseph, even though bad was done to him, he 0:08:08.200 --> 0:08:12.640 turned around and saw that God used it for the good. And. 0:08:15.160 --> 0:08:19.800 Genesis chapter 50 says this you intended to harm me, 0:08:20.400 --> 0:08:24.239 but God intended it for good to accomplish what is 0:08:24.240 --> 0:08:29.560 now being done, the saving of many lives. There are 0:08:29.560 --> 0:08:32.240 some of you right now who have gone through very, 0:08:32.240 --> 0:08:34.680 very dark moments in your life and you wonder, why 0:08:34.679 --> 0:08:41.760 did it happen to me? Some of you have experienced tragedy, brokenness, 0:08:42.400 --> 0:08:45.199 chapters in your life that you wish you could erase 0:08:45.200 --> 0:08:49.720 from your life because you just wonder why? Why on 0:08:49.720 --> 0:08:54.240 earth did I have to go through this? And you 0:08:54.240 --> 0:08:58.559 may not understand exactly why. You may not understand exactly 0:08:58.840 --> 0:09:02.640 the purpose right now. But you can be confident of this, 0:09:02.640 --> 0:09:05.760 that nothing is random, that God is able to take 0:09:05.760 --> 0:09:09.800 the broken pieces of your life and turn something good 0:09:09.800 --> 0:09:11.560 out of them. I want to guarantee you that. I 0:09:11.559 --> 0:09:14.280 want you to know that that nothing that bad has 0:09:14.280 --> 0:09:16.840 happened to you will go to waste, that God will 0:09:16.840 --> 0:09:21.240 squeeze good out of every single thing in your life 0:09:21.240 --> 0:09:24.160 that's been that's done wrong to you. That's the promise 0:09:24.160 --> 0:09:26.640 of God. He works all things to the good of 0:09:26.640 --> 0:09:33.520 those that love him. So those that love him and 0:09:33.520 --> 0:09:36.880 those that are called according to his purpose. And then 0:09:36.880 --> 0:09:40.680 he goes on to say, not only that, he goes 0:09:40.679 --> 0:09:45.400 on to say, for those God foreknew. In other words, 0:09:45.400 --> 0:09:50.840 those that God knew beforehand, he also predestined to be 0:09:50.840 --> 0:09:53.520 conformed to the image of His Son, that he might 0:09:53.520 --> 0:09:58.240 be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. The Bible 0:09:58.240 --> 0:10:01.170 tells us that God knew you before you knew him, 0:10:02.809 --> 0:10:05.450 that God was aware of you when you were in 0:10:05.450 --> 0:10:09.330 your mother's womb. That before you ever prayed a prayer, 0:10:09.370 --> 0:10:14.090 God already knew your story, your personality, your heart. He 0:10:14.090 --> 0:10:18.730 foreknew you. And not only did God foreknew you know you, 0:10:18.970 --> 0:10:22.730 but God also predestined you. In other words, to be. 0:10:22.770 --> 0:10:27.330 To be predestined. Is that God in advance chose you. 0:10:27.570 --> 0:10:32.610 He knew you. And in advance God chose you. I 0:10:32.610 --> 0:10:36.130 know some people that say I found God. Let me 0:10:36.130 --> 0:10:38.090 tell you. I understand what you mean. But first of all, 0:10:38.130 --> 0:10:41.689 God was never lost. I think you and I were lost, 0:10:41.690 --> 0:10:44.770 but God was never lost. You didn't find God. God 0:10:44.770 --> 0:10:49.410 found you. But let me be clear about this. None 0:10:49.410 --> 0:10:57.290 of us pursued God first. God always is the pursuer 0:10:57.290 --> 0:11:02.490 of us first. None of us on our own power, 0:11:02.490 --> 0:11:07.089 chased after God. God has always the one that initiated. 