1 00:00:01,960 --> 00:00:04,400 Oh, crossing family, it is so good to be with you this 2 00:00:04,400 --> 00:00:05,640 weekend. I want to welcome those of you 3 00:00:05,640 --> 00:00:08,480 joining at our campuses, those of you watching online and 4 00:00:08,480 --> 00:00:12,160 inside. Quick reminder, next weekend, 5 00:00:12,160 --> 00:00:16,040 many of our locations are going to be having additional weekend 6 00:00:16,040 --> 00:00:20,080 services, which means that it might affect your normal service 7 00:00:20,080 --> 00:00:22,440 times. So make sure you find out when 8 00:00:22,440 --> 00:00:25,280 those are. And as we always do, make sure 9 00:00:25,280 --> 00:00:27,920 you're bringing somebody, you're parking far away, and if 10 00:00:27,920 --> 00:00:31,480 possible, try to avoid the services that are going to be 11 00:00:31,480 --> 00:00:34,960 packed at your location. For more insight into that, our 12 00:00:34,960 --> 00:00:38,720 campus pastors will be able to inform you where they think the 13 00:00:38,880 --> 00:00:41,000 the biggest group of people is going to be. 14 00:00:41,000 --> 00:00:44,320 And if there's any way for you to continue to be evangelistic 15 00:00:44,320 --> 00:00:47,480 to your friends and invite them and make usage of our other 16 00:00:47,480 --> 00:00:49,560 services, we would greatly appreciate it. 17 00:00:49,880 --> 00:00:53,200 Between all of our campuses, we're going to have 44 physical 18 00:00:53,440 --> 00:00:57,240 services with six additional services online for a total of 19 00:00:57,240 --> 00:01:00,640 50 weekend experience, which is crazy. 20 00:01:00,640 --> 00:01:05,280 It's going to be a long 1 and I'm praying that this will be 21 00:01:05,280 --> 00:01:07,800 the largest opportunity in the history of our church for people 22 00:01:07,800 --> 00:01:10,680 to hear the life changing gospel of Jesus Christ. 23 00:01:11,000 --> 00:01:13,320 I specifically if you want to join me, I've been praying that 24 00:01:13,320 --> 00:01:16,960 over 16,000 people in our region will join us next weekend. 25 00:01:16,960 --> 00:01:19,400 And so if you want to add that to your prayer list, I would 26 00:01:19,400 --> 00:01:22,160 love it. Well, if you have, you have made 27 00:01:22,160 --> 00:01:26,600 it officially to the not so official last weekend of the 28 00:01:26,600 --> 00:01:29,600 sermon series. Next week, kind of for those who 29 00:01:29,600 --> 00:01:31,880 will be joining our church for the first time or the first time 30 00:01:31,880 --> 00:01:36,000 in a long time for our Easter services, it'll feel like an 31 00:01:36,000 --> 00:01:39,560 elevated Easter weekend. I'm incredibly excited about the 32 00:01:39,560 --> 00:01:42,280 sermon that I get to share with each and every single one of you 33 00:01:42,280 --> 00:01:45,040 and what it'll mean for them. But this is kind of like some 34 00:01:45,040 --> 00:01:47,840 inside information for you, which is why I'm so glad you're 35 00:01:47,840 --> 00:01:50,280 here. For the last couple of years, 36 00:01:50,280 --> 00:01:53,720 last three, I've been attacking Easter from the edges. 37 00:01:54,400 --> 00:01:58,000 I did one on Zacchaeus which is an Easter E message. 38 00:01:58,440 --> 00:02:02,120 We did the Power of the story Easter E message. 39 00:02:02,840 --> 00:02:05,280 Then we did a real weird one if you remember the chasing shades 40 00:02:05,280 --> 00:02:07,400 one where everything was yellow and I couldn't see for a week. 41 00:02:08,840 --> 00:02:13,520 This year I am doing a full on up the middle Easter message 42 00:02:13,520 --> 00:02:16,600 that will be a perfect message for everybody to hear no matter 43 00:02:16,600 --> 00:02:18,840 where they are on their spiritual journey. 44 00:02:19,240 --> 00:02:22,680 And for those of you who have gone through this sermon series 45 00:02:23,360 --> 00:02:29,800 with us on Easter, it will feel like a culmination of absolutely 46 00:02:29,800 --> 00:02:33,440 everything we've learned through this series. 47 00:02:33,680 --> 00:02:35,920 And so I'm incredibly excited to preach it. 48 00:02:35,920 --> 00:02:38,920 I wrote it a couple weeks back, and I've just got to preach all 49 00:02:38,920 --> 00:02:41,160 these other sermons to get to the next one that I'm fired up 50 00:02:41,160 --> 00:02:43,600 about. But today's message, today's 51 00:02:43,600 --> 00:02:48,720 message dovetails very closely with where we left off from last 52 00:02:48,720 --> 00:02:51,400 week's message. So if you missed last week's 53 00:02:51,400 --> 00:02:53,800 message, I try to remind you guys this as often as I can. 54 00:02:54,000 --> 00:02:57,000 There's all kinds of places that our team puts the sermon when 55 00:02:57,000 --> 00:03:00,160 we, you know, after the weekend. And so if you miss and you 56 00:03:00,160 --> 00:03:02,560 didn't catch it or you weren't watching online, you can go to 57 00:03:02,560 --> 00:03:04,840 wherever those, you know, you can go to. 58 00:03:05,160 --> 00:03:08,440 Yeah, whatever those are places are, you can go there and it'll, 59 00:03:08,520 --> 00:03:12,640 you know, go to either of those three. 60 00:03:12,880 --> 00:03:16,000 OK, let's stay off of Facebook, you crazy people. 