WEBVTT - Win Before You Begin (Pastor Rich Wilkerson Jr.) 0:00:01.520 --> 0:00:02.800 Hey, this is Stephen Ferdick. 0:00:02.840 --> 0:00:05.840 I'm the pastor of Elevation Church and this is our podcast. 0:00:05.920 --> 0:00:07.760 I wanted to thank you for joining us today. 0:00:08.080 --> 0:00:10.680 Hope this inspires you. Hope it builds your faith. 0:00:10.760 --> 0:00:12.840 Hope it gives your perspective to see God is moving 0:00:12.920 --> 0:00:13.480 in your life. 0:00:13.840 --> 0:00:19.479 Enjoy the message. How good it is to be in 0:00:19.520 --> 0:00:22.160 God's house today? Anybody thankful to be in the Lord's 0:00:22.200 --> 0:00:26.160 House on this Sunday morning, Clap your hands. I want 0:00:26.160 --> 0:00:29.920 to welcome you to church right here. I'm at the 0:00:29.960 --> 0:00:32.519 Balantine campus, but all of our friends on the e 0:00:32.600 --> 0:00:34.599 Fam and really all over the world, all of our 0:00:34.600 --> 0:00:37.200 locations were so grateful that you're tuning in. And I'm 0:00:37.280 --> 0:00:40.280 just thinking about the Psalmist as he says, Oh, I 0:00:40.320 --> 0:00:45.320 want to magnify the Lord. Let us exalt his holy name. 0:00:46.240 --> 0:00:48.839 How many of you know that whatever you magnify in 0:00:48.920 --> 0:00:52.120 your life gets bigger. There's something about as we begin 0:00:52.200 --> 0:00:54.680 to worship God, we start making the name of God 0:00:54.760 --> 0:00:58.160 bigger and bigger. In our situation. You might have some problems, 0:00:58.160 --> 0:01:00.000 but come on, your God is bigger than every problem 0:01:00.120 --> 0:01:04.680 you have. Come on and give him praise. And today 0:01:04.760 --> 0:01:07.399 I think it's powerful that you're in church. To the 0:01:07.400 --> 0:01:10.039 Psalmi stays, let us, let us exalt his holy name. 0:01:10.319 --> 0:01:13.880 You know that faith is not just individual. Faith is communal. 0:01:14.400 --> 0:01:16.600 That we need each other. And today, as we've gathered 0:01:16.640 --> 0:01:19.480 in God's house, I believe he's right here with us, 0:01:19.520 --> 0:01:22.320 and he's gonna minister, He's gonna speak to us. Can 0:01:22.319 --> 0:01:24.560 we thank God for just the best worship team ever? 0:01:25.040 --> 0:01:28.040 Shout out to Leland in the house, My friend Leland. 0:01:32.480 --> 0:01:36.360 Leland sings like he's in heaven. I don't know some 0:01:36.440 --> 0:01:39.040 of those notes that he is, but I'm like, dear Jesus, 0:01:39.080 --> 0:01:43.080 Dear Jesus, my name is Rich. If we've never met before, 0:01:43.560 --> 0:01:45.880 I hail from Miami, Florida. I lead a church called 0:01:45.959 --> 0:01:48.960 Voo Church. And what an honor. Thank you so much, 0:01:49.040 --> 0:01:53.320 What an honor it is to be with you today. 0:01:53.360 --> 0:01:54.880 And if you've got a Bible, quickly turned to the 0:01:54.880 --> 0:01:57.480 book of Deuteronomy. We're gonna read God's word from a 0:01:57.520 --> 0:02:00.960 standing position this morning. Deuteronomy chapter twenty. I want to 0:02:00.960 --> 0:02:02.360 give you one verse and then we're going to look 0:02:02.400 --> 0:02:05.320 at about eight verses today. And as you're turning there, 0:02:05.880 --> 0:02:07.720 it is always such a great privilege and such a 0:02:07.720 --> 0:02:11.760 great honor to stand behind this pulpit. I thank God 0:02:11.800 --> 0:02:14.080 for this house, and I thank God for the ministry, 0:02:14.280 --> 0:02:17.079 the life and the leadership of Pastor Stephen and Holly Ferdick. 