STUDY GUIDE TO ACCOMPANY VIDEO LESSONS Written by Shelby Abbott
ABOUT PAUL DAVID TRIPP Paul David Tripp is a pastor, author, and speaker. He wrote the bestselling daily devotional, New Morning Mercies , along with many other titles such as Suffering: Gospel Hope When Life Doesn't Make Sense . In 2006, he launched a not-for-profit organization, Paul Tripp Ministries, to produce and distribute free Bible teaching around the world that connects the transforming power of Jesus Christ to everyday life. Paul and his wife, Luella, have been married since 1971 and have four adult children.
PaulTripp.com /PDTripp @PaulTrippQuotes @PaulTripp /PaulDavidTripp
© 2025 Paul Tripp Ministries All rights reserved. Teaching@PaulTripp.com 21 N. Main St., Suite 8, Coopersburg, PA 18036 (215) 338-4000 Permissions
You are permitted to print and/or electronically distribute this Study Guide provided that you do not charge for the material or alter the content in any way. You may download the video lessons for offline use, but please do not distribute the video in any way and rather link back to and use Paul Tripp Ministries' online video player. If you require exceptions, please email Teaching@PaulTripp.com. Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The ESV text may not be quoted in any publication made available to the public by a Creative Commons license. The ESV may not be translated in whole or in part into any other language.
Contents
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How to Use This Series
SESSION 1 MEN OF FAITH ARE FEARLESS SESSION 2 MEN OF FAITH ARE TENDER SESSION 3 MEN OF FAITH ARE THANKFUL
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Outline
Transcript
How to Use This Series Thank you for choosing this video series by Paul Tripp Ministries! Our prayer is that this resource will be used by God to transform and strengthen you. If you have any questions, please contact our team: Teaching@PaulTripp.com. This series can be used by individuals, couples, and groups. We recommend a minimum of 60 minutes for each session so you have enough time to watch the video teaching together and spend time discussing. Of course, there is flexibility based on your circumstances, but this curriculum has been written for you to simply follow the "order of service" outlined in the Study Guide. Each session would begin with Group Participation: • Begin with How Did It Go Last Week? (Which you can skip the first gathering). This is an opportunity to share successes and trials with the group, based on what was learned and applied from the previous session. • Then, someone (or all together) would read aloud the Bible verses found in And God Said... • Likewise, someone would then read aloud What is the Point? , identifying the main points in the video session about to come so participants are prepared for what Paul Tripp will be teaching. • Together, everyone would pray the Petition , preparing hearts to receive the Word. • You then would watch the video session, Hear the Word . Each video is approximately 25 minutes. • After watching the video, spend the remaining time in your gathering using Let's Talk About That . An abundance of discussion questions have been provided, knowing that not all of them might be touched due to time restraints (or, if one or two particular questions take up the majority of the discussion!). • After the gathering concludes and before the next group session, For Personal Application material has been provided for individuals or couples to use as "homework" or for devotional and confessional life. • A note specifically about For More From Paul Tripp, Read: If you are interested in the topic presented in this session, this section will direct you to our recommended resources to learn more. Why Transcripts? You will notice that full transcripts of Paul's video lessons have been included at the end of this Study Guide. This is to allow for a quick keyword search or a full reading of the sessions for those who desire it. If you plan to print off a hard copy of this Study Guide to distribute to your group, you may want to only print off the sessions and exclude the transcripts!
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Session 1 MEN OF FAITH ARE FEARLESS
FOR GROUP PARTICIPATION These elements of the study are best used with others in a group setting.
And God Said… Read aloud: Praise the LORD! Blessed is the man who fears the LORD, who greatly delights in his commandments! (Psalm 112:1)
It is well with the man who deals generously and lends; who conducts his affairs with justice. For the righteous will never be moved; he will be remembered forever. He is not afraid of bad news; his heart is firm, trusting in the LORD. His heart is steady; he will not be afraid, until he looks in triumph on his adversaries. (Psalm 112:5-8) The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? (Psalm 27:1) What is the Point? Read these statements aloud and keep them in mind during the video. • As men, fearlessness begins with the fear of God, because vertical fear of the Lord defeats the horizontal fear of anything else in my life. • Jesus took every ounce of our rejection so that in our weakness, our failure, our forgetfulness and in our fear we would never see the back of God’s head. Petition Pray this together aloud. God, please help me to be the kind of man who fears you above anything or anyone else. I’ll admit that I can be forgetful about who you are, and that taints my heart to be ruled by horizontal fear in life. Would you strengthen my heart to be firmly set and unmovable in you, and would you give me the ability to rest confidently in you so that the circumstances of my life wouldn’t make my heart wobble? Shape me into the kind of man who is gracious, merciful, righteous, generous, just, and strong. I need you to mold me into a man with those characteristics because I lack the ability to do so in my own strength. Please meet me and form me. In Jesus’ name I pray, amen. Hear the Word
Watch the video. (30 minutes) Let's Talk About That Discuss these questions. (30 minutes)
1. Even though it isn’t incredibly popular to admit fear as a man, why do you think fear can play such a huge role in a man’s life? Personally, how has the element of fear driven you, your responses,
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and your decision-making? If you’re able to identify it, what do you think is your biggest fear in life? 2. How do you normally respond when fear enters your life? What patterns or “triggers” often bring you to a place of fear? What kinds of horizontal fears have typically ruled your heart? In the past, what has helped you to ease your fears? 3. As you examine the fears that have gripped you, in what ways would you say that you have forgotten who God is? How do you think “God-amnesia” might be directly related to the fears you struggle with? 4. What happens to your heart when bad news enters your door? Is your heart firm or does your heart wobble? Why is fearlessness strength in the face of bad news? In what ways have you personally experienced fearlessness when faced with bad news? How has bad news derailed you in the past? 5. How have you seen strength in God release you or someone you know from fear, worry, and anxiety? Why is true, lasting, resilient strength only ever found vertically? 6. How have you seen what the world would label as strength used in a way that tears others down? How have you seen worldly strength used to hurt others? How have you seen it bolster pride in the heart of a man? 7. What is servant-strength and why is it infinitely stronger than normal strength? How can you access the power to live in a way that models servant-strength?