61 00:03:16,240 --> 00:03:22,360 All right, now, quick recap. God has made a promise multiple 62 00:03:22,360 --> 00:03:27,200 times to Abraham and Sarah, this couple, that they would be the 63 00:03:27,200 --> 00:03:32,600 father and mother of a nation, that their offspring would be as 64 00:03:32,600 --> 00:03:38,480 numerous as the sands on the earth and the stars in the sky. 65 00:03:38,920 --> 00:03:43,920 And there's only two problems. The 1st is that Sarah is barren. 66 00:03:43,920 --> 00:03:49,160 She has had no children. And the second problem is that 67 00:03:49,160 --> 00:03:51,640 they are old. How old? 68 00:03:52,080 --> 00:03:58,280 Well, Abraham is 100, Sarah is 90. 69 00:03:58,720 --> 00:04:01,120 Not a lot of pregnant people in that demographic. 70 00:04:01,840 --> 00:04:04,160 And what I want to do today, before we jump any further into 71 00:04:04,160 --> 00:04:06,720 the message, is I actually want to do something kind of special. 72 00:04:07,440 --> 00:04:14,360 We want to find and honor a very incredible man and woman at our 73 00:04:14,360 --> 00:04:17,240 church this weekend. So here's one way you do. 74 00:04:17,240 --> 00:04:18,839 Stop listening to me for just a little bit. 75 00:04:19,760 --> 00:04:21,480 Pull out your phone. Can't believe I'm saying this. 76 00:04:22,600 --> 00:04:24,920 I want you to open up your crossing app. 77 00:04:26,360 --> 00:04:30,800 And the very first message that you should find is for you to 78 00:04:30,800 --> 00:04:36,560 tell us your birthday. I want you to go ahead, open it 79 00:04:36,560 --> 00:04:37,640 up. This is for everybody. 80 00:04:38,120 --> 00:04:41,760 Enter your birthday because there's a church. 81 00:04:41,760 --> 00:04:44,160 We want to celebrate you every time it's your birthday, whether 82 00:04:44,160 --> 00:04:49,200 you're young or not young. But more importantly, let me 83 00:04:49,200 --> 00:04:50,720 tell you what my target on the wall is. 84 00:04:51,640 --> 00:04:56,200 We want to find the oldest male and the oldest female in 85 00:04:56,200 --> 00:04:58,840 attendance at the crossing this weekend. 86 00:05:00,000 --> 00:05:03,840 Just like Abraham and Sarah made huge sacrifices for the 87 00:05:03,840 --> 00:05:07,000 generations that would come after them, your commitment to 88 00:05:07,000 --> 00:05:10,120 being a part of our church is probably the most beautiful 89 00:05:10,120 --> 00:05:12,720 expression of one of our core values. 90 00:05:12,760 --> 00:05:15,440 One of our core values as a church is downward. 91 00:05:15,840 --> 00:05:18,200 For those of you who don't know what that is, is we will gladly 92 00:05:18,200 --> 00:05:21,840 give up the things we love for a generation we love even more. 93 00:05:22,520 --> 00:05:25,040 And by being a part of this church, you are modeling this 94 00:05:25,040 --> 00:05:29,080 core value for the rest of us. And so we want to celebrate the 95 00:05:29,080 --> 00:05:32,240 oldest male in attendance and the oldest female in attendance. 96 00:05:32,240 --> 00:05:36,720 And here's our gift to you. You will get to walk right past 97 00:05:36,720 --> 00:05:39,360 the line at your location to the very front. 98 00:05:40,280 --> 00:05:45,160 And you will get a free drink from the coffee every week for 99 00:05:45,160 --> 00:05:50,040 the rest of 2026 at our church. But you got to go through the 100 00:05:50,160 --> 00:05:53,080 channels, all right? And then what our staff would 101 00:05:53,080 --> 00:05:55,840 like to do at whatever location wins, they would like to make a 102 00:05:55,880 --> 00:05:58,960 social media post with you and celebrate you because you mean 103 00:05:58,960 --> 00:06:00,840 so much to the future of this church. 104 00:06:01,040 --> 00:06:03,520 And so we want to honor you. So everybody young and old, 105 00:06:03,800 --> 00:06:07,040 enter your birthday. And then if you need to help 106 00:06:07,040 --> 00:06:12,120 those around you who might be less tech savvy, because I don't 107 00:06:12,120 --> 00:06:14,760 want some 42 year old person to be the one who wins. 108 00:06:14,760 --> 00:06:19,880 OK, so I'm trying to say, OK. And if you if you, if you're a 109 00:06:19,880 --> 00:06:22,280 person who you haven't figured it out and it's a bit of a hill, 110 00:06:22,280 --> 00:06:24,560 but you're going, I'm pretty sure I could be the winner. 111 00:06:24,920 --> 00:06:27,440 Make sure you swing by our next step booth and they will help 112 00:06:27,440 --> 00:06:29,480 you out if if you're having some tech problems. 113 00:06:29,480 --> 00:06:31,760 All right, now back to Abraham and Sarah. 114 00:06:32,200 --> 00:06:38,600 He's 100, she's 90. And from their perspective, God 115 00:06:38,600 --> 00:06:43,440 was taking way too much time between when He made the promise 116 00:06:44,200 --> 00:06:48,960 and when He kept the promise, from when He said the promise 117 00:06:49,000 --> 00:06:51,520 and when He made good on the promise. 118 00:06:52,040 --> 00:06:55,520 And so last week we learned that they took matters into their own 119 00:06:55,520 --> 00:06:59,800 hands and in doing so made a mess of it. 120 00:07:01,040 --> 00:07:07,360 However, eventually their long-awaited dreams came true 121 00:07:08,280 --> 00:07:13,720 and Sarah gave birth to a son and she gave him the name Isaac. 122 00:07:15,120 --> 00:07:17,280 For just a second. Feel the weight of this. 123 00:07:18,960 --> 00:07:26,960 Decades of hoping, decades of waiting, decades of prayers, 124 00:07:27,760 --> 00:07:33,440 decades of pain. Nobody has ever waited longer 125 00:07:33,440 --> 00:07:37,920 for a child than Sarah waited for Isaac. 