0:02:17.560 --> 0:02:21.040 It is Pastor Appreciation Month, and your pastor is not 0:02:21.080 --> 0:02:23.400 just your pastor, but really he pastors so many people 0:02:23.440 --> 0:02:25.280 all around the world. Can we thank God for his 0:02:25.400 --> 0:02:27.600 life and can we thank God for his ministry? Can 0:02:27.639 --> 0:02:31.680 we clap our hands and make some noise today? It's 0:02:31.720 --> 0:02:34.480 always funny preaching at elevation because there's very few pulpits 0:02:34.520 --> 0:02:35.720 in the world that when you walk up to it, 0:02:35.760 --> 0:02:39.680 there's almost like a gasp, like, Oh, someone drove in 0:02:39.720 --> 0:02:42.720 today from Omaha and they were hoping to hear Pastor 0:02:42.720 --> 0:02:46.480 Steven and you got rich. I'm sorry, I'm sorry, but 0:02:46.520 --> 0:02:48.520 I do believe that God's going to minister to us. 0:02:48.560 --> 0:02:50.960 And I was thinking about your pastor walking in because 0:02:51.760 --> 0:02:54.840 for me, as as I come here year after year, 0:02:55.800 --> 0:02:58.800 I get excited to share the word, but equally I 0:02:58.840 --> 0:03:01.160 get excited to take a month just to put honor 0:03:01.200 --> 0:03:04.280 where honor is due. I remember some years ago when 0:03:04.280 --> 0:03:07.800 the Miami Heat when they were good pray for him. 0:03:08.040 --> 0:03:10.440 They were in the Eastern conference finals, and my dad 0:03:10.880 --> 0:03:14.560 he scored some tickets, and my dad's balling on a budget, 0:03:14.560 --> 0:03:17.480 and so he got us nosebleed tickets. In fact, we 0:03:17.480 --> 0:03:19.560 weren't just we weren't sitting up high. In fact, the 0:03:19.560 --> 0:03:21.760 seats he had to stand up in the arena. Okay, 0:03:22.280 --> 0:03:23.600 but we were just happy to be in the room. 0:03:24.040 --> 0:03:26.040 But I remember watching the game from a distance. It 0:03:26.080 --> 0:03:29.720 was almost like watching the game on delay. You're so 0:03:29.800 --> 0:03:31.160 far away from the court. There was a couple of 0:03:31.200 --> 0:03:33.320 times I was like, I bet I could hang with 0:03:33.360 --> 0:03:37.960 these guys. That's from a distance. Since that time, I've 0:03:37.960 --> 0:03:41.280 had a couple opportunities to sit on the court. And 0:03:41.320 --> 0:03:43.000 how ma y'all know, sitting on the court, sitting on 0:03:43.000 --> 0:03:46.000 the wood is a totally different game. You can see 0:03:46.040 --> 0:03:48.400 guys sweat drop, you can hear what they're saying. One time, 0:03:48.400 --> 0:03:50.800 I was like, foul and the guy looked at me. 0:03:50.840 --> 0:03:52.960 I just sat down, never spoke again. Okay, I was like, 0:03:55.440 --> 0:03:59.360 here's what I want to hear. Same game, different perspective. 0:04:01.520 --> 0:04:05.320 Proximity brings perspective. And let me just say, as a 0:04:05.320 --> 0:04:09.120 friend of this house, I've been up close and personal 0:04:09.160 --> 0:04:12.320 with your pastor. He is a man of faith. He's 0:04:12.320 --> 0:04:16.000 a man of integrity, he is a man of courage, 0:04:16.240 --> 0:04:18.919 and I'm so grateful for what God has done in 0:04:18.960 --> 0:04:21.680 his life for me. He's one of my heroes. He's 0:04:21.680 --> 0:04:23.680 someone that I look up to and I just always 0:04:23.720 --> 0:04:25.800 want to say to Elevation Church, you better take care 0:04:25.839 --> 0:04:29.120 of that man. Pray for him, stand with him. We 0:04:29.200 --> 0:04:31.080 love your pastor, Steve, and a pastor all like. Come on, 0:04:31.240 --> 0:04:33.360 he makes the noise if we're grateful. It's a life 0:04:33.360 --> 0:04:36.720 for the leadership a pastor Stephen Hollyford. We love you, guys. 0:04:37.440 --> 0:04:39.520 We got your back today. Let me give you one 0:04:39.640 --> 0:04:41.520 verse today and I'm gonna preach it like I feel it, 0:04:41.560 --> 0:04:45.880 and I feel it today. Deuteronomy chapter twenty, verse one. 0:04:46.080 --> 0:04:50.080 It says this, when you go to war against your 0:04:50.200 --> 0:04:54.640 enemies and see horses and chariots and an army greater 0:04:54.760 --> 0:05:00.200 than yours, do not be afraid of them because the 0:05:00.240 --> 0:05:04.839 Lord your God. Oh I like this, because the Lord 0:05:04.960 --> 0:05:09.680 your God, who brought you up out of Egypt, will 0:05:09.800 --> 0:05:15.000 be with you. Yeah, you should just clap your hands. 