WEBVTT - Learning Hope The Hard Way

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<v Speaker 1>Hey, this is Stephen Ferdick.

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<v Speaker 2>I'm the pastor of Elevation Church and this is our podcast.

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<v Speaker 1>And I wanted to thank you for joining us today.

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<v Speaker 1>Hope this inspires you. Hope it builds your faith.

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<v Speaker 2>Hope it gives your perspective to see God is moving.

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<v Speaker 1>In your life.

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<v Speaker 2>Enjoy the message, and what a privileged to minister of

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<v Speaker 2>the Word of God to you today.

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<v Speaker 1>I decided just to use one verse.

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<v Speaker 2>It's completely coincidental that this is my eleventh Christmas sermon,

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<v Speaker 2>is the pastor of Elevation Church, and my text happens

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<v Speaker 2>to be Isaiah eleven. This is the coolest Christmas scripture

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<v Speaker 2>that you've never heard. I promise you you've never heard this.

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<v Speaker 2>You probably never heard this little verse of scripture. And

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<v Speaker 2>I know you've never heard it in a Christmas sermon

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<v Speaker 2>and I had not either, So I decided just to

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<v Speaker 2>preach it. And the Lord has really been using it.

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<v Speaker 2>And I want to read you this verse. And don't

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<v Speaker 2>worry if you don't see what it has to do

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<v Speaker 2>with Christmas right when I read it, but you will

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<v Speaker 2>in a minute. A shoot will come up. This is

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<v Speaker 2>Isaiah eleven. Verse one shoot will come up from the

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<v Speaker 2>stump of Jesse from his roots, a branch will bear fruit. Again,

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<v Speaker 2>a shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse

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<v Speaker 2>from his roots, A branch will bear fruit.

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<v Speaker 1>It is a very.

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<v Speaker 2>Promising prophecy that Isaiah delivers to a people who have

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<v Speaker 2>been cut down and reduced to almost nothing. One of

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<v Speaker 2>my favorite country preachers used to have a saying. He

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<v Speaker 2>would say, when you're down to nothing, God is up

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<v Speaker 2>to something.

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<v Speaker 1>Elbow your neighbor real quick, tell him.

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<v Speaker 2>God is up to something in your life, even if

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<v Speaker 2>you can't feel it, even if you can't see it,

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<v Speaker 2>even if you can't discern it with your natural senses.

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<v Speaker 2>I want you to know that God is up to something.

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<v Speaker 1>In your life.

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<v Speaker 2>If you've had a Banner year or a Baron year,

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<v Speaker 2>God is up to something in your life. He was

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<v Speaker 2>up to something in the nation of Israel. They had

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<v Speaker 2>placed their hope in other gods, and yet the promise

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<v Speaker 2>of redemption echoes over seven hundred years before the birth

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<v Speaker 2>of Christ through the prophet Isaiah. He says, a shoot

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<v Speaker 2>will come up from the stump of Jesse from his roots,

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<v Speaker 2>a branch.

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<v Speaker 1>Will bear fruit.

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<v Speaker 2>Let me back up and read that one more time,

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<v Speaker 2>because I think I see Jesus in this text from

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<v Speaker 2>his roots, A branch will bear fruit. Could it be

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<v Speaker 2>that the branch Isaiah speaks of is the baby that

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<v Speaker 2>was born in the town of Bethlehem. Could it be

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<v Speaker 2>that the eagle eyed prophet is seeing through seven centuries

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<v Speaker 2>into our present hope.

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<v Speaker 1>Peter calls it a living hope.

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<v Speaker 2>The author of Hebrews calls it an anchor for our souls.

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<v Speaker 2>We celebrate this season that hope has come. Somebody, shall

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<v Speaker 2>I have a hope? I have a hope. Say it again,

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<v Speaker 2>I have a hope. Let the devil hear you say it,

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<v Speaker 2>because he's been messing with you and you've had a

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<v Speaker 2>hard year. But let him know that you're still standing

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<v Speaker 2>by the grace of God and you.

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<v Speaker 1>Have a hope. Somebody, shall I have a hope? And

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<v Speaker 1>it's a.

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<v Speaker 2>Certain kind of hope. It's not a floating hope. I

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<v Speaker 2>saw Holly watch a movie a few years ago. It's

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<v Speaker 2>been quite a few years, and they called the movie

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<v Speaker 2>Hope floats.

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<v Speaker 1>I didn't watch the movie. Holly had it on.

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<v Speaker 2>And I don't know anything about the movie, but I

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<v Speaker 2>know that the title is inaccurate, because.

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<v Speaker 1>Real hope is like an anchor.

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<v Speaker 2>It doesn't float on the surface of your situation, but

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<v Speaker 2>it gets down to the bottom and holds on tight

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<v Speaker 2>while you're going through hell. Can I preach a little

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<v Speaker 2>bit on Christmas Eve? Just a little bit? And so

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<v Speaker 2>when you get Paul involved. Paul is the New Testament

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<v Speaker 2>apostle who took the Gospel to the Gentiles, and he

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<v Speaker 2>says something instructive in Romans chapter eight. He wants to

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<v Speaker 2>talk about the nature of hope, and when he goes

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<v Speaker 2>to talk about it, he says that in this hope,

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<v Speaker 2>this is Romans eight twenty four, we were saved, But

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<v Speaker 2>hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who

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<v Speaker 2>hopes for what they already have. But if we hope

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<v Speaker 2>for what we do not have, if we can.

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<v Speaker 1>Hold on and hold out and hope for what we

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<v Speaker 1>do not yet have, we wait for.

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<v Speaker 2>It patiently, and patience is the proof of hope. My

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<v Speaker 2>subject for this Christmas is learning hope the hard way.

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<v Speaker 1>Learning hope the hard way.