0:11:07.130 --> 0:11:09.370 God has always been the one that, first of all 0:11:09.410 --> 0:11:12.290 reached out to us. That first of all awakened us. 0:11:12.290 --> 0:11:15.210 That first of all convicted us, that first of all 0:11:15.210 --> 0:11:18.410 loved us, that first of all touched us, that showed 0:11:18.410 --> 0:11:23.090 us grace. God is the initiator. There is no person 0:11:23.090 --> 0:11:26.010 here that was broken and fallen and sinful and said, 0:11:26.010 --> 0:11:29.810 in my sinfulness and brokenness, I decided to chase after God. No, 0:11:30.170 --> 0:11:33.770 it was God who first of all called you. God, 0:11:33.770 --> 0:11:36.850 first of all, reached out to you. God is the 0:11:36.850 --> 0:11:44.089 initiator in this relationship. We are the responders to God's initiation. 0:11:44.929 --> 0:11:47.730 And so, although you may have responded to God, God 0:11:47.730 --> 0:11:49.929 is one that called us. God is the one that 0:11:49.929 --> 0:11:52.330 sought after us. God is the one that reached out 0:11:52.330 --> 0:11:55.650 to us. So most of us, in our worst moment, 0:11:55.690 --> 0:11:57.930 God knew who you were. Knew how you would be 0:11:57.929 --> 0:12:03.300 your worst, darkest chapter. God still knew you and predestined 0:12:03.300 --> 0:12:07.179 you and chose you. For what purpose? He chose us 0:12:07.179 --> 0:12:08.900 so that we would be conformed to the image of 0:12:08.900 --> 0:12:14.179 His Son. It tells us he foreknew us and predestined 0:12:14.179 --> 0:12:16.900 us to be conformed to the image of His son, 0:12:16.900 --> 0:12:21.220 that he may be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. 0:12:21.260 --> 0:12:24.500 Jesus Christ was the first born. We are the adopted 0:12:24.500 --> 0:12:28.380 brothers and sisters. It is our mission and goal to 0:12:28.420 --> 0:12:31.340 grow up and to be like the character that Jesus has. 0:12:31.340 --> 0:12:33.140 That's what God is doing in our lives. 0:12:38.660 --> 0:12:41.500 This message continues in just a moment. You're listening to 0:12:41.540 --> 0:12:45.500 Mark Jobe on Bold Steps. A lesson titled More Than Survivors. 0:12:45.900 --> 0:12:47.660 I just want to remind you that all of these 0:12:47.660 --> 0:12:50.260 daily lessons can be found on our main website. Bold 0:12:50.260 --> 0:12:54.220 steps plus on our social media pages, you can join 0:12:54.220 --> 0:12:57.860 our growing community of like minded believers online. You'll find 0:12:57.860 --> 0:13:01.460 us on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, and you'll definitely want 0:13:01.460 --> 0:13:03.980 to connect with Mark on his YouTube channel, where you'll 0:13:03.980 --> 0:13:07.340 find engaging content and videos that help you apply biblical 0:13:07.340 --> 0:13:11.900 teachings in practical, meaningful ways in your everyday life. And 0:13:11.900 --> 0:13:14.780 for even more exclusive, bold Steps content, you'll want to 0:13:14.820 --> 0:13:17.860 download the Bold Steps app. Watch and listen to an 0:13:17.860 --> 0:13:20.980 entire sermon series right from your phone, and discover more 0:13:20.980 --> 0:13:25.140 teaching videos centered on biblical truth at your fingertips. Just 0:13:25.140 --> 0:13:26.940 go to the App Store on your phone or mobile 0:13:26.940 --> 0:13:31.140 device and download the Bold Steps app today. Now let's 0:13:31.140 --> 0:13:34.780 return to our message. Here's Mark Jobe with more bold steps. 