Andy Stanley - A Better Question (Part 2)

January 4, 2025 | S25:E2

Your Move with Andy Stanley — to help people make better decisions and live with fewer regrets.

#Faith #Purpose #Love #Religion #Truth #Parable #WordofGod #Patience #inActive #YourMovewithAndyStanley #AndyStanley #Self-Esteem #Self-Control #BrokenHeart #Self-Denial

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Your Move with Andy Stanley | Andy Stanley - A Better Question (Part 2) | January 4, 2025

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Andy stanley: hi, everybody.
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Welcome to "your move," where we help you make better decisions
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And live with fewer regrets.
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I'm andy stanley and i'll be your guide, and i'd like to
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Begin with a confession.
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I am a natural-born striver.
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I love progress.
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I like winning.
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And while there's nothing inherently wrong with that, when
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It gets out of hand, well, if you're a striver or maybe you
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Live with a striver, you know, right?
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We become discontent with everything and everybody, and
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That's a problem.
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And there is a solution, and that's what we're talking about
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Today right here on "your move."
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♪♪♪
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Andy: so today, if you were here last time, we're in part two of
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Our series "a better question" because it's the beginning of
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The year and this is the season that's kind of about us thinking
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About ourselves and evaluating ourselves.
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It's the--it's really, like, the season of self-improvement or a
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Renewed commitment to self-improvement, where we're
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Painfully aware of where we are and where we aren't, where we
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Thought we would be by this point in our lives, or maybe by
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This point in our year.
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We're consumed with the things that we need to start and stop,
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The things we need to do more of and less of, the food we need to
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Eat more of and less of.
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So it's super easy, of course, to get focused on and remain
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Focused on this question: what should i do about me?
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How can i make myself better?
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How can i make myself slimmer and stronger and healthier
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And wealthier?
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And i think we should all address all of those things.
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So this isn't an "instead of."
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I think if you're trying to finish a degree, finish
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That degree.
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If you want to get out of debt, you should get out of debt.
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If you, you know, you wanna break a bad habit, break
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That habit.
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But last time i suggested an additional question--and i do
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Think it's a better question.
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And if you'll take this better question seriously, it will
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Actually help you with the "what should i do about me?"
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Decisions and the "what should i do about me?"
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Resolutions that you have.
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It really will.
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It will get you in a position to actually--doing those things are
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Gonna get you in a position to be able to follow through on
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Your answer to our better question.
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And the better question is: what breaks your heart?
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What breaks your heart?
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You're, like me, you're bothered by a lot of things, you're
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Irritated by a lot of things, you're offended by some things
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Locally or in our culture or nationally
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Or maybe internationally.
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But the question is, that we're talking--asking: is there one
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Thing that bothers you more than all the other things?
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Is there one thing that irritates you a little bit more
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Than all the other things?
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In fact, it's more than sad.
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If you're honest, when you think about it for very long it makes
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You mad.
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You're like, this should not be in the world.
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We should not have this in our community.
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This should not be an issue for these people.
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People shouldn't be treated that way.
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I mean, is there anything that kind of goes from mad--excuse
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Me, from sad to mad, to the point where you almost wish you
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Didn't know about it?
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You wish you hadn't read about it, you wish you hadn't heard
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About it?
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You wish you hadn't seen it because now you can't unsee it?
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But you tell yourself, like we all do well, "it's too big.
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There's nothing i can do about it."
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And maybe there's nothing you can do about it, but generally
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Speaking, if you focus on it long enough, there's always
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Something you can do about it because somewhere in the world
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There are people working on it.
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And if nothing else, you can decide that every month you're
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Gonna send them a check to say, "hey, i can't tackle this, but
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You're tackling it, and i wanna partner with you to address this
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Thing that i just don't think this should be in the world."
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So whether you know exactly what to do with it or not, it's worth
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Thinking about it.
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It's worth letting it bother you.
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Now, as we said last time, if you don't have an answer to this
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Question--what breaks your heart?--that's okay for now.
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Don't just come up with something,
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Don't manufacture something.
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But think about this: you should ask this question because,
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And we--i gave you some examples last time.
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We're not gonna do that again today.
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But for some people, and this may not be the case for you, but
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For some people, this question, or a question like this, is
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Actually the gateway to purpose.
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Now, i wanna talk about this for just a minute and we're
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Moving on.
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You were created for purpose.
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It is purpose in your life, or finding purpose in your life,
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And we'll talk specifically about what that looks like
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Next time.
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Purpose is an essential.
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I mean, there's food, water, shelter, and purpose.
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And here's why, just to go a little bit deeper on this.
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The pursuit of happiness, and we all wanna be happy and we're all
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Kind of on a happiness quest to some extent, the pursuit of
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Happiness alone, when it becomes your objective, the pursuit of
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Happiness becomes a doom loop.
