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Speaker 1: Hey, this is Stephen Ferdick. I'm the pastor of Elevation

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Speaker 1: Church and this is our podcast. I wanted to thank

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Speaker 1: you for joining us today. Hope this inspires you. Hope

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Speaker 1: it builds your faith. Hope it gives your perspective to

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Speaker 1: see God is moving in your life. Enjoy the message.

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Speaker 1: Let's get into the scripture now, the Book of Matthew

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Speaker 1: chapter eleven, verse two and three. And as I share

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Speaker 1: this with you today, I pray that it will be

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Speaker 1: a very personal experience for you. Matthew chapter eleven, Versus

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Speaker 1: two and three. When John, who was in prison, heard

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Speaker 1: about the deeds of the Messiah, he sent his disciples

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Speaker 1: to ask him, are you the one who is to come?

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Speaker 1: Or should we expect someone else? And really let's focus

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Speaker 1: on the first part of that, When John who was

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Speaker 1: in prison, You'll find my message right between those commas

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Speaker 1: in that little clause. When John and here's the phrase,

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Speaker 1: who was in prison him? Today, I'd like to speak

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Speaker 1: to you about invisible prisons. Invisible prisons, and let's pray

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Speaker 1: one more time. God, you hold the keys, you have

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Speaker 1: all authority, your sovereign, and we believe that you can

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Speaker 1: do anything. Now enable your servants to have the kind

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Speaker 1: of faith that will connect with Heaven, get us past

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Speaker 1: the point of our own perspective, and help us to

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Speaker 1: see things like you see him for a few minutes.

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Speaker 1: We believe that if we do, things will change in

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Speaker 1: our lives. In Jesus' name, I pray, Amen, you may

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Speaker 1: be seated low ocd. My Bible was on the wrong

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Speaker 1: side of the thing. I have to keep it a

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Speaker 1: certain way. And you know, it's funny when you're married

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Speaker 1: to somebody, you notice all these little things about them.

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Speaker 1: Now listen, this is not hyperbole. Holly Ferdick is pretty

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Speaker 1: much the perfect wife. We don't have the perfect marriage,

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Speaker 1: but she's like, you know, nine point nine out of

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Speaker 1: ten on the way, and even look at me, Look

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Speaker 1: at me. I'm not just earning points up here trying

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Speaker 1: to get something started in the afternoon after I preach.

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Speaker 1: I promise you she really is. And even when we

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Speaker 1: miss each other just by that point zero zero zero

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Speaker 1: zero zero one, it's usually just she's even trying. And

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Speaker 1: sometimes it's just like she loves me so much and

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Speaker 1: messes things up, you know, like she she used to

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Speaker 1: introduce me. We would go to the different campuses and

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Speaker 1: have a campus vision night, and so we'd be like

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Speaker 1: at University City or at Riverwalk the artist formerly known

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Speaker 1: as Rock Hill, and she get up to introduce me

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Speaker 1: like she'd she'd read a scripture, greet the people, and

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Speaker 1: she would tell them, now, in a few moments, our

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Speaker 1: pastor is gonna come preach and let me tell you

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Speaker 1: it's going to be a good one tonight. And they

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Speaker 1: cheer a little bit, and she'd say, I mean, I'm

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Speaker 1: telling you he's been studying all day. I mean to

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Speaker 1: tell you he hadn't come out of his room. I

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Speaker 1: went in the room and he was on his face

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Speaker 1: on the carpet, seeking God and worshiping God. And then

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Speaker 1: he and then he on the way over, he had

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Speaker 1: a napkin out and he was writing his sermon notes

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Speaker 1: on a napkin. And he's just fired up. And I've

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Speaker 1: never seen him this fired up. And I think tonight

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Speaker 1: might be the best message that he's ever going to

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Speaker 1: preach in his life. And I'm like, shut up. This

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Speaker 1: is too much pressure, Like I cannot take the expectations.

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Speaker 1: And it's like ah, like everything she says, it's like

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Speaker 1: I can't possibly make it this good, you know, get

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Speaker 1: up and tell him I've been sick and and the

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Speaker 1: kids have been crazy, and it's just a miracle that

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Speaker 1: I'm here. And then, you know, I could just jump

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Speaker 1: over that. You know, I could dunk on that. Just

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Speaker 1: set the goal about five feet, I could dunk on that.

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Speaker 1: You know what I'm saying. She puts it up so

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Speaker 1: high I can't possibly reach it. It's about expectations. Marriage

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Speaker 1: is about expectations. I could I could preach a seminar

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Speaker 1: on that. Let's do another time, because it's just the

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Speaker 1: idea of when you don't understand someone's expectations, you can't

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Speaker 1: make sense of their disappointments. And faith when you get

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Speaker 1: to the essence of it is an expectation, a confident

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Speaker 1: assurance that a negative circumstance still holds the potential to

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Speaker 1: produce great purpose in my life. Come on, shout on that.

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Speaker 1: I'm gonna teach y'all where to shout. Y'all been coming

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Speaker 1: to church too many years to not know where the

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Speaker 1: shouting part is. That's the shouting part means I can

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Speaker 1: walk into something dark and light it up because of

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Speaker 1: my faith, because the light of the world lives in me.

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Speaker 1: You say, Jesus is the light of the world. Absolutely

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Speaker 1: he is, but guess where he lives. It's an expectation.

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Speaker 1: Faith is an expectation to know that, even if the

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Speaker 1: sequence of things doesn't make sense in my life, that God,

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Speaker 1: who lives outside of time, because he is eternal, knows

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Speaker 1: the end from the beginning. So then I have to

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Speaker 1: trust him with element op if he is Z and A,

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Speaker 1: and if A is related to Z, because he is

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Speaker 1: Alpha and Omega beginning in the end, the first and

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Speaker 1: the last. My faith is an expectation that before the

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Speaker 1: movie even starts, he's already shot the closing scene. It

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Speaker 1: helps me to know today that I don't have to

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Speaker 1: live in suspense as to whether or not I will

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Speaker 1: see the goodness of the Lord in the land of

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Speaker 1: the living. Because faith is an expectation. Faith enables me

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Speaker 1: to wake up in the morning knowing that surely goodness

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Speaker 1: and mercy will follow me all the days of my life.

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Speaker 1: And since this is one of the days of my life,

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Speaker 1: Goodness and mercy are my bodyguards, one on my right

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Speaker 1: and one on my left. You can't see them there invisible,

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Speaker 1: but if you look real close, I've got security. Tell somebody,

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Speaker 1: say I got security. Goodness and mercy. The favor of

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Speaker 1: the Lord is the filter through which I view the

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Speaker 1: fights of my life. Knowing this that he who began

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Speaker 1: a good work in me will be faithful to complete it.

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Speaker 1: Don't know when, don't know how, not even sure what

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Speaker 1: he's doing yet. But my faith gives me an expectation.

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Speaker 1: Now unto him who is able to do immeasurably more

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Speaker 1: than we ask or imagine, according to his power that

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Speaker 1: works mightily in us, not according to my preference, not

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Speaker 1: according to my understanding or the finite finite you know, small, little,

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Speaker 1: puny way that I tend to come at situations. But

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Speaker 1: my faith is an expectation, and this expectation is contagious.