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<v Speaker 2>Because what Isaiah's stump that has been cut down in

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<v Speaker 2>Paul's theology, christology and numatology of the Spirit of God

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<v Speaker 2>that lives on the inside of you all have in

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<v Speaker 2>common is that they describe a certain kind of hope,

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<v Speaker 2>not the kind of hope that you might have as

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<v Speaker 2>a Panther's fan. Listen, I hope that the Clemson Tigers

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<v Speaker 2>beat the Ohio State Buckeyes.

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<v Speaker 1>As do all Christians.

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<v Speaker 2>Now tossed around like that, the word hope means very little,

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<v Speaker 2>because the fact of the matter is it.

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<v Speaker 1>Won't bother me much if they don't.

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<v Speaker 2>A bunch of boys and some spandex aren't going to

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<v Speaker 2>keep me up at night. I am not so worried

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<v Speaker 2>as to really say I hope. All I really mean

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<v Speaker 2>is it would be nice. It'd be nice my mom

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<v Speaker 2>went to Clemson. It would be nice if they got

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<v Speaker 2>to win. I don't care. I don't really hope for that.

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<v Speaker 2>I didn't come to talk to you on Christmas Eve

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<v Speaker 2>when you could be doing a lot of other things

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<v Speaker 2>about that kind of hope. Today, I'm talking about a

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<v Speaker 2>certain kind of hope, a hope that has to be

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<v Speaker 2>learned the hard way. How many have ever had to

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<v Speaker 2>learn something the hard way? If your husband isn't raising

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<v Speaker 2>his hand, maybe you could raise it for him if

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<v Speaker 2>he don't want to be honest, some things you have

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<v Speaker 2>to learn the hard way. Some things can only be

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<v Speaker 2>developed the hard way. I was talking to a campus pastor.

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<v Speaker 2>It might have been you, Jonathan, I don't remember, and

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<v Speaker 2>they asked me about my preparation, and I told him

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<v Speaker 2>a story. I said, I prepare a lot before I preach,

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<v Speaker 2>and I overprepare. The reason I overprepare is because one time,

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<v Speaker 2>thirteen years ago, I went to speak at an event.

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<v Speaker 2>I got lost on the way, so I started getting angry,

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<v Speaker 2>and I was a little flustered.

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<v Speaker 1>When I got there.

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<v Speaker 2>And I got up in front of the event and

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<v Speaker 2>it was a mother daughter banquet, and I've never been

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<v Speaker 2>more unprepared for anything in my life. I didn't know

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<v Speaker 2>it was other daughter banquet. I had prepared for something different.

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<v Speaker 2>I thought it was a youth service, and I didn't

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<v Speaker 2>have anything to say to the mothers and daughters.

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<v Speaker 1>But I learned the hard way that day.

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<v Speaker 2>I hated how that felt so much, being up in

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<v Speaker 2>front of people with a microphone and a Bible.

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<v Speaker 1>I resolved in my heart I will never stand.

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<v Speaker 2>In front of people behind a pulpit unprepared again. But

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<v Speaker 2>it took the experience of embarrassment. You know, my mouth

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<v Speaker 2>is going dry, and my face is turning red, and

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<v Speaker 2>I stood there and I resolved. I promised myself, I

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<v Speaker 2>will never.

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<v Speaker 1>Be in that situation again.

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<v Speaker 2>And it doesn't mean that all my sermons are going

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<v Speaker 2>to be great, and it doesn't mean that all of

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<v Speaker 2>my sermons are going to be funny or equally inspiring,

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<v Speaker 2>but they will always be my best. I decided that day,

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<v Speaker 2>but I had to learn it the hard way. Those

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<v Speaker 2>of you who come to the church know we have

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<v Speaker 2>three kids. The only reason I keep them around this

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<v Speaker 2>for sermon material. And oldest one's eleven. His name's Elijah,

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<v Speaker 2>and he gave me a good line the other day

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<v Speaker 2>we were writing. I was taking him to school, and

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<v Speaker 2>I said, who is your favorite teacher that you've ever had?

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<v Speaker 1>He's in sixth grade.

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<v Speaker 2>Now that's not a prairie quest, but if you want

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<v Speaker 2>to throw us in on your list, that's okay. And

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<v Speaker 2>he said, he said, He said, it depends what you

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<v Speaker 2>mean by favorite. Do you mean the one that I

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<v Speaker 2>had the most fun with or the one that I

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<v Speaker 2>learned the most from, Because those answers would be different

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<v Speaker 2>depending on what you mean by favorite. How did he

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<v Speaker 2>understand that about school as an eleven year old? And

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<v Speaker 2>we don't get it in our Christian life, in our

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<v Speaker 2>spiritual life.

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<v Speaker 1>That the seasons of our life that are the.

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<v Speaker 2>Most fun aren't necessarily the most fruitful, And the seasons

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<v Speaker 2>of our life that we get the most out of

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<v Speaker 2>aren't necessarily the ones that we would choose to go through.

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<v Speaker 2>There are some seasons of your life that will cut

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<v Speaker 2>you down and take off your branches. We call them

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<v Speaker 2>pruning season. But even in the pruning is a promise.

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<v Speaker 2>Isaiah said, I see a stump cut down to nothing,

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<v Speaker 2>but I see a shoot coming forth from the stump

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<v Speaker 2>and got us up to something.

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<v Speaker 1>In your life. This Christmas.

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<v Speaker 2>So we celebrate this season that hope has come into

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<v Speaker 2>the world, but we've got to remember not only that

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<v Speaker 2>it has come or who it came through, but how

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<v Speaker 2>it came. I mean, it had to be hard. It

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<v Speaker 2>had to be hard. That's kind of left out by

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<v Speaker 2>the time you see our modern interpretation of the Nativity.

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<v Speaker 2>It had to be hard for Joseph to really believe

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<v Speaker 2>that his wife, who had not had sex with him,

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<v Speaker 2>because they were not husband and wife yet, but they

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<v Speaker 2>were what the Bible calls betrothed, that his wife, being

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<v Speaker 2>a virgin, was pregnant. It had to be hard for

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<v Speaker 2>him to really take that at God's word. It had

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<v Speaker 2>to be hard for Mary to have to look people

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<v Speaker 2>in the eye and convince them that.