126 00:07:39,360 --> 00:07:45,080 And in a moment it is all laid to rest as they hold the 127 00:07:45,400 --> 00:07:50,960 fulfillment of that promise in their arms, their long-awaited 128 00:07:50,960 --> 00:07:54,000 son. That's where we pick up in the 129 00:07:54,000 --> 00:08:02,440 story Genesis 22 verse one. Sometime later, God tested 130 00:08:02,440 --> 00:08:06,400 Abraham. He said to him, Abraham, here I 131 00:08:06,400 --> 00:08:12,800 am, Abraham replied, Now this is messy because you just read that 132 00:08:12,800 --> 00:08:15,800 and you went, hold on a second. God tests us. 133 00:08:18,000 --> 00:08:23,840 Yeah, he does. Now, I don't want you to confuse 134 00:08:23,840 --> 00:08:30,400 tempting and testing. Tempting occurs when Satan or 135 00:08:30,400 --> 00:08:37,120 our flesh prompt us to sin. Testing occurs when God prompts 136 00:08:37,159 --> 00:08:41,960 us to trust. Let me drill down on this for a 137 00:08:41,960 --> 00:08:43,360 little bit. Scripture actually speaks to 138 00:08:43,360 --> 00:08:45,000 this. If you were to go to the book of 139 00:08:45,000 --> 00:08:47,760 James, later when you get home, there's James chapter 1 verses 2 140 00:08:47,760 --> 00:08:51,000 and four, and James chapter 1, verses 13 and 15, and they 141 00:08:51,000 --> 00:08:54,240 actually push this out. Let's look at it together. 142 00:08:54,840 --> 00:08:57,800 Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever 143 00:08:57,800 --> 00:09:01,960 you face trials of many kinds because you know that the 144 00:09:01,960 --> 00:09:06,120 testing of your faith produces perseverance. 145 00:09:07,840 --> 00:09:12,920 Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and 146 00:09:12,920 --> 00:09:19,880 complete, not lacking anything. That is what testing does. 147 00:09:20,560 --> 00:09:24,080 This is what tempting does. When tempted. 148 00:09:24,840 --> 00:09:29,720 No one should say God is tempting me, for God cannot be 149 00:09:29,720 --> 00:09:33,840 tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone. 150 00:09:34,960 --> 00:09:38,840 But each person that's you and me is tempted. 151 00:09:38,920 --> 00:09:43,960 How when they are dragged away by their own evil desires and 152 00:09:43,960 --> 00:09:51,800 enticed, then after desire has conceived it gives birth to sin, 153 00:09:52,120 --> 00:09:57,360 and sin when it is full grown gives birth to death. 154 00:09:58,960 --> 00:10:06,040 Testing leads to growth. Temptation leads to death. 155 00:10:07,480 --> 00:10:13,760 Testing is from God, temptation is from Satan and from our 156 00:10:13,760 --> 00:10:18,400 flesh. So what is this test for 157 00:10:18,400 --> 00:10:22,200 Abraham? What do you think it's going to 158 00:10:22,200 --> 00:10:24,880 be? Let me help prepare you. 159 00:10:25,680 --> 00:10:29,800 I want you for just a second to think what is the thing that you 160 00:10:29,800 --> 00:10:40,000 love the most, desire the most, cherish the most? 161 00:10:40,640 --> 00:10:46,400 The thing the person that matters to you the most in the 162 00:10:46,440 --> 00:10:50,360 whole world. This is not a time for you to 163 00:10:50,360 --> 00:10:53,360 fake it and come up with some weak, silly Sunday school 164 00:10:53,360 --> 00:10:55,760 answer. Be honest with yourself. 165 00:10:56,280 --> 00:11:00,480 What is this thing? Because if you are honest about 166 00:11:00,480 --> 00:11:05,000 what this thing is, this sermon will be an incredible blessing. 167 00:11:06,160 --> 00:11:10,680 If you're not honest about what this thing is in your life, you 168 00:11:10,680 --> 00:11:13,920 might miss the power of the moment we're on right now. 169 00:11:15,160 --> 00:11:18,800 Maybe it's your marriage, or maybe it was your marriage and 170 00:11:18,800 --> 00:11:21,720 you're like, Nope, not anymore. It's my kids. 171 00:11:22,840 --> 00:11:27,320 Maybe it's your success. Maybe it's your reputation. 172 00:11:28,960 --> 00:11:34,880 What's your thing? What do you think Abraham and 173 00:11:34,880 --> 00:11:38,440 Sarah would have said if they were asked this question? 174 00:11:41,440 --> 00:11:46,560 I think you know the answer. They would have said Isaac. 175 00:11:48,120 --> 00:11:52,680 And in some ways that's not a bad answer, but it's the wrong 176 00:11:52,680 --> 00:11:56,880 1. You see, for many of us, the 177 00:11:56,880 --> 00:12:00,120 thing that you said is probably a good thing. 178 00:12:01,360 --> 00:12:04,520 The thing that you thought of is probably a good thing. 179 00:12:05,200 --> 00:12:08,520 Your marriage should matter. Your kids should matter. 180 00:12:08,680 --> 00:12:16,320 Your reputation should matter. But if the thing you have is not 181 00:12:16,320 --> 00:12:21,000 in the right place or in the right order, the good thing can 182 00:12:21,000 --> 00:12:30,480 become a bad thing. So God tests Abraham Genesis 183 00:12:30,480 --> 00:12:37,520 chapter 22 verse 2. Then God said take your son, 184 00:12:38,600 --> 00:12:46,760 your only son whom you love. These words are highlighted 185 00:12:46,760 --> 00:12:49,120 differently than all the rest. All impact that in a little bit 186 00:12:50,160 --> 00:12:54,120 whom you love. Isaac, go to the region of 187 00:12:54,120 --> 00:13:01,080 Moriah, sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain. 188 00:13:01,360 --> 00:13:06,440 I will show you. I want you to hold on to those 189 00:13:06,440 --> 00:13:09,160 words because it'll all make sense later on in the message. 