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That means you're stuck in a cycle over and over and over and
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Over, over, and over because the pursuit of happiness keeps you
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Focused on you, and the result isn't happiness.
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You know what the result of that is?
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The result of that, believe it or not, is insecurity.
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And do you know what insecurity is?
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Insecurity is fear.
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It's the fear that we're not enough.
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And news flash: we're not, okay?
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And let me tell you what i mean by this.
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I don't mean that you don't have extraordinary worth and dignity
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When it comes to god's love for you.
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God loves you so much he sent his son into this world to
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Redeem you and to reconcile you because he wants to have a
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Relationship with you.
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So this isn't about your personal value.
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This is the idea that there is not enough of you to fill you--
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That you are not enough to fill yourself up.
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And when happiness becomes the chief pursuit, "i just gotta
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Figure out how to be happy," you get in a doom loop where you're
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Constantly trying, through relationships and experiences,
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To fill yourself up.
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And i'm just telling you, this is why the earlier you figure
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This out, the better, i'm telling you, it's impossible
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Because of how god created you.
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In fact, let me say it a different way.
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You know, we talk about people who are full of themselves.
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"oh, she's full of herself.
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He's full of himself."
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Okay, here's the thing: that doesn't mean they're full.
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It just means the only thing in there is themselves.
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You look in there and the only thing in there is them.
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But they are not full.
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In fact, they're half empty.
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There's lots of room, but that room wasn't created for them
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To fill.
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That room was created for something more.
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And according to jesus, we're about to unpack one of the most
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Important things he ever taught and one of the most complex
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Things he ever taught.
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So, we're gonna crawl through it word by word in just a minute,
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But just, kind of, giving you the big picture.
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According to jesus, being consumed with you will
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Ultimately consume you.
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Being consumed, this is why if you're in your 20s and you can
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Figure this out, you--i'm telling you, you're gonna be so
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Far ahead of the rest of us, being consumed with you will
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Ultimately consume you.
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Here's what he's gonna, sort of, tease out for us in just
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A minute.
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When i am on the doom loop happiness quest, it's all about
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Me, all about me, all about me, over time that eats away at me
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From the inside out.
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You will use yourself up trying to fill yourself up.
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And in the process, you may fill up a house or two, you may fill
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Up a garage or two, you may fill a bed or two, but you'll never
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Fill you.
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This may be the ultimate paradox.
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You all know what a paradox is?
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A paradox is two doxes, okay?
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There's a unadox--i'm just kidding, okay, no.
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A paradox, just wanna make sure you're paying attention.
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A paradox is a seemingly absurd or contradictory statement that,
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When considered carefully, turns out to be true.
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A paradox is something you hear and you're like, wait a minute,
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That doesn't even make sense.
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And then you kind of investigate it and spend some time with it
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And you're like, oh, my goodness, that makes
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Total sense.
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A paradox is not intuitive.
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It's easy to dismiss.
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And if you dismiss the paradox that jesus is about to lay out
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For us, you miss out, because according to jesus, again, i'm
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Kind of giving you the headline before we look at the details,
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According to jesus: filling is achieved through emptying.
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Like, that doesn't make sense.
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Hang on.
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Gaining is achieved through giving.
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It's like, wait, that doesn't--just hang on.
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Winning is achieved through losing.
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And this is so countercultural for sure.
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It's so quote, "un-american," to some extent, right?
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And it's, you know, it's certainly counterintuitive.
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So no wonder--this is why no wonder we push back on actually
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Following jesus.
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And then you live a few years, then you get toward the end of
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Your life and you look back and you're like, oh my goodness,
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That made perfect sense.
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So it should be no surprise to discover that following jesus is
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Characterized by self-denial, not self-improvement.
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But--and again, this is why you gotta spend some time thinking
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About this--follow jesus and you will improve.
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It's the result, it's not the focus.
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But the challenge is, it's why we push back, i get it.
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Following jesus, it's gonna cost us something.
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Jesus is about to tell us that refusing to follow him will cost
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You even more, because you can accumulate everything and have
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Every imaginable experience and lose yourself.
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And so he tells us how to avoid that.
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You ready?
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One day, he's walking along, he looks over his shoulder, and
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There's this crowd, because everywhere he went
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There's crowds.
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It's so interesting, okay.
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So there's this crowd, and he realizes this is just another
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Crowd of "what's in it for me" people.
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And he decides to thin the herd.
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So here's what the text tells us.
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Mark, who got his information from peter, tells us: "and jesus
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Summoned the crowd," he stops walking and says, "all right,
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You know, gather up everybody."
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"and his disciples," that's the group that follows him
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Everywhere, including the twelve.