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<v Speaker 1>What she was carrying was from the Holy Spirit.

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<v Speaker 2>Forget about even that part, okay, because it had to

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<v Speaker 2>be hard for them to believe.

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<v Speaker 1>I know that, But just.

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<v Speaker 2>Physically, the way God chose to come into the world

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<v Speaker 2>shows us something about the nature of the way he works,

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<v Speaker 2>and I think we should look at it, because if

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<v Speaker 2>you sanitize the Christmas story, you strip it of its significance.

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<v Speaker 1>To miss the.

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<v Speaker 2>Struggle of the Christmas story is to miss a window

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<v Speaker 2>into the.

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<v Speaker 1>Way God works. When God wanted to.

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<v Speaker 2>Come into the world, not only did he pick a virgin,

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<v Speaker 2>Not only did he pick a womb that would represented

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<v Speaker 2>impossibility so that he could bring forth infinite potential. Not

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<v Speaker 2>only did he pick the hardest situation to bring forth

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<v Speaker 2>this son, but he didn't even make hotel reservations. When

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<v Speaker 2>it came time for them to stay in Bethlehem. They

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<v Speaker 2>didn't even have They didn't even have a room at

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<v Speaker 2>the Ritz.

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<v Speaker 3>When you think if.

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<v Speaker 2>God was coming into the world, he would Airbnb or

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<v Speaker 2>something to make sure that this couple had a place

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<v Speaker 2>to stay. Talk to me somebody and see. We miss

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<v Speaker 2>it because we think that when God says he's gonna

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<v Speaker 2>do something in our lives, it's going to be easy.

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<v Speaker 1>But it's not.

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<v Speaker 3>It has to be hard.

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<v Speaker 2>A quick look at the history of the Bible shows

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<v Speaker 2>you that God likes to do things the hard way.

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<v Speaker 2>It is his preferred method of carrying out his purpose.

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<v Speaker 2>So don't think you're weird if your life has been hard,

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<v Speaker 2>and don't assume that you're doing something wrong, because God

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<v Speaker 2>will often allow life to cut you down to the stock.

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<v Speaker 1>Oh yeah, he did it to Moses.

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<v Speaker 2>Moses was called to lead the children of Israel out

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<v Speaker 2>of Egypt. I'm gonna take you through the whole Bible,

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<v Speaker 2>but I do want to go to Exodus because there's

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<v Speaker 2>this interesting Prisms verse that says, out of Egypt, I've

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<v Speaker 2>called my son because Jesus had to go with his

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<v Speaker 2>parents to Egypt when he was very little, because Herod

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<v Speaker 2>wanted to kill him. Because God doesn't birth his son

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<v Speaker 2>into the world into ideal circumstances, but into a very

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<v Speaker 2>chaotic environment where Roman oppression was so common to the

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<v Speaker 2>people that they feared for their very life under the

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<v Speaker 2>madman named Herod. We think we have bad presidential candidates.

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<v Speaker 2>I mean, this guy was killing babies in Bethlehem when

0:12:19.920 --> 0:12:22.440
<v Speaker 2>he heard Jesus was born because it represented a threat

0:12:22.480 --> 0:12:24.840
<v Speaker 2>to the throne. And so Isaiah's prophesying to a people

0:12:24.840 --> 0:12:27.360
<v Speaker 2>who are under a Syrian oppression, and Jesus comes into

0:12:27.360 --> 0:12:31.160
<v Speaker 2>the world under Roman oppression. Because God likes to come

0:12:31.200 --> 0:12:35.880
<v Speaker 2>into hard situations, He's not scared of that. And so

0:12:35.920 --> 0:12:37.800
<v Speaker 2>when he picks Moses, he says, go to Pharaoh, the

0:12:37.800 --> 0:12:39.400
<v Speaker 2>most powerful man in the world.

0:12:39.200 --> 0:12:40.560
<v Speaker 1>And tell him to let my people go.

0:12:40.800 --> 0:12:42.360
<v Speaker 2>And when you tell him to let my people go,

0:12:42.440 --> 0:12:46.680
<v Speaker 2>he's going to say no. Now, why would God tell

0:12:46.720 --> 0:12:49.840
<v Speaker 2>me to do something, And in the next breath inform

0:12:49.880 --> 0:12:51.559
<v Speaker 2>me that it won't work.

0:12:56.040 --> 0:12:58.840
<v Speaker 1>Because it had to be hard.

0:13:00.360 --> 0:13:02.360
<v Speaker 2>If it was easy for Moses, if he just walked

0:13:02.400 --> 0:13:05.680
<v Speaker 2>up into Pharaoh's court and said let my people go

0:13:06.559 --> 0:13:09.320
<v Speaker 2>and Pharaoh said all right, Moses would dab on Pharaoh

0:13:09.360 --> 0:13:14.000
<v Speaker 2>walk out and think he was convincing. But Pharaoh had

0:13:14.040 --> 0:13:16.640
<v Speaker 2>to say no so that God could And this is

0:13:16.679 --> 0:13:17.520
<v Speaker 2>God's own wording.

0:13:17.559 --> 0:13:18.360
<v Speaker 1>I didn't make this up.

0:13:18.400 --> 0:13:23.120
<v Speaker 2>He said, I will harden Pharaoh's heart so that I

0:13:23.160 --> 0:13:26.920
<v Speaker 2>can gain glory. In other words, if it wasn't hard,

0:13:27.400 --> 0:13:30.520
<v Speaker 2>you would think it was you. If it wasn't hard,

0:13:30.840 --> 0:13:34.240
<v Speaker 2>you would trust in yourself, and yourself is not an

0:13:34.280 --> 0:13:38.280
<v Speaker 2>adequate support system for the glory of God. So I've

0:13:38.280 --> 0:13:42.760
<v Speaker 2>got to allow some things into your life that are impossible.