0:13:40.220 --> 0:13:44.420 And then he goes on to say that those he predestined, 0:13:44.460 --> 0:13:48.260 he also called, and those he called, he also justified 0:13:48.260 --> 0:13:51.660 and those he justified, he also glorified. I want you 0:13:51.660 --> 0:13:55.860 to hear me well. God has chosen you. You didn't 0:13:55.860 --> 0:14:00.510 choose God. God chose you. Reach out to you. responded 0:14:00.510 --> 0:14:05.989 to God. Then God called you to salvation. He awakened 0:14:05.990 --> 0:14:09.550 you to himself. He showed you Jesus. And when you 0:14:09.550 --> 0:14:13.350 responded to God, he justified you. Which means that your 0:14:13.350 --> 0:14:17.590 past is washed and cleansed. It's completely done with. He 0:14:17.590 --> 0:14:22.110 justified you before God and then he glorified you. As 0:14:22.110 --> 0:14:25.950 long as you think that you are the one that 0:14:25.950 --> 0:14:29.310 chose God. As long as you think that you are 0:14:29.310 --> 0:14:31.710 the one that made your way to God. As long 0:14:31.710 --> 0:14:35.150 as you think that you have the power to save yourself, 0:14:35.350 --> 0:14:39.310 that it's on. That's based on your works of choosing God, 0:14:39.750 --> 0:14:45.950 your penance, your good works, anything of yourself to be 0:14:45.950 --> 0:14:49.030 made right with God. As long as you think that 0:14:49.030 --> 0:14:53.110 you will live a life of a lot of anxiety, 0:14:53.510 --> 0:14:57.590 a lot of strife, and you will never understand fully 0:14:57.590 --> 0:15:02.880 the gospel of Jesus Christ. Salvation is not us reaching 0:15:02.880 --> 0:15:07.320 out to God. Salvation is God reaching out to us. 0:15:07.480 --> 0:15:10.560 When we were lost, when we were broken, when we 0:15:10.560 --> 0:15:16.600 were far. And us simply responding to this magnificent, powerful, 0:15:16.600 --> 0:15:20.560 loving God that is chased after us, pursued us, gone 0:15:20.560 --> 0:15:22.880 after us with all that he has so that we 0:15:22.880 --> 0:15:29.440 can encounter him. That's salvation, and it's an anchor to 0:15:29.480 --> 0:15:35.080 those that believe. Secondly, not only does he teach us 0:15:35.080 --> 0:15:38.760 that nothing is random. I don't believe the fact that 0:15:38.760 --> 0:15:43.280 you're here today at 51st and Keeler. Listening to this 0:15:43.280 --> 0:15:47.440 message is random. In fact, I believe that God loves 0:15:47.440 --> 0:15:49.400 you enough to bring you at the right time to 0:15:49.400 --> 0:15:52.880 hear the right message. I don't believe the people you're 0:15:52.880 --> 0:15:56.640 sitting next to are random. I don't believe that your 0:15:56.640 --> 0:15:59.120 life is a series of coincidence. I believe that God 0:15:59.120 --> 0:16:03.000 is sovereign. I believe that God has gone to a 0:16:04.280 --> 0:16:06.960 lot of work to get you, get some of you 0:16:06.960 --> 0:16:09.920 to the place that you are right now. Some of 0:16:09.920 --> 0:16:12.040 you had to be broken. Some of you had to 0:16:12.080 --> 0:16:15.640 experience loss. Some of you had to go to the bottom, 0:16:15.840 --> 0:16:19.440 bottom of life's barrel before you looked up at heaven. 0:16:19.440 --> 0:16:22.720 But you're here today because life is not random. Because 0:16:22.760 --> 0:16:25.760 God has been chasing after you in his divine love. 0:16:26.960 --> 0:16:34.280 Thank God for his persistence. The second thing that we 0:16:34.280 --> 0:16:38.120 learn from this passage is not only is that nothing 0:16:38.120 --> 0:16:43.040 is random, but we also learn that we have full access. 