WEBVTT - The Restriction Has Been Lifted 0:00:00.880 --> 0:00:06.920 Okay, the scripture that the Lord led me to as 0:00:06.920 --> 0:00:13.200 we complete this season. It didn't seem like to me 0:00:13.280 --> 0:00:15.520 a Christmas scripture at first, but I think it is. 0:00:16.239 --> 0:00:21.840 It's in Exodus chapter forty. You're like getting the Christmas 0:00:21.840 --> 0:00:26.360 story in the New Testament. Jesus is all up in 0:00:26.400 --> 0:00:29.720 your Bible. You just got it. He's like, where's Waldo. 0:00:29.880 --> 0:00:33.800 You just got to know how to spot it. But 0:00:33.920 --> 0:00:39.280 in Exodus forty, there is something I want to show 0:00:39.280 --> 0:00:44.880 you today, Verse thirty three. Let's go. Then Moses set 0:00:44.960 --> 0:00:49.479 up the courtyard around the tabernacle and alter and put 0:00:49.840 --> 0:00:53.440 up the curtain at the entrance to the courtyard. And 0:00:53.479 --> 0:00:57.560 so Moses finished the work. Then the cloud covered the 0:00:57.600 --> 0:01:00.120 tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord Lord 0:01:00.200 --> 0:01:03.520 filled the tabernacle. Moses could not enter the tent of 0:01:03.600 --> 0:01:07.400 meeting because the cloud had settled on it, and the 0:01:07.440 --> 0:01:10.720 glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. In all the 0:01:10.760 --> 0:01:14.480 travels of the Israelites, whenever the cloud lifted from above 0:01:14.520 --> 0:01:18.120 the tabernacle, they would set out. But if the cloud 0:01:18.319 --> 0:01:22.200 did not lift, they did not set out until the 0:01:22.280 --> 0:01:27.880 day it lifted. So the cloud of the Lord was 0:01:28.000 --> 0:01:31.959 over the tabernacle by day, and fire was in the 0:01:32.000 --> 0:01:36.520 cloud by night, in the sight of all the Israelites 0:01:37.120 --> 0:01:41.200 during all their travels. So the Lord gave me good 0:01:41.200 --> 0:01:43.759 tidings of great joy to preach to you this Christmas season. 0:01:44.120 --> 0:01:47.400 My title is an announcement. Get ready to shout. God 0:01:47.440 --> 0:01:57.840 said to tell you the restriction has been lifted. All 0:01:57.880 --> 0:02:02.440 open your mouth, holds your teeth, and unto God, the 0:02:02.480 --> 0:02:07.680 restriction has been lifted. Put it in the chat right now. 0:02:07.800 --> 0:02:12.440 The restriction has been lifted. Tell your neighbor you can 0:02:12.520 --> 0:02:16.880 move around the room the restriction. You are now free 0:02:16.960 --> 0:02:28.600 to brace him to. The restriction has been Listen all right, now, 0:02:28.680 --> 0:02:32.920 be seated. I had fun doing that on the road. 0:02:32.960 --> 0:02:36.560 We were going out on elevation nights all around the country, 0:02:37.240 --> 0:02:39.440 and I would make a joke when I would get 0:02:39.480 --> 0:02:41.480 up in these different cities. I'd say, hey, now, I 0:02:41.560 --> 0:02:44.760 know that some of y'all haven't been to church in 0:02:45.360 --> 0:02:49.640 two years, ever since twenty twenty two or twenty twenty. 0:02:49.680 --> 0:02:53.200 And it's twenty twenty two, so I've got two years 0:02:53.240 --> 0:02:55.320 of makeup church to have with you tonight. So I'm 0:02:55.320 --> 0:02:58.160 gonna preach about three hours. And they kind of laugh 0:02:58.200 --> 0:02:59.960 and you could see people looking at each other like, 0:03:00.040 --> 0:03:01.880 how does you know I hadn't been back to church 0:03:03.360 --> 0:03:05.960 because for the longest, and I don't mean to do 0:03:06.000 --> 0:03:08.880 any church. I'll put a trigger warning on this real quick, okay, 0:03:09.000 --> 0:03:12.120 because that phrase the restriction has been lifted. It takes 0:03:12.200 --> 0:03:15.800 us all to a certain place. And this is not 0:03:15.800 --> 0:03:18.880 a political message. This is just an illustration that I 0:03:18.880 --> 0:03:21.079 want to use to get you into the Christmas message. 