0:13:42.080 --> 0:13:45.280
<v Speaker 1>For you so that you can know what Mary knew.

0:13:45.320 --> 0:13:48.360
<v Speaker 2>That nothing shall be impossible with God.

0:13:48.440 --> 0:13:49.600
<v Speaker 1>It had to be hard.

0:13:52.160 --> 0:13:52.959
<v Speaker 3>By the time the.

0:13:52.960 --> 0:13:55.840
<v Speaker 2>Israelites came out of Egypt, they come up to the

0:13:55.880 --> 0:14:00.680
<v Speaker 2>Red Sea and God instead of taking them around the

0:14:00.720 --> 0:14:02.920
<v Speaker 2>body of water, WA's what God does?

0:14:03.480 --> 0:14:04.720
<v Speaker 1>God is kind of crazy.

0:14:05.120 --> 0:14:08.120
<v Speaker 2>God says, I'm not gonna take you around it. That

0:14:08.200 --> 0:14:11.240
<v Speaker 2>would be the normal way, that would be the human way.

0:14:11.600 --> 0:14:13.319
<v Speaker 1>Let's do it the hard way.

0:14:13.679 --> 0:14:15.360
<v Speaker 2>I'm not gonna take you around it.

0:14:15.640 --> 0:14:17.040
<v Speaker 1>I'm gonna take you through it.

0:14:17.360 --> 0:14:20.520
<v Speaker 2>Stretch out to your staff, and the waters will part.

0:14:20.800 --> 0:14:22.080
<v Speaker 1>And about the time.

0:14:21.840 --> 0:14:25.280
<v Speaker 2>You get through, look back over your soular and the

0:14:25.280 --> 0:14:27.160
<v Speaker 2>Egyptians that were ruling.

0:14:26.880 --> 0:14:30.680
<v Speaker 1>Over you, you will see them no more. I'm about to drown.

0:14:30.760 --> 0:14:38.400
<v Speaker 1>What's chasing you down? But I gotta take you the

0:14:38.520 --> 0:14:43.760
<v Speaker 1>hard way, the hard way. God likes to do it

0:14:43.800 --> 0:14:44.320
<v Speaker 1>the hard way.

0:14:44.320 --> 0:14:46.200
<v Speaker 2>I don't have time to tell you about David and

0:14:46.240 --> 0:14:49.600
<v Speaker 2>his slingshot. God could have used the armed soldier to

0:14:49.680 --> 0:14:52.320
<v Speaker 2>kill Goliath, but how would they have known that he

0:14:52.480 --> 0:14:55.080
<v Speaker 2>was the Lord if God didn't do it through something

0:14:55.160 --> 0:14:57.040
<v Speaker 2>so silly as one rock.

0:14:57.200 --> 0:15:00.680
<v Speaker 1>God likes to do things the hard way. Get so

0:15:00.720 --> 0:15:01.200
<v Speaker 1>if you have.

0:15:01.280 --> 0:15:04.160
<v Speaker 2>Thirty two thousand men, he's not gonna let you fight

0:15:04.240 --> 0:15:05.680
<v Speaker 2>with thirty two thousand men.

0:15:05.880 --> 0:15:08.040
<v Speaker 1>He's gonna get you down to three hundred.

0:15:08.400 --> 0:15:11.000
<v Speaker 2>Maybe that's why you've been cut down to a stump.

0:15:11.440 --> 0:15:14.200
<v Speaker 2>Maybe you were relying on the fruit too much. But

0:15:14.320 --> 0:15:16.800
<v Speaker 2>this is a season where God wants to prove your

0:15:16.920 --> 0:15:29.000
<v Speaker 2>root system and show you real hope, and sometimes you.

0:15:26.640 --> 0:15:29.920
<v Speaker 3>You got to learn it the hard way.

0:15:32.000 --> 0:15:34.040
<v Speaker 2>He couldn't come into the world floating on the crowd

0:15:34.680 --> 0:15:38.360
<v Speaker 2>cloud looking like some superhero.

0:15:39.360 --> 0:15:39.800
<v Speaker 3>He couldn't.

0:15:39.800 --> 0:15:42.200
<v Speaker 1>He couldn't have come like that with an s on

0:15:42.240 --> 0:15:42.800
<v Speaker 1>his chest.

0:15:42.840 --> 0:15:44.080
<v Speaker 3>For savior of the world.

0:15:45.680 --> 0:15:48.800
<v Speaker 2>Had to come in weakness, so that you would know

0:15:50.200 --> 0:15:53.320
<v Speaker 2>that in your weakness he is strong.

0:15:56.640 --> 0:15:57.640
<v Speaker 3>And I don't know it's because I.

0:15:57.640 --> 0:15:59.800
<v Speaker 2>Spend so much time speaking to young people that I

0:15:59.800 --> 0:16:02.240
<v Speaker 2>think in such simplistic terms, or maybe I'm just a

0:16:02.280 --> 0:16:02.840
<v Speaker 2>simple man.

0:16:04.600 --> 0:16:06.520
<v Speaker 1>But I started thinking about.

0:16:07.960 --> 0:16:10.400
<v Speaker 2>And I texted Jess and I said give me a

0:16:10.440 --> 0:16:13.680
<v Speaker 2>bouncy ball. I want to use it in the sermon.

0:16:13.720 --> 0:16:14.720
<v Speaker 2>I didn't tell her I wanted to use it in

0:16:14.760 --> 0:16:16.080
<v Speaker 2>the sermon. I said, give me a bouncy ball. I

0:16:16.080 --> 0:16:18.560
<v Speaker 2>didn't tell her why I wanted it. Maybe she thought

0:16:18.560 --> 0:16:20.560
<v Speaker 2>I was losing my mind, or I hadn't bought Christmas

0:16:20.560 --> 0:16:21.160
<v Speaker 2>for Holly yet.