0:16:43.720 --> 0:16:48.440 Verse 31 says, what then shall we say in response 0:16:48.440 --> 0:16:53.040 to these things? If God is for us, who can 0:16:53.040 --> 0:16:57.680 be against us? Who did not spare his own son, 0:16:57.960 --> 0:17:01.880 but gave him up for us, how will he not also, 0:17:01.920 --> 0:17:07.120 along with him, graciously give us all things? What does 0:17:07.119 --> 0:17:11.120 it mean? It means that some people look at how 0:17:11.119 --> 0:17:15.840 difficult life is, how challenging life is, how bad things 0:17:15.840 --> 0:17:19.080 happen to their life, and they believe that God is 0:17:19.080 --> 0:17:24.040 against them. They start thinking that somehow the God of 0:17:24.040 --> 0:17:28.720 the universe is not on their side, but that God 0:17:28.720 --> 0:17:33.880 somehow is against them, that God's favor is opposing them. 0:17:35.600 --> 0:17:38.480 And what the Apostle Paul is trying to tell us 0:17:38.520 --> 0:17:42.520 is that you have it all wrong. God is actually 0:17:42.520 --> 0:17:46.760 for you, not against you. God is actually on your side, 0:17:48.080 --> 0:17:53.320 not on the opposite side. If bad things happen to 0:17:53.320 --> 0:17:57.000 you in life, it's not that God has orchestrated those things, 0:17:57.000 --> 0:17:59.400 but God has the power to turn them around. And 0:17:59.400 --> 0:18:02.050 you need to understand it needs to be an anchor 0:18:02.090 --> 0:18:04.570 truth in your life that God is for you and 0:18:04.570 --> 0:18:07.050 not against you. If God is for us, then who 0:18:07.050 --> 0:18:10.770 can be against us? And he says, God is so 0:18:10.770 --> 0:18:16.970 much for you that even when you were far broken, angry, 0:18:18.450 --> 0:18:24.570 some of us hateful, having no God consciousness. God took 0:18:24.570 --> 0:18:26.730 the most precious thing that he could ever have his 0:18:26.730 --> 0:18:32.290 only son begotten of the father, God Himself. And he said, 0:18:32.290 --> 0:18:35.050 I will sacrifice the most important thing so I can 0:18:35.050 --> 0:18:39.889 gain you. When you were broken and down and out 0:18:39.890 --> 0:18:43.730 and far, not seeking after, not chasing after him. When 0:18:43.730 --> 0:18:46.770 when you were at your lowest. God saw you at 0:18:46.770 --> 0:18:49.450 your lowest and said, I will give what is holy, 0:18:49.450 --> 0:18:52.770 what is powerful, what is beautiful, what is strong, what 0:18:52.770 --> 0:18:56.130 is blameless. And I will sacrifice the greatest thing that 0:18:56.130 --> 0:18:59.490 I have to gain you, even though I've known you 0:18:59.580 --> 0:19:01.940 since the beginning. I know who you are and how 0:19:01.940 --> 0:19:03.980 you are. I've seen you at your worst. But yet 0:19:03.980 --> 0:19:06.300 I love you. And he paid the highest price that 0:19:06.300 --> 0:19:09.580 anybody could pay to gain you. God is for us, 0:19:09.580 --> 0:19:18.300 not against us. And then he says this. And if 0:19:18.300 --> 0:19:22.460 God gave his only son the greatest thing he could 0:19:22.460 --> 0:19:25.900 ever give, to try to reach out to you and 0:19:25.900 --> 0:19:30.460 pay for your sin and and be able to redeem us, 0:19:30.700 --> 0:19:33.859 what makes us think that if he gave the most 0:19:33.900 --> 0:19:37.060 the highest price that he had, that he will not 0:19:37.060 --> 0:19:41.740 also give us everything else so that we can succeed 0:19:41.740 --> 0:19:48.500 in life? Notice what it says. He did not spare 0:19:48.500 --> 0:19:51.700 his own son, but gave him up for us all. 0:19:52.100 --> 0:19:57.100 How will he not also, along with him, graciously give 0:19:57.140 --> 0:20:02.859 us all things? I believe that a lot of people 0:20:02.859 --> 0:20:07.180 have been raised with an image of God that is 0:20:07.180 --> 0:20:12.220 a distorted image of God. We've been raised. Some of 0:20:12.220 --> 0:20:15.580 us have been raised with the image of an angry 0:20:16.220 --> 0:20:21.740 God who's obsessed with your sins. And I think that 0:20:21.740 --> 0:20:26.500 a lot of religion that I've encountered is about sin management. 