0:03:21.320 --> 0:03:24.640 So relax, all right, I'm not going to say anything 0:03:24.680 --> 0:03:27.560 that's going to get us banned or canceled or arrested 0:03:27.680 --> 0:03:30.600 or anything like that. All right, now that we got 0:03:30.639 --> 0:03:34.480 that out of the way, the illustration is this. A 0:03:34.560 --> 0:03:37.240 man walks up to me and ask me a question. 0:03:37.960 --> 0:03:40.640 This was about three months after they lifted the restriction 0:03:40.920 --> 0:03:44.320 where we could start gathering again for church in person. 0:03:45.320 --> 0:03:50.120 And he sees me in a public place and he says, yo, pastor, 0:03:50.840 --> 0:03:56.160 are the restrictions lifted? Are y'all meeting in church now? 0:03:56.720 --> 0:03:58.680 And I said, yeah, We've been meeting for three months, 0:03:58.760 --> 0:04:00.720 and I've been preaching the whole time, and we've been 0:04:00.760 --> 0:04:04.480 putting the sermons online. And he goes, oh, cool, Well, 0:04:04.560 --> 0:04:09.280 I'm coming this Sunday. Then, he walks off. He turns around, 0:04:09.360 --> 0:04:15.360 walks back, walks back over to me and looks guilty 0:04:16.120 --> 0:04:20.960 and goes, I can't lie to my pastor. I knew 0:04:21.040 --> 0:04:26.200 y'all were having church again. I follow every account on 0:04:26.800 --> 0:04:31.800 Instagram that Elevation Church has. I just hadn't come back yet. 0:04:33.200 --> 0:04:35.240 So I am going to be there Sunday. But I 0:04:35.240 --> 0:04:38.159 couldn't lie to you about why it didn't that I 0:04:38.200 --> 0:04:41.520 hadn't come back because I didn't think I could come back. 0:04:42.200 --> 0:04:44.480 I just didn't come back and I hadn't come back. 0:04:45.160 --> 0:04:47.120 I'm like, it's all right, man, give me a hug. 0:04:47.839 --> 0:04:50.440 We can hug now. The restrictions are lifted. Give me 0:04:50.440 --> 0:04:54.440 a hug. And so as a moment, there was a 0:04:54.480 --> 0:04:58.600 teaching moment for me, not about pandemics and viruses or 0:04:58.640 --> 0:05:01.799 any of that stuff. It was moment to me about 0:05:01.880 --> 0:05:05.880 human nature. There's a moment for me to realize that 0:05:06.000 --> 0:05:13.880 sometimes the restriction is gone, but the conditioning remains. To 0:05:13.920 --> 0:05:17.560 where he said, Hey, I just got used to not 0:05:17.720 --> 0:05:21.800 doing it, so I'm not doing it, and I have 0:05:21.839 --> 0:05:24.200 an excuse as I can't do it. This is not 0:05:24.279 --> 0:05:26.279 a sermon for all of y'all who are watching online 0:05:26.279 --> 0:05:28.880 by the way. I think it's great to watch online. 0:05:29.040 --> 0:05:30.720 This is not saying don't watch. I wouldn't put the 0:05:30.720 --> 0:05:32.839 sermon online if I didn't want you to watch it online. 0:05:32.960 --> 0:05:36.200 But what the man said to me was powerful. He said, 0:05:36.320 --> 0:05:39.160 I knew I could come back. I just haven't been 0:05:39.160 --> 0:05:42.039 coming back. But rather than say I hadn't been coming 0:05:42.080 --> 0:05:44.760 back and deal with why I haven't been coming back 0:05:44.760 --> 0:05:46.680 because I got into the habit of not coming back, 0:05:47.080 --> 0:05:49.600 I wanted to ask you can I come back? Because 0:05:49.680 --> 0:05:51.640 I ask you can I come back, it gives the 0:05:51.640 --> 0:05:54.719 impression that I'm confused, and then I can blame my 0:05:54.800 --> 0:06:03.919 complacency on my confusion. He said. The restriction has been lifted, 0:06:04.960 --> 0:06:08.480 but my routine has been established, and the fact is 0:06:08.960 --> 0:06:11.640 I need to get back. Why are y'all in the 0:06:11.720 --> 0:06:14.159 room looking convicted? Y'all are here, you should be shouting 0:06:14.200 --> 0:06:18.000 about this part of the sermon. It's not even about 0:06:18.040 --> 0:06:19.719 whether you're in this room or not. It's really not. 0:06:19.880 --> 0:06:24.920 It's about whether you're in faith. It's about whether you're 0:06:25.200 --> 0:06:28.320 in the place God has called you to, and it's 0:06:28.360 --> 0:06:31.400 about whether or not you're allowing God to lead you 0:06:31.440 --> 0:06:35.599 in this season of your life, which is exactly what 0:06:35.720 --> 0:06:38.120 I gave you a picture of from Exodus chapter forty, 0:06:39.080 --> 0:06:41.760 where the Lord is leading his people. How many believed 0:06:41.760 --> 0:06:45.920 the Lord leads his people. That's one of the identifying 0:06:46.080 --> 0:06:50.000 marks of knowing that you belong to God. That Jesus said, 0:06:50.000 --> 0:06:54.359 my sheep know my voice, and they listen, and so 0:06:54.480 --> 0:06:57.200 not only do they hear it, but they go with it. 0:06:57.920 --> 0:07:01.040 And so one of the marks of my maturity in 0:07:01.080 --> 0:07:04.640 God is that not only is he speaking, but that 0:07:04.720 --> 0:07:07.680 I am in step with him, that He is leading me, 0:07:08.200 --> 0:07:11.320 that he is leading me to be kinder, more generous, 0:07:11.840 --> 0:07:15.200 that he is leading me to be more disciplined in 0:07:15.240 --> 0:07:20.560 the areas that matter. In fact, that's the word that 0:07:20.640 --> 0:07:22.960 Holly and I are putting on our offering today. Just 0:07:23.000 --> 0:07:26.480 a few moments, people from all over our church, our 0:07:26.520 --> 0:07:29.480 global community, and even online are going to be giving 0:07:29.520 --> 0:07:32.560 to the work of God through this ministry. And every 0:07:32.680 --> 0:07:36.360 year we challenge every person, every family pick a word. 0:07:36.680 --> 0:07:39.120 My kids all have a word. Their words are just 0:07:39.160 --> 0:07:41.880 as unique as they are as people. I'm telling you 0:07:41.920 --> 0:07:44.000 as hilarious because they were all making fun of each 0:07:44.040 --> 0:07:46.560 other's words at the table last night, and I was like, 0:07:46.640 --> 0:07:48.840 you'll need to stop making fun of each other's words, 0:07:49.000 --> 0:07:50.760 and we need to set an example for the people 0:07:50.800 --> 0:07:53.120 of God and give as a family. We can't be 0:07:53.200 --> 0:07:55.600 fighting like this as we're trying to set an example 0:07:55.640 --> 0:07:58.120 of faith. And So my word that I told Holly 0:07:58.680 --> 0:08:00.800 because sometimes I ask her in this, just tell her 0:08:01.040 --> 0:08:02.920 and she trusts me, so she lets me be the 0:08:02.960 --> 0:08:05.440 leader of our home. I said, our word is actually leadership. 0:08:07.760 --> 0:08:11.840 Our word is leadership because there are two things I'm 0:08:11.840 --> 0:08:14.960 becoming more convinced about with every year God leaves me 0:08:15.040 --> 0:08:18.760 on this planet. One is that He is leading me, 0:08:20.880 --> 0:08:25.960 and the other one is that I need it. How 0:08:26.040 --> 0:08:31.200 much stupid stuff have I done? How many relationships have 0:08:31.280 --> 0:08:35.080 I wasted my time investing in because I didn't let 0:08:35.200 --> 0:08:39.440 God lead me. Think how much money you could have 0:08:39.520 --> 0:08:43.080 saved on first dates if you would have listened to 0:08:43.160 --> 0:08:47.040 the Lord and let him lead you. Touch the person 0:08:47.120 --> 0:08:49.920 next to you and say, let him lead you. It's 0:08:50.000 --> 0:08:52.960 not like he doesn't want to. It's not like God 0:08:53.080 --> 0:08:56.160 is cruel up there trying to hide his will from you. 0:08:56.480 --> 0:09:00.520 It's not like God is some kind of masochistic master 0:09:00.840 --> 0:09:03.720 who wants to put you in situations and not show 0:09:03.760 --> 0:09:06.280 you what to do. I mean, if you need further 0:09:06.440 --> 0:09:09.360 proof that God wants to lead you, look to the 0:09:09.480 --> 0:09:13.200 extremes which he was willing to go to lead his 0:09:13.360 --> 0:09:17.959 people through the wilderness in Exodus chapter forty. If you 0:09:18.000 --> 0:09:21.160 don't think God wants to lead you, watch