CONVERSATION PROMPTS FOR YOUNG MEN
1. Who has been your ultimate example of a man who is strong (real or fictional)? Why do you consider him to be the best example of strength? 2. Why do you think it’s so easy for men to put on a mask of strength instead of admitting to the things they are afraid of? How have you seen fear equated with weakness? Can you give me some examples from life, movies, or shows you’ve seen? 3. What do you think this statement means: “Fear is only defeated by replacing it with a greater
fear.”? Would you even agree with this statement? Why or why not? 4. Why is bullying really just weakness wearing the mask of strength?
5. What do you think servant-strength is, and how have you seen servant-strength bring life to someone else? Who is the ultimate example of servant-strength and why do we need him in order to give us true godly strength?
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FOR PERSONAL APPLICATION These aspects of the study can be used in between group sessions on your own, either with your spouse or individually as part of your devotional and confessional life. Do Something During the week ahead, turn your learning into doing. 1. Get some time away from your normal routine, pray, reflect, and think deeply in order to find out what areas of your life are motivated by the unhealthy fears you hold. Pinpoint those fears and be proactive about replacing them with the fear of the Lord in a way that begins to change your daily routine. 2. Ask the people who are closest to you to tenderly give you feedback on where they see fear in your life and how you’re motivated by it. Listen without interrupting or defending yourself, and ask clarifying questions to understand how the people in your life see you responding to the fears you have. 3. Ask the Lord to begin working in your heart and life to replace the fears you battle against with the fear of God himself. 4. Take some intentional time to examine your life and see where you have fallen short of utilizing your strength for the benefit of others. Pray and ask the Lord to give you wisdom and guidance about how to best utilize your strength for the benefit of your family, friends, church family, neighbors, etc. 5. Ask the people who you trust the most to describe to you the way you typically use your strength (physical, emotional, social, personality, etc.) and how that has affected them. Again, listen, and don’t interrupt them as they communicate. 6. Admit your need to God and ask him for the ability to change at the heart level as you consider your specific fear struggles and personal utilization of strength. Search Me, O God For introspection during the coming week. How does Jesus model servant strength to you in a way that sets the bar for how you treat others and utilize your strength so others can benefit? In what ways do you need to repent of using your strength to benefit yourself and/or gain control over others? How are you resting in the Lord in such a way that your heart is now open and able to look at all the needs that are around you? How might God be calling you to address those needs you’re seeing and how can you plan specifically to see yourself as a part of the solution to the problems around you? Why is Jesus your only hope for true and lasting change?
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Session 2 MEN OF FAITH ARE TENDER
FOR GROUP PARTICIPATION These elements of the study are best used with others in a group setting.
How Did It Go Last Week? Share your successes and trials with the group. (10 minutes) • How did what you talked about last week change your perspective on fearlessness? • What specific application points did you implement into your daily life this week? How can you be intentional about making sure those applied points don’t fade over time? • Who are the trusted men in your life to keep you accountable and encourage you in your walk with God, whether it’s going well or not? Who would you trust to reach out to when you need to share deep and meaningful prayer requests? • What are you most looking forward to with session two? Is there anything that you’re apprehensive about as you approach this session? If so, take some time to share what those specific apprehensive thoughts are with the group. And God Said… Read aloud Micah 6:6–8 . 6 “With what shall I come before the LORD, and bow myself before God on high? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old? 7 Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?” 8 He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God? What is the Point? Read these statements aloud and keep them in mind during the video. • A man of faith is a tenderhearted man. • God calls men of faith to represent his tender heart as ambassadors in this world, representing him and his values: justice, kindness (mercy), and humility.
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Petition Pray this together aloud.