0:05:15.080 --> 0:05:23.640 Is that good? Is that good? I want to speak 0:05:23.680 --> 0:05:27.040 for a few moments. Say from this subject, When before 0:05:27.120 --> 0:05:33.320 you begin, when before you begin, would you pray to 0:05:33.320 --> 0:05:35.480 the Lord, thank you for your word. God. We believe 0:05:35.480 --> 0:05:38.440 it's sharper than any double edged sword. Speak to us now, Lord, 0:05:38.560 --> 0:05:40.960 as we read it, we invite it to read us. 0:05:42.279 --> 0:05:45.560 Maybe we leave here different from how we came. Speak 0:05:45.600 --> 0:05:47.960 to us. We love you, we praise you. And all 0:05:48.000 --> 0:05:51.560 of God's people said, all of God's people said, if 0:05:51.560 --> 0:05:53.640 you love Jesus, make a little bit of noise today, 0:05:56.000 --> 0:05:57.800 all right, high five a couple of people and say 0:05:57.800 --> 0:06:00.800 you're gonna win. Say you're gonna win. In the chat, 0:06:00.839 --> 0:06:05.720 say you're gonna win. You're gonna win, You're gonna win, 0:06:07.720 --> 0:06:15.680 win before you begin. I love the fact that all 0:06:15.720 --> 0:06:18.560 throughout the scripture God invites us and tells us that 0:06:18.600 --> 0:06:22.520 we're going to win. But notice he never says that 0:06:22.560 --> 0:06:26.360 we won't have to fight. In fact, the longer I 0:06:26.520 --> 0:06:29.279 walk with Jesus, the more and more I recognize that 0:06:29.600 --> 0:06:32.799 the Christian life is not a dance. It's a battle. 0:06:34.240 --> 0:06:36.760 And the first battle that we must always fight is 0:06:36.800 --> 0:06:40.240 not an external one. It's always an internal one. It's 0:06:40.279 --> 0:06:43.960 always the battle in your mind that you have to fight, 0:06:44.360 --> 0:06:48.599 the war on the inside. I think many times we 0:06:48.640 --> 0:06:50.360 go I want to change my life. Listen, you don't 0:06:50.440 --> 0:06:53.160 change your life by changing your life. You change your 0:06:53.160 --> 0:06:56.520 life by changing your mind. How many out there you 0:06:56.520 --> 0:06:58.280 could just use some more peace? Anyone? Just you could 0:06:58.360 --> 0:07:00.360 use a little more peace in twenty eight Not me, pastor, 0:07:00.400 --> 0:07:03.240 I'm good, you know. I think most people I talked 0:07:03.279 --> 0:07:06.359 to could use more peace in twenty twenty five. It 0:07:06.400 --> 0:07:08.440 seems like everyone I talked to is dealing with this 0:07:08.640 --> 0:07:11.920 mild grade of anxiety, this this little level of just 0:07:11.960 --> 0:07:14.120 a restless soul. And in fact, you can just see 0:07:14.120 --> 0:07:15.360 it as you talk to people like you ever asked 0:07:15.440 --> 0:07:19.640 one how you doing? How you doing busy? Oh, moms 0:07:19.680 --> 0:07:22.320 are busy, you know, dads are busy. Everyone talk to you, 0:07:22.400 --> 0:07:25.320 how you doing busy? I talk to a student in 0:07:25.360 --> 0:07:27.240 our youth industry today, sixteen years of age, just how 0:07:27.280 --> 0:07:30.480 you doing? Brothers busy? I was like, Bro, you're sixteen. 0:07:30.520 --> 0:07:33.760 You ain't got no job, you ain't got no wife, 0:07:33.800 --> 0:07:35.440 you ain't got no kids. You aren't busy, you know. 0:07:36.920 --> 0:07:39.680 But I think he speaks to a culture that's moving 0:07:39.920 --> 0:07:43.760 so fast that what comes up and spills out of 0:07:43.800 --> 0:07:46.840 his life is a restlessness of going. I could use 0:07:46.880 --> 0:07:50.600 some more peace. Anybody thankful for a God that says 0:07:50.640 --> 0:07:53.280 you can be warring on the outside, but you can 0:07:53.320 --> 0:07:57.440 still have peace that passes all understanding on the inside. 