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Speaker 1: Talk about talk about expectations. Man John, the Baptist who

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Speaker 1: we just read about, he was he was really, really

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Speaker 1: familiar with the pressure of high expectations because he was

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Speaker 1: a miraculous, miraculously born baby, and an angel prophesied his birth,

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Speaker 1: and in fact, when his mother, Elizabeth got pregnant, you know,

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Speaker 1: his father Zacho, was so shocked by it that he

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Speaker 1: told the angel it couldn't happen because they were kind

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Speaker 1: of old, and so his expectation, you know with age,

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Speaker 1: one thing can happen with age. That's good. You can

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Speaker 1: get experience, but it can diminish expectation. Do you know

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Speaker 1: what I mean by that? I'm looking for over forty

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Speaker 1: because I'm not there yet. I'm familiar with this. But

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Speaker 1: John was born. Before he was born, you have to

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Speaker 1: understand that he was the voice that prepared the way

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Speaker 1: for the Lord that the entire nation was expecting to

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Speaker 1: deliver them from oppression. That was their expectation of the Messiah.

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Speaker 1: They looked for for hundreds of years, in centuries, so

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Speaker 1: that this generation that was alive at the time the

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Speaker 1: birth of Christ had heard the stories, the rumors, and

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Speaker 1: the rumblings about the possibility and potential of his coming

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Speaker 1: into the world, and this expectation from their heart was

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Speaker 1: that he would then set them free from oppression, whether

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Speaker 1: economic or political, or deliver them from their their circumstantial containment.

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Speaker 1: There's an expectation, and one thing you got to do

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Speaker 1: when you have an expectation is make sure that you

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Speaker 1: connect yourself with people who have a similar expectation. And

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Speaker 1: this is important because expectation is contagious. Say that out loud,

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Speaker 1: expectation is contagious. Those of you watching this message, you

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Speaker 1: didn't get to be with us in worship. I had

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Speaker 1: everybody in the church turn to each other, and I

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Speaker 1: had them check with their neighbor and make sure that

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Speaker 1: their neighbor was the right neighbor, because I don't want

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Speaker 1: them sitting next to anybody who's not expecting God to

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Speaker 1: speak today, just going to play something on their phone,

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Speaker 1: you know, candy Crush or whatever game is popular. Now,

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Speaker 1: play that stuff. I read my Bible in my free times. Kidding,

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Speaker 1: I was kidding, read my Bible, watch YouTube in my

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Speaker 1: free time. But but I was just having them check,

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Speaker 1: you know, because expectation is contagious. Here's how contagious it is.

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Speaker 1: When John the Baptist was still in Elizabeth's womb, an

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Speaker 1: angel appeared six months after Elizabeth got pregnant with John

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Speaker 1: the Baptist to Mary, who was a relative of Elizabeth.

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Speaker 1: Now you know, Mary, Mary, did you know from Christmas?

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Speaker 1: She was told that she was going to have a

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Speaker 1: baby and she hadn't had relations. And it's kind of

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Speaker 1: hard to believe a revelation that completely contradicts the circumstances

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Speaker 1: surrounding it. So the first thing that she did when

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Speaker 1: the angel left was going to the Hill country to

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Speaker 1: see her relative named Elizabeth, because the angel said, she's

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Speaker 1: also expecting. The best thing you can do when you

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Speaker 1: are expecting is to get around somebody else who's expecting.

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Speaker 1: If you get around somebody who's expecting, your expectation will rise.

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Speaker 1: That's why I come to church, to be honest with you,

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Speaker 1: because you know what, I could watch it on my phone,

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Speaker 1: but there's something about being in an atmosphere with people

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Speaker 1: who are also expected. You know what, if you're watching

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Speaker 1: this message in your house, next time you watch it,

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Speaker 1: invite somebody over and you'll drink some coffee together and

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Speaker 1: get some expectation between the two of you, and get

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Speaker 1: a Bible and break out your Bible and stand up

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Speaker 1: on your feet while I'm preaching. Even if you're watching

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Speaker 1: in your kitchen, if you got somebody next to you,

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Speaker 1: grab them right now and tell them I'm expecting something,

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Speaker 1: and what I need is somebody who will help me

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Speaker 1: with this expectation, because if I don't get around somebody

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Speaker 1: who's expecting something. This is so real. This is so

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Speaker 1: real that we've got worship leaders in this church who

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Speaker 1: lead worship and don't even have a microphone, because when

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Speaker 1: we're pulling in today, Graham, who's eleven, said to me,

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Speaker 1: we listened to hes Ki Walker on the way to

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Speaker 1: church today, So I had, I had, I had the

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Speaker 1: car bumping on the way in the parking lot. And

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Speaker 1: then we moved over into Israel Hoten circa. Two thousand

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Speaker 1: and six, and and then we pulled by the parking team.

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Speaker 1: And do you know my son said to me when

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Speaker 1: we pulled by the parking team, he said, I love

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Speaker 1: that guy. Now this is Graham. Graham doesn't has never

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Speaker 1: even said he loved me, but he he was like,

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Speaker 1: I love him. You can tell he's excited. Graham never

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Speaker 1: said I love Chris Brown. He never said it once ever.

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Speaker 1: But that parking attendant, Graham said, he does so much

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Speaker 1: for our church. What could we do for him? But

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Speaker 1: it was a childlike faith. And I promise I'm gonna

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Speaker 1: talk about John the Baptist in a minute. But it's

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Speaker 1: the craziest thing that when somebody is also expecting, you know,

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Speaker 1: it created an expectation. Even in the parking lot, my

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Speaker 1: son felt something. What he felt though he didn't know,

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Speaker 1: it was the Holy Spirit in that man. The Holy

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Speaker 1: Spirit in that man who didn't need a microphone. He

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Speaker 1: had an orange baton, and he was expecting that when

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Speaker 1: you pull in my parking lot, you're pulling up on

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Speaker 1: the holy ground. So get ready something good. I'm expecting something.

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Speaker 1: So when Elizabeth and Mary got together, Mary said, oh,

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Speaker 1: I just got bumped. Mary said, what do you mean,

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Speaker 1: I just got bumped? This is the new modern steam

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Speaker 1: for the translation of Bible. What do you mean you

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Speaker 1: just got bumped? She said, When you got here, the

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Speaker 1: baby in your womb made the baby in my womb

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Speaker 1: leap for joy. Now you can't see it, it's invisible.

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Speaker 1: But something in you, the Jesus in you, the Christ

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Speaker 1: in you. I'm gonna calm down in a minute of preach.

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Speaker 1: But somebody who's got a purpose on the inside, sound

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Speaker 1: like you're expecting the greatest days of your life. Come

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Speaker 1: on on, every campus. Let's take nineteen seconds and praise

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Speaker 1: a minute. There. It's all right, it's all right. It's

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Speaker 1: all right to be expected, it's all right, it's all right.

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Speaker 1: It's all right to love Jesus. It's all right to

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Speaker 1: be enthusiastic. It's all right. It's all right to lift

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Speaker 1: up your eyes to the hills. And know where your

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Speaker 1: health comes from. Expectation is contagious, so is skepticism. Sit down,

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Speaker 1: we gotta modulate because a lot has happened since John

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Speaker 1: the Baptist was jumping up and down in Elizabeth's womb

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Speaker 1: as a fetus. You know what I mean? Like a

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Speaker 1: lot happens between when something gets birthed and the point

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Speaker 1: now where's he started his ministry. He's like, he's been

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Speaker 1: doing his job. You've been doing your job. Just remember

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Speaker 1: the Titans. You've been doing your job. He's been doing

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Speaker 1: his job. And Jesus now is really really getting He's

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Speaker 1: getting popular. He's blowing up, as some would say. Now

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Speaker 1: this is not before the blow up. Jesus is blowing

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Speaker 1: all the way up, all the way up. And John,

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Speaker 1: according to the text, is in prison. When John first

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Speaker 1: saw Jesus as an adult, and whether or not they

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Speaker 1: had much contact during their teenage years is not recorded

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Speaker 1: in scripture. But one thing we know is that when

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Speaker 1: John saw Jesus at one point when he was baptizing

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Speaker 1: in the Jordan River, John identified Jesus not by the

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Speaker 1: activities that he did, but he identified him based on

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Speaker 1: the essence of who he was, which is really important

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Speaker 1: in how we relate to God, because if we only

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Speaker 1: learn to identify God by what he does and what

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Speaker 1: he does for us, then our expectation will be attached

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Speaker 1: to his activity. And that's dangerous. It's very dangerous to have.