190 00:13:09,160 --> 00:13:11,720 They're Easter eggs. Well, yeah, they're Easter eggs 191 00:13:11,720 --> 00:13:14,920 both figuratively and literally. Just hold on to those words. 192 00:13:15,200 --> 00:13:18,200 Now, that being said, some of your going, Clayton, that verse 193 00:13:18,200 --> 00:13:20,800 is a lot to take in. Yeah. 194 00:13:20,960 --> 00:13:25,240 Did did God just tell Abraham to go and sacrifice his son? 195 00:13:25,840 --> 00:13:29,880 Yeah. Did God just tell Abraham to 196 00:13:29,880 --> 00:13:33,760 kill his son? Yeah. 197 00:13:35,040 --> 00:13:37,720 And no. You got to wait till the end of 198 00:13:37,720 --> 00:13:38,880 the sermon. It'll make more sense. 199 00:13:38,960 --> 00:13:40,240 Here's what I mean. Yes. 200 00:13:40,240 --> 00:13:44,800 And the fact that God is checking to see where God stands 201 00:13:46,080 --> 00:13:51,120 in Abraham's life. Am I the thing that you hold on 202 00:13:51,120 --> 00:13:54,560 to the most? Am I the most important thing, 203 00:13:54,800 --> 00:13:56,560 or is it the thing that I've given you? 204 00:13:57,400 --> 00:14:02,240 This is a test. And at the same time, as you'll 205 00:14:02,240 --> 00:14:05,680 see by the end of the story, God was not asking him to kill his 206 00:14:05,680 --> 00:14:10,200 son because as you'll see, God never had any intention of 207 00:14:10,200 --> 00:14:13,120 Abraham to do this, as you'll see when the story unfolds. 208 00:14:13,320 --> 00:14:16,880 In fact, you'll learn something about Abraham in this story that 209 00:14:16,880 --> 00:14:22,880 will hopefully forever shape you and mold you as you grow in your 210 00:14:22,880 --> 00:14:26,760 relationship with Jesus Christ. This is the test. 211 00:14:27,240 --> 00:14:30,560 Do you love me more than your son? 212 00:14:32,160 --> 00:14:38,480 God is asking Abraham the question, Am I first? 213 00:14:43,710 --> 00:14:46,550 It's one thing to say that God's first in your life. 214 00:14:47,470 --> 00:14:52,030 It's an altogether different thing to live like He is first 215 00:14:52,480 --> 00:14:56,440 in your life. God has repeatedly commanded and 216 00:14:56,440 --> 00:15:01,480 called His people to keep Him in the first place in their lives. 217 00:15:02,480 --> 00:15:07,720 And as we said earlier, good things placed in the wrong spot 218 00:15:08,320 --> 00:15:13,160 can become bad things or bad places for them to be. 219 00:15:14,440 --> 00:15:18,040 Is God #1 in your life? Was He the answer to your 220 00:15:18,040 --> 00:15:19,800 question that I asked at the beginning? 221 00:15:20,400 --> 00:15:22,200 Is he number one in your life when it comes to your 222 00:15:22,200 --> 00:15:25,000 priorities? Does he come first in your work 223 00:15:25,000 --> 00:15:29,760 life, your home life, your parenting, your finances? 224 00:15:30,120 --> 00:15:34,200 And if God is not first, the Bible says that we are 225 00:15:34,200 --> 00:15:38,760 committing idolatry. That means that we are 226 00:15:38,760 --> 00:15:43,240 worshipping something or someone other than God. 227 00:15:43,520 --> 00:15:47,040 And when you're not worshipping God, bad things happen. 228 00:15:48,960 --> 00:15:53,880 And so Abraham has just heard a hard thing from God. 229 00:15:54,520 --> 00:16:01,320 And how does he respond? The very next verse, Genesis 22, 230 00:16:01,360 --> 00:16:08,880 verse 3, Early the next morning, Abraham got up and loaded his 231 00:16:08,880 --> 00:16:11,640 donkey. He took with him two of his 232 00:16:11,640 --> 00:16:16,560 servants and his son Isaac. When he had cut enough wood for 233 00:16:16,560 --> 00:16:20,960 the burnt offering, he set out for the place God had told him 234 00:16:21,320 --> 00:16:25,920 about. This is the very next verse. 235 00:16:25,920 --> 00:16:28,520 Can I be honest with you? If we weren't reading about 236 00:16:28,520 --> 00:16:31,880 Abraham and we were worried about Clayton, there'd be a lot 237 00:16:31,880 --> 00:16:34,240 of verses between when God said for me to do something and me 238 00:16:34,240 --> 00:16:38,600 getting around to doing it. Chapters books like who, how, 239 00:16:38,600 --> 00:16:41,920 when is he ever going to do the thing that God asked him to do? 240 00:16:43,280 --> 00:16:45,680 But look at all the activity in Abraham's life. 241 00:16:45,680 --> 00:16:49,680 The very next verse, he got up early the next day, loaded the 242 00:16:49,680 --> 00:16:53,240 donkey, cut the wood, took the servants and set out for the 243 00:16:53,240 --> 00:16:57,560 place that God directed. One of the ways that you can 244 00:16:57,560 --> 00:17:03,560 measure your spiritual maturity is how long does it take you 245 00:17:04,200 --> 00:17:06,440 from God saying it to you doing it? 246 00:17:10,040 --> 00:17:12,839 Because what that is an indicator of is your faith. 