0:07:58.080 --> 0:08:02.280 My Bible says that his peace tra sends understanding. Let 0:08:02.280 --> 0:08:04.040 me make that modern day. You might be in a 0:08:04.080 --> 0:08:06.840 battle today that doesn't make any sense. You might be 0:08:06.960 --> 0:08:10.200 up against a challenge today that is illogical. But praise 0:08:10.280 --> 0:08:13.240 God for Jesus, we can be right there in the 0:08:13.240 --> 0:08:15.920 midst of something that is illogical, but right smack in 0:08:15.960 --> 0:08:18.560 the middle, he can give you a piece that doesn't 0:08:18.560 --> 0:08:20.520 make any sense. I need you to clap your hands, 0:08:20.760 --> 0:08:25.840 stir your faith a little bit today. God wants you 0:08:25.920 --> 0:08:28.000 to win on the inside before you ever see a 0:08:28.040 --> 0:08:32.560 win on the outside. Deuteronomy chapter twenty is powerful because 0:08:32.600 --> 0:08:34.520 if you knowing about the Book of Deuteronomy, it is 0:08:34.520 --> 0:08:37.800 the book of instruction that God is giving his law, 0:08:37.840 --> 0:08:41.240 He's given his commands. And here in Deuteronomy twenty, what 0:08:41.320 --> 0:08:45.640 we're discovering is that Moses is giving a battle briefing 0:08:45.920 --> 0:08:49.120 before they go into war, which I like that it's 0:08:49.160 --> 0:08:53.319 like before they actually step into a fight, he's giving 0:08:53.360 --> 0:08:58.000 them instruction. He's teaching them how to win before they begin. 0:08:58.720 --> 0:09:02.480 And what's really interesting, as he begins to teach long 0:09:02.600 --> 0:09:06.760 before he actually puts weapons in their hands. He's wanting 0:09:06.800 --> 0:09:10.640 them to win the war in their head before he 0:09:10.679 --> 0:09:13.080 puts weapons in their hands. He wants to be with 0:09:13.120 --> 0:09:17.880 the worry in their heart. I think as we teach 0:09:18.000 --> 0:09:19.920 in this day and age, I think we all need 0:09:19.960 --> 0:09:23.800 a framework from wherever we're operating from that we're not 0:09:24.000 --> 0:09:30.280 fighting for victory. We're fighting from victory. And the only 0:09:30.320 --> 0:09:32.840 way you're gonna fight from victory is when you actually 0:09:32.880 --> 0:09:38.559 believe that God is for you. I know that kind 0:09:38.559 --> 0:09:41.760 of sounds maybe cliche to some people, but many people 0:09:41.880 --> 0:09:46.760 don't live with that revelation God is for you. Recently, 0:09:46.800 --> 0:09:48.640 I had a little battle briefing of my own in 0:09:48.679 --> 0:09:52.959 my house, not with soldiers, but with my children. I've 0:09:53.000 --> 0:10:00.360 got four kids, Wyat, Wild, Whalen, and Wolfgang. His name 0:10:00.400 --> 0:10:03.640 is Wilkerson. That those were preacher's kids. Right there, everything's 0:10:03.679 --> 0:10:06.480 got a rhyme or being alliteration, and I had to 0:10:06.520 --> 0:10:09.280 grab the three bigs. I had to do a briefing 0:10:09.320 --> 0:10:13.160 with them. I had gotten information from the babysitter that 0:10:13.200 --> 0:10:18.280 particularly my daughter Waylan, had been pretty difficult all day long, 0:10:18.920 --> 0:10:21.360 and so in my house I am the general if 0:10:21.360 --> 0:10:23.960 you know what I'm I'm about. And so I lined 0:10:24.000 --> 0:10:26.920 him up and I said, Waylon Wesley Wilkerson, I said, 0:10:26.960 --> 0:10:30.280 were you being bad today? Is this really true? That 0:10:30.320 --> 0:10:32.959 you were throwing tantrums like this? And all of a 0:10:32.960 --> 0:10:38.760 sudden she just turned instantly into these beautiful princess tres Daddy, 0:10:39.480 --> 0:10:45.480 I don't remember any other parents out there. Your kids 0:10:45.520 --> 0:10:50.280 got short term amnesia. You don't remember. So I looked 0:10:50.320 --> 0:10:52.880 at her older brother. His name is Wild, and trust me, 0:10:53.120 --> 0:10:56.560 he lives up for the name Wild. I said, yo, Wild, 0:10:57.320 --> 0:11:00.480 was your sister bad today? He looked at me and said, oh, Dad, 0:11:00.920 --> 0:11:06.120 it's been such a long day, homie. It's two fifteen 0:11:06.120 --> 0:11:11.120 in the afternoon. I love my son Wild because what's 0:11:11.200 --> 0:11:14.640 interesting is that Wild can fight all day long with 0:11:14.760 --> 0:11:18.880 his sister, But the moment he senses that there is 0:11:19.080 --> 0:11:23.480 judgment or someone