this example 0:09:21.520 --> 0:09:24.320 is brilliant. God says, I'm gonna give you a place 0:09:24.440 --> 0:09:27.680 called the tabernacle. You could put it right in the 0:09:27.720 --> 0:09:30.960 wilderness at the base of Mount Sinai. I'm gonna give 0:09:30.960 --> 0:09:33.760 you my commandments, ten of them, and even when you 0:09:33.840 --> 0:09:36.480 break them, I'm gonna give you the tablets again, so 0:09:36.520 --> 0:09:39.160 you can have another start. Because I am the God 0:09:39.200 --> 0:09:42.800 of new beginnings and second chances, and I will lead 0:09:42.880 --> 0:09:45.760 you even when you lead your self astray. If you 0:09:45.800 --> 0:09:50.959 are faithless, he will remain faithful, for he cannot deny himself. 0:09:51.320 --> 0:09:54.760 And when you get done with the commandments, build a tabernacle, 0:09:55.080 --> 0:09:58.120 a place for my glory to dwell, a place where 0:09:58.120 --> 0:10:00.360 there can be an altar, a place where there can 0:10:00.400 --> 0:10:02.960 be a basin for the priests to wash their hands, 0:10:03.000 --> 0:10:06.000 in a place where there can be a cherub him 0:10:06.240 --> 0:10:08.840 where the presence of God can dwell. In the most 0:10:08.840 --> 0:10:11.960 holy place. After you get through the curtains and the 0:10:12.040 --> 0:10:15.480 lamp stand and the table of showbread, all which are 0:10:15.520 --> 0:10:18.960 pointing to the ultimate revelation of God in Jesus Christ, 0:10:19.000 --> 0:10:22.320 our Savior, born on Christmas Day. God said, I'm going 0:10:22.400 --> 0:10:25.920 to put a provisional tint in the wilderness, so you'll 0:10:25.920 --> 0:10:28.320 have a place to meet with me, and when you 0:10:28.400 --> 0:10:30.920 mess it up, you'll have a place to make it right, 0:10:31.280 --> 0:10:33.920 so you don't get so far off track that you 0:10:34.040 --> 0:10:43.400 can't come back, because I am your leader. So he 0:10:43.480 --> 0:10:47.360 did something very cool. I think it's cool. To get 0:10:47.400 --> 0:10:50.400 them where they needed to go. He gave them this 0:10:50.559 --> 0:10:54.440 cloud that would settle over the tabernacle and then it 0:10:54.480 --> 0:10:57.720 would lift, and when it lifted, that meant it was 0:10:57.760 --> 0:11:01.600 time for them to move, and when it stayed that minute, 0:11:01.600 --> 0:11:04.120 it was time for them to stay. And all they 0:11:04.160 --> 0:11:08.120 had to do was obey. And I kind of wish 0:11:08.280 --> 0:11:13.360 that this Christmas God would give me a cloud like 0:11:13.440 --> 0:11:17.480 that cloud. Wouldn't that be cool? Come on, wouldn't that 0:11:17.559 --> 0:11:21.560 be amazing God just telling you, nope, don't take that job, 0:11:21.640 --> 0:11:25.079 come over here, stay right there. That would be awesome. 0:11:25.880 --> 0:11:29.720 I would love it. But the only thing is if 0:11:29.720 --> 0:11:33.920 he gave them a cloud to lead them, which would 0:11:33.920 --> 0:11:37.760 be a cloud by day and a pillar of fire 0:11:37.800 --> 0:11:39.800 by night. Now, let me explain this for a moment 0:11:40.040 --> 0:11:41.560 before I tell you why the cloud wouldn't be as 0:11:41.559 --> 0:11:43.400 cool as you think it would be, because it wouldn't 0:11:43.400 --> 0:11:44.360 be as cools you think it would be. And I'm 0:11:44.360 --> 0:11:46.199 gonna show why in just a moment, But first let 0:11:46.200 --> 0:11:48.920 me say this. The cloud looked like one thing in 0:11:48.960 --> 0:11:54.600 the daytime and another thing at nighttime. So God never changes. 0:11:56.040 --> 0:12:01.440 Thank God that he never changes. However, our relationship with 0:12:01.520 --> 0:12:07.240 him does. God is always leading you, and God is 0:12:07.240 --> 0:12:11.400 always leading me. But he will lead me through different 0:12:11.400 --> 0:12:15.920 things in different seasons. And it doesn't mean he's changed. 