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Speaker 1: It's very dangerous to have a low expectation of God.

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Speaker 1: Then you just live the life at the level of

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Speaker 1: your disappointments and then wonder why everything turns out exactly

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Speaker 1: the way you imagined it to turn out because you

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Speaker 1: didn't have any faith for anything else. It's a self

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Speaker 1: fulfilling prophecy. But it's also very dangerous, isn't it, to

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Speaker 1: have an expectation of God that is not congruent with

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Speaker 1: his character. And this is where it gets difficult for us,

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Speaker 1: because and babies in the womb is one thing. But

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Speaker 1: now when John who was in prison, not in prison

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Speaker 1: for a meth laugh, not in prison because you know,

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Speaker 1: not in prison for a domestic disturbance, in prison for

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Speaker 1: standing up to a wicked king herod and because he

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Speaker 1: wouldn't say what was expected of him to be said,

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Speaker 1: because he was a prophet and he didn't operate like

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Speaker 1: that and he was kind of rough, y'all. John the

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Speaker 1: Baptist was if he had a Twitter account, it would

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Speaker 1: definitely it would definitely need to be suspended. He would

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Speaker 1: definitely be deplatformed in this day. In this PC day,

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Speaker 1: John the Baptist would not have much of an audience,

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Speaker 1: but he was very popular in his time until Jesus came.

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Speaker 1: And when Jesus came, he said, look, Lamb of God

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Speaker 1: takes away his sins the world. Don't follow me, follow

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Speaker 1: him John three thirty. He must become greater. I must

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Speaker 1: become less. Follow him, not me. Whole reason i'm here

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Speaker 1: is point to him. Here he is, y'all go with him.

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Speaker 1: I'm gonna do my thing prepared the way. I'm just

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Speaker 1: a voice. I'm not the one. I'm just a voice

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Speaker 1: pointing to the one. So I know my place. So

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Speaker 1: I'm gonna fall back now so he can do what

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Speaker 1: he came to do, and what he came to do

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Speaker 1: watch this was to judge the unwickedness and to bring

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Speaker 1: the people to repentance. That was John's favorite message. He

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Speaker 1: loved that word repent. He just preached it all the time,

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Speaker 1: and when they would come out to be baptized by him,

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Speaker 1: he would call him names. He one time called the

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Speaker 1: Pharisees a brute of vipers. I thought that would be

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Speaker 1: an interesting way to welcome the campuses one weekend. And

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Speaker 1: yet there was a prophetic power to his ministry that

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Speaker 1: people were attracted to because he would say things that

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Speaker 1: were true, whether they wanted them to be true or not.

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Speaker 1: And yet that same spirit. And I really want to

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Speaker 1: isolate this. I didn't do it last night, but I

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Speaker 1: was thinking the same thing that made him so great

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Speaker 1: got him in trouble, the same thing that made him

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Speaker 1: able to just take a stand. And I'm not moving.

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Speaker 1: And this is how it's gonna be. Repent, Repent, repent.

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Speaker 1: Let me show you one example. Can I show you

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Speaker 1: one example of what his message was. So he's out

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Speaker 1: baptizing at the Jordan. He baptized Jesus. He said, uh,

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Speaker 1: I'm not worthy to untie your thong of your sandaljes said,

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Speaker 1: we got to do it to fulfill all righteousness. It's proper,

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Speaker 1: it's appropriate. Stop thinking about how you think it needs

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Speaker 1: to be, and I'm telling you how it needs to be.

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Speaker 1: You're just the voice. You're not You're not the message.

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Speaker 1: You're just the voice. Again, You're not the message. You're

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Speaker 1: just the voice. One more time. You're not the message,

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Speaker 1: You're just the voice. And so he baptized Jesus in obedience,

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Speaker 1: even though it didn't make sense. And now watch this.

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Speaker 1: This is something that he said that shows us what

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Speaker 1: his expectation was. And if you don't understand his expectation,

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Speaker 1: you can't make sense of his disappointment. This was his

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Speaker 1: expectation of the Messiah. This was his expectation of the

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Speaker 1: one that he gave away his ministry to. This was

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Speaker 1: his expectation of the Lamb of God, who takes away

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Speaker 1: the sin of the world and is found in Matthew

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Speaker 1: chapter three. Watch this, he's talking to the crowds. I

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Speaker 1: baptize you with water for repentance. But after me comes

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Speaker 1: one who is more powerful than I, who sandals I

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Speaker 1: am not worthy to carry. He'll baptize you with the

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Speaker 1: Holy Spirit and fire. Watch this verse twelve. His winnowing

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Speaker 1: fork is in hand. Ooh, that's what you used to

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Speaker 1: get the chaff owl the wickedness. You winnow it out,

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Speaker 1: and you separate the sheep from the goats, the good

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Speaker 1: from the bad, the righteous from the wicked. He's got

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Speaker 1: his winnowing fork. He's here now, and it's about to

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Speaker 1: go down. It's about to get good. The Lamb of

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Speaker 1: God is here, and he's got his winnowing fork in

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Speaker 1: his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor, gathering

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Speaker 1: his wheat to the barn and burning up the chaff

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Speaker 1: with unquenchable fire. It's about to be fire. The Son

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Speaker 1: of God is here. It's about to be fire. He's

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Speaker 1: got a fork and he's about to start a fire.

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Speaker 1: And he's burning up all y'all that don't want to

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Speaker 1: do it, and get right and get left, and you know,

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Speaker 1: all this stuff he had John the Baptist had a

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Speaker 1: church sign. It would have all those things about hell

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Speaker 1: on it, you know, about the fire and the wicked

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Speaker 1: and the righteous and turn or burn, and you know,

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Speaker 1: and he's got his fork in one hand. Now watch this.

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Speaker 1: He's in prison now. He's in prison now, and something

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Speaker 1: is making him doubt what he was so sure about

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Speaker 1: from the time even before he was born, what he

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Speaker 1: knew before he was even born, he's now doubting in

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Speaker 1: this prison. Sends messengers one hundred miles on foot just

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Speaker 1: to ask Jesus one question. And I get it, because

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Speaker 1: you know, we're supposed to be partners. And here I

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Speaker 1: am in prison, and all I keep seeing is you

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Speaker 1: healing people, blessing people. All I see, all I keep

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Speaker 1: seeing is the reports of how awesome it's going for you.

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Speaker 1: But I stood up to a king and I'm here

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Speaker 1: in prison, And here's what he's wondering. Did you catch it?

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Speaker 1: In the verse? He said, are you the one? Or

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Speaker 1: should we expect someone else? In other words? Is it

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Speaker 1: always gonna be like this? In other words, I thought

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Speaker 1: I thought I thought you were gonna Have you ever

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Speaker 1: thought God was gonna where'd y'all go? Y'all were fired

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Speaker 1: up when we had a little praise moment and all that.