247 00:17:14,319 --> 00:17:19,839 You see, the currency of the Kingdom of God is faith, and 248 00:17:19,839 --> 00:17:27,440 faith is what happens when what you believe in your mind makes 249 00:17:27,440 --> 00:17:32,000 it into your heart and manifests in your feet. 250 00:17:33,920 --> 00:17:40,120 And a lot of Christians, quotation marks never get around 251 00:17:40,120 --> 00:17:44,920 to their feet. And a faith that does not move 252 00:17:44,920 --> 00:17:50,600 you does not save you. That's why when we do our 253 00:17:50,600 --> 00:17:55,000 Discovery Bible studies as a church, we end with something to 254 00:17:55,000 --> 00:17:59,840 do. Jesus is the one who says that 255 00:17:59,840 --> 00:18:02,640 we are to not simply be hearers of the Word. 256 00:18:02,800 --> 00:18:08,720 Hearers of the word is good, but we are to be doers of the Word. 257 00:18:10,040 --> 00:18:13,280 What kind of comfort is it to your wife for you to go? 258 00:18:13,280 --> 00:18:16,360 You know, listen, adultery is bad. 259 00:18:18,040 --> 00:18:21,920 It is not ideal. I'm going to keep doing it. 260 00:18:25,000 --> 00:18:31,160 Well, baby, that's does. I don't think you know what it's 261 00:18:31,160 --> 00:18:35,600 not a good thing means. What good is it to your boss for 262 00:18:35,600 --> 00:18:37,560 you to look at him and go? Listen, I need you to be honest. 263 00:18:38,000 --> 00:18:40,120 I need you to know that me stealing is bad. 264 00:18:41,560 --> 00:18:44,120 I also need you to know I'm going to keep doing it. 265 00:18:45,760 --> 00:18:48,920 You'd go, that's a problem. That's a real problem. 266 00:18:49,720 --> 00:18:52,760 And Jesus looks at us and goes, Hey, you, you want to understand 267 00:18:52,760 --> 00:18:55,760 what faith is. Faith is not just saying that 268 00:18:55,760 --> 00:18:59,480 you trust Jesus. Faith is actually trusting 269 00:19:00,400 --> 00:19:07,320 Jesus. Faith is not finished until it 270 00:19:07,320 --> 00:19:14,560 it's made its way to your feet, until you start doing the things 271 00:19:14,560 --> 00:19:16,160 of God. And can we pause for just a 272 00:19:16,160 --> 00:19:19,800 moment? There are some of you who have 273 00:19:19,800 --> 00:19:23,080 been allowing too many verses about your life to be written 274 00:19:23,320 --> 00:19:25,960 between when God said it and you started doing it. 275 00:19:27,680 --> 00:19:30,280 There's some of you who know that for a while now God has 276 00:19:30,280 --> 00:19:34,440 been calling you to make a decision for him, but you 277 00:19:34,440 --> 00:19:41,920 haven't made it. My hope is that today you will 278 00:19:41,920 --> 00:19:44,200 make the move that is long overdue. 279 00:19:45,400 --> 00:19:47,120 Let's keep reading verses 4 through 5. 280 00:19:48,800 --> 00:19:53,920 On the third day, Abraham looked up and saw the place in the 281 00:19:53,920 --> 00:19:56,200 distance. He said to his servants, Stay 282 00:19:56,200 --> 00:19:59,920 here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. 283 00:20:01,200 --> 00:20:08,560 We will worship and we will come back to you. 284 00:20:10,280 --> 00:20:14,040 Right here we get a little bit of an insight, a snapshot into 285 00:20:14,040 --> 00:20:18,560 the faith of Abraham. He believes something about God. 286 00:20:20,200 --> 00:20:27,080 We are going to worship. I am going to be obedient to the 287 00:20:27,080 --> 00:20:34,280 thing that God has called me to do, and we will come back to 288 00:20:34,280 --> 00:20:36,760 you. For those of you who are nerds, 289 00:20:37,520 --> 00:20:40,520 this is the first time worship actually shows up in all of 290 00:20:40,520 --> 00:20:45,720 Scripture. A man going up a mountain to 291 00:20:45,720 --> 00:20:48,360 sacrifice his son to be obedient to God. 292 00:20:49,840 --> 00:20:53,440 And Abraham as he is going up this mountain says we will 293 00:20:53,440 --> 00:20:59,480 worship and we will come back. And you and I know, but you're 294 00:20:59,480 --> 00:21:03,360 going to do the sacrifice thing. Hold that for just a moment in 295 00:21:03,360 --> 00:21:06,200 your spirit while we keep reading verses 6 through 8. 296 00:21:08,160 --> 00:21:13,400 Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and he placed it 297 00:21:13,400 --> 00:21:20,840 on his son Isaac and Abraham himself carried the fire and the 298 00:21:20,840 --> 00:21:23,040 knife. As the two of them went on 299 00:21:23,200 --> 00:21:28,160 together, Isaac spoke up, said to his father Abraham. 300 00:21:28,160 --> 00:21:31,480 Father yes, son, Abraham replied. 301 00:21:32,920 --> 00:21:35,400 The fire and the wood are here, Isaac said. 302 00:21:36,200 --> 00:21:39,320 But where is the lamb for the burnt offering? 303 00:21:41,320 --> 00:21:46,160 Abraham answered. God himself will provide, Turn 304 00:21:46,160 --> 00:21:50,280 to your neighbors, say provide the lamb for the burnt offering. 305 00:21:50,280 --> 00:21:53,840 My son and the two of them went on together. 306 00:21:55,320 --> 00:21:58,800 Isaac is no small boy. He is probably between the age 307 00:21:58,840 --> 00:22:05,320 of 15 and 25. His father is between 115 and 308 00:22:05,360 --> 00:22:09,480 125. And Isaac isn't doing algebra, 309 00:22:09,480 --> 00:22:14,320 but he can do math. He's going up the mountain. 310 00:22:14,600 --> 00:22:18,160 He's like the woods on my back. You have the fire, you have the 311 00:22:18,160 --> 00:22:20,440 knife. But we are missing an important 312 00:22:20,440 --> 00:22:24,720 part. We are missing a sacrifice, and 313 00:22:24,720 --> 00:22:26,920 some of you who are Bible nerds and I, you're going to love this 314 00:22:26,920 --> 00:22:30,520 sermon. If you're a Bible nerd, you're 315 00:22:30,520 --> 00:22:35,320 already ahead of me. The sacrifice is the one 316 00:22:35,320 --> 00:22:40,360 carrying the wood up the hill. Genesis 22, verse 9. 