0:12:15.960 --> 0:12:19.000 It doesn't mean that he's less faithful. It doesn't mean 0:12:19.080 --> 0:12:21.880 that he's forgotten. It doesn't mean that he's punishing me. 0:12:23.120 --> 0:12:29.600 But God leads me in different ways in different seasons. 0:12:30.400 --> 0:12:33.400 I had a conversation with this very thing about this 0:12:33.600 --> 0:12:37.239 very thing with my kids. I haven't had this conversation 0:12:37.320 --> 0:12:40.400 with Abby yet because it's a conversation that I had 0:12:40.440 --> 0:12:43.440 with Elijah when he became a teenager and Graham when 0:12:43.480 --> 0:12:45.480 he became a teenager. And I'll have it with Abby 0:12:45.800 --> 0:12:48.920 here soon as well, so you can get it early. Abby, 0:12:49.920 --> 0:12:53.199 I said, Hey, I love you, but I want to 0:12:53.240 --> 0:12:56.800 talk to you a little bit about how our relationship 0:12:56.840 --> 0:13:00.880 is going to change as you grow tour and you 0:13:00.920 --> 0:13:04.319 want more freedom. So I establish something, and I don't 0:13:04.320 --> 0:13:06.280 know if this is good or not. Maybe I can 0:13:06.320 --> 0:13:09.360 improve it before I get it to Abby, and I 0:13:09.360 --> 0:13:12.120 can practice on the boys and then get it right 0:13:12.160 --> 0:13:14.920 on her. They already pick on me that she gets 0:13:14.960 --> 0:13:18.000 all of the benefits of my inexperience being worked out 0:13:18.000 --> 0:13:20.320 on them, and now I am a much better dad 0:13:20.360 --> 0:13:23.480 for her. But this is what I said, And y'all 0:13:23.480 --> 0:13:24.760 tell me if you think this is good or not. 0:13:25.160 --> 0:13:30.120 I said, my love for you is set. I'm your dad. 0:13:30.960 --> 0:13:33.520 If you get hooked on drugs or if you get 0:13:33.520 --> 0:13:37.520 a diploma, I'm your dad. If you come home and 0:13:37.559 --> 0:13:39.040 you have to tell me the worst news ever, I'm 0:13:39.080 --> 0:13:41.040 your dad. I love you. I can't stop loving even 0:13:41.040 --> 0:13:43.560 though I want to, I can't stop loving you. It's 0:13:43.600 --> 0:13:46.280 like sometimes I try to not love you and it 0:13:46.800 --> 0:13:50.360 just boomerangs back. So that is set. And if there 0:13:50.440 --> 0:13:52.720 is a level of my love for you, it's like 0:13:52.920 --> 0:13:55.880 level eleven. It's not even ten. It's like level eleven. 0:13:55.920 --> 0:13:57.840 I love you. I love you more than I should 0:13:57.880 --> 0:14:00.800 love you. That's why sometimes I don't even see things 0:14:00.840 --> 0:14:02.360 that are wrong with you, because I love you too 0:14:02.440 --> 0:14:04.319 much to see it. And that's why sometimes you get 0:14:04.320 --> 0:14:06.200 on my last nerve because I love you so much. 0:14:11.320 --> 0:14:14.200 And that was a conversation that my love for you 0:14:14.320 --> 0:14:20.880 is set, but your freedom is not set in this house. 0:14:22.440 --> 0:14:29.840 Your freedom is contingent on your behavior in three specific areas. 0:14:30.560 --> 0:14:32.360 And I'm making all this up the first time when 0:14:32.400 --> 0:14:33.880 I gave it to Elijah, and I had it better 0:14:33.920 --> 0:14:35.280 when I got to Graham. I'll get it better when 0:14:35.280 --> 0:14:38.800 I get to Abbey. I said, it's three things. It's respect. 0:14:41.040 --> 0:14:45.560 You will respect me. You will respect your mom. And 0:14:45.600 --> 0:14:46.880 if you're going to pick one of the two of 0:14:46.960 --> 0:14:51.760 us not to respect, disrespect me because if you disrespect her, 0:14:52.120 --> 0:14:54.080 you will find out what it is like to have 0:14:54.160 --> 0:14:59.600 me against you. I know this parenting style is very 0:14:59.640 --> 0:15:01.960 ANTIQ weighted and everything like that, but it's just where 0:15:02.000 --> 0:15:04.600 I come from from my understanding of my role, my 0:15:04.680 --> 0:15:08.560 parental role. If you want my resource, you will give 0:15:08.560 --> 0:15:14.000 me respect. So we talk about that. Then there will 0:15:14.040 --> 0:15:18.320 be responsibility, like you got to get your crap done 0:15:18.520 --> 0:15:20.000 or I'm gonna have to treat you like you don't 0:15:20.040 --> 0:15:22.000 know how to get your crap done. But if you 0:15:22.000 --> 0:15:24.320 can get your crap done, this is the Bible somewhere too. 0:15:24.960 --> 0:15:27.600 If you don't get faithful over little, faithful over much. 0:15:28.360 --> 0:15:29.880 If you can prove to me that you can do 0:15:29.920 --> 0:15:32.360 a few things, well I can let you do more things. 