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Speaker 1: Have you ever thought God was gonna you? Have you

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Speaker 1: ever wondered? Because John the Baptist is just wondering. He's

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Speaker 1: just wondering. He's not denying Jesus. He's not. He's not.

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Speaker 1: He's not turning away from the sovereign Lord who bought him.

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Speaker 1: He's not. He's he's he's not contradicting what he said

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Speaker 1: to begin with. He's just thinking, now, maybe God isn't

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Speaker 1: what I thought he was. Maybe the one that I

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Speaker 1: trusted in, maybe I trusted in the wrong one. Now

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Speaker 1: You don't say it like that, because if you said

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Speaker 1: it like that, you would be scared. God would hit

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Speaker 1: you with the lightning bolt. But you just send messengers.

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Speaker 1: You don't say it like that directly, but indirectly. Somebody

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Speaker 1: came in here wondering, and you don't talk about this.

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Speaker 1: You're you're wondering. You know, God made some promises and

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Speaker 1: and here's the here's the interesting thing about it. A

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Speaker 1: lot of times our entire faith journey is sabotaged because

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Speaker 1: of our expectation of salvation when it gets started. And

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Speaker 1: I'm not sure that as preachers we've been very responsible

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Speaker 1: about it, because a lot of times we will preach

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Speaker 1: that salvation from your sin is a one time event.

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Speaker 1: In fact, it is you will never pay the penalty

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Speaker 1: of your sin. Jesus is the lamb of God. This

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Speaker 1: is what John knuw who takes away the sin of

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Speaker 1: the world. But the power of sin is very different

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Speaker 1: than the penalty of sin, and the patterns of sin

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Speaker 1: are very different than the penalty of sin. So when

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Speaker 1: we preach that you've been forgiven of your sin, you

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Speaker 1: are set free from the penalty of your sin. But

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Speaker 1: if the pattern of your sin has been ingrained, not

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Speaker 1: only just throughout your lifetime, but some of it is

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Speaker 1: even generational, and some addictions that you are fighting against,

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Speaker 1: you know, the invisible prisons that you live in, the

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Speaker 1: things that you do over a over again. I was

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Speaker 1: thinking about how some of us are in invisible prisons today,

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Speaker 1: even as we try to appear free to people. There

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Speaker 1: is a spiritual depression on so many, so many thousands

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Speaker 1: that I will preach to this weekend, and nobody can

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Speaker 1: see it because we paint the walls with a smile,

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Speaker 1: but we live behind bars on the inside. It's an

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Speaker 1: invisible prison. It's ways of thinking and reasoning and fearing.

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Speaker 1: Because when I realized John was in two different prisons

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Speaker 1: at the same time, it clarified the text for me.

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Speaker 1: One was the one that herod Antipus put him in

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Speaker 1: for saying what he didn't want to hear. But the

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Speaker 1: other one was an invisible prison. The other one is

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Speaker 1: one that I'm all too familiar with. This is the

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Speaker 1: prison of your expectations, This is the prison of your plans,

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Speaker 1: This is the prison of what you thought God was

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Speaker 1: going to do. You know, hey, go ask Jesus, are

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Speaker 1: you the one? Because uh I told everybody. You're the

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Speaker 1: one I told everybody you had your fork and you're

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Speaker 1: about to start a fire. Watch what the messengers say

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Speaker 1: back to John. They say, Jesus, reply, go back and

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Speaker 1: report to Jarn what you hear and see. Look at

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Speaker 1: this list. The blind receives sight, the lame walk, those

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Speaker 1: who have leprosy are cleansed the deaf. Here the dead

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Speaker 1: are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor.

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Speaker 1: Blessed is anyone who does not stumble on account of me.

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Speaker 1: Watch what wasn't in that verse, the fork and the fire.

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Speaker 1: Jesus wasn't doing any of the things that John wanted

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Speaker 1: him to do. Read the list again. The blind received site,

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Speaker 1: the lame walk, those who have leprosy or cleanse the death.

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Speaker 1: Here the dead or rays, and the good news is

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Speaker 1: proclaimed to the fore Go tell John that, And John's like,

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Speaker 1: I'm just checking, Jesus, where's the fork? Where's the fire?

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Speaker 1: You know? WTF? You ever had a moment? Why y'all

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Speaker 1: hate me today? You never had a where's the fork?

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Speaker 1: Where's the fire? Jo? John is having a moment. John

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Speaker 1: is in a WTF moment with the Lord. Walk out

426
00:27:55,600 --> 00:27:59,280
Speaker 1: if you want to, but if you'll be really honest.

427
00:28:00,400 --> 00:28:04,280
Speaker 1: If you'll be really honest, there are some things in

428
00:28:04,320 --> 00:28:07,840
Speaker 1: your life you're trying to figure out. Right now, come on,

429
00:28:07,920 --> 00:28:13,639
Speaker 1: where is it? Where is it? What in the world

430
00:28:14,560 --> 00:28:21,480
Speaker 1: is this? Somebody show what is this? What is this? Yeah? Yeah,

431
00:28:21,640 --> 00:28:23,919
Speaker 1: I don't know. I just need to know because I

432
00:28:24,000 --> 00:28:26,439
Speaker 1: thought you were gonna and that is the prison that

433
00:28:26,480 --> 00:28:29,320
Speaker 1: we spend so much of our lives in what we

434
00:28:29,600 --> 00:28:32,560
Speaker 1: thought God was gonna do. But I got a question

435
00:28:32,680 --> 00:28:35,480
Speaker 1: for you. What if He really is able to do

436
00:28:35,600 --> 00:28:39,440
Speaker 1: immeasurably more than you ask her. Imagine? What if he

437
00:28:39,520 --> 00:28:43,040
Speaker 1: wants to do something so much better than your mind

438
00:28:43,160 --> 00:28:54,680
Speaker 1: can comprehend. Is you deopen to that? What if God

439
00:28:54,720 --> 00:28:57,240
Speaker 1: didn't want to meet your expectations because he wanted to

440
00:28:57,280 --> 00:29:04,480
Speaker 1: exceed them. And now I'm gonna make you sit back

441
00:29:04,520 --> 00:29:08,480
Speaker 1: down because You're not gonna like this. The way he

442
00:29:08,520 --> 00:29:22,160
Speaker 1: grows my faith is usually to disappoint my expectation. John's

443
00:29:22,240 --> 00:29:28,360
Speaker 1: like this, This is what I gave up my ministry

444
00:29:28,360 --> 00:29:33,560
Speaker 1: for this. I gave my life to Jesus and I'm

445
00:29:33,600 --> 00:29:39,040
Speaker 1: still struggling with depression and anxiety. This because it was

446
00:29:39,080 --> 00:29:45,400
Speaker 1: your expectation of deliverance that is causing your disappointment. Go

447
00:29:45,440 --> 00:29:51,160
Speaker 1: tell John wishes blind c the death here, the lame walk.

448
00:29:52,680 --> 00:29:55,400
Speaker 1: Tell him, I'm touching people that nobody else would touch,

449
00:29:56,080 --> 00:29:59,880
Speaker 1: that were quarantined because of this dreadful disease called leprosy,

450
00:30:00,120 --> 00:30:02,080
Speaker 1: able to go back to their family because they're cleansed

451
00:30:02,080 --> 00:30:04,000
Speaker 1: and they can live their life. Tell him all that.