God, I want to be a man of tenderheartedness, but I admit that my pride and self ambition constantly get in the way. Lord, may I be a man who continually cries out to you, “I can’t… I can’t… I can’t,” and would you fill my needy, empty hands with your grace to be the kind of man you call me to be. Help me to be a man who represents you and your interests here on this earth with my family, my friends, my neighbors, my job, and my church. I want to be a man who pursues justice, mercy, and humility because that’s what you call me to do. I cannot do this in my own power and determination, but you can, so I ask that you would do it through me. I need you now and every day I live. In Jesus’ name, amen. Hear the Word 1. Before starting the Men of Faith sessions, what were your typical thoughts about a man who would be characterized as “tender” or “tender hearted”? Have you ever considered yourself to be a tender hearted man? Why or why not? Who were the examples of tender hearted men that you looked up to as you were growing up? Did you want to be like those men or not? Why? 2. Do you think it’s true that humility is the soil in which tenderness grows in the heart of a man? Why or why not? How has humility played a role in your growth and development as a follower of Jesus? As a son? A husband? A father? A church member? In what ways have you witnessed God opposing the proud but giving grace to the humble (see 1 Peter 5:5)? Watch the video. (30 minutes) Let's Talk About That Discuss these questions. (30 minutes) 3. How have you seen pride crush compassion, tenderness, and mercy? Give examples. In what specific ways have you seen pride in your own life convince you to take credit for what you could have never produced on your own? How has pride made you look down on others? How has your pride convinced you that you are essentially righteous? Why do you think pride is the enemy of tenderheartedness? 4. Why do you think Micah 6:6-8 is a passage that often tempts us as men to work and try harder to be better? Why isn’t working or trying harder the answer? In what ways have you trusted in yourself in order to feel better about your standing with God? In order to be a true man of God—a man of faith—why must you quit trusting in yourself? Why is it a good thing to know that in righteousness, you fall dramatically and woefully short? 5. How have you seen hopelessness become a doorway to true hope? Why do you think God would ever rob you of your confidence, pride, and glory and then lead you to a place of humiliation in life? How is that beneficial to the man who wants to grow in the Lord and lead his family? 6. In your own words, describe how God’s requirements of justice, kindness, and humility are essential to what it means to be a man of God. How do the elements of justice, kindness, and humility capture the entire narrative of all of Scripture? 7. Why are justice and mercy so important as you think about the cross of Jesus Christ? How is God making his invisible justice and mercy visible through you?
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8. In what ways is God calling you to be his ambassador in your natural circles of influence each day? Where is he specifically calling you to care and where is he calling you to act?
CONVERSATION PROMPTS FOR YOUNG MEN 1. What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you hear that someone is tender or tender hearted? Do you consider that characteristic to be a positive or negative thing? Why? 2. Without looking it up, what’s your definition of humility? From either fictional sources or in real life, who are some examples that you’ve seen of men who are humble? What is appealing about a man who is humble? 3. How have you seen pride in my life and can you give me some specific examples of when you’ve spotted it in me? How would you say you’ve personally wrestled with pride? Would you be open to me pointing out a few areas that I’ve seen pride in your life too? 4. Why do you think God calls his children to be people who pursue justice, kindness, and humility (Micah 6:8)? Why do you think those three character qualities are so important to God? 5. What does it mean to be an ambassador? How are we called to be ambassadors of God? How then does that shape the way we live our lives each day? How can you care and act in ways that make you an ambassador for God (at school, home, with friends, in church, etc.)? FOR PERSONAL APPLICATION These aspects of the study can be used in between group sessions on your own, either with your spouse or individually as part of your devotional and confessional life. Do Something During the week ahead, turn your learning into doing. 1. Take some time to pray and think through the areas of your life that are tainted with pride and some specific scenarios or relationships that spark pride in your heart. Then ask the Lord to chip away at that pride and eliminate it from your life. Be sure to share with someone else (an accountability partner, friend, or family member, etc.) the areas that the Lord brings to mind that you need to work on, and ask them to keep you accountable for proactively going after those areas. Pray that God would grow you, mold you, and shape you into a more humble person over time.
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2. Take inventory of the men in your life who you would call “tender hearted,” and write down the specific characteristics of those men who are tender. Learn from them and emulate them in ways that begin to change your actions, habits, routines, and even thought patterns. 3. Ask God to help you spot specific areas in life where you can be his ambassador, particularly in the areas of justice, kindness, and humility. Then follow through with the Spirit’s promptings to pursue those areas and change your heart/actions. Search Me, O God For introspection during the coming week. As you read through the gospels and study how Jesus interacted with the people in his life, where are you able to see specific interactions and scenarios when he was tender hearted and humble? Knowing that God has given you his Holy Spirit—the same Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead— pray that God would begin to shape you more and more into the image of Jesus by becoming a more tender hearted and humble man. It may start with something as simple as the way you speak to your wife and kids, or an adjustment of attitude about your job and your boss. How can the Spirit of God transform you in ways that you are able to imitate the Son of God in what you say, do, think, and give? How can he specifically use you to be his ambassador right where he has placed you at work, in your neighborhood, in your children’s school, etc.?