0:20:27.420 --> 0:20:31.540 And you have this idea that God, up in his 0:20:31.540 --> 0:20:36.380 heavenly place, is looking at your life, tracking your life, 0:20:36.380 --> 0:20:40.220 especially to catch you doing something wrong so he can 0:20:40.220 --> 0:20:46.060 say one more sin underlying, one more sin under selfishness, 0:20:46.220 --> 0:20:49.540 one more sin under lust that God is looking at you, 0:20:49.540 --> 0:20:53.859 trying to track your sins, calculating your sins, keeping track 0:20:53.859 --> 0:20:58.220 of your sins. That God's main obsession is your sins. 0:20:58.260 --> 0:21:03.100 And so religion that doesn't understand the gospel, even religion 0:21:03.100 --> 0:21:08.619 and Christianity becomes a sin management religion. I want you 0:21:08.619 --> 0:21:12.619 to be very clear about this. What Jesus says and 0:21:12.619 --> 0:21:15.900 what this passage tells us, what the Bible says, is 0:21:15.900 --> 0:21:21.219 that you and I can never, ever, ever, ever in 0:21:21.220 --> 0:21:27.140 our entire existence, do enough good, pray enough prayers, do 0:21:27.180 --> 0:21:31.100 enough penance, try to try to go to enough holy 0:21:31.100 --> 0:21:34.580 places to get rid of our sin. There is nothing 0:21:34.580 --> 0:21:40.300 that you and I can do on this earth. Pilgrimages, prayers, giving, 0:21:40.340 --> 0:21:43.340 charity work that will make up for the sin that 0:21:43.340 --> 0:21:47.859 you and I have. That's exactly why we need a 0:21:47.859 --> 0:21:50.420 Savior that can pay it in full. Because you and 0:21:50.420 --> 0:21:53.820 I cannot pay for our sin. You and I cannot 0:21:53.820 --> 0:22:00.470 manage our sin. That's why Jesus came. Listen, if you 0:22:00.470 --> 0:22:04.470 don't understand that, you don't understand the gospel. Stop trying 0:22:04.470 --> 0:22:06.030 to micromanage your sin. 0:22:11.510 --> 0:22:14.429 And that is a reason for celebration. You're listening to 0:22:14.470 --> 0:22:18.510 Bold Steps with Mark Jobe. A message titled More Than Survivors. 0:22:18.710 --> 0:22:21.150 We'll continue with part two of this empowering lesson when 0:22:21.150 --> 0:22:24.630 we return for tomorrow's edition of Bold Steps. But before then, 0:22:24.630 --> 0:22:26.510 we hope you'll take some time to check out the 0:22:26.510 --> 0:22:30.470 various resources, even opportunities we have available on our website 0:22:30.470 --> 0:22:34.550 at Bold Steps. Org, including this month's new selection of 0:22:34.550 --> 0:22:37.070 our Bold Step gift. And Mark is going to tell 0:22:37.070 --> 0:22:38.110 us more about it. 0:22:38.109 --> 0:22:40.950 You know, recent studies have shown that nearly half of 0:22:40.950 --> 0:22:44.949 all adults report not having a meaningful conversation weighing in 0:22:44.990 --> 0:22:49.510 their daily lives. That's pretty startling, I guess, but it's 0:22:49.510 --> 0:22:53.190 one of those things that motivated our guest today to 0:22:53.230 --> 0:22:58.070 write her book, doctor Heather Holloman. In the six conversations, 0:22:58.510 --> 0:23:03.109 you talk about four mindsets that are essential for meaningful conversations. 0:23:03.109 --> 0:23:05.750 Can you walk us through those four mindsets? 0:23:06.030 --> 0:23:08.630 Yes, and thank you for having me on this program. 0:23:08.630 --> 0:23:11.030 In order to have a warm connection with someone, you 0:23:11.030 --> 0:23:15.950 need to be curious. Believe the best about them, express concern, 0:23:16.190 --> 0:23:19.109 and share your life. They seem really simple, but most 0:23:19.109 --> 0:23:21.790 people are deficient in one of those categories. 