potentially coming after his sister, he says, 0:11:23.520 --> 0:11:27.959 not on my watch. Let me tell you something. Brothers protect, 0:11:28.640 --> 0:11:31.720 but fathers fight. And I need some people in this 0:11:31.880 --> 0:11:35.240 room to understand that when the enemy comes after your life, 0:11:35.400 --> 0:11:38.200 whatever battle is coming your way, you need to settle 0:11:38.200 --> 0:11:40.439 once and for all. There is a god who says 0:11:40.480 --> 0:11:43.040 I will be with you. I will get into that 0:11:43.120 --> 0:11:46.760 fight and I will fight on your behalf. So before 0:11:46.800 --> 0:11:50.600 the enemy attacks, before the temptation comes, why not settle 0:11:50.640 --> 0:11:53.360 it in your heart? God is for me. And if 0:11:53.400 --> 0:11:57.440 God is for me, come on, who can be against me? 0:11:57.520 --> 0:11:59.800 Clap your hands, give God some praise in this house. 0:12:01.200 --> 0:12:06.160 When before you begin, I want to make a couple 0:12:06.160 --> 0:12:07.920 of observations, and I want you to take some notes. 0:12:07.960 --> 0:12:12.400 But the scripture begins here in verse one, and Moses 0:12:12.440 --> 0:12:16.160 comes out, and the instruction is when you go to war, 0:12:17.520 --> 0:12:23.079 not if, but when, because you need to understand that 0:12:23.200 --> 0:12:29.280 battles in life are not optional, they are inevitable. Like 0:12:29.480 --> 0:12:31.439 you don't get to choose the fight. All you get 0:12:31.440 --> 0:12:33.080 to choose is how you'll show up to the fight. 0:12:34.440 --> 0:12:36.480 How you're going to show up to this fight? And 0:12:36.640 --> 0:12:39.320 notice what it is that he says. He says, when 0:12:39.360 --> 0:12:41.959 you go to war against your enemies and you see 0:12:42.200 --> 0:12:47.559 horses and chariots and an army greater than yours, please 0:12:47.600 --> 0:12:51.720 write this down today. Don't let what you see shake 0:12:51.800 --> 0:12:56.400 what you know. Don't let what you see shake what 0:12:56.480 --> 0:12:58.960 you know. When you see the chariots and when you 0:12:59.000 --> 0:13:01.720 see an army of yours, how y'all know that fear 0:13:01.840 --> 0:13:05.959 begins with your sight. What you see. It starts in 0:13:06.000 --> 0:13:09.520 your eyes, and then it moves to your mind. Is 0:13:09.600 --> 0:13:11.520 there anybody out there like me that all of a 0:13:11.559 --> 0:13:15.240 sudden you can see something, and as you see it, 0:13:15.360 --> 0:13:18.240 you can make it far worse. Your imagination can run 0:13:18.520 --> 0:13:21.080 in the wrong direction. You can take one little thing 0:13:21.080 --> 0:13:23.600 that you see and turning it into an entire Netflix series. 0:13:25.880 --> 0:13:28.959 Just me. You see a text left on red and like, 0:13:29.040 --> 0:13:34.480 that's it. Relationships over, I'm gonna be living with my 0:13:34.559 --> 0:13:42.800 parents forever. You see one unexpected build, that's it. I'm done. 0:13:43.280 --> 0:13:46.160 I'm never gonna make it. Dave Ramsey was right about me. 0:13:49.200 --> 0:13:52.240 You see one uncomfortable conversation at work, like that's it. 0:13:52.480 --> 0:13:55.120 They're gonna fire me. They're probably clearing out my desk 0:13:55.240 --> 0:13:58.880 right now. Why is it? It's because it's not just 0:13:58.920 --> 0:14:01.400 what we see. We don't just things. We script things. 0:14:04.480 --> 0:14:08.480 We have a tendency that something begins with our sight. 0:14:08.640 --> 0:14:10.480 But then all of a sudden, it's not the sight 0:14:10.600 --> 0:14:13.640 that's the problem. It's the story we attach to the sight. 