0:16:22.400 --> 0:16:23.480
<v Speaker 3>That'd be bad, wouldn't it.

0:16:25.360 --> 0:16:32.320
<v Speaker 2>But I was thinking that it has the ability to

0:16:32.400 --> 0:16:36.320
<v Speaker 2>bounce back. That's exactly what it was designed to do.

0:16:37.840 --> 0:16:40.800
<v Speaker 2>That's exactly what it's meant for. That's why it's called

0:16:40.800 --> 0:16:45.080
<v Speaker 2>a bouncy ball. They named it appropriately for the function

0:16:45.200 --> 0:16:47.000
<v Speaker 2>that it is intended to serve, for the potential that

0:16:47.040 --> 0:16:48.840
<v Speaker 2>it has within its composite structure.

0:16:52.520 --> 0:16:53.400
<v Speaker 3>But in order.

0:16:54.800 --> 0:16:57.440
<v Speaker 2>See if I did the same thing, give me a chair, Rick,

0:16:57.480 --> 0:16:58.840
<v Speaker 2>I know he doesn't mind giving me his chair.

0:16:59.080 --> 0:17:02.320
<v Speaker 1>Rick could do anything for me when you're recking anything.

0:17:02.080 --> 0:17:04.960
<v Speaker 2>Anything to help me preach the gospel, even even your

0:17:04.960 --> 0:17:09.960
<v Speaker 2>own seat on Christmas Eve. Now, look, same ball, different surface.

0:17:10.800 --> 0:17:16.399
<v Speaker 2>Didn't work, because in order for this to do what

0:17:16.480 --> 0:17:21.439
<v Speaker 2>it's meant to do, the surface that it bounces on

0:17:23.800 --> 0:17:27.719
<v Speaker 2>has to be She's on it. Some of y'all are

0:17:27.760 --> 0:17:33.760
<v Speaker 2>remedial it has to be. It has to be. And

0:17:33.880 --> 0:17:39.560
<v Speaker 2>maybe that's why in this season of your life things

0:17:39.560 --> 0:17:43.920
<v Speaker 2>have been hard. Maybe God isn't punishing you. Maybe he's

0:17:44.040 --> 0:17:49.800
<v Speaker 2>preparing you. Maybe you've been cut down for a comeback.

0:17:51.000 --> 0:17:54.240
<v Speaker 2>See as a believer, y'all better help me. Preacher, I'll

0:17:54.240 --> 0:17:58.959
<v Speaker 2>have you here until midnight. As a believer in Jesus Christ,

0:18:00.400 --> 0:18:05.040
<v Speaker 2>you have the ability within you to bounce back. Maybe

0:18:05.080 --> 0:18:09.960
<v Speaker 2>that's why they lay Jesus in a borrowed grave, because

0:18:10.000 --> 0:18:12.520
<v Speaker 2>God had to show the world.

0:18:12.200 --> 0:18:13.360
<v Speaker 1>That you can put me.

0:18:13.520 --> 0:18:16.480
<v Speaker 2>Down in rock bottom, but you can't keep.

0:18:16.280 --> 0:18:20.320
<v Speaker 1>Me from bouncing back. Does anybody have a bounce back

0:18:20.400 --> 0:18:22.560
<v Speaker 1>in your sphere? At this Christian.

0:18:25.680 --> 0:18:28.800
<v Speaker 2>Touch, three people say I can bounce back. I can

0:18:28.840 --> 0:18:32.240
<v Speaker 2>bounce back. I have a hope that bounces back. I

0:18:32.280 --> 0:18:35.600
<v Speaker 2>can bounce back from rock bottom. As a matter of fact,

0:18:35.880 --> 0:18:39.400
<v Speaker 2>the harder the bottom, the higher the bounce. God let

0:18:39.440 --> 0:18:41.879
<v Speaker 2>me be cut down for a little while. But I

0:18:42.000 --> 0:18:44.000
<v Speaker 2>see a shoe coming from the stock.

0:18:49.520 --> 0:18:50.440
<v Speaker 3>It had to be hard.

0:18:51.880 --> 0:18:53.720
<v Speaker 2>Mary had to wonder, the Bible says she.

0:18:53.720 --> 0:18:55.240
<v Speaker 1>Pondered these things in her heart.

0:18:56.840 --> 0:18:59.040
<v Speaker 2>What was happening inside of her wasn't obvious to the

0:18:59.080 --> 0:19:00.800
<v Speaker 2>people around her, because it.

0:19:00.800 --> 0:19:06.520
<v Speaker 1>Had to be hard, and it had to be hidden. Hidden.

0:19:08.160 --> 0:19:12.960
<v Speaker 2>When God really likes something, he hides it. We get

0:19:13.000 --> 0:19:15.920
<v Speaker 2>sent a lot of delicious Christmas treats this time of year.

0:19:17.040 --> 0:19:17.680
<v Speaker 1>Praise the Lord.

0:19:21.560 --> 0:19:23.480
<v Speaker 2>And when I like it, okay, I put it out

0:19:23.560 --> 0:19:23.880
<v Speaker 2>for the.

0:19:23.880 --> 0:19:27.440
<v Speaker 3>Kids when I really like it.

0:19:29.000 --> 0:19:34.000
<v Speaker 2>I have some places around the house, come on that

0:19:34.119 --> 0:19:40.040
<v Speaker 2>I can put stuff where Graham can't find it, where

0:19:40.040 --> 0:19:44.160
<v Speaker 2>the devil can't find it. I have some secret compartments

0:19:44.160 --> 0:19:45.840
<v Speaker 2>for certain carbohydrates.

0:19:46.080 --> 0:19:47.679
<v Speaker 1>Holly doesn't even know that I have.

0:19:48.200 --> 0:19:52.359
<v Speaker 2>I'm not stashing anything illegal, baby, but sometimes peanut butter,

0:19:52.520 --> 0:19:56.600
<v Speaker 2>some stuff is too good for me to just leave out.