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Session 3 MEN OF FAITH ARE THANKFUL
FOR GROUP PARTICIPATION These elements of the study are best used with others in a group setting.
How Did It Go Last Week? Share your successes and trials with the group. (10 minutes) • What did last week’s time change about your posture toward tenderness as a man? • What action points are you implementing into your life that make you an ambassador of Jesus Christ each day? How can you represent him specifically in the category of justice? How about in the category of mercy (kindness)? How about in the category of humility? • What does it mean to be a man of humility? Can you think of some areas of change that need to happen in your life as you intentionally move toward a life of humility? If so, what are those areas? • How are the values of God reflected in your personal values as well? And God Said… Read aloud 2 Peter 1:3–9 . 3 His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, 4 by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. 5 For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, 6 and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, 7 and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. 8 For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins. What is the Point? Read these statements aloud and keep them in mind during the video.
• Thankfulness changes your focus. • Thankfulness changes your agenda. • Thankfulness changes your harvest. Petition Pray this together aloud.
Father, I recognize that people may not describe me as a man who overflows with thankfulness in his heart, and that drives me to your throne of grace. It’s difficult to live a life of thankfulness when there is so much that distracts me from a posture of gratitude each day, so Lord, would you help me to see and name things that I can be thankful for even when I’m not feeling quite so thankful?
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I need your grace to help me be a more thankful man as a living example to my family, my church, and my friendships. Please grant me the grace to be a man of thankfulness. In Jesus’ name, amen. Hear the Word
Watch the video. (27 minutes) Let's Talk About That Discuss these questions. (30 minutes)
1. Would you currently describe your life as spiritually effective, fruitful, and productive? Why or why not? What would you say has prevented you from a life of effectiveness and spiritual fruit? In what ways have you attempted to course correct in the past, if at all? What was the outcome? 2. Take a moment to re-read 2 Peter 1:5-7. Would the people who know you best describe you the way these verses are calling us to live? How do these verses make you feel about yourself? If you would like to be characterized by what Peter is describing in these verses, what do you think is preventing you from the description he’s laying out? What can you do about the gap between who you are and who these verses are describing? Why isn’t it ever going to be about trying harder to be a better man? 3. In what ways does this passage from 2 Peter drive you to call out for the grace of God? Even though this passage may seem to encourage you to simply "try harder," why isn’t it really about your effort and, instead, about remembering who you are in Christ? 4. How has identity amnesia about who you are in Christ affected your day-to-day living at home, work, school, church, leisure time, etc.? If you’ve been given everything you need right here and now to be the kind of husband, father, neighbor, citizen, morally and sexually pure man, etc., why do you think it has been so difficult to live the way God has called you to live? 5. If you’ve been given everything you need to live a life of godliness by the power of his Spirit, and God never calls you to a task without enabling you to do it first, how does the element of thankfulness fit into your perspective and posture as you wrestle through living out the Christian life? Why is thankfulness such an important part of living a godly life? 6. If you’re filled with gratitude and you’ll do anything you can to get all that has been given to you in Christ, how does an achievement-based posture towards God naturally begin to erode in your life? 7. Have you been living as if you are poor in grace when you are truly rich in it? Are you living more with a sense of envy about what you don’t have or a sense of thankfulness about all that God has given you in Christ? How might an attitude of gratefulness transform you from the inside out?
CONVERSATION PROMPTS FOR YOUNG MEN 1. Why do you think it’s so hard for us as men to live lives of continual thankfulness for what God has given us? What gets in the way of you being a thankful person sometimes? How do those
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things that get in the way of your thankfulness expose what really motivates you each day? 2. As a Christian, describe to me who you truly are…in other words, what is your truest identity? Why do you think it’s so easy to forget who you truly are? What can you and I do to remind one another of our true identity in Christ? Take some time to brainstorm a few specific ideas together. 3. How can something as simple as an attitude of thankfulness change your attitude toward both good and bad circumstances in life? How can we help one another to live life with an attitude of thankfulness each day?
FOR PERSONAL APPLICATION These aspects of the study can be used in between group sessions on your own, either with your spouse or individually as part of your devotional and confessional life. Do Something During the week ahead, turn your learning into doing. 1. Sit down and process what have been the obstacles preventing you from seeing spiritual effectiveness and fruit in your life. Jot down those specific obstacles and ask another trusted man in your life to regularly ask you about how you’re proactively eliminating those obstacles. In addition to that, take time to pray together with that trusted man and ask the Lord to give you the persistence and strength to remove the barriers in your way of spiritual fruit. Be sure to pray for spiritual fruit in his life too. 2. List ways you can “make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue” (2 Peter 1: 5) by the power of God’s Spirit, and ask the people closest to you to keep you accountable for that effort. Set practical goals that are attainable within specific periods of time as well. 3. Each week (perhaps on a Sunday after church), gather your family together and have everyone list the things they are thankful for on a slip of paper. Go around and take turns sharing what everyone is thankful for, and then collect the papers and store them each week in a jar or some kind of container. Then at Thanksgiving or Christmas time, gather all the slips of paper together in one large pile and select several to read out loud for your family to hear and remember what they were thankful for from the last several months. When this activity is done, pray together as a group and thank the Lord for all that he’s done for you and your family. Search Me, O God For introspection during the coming week. Ask God to give you a deep sense of thankfulness in your life for his provision in both the big and smaller things. Pray that the Holy Spirit would convict you of the areas of life you complain about and have trouble finding something to be truly grateful for. Ask him to give you the faith you need to live with gratitude, regardless of your circumstances, and ask him to help you model a life of thankfulness for your family, friends, neighbors, coworkers, and church family members.