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And he said to this large group, "'if anyone wishes to come after
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Me,'" of course, they're thinking, well, what do you mean
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If we wish to come after you?
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Another way of saying this is, "if anyone wishes to follow me,"
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And they're like, what do you think we're doing?
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Everywhere you go, we go with you.
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Of course we're following you.
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He's like, "no, no, no i'm not talking about that."
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We're about to take this to another level.
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"'anybody who wishes to follow me or come after me, must
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Deny himself."
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"anybody who wants to follow me," he says, "you're gonna have
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To say no to you."
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And then he says this, which means nothing to us,
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But--because we've never seen this, we've never experienced
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This, we've never smelled this, we've never turned our eyes away
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From this, we've never seen the aftermath of this.
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But they had. this was staggering.
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He says, "if you're gonna follow me, you're gonna have to say no
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To yourself, and here's how far you're gonna have to take this.
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You're gonna have to take up a cross.
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You're gonna take up your own cross and follow me."
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In the 1st century, 2nd century, you know, before the 1st
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Century, 2nd century, if somebody was carrying a cross or
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A piece of a cross, they had forfeited their independence.
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He says, "you wanna follow me, you wanna come after me, you
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Wanna be one of my disciples, one of my learners?
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Then you can't be a free agent.
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You're gonna have to embrace my agenda."
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And then he dives into the paradox of all paradoxes.
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Ready? this is amazing.
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You've read this before. you've heard this before.
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You've heard it taught on before.
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It's--the language is clunky and confusing because of the
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Translation, so we're gonna tease this out together.
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He says, "for whoever," that would be all of us.
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If you're not a christian, he's including you.
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He just put the funnel out as wide as he possibly could, cast
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A wide net.
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"for whoever," believer, nonbeliever, jew, gentile,
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Doesn't matter, man, woman, doesn't--
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Frees--doesn't--for whoever.
00:12:06.032 --> 00:12:08.768
"for whoever wants to save their life," to which i'm in, i wanna
00:12:08.768 --> 00:12:13.506
Save my life, "will lose it."
00:12:13.506 --> 00:12:16.142
Not--i don't know.
00:12:16.142 --> 00:12:17.477
Okay, wait--what.
00:12:17.477 --> 00:12:18.845
What do you mean if i'm gonna save my life, i have to lose it?
00:12:18.845 --> 00:12:21.681
You know, what do you mean "lose it"?
00:12:21.681 --> 00:12:23.783
Like die, or how?
00:12:23.783 --> 00:12:26.920
And this is so interesting.
00:12:26.920 --> 00:12:28.288
This little greek words, "apollumi," it's used all over
00:12:28.288 --> 00:12:30.690
The english--the greek new testament and it's translated
00:12:30.690 --> 00:12:33.326
Different ways, even in our english new testament, depending
00:12:33.326 --> 00:12:35.395
On the context.
00:12:35.395 --> 00:12:36.763
What it means is to lose out, to ruin, to destroy.
00:12:36.763 --> 00:12:41.901
Here's what he's saying: whoever wants to save their life will
00:12:41.901 --> 00:12:46.206
Ruin it.
00:12:46.206 --> 00:12:47.707
Whoever wants to save their life, he's gonna define "save"
00:12:47.707 --> 00:12:50.643
In just a minute, whoever wants to save their life is gonna
00:12:50.643 --> 00:12:54.080
Ruin it.
00:12:54.080 --> 00:12:55.448
This is cause and effect.
00:12:55.448 --> 00:12:57.016
This is sowing and reaping.
00:12:57.016 --> 00:12:59.085
The whoever that's trying to save their life, they lose their
00:12:59.085 --> 00:13:04.190
Life, or they ruin their life, not because something happens
00:13:04.190 --> 00:13:07.660
To them.
00:13:07.660 --> 00:13:08.995
He says, "no, no, that's not what i'm talking about."
00:13:08.995 --> 00:13:10.964
In seeking to save their life, cling to their life, they
00:13:10.964 --> 00:13:16.269
Actually ruin it themselves--
00:13:16.269 --> 00:13:21.541
That in their attempt to hang on to all of their life, everything
00:13:21.541 --> 00:13:27.547
That represents life to them, in their effort to cling and hang
00:13:27.547 --> 00:13:31.384
On to everything that represents life to them, it slips away
00:13:31.384 --> 00:13:34.687
Through their fingers.
00:13:34.687 --> 00:13:36.823
But come on, jesus, you gotta be more specific.
00:13:36.823 --> 00:13:38.791
Help us out.
00:13:38.791 --> 00:13:40.126
What exactly slips through our fingers?
00:13:40.126 --> 00:13:41.494
What exactly is lost? what is "whosoever"?