0:15:32.440 --> 0:15:34.440 But you know it's like a leash. You've heard these 0:15:34.440 --> 0:15:37.880 parents and illustrations before. And how much liberty, how much 0:15:38.000 --> 0:15:40.840 license you get, is not going to be dependent on 0:15:40.880 --> 0:15:45.120 how much I love you. Because I love you eleven, 0:15:45.480 --> 0:15:50.240 but I can't let you eleven just because I love you. 0:15:52.320 --> 0:15:54.280 I didn't put that in my notes, but I kind 0:15:54.320 --> 0:15:58.360 of liked it. I love you eleven. My love won't leave. 0:16:00.160 --> 0:16:06.920 But your privileges, your permissions, your liberty, and your license 0:16:07.000 --> 0:16:12.640 depend on three things. And it's respect and its responsibility, 0:16:13.640 --> 0:16:17.320 and most of all is trust. If I can't trust you, 0:16:18.640 --> 0:16:22.440 I can love you, but I can't let you just 0:16:22.520 --> 0:16:25.640 because I love you. I've got to be able to 0:16:25.760 --> 0:16:31.320 trust you some. And then I said, how good is 0:16:31.360 --> 0:16:34.920 this parenting seminar? They ought to put me on focus 0:16:34.920 --> 0:16:37.880 on the family. With this, I got something to say. 0:16:38.080 --> 0:16:41.120 I'm saving my parenting book till all my kids are sixty, 0:16:41.840 --> 0:16:43.840 so I can see how it all turns out. But 0:16:43.920 --> 0:16:45.920 this is one thing I had to do in real time. 0:16:46.160 --> 0:16:50.960 I'm like, it's changing, our relationship is changing. I'm not changing. 0:16:51.400 --> 0:16:55.520 I love you. That's set. It's eleven. It's not going 0:16:55.600 --> 0:16:58.800 to go to nine Monday and seven Tuesday and all 0:16:58.920 --> 0:17:02.320 then Wednesday win a big softball game. We're back to 0:17:02.400 --> 0:17:06.960 a le that's not performance based. My love is set 0:17:07.560 --> 0:17:10.160 at eleven. Now now I want to tell you something, 0:17:10.200 --> 0:17:12.159 to get real, real clear before I move on. In 0:17:12.200 --> 0:17:17.480 this message, God's love for you is set at level eleven. 0:17:20.400 --> 0:17:24.120 Very rarely for a righteous man would someone die. But 0:17:24.280 --> 0:17:28.159 God demonstrates his own love for us through this that 0:17:28.359 --> 0:17:33.280 while we were still screwed up, while we were still filthy, 0:17:33.840 --> 0:17:38.200 while we were still sin stain, while we were still 0:17:38.200 --> 0:17:43.320 creating same through our perpetual behavior that defied him, while 0:17:43.359 --> 0:17:47.560 I was still a sinner, Christ died for me. So 0:17:47.720 --> 0:17:52.680 that's set. It's not changing. What self separate us from 0:17:52.760 --> 0:17:56.280 the love of God that is in Christ Jesus. You 0:17:56.320 --> 0:18:00.560 can't take it away. It's set. You can't snatch it, 0:18:00.800 --> 0:18:05.480 you can't soil. It is set, is protected, His settle 0:18:05.840 --> 0:18:15.760 is paid for his purchased in BLI his love for me. No, 0:18:15.920 --> 0:18:24.480 but just that. And then out of understanding this, we 0:18:24.560 --> 0:18:30.280 get the opportunity to make the decision. How much of 0:18:30.320 --> 0:18:34.240 his love do we want to live in? How much 0:18:34.240 --> 0:18:38.879 of his freedom do we want to experience? So it 0:18:38.880 --> 0:18:45.120 says in Exodus that God gave the people not only 0:18:45.160 --> 0:18:47.640 a place where he could meet with them, the tabernacle, 0:18:48.359 --> 0:18:52.760 but