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Outline
SESSION 1 I. Introduction A. I am deeply convinced that we have it wrong, that self-oriented dominance and control is actually not strength, it's weakness masquerading as strength. II. Psalm 112:1 A. Fearlessness defeats fear. B. It's vertical fear of God that then defeats horizontal fear of man in my life. III. Biblical Models of Fearlessness A. Abraham B. David 1. A good biblical theology of the majesty of God doesn't just define who God is, it redefines who we are as His child because He has poured out His glory on us for our salvation. IV. Psalm 112:7 A. Fearlessness is firmness of heart. B. Fearlessness is strength in the face of bad news. C. True, sturdy, lasting, resilient strength is only ever found vertically. V. Psalm 112:4–5 A. Men of faith are gracious, merciful, righteous, generous, and just. B. Strong men, captured by the glory of the Lord, give themselves to do the work of the Lord. VI.The Ultimate Fulfillment of Psalm 112 A. Jesus is the ultimate fulfillment of what this Psalm is about. B. Psalm 112, as it talks about fearlessness, cries out for a Savior because we need to be saved from our fear; we need to be rescued. SESSION 2 I. Introduction: Story II. Micah 6:6–8 A. Micah is God’s complaint against Israel for hypocrisy and injustice. B. It's humility that is the soul in which tenderness grows. Pride crushes tenderness. C. It's the devastation of humiliation that is the soil in which tenderness grows. III. God's requirements A. Justice, mercy, humility. Why these three? B. What you have in justice, mercy, and humility are three words that capture the entire
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redemptive narrative from Genesis to Revelation. C. God calls you to represent his tender heart, and he calls you to be his ambassadors. SESSION 3 I. Review II. 2 Peter 1:3–9 A. Verse 8: There are people who know the Lord, but their lives are ineffective and unproductive. B. Verses 5–7: If your heart is ruled by faith, virtue, knowledge, self-control, steadfastness, godliness, brotherly affection, and love, if those character qualities are in possession of your heart, the result will be that your life will be effective, fruitful, and productive. C. Verse 9: The issue is identity amnesia. If you forget who you are in Christ, you will quit pursuing what belongs to you in Christ. D. Verse 3: This is the identity. God has unleashed his power so we would be granted everything we need for life and godliness. You have been given everything you need. E. This should result in deep and abiding gratitude, deep abiding thankfulness, and that thankfulness should change the way that you live. III. Example of a rich uncle A. If your heart is filled with thankfulness, if your heart is filled with gratitude, you will say, "I'm going to make every effort to get everything that belongs to me in Christ." IV.Thankfulness changes your focus. A. Instead of focusing on all the things you don't have, your focus has changed to the
phenomenal hopeful provision that has been made for you in Jesus. B. Thankfulness then changes your agenda which changes your harvest.
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Transcript
SESSION 1 I have a great sense of privilege right now that I get to be the one who gets to talk about what in the world it looks like to be a man of faith. He was one of the most controlling men I have ever met, he had to have constant control in his marriage, constant control over his children, constant control in all of his relationships, constant control at work, he was dominant and strong. But the more I unpacked his story, the more I realized that that dominance and control had left behind it all kinds of damage, that's why he wanted to talk with me. And the more I listened to this man, the more I realized this controlling man was one of the most fearful men I'd ever met. His control was a way of dealing with his fear, the way he dealt with his fear is having to be in charge of everything. As I am deeply convinced that we have it wrong, that that self-oriented dominance and control is actually not strength, it's weakness masquerading as strength. And what does it look like for a man to be truly fearless? Well, I want to take you to a wonderful fearlessness passage in the Psalms, it's Psalm 112. And although I'm going to spend most of my time looking at verses five through eight, I want to look with you at the very first verse of this Psalm. "Praise the Lord! Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who greatly delights in His commandments!" “Blessed is the man who fears the Lord.” Now this will sound unusual to you, but I'm deeply persuaded that fearlessness begins with fear, that it's only ever fear that defeats fear. It's only ever fear that has the power to create a fearless life. Blessed is the man who fears the Lord. What are we talking about that? We're talking there about that mind-numbing, heart-engaging, life-shaping awe of God. His incalculable power overwhelms my heart and has captured me. Where God becomes the lens at which I look at everything in my life. I look at everything in life through the lens of the stunning, mind-numbing glory of God. And my life is shaped by acknowledgement if God is this glorious, then His commands have to always be right. It's a life that's ordered by God at the center - God’s glory, God's wisdom, it's God, God, God, God, God. You asked me why I do what I do with my children, I say, because God is. Why do I treat my wife the way I do, because God is. Why do I handle my finances the way I do, because God is. It's an awe of God that shapes everything in my life. You see, it's only that awe of the glory and the presence and the promises and the power of God that then releases me from horizontal fear. It's fear, vertical fear, that then defeats horizontal