0:14:14.840 --> 0:14:16.719 And here it is God saying, if you want to win, 0:14:16.760 --> 0:14:19.160 before you begin, do not let what you see shake 0:14:19.240 --> 0:14:23.480 what you know. You're gonna have to understand that faith 0:14:23.560 --> 0:14:26.200 doesn't deny what you see. It's just confidence in what 0:14:26.240 --> 0:14:29.800 you already know. Yes, I see chariots, but I know 0:14:29.960 --> 0:14:32.960 my God. Yes I see problems in front of me, 0:14:33.240 --> 0:14:36.680 but I know his promises. Yes, I see the odds 0:14:36.680 --> 0:14:39.480 are stacked up against me, but I know the one 0:14:39.560 --> 0:14:42.960 who has already overcome. Is there anybody in this house 0:14:43.080 --> 0:14:46.200 who says I want to have an unshakable kind of faith? 0:14:50.680 --> 0:14:52.640 Listen to the command. He says, do not be afraid. 0:14:53.000 --> 0:14:54.600 Do you know that this is the most common command 0:14:54.640 --> 0:14:58.000 in all of Scripture, Some three hundred and sixty five 0:14:58.080 --> 0:15:01.480 times the Bible says do not be a Why Because 0:15:01.720 --> 0:15:04.280 the Bible wants to remind you every day of the 0:15:04.400 --> 0:15:07.760 year not to be afraid. Because if fear doesn't take 0:15:07.760 --> 0:15:11.720 a day off, faith shouldn't take one either. And it's 0:15:11.760 --> 0:15:14.240 not just what you see, it's what you say. And 0:15:14.360 --> 0:15:17.120 you ought to start getting good at saying God's word 0:15:17.400 --> 0:15:20.840 over every situation of your life. I will not fear. 0:15:21.120 --> 0:15:24.760 The Lord is my Light and my salvation. Whom shall 0:15:24.800 --> 0:15:27.840 I fear? Yay, though I walk through the valley of 0:15:27.920 --> 0:15:30.520 the shadow of death, Oh Come on. I'm gonna preach 0:15:30.560 --> 0:15:36.040 myself happy. I will not fear anybody out there today 0:15:36.080 --> 0:15:38.720 in a valley. You could be in a valley and 0:15:38.800 --> 0:15:41.040 bright there from the valley to Clare, I will not 0:15:41.160 --> 0:15:46.560 be afraid. I know who my God is. Not just 0:15:46.600 --> 0:15:51.320 what you see, it's what you say. But fear shakes us, 0:15:51.360 --> 0:15:56.120 faith stands. Do you ever play that game Jenga? I 0:15:56.120 --> 0:16:00.360 can't play it anymore. It increases my anxiety. When that 0:16:00.360 --> 0:16:02.160 thing starts wabbling, I'm like, oh no, it's like Rich, 0:16:02.200 --> 0:16:05.320 it's not a real tower, man, chill out. But what 0:16:05.360 --> 0:16:08.080 I've learned about the game is as you pull out bricks, 0:16:08.720 --> 0:16:11.720 the top can be wabbling. But watch this. If the 0:16:11.760 --> 0:16:18.120 foundation is sturdy, it doesn't fall. I want to encourage 0:16:18.120 --> 0:16:23.800 you today that faith does not deny what you see. Faith 0:16:23.840 --> 0:16:27.960 doesn't even stop the shaking. What faith does is it 0:16:27.960 --> 0:16:34.960 gives you sturdy and stable ground to stand on. I 0:16:35.000 --> 0:16:37.480 want you to see the sturdy ground that Moses gave. 0:16:38.920 --> 0:16:42.560 Moses said it this way. He says, do not be 0:16:42.640 --> 0:16:47.080 afraid of them, because the Lord, your God, who brought 0:16:47.120 --> 0:16:51.360 you up out of Egypt, will be with you. See. 0:16:51.400 --> 0:16:57.080 This is the thing with faith. Faith firmly looks at 0:16:57.080 --> 0:16:59.800 a situation and it can be shaking, but it makes 0:16:59.840 --> 0:17:02.760 it decision that I'm building my life on the word 0:17:02.800 --> 0:17:06.760 of God, on the rock of God. And so I 0:17:06.800 --> 0:17:09.639 don't always know what it is that God is doing. 0:17:09.720 --> 0:17:12.480 I can't even always see what God is doing, but 0:17:12.600 --> 0:17:18.200 I do know what He's done. And here comes Moses. 