over the tabernacle came a cloud, and the cloud 0:18:52.800 --> 0:18:55.760 represented his glory in his presence. Let me show you 0:18:55.800 --> 0:18:58.119 something so cool. I know you will like this because 0:18:58.119 --> 0:19:00.760 I loved it when I saw it. In Exitus forty 0:19:00.840 --> 0:19:03.240 thirty three, put it on the board, please, It says 0:19:03.600 --> 0:19:11.560 that Moses finished the work. You see that Moses finished 0:19:12.160 --> 0:19:17.320 the work. Everybody says, so Moses finished. Go to verse 0:19:17.359 --> 0:19:22.840 thirty four. Well this blessed me, it said, the Lord filled. 0:19:24.320 --> 0:19:26.720 Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the 0:19:26.760 --> 0:19:30.000 glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. So let's put 0:19:30.040 --> 0:19:37.600 those two together. Ready, So Moses finished, the Lord filled. 0:19:38.840 --> 0:19:46.840 Stop asking God to fill stuff that you won't finish. 0:19:47.400 --> 0:19:53.480 God doesn't bless good intentions. God doesn't bless your to 0:19:53.520 --> 0:19:59.520 do list. He blesses your done stuff that you push through. Now, 0:19:59.560 --> 0:20:03.240 what is that have to do with restriction. It has 0:20:03.320 --> 0:20:06.080 everything to do with restriction. It has everything to do 0:20:06.200 --> 0:20:07.800 with the man who walked up to me and said, 0:20:08.640 --> 0:20:11.560 I knew I could come back, but I'm not coming 0:20:11.600 --> 0:20:15.640 back because I got so used to not coming that 0:20:15.880 --> 0:20:21.439 my conditioning was set down here and my permission was 0:20:21.480 --> 0:20:24.480 set up here, and so I've been living at the 0:20:24.600 --> 0:20:28.840 level of my conditioning. I stopped coming even though I 0:20:28.880 --> 0:20:32.480 have permission to come back. And now there's a gap. 0:20:32.480 --> 0:20:34.880 And he said, I feel bad, and I said, don't 0:20:34.880 --> 0:20:40.679 feel bad, just come back. You could come back. The 0:20:40.760 --> 0:20:45.720 restrictions are lifted, you could come back. Come on back. Sunday. 0:20:46.000 --> 0:20:48.959 I'll look for you. And I want to tell you 0:20:49.160 --> 0:20:53.480 he was here. Boy, I preached to that man that Sunday. 0:20:53.760 --> 0:20:56.680 I did good too. He sat right center. I guess 0:20:56.680 --> 0:20:58.720 he got here early. And I never said a word 0:20:58.720 --> 0:21:01.320 about him, but I preached to him because he was here, 0:21:03.400 --> 0:21:10.080 and nothing changed about the situation, only his decision. So 0:21:10.240 --> 0:21:14.600 the cloud had this little thing where it would come 0:21:14.680 --> 0:21:18.680 down and fill the tabernacle, and then it would lift. 0:21:19.040 --> 0:21:22.680 And when it lifted, everybody say when it lifted, Oh 0:21:22.880 --> 0:21:27.880 say it with faith. When it lifted. That's it. That's it. 0:21:28.040 --> 0:21:30.840 God was saying to his people, you can move now, 0:21:32.080 --> 0:21:35.840 you can go now, you can you can go forward now. 0:21:36.040 --> 0:21:38.760 He wanted to lead them all the way to the 0:21:38.840 --> 0:21:42.280 Promised Land, all the way to the land of Canaan, 0:21:43.080 --> 0:21:46.680 flowing with milk and honey, the land where the grapes 0:21:46.680 --> 0:21:48.560 are so big you need a partner to help you 0:21:48.640 --> 0:21:51.399 carry him on a pole, all the way to the 0:21:51.480 --> 0:21:54.280 land of Canaan, where they could have their own land 0:21:54.320 --> 0:21:57.480 and settle in it and declare the goodness of God 0:21:57.760 --> 0:22:00.879 as their inheritance. He wanted to lead them all the 0:22:00.880 --> 0:22:03.720 way to Canaan, so he gave them a cloud. See, 0:22:03.920 --> 0:22:07.440 and when the cloud lifted, they got up. And when 0:22:07.480 --> 0:22:09.920 they got up and moved forward, the cloud took them 0:22:10.240 --> 0:22:14.120 until it's settled again. And when it settled, they settled. 