0:19:58.800 --> 0:20:01.919
<v Speaker 2>And don't you find it the least been intriguing. I mean,

0:20:01.960 --> 0:20:04.880
<v Speaker 2>I just love the Bible. Here's Isaiah seven hundred years

0:20:04.880 --> 0:20:06.000
<v Speaker 2>out from the birth of Christ.

0:20:06.040 --> 0:20:09.919
<v Speaker 1>Now we have what Isaiah was hoping for.

0:20:11.800 --> 0:20:15.080
<v Speaker 2>And I wonder do we take it for granted because

0:20:15.080 --> 0:20:18.919
<v Speaker 2>we've got it. Paul said, it's harder to hope the

0:20:18.920 --> 0:20:20.960
<v Speaker 2>more you have, because when you have it, you lose

0:20:21.000 --> 0:20:23.000
<v Speaker 2>your ability to hope because you start to hope in

0:20:23.080 --> 0:20:23.520
<v Speaker 2>what you.

0:20:23.480 --> 0:20:27.160
<v Speaker 3>Have and you forget how to hope when you don't

0:20:27.200 --> 0:20:27.520
<v Speaker 3>have it.

0:20:28.359 --> 0:20:32.560
<v Speaker 2>Hope for reconciliation when it's not going well, Hope for

0:20:32.920 --> 0:20:38.919
<v Speaker 2>provision when you're down to nothing. But God is up

0:20:38.960 --> 0:20:44.239
<v Speaker 2>to something. And Isaiah said, you can see it in

0:20:44.280 --> 0:20:48.960
<v Speaker 2>the roots. But the roots, that's the part of the

0:20:48.960 --> 0:20:52.760
<v Speaker 2>tree that you can't see. But that's where the action is.

0:20:55.000 --> 0:20:59.360
<v Speaker 2>As long as that tree stays rooted, it has the

0:20:59.600 --> 0:21:06.720
<v Speaker 2>promise of new beginnings. So Isaiah I said, God's doing

0:21:06.760 --> 0:21:15.719
<v Speaker 2>a hidden work in your life. Sh He's up to something.

0:21:17.359 --> 0:21:22.119
<v Speaker 2>Christmas came in a whisper. Jesus spent the first couple

0:21:22.200 --> 0:21:27.360
<v Speaker 2>of years of this life hiding from Herod because when

0:21:27.400 --> 0:21:31.240
<v Speaker 2>God brings a promise into the earth, that alerts the enemy.

0:21:32.720 --> 0:21:36.320
<v Speaker 2>And maybe you've been in a season of hiding. Maybe

0:21:36.320 --> 0:21:40.399
<v Speaker 2>God is trying to show you the nature of true hope,

0:21:40.600 --> 0:21:44.160
<v Speaker 2>not the kind that floats, but the kind that gets

0:21:44.200 --> 0:21:47.680
<v Speaker 2>down deep enough in your heart where people can't get it.

0:21:49.040 --> 0:21:52.040
<v Speaker 2>Some of you keep giving your hope away easily. You

0:21:52.160 --> 0:21:55.560
<v Speaker 2>haven't learned how to hide it. You're not rooted yet,

0:21:56.520 --> 0:21:59.240
<v Speaker 2>and you have hope when good things happen. But how

0:21:59.320 --> 0:22:03.280
<v Speaker 2>is your home when God seems silent? How is your

0:22:03.320 --> 0:22:05.959
<v Speaker 2>hope when there's no fruit on the tree? How is

0:22:06.000 --> 0:22:09.400
<v Speaker 2>your hope. It's in those seasons. Elijah said, it depends,

0:22:10.080 --> 0:22:12.840
<v Speaker 2>do you mean the teacher that taught me the most

0:22:12.920 --> 0:22:14.919
<v Speaker 2>or the teacher I had the most fun with. Some

0:22:15.040 --> 0:22:18.280
<v Speaker 2>of God's greatest work in my life was when I

0:22:18.320 --> 0:22:22.640
<v Speaker 2>couldn't feel him. That's where he built my faith. When

0:22:22.640 --> 0:22:27.320
<v Speaker 2>I couldn't feel him. He had to hide my faith

0:22:27.520 --> 0:22:32.080
<v Speaker 2>beneath my feelings. That's where hope lies. Beneath the surface.

0:22:32.880 --> 0:22:35.440
<v Speaker 2>That's where hope lies. When you get a bad report

0:22:35.480 --> 0:22:40.960
<v Speaker 2>from the doctor, but somehow, some way, you still have hope.

0:22:41.520 --> 0:22:44.560
<v Speaker 2>Not just hope when you're healthy, not just hope when

0:22:44.600 --> 0:22:47.479
<v Speaker 2>it's a clean bill, not just hope when there is

0:22:47.520 --> 0:22:50.840
<v Speaker 2>a bonus, hope when you don't know how you're going

0:22:50.920 --> 0:22:53.639
<v Speaker 2>to make it through. But my hope doesn't have to

0:22:53.760 --> 0:22:54.359
<v Speaker 2>know how.

0:22:54.840 --> 0:22:58.920
<v Speaker 1>I know who. I don't know how, but I know who.

0:22:59.000 --> 0:23:00.960
<v Speaker 1>I don't know when, but I know who.

0:23:01.320 --> 0:23:06.080
<v Speaker 2>I don't even know what, but I know who.

0:23:10.440 --> 0:23:10.919
<v Speaker 3>It and all.

0:23:13.200 --> 0:23:18.639
<v Speaker 2>It's an anchor for my soul. It's an anchor. And

0:23:18.680 --> 0:23:22.800
<v Speaker 2>what does an anchor do? Goes all the way down

0:23:24.280 --> 0:23:29.120
<v Speaker 2>to the bottom, and from a stump a shoot.

0:23:28.880 --> 0:23:29.600
<v Speaker 3>Is coming forth.