0:17:18.240 --> 0:17:20.520 He's like, I know you can't see the battle in 0:17:20.560 --> 0:17:22.560 front of us about how God's going to do it, 0:17:22.600 --> 0:17:26.159 but you do know what he has done. So you 0:17:26.240 --> 0:17:28.560 might not be able to see God's plan, but you 0:17:28.680 --> 0:17:32.000 do know his power. And you might not be able 0:17:32.040 --> 0:17:34.280 to see your future right now, but come on, you 0:17:34.320 --> 0:17:37.879 can remember your freedom. And you might not be exactly 0:17:37.920 --> 0:17:41.560 where you want to be, but can anybody testify you 0:17:41.760 --> 0:17:44.439 know you are not where you used to be. What 0:17:44.640 --> 0:17:51.600 a miracle he came and found me. I want to 0:17:51.680 --> 0:17:54.600 encourage you to operate in faith today because you don't 0:17:54.640 --> 0:17:56.600 have to see what he's doing, but you know what 0:17:56.720 --> 0:18:00.280 he's done. You know enough about God to understand He's 0:18:00.280 --> 0:18:02.720 gonna get you through this thing. If he brought you 0:18:02.840 --> 0:18:05.560 up out of Egypt, he'll bring you through whatever circumstance 0:18:05.560 --> 0:18:08.239 you're in now. If he parted the red sea. He 0:18:08.240 --> 0:18:11.400 could part your situation. If he was faithful back then, 0:18:11.840 --> 0:18:14.760 he'll be faithful right now. If he did it, then 0:18:15.000 --> 0:18:24.919 anybody believe he could do it again. Don't let what 0:18:25.000 --> 0:18:28.439 you see shake what you know. But watch what Moses 0:18:28.480 --> 0:18:30.439 does here as he continues to speak. Let's look at 0:18:30.480 --> 0:18:32.200 verse two. I haven't read this to you yet. Verse 0:18:32.200 --> 0:18:35.120 two says this, when you're about to go into battle, 0:18:35.920 --> 0:18:39.639 the priest shall come forward and address the army. He 0:18:39.720 --> 0:18:42.840 shall say, here Israel today. You are going into battle 0:18:42.840 --> 0:18:45.639 against the enemies. Do not be faint hearted or afraid. 0:18:45.680 --> 0:18:51.000 Do not panic or be terrified by them. Write this down. 0:18:51.040 --> 0:18:55.240 This is important. Don't let your worry be louder than 0:18:55.280 --> 0:19:00.679 God's word. This is unique. They're about to go to battle. 0:19:01.400 --> 0:19:04.359 They don't send out a general, they don't send out 0:19:04.359 --> 0:19:06.760 a colonel. There's no sergeant that comes out. Moses sends 0:19:06.800 --> 0:19:10.119 out the priest. Can you imagine if you're in that army, like, well, 0:19:10.160 --> 0:19:16.480 what's up here? What's going on here? You're sending out priests. Yeah, 0:19:16.920 --> 0:19:22.120 it's because every warrior needs a preacher before the war. 0:19:22.480 --> 0:19:26.960 The word. That's what I love about Sunday is I'm 0:19:27.000 --> 0:19:28.800 so proud of you for being in church today. I'm 0:19:28.840 --> 0:19:31.359 so proud that that's the habit of your life, because 0:19:31.359 --> 0:19:34.560 as we gather here today, we're not just merely putting 0:19:34.600 --> 0:19:37.520 on a church service. This is the briefing before the battle. 0:19:37.840 --> 0:19:41.080 This is the strategy, and God's strategy is his spirit. 0:19:43.960 --> 0:19:45.800 I don't think i'm speaking to spectators. I think I'm 0:19:45.800 --> 0:19:50.640 speaking to soldiers. Anybody fighting for something today, anybody fighting 0:19:50.720 --> 0:19:54.200 for purpose, fighting for your calling, fighting for peace, fighting 0:19:54.240 --> 0:19:57.840 for joy, anyone fighting for their marriage, fighting for their family. 0:19:58.000 --> 0:19:59.760 Are there some dads out there that are fighting for 0:19:59.800 --> 0:20:01.760 their it's going If you're a fighter in this house, 0:20:01.800 --> 0:20:09.119 clap your hands for fighting. It's funny. Sometimes on Instagram 0:20:09.160 --> 0:20:11.600 people will comment at me, why are you always yelling? 0:20:13.680 --> 0:20:19.680 Calm down, bro? And I'm like, I'm yelling because every 0:20:19.720 --> 0:20:22.960 week when people come into church, I want to make 0:20:23.000 --> 0:20:26.880 sure that my voice is louder than whatever they've been 0:20:27.000 --> 0:20:29.639 up against all week long. I want you to know 0:20:29.680 --> 0:20:32.000 there is a God who is for you. There's a 0:20:32.040 --> 0:20:35.160 God who's fighting for you. You don't have to be afraid. 