0:22:14.280 --> 0:22:17.760 And this was the system God gave them in the wilderness. 0:22:18.119 --> 0:22:19.719 And I'm thinking it would be kind of good if 0:22:19.720 --> 0:22:22.359 God would give me this for my wilderness. You know, 0:22:22.760 --> 0:22:26.320 let me know what to do. Give me clarity, God. 0:22:26.640 --> 0:22:28.480 I just need to see how many of you want 0:22:28.520 --> 0:22:31.080 God to show you something in your life right now, 0:22:31.400 --> 0:22:36.120 this or that, him or her, them or them Here 0:22:36.560 --> 0:22:42.240 or there now or later, yes or no? Clarity, Clarity, clarity, clarity, clarity. 0:22:42.440 --> 0:22:44.680 I need to see. I can't live in a cloud 0:22:44.680 --> 0:22:48.080 of confusion not knowing is this God. I've got to 0:22:48.200 --> 0:22:50.720 know it's God if I'm going to go. The only 0:22:50.920 --> 0:22:57.000 problem with that, The only problem with that is that 0:22:57.200 --> 0:23:02.680 God can give you clarity, but if you don't commit. 0:23:06.320 --> 0:23:08.080 In fact, I'm going to go a little further than that. 0:23:09.160 --> 0:23:18.879 Clarity comes from commitment. Abraham, go to the land I 0:23:18.920 --> 0:23:22.240 will show you. And a lot of us are confused 0:23:22.920 --> 0:23:27.440 because we're not committed. We haven't really decided to serve 0:23:27.520 --> 0:23:31.400 God with our whole heart. So now we're asking God, Oh, 0:23:31.680 --> 0:23:33.879 show me. I want one of those clouds. Lord, I 0:23:33.880 --> 0:23:35.760 want one of those clouds to lead me into a 0:23:35.800 --> 0:23:38.680 new career. I want one of those clouds to show me. God, 0:23:38.800 --> 0:23:41.439 give me one of those clouds like Moses had. Moses 0:23:41.480 --> 0:23:44.080 had a cloud. God give me a cloud and lead me. 0:23:44.160 --> 0:23:49.480 What good would it do? The cloud led them around 0:23:49.560 --> 0:23:54.320 and around and around and around in the wilderness, because 0:23:54.359 --> 0:23:58.159 when it finally got them to Canaan, they didn't have 0:23:58.240 --> 0:24:01.919 the courage to go in and conquer it. Did you 0:24:01.960 --> 0:24:06.120 hear what I said, God? Gave them clarity. Okay, this 0:24:06.200 --> 0:24:08.080 is what I want you to do. This is where 0:24:08.119 --> 0:24:10.160 I want you to go. Here is who I've called 0:24:10.200 --> 0:24:11.960 you to be. This is what I want to give 0:24:12.000 --> 0:24:15.840 to you. They had clarity, but they didn't have the 0:24:16.000 --> 0:24:20.160 courage to act on the clarity that God gave them. 0:24:21.640 --> 0:24:25.359 So we keep saying, God, I need more information, God, 0:24:25.480 --> 0:24:30.600 I need more knowledge. We don't need knowledge, we need commitment, 0:24:32.240 --> 0:24:35.359 because the moment you decide I'm going to be free, 0:24:35.680 --> 0:24:39.840 God will show you where the keys are. The moment 0:24:39.880 --> 0:24:43.720 you decide not just dabble, not just testing, not just 0:24:44.560 --> 0:24:47.919 not just sometimes, not just once every three weeks, not 0:24:48.080 --> 0:24:50.400 just when you hear a sermon, get fired up. The 0:24:50.440 --> 0:25:00.000 moment you commit to it, God will give you clarity. 0:25:00.160 --> 0:25:04.680 Clarity comes with commitment. The moment you decide, I'm gonna 0:25:04.760 --> 0:25:06.840 be a better husband, God will show you how to 0:25:06.840 --> 0:25:09.760 be a better husband. The moment you decide I am 0:25:09.800 --> 0:25:12.720 not gonna keep running to these drugs anymore. God will 0:25:12.760 --> 0:25:14.760 show you who to talk to that can help you 0:25:14.800 --> 0:25:18.520 make different decisions. The moment you decide, the moment you commit, 0:25:19.760 --> 0:25:25.199 and the moment that you step is the moment that 0:25:25.280 --> 0:25:32.959 you're strengthened so now we've got a conversation that we 0:25:33.040 --> 0:25:34.800 need to have, not how much does God love you? 0:25:35.880 --> 0:25:39.600