317 00:22:41,280 --> 00:22:43,680 When they reached the place God had told him about, Abraham 318 00:22:43,680 --> 00:22:46,400 built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. 319 00:22:46,920 --> 00:22:52,640 He bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar on top of the 320 00:22:52,640 --> 00:22:55,480 wood. Pay close attention here. 321 00:22:56,160 --> 00:22:58,600 Isaac is strong enough to carry the wood. 322 00:22:59,480 --> 00:23:03,200 His father is not strong enough to overpower him. 323 00:23:03,440 --> 00:23:08,800 So Isaac allows himself to be tied so he will not resist his 324 00:23:08,800 --> 00:23:13,440 father's will. He is trusting his father in the 325 00:23:13,440 --> 00:23:21,680 highest way possible. Verse 10 through 12 Then Abraham 326 00:23:21,680 --> 00:23:25,240 reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. 327 00:23:25,560 --> 00:23:28,720 But the Angel of the Lord called out to him from heaven. 328 00:23:28,960 --> 00:23:34,360 Abraham, Abraham, here I am, Abraham replied. 329 00:23:35,720 --> 00:23:39,760 Do not lay a hand on the boy, the Angel said. 330 00:23:40,120 --> 00:23:45,800 Do not do anything to him now. I know that you fear God because 331 00:23:45,800 --> 00:23:49,680 you have not withheld your son from or withheld from me, your 332 00:23:49,680 --> 00:23:56,400 son, your only son. Remember when I said that God 333 00:23:56,400 --> 00:24:02,920 had no plans for Isaac to die? He was testing Abraham to see if 334 00:24:02,960 --> 00:24:09,960 Abraham had faith and Abraham passed the test. 335 00:24:11,120 --> 00:24:16,040 Abraham was willing to let go of everything so he could 336 00:24:16,040 --> 00:24:21,960 completely take hold of God. And you might be asking how did 337 00:24:21,960 --> 00:24:26,840 Abraham do this? I'll tell you because Abraham 338 00:24:27,120 --> 00:24:30,880 had faith. If you go all the way to the New 339 00:24:30,880 --> 00:24:34,480 Testament, to the book of Hebrews, it gives us insight 340 00:24:34,520 --> 00:24:39,000 into Abraham's faith. Hebrews Chapter 11, verses 17 341 00:24:39,040 --> 00:24:44,720 through 19. By faith, Abraham, when God 342 00:24:44,720 --> 00:24:48,560 tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. 343 00:24:48,960 --> 00:24:53,800 He who had embraced the promises was about to sacrifice his one 344 00:24:53,800 --> 00:24:59,080 and only son, even though God had said to him, It is through 345 00:24:59,080 --> 00:25:01,800 Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned. 346 00:25:03,720 --> 00:25:10,440 Abraham reasoned that God could even raise the dead. 347 00:25:11,680 --> 00:25:17,040 And so in a manner of speaking, he did receive Isaac back from 348 00:25:17,040 --> 00:25:22,320 death. Abraham reasoned in his mind, 349 00:25:23,160 --> 00:25:28,200 and it made its way to his feet. Abraham was willing to sacrifice 350 00:25:28,200 --> 00:25:30,120 his son. You ready for this? 351 00:25:31,000 --> 00:25:34,320 Because he believed that God could raise him back. 352 00:25:35,400 --> 00:25:38,240 Why did Abraham believe that God could raise him back? 353 00:25:38,640 --> 00:25:45,200 Because he had seen a barren womb that was dead come alive 354 00:25:45,200 --> 00:25:51,480 again with his son. Why was he able to do this? 355 00:25:51,600 --> 00:25:54,760 Hear me? Because faith is a muscle. 356 00:25:55,560 --> 00:25:59,080 The more you use it, the stronger it becomes. 357 00:25:59,440 --> 00:26:03,160 And what you will notice is that if you can trust God anywhere, 358 00:26:04,040 --> 00:26:10,320 you can trust him everywhere. That's what happens with 359 00:26:10,320 --> 00:26:13,880 Abraham. He realized that God could do on 360 00:26:13,880 --> 00:26:18,760 a mighty amazing work in a dead, barren womb, and then it would 361 00:26:18,760 --> 00:26:22,960 become alive again with a child. So he reasoned that even if he 362 00:26:22,960 --> 00:26:26,840 were to sacrifice his son to that same God, that that same 363 00:26:26,840 --> 00:26:30,280 God could bring his dead son back to life. 364 00:26:30,880 --> 00:26:32,560 And some of you, that's where you're at today. 365 00:26:32,560 --> 00:26:38,120 You need to connect some dots. You've seen God move in a way, 366 00:26:39,040 --> 00:26:43,240 maybe it was in your life or the life of of a friend or somebody 367 00:26:43,240 --> 00:26:47,000 close to you and you've seen God move there. 368 00:26:47,000 --> 00:26:49,600 And what you need to realize, if you can trust God in that 369 00:26:49,600 --> 00:26:52,960 situation, you can trust him in every situation. 370 00:26:53,640 --> 00:26:55,480 Now this is where the story gets really, really good. 371 00:26:56,840 --> 00:27:04,000 Verses 13 through 14 when Abraham looked up there in a 372 00:27:04,000 --> 00:27:08,080 thicket, he saw a ram caught by its horns. 373 00:27:09,000 --> 00:27:13,600 He went over, took the ram, and sacrificed it as a burnt 374 00:27:13,600 --> 00:27:20,080 offering instead of his son. So Abraham called that place. 