0:20:35.600 --> 0:20:40.440 Keth's gonna get you through this thing. Because we live 0:20:40.440 --> 0:20:44.200 in a noisy world, and all week long, you're gonna 0:20:44.280 --> 0:20:47.720 leave here, and you're gonna tune off from the link 0:20:47.800 --> 0:20:50.679 today and all week long you're gonna be doing with 0:20:50.760 --> 0:20:54.120 algorithms and people at work, and all of the voices 0:20:54.119 --> 0:20:56.639 you're gonna hear is gonna be the voice of worry. 0:20:58.440 --> 0:21:00.720 Even some of you right now listening today, it's your 0:21:00.760 --> 0:21:03.480 own inner critic that speaks to you, and it's the 0:21:03.560 --> 0:21:07.240 voice of worry all day long. That word worry comes 0:21:07.280 --> 0:21:11.679 from an Anglo Saxon word, which means to strangle. How 0:21:11.720 --> 0:21:14.880 many of us were just we're being strangled by worry. 0:21:15.640 --> 0:21:18.280 We're being strangled by the pressures of this life. I 0:21:18.320 --> 0:21:23.160 wonder what's louder in your life? God's word or you'll worry? 0:21:23.440 --> 0:21:27.919 Write this down. This is important. What you repeat in 0:21:28.119 --> 0:21:34.240 peace will become your reflex under pressure. Let me say 0:21:34.240 --> 0:21:36.040 that one more time. Put it in the chat. What 0:21:36.119 --> 0:21:40.720 you repeat in peace will become your reflex under pressure. 0:21:41.960 --> 0:21:45.280 This is really important because when life hits you, what's 0:21:45.320 --> 0:21:47.280 going to come out of you? We could look at 0:21:47.320 --> 0:21:49.480 the life of Jesus right Jesus in the wilderness. Remember 0:21:49.520 --> 0:21:52.520 that after Matthew three, he's baptized and the Father speaks 0:21:52.520 --> 0:21:55.399 over him, and immediately he goes into the wilderness to 0:21:55.440 --> 0:21:59.520 be tempted by Satan. Notice, whenever Satan comes to attack you, 0:21:59.560 --> 0:22:03.040 he always attack your identity. So the last thing that 0:22:03.119 --> 0:22:04.880 Jesus heard the Father say is this is my son, 0:22:04.960 --> 0:22:07.360 whom I love, and I'm well pleased. The first thing 0:22:07.400 --> 0:22:09.840 out of the enemy's mouth is if you are the 0:22:09.840 --> 0:22:14.240 son of God, gets you to question, what's this the 0:22:14.280 --> 0:22:17.639 word of God? And what you'll see there in the wilderness. 0:22:17.720 --> 0:22:19.840 Jesus was tempted for forty days. And what Jesus is 0:22:19.880 --> 0:22:22.400 actually doing is he's illustrating for us how to win. 0:22:22.840 --> 0:22:25.000 Because remember the Israelites, they went into a wilderness for 0:22:25.000 --> 0:22:28.160 forty years, and they had been given the Book of Deuteronomy, 0:22:28.160 --> 0:22:31.000 the Book of Instruction, but they never obeyed it, they 0:22:31.000 --> 0:22:32.840 never used it, they never applied it, and they found 0:22:32.880 --> 0:22:37.159 themselves delayed forever, never getting out an entire generation. But 0:22:37.240 --> 0:22:40.120 here comes Jesus, and he doesn't take forty years. All 0:22:40.200 --> 0:22:43.080 he needs is forty days. And every time the enemy 0:22:43.160 --> 0:22:46.280 comes and tempts him, all Jesus does is he says, 0:22:46.400 --> 0:22:50.239 it is written. Why because it is written before it 0:22:50.320 --> 0:22:54.320 is one, the word of God must come first. And 0:22:54.359 --> 0:22:57.000 what's really fascinating is that as you study that entire 0:22:57.600 --> 0:22:59.720 dialogue back and forth between Jesus and the devil in 0:22:59.720 --> 0:23:02.080 masth you for what you find out is that every 0:23:02.080 --> 0:23:06.680 scripture that Jesus quotes is from the Book of Deuteronomy, 0:23:06.800 --> 0:23:11.520 as if to say, you always had the answer. The 0:23:11.600 --> 0:23:14.399 same word I gave you back there in the wilderness 0:23:15.000 --> 0:23:19.080 is the same word that I'll use to defeat Satan. See, 0:23:19.160 --> 0:23:23.239 Jesus understood that the word is a weapon. You do 0:23:23.280 --> 0:23:26.200 get that right, that this is a weapon. And if 0:23:26.200 --> 0:23:30.080 you don't train in the word, you won't triumph in 0:23:30.119 --> 0:23:36.280