0:23:31.200 --> 0:23:33.640
<v Speaker 1>Think about it. The stump of.

0:23:33.640 --> 0:23:37.880
<v Speaker 2>Jesse that was David's father that represented the Kingdom of Israel,

0:23:38.760 --> 0:23:42.240
<v Speaker 2>and when that kingdom was cut down, God shows Isaiah's

0:23:42.240 --> 0:23:43.040
<v Speaker 2>word to say.

0:23:42.840 --> 0:23:47.200
<v Speaker 1>There's a stump coming forth from the shoote.

0:23:48.600 --> 0:23:52.000
<v Speaker 2>God said this Christmas, some of you have been going

0:23:52.040 --> 0:23:54.720
<v Speaker 2>through things and you thought God was gone.

0:23:54.840 --> 0:23:56.960
<v Speaker 3>He's not gone.

0:23:57.560 --> 0:24:02.840
<v Speaker 2>He is preparing you or growth, and He is rooting

0:24:03.119 --> 0:24:08.320
<v Speaker 2>your hope in a deeper place. I used to think

0:24:08.359 --> 0:24:10.840
<v Speaker 2>that disappointment was the enemy of hope. I don't think

0:24:10.880 --> 0:24:20.240
<v Speaker 2>so anymore. I think disappointment is the doorway to deeper hope.

0:24:21.160 --> 0:24:24.199
<v Speaker 1>See, you have to learn it the hard way. You

0:24:24.240 --> 0:24:25.280
<v Speaker 1>have to put your hope.

0:24:25.040 --> 0:24:27.120
<v Speaker 2>In a person and find out that people can't hold

0:24:27.160 --> 0:24:31.440
<v Speaker 2>your hope. They're not meant to. You have to put

0:24:31.480 --> 0:24:35.760
<v Speaker 2>your hope in your bank ballots to realize that your

0:24:35.800 --> 0:24:36.880
<v Speaker 2>bank account can't.

0:24:36.720 --> 0:24:40.600
<v Speaker 1>Hold your hope. God help you if you're looking to.

0:24:41.200 --> 0:24:46.639
<v Speaker 2>A governmental agency to hold your hope right now. And

0:24:46.720 --> 0:24:50.119
<v Speaker 2>maybe God even allows nation sometimes to get down to

0:24:50.200 --> 0:24:55.520
<v Speaker 2>a stump so a shoot can come forth. And the

0:24:55.560 --> 0:24:59.199
<v Speaker 2>Lord said, there would be somebody here today who has

0:24:59.240 --> 0:25:01.520
<v Speaker 2>allowed your hope to be in things and people and

0:25:01.560 --> 0:25:05.359
<v Speaker 2>success and status. And one day when and if I

0:25:05.440 --> 0:25:08.399
<v Speaker 2>ever and he brought you here, and there's a shoot

0:25:08.440 --> 0:25:12.439
<v Speaker 2>coming forth from the stump. This little Christmas message is

0:25:12.640 --> 0:25:13.160
<v Speaker 2>just the thing.

0:25:13.440 --> 0:25:17.520
<v Speaker 1>See, you came just for Grandma, You came just to

0:25:17.640 --> 0:25:18.320
<v Speaker 1>check it off.

0:25:18.720 --> 0:25:24.399
<v Speaker 2>But God had something different, something deeper, something lasting in mind.

0:25:25.160 --> 0:25:29.280
<v Speaker 2>God wants to give you hope. But my brother, my sister,

0:25:29.359 --> 0:25:32.520
<v Speaker 2>you've got to take hold of it. Hope is here,

0:25:32.520 --> 0:25:35.000
<v Speaker 2>but it is not yours until you take hold of it.

0:25:36.440 --> 0:25:39.320
<v Speaker 2>Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence

0:25:39.320 --> 0:25:43.440
<v Speaker 2>of things not seen, and from its roots a branch

0:25:43.960 --> 0:25:47.879
<v Speaker 2>will bring forth fruit. You cannot have the fruit of

0:25:47.920 --> 0:25:52.800
<v Speaker 2>fulfillment without the branch of Jesus Christ. That's why he

0:25:52.920 --> 0:25:56.760
<v Speaker 2>was born. He is the branch. And you don't have

0:25:56.800 --> 0:26:00.520
<v Speaker 2>to leave this place disconnected from God. You don't have

0:26:00.600 --> 0:26:03.800
<v Speaker 2>to leave this place disconnected from hope. And you don't

0:26:03.840 --> 0:26:06.880
<v Speaker 2>have to leave this place down to nothing. A shoot

0:26:07.280 --> 0:26:11.240
<v Speaker 2>is coming forth from the stump, and hope is being

0:26:11.400 --> 0:26:12.960
<v Speaker 2>born as the word of.

0:26:12.960 --> 0:26:15.800
<v Speaker 1>God goes forth. This is your day.

0:26:16.200 --> 0:26:19.560
<v Speaker 2>Today is born to you in the city of David,

0:26:19.840 --> 0:26:22.280
<v Speaker 2>a savior, which is Christ, the Lord.

0:26:22.680 --> 0:26:26.080
<v Speaker 1>He is the Prince. This is the hope. Now is

0:26:26.160 --> 0:26:28.520
<v Speaker 1>the time, This is the hope.

0:26:28.600 --> 0:26:31.360
<v Speaker 2>He is the Prince, and now is the top.

0:26:34.280 --> 0:26:34.720
<v Speaker 1>This day.

0:26:37.960 --> 0:26:39.320
<v Speaker 2>I want to ask you to stand at all of

0:26:39.320 --> 0:26:42.560
<v Speaker 2>our locations. I'm praying for people right now who need

0:26:42.600 --> 0:26:50.359
<v Speaker 2>to take hold of hope. I had a special sense

0:26:50.359 --> 0:26:52.600
<v Speaker 2>of what God wanted to do in this worship experience.