fear in my life. There's a lot of men out there who portray a macho bravado who are actually fearful men. When I think of this vertical fear of God, this awe of God, I always think of two biblical characters. The first is Abraham. Abraham had staked his entire life on one single promise of God, that is that he would have a son and out of that son, all the nations of earth would be blessed. Now that's something worth living for. And Abraham tagged his life, hooked his life to that one single promise, but there's a problem, the son never came. Decade after decade after decade, they waited till Sarah, Abraham's wife, was way beyond childbearing years. Finally, in a miracle of God's providence, Sarah gave birth to a son. What a joyous moment, the promise had come true, and this son would live and he would become that one who would bless the nations of earth. And then, shockingly, God comes to Abraham and says, I want you to sacrifice your son. It seems like a cruel trick, it's a moment where life doesn't make any sense whatsoever. What would you have been thinking, men? What would you have said? What would you have done if God would have asked that of you? You staked your whole life on one promise and now He's going to rob the son from you. Doesn't make any sense. And Abraham as a faithful man takes Isaac out and they start walking toward that place of sacrifice. Isaac's smart, he's used to the culture, he's seen sacrifices before and he says to his father, “Dad, where's the animal for sacrifice?” Abraham doesn't say, “Shut up and keep walking.” He says these beautiful words - it tells you
Transcript: Session 1
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what has captured his heart - he says, “The Lord will provide.” There's a fearless man. And I love this moment in Scripture where Abraham is now building the altar, and the Hebrew word that's used for what he's doing is, it's a word used for stacking something neatly in order. Now that tells you about his heart. He wasn't saying, “I can't believe you asked me to build this altar to take this son away from me, who I waited so long for. Where are you? What kind of God are you?” No, this man's heart is at rest and he carefully builds that altar. He raises the knife and God provides an animal for sacrifice. That's a fearless man. Able to look at what seems to be unthinkable and not be moved, believing that the God he knows, the God who has captured his heart will provide. That’s fearlessness. I think of that moment when Israel is in the Valley of Elah facing the Philistine army. This is the army of the Most High God, this is the army that God said, “I will deliver those nations into your hands, I am the Lord.” And that first day, that giant warrior Goliath comes out and the army of the Lord goes back to the tents in fear and they commiserate, “What are we going to do? What are we going to do? What are we going to do?” They do that for 40 days. It's shocking. The reason they're in their tents afraid is because they're, at that moment, a whole bunch of identity amnesiacs. They've forgotten who God is and they've forgotten who they are as His children. Hear this, a good biblical theology of the majesty of God doesn't just define who God is, it redefines who we are as His children because He has poured out His glory on us for our salvation. It's a scandal what this army is doing. These sadly fearful men who've forgotten the Lord and forgotten who they are as His army. David shows up, he's there to deliver a lunch to his brothers, bread and cheese, and they sort of make fun of him and tell him to go back to his sheep. And David says, “Why aren't we fighting? I'll go.” Now, David doesn't do that because he's trusting his own strength. Because he says, “God delivered the lion and he delivered the bear, and he will deliver this Philistine this day.” David knows who his God is, he knows what his power is, and he is not entering that valley in his strength. He knows he has no human ability whatsoever to defeat that giant, none. The giant mocks him and says, “Am I a dog that you'll throw me a stick?” And I love that scene where David starts walking toward that giant. I hear the timpani begin to roll as the drama builds. And David goes closer as the giant is taunting him and he starts doing this with his sling. And when I see that sling, I hear the symbols begin to crash at this drama of this moment, and he lets go of that stone. It hits the giant in the temple, knocks him out, and David runs out and cuts off his head. That's fearlessness. That's facing an enemy you have no hope of defeating and not running away but moving forward because you're so convinced of the power of your Lord. Men, when do you run away instead of moving forward? Because you've forgotten who your God is. Listen, the only thing that will ever release you from that myriad of horizontal fears that can capture your heart is when your heart is now ruled by vertical fear. For Abraham, for David and for us, it's only ever fear of God that will release me from fear of everything else. Look at verse seven. "He is not afraid of bad news; his heart is firm, trusting in the Lord." I love this, his heart is firm. It means that fearlessness is firmness of heart, it's strength of heart, it's an immovability of heart. I'm afraid that many supposedly strong men - hear what I'm about to say - have wobbly hearts. I mean, it just takes a little bit of traffic for your heart to wobble. For some of us, a flat tire brings us 75% of the way to atheism. We have wobbly hearts. An argument with your wife makes your heart wobble. A little bit of financial difficulty makes your heart wobble. The rebellion of one of your children makes your heart wobble. You wobble, you begin to doubt God's presence, you begin to doubt His goodness, you begin to do things you shouldn't do. You have a wobbly heart.