452
00:30:05,440 --> 00:30:07,000
Speaker 1: But you know he's not making this upright. This is

453
00:30:07,000 --> 00:30:09,840
Speaker 1: what he came to do. This is what he announced

454
00:30:09,840 --> 00:30:12,360
Speaker 1: that he came to do. In Luke chapter four, he said,

455
00:30:12,400 --> 00:30:13,640
Speaker 1: the spirit of the Lord is on me because he's

456
00:30:13,680 --> 00:30:16,760
Speaker 1: quote Isaiah sixty one, because he is fulfilling the prophecy,

457
00:30:17,120 --> 00:30:21,240
Speaker 1: not fulfilling their preferences. Fulfilling the prophecy. It's very different.

458
00:30:21,480 --> 00:30:25,120
Speaker 1: He's fulfilling what he said. He was not what they

459
00:30:25,200 --> 00:30:28,000
Speaker 1: thought he was going to be. That's what God is

460
00:30:28,040 --> 00:30:30,800
Speaker 1: trying to deliver us from, you see it, from what

461
00:30:30,920 --> 00:30:33,840
Speaker 1: we thought he was going to be. He's so much

462
00:30:33,920 --> 00:30:37,200
Speaker 1: bigger than that. He's so much better than that. His

463
00:30:37,280 --> 00:30:40,080
Speaker 1: plan is so much bigger than that. His purpose is

464
00:30:40,120 --> 00:30:42,720
Speaker 1: so much greater than that. And John said, are you

465
00:30:42,800 --> 00:30:44,400
Speaker 1: the one? He said, go back and tell him that

466
00:30:44,400 --> 00:30:47,440
Speaker 1: the death here and the blind sea and the lepers

467
00:30:47,440 --> 00:30:50,720
Speaker 1: are touched, and the eyes of the blind are open,

468
00:30:50,840 --> 00:30:52,800
Speaker 1: and the ears of the death. This is all from

469
00:30:52,920 --> 00:30:54,920
Speaker 1: Luke chapter four. Look it up when he unrolled the scroll,

470
00:30:54,960 --> 00:30:56,680
Speaker 1: when he stood up to read in his hometown, and

471
00:30:56,720 --> 00:30:58,800
Speaker 1: he said, to this day, is this prophecy fulfilled? In

472
00:30:58,840 --> 00:31:01,640
Speaker 1: your hearing? Came the spirit of the Lord is upon me,

473
00:31:01,720 --> 00:31:03,240
Speaker 1: for he has annoyed me to preach the good news

474
00:31:03,280 --> 00:31:05,600
Speaker 1: to the poor, recovery of sight to the blind. He

475
00:31:05,640 --> 00:31:07,479
Speaker 1: sent me to open death fears. He sent me to

476
00:31:07,480 --> 00:31:09,800
Speaker 1: do all this. But one thing he left out when

477
00:31:09,840 --> 00:31:12,600
Speaker 1: he sent the message to John. And this is crazy, Zach,

478
00:31:12,640 --> 00:31:14,320
Speaker 1: because I know how much you left the Bible, so

479
00:31:14,360 --> 00:31:16,360
Speaker 1: it's gonna blow your mind. The only thing that he

480
00:31:16,560 --> 00:31:18,640
Speaker 1: left out. He added some stuff to it, but he

481
00:31:18,720 --> 00:31:24,800
Speaker 1: left one thing out. Freedom for the prisoners. Look it

482
00:31:24,920 --> 00:31:34,080
Speaker 1: up right now, reference me. It's in Luke for I

483
00:31:34,120 --> 00:31:38,760
Speaker 1: can wait. I know I'm right about this, unless you

484
00:31:38,840 --> 00:31:42,960
Speaker 1: got some weird bible that you made for yourself. Luke,

485
00:31:43,040 --> 00:31:46,760
Speaker 1: For it's like eighteen nineteen something like that. What's his say?

486
00:31:48,520 --> 00:31:53,800
Speaker 1: Eighteen nineteen? What was say? Spear Lord's This is Rick Parker,

487
00:31:53,840 --> 00:31:56,520
Speaker 1: the one that you'll always hear on the podcast the

488
00:31:57,120 --> 00:32:01,360
Speaker 1: one you hey, Rick, you know you're famous on the podcast.

489
00:32:02,120 --> 00:32:04,680
Speaker 1: He's the one always talking back to me. The country guy.

490
00:32:05,120 --> 00:32:06,840
Speaker 1: He's always talking back to them. People ask me all

491
00:32:06,880 --> 00:32:09,040
Speaker 1: the time, who's that country guy that's always talking back

492
00:32:09,080 --> 00:32:13,160
Speaker 1: to you. That's Rick Parker. What does it saying? Yeah, yeah, yeah,

493
00:32:14,000 --> 00:32:21,080
Speaker 1: Gospel to the poor, healed the broken heart, Liberty to

494
00:32:21,120 --> 00:32:26,840
Speaker 1: the captives. Where's that? He said? Tell John, I'm doing

495
00:32:26,880 --> 00:32:32,200
Speaker 1: it all. Tell John that everything I said I would do,

496
00:32:32,760 --> 00:32:36,800
Speaker 1: I'm doing it. But what I said I would do

497
00:32:37,520 --> 00:32:42,320
Speaker 1: is not what he was expecting. And tell John that

498
00:32:42,400 --> 00:32:46,600
Speaker 1: I need his faith not to rest in his idea

499
00:32:46,800 --> 00:32:49,760
Speaker 1: of who he thought I was. I'm gonna preach this

500
00:32:49,840 --> 00:32:53,720
Speaker 1: home right now. I need his faith not to rest

501
00:32:54,000 --> 00:32:57,680
Speaker 1: in whether or not I fulfill his agenda. Look, so

502
00:32:57,760 --> 00:32:59,840
Speaker 1: many of the things that Jesus did in the scripture,

503
00:33:00,080 --> 00:33:02,800
Speaker 1: it was a hidden agenda. In fact, he even spoke

504
00:33:02,840 --> 00:33:05,240
Speaker 1: in parables, not so the people would get a cute

505
00:33:05,240 --> 00:33:07,160
Speaker 1: little story about a father and a son and he

506
00:33:07,240 --> 00:33:08,560
Speaker 1: ran away and he ate with the pigs, and the

507
00:33:08,560 --> 00:33:11,160
Speaker 1: father welcomed him home. That isn't why he taught in parables.

508
00:33:11,320 --> 00:33:14,040
Speaker 1: He taught in parables because he didn't want his wisdom

509
00:33:14,320 --> 00:33:17,719
Speaker 1: to be ascertained with the human mind. He taught in

510
00:33:17,800 --> 00:33:21,560
Speaker 1: parables so that the spirit of God could reveal to

511
00:33:21,680 --> 00:33:25,120
Speaker 1: the unlearned not the wisdom of this world, but the

512
00:33:25,160 --> 00:33:28,440
Speaker 1: things of God. So much of what he does is hidden,

513
00:33:28,760 --> 00:33:31,160
Speaker 1: and yet we spend all of our time in our

514
00:33:31,240 --> 00:33:35,000
Speaker 1: minds trying to figure out whether God is good, trying

515
00:33:35,000 --> 00:33:38,200
Speaker 1: to figure out whether life makes sense. It's a prison.

516
00:33:38,560 --> 00:33:41,240
Speaker 1: You'll never figure it out that way. You can't get

517
00:33:41,280 --> 00:33:44,440
Speaker 1: out that way, you can't solve your problems on the

518
00:33:44,520 --> 00:33:47,840
Speaker 1: level of self. It's gonna take a great, big God

519
00:33:48,320 --> 00:33:52,280
Speaker 1: with an eternal plan. It's gonna take a really good God.