00:13:41.494 --> 00:13:46.332
What is "whosoever" trying to save?
00:13:46.332 --> 00:13:48.501
It's not physical life.
00:13:48.501 --> 00:13:49.869
He makes that clear, this isn't about dying.
00:13:49.869 --> 00:13:51.704
There's something else.
00:13:51.704 --> 00:13:53.072
What's he getting at?
00:13:53.072 --> 00:13:55.408
Well, he's about to tell us.
00:13:55.408 --> 00:13:57.610
But even if he didn't tell us, you have seen this played out in
00:13:57.610 --> 00:14:02.782
Someone's life.
00:14:02.782 --> 00:14:04.484
You've seen this played out, and maybe in the life of somebody
00:14:04.484 --> 00:14:07.353
You love and cared about.
00:14:07.353 --> 00:14:09.055
You may be currently watching this very dynamic that he's
00:14:09.055 --> 00:14:12.191
Talking about playing out in front of you in the life of
00:14:12.191 --> 00:14:14.794
Somebody that is a friend or a neighbor or a coworker, maybe
00:14:14.794 --> 00:14:17.530
One of your kids, or maybe an ex-husband or wife, or maybe
00:14:17.530 --> 00:14:21.501
Your husband or wife.
00:14:21.501 --> 00:14:22.835
But here's the real kicker: this may be playing out in your life
00:14:22.835 --> 00:14:27.941
And you don't know it.
00:14:27.941 --> 00:14:31.644
And what is this that we see sometimes playing out in the
00:14:31.644 --> 00:14:34.247
Lives of other people that jesus is unpacking for us?
00:14:34.247 --> 00:14:37.283
Simply this: that those, you've seen this, those who devote
00:14:37.283 --> 00:14:40.987
Themselves to themselves eventually lose themselves.
00:14:40.987 --> 00:14:43.356
In the end, they only have themselves to show for
00:14:43.356 --> 00:14:45.692
Themselves and some stuff that people line up to divide up.
00:14:45.692 --> 00:14:52.899
And jesus is trying to save you from that, and jesus is trying
00:14:52.899 --> 00:14:59.906
To save me from that.
00:14:59.906 --> 00:15:03.910
And those of you with influence and authority over other people,
00:15:03.910 --> 00:15:06.846
Either at work or at home, jesus wants you to save those people
00:15:06.846 --> 00:15:11.384
From that.
00:15:11.384 --> 00:15:14.520
His point, again, there's more to come, is that i am not enough
00:15:14.520 --> 00:15:22.261
For me to live for, that i am not enough for me to live for.
00:15:22.261 --> 00:15:28.735
And you are not enough for you to live for either because if
00:15:28.735 --> 00:15:32.405
You attempt to live for yourself,
00:15:32.405 --> 00:15:33.973
You will always be half empty
00:15:33.973 --> 00:15:38.845
And you will never be happy
00:15:38.845 --> 00:15:43.383
And you will always assume it's somebody else's fault.
00:15:43.383 --> 00:15:50.490
And so, you will be tempted to go from somebody to somebody to
00:15:50.490 --> 00:15:54.260
Somebody to somebody.
00:15:54.260 --> 00:15:56.229
And by the time you figure it out--that the common denominator
00:15:56.229 --> 00:15:59.799
In all those relationships was you--you will have wasted your
00:15:59.799 --> 00:16:07.707
Time and your life.
00:16:07.707 --> 00:16:09.842
But worse, you will have wasted an opportunity for purpose.
00:16:09.842 --> 00:16:17.617
You've seen this, he's trying to rescue you from this.
00:16:17.617 --> 00:16:22.355
And again, it's a paradox.
00:16:22.355 --> 00:16:23.689
It's like, wait a minute, what are you asking?
00:16:23.689 --> 00:16:25.158
What are you asking? what are you asking?
00:16:25.158 --> 00:16:26.492
And jesus is like, "would you quit backing up?
00:16:26.492 --> 00:16:29.095
I'm inviting you.
00:16:29.095 --> 00:16:31.164
I'm inviting you to live your life the way you were created
00:16:31.164 --> 00:16:35.034
To live.
00:16:35.034 --> 00:16:36.369
It just doesn't work any other way.
00:16:36.369 --> 00:16:38.538
Have you not seen what happens to people who are consumed
00:16:38.538 --> 00:16:42.041
With themselves?
00:16:42.041 --> 00:16:43.376
They're afraid of what they're losing, and what they don't
00:16:43.376 --> 00:16:45.211
Understand is they're losing what's more important.
00:16:45.211 --> 00:16:47.547
In their effort to hang on and to cling, it slips through
00:16:47.547 --> 00:16:50.650
Their fingers."