0:26:53.480 --> 0:26:56.720
<v Speaker 2>This will be the greatest response of people giving their

0:26:56.720 --> 0:26:59.199
<v Speaker 2>lives to Christ that we will see all Christmas in

0:26:59.240 --> 0:27:02.600
<v Speaker 2>this worship periods right now. There are many of you

0:27:03.600 --> 0:27:07.600
<v Speaker 2>who have never truly placed your hope in Christ. The

0:27:07.720 --> 0:27:11.199
<v Speaker 2>story is familiar to you, but you are not rooted

0:27:11.200 --> 0:27:15.639
<v Speaker 2>in it. And you know, if we were just talking,

0:27:16.720 --> 0:27:18.400
<v Speaker 2>I wish we could just talk. I wish we didn't

0:27:18.440 --> 0:27:20.159
<v Speaker 2>have to be in this crowd like this where you

0:27:20.280 --> 0:27:22.919
<v Speaker 2>want to act like you got your fake fruit on

0:27:22.960 --> 0:27:25.720
<v Speaker 2>your tree and acting like you're But if we could

0:27:25.760 --> 0:27:31.760
<v Speaker 2>just talk, you would say.

0:27:29.160 --> 0:27:30.960
<v Speaker 1>Man, I'm far away from God.

0:27:31.920 --> 0:27:33.560
<v Speaker 2>And you may feel like the shepherds who were the

0:27:33.600 --> 0:27:35.600
<v Speaker 2>last ones who ever thought that God would appear to them,

0:27:35.640 --> 0:27:36.760
<v Speaker 2>but they got the first noel.

0:27:39.000 --> 0:27:43.760
<v Speaker 1>And maybe that's you. Maybe maybe you've become disconnected.

0:27:45.160 --> 0:27:47.440
<v Speaker 2>Maybe you had a connection with God at one point

0:27:47.480 --> 0:27:49.359
<v Speaker 2>in your life, but.

0:27:49.280 --> 0:27:50.720
<v Speaker 1>You've been cut down to a stump.

0:27:50.760 --> 0:27:54.960
<v Speaker 2>The good news is that from that stump, a shoot,

0:27:56.280 --> 0:28:04.040
<v Speaker 2>a small thing that seems so insignificant, so little, that

0:28:04.040 --> 0:28:05.400
<v Speaker 2>you'll miss it if you walk by it.

0:28:05.480 --> 0:28:07.800
<v Speaker 1>I think these are the moments that God speaks to us.

0:28:07.720 --> 0:28:10.600
<v Speaker 2>At and if you're not careful, you'll walk right by

0:28:10.640 --> 0:28:14.119
<v Speaker 2>it and go right back into your next year, disconnected

0:28:14.160 --> 0:28:16.880
<v Speaker 2>from hope, putting your hope in people, putting your hope

0:28:16.920 --> 0:28:17.720
<v Speaker 2>in achievements.

0:28:19.400 --> 0:28:21.280
<v Speaker 1>But in this moment, if you'll reach out to God,

0:28:22.119 --> 0:28:25.840
<v Speaker 1>he has already come near to you. We live on

0:28:25.880 --> 0:28:28.520
<v Speaker 1>this side of hope. Our hope has come.

0:28:29.680 --> 0:28:33.960
<v Speaker 2>And today, if you are far away from God and

0:28:34.040 --> 0:28:36.320
<v Speaker 2>you know it in your heart, I want to pray

0:28:36.359 --> 0:28:38.240
<v Speaker 2>for you. Would you buy your head and close your eyes.

0:28:38.280 --> 0:28:40.040
<v Speaker 2>We do this as a church family, is something that

0:28:40.080 --> 0:28:44.040
<v Speaker 2>we do every time we gather, but this Christmas it

0:28:44.120 --> 0:28:48.680
<v Speaker 2>has special significance. What a perfect time to have your

0:28:48.720 --> 0:28:53.440
<v Speaker 2>slate white clean, your sins washed away, your heart made new,

0:28:54.480 --> 0:28:55.800
<v Speaker 2>and your new life began.

0:28:57.160 --> 0:28:57.760
<v Speaker 1>In this moment.

0:28:57.760 --> 0:29:01.080
<v Speaker 2>If you say that's me, you're preaching to Pastor Stephen,

0:29:01.120 --> 0:29:04.480
<v Speaker 2>And right now I want to pray with you, and

0:29:04.520 --> 0:29:05.920
<v Speaker 2>I want you to pray for me, and I want

0:29:05.960 --> 0:29:07.800
<v Speaker 2>to call on God. The Bible says that if anyone

0:29:07.840 --> 0:29:08.520
<v Speaker 2>calls on the name of.

0:29:08.520 --> 0:29:11.040
<v Speaker 1>The Lord, he will be saved, She will be saved.

0:29:11.800 --> 0:29:12.760
<v Speaker 1>All you have to do is.

0:29:12.800 --> 0:29:15.120
<v Speaker 2>Reach, and a shoot will come forth from the stump

0:29:15.120 --> 0:29:19.960
<v Speaker 2>of Jesse, and from its roots a branch will bear fruit.

0:29:20.880 --> 0:29:25.200
<v Speaker 2>He is the branch. Take hold of him in this moment,

0:29:25.800 --> 0:29:27.480
<v Speaker 2>and I want you to pray out loud with me.

0:29:27.560 --> 0:29:29.600
<v Speaker 2>We'll pray all together now as a church family, for

0:29:29.640 --> 0:29:32.200
<v Speaker 2>the benefit of those who are coming to God or

0:29:32.240 --> 0:29:34.960
<v Speaker 2>back to God. Would you repeat this prayer, the simple

0:29:34.960 --> 0:29:40.800
<v Speaker 2>prayer after me, Heavenly Father. Today is my day of

0:29:40.880 --> 0:29:46.040
<v Speaker 2>new beginnings. I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son

0:29:46.080 --> 0:29:49.840
<