520
00:33:52,600 --> 00:33:59,520
Speaker 1: It's going to take a majestic God. And I'm gonna

521
00:33:59,560 --> 00:34:04,720
Speaker 1: have to just whether or not I'm going to interpret

522
00:34:04,880 --> 00:34:10,040
Speaker 1: him through the lens of my expectations or set my

523
00:34:10,160 --> 00:34:14,280
Speaker 1: expectations on the basis of who he is. Now, here's

524
00:34:14,320 --> 00:34:17,680
Speaker 1: what I know. I am preaching to so many different

525
00:34:17,680 --> 00:34:20,520
Speaker 1: types of people today. For some of you, you can

526
00:34:20,560 --> 00:34:24,960
Speaker 1: hardly breathe right now because I'm speaking so specifically to you,

527
00:34:25,239 --> 00:34:27,640
Speaker 1: because the Lord is trying to get this message to you.

528
00:34:28,120 --> 00:34:30,680
Speaker 1: For others of you, you're in a much more dangerous place.

529
00:34:30,800 --> 00:34:39,840
Speaker 1: You're not even listening. See, you know what God uses

530
00:34:39,880 --> 00:34:45,160
Speaker 1: to develop your faith, disappointment. You know what the devil

531
00:34:45,239 --> 00:34:51,759
Speaker 1: uses to destroy your faith, disappointment. And I think it's

532
00:34:51,760 --> 00:34:56,759
Speaker 1: what you do with it. Because's going to happen. It's

533
00:34:56,800 --> 00:35:01,080
Speaker 1: going to happen in relationships, it's going to happen in careers,

534
00:35:01,320 --> 00:35:07,560
Speaker 1: it's going to happen in churches to where what you

535
00:35:07,719 --> 00:35:10,839
Speaker 1: thought it was gonna be and what it really is.

536
00:35:12,440 --> 00:35:14,480
Speaker 1: You know, I don't even like the way this Bible

537
00:35:14,560 --> 00:35:17,719
Speaker 1: story goes, because what I want to happen next in

538
00:35:17,760 --> 00:35:21,040
Speaker 1: the story is that the Angel of the Lord comes

539
00:35:21,080 --> 00:35:24,320
Speaker 1: breaks John out of prison, and John goes on to

540
00:35:24,360 --> 00:35:26,360
Speaker 1: preach the gospel and he has more success and double

541
00:35:26,360 --> 00:35:28,319
Speaker 1: for his trouble like job like never before. In the

542
00:35:28,320 --> 00:35:30,680
Speaker 1: Lord restores the years the kanker worm is wasting. We

543
00:35:30,680 --> 00:35:33,000
Speaker 1: can have good church and all get a serotonin hit,

544
00:35:33,080 --> 00:35:38,680
Speaker 1: go home, be happy, and watch a NASCAR race. But

545
00:35:38,800 --> 00:35:41,600
Speaker 1: what I'm thinking is I need to tell you that

546
00:35:41,800 --> 00:35:44,040
Speaker 1: the way you expect this story to end, since we're

547
00:35:44,040 --> 00:35:47,879
Speaker 1: talking about expectations, is not necessarily the way that it does.

548
00:35:49,280 --> 00:35:54,880
Speaker 1: Because John doesn't get out of prison in Matthew chapter eleven,

549
00:35:56,200 --> 00:35:59,520
Speaker 1: in fact, in Matthew fourteen, his head is served up

550
00:35:59,520 --> 00:36:04,400
Speaker 1: on a platter because the King decides to cut it

551
00:36:04,400 --> 00:36:10,440
Speaker 1: off him. And yet there's something that's even more beautiful

552
00:36:10,480 --> 00:36:14,399
Speaker 1: in the text than John getting what he wants. There's

553
00:36:14,400 --> 00:36:20,040
Speaker 1: something much more profound then John gets what he wants,

554
00:36:21,200 --> 00:36:25,520
Speaker 1: and what it is is in verse seven and following. Now,

555
00:36:26,960 --> 00:36:31,239
Speaker 1: this transitional phrase is really important. By the way, who

556
00:36:31,239 --> 00:36:34,800
Speaker 1: am I preaching to today? That there's been some things

557
00:36:35,520 --> 00:36:38,120
Speaker 1: that weren't what you thought they were going to be,

558
00:36:38,920 --> 00:36:42,560
Speaker 1: and it's affecting your faith now. And even in a sense,

559
00:36:42,960 --> 00:36:45,920
Speaker 1: God is not who you thought he was going to be,

560
00:36:46,440 --> 00:36:49,080
Speaker 1: and you're experiencing him in a different way than you

561
00:36:49,120 --> 00:36:54,160
Speaker 1: have a template for and it's challenging to you. So

562
00:36:54,200 --> 00:36:57,480
Speaker 1: what happens next is the part of the message that

563
00:36:57,600 --> 00:37:00,399
Speaker 1: I really want you to take to heart that says,

564
00:37:00,440 --> 00:37:05,600
Speaker 1: as John's disciples were leaving, what does that mean? Whatever

565
00:37:05,719 --> 00:37:10,799
Speaker 1: Jesus says next, John doesn't hear it. He turns to

566
00:37:10,960 --> 00:37:17,000
Speaker 1: the crowd and begins to speak about John. This is

567
00:37:17,000 --> 00:37:21,160
Speaker 1: significant because what he says next is what he wants

568
00:37:21,239 --> 00:37:25,120
Speaker 1: the crowd to know about John. What he said before

569
00:37:25,440 --> 00:37:29,279
Speaker 1: was what he wanted John to know about him. And

570
00:37:29,320 --> 00:37:33,320
Speaker 1: it's a critical distinction because God never wants your faith

571
00:37:33,480 --> 00:37:38,440
Speaker 1: to rest on you. He knows how fragile and fickle

572
00:37:38,480 --> 00:37:42,040
Speaker 1: you are. He said, Go tell John that there is

573
00:37:42,080 --> 00:37:46,200
Speaker 1: a purpose that is greater. There is a plan that

574
00:37:46,360 --> 00:37:50,120
Speaker 1: is bigger. Say that there is a purpose that is greater.

575
00:37:50,760 --> 00:37:54,080
Speaker 1: There is a plan that is bigger. I'm looking for

576
00:37:54,080 --> 00:37:56,640
Speaker 1: one hundred percent participation on every location. There is a

577
00:37:56,640 --> 00:38:01,400
Speaker 1: purpose that is greater. There is a plan that is bigger.

578
00:38:02,040 --> 00:38:03,480
Speaker 1: Look at the person next you say there is a

579
00:38:03,520 --> 00:38:08,560
Speaker 1: purpose that is greater. There is a plan that is bigger.

580
00:38:09,000 --> 00:38:12,680
Speaker 1: Other neighbor, there is a purpose that is greater. There

581
00:38:12,760 --> 00:38:16,359
Speaker 1: is a plan that is bigger. Tell him zoom out,

582
00:38:16,440 --> 00:38:18,839
Speaker 1: zoom out, zoom out, zoom out, zoom out, zoom out,

583
00:38:18,920 --> 00:38:21,080
Speaker 1: zoom out. Because you've been seeing this one little thing,

584
00:38:21,239 --> 00:38:22,759
Speaker 1: and when you're in the prison of your mind is

585
00:38:22,800 --> 00:38:24,920
Speaker 1: an awfully small place sitting it. It's really hard to

586
00:38:24,960 --> 00:38:27,439
Speaker 1: see the light of day in solitary confinement. But go

587
00:38:27,560 --> 00:38:31,520
Speaker 1: tell John. We're right on schedule. Go tell John, I'm

588
00:38:31,680 --> 00:38:35,640
Speaker 1: using his preparation. Go tell John. It wasn't in vain.