Transcript: Session 1
MEN OF FAITH
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Fearlessness means because my heart has been captured by the glory of the Lord - by His presence and power and promises - my heart is firm. The things of life do not make my heart wobble. That's the first thing. Fearlessness is a firm heart. Second thing, he is not afraid of bad news. Fearlessness is strength in the face of bad news. Now check this out, men, you live in a dramatically broken world that will not function the way God intended. Paul says in Romans 8 that the whole world is groaning, waiting for redemption. And so, we live in a bad news world. We live in a world where bad things happen. Men, if you're not experiencing bad news now, you will someday, and if you're not experiencing bad news now, you're near someone who is. Your relationship with Jesus doesn't give you a ticket out of the bad news that lives in the world around you. In the last several years, I have been through some very, very difficult things. I stand before you with a body that's been broken by disease. Where, in the moment of my greatest influence, I've been rendered weaker than I've ever been in my life. There's a way in which I'll never be healthy the rest of my life. It's been very hard. I would ask you, men, be honest right now in this holy moment we have together, what happens to your heart when bad news enters your door? Is your heart firm or does your heart wobble? Listen, when your heart wobbles, then you make choices you shouldn't make, you say things that you shouldn't say, you do things that you shouldn't do. You actually trouble your own trouble. “His heart is firm, he is not afraid of bad news.” You see that, that is an entirely different definition than the muscle-bound macho bravado that is a definition of a strong man in our culture. That was not David, that was not Abraham, that is not what strength is about. True, sturdy, lasting, resilient strength is only ever found vertically. And that strength releases you from all of that fear and panic and worry and anxiety that will make you do things that you shouldn't do and say things that you shouldn't say. Now, I just adore where this passage goes next. It describes the harvest of a fearless man. This is so beautiful; I don't think I have words to capture the beauty. This fearless man, he is gracious, merciful, righteous, generous, and just (vv. 4-5). You see, when my heart is firm, when I am resting in the powerful presence of my Savior King, I am released from the self-focus of worry and I can begin to live in servant love for the people around me. Listen, strong men are not bullies. Strong men are not so dominant that they crush the insights and gifts of the people around them. Strong men don't always have to be right and don't always have to be in control. That's not strength, that is weakness wearing the mask of strength. A strong man is gracious, a strong man is merciful, a strong man is righteous, a strong man is generous, a strong man is just, a strong man gives himself not to take care of himself, but to do everything he can to take care of others. That's strength. It's not having your own way, it's not always you have to be right, it's not always having control, it's resting in the Lord in such a way that your heart is now open to look around at all the needs that are in your life. Listen, every marriage needs this kind of man. Think of your wives, men. Who would not want to be married to a gracious, merciful, righteous, generous, just man? Who would not want to have this guy as your dad? Gracious, merciful, righteous, generous, just. Who would not want to have this guy as your boss? Gracious, merciful, righteous, generous, just. Who would not want to have this man as your neighbor? Who would not want to have this man in your church? These are beautiful character qualities. They only ever come as my heart has been captured by the fear of the Lord and I've been released from my fear of other things so I don't have to worry about me anymore because God will take care of me and I'm free to love and to serve. It's a beautiful thing. Strong men aren't mean. Strong men aren't bullies. Strong men don't spend all their time telling you how strong they are. Strong men, captured by the glory of the Lord, give themselves to do the work of the Lord. Let me say that again. Strong men, captured by the glory of the Lord, give themselves to do the work of the Lord.