375 00:27:20,440 --> 00:27:28,640 The Lord will provide and to this day it is said on the 376 00:27:28,640 --> 00:27:31,800 mountain of the Lord, it will be provided. 377 00:27:33,400 --> 00:27:41,040 The mountain is Mount Moriah and there on Mount Moriah the Lord 378 00:27:41,040 --> 00:27:45,720 will be will provide. And here we get another name, a 379 00:27:45,720 --> 00:27:52,840 title for God, Jehovah Jireh. What it means is not just that 380 00:27:52,840 --> 00:27:56,480 the Lord will provide, it carries with this, this idea 381 00:27:56,480 --> 00:27:59,640 that God will see to it, turn to your neighbor and say God will 382 00:27:59,640 --> 00:28:05,120 see to it. After church on the weekends, I 383 00:28:05,120 --> 00:28:07,320 asked Jennifer, what are we going to have for our meal? 384 00:28:07,880 --> 00:28:11,040 She's like, I'm on it. That means she's seeing to it. 385 00:28:12,480 --> 00:28:15,200 And that means that I'm probably driving through somewhere. 386 00:28:15,200 --> 00:28:19,440 That's what that actually means. That's I'm going, yeah. 387 00:28:19,440 --> 00:28:23,880 Anyhow, I just want you to see the beauty of your God. 388 00:28:26,000 --> 00:28:31,520 While Abraham was walking up one side of the mountain, God was 389 00:28:31,520 --> 00:28:38,360 walking a ram up the other side. While Isaac was being bound, a 390 00:28:38,360 --> 00:28:40,520 ram was being caught in the thicket. 391 00:28:41,600 --> 00:28:47,080 The Lord, the Lord saw to it that there was a sacrifice. 392 00:28:48,480 --> 00:28:52,200 And today you might be struggling to trust God, and I 393 00:28:52,240 --> 00:28:53,720 just need you to hear me say this. 394 00:28:55,040 --> 00:29:00,160 God will see to it that you have the necessary strength to 395 00:29:00,160 --> 00:29:05,840 survive the struggle. Today you might be wondering, is 396 00:29:05,840 --> 00:29:08,440 there enough grace to wash away your sins? 397 00:29:08,920 --> 00:29:12,200 Jehovah Jireh. The Lord will provide. 398 00:29:12,480 --> 00:29:15,560 He will see to it. You might be wondering if there 399 00:29:15,560 --> 00:29:17,560 is enough forgiveness for your past. 400 00:29:17,920 --> 00:29:21,840 Jehovah Jireh, the Lord, will see to it that everything that 401 00:29:21,840 --> 00:29:25,440 you need for your sins to be forgiven will be there for you. 402 00:29:26,080 --> 00:29:30,400 And how do I know this? How do I know this to be true? 403 00:29:32,000 --> 00:29:34,480 OK, got to zoom in or you'll miss this. 404 00:29:35,680 --> 00:29:38,720 If you go to Second Chronicles chapter 3. 405 00:29:38,720 --> 00:29:40,600 Do you remember all those words that I said are highlighted 406 00:29:40,600 --> 00:29:42,160 differently through this entire story? 407 00:29:44,600 --> 00:29:51,680 Then Solomon began to build the temple of the Lord in Jerusalem. 408 00:29:52,480 --> 00:29:54,320 And where did he choose to build it? 409 00:29:54,880 --> 00:30:00,400 On Mount Moriah, where the Lord had appeared to his father 410 00:30:00,600 --> 00:30:03,720 David. And it was on those very 411 00:30:03,720 --> 00:30:12,840 foundation stones in Jerusalem that Jesus walked into that 412 00:30:12,840 --> 00:30:19,280 temple, the temple where the sacrifices were made for the 413 00:30:19,280 --> 00:30:26,080 sins of the people. It was there that the one and 414 00:30:26,080 --> 00:30:34,480 only Son took the wood of the cross on his back, and the 415 00:30:34,480 --> 00:30:46,560 sacrifice carried the wood. And on that day there was no ram 416 00:30:46,560 --> 00:30:55,000 in the thicket, and there was no Angel that stopped the pain of 417 00:30:55,000 --> 00:31:05,320 death, and he died, and he was the sacrifice that our sins 418 00:31:05,560 --> 00:31:10,520 deserved. And on that mountain it is said 419 00:31:10,520 --> 00:31:17,400 of the Lord Jehovah Jireh, the Lord will provide. 420 00:31:18,360 --> 00:31:25,320 And what did he provide? All the grace and mercy that you 421 00:31:25,320 --> 00:31:28,440 and I could ever want. And that is why this series is 422 00:31:28,440 --> 00:31:34,280 called the same name, because it is the same God with the same 423 00:31:34,280 --> 00:31:37,320 power, offering the same promise. 424 00:31:37,600 --> 00:31:42,720 If you will receive it, and I hope you will, we're moving to a 425 00:31:42,720 --> 00:31:50,440 time of decision. To those of you here today or 426 00:31:50,440 --> 00:31:53,080 watching online that don't know Jesus, I need you to hear me say 427 00:31:53,080 --> 00:31:55,520 this. God has provided a way for you 428 00:31:55,520 --> 00:32:01,680 today. He has seen to it the doors are 429 00:32:01,680 --> 00:32:05,120 open, the difference makers are in place, the water is warm, the 430 00:32:05,120 --> 00:32:08,240 towels are folded, the clothes you need to change into are 431 00:32:08,240 --> 00:32:12,640 labeled according to size, and the invitation is being made. 432 00:32:13,800 --> 00:32:21,240 He has seen to it that there is no barrier, there is no excuse 433 00:32:21,840 --> 00:32:27,400 for you to get right with him today and God is ready to 434 00:32:27,400 --> 00:32:32,720 provide you with the forgiveness of your sins, the power of his 435 00:32:32,720 --> 00:32:38,160 Holy Spirit, new life in him if you will receive it. 436 00:32:40,160 --> 00:32:41,520 One of my all time favorite verses. 