589
00:38:35,880 --> 00:38:39,040
Speaker 1: I heard the Lord say, Ferdick. Go tell John, Go

590
00:38:39,120 --> 00:38:42,440
Speaker 1: tell the people. Go tell the discourage, Go tell the beaten,

591
00:38:42,719 --> 00:38:45,680
Speaker 1: Go tell the broken, Go tell the debreast, Go tell

592
00:38:45,719 --> 00:38:48,520
Speaker 1: the sick, Go tell the broke, Go tell the herding,

593
00:38:48,760 --> 00:38:51,600
Speaker 1: Go tell the young, Go tell the old. Go tell

594
00:38:51,640 --> 00:38:54,799
Speaker 1: him this working, Go tell him. I'm doing it, just

595
00:38:54,960 --> 00:39:01,520
Speaker 1: not like you wanted me to, but I'm doing it.

596
00:39:04,880 --> 00:39:10,000
Speaker 1: He turns around and says to the crowd, what did

597
00:39:10,080 --> 00:39:13,800
Speaker 1: you go out into the wilderness to see a red

598
00:39:14,040 --> 00:39:18,440
Speaker 1: swayed by the wind? No? John wasn't fickle. John wasn't fragile.

599
00:39:18,600 --> 00:39:21,640
Speaker 1: When John made up his mind about something, that's just

600
00:39:21,719 --> 00:39:23,600
Speaker 1: the way it was. And that's what's getting him in

601
00:39:23,600 --> 00:39:29,600
Speaker 1: trouble because he made up his mind about what he

602
00:39:29,680 --> 00:39:33,560
Speaker 1: thought God was gonna do, and when God did what

603
00:39:33,600 --> 00:39:41,640
Speaker 1: God wanted to do? Is that you right now? Are

604
00:39:41,640 --> 00:39:44,319
Speaker 1: you in an invisible prison? I know here. It isn't

605
00:39:44,320 --> 00:39:47,319
Speaker 1: gonna cut your head off. It's not that dramatic, right,

606
00:39:48,640 --> 00:39:52,640
Speaker 1: But you can't enjoy people, can you? Is that you

607
00:39:52,719 --> 00:39:55,319
Speaker 1: right now? You can't create? Is that you right now?

608
00:39:55,560 --> 00:39:57,920
Speaker 1: Is that me who am I preaching to? Maybe I'm

609
00:39:57,920 --> 00:40:01,920
Speaker 1: preaching to me? Is not that God didn't do anything

610
00:40:01,960 --> 00:40:06,839
Speaker 1: for me? It's not that God didn't bless me. It's

611
00:40:06,920 --> 00:40:12,759
Speaker 1: just different than what I thought. And as long as

612
00:40:12,840 --> 00:40:16,440
Speaker 1: I'm in the prison of what I thought, I can't

613
00:40:16,440 --> 00:40:23,600
Speaker 1: be a part of what God is doing. So be

614
00:40:23,760 --> 00:40:29,759
Speaker 1: set free today. Be set free by the fact that

615
00:40:30,440 --> 00:40:34,600
Speaker 1: God may not be conforming to your agenda or keeping

616
00:40:34,680 --> 00:40:39,280
Speaker 1: all of your appointments. God might not be organizing everything

617
00:40:39,320 --> 00:40:43,520
Speaker 1: to match your exact preference. But there is a greater purpose,

618
00:40:44,120 --> 00:40:47,200
Speaker 1: and there is a bigger picture. And just like John

619
00:40:47,440 --> 00:40:51,120
Speaker 1: was the forerunner of Jesus Christ, some of you. God

620
00:40:51,200 --> 00:40:55,200
Speaker 1: is using you to fight battles for your children and

621
00:40:55,320 --> 00:41:00,560
Speaker 1: your children's children, and your children's children's children will be

622
00:41:00,640 --> 00:41:05,280
Speaker 1: blessed if you don't fall away. If you don't fall away,

623
00:41:07,280 --> 00:41:11,239
Speaker 1: if you will resist the urge to control God, you

624
00:41:11,280 --> 00:41:14,680
Speaker 1: can serve Him and worship Him and it'll be all right.

625
00:41:15,040 --> 00:41:19,640
Speaker 1: Because my faith is not the expectation that circumstances will

626
00:41:19,680 --> 00:41:23,920
Speaker 1: be blessing. My faith is the expectation that the voice

627
00:41:23,920 --> 00:41:35,480
Speaker 1: of the Lord is upon the waters. Go tell John,

628
00:41:37,040 --> 00:41:42,359
Speaker 1: blessed is he who does not trip over the way

629
00:41:42,400 --> 00:41:45,480
Speaker 1: he thought it was going to be? Blessed is he

630
00:41:46,040 --> 00:41:53,520
Speaker 1: who accepts what I'm doing in his or her life.

631
00:41:54,120 --> 00:41:58,239
Speaker 1: And the Lord wants to set you free today from

632
00:41:58,280 --> 00:42:02,960
Speaker 1: the way you thought it was gonna be. And that's it,

633
00:42:04,680 --> 00:42:11,440
Speaker 1: and that's it because you know what's gonna happen. Once

634
00:42:11,480 --> 00:42:12,960
Speaker 1: you get set free from the way you thought it

635
00:42:13,000 --> 00:42:15,640
Speaker 1: was going to be, you can embrace what it is.

636
00:42:18,280 --> 00:42:21,000
Speaker 1: And you know what God's gonna do more than what

637
00:42:21,080 --> 00:42:24,920
Speaker 1: you thought he was gonna do. The blind see the

638
00:42:25,040 --> 00:42:29,960
Speaker 1: lame walk. God's got something better than a fork. God's

639
00:42:29,960 --> 00:42:33,400
Speaker 1: got something better than a fire. The first place of

640
00:42:33,440 --> 00:42:38,640
Speaker 1: deliverance is in the area of your expectation. Holy Spirit.

641
00:42:38,680 --> 00:42:40,600
Speaker 1: I thank you for this moment, and I pray that

642
00:42:41,560 --> 00:42:46,360
Speaker 1: this message would not fall on deaf ears, because truth

643
00:42:46,400 --> 00:42:51,719
Speaker 1: be told, Lord, there is a prison that is not physical.

644
00:42:53,120 --> 00:42:58,360
Speaker 1: There are captives in here today. Those chains are invisible.

645
00:43:00,120 --> 00:43:03,080
Speaker 1: To pray for him right now, Lord, that you would

646
00:43:03,080 --> 00:43:04,839
Speaker 1: look into the places of their life where they've been

647
00:43:04,840 --> 00:43:10,799
Speaker 1: disappointed and where they've been bruised or even worse than that,

648
00:43:10,840 --> 00:43:14,399
Speaker 1: where they got their hopes up so high and they

649
00:43:14,400 --> 00:43:18,520
Speaker 1: made a fool of themselves, and so now it's kind

650
00:43:18,560 --> 00:43:20,759
Speaker 1: of hard for them to really have an expectation of

651
00:43:20,800 --> 00:43:28,800
Speaker 1: your goodness. They're in an invisible prison of disappointment, resentment, bitterness.

652
00:43:31,000 --> 00:43:36,319
Speaker 1: But you said you came to set us free, So

653
00:43:36,360 --> 00:43:40,440
Speaker 1: you didn't do it physically for John, But would you

654
00:43:40,480 --> 00:43:45,160
Speaker 1: set us free, set us free from ourselves, set us

655
00:43:45,160 --> 00:43:49,680
Speaker 1: free from our regrets, set us free from our sin.