00:16:50.650 --> 00:16:53.686
Then it continues: "for whoever wants to save their life will
00:16:53.686 --> 00:16:56.089
Lose it," in other words, the people who cling to it, it slips
00:16:56.089 --> 00:16:58.057
Away, "but," and here's flip side, "but whoever loses their
00:16:58.057 --> 00:17:02.895
Life," now again, you read that and you're like, whoever dies?
00:17:02.895 --> 00:17:06.532
He's not talking about dying and he's not talking about, oh my
00:17:06.532 --> 00:17:09.435
Goodness, where did i put my life?
00:17:09.435 --> 00:17:11.070
I've--hey, everybody stop for a minute.
00:17:11.070 --> 00:17:12.738
I've lost my life.
00:17:12.738 --> 00:17:14.073
Has anybody seen--no, he's not talking about that kind.
00:17:14.073 --> 00:17:16.042
This is an interesting little play on words in the
00:17:16.042 --> 00:17:18.044
Greek language.
00:17:18.044 --> 00:17:19.412
Here's what he's saying.
00:17:19.412 --> 00:17:20.746
He's saying, "look, those who--this is a decision.
00:17:20.746 --> 00:17:22.115
You don't lose it like it got stolen from you or you misplaced
00:17:22.115 --> 00:17:24.951
Your life."
00:17:24.951 --> 00:17:26.285
He said, "no, this is all your choice.
00:17:26.285 --> 00:17:28.554
You're a part of all this.
00:17:28.554 --> 00:17:30.456
This is about intentionality.
00:17:30.456 --> 00:17:31.858
This is about deciding.
00:17:31.858 --> 00:17:33.192
It's about pre-deciding."
00:17:33.192 --> 00:17:34.560
Those who choose to give a portion of their lives to
00:17:34.560 --> 00:17:37.363
Something that's not them or for them, people who choose
00:17:37.363 --> 00:17:40.967
Proactively to make sure that not everything that's about me
00:17:40.967 --> 00:17:43.936
And comes to me is for me, the person who chooses to distribute
00:17:43.936 --> 00:17:48.141
Their life, again, the person who treats their capacity, their
00:17:48.141 --> 00:17:51.944
Talent, their resources like seed that could--they just
00:17:51.944 --> 00:17:55.548
Scatter, he says, "that's what it looks like to lose your life.
00:17:55.548 --> 00:18:00.686
You choose to lose it because you choose to distribute it.
00:18:00.686 --> 00:18:05.625
You choose to make it available to other people that
00:18:05.625 --> 00:18:08.227
Aren't you."
00:18:08.227 --> 00:18:09.562
And then he clarifies what--exactly what this
00:18:09.562 --> 00:18:10.930
Looks like.
00:18:10.930 --> 00:18:12.265
Again, in the english text it's a little bit difficult
00:18:12.265 --> 00:18:14.333
To understand.
00:18:14.333 --> 00:18:15.701
This is what this looks like.
00:18:15.701 --> 00:18:17.036
This is what this acts like.
00:18:17.036 --> 00:18:18.404
This is the application.
00:18:18.404 --> 00:18:20.072
He says, "whoever wants to save their life will lose it, and
00:18:20.072 --> 00:18:22.141
Whoever loses their life for me," this isn't about martyrdom.
00:18:22.141 --> 00:18:28.581
Again--and this was not an invitation to do something
00:18:28.581 --> 00:18:34.754
For jesus.
00:18:34.754 --> 00:18:36.455
Very important.
00:18:36.455 --> 00:18:37.790
Remember, this entire discussion began with a group of people who
00:18:37.790 --> 00:18:40.760
Were in it for themselves and jesus is like, "i'm gonna thin
00:18:40.760 --> 00:18:42.828
The herd."
00:18:42.828 --> 00:18:44.230
And so the question was: "do you want to follow me?
00:18:44.230 --> 00:18:46.933
Do you wanna be one of my disciples?
00:18:46.933 --> 00:18:48.935
Do you wanna really be a part of what i'm doing?"
00:18:48.935 --> 00:18:50.970
"yes, we do."
00:18:50.970 --> 00:18:52.405
So this is about becoming like jesus.
00:18:52.405 --> 00:18:55.274
This is about embracing the way of jesus.
00:18:55.274 --> 00:18:59.312
So when he says, "whoever loses their life for me," he means
00:18:59.312 --> 00:19:04.417
That "whoever decides to live their life the way i have
00:19:04.417 --> 00:19:08.754
Instructed you to live your life, the person--anybody who
00:19:08.754 --> 00:19:11.724
Chooses my agenda, they're choosing it, and in choosing it
00:19:11.724 --> 00:19:15.361
They are going to give themselves away in some
00:19:15.361 --> 00:19:19.198
Capacity, just like i came to give my life away in
00:19:19.198 --> 00:19:23.402
Some capacity."