Transcript: Session 1
MEN OF FAITH
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I love this Psalm. I love for its practicality. I think the Psalms are in the Bible to keep us honest about what the life of faith actually looks like. Psalms aren't pristine. This psalm is honest. It talks about bad news. Listen, biblical faith will never ask you to deny reality. If you have to deny the harsh realities of life in a fallen world, to have peace of heart, you may get temporary peace of heart but you're not exercising biblical faith. The Psalms are honest. And I love the honesty of this Psalm, but I love this Psalm for another reason. I love Psalm 112 because Psalm 112 is actually a finger pointing down the generations to a particular man. There was a man who walked on earth who was utterly fearless, whose heart was always firm, who did not quake and wobble in the face of bad news. He was perfectly gracious, He was perfectly merciful, He was perfectly righteous, He was always generous in every way, He was the epitome of justice. You probably know who I'm talking about. That man was Jesus. Jesus is the ultimate fulfillment of what this Psalm is about. Men, you don't have to look far for your model of fearlessness. Sorry, it's not Paul Tripp. I have to confess there are moments where my heart still wobbles, but Jesus's heart was always firm. And because of that, His life was known by its grace, by its mercy, by its righteousness, by its generosity, and by its justice. And that, men, is the hope of this passage because Psalm 112, as it talks about fearlessness, cries out for a Savior. Because we need to be saved from our fear, we need to be rescued. You see the thing that you and I need to be rescued from the most is not the bad news outside of us, it's the bad news inside of us. The thing that we need to be rescued from most is us. And so, Jesus came to live the righteous life that we wouldn't be able to live, to die an acceptable death, to rise again conquering sin and death so that in our fear, we can run to Him for help and He will not turn us away. I've said this many, many times, that the most dramatic heart-wrenching moment, the greatest moment of pain for Christ in the cross was not physical, it was relational. It was that moment when the Father turned His back on the son. And Jesus cries out, "Eli eli lama sabachthani. My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" Listen, Jesus took every ounce of our rejection so in our weakness and in our failure, in our forgetfulness, in our fear, we would never see the back of God's head. I know I'm talking to domineering and controlling men who have damaged their marriages and damaged their children as a result. I know I'm talking to men who won't admit it, but run away in the face of difficulty. I know I'm talking to men who in the face of obstacles, do and say things they shouldn't do because your heart isn't firm; filled and captured by a fear of God so it stands firm even in the face of bad news. I know there is need represented in you. And the good news is you don't have to act like you're something that you're not. You don't have to fake strength. You don't have to give yourself to some kind of cultural, macho bravado. You can run in your weakness to your Savior and He will meet you and He will strengthen you by His grace. It really is true; it's only ever fear that defeats fear. It is only ever that mind-numbing, heart-engaging, life- shaping awe of God and His incalculable glory that finally releases me from the myriad of fears, small and great, that can grip me and capture me and control me and divert me. And it's only ever that firm-hearted fearlessness that takes me from the wrong kind of model of strength to servant strength. To gracious, merciful, righteous, generous, just living. I believe the church is crying for this kind of man. I believe the family is longing for this kind of man. Our culture is in want of this kind of man. May there be a harvest of firm-hearted, fearless men who move out in graciousness and mercy and righteousness and generosity and justice who are powerful tools of change in the hands of the Lord of glory. Let's pray. Thank you, Lord, for this beautiful passage of your word. May we run to you and may you make our hearts firm and may that result in a harvest of good fruit. We pray these things in the sweet and strong name of the fearless one, Jesus, amen.
Transcript: Session 1
MEN OF FAITH
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SESSION 2 I was a bruised and beaten down pastor. I was dealing with levels of criticism and rejection that I'd never thought I would get in ministry. And all I wanted to do was run. I couldn't preach another sermon. I couldn't face another meeting. I couldn't face ministry. I was done. I was broken. And I had found a Christian school in Southern California who needed a principal, and I had an education background and I thought, “Well, that's great - Jesus and the beach - doesn't get better than that!” I was ready to go. I went to my elders and I said, “I'm done. I can't do this anymore. I want to resign.” And they said, “Paul, we don't want you to resign.” I said, “I can't do this. I can't face anymore. I'm done, I'm beaten, I'm broken. I can't do this.” They saw my discouragement and they said, “Okay Paul. We're sad that we're here, but next Sunday we will stand with you as you announce your resignation.” It was a very emotional service. For many people in the congregation, I was the only pastor that they had ever had. People were shocked and tearful, and I stood at the front and I had conversation after conversation until I was completely emotionally spent. As is often the case of the pastor in a young church, I was the pastor and the custodian and ten other things. I was the last person out of the building that Sunday and I locked the door and was standing there on the porch and there in front of me was the oldest man in our congregation. He said, “Paul, can I talk with you?” What I wanted to say was, “Bob, I don't want to talk to anybody right now.” But I thought I should respect this man and I said, “Okay Bob, you can talk.” And he said to me, “Look Paul, we know you're immature.” I thought, “Well, that's a good start.” And then he said these incredible words to me. He said, “Paul, where's the church going to get mature pastors if immature pastors run? We love you. We haven't asked you to leave. Don't go.” I immediately began to weep. And I walked home - our house was close - and Luella was already home with our children. And I came in the door weeping. She said, “Paul, what's the matter?” And I blurted out, “I can't leave. God just nailed my shoes to the porch of that church. I can't go.” I told her what Bob had said to me. I called my elders that afternoon and I said, “Okay, I'm an idiot. I panicked. I want to un-resign.” The person on the phone said, “Well, this isn't typical, but we would love for you to do that.” And the next Sunday, I got up and confessed my fear and I said, “I want to stay.” I thought about that conversation many times. Because if there hadn't been that conversation with one tender-hearted man, no one would have ever heard of Paul Tripp. No books would have ever been written. This wonderful life of ministry that God has given me would not have happened. It took the words of a tender- hearted man to rescue me - to stop me. Listen, I am concerned that you can go to men's conference after men's conference after men's conference after men's conference and never hear anyone talk about the transformative power of a tender-hearted man. The normal definition of a man, the normal definition of masculinity, the normal definition of what makes change happen doesn't typically include tenderness. But its tenderness that God used to radically alter the course of my life. My life was transformed by two or three sentences, propelled by God, of a tender-hearted man. A man
Transcript: Session 2
MEN OF FAITH
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