656
00:43:52,520 --> 00:43:56,960
Speaker 1: With everyone's thending, where the spirit of the Lord is,

657
00:43:57,000 --> 00:44:03,040
Speaker 1: there's freedom. And the kind of freedom that I mean

658
00:44:04,840 --> 00:44:09,880
Speaker 1: is the freedom from the need to control your life,

659
00:44:10,080 --> 00:44:13,600
Speaker 1: the freedom from the need to call the shocks and

660
00:44:13,640 --> 00:44:17,840
Speaker 1: to always know the plan. John said, are you the

661
00:44:17,880 --> 00:44:24,279
Speaker 1: one I just need to know? And I hear the

662
00:44:24,320 --> 00:44:30,560
Speaker 1: Lord saying today, Yeah, it's me. It's me. It's me

663
00:44:30,600 --> 00:44:34,600
Speaker 1: getting you through this season. It's me that allowed some

664
00:44:34,680 --> 00:44:36,200
Speaker 1: of the things in your life that you don't like.

665
00:44:36,239 --> 00:44:38,719
Speaker 1: I didn't cause all of them, but I'm using all

666
00:44:38,719 --> 00:44:42,719
Speaker 1: of them. It's me. Go tell John, it's me. It's me.

667
00:44:44,239 --> 00:44:49,240
Speaker 1: It's me. That thing that won't let you go, that's grace.

668
00:44:49,880 --> 00:44:54,160
Speaker 1: God said, that's me. I think that keeps pumping in

669
00:44:54,200 --> 00:44:57,440
Speaker 1: your heart getting you back up. You fall down, seven,

670
00:44:57,480 --> 00:45:01,319
Speaker 1: you get up eight. God said, that's me. That thing

671
00:45:01,360 --> 00:45:04,960
Speaker 1: in you that it can't always make sense. You know

672
00:45:05,000 --> 00:45:07,239
Speaker 1: you should read the Bible, sometimes you don't. God said,

673
00:45:07,239 --> 00:45:09,279
Speaker 1: that's me. I want you to wrestle with it. That's me.

674
00:45:09,480 --> 00:45:11,040
Speaker 1: I don't want you to put me in a formula.

675
00:45:11,080 --> 00:45:12,600
Speaker 1: That's me. I don't want you to have me in

676
00:45:12,640 --> 00:45:14,000
Speaker 1: a box. I don't want you to be in this

677
00:45:14,080 --> 00:45:20,919
Speaker 1: prison of your small view of me. That's me. Oh God,

678
00:45:20,920 --> 00:45:24,879
Speaker 1: of every moment that come before you now, in need

679
00:45:24,920 --> 00:45:31,359
Speaker 1: of your mercy, in need of your grace, we need

680
00:45:31,400 --> 00:45:34,840
Speaker 1: to know that you are our shepherd, even if we

681
00:45:34,920 --> 00:45:39,239
Speaker 1: go through a valley of the shadow of death. Now

682
00:45:39,280 --> 00:45:42,000
Speaker 1: thank you now, Lord, that as this word has gone

683
00:45:42,000 --> 00:45:47,600
Speaker 1: forth today across multiple campuses, across multiple continents, that you

684
00:45:47,640 --> 00:45:52,440
Speaker 1: are confirming your presence to your people right now. If

685
00:45:52,480 --> 00:45:57,440
Speaker 1: you would just lift your hands, God said, it's me.

686
00:45:58,920 --> 00:46:01,120
Speaker 1: It's me that you need to make sense of your life.

687
00:46:01,120 --> 00:46:05,279
Speaker 1: It's me. Lord. I thank you that there is a

688
00:46:05,280 --> 00:46:09,919
Speaker 1: bigger picture. We do not see in full. We see

689
00:46:09,920 --> 00:46:12,239
Speaker 1: in part, we prophesy in part, we speak in part.

690
00:46:12,680 --> 00:46:15,000
Speaker 1: But when that which is perfect has come, that which

691
00:46:15,040 --> 00:46:18,000
Speaker 1: is incomplete will be taken away. Until that time, Lord,

692
00:46:18,600 --> 00:46:21,919
Speaker 1: we trust in your presence, We trust in who you are.

693
00:46:23,200 --> 00:46:25,160
Speaker 1: You're still the lamb of God that takes away the

694
00:46:25,160 --> 00:46:28,200
Speaker 1: sin of the world. You're still the king of our life.

695
00:46:28,239 --> 00:46:30,359
Speaker 1: You're still the hope and foundation that our lives are

696
00:46:30,360 --> 00:46:33,239
Speaker 1: built on. You're still the solid rock on which we

697
00:46:33,360 --> 00:46:36,480
Speaker 1: stand all of the ground of sinking sand. It's you, God.

698
00:46:37,280 --> 00:46:39,720
Speaker 1: It's you that we worship, and it's you that we trust.

699
00:46:40,400 --> 00:46:44,480
Speaker 1: It's not ourselves, it's not our circumstances. It's you. Somebody say,

700
00:46:44,520 --> 00:46:47,360
Speaker 1: it's you. It's you that I need. Lord. It's you

701
00:46:47,440 --> 00:46:50,440
Speaker 1: that fulfills me. It's you that completes me. It's you

702
00:46:50,520 --> 00:46:53,520
Speaker 1: that makes ways. It's you that opens doors. It's you

703
00:46:53,640 --> 00:46:56,920
Speaker 1: that sets the prisoners free. It's you that broke the chains.

704
00:46:57,080 --> 00:46:59,920
Speaker 1: It's you that I'm looking to. Promotion doesn't come from

705
00:47:00,120 --> 00:47:03,080
Speaker 1: the East or the west. Promotion comes from you. It's

706
00:47:03,200 --> 00:47:06,399
Speaker 1: you I'm counting on. It's you I'm looking to. It's

707
00:47:06,440 --> 00:47:10,160
Speaker 1: you I'm leaning on. It's your everlasting arms. It's your

708
00:47:10,280 --> 00:47:14,319
Speaker 1: mighty hand, it's your outstretch power. It's your grace that

709
00:47:14,400 --> 00:47:18,279
Speaker 1: we need. It's you, Lord, It's nobody else. It's you.

710
00:47:18,840 --> 00:47:21,799
Speaker 1: Our health comes from you. Our strength is in you,

711
00:47:22,120 --> 00:47:25,399
Speaker 1: our trust is in your name, and we worship you now.

712
00:47:28,520 --> 00:47:31,080
Speaker 1: Thank you for joining us. Special thanks to those of

713
00:47:31,120 --> 00:47:34,120
Speaker 1: you who give generously to this ministry. Is because of

714
00:47:34,160 --> 00:47:37,080
Speaker 1: you that this ministry is possible. You can click the

715
00:47:37,120 --> 00:47:40,360
Speaker 1: link in the description to give now or visit Elevation

716
00:47:40,560 --> 00:47:44,160
Speaker 1: Church dot org slash podcast for more information and if

717
00:47:44,200 --> 00:47:47,480
Speaker 1: you enjoyed the podcast, you can subscribe. You can share

718
00:47:47,480 --> 00:47:49,720
Speaker 1: it with your friends. You can click the share button,

719
00:47:49,760 --> 00:47:52,200
Speaker 1: take a screenshot and share it on your social stories

720
00:47:52,200 --> 00:47:54,960
Speaker 1: and tag us at Elevation Church. Thanks again for listening.

721
00:47:55,000 --> 00:48:00,080
Speaker 1: God bless you this