00:19:23.402 --> 00:19:24.770
He's saying, "to lose your life is to choose to follow me and to
00:19:24.770 --> 00:19:29.008
Live as i've instructed you to live.
00:19:29.008 --> 00:19:30.843
I didn't come to be served, but to serve and to give my life a
00:19:30.843 --> 00:19:33.079
Ransom for many.
00:19:33.079 --> 00:19:34.413
You have to look for ways not to be served, but to serve others
00:19:34.413 --> 00:19:36.716
And to give your life away."
00:19:36.716 --> 00:19:38.718
He says, "i've come--i'm all about the one another's," right,
00:19:38.718 --> 00:19:42.555
And you're to be all about the one another's.
00:19:42.555 --> 00:19:44.123
In fact, this is what the apostle paul does in
00:19:44.123 --> 00:19:45.858
His letters.
00:19:45.858 --> 00:19:47.193
He takes the teaching of jesus, this core teaching of jesus that
00:19:47.193 --> 00:19:49.795
We're to love as we've been loved, and he teases it out into
00:19:49.795 --> 00:19:52.498
All these relationships.
00:19:52.498 --> 00:19:53.866
So the apostle paul says, "here's what it looks like: you
00:19:53.866 --> 00:19:56.469
Forgive one another, you accept one another, you care for one
00:19:56.469 --> 00:20:00.039
Another, you encourage one another, you submit to one
00:20:00.039 --> 00:20:02.842
Another, you serve one another."
00:20:02.842 --> 00:20:04.510
Jesus is like, "yeah, that's what i'm talking about.
00:20:04.510 --> 00:20:07.013
If you choose to lose your life for me the way i lost my life
00:20:07.013 --> 00:20:11.284
For the people around me, didn't lose it like i can't find it,
00:20:11.284 --> 00:20:13.653
Didn't lose it like i died; lost it because i chose to give
00:20:13.653 --> 00:20:18.391
It away."
00:20:18.391 --> 00:20:19.759
It's the story of the good samaritan.
00:20:19.759 --> 00:20:21.394
It's his instructions to go the second mile.
00:20:21.394 --> 00:20:24.330
He says, "the person who will give their life away the way i
00:20:24.330 --> 00:20:27.433
Gave my life away for me and for the good news," or in your
00:20:27.433 --> 00:20:31.671
English text it says "the gospel."
00:20:31.671 --> 00:20:33.806
And this is important as well.
00:20:33.806 --> 00:20:35.341
He says, "i want you to live your life in such a way that you
00:20:35.341 --> 00:20:39.145
Are scattering the seed of your life, that you're looking for
00:20:39.145 --> 00:20:42.081
Opportunities to do for other people, and then when it
00:20:42.081 --> 00:20:45.318
Happens, i want you to make sure that you connect the dots
00:20:45.318 --> 00:20:49.155
Between why you're doing what you're doing, why you're living
00:20:49.155 --> 00:20:51.490
The way you're living, and your appreciation for and your love
00:20:51.490 --> 00:20:54.393
For your father in heaven."
00:20:54.393 --> 00:20:56.896
That's the good news.
00:20:56.896 --> 00:20:58.297
Jesus said it this way in the sermon on the mount: "let your
00:20:58.297 --> 00:21:01.467
Life," or your light, "let your light," the light of your life,
00:21:01.467 --> 00:21:05.438
"let your light shine in such a way that people see your faith,"
00:21:05.438 --> 00:21:10.943
Huh-uh, "that people see your good deeds and glorify your
00:21:10.943 --> 00:21:16.315
Father in heaven."
00:21:16.315 --> 00:21:17.683
He says, "i want you to live your life in such a way that
00:21:17.683 --> 00:21:19.552
People are like, "wow.
00:21:19.552 --> 00:21:20.886
Wait, really?
00:21:20.886 --> 00:21:22.221
Thank you, i don't deserve--really, thank you,
00:21:22.221 --> 00:21:23.556
Thank you, thank you.
00:21:23.556 --> 00:21:24.890
Why are you doing this?"
00:21:24.890 --> 00:21:26.225
Because this is what god did for me.
00:21:26.225 --> 00:21:28.294
This is what we do.
00:21:28.294 --> 00:21:29.662
We're christians.
00:21:29.662 --> 00:21:30.996
We do for others what god through christ did for us.
00:21:30.996 --> 00:21:35.201
He says, "this is how you save your life."
00:21:35.201 --> 00:21:44.977
This is how i save myself from myself.
00:21:44.977 --> 00:21:49.348
This is how i save myself from becoming all about myself and
00:21:49.348 --> 00:21:54.153
Dying on the inside.
00:21:54.153 --> 00:21:57.022
This is how you save yourself from yourself.
00:21:57.022 --> 00:22:00.059
Now, this is so brilliant and it's so true, and let me
00:22:00.059 --> 00:22:06.732
Illustrate it in your life now.
00:22:06.732 --> 00:22:09.468
Isn't it true that your worst moments were all about
00:22:09.468 --> 00:22:14.373
You moments?
00:22:14.373 --> 00:22:16.709
Isn't it true that your greatest regrets were in the season
00:22:16.709 --> 00:22:21.981
Of you?
00:22:21.981 --> 00:22:23.349
Did you have a season of you?
00:22:23.349 --> 00:22:24.884
"it's all about me. i don't care what people say.
00:22:24.884 --> 00:22:26.218
I don't care what people think about me.
00:22:26.218 --> 00:22:27.553
It's all about me."
00:22:27.553 --> 00:22:28.888
It was all about you, all about you.
00:22:28.888 --> 00:22:30.222
Your worst, most selfish, self-centered, regret-filled
00:22:30.222 --> 00:22:33.325
Moments were the "all about you" moments, the season of you,
00:22:33.325 --> 00:22:37.530
Because you weren't doing for others, you were doing to
00:22:37.530 --> 00:22:44.837
Others, and jesus is like, "that's what i'm trying to save
00:22:44.837 --> 00:22:50.509
You from.
00:22:50.509 --> 00:22:51.877
If you don't follow me in my ways, you will eat away at
00:22:51.877 --> 00:22:56.015
Yourself and you will lose yourself even if you
00:22:56.015 --> 00:22:59.251
Have everything."
00:22:59.251 --> 00:23:03.355
And the flip side is true as well.
00:23:03.355 --> 00:23:05.524
Isn't it true the fullest, like, the happiest, the securest, the
00:23:05.524 --> 00:23:13.165
Most content, the most fearless people we know are the emptiest
00:23:13.165 --> 00:23:21.974
Of themselves?
00:23:21.974 --> 00:23:25.010
Yeah, the people that actually embrace, whether they knew it or
00:23:25.010 --> 00:23:29.348
Not, embrace the others first: "what can i do for you?
00:23:29.348 --> 00:23:33.886
My stuff is your stuff.
00:23:33.886 --> 00:23:35.754
I'm gonna keep my hands wide open," way of jesus, the "do
00:23:35.754 --> 00:23:42.595
What you wish you could do for one--do for one what you wish
00:23:42.595 --> 00:23:45.097
You could do for everyone" type of person.
00:23:45.097 --> 00:23:48.000
"i can't change everybody but i--maybe i can change you,"
00:23:48.000 --> 00:23:50.102
"i can't do this for everybody, but i'm gonna certainly do it
00:23:50.102 --> 00:23:53.372
For you."
00:23:53.372 --> 00:23:56.842
The people who pause and give a part of their life away, aren't
00:23:56.842 --> 00:24:02.648
They the greatest?
00:24:02.648 --> 00:24:04.049
Aren't they the most inspiring?
00:24:04.049 --> 00:24:07.853
We save ourselves from ourselves by choosing.
00:24:07.853 --> 00:24:12.157
It's a choice.
00:24:12.157 --> 00:24:13.492
You're not gonna lose it like you lost your car keys or your
00:24:13.492 --> 00:24:15.227
Cell phone.
00:24:15.227 --> 00:24:16.562
It's a choice.
00:24:16.562 --> 00:24:17.897
We save ourselves from ourselves by choosing not to be
00:24:17.897 --> 00:24:20.266
All about ourselves.
00:24:20.266 --> 00:24:22.601
So wrapping up, if the only things that concern you, if the
00:24:22.601 --> 00:24:31.610
Only things that concern you and disturb you and just keep you
00:24:31.610 --> 00:24:36.248
Focused in terms of keeping your emotions all amped up, ramped
00:24:36.248 --> 00:24:39.285
Up, if all those things are just about you, you have some work
00:24:39.285 --> 00:24:45.925
To do.
00:24:45.925 --> 00:24:55.401
You may be on the path that jesus is trying to wave you
00:24:55.401 --> 00:25:00.606
Off of.
00:25:00.606 --> 00:25:02.174
You may be on the path that leads to losing you, and you
00:25:02.174 --> 00:25:09.748
Will not be happy because you will be half empty.
00:25:09.748 --> 00:25:18.057
So this is a big deal.
00:25:18.057 --> 00:25:20.392
This, what breaks your heart, this is an important question
00:25:20.392 --> 00:25:25.264
Because it forces me to look in the mirror and say, "andy,
00:25:25.264 --> 00:25:28.033
Is--are the only things that really break your heart things
00:25:28.033 --> 00:25:30.202
That have to do with you?
00:25:30.202 --> 00:25:31.537
You got work to do."
00:25:31.537 --> 00:25:33.439
And if there's something outside of me that breaks my heart, i
00:25:33.439 --> 00:25:35.874
Need to pay attention to that.
00:25:35.874 --> 00:25:37.242
This is my invitation, as i said up front, this is my and this is
00:25:37.242 --> 00:25:40.512
Your invitation to purpose.
00:25:40.512 --> 00:25:42.147
Even if it's not the ultimate thing, even if it's not some
00:25:42.147 --> 00:25:44.683
Global cultural thing, even if it's a small thing, the moment
00:25:44.683 --> 00:25:49.154
You step out of your comfort zone to do something that might
00:25:49.154 --> 00:25:52.691
Positively impact even the smallest thing or a family or
00:25:52.691 --> 00:25:55.794
Individual, then you're on the right track.
00:25:55.794 --> 00:25:59.465
And last thing, if you're not a christian, or you used to be,
00:25:59.465 --> 00:26:04.703
You're not a church person, let me--here's something that you
00:26:04.703 --> 00:26:08.107
May be thinking about.
00:26:08.107 --> 00:26:09.908
You may be thinking this: well, finally, finally.
00:26:09.908 --> 00:26:15.514
Well, it's--i didn't--i never thought i would actually hear a
00:26:15.514 --> 00:26:17.483
Pastor say this because i'm not one of you, but i thought that's
00:26:17.483 --> 00:26:20.719
How all of you were supposed to be, and that's not what i've
00:26:20.719 --> 00:26:24.056
Experienced, so i'm glad you're saying that.
00:26:24.056 --> 00:26:25.758
But do you really have to tell the christians to try to act
00:26:25.758 --> 00:26:31.664
Like christ?
00:26:31.664 --> 00:26:36.669
Yes, and you're not wrong.
00:26:36.669 --> 00:26:41.340
And we certainly don't always get it right.
00:26:41.340 --> 00:26:45.377
But here's something for you to think about while we're thinking
00:26:45.377 --> 00:26:47.713
About what we're thinking about.
00:26:47.713 --> 00:26:50.115
We don't always get it right, but jesus did.
00:26:50.115 --> 00:26:53.419
He's like the return carriage on the old-fashioned typewriters,
00:26:53.419 --> 00:26:56.789
Like, oh, start over.
00:26:56.789 --> 00:26:59.058
He's the through line, he's the center line, the sermon on the
00:26:59.058 --> 00:27:01.960
Mount, the teaching of jesus, this is what brings us back to
00:27:01.960 --> 00:27:05.030
Where we are today.
00:27:05.030 --> 00:27:06.832
So you're not wrong.
00:27:06.832 --> 00:27:08.934
You're not wrong if you feel like you are justified in
00:27:08.934 --> 00:27:12.204
Holding us accountable to looking a little bit more
00:27:12.204 --> 00:27:15.040
Like jesus.
00:27:15.040 --> 00:27:17.776
But just remember, please: we don't get it right, but he did,
00:27:17.776 --> 00:27:21.747
And that makes jesus worth considering.
00:27:21.747 --> 00:27:26.485
That makes jesus worth following, in spite of some
00:27:26.485 --> 00:27:32.591
Of us.
00:27:32.591 --> 00:27:33.926
So between now and next time, we've got some things to think
00:27:33.926 --> 00:27:36.361
About, you've got some things to think about, and we will pick it
00:27:36.361 --> 00:27:40.199
Up right there next time when we conclude "a better question."
00:27:40.199 --> 00:27:47.473
Andy: hey, everybody, thank you so much for tuning in.
00:27:47.473 --> 00:27:49.675
If you'd like to watch this episode again or share it with a
00:27:49.675 --> 00:27:52.411
Friend, head on over to the website at the bottom of
00:27:52.411 --> 00:27:54.646
The screen.
00:27:54.646 --> 00:27:56.014
The website is the best place for you to find other "your
00:27:56.014 --> 00:27:58.083
Move" episodes, access additional resources, and learn
00:27:58.083 --> 00:28:01.353
More about our mission to engage culture with the teaching of
00:28:01.353 --> 00:28:04.490
Jesus because we're convinced following jesus will make your
00:28:04.490 --> 00:28:07.659
Life better and make the world a better place.
00:28:07.659 --> 00:28:10.662
And now, it's your move.
00:28:10.662 --> 00:28:12.631
♪♪♪
00:28:12.631 --> 00:28:22.741
...
00:28:25.978 --> 00:28:25.978

Andy Stanley - A Better Question (Part 2)

January 4, 2025 | S25:E2

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