0:23:22.270 --> 0:23:25.629 That is good. Yeah, so this is some of the 0:23:25.630 --> 0:23:30.190 elements needed to have a meaningful conversation, which in your book, 0:23:30.230 --> 0:23:34.710 obviously you talk about how conversation is the bridge way 0:23:34.710 --> 0:23:36.629 to really communicate our faith. 0:23:36.830 --> 0:23:39.270 That's right. And I got really excited about the power 0:23:39.270 --> 0:23:42.030 of having a warm connection. Once you know how to 0:23:42.070 --> 0:23:45.190 deeply connect with someone. Evangelism is never going to feel 0:23:45.190 --> 0:23:48.590 like a sales pitch or an awkward pivot in the conversation. 0:23:48.630 --> 0:23:50.710 Good point. So I was really delighted to read the 0:23:50.710 --> 0:23:54.510 social science research, and also how Scripture has always really 0:23:54.510 --> 0:23:58.070 supports all of that. We've learned this is ancient wisdom literature. 0:23:59.119 --> 0:24:02.479 I love it, Heather, because so many people, when they 0:24:02.480 --> 0:24:06.040 think about evangelism, they think of a sales pitch or 0:24:06.080 --> 0:24:09.719 I have to do a mini lecture. And most people 0:24:09.760 --> 0:24:15.160 it intimidates. But to have a healthy conversation that naturally 0:24:15.160 --> 0:24:20.680 goes to those important places of spirituality, I think, lowers 0:24:20.680 --> 0:24:24.800 the barrier of fear and allows us to more naturally engage. 0:24:24.840 --> 0:24:27.280 Thank you, Heather, for writing this book. This, I think, 0:24:27.280 --> 0:24:29.840 is going to be a great resource for people that 0:24:29.840 --> 0:24:34.200 are seeking to bridge the gap of meaningful conversations with 0:24:34.200 --> 0:24:35.120 their loved ones. 0:24:35.240 --> 0:24:36.000 Thank you. 0:24:36.240 --> 0:24:38.639 Well, to give and request your copy of this special 0:24:38.680 --> 0:24:42.439 Bold Step gift, just visit Bold steps.org or give us 0:24:42.440 --> 0:24:49.480 a call at 800 Moody. That's (800) 356-6639 or give online 0:24:49.480 --> 0:24:53.640 as always at boldsystems.org. And you can also request your 0:24:53.640 --> 0:24:56.560 copy of the six conversations and give your gift of 0:24:56.560 --> 0:24:59.720 any amount by writing to us. Just address your envelope 0:24:59.720 --> 0:25:05.760 to bold steps. 820 North LaSalle Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois 606 ten. 0:25:06.520 --> 0:25:09.199 And as we continue doing all we can to bring solid, 0:25:09.200 --> 0:25:13.000 biblically backed teaching and resources to new listeners, we hope 0:25:13.000 --> 0:25:16.080 you'll consider joining the growing list of faithful supporters we 0:25:16.080 --> 0:25:20.240 call Bold Partners. Thanks to their generous monthly gifts, our 0:25:20.280 --> 0:25:22.720 bold partners are helping us spread to new cities and 0:25:22.720 --> 0:25:26.000 new countries, sharing the life changing truth of God's Word 0:25:26.000 --> 0:25:28.840 all throughout the week. To learn more about the difference 0:25:28.840 --> 0:25:30.760 your giving makes and to sign up to become a 0:25:30.760 --> 0:25:34.680 bold partner, just visit our website. And again, that's bold steps. 0:25:36.160 --> 0:25:38.080 I'm Wayne Shepherd. We'll see you again tomorrow for the 0:25:38.080 --> 0:25:41.680 conclusion of our message on becoming more than survivors. That's 0:25:41.720 --> 0:25:46.480 Wednesday right here on Bold Steps with Mark John. Bold 0:25:46.480 --> 0:25:49.320 steps is a production of Moody Radio, a ministry of 0:25:49.320 --> 0:25:50.879 Moody Bible Institute.