437 00:32:41,520 --> 00:32:45,040 I have to be careful how often I use it because I mean, if I was 438 00:32:45,040 --> 00:32:47,160 going to get a chest tap, this is it. 439 00:32:47,560 --> 00:32:51,040 It would be it would be it would be hard to read because of how 440 00:32:51,040 --> 00:32:55,800 God formed me, but it would be there if and if you and if 441 00:32:55,800 --> 00:32:59,000 you're relatively new here you you, this is for you. 442 00:32:59,640 --> 00:33:03,880 Romans 5/8. It is a Mount Rushmore verse. 443 00:33:05,440 --> 00:33:07,720 This is what it says. But God demonstrates his own 444 00:33:07,720 --> 00:33:11,200 love for us in this that while we were still sinners, Christ 445 00:33:11,200 --> 00:33:18,960 died for us. To put that in this story, while 446 00:33:18,960 --> 00:33:26,440 your sin was walking up the mountain, so was his love. 447 00:33:32,560 --> 00:33:37,120 That's how good he is. And listen, my wife loves me, my 448 00:33:37,120 --> 00:33:39,920 kid loves. My kids love me, my friends love 449 00:33:39,920 --> 00:33:42,280 me. Most of you love me. 450 00:33:44,440 --> 00:33:47,440 But I have never experienced love like that. 451 00:33:51,120 --> 00:33:56,560 Most of you love me because because I'm kind of nice, 452 00:33:56,760 --> 00:33:59,640 because I'm kind of funny, because the sermon was kind of 453 00:33:59,640 --> 00:34:01,480 good. It wasn't too long. 454 00:34:01,640 --> 00:34:03,840 There's an awful lot of because's. 455 00:34:05,520 --> 00:34:14,000 He is the only one who knows me at my worst and chose to be at 456 00:34:14,000 --> 00:34:20,040 his best on my behalf. While my sin was walking up the 457 00:34:20,040 --> 00:34:23,639 mountain, Jehovah Jireh was carrying the cross. 458 00:34:24,120 --> 00:34:26,920 When I was at my worst, he was at my best. 459 00:34:27,199 --> 00:34:32,840 And it is bananas to me that people could hear that week 460 00:34:32,840 --> 00:34:38,840 after week at this church and walk out rejecting it. 461 00:34:40,920 --> 00:34:46,480 But I will die proclaiming it. And if you get tired of hearing 462 00:34:46,480 --> 00:34:51,400 it, you are getting tired of the gospel, because that should 463 00:34:51,400 --> 00:34:55,600 shape everything about you. And so if you are here today and 464 00:34:55,600 --> 00:34:59,240 you have never said yes to Jesus, don't wait till next 465 00:34:59,240 --> 00:35:01,880 week. Today's a good day to get saved. 466 00:35:02,160 --> 00:35:06,000 To the rest of you in here who have yet or who already have an 467 00:35:06,000 --> 00:35:08,800 intimate personal relationship with Jesus, let me just put 468 00:35:08,800 --> 00:35:10,800 three things in front of you for you to consider. 469 00:35:12,360 --> 00:35:15,080 Is there a good thing in your life that's in a bad place? 470 00:35:19,160 --> 00:35:24,120 Jehovah Gyra will provide you with the strength to reorder 471 00:35:24,120 --> 00:35:27,480 your life. If there's a good thing in the 472 00:35:27,480 --> 00:35:30,640 wrong place that needs to be moved so that God can be where 473 00:35:30,640 --> 00:35:34,320 he was supposed to be, where he used to be in your life. 474 00:35:34,840 --> 00:35:37,520 Today's a good day and the Lord will see to it. 475 00:35:37,520 --> 00:35:41,520 He will answer that prayer. Maybe today you're a person who 476 00:35:41,520 --> 00:35:44,840 there are too many verses being written between when God says it 477 00:35:44,840 --> 00:35:48,640 and you get around to doing it. In fact, every single week at 478 00:35:48,640 --> 00:35:51,480 this time, in every single service, you feel the exact same 479 00:35:51,480 --> 00:35:55,080 tug to do the exact same thing. And you wonder why God doesn't 480 00:35:55,080 --> 00:35:58,600 say anything different, why you keep feeling the same prompting, 481 00:35:58,760 --> 00:36:00,640 why you keep having the same burden. 482 00:36:00,640 --> 00:36:04,880 I'll tell you because God is not a woman who doesn't know what 483 00:36:04,880 --> 00:36:08,800 she wants for dinner. God is very clear about what He 484 00:36:08,800 --> 00:36:14,040 wants in your life, and so He is not going to change His mind. 485 00:36:14,720 --> 00:36:18,040 He's not going to adjust what He has proclaimed over you. 486 00:36:18,600 --> 00:36:23,680 And so He has said it and He will keep saying it and He will 487 00:36:23,680 --> 00:36:28,160 keep revealing it and He will keep prompting it because He 488 00:36:28,160 --> 00:36:34,600 knows it is for your good. How many verses, how many 489 00:36:34,600 --> 00:36:39,280 chapters between when He says it and you get around to doing it? 490 00:36:39,280 --> 00:36:46,840 And what I want to tell you is you might be scared about doing 491 00:36:46,960 --> 00:36:55,400 that thing, but the Lord Jehovah Jireh will provide you with 492 00:36:55,400 --> 00:36:59,080 everything you need to accomplish the thing He has 493 00:36:59,080 --> 00:37:01,880 called you to accomplish. Would you stand with me? 494 00:37:02,600 --> 00:37:09,480 Heavenly Father, You are abundantly good, and our hearts 495 00:37:09,480 --> 00:37:17,600 cannot fully contain. How wonderful you have been on 496 00:37:17,600 --> 00:37:23,680 our behalf. And so, Heavenly Father, would 497 00:37:23,680 --> 00:37:31,720 you use this moment to strengthen us, to shape us, to 498 00:37:31,720 --> 00:37:33,160 change us. In your name, I pray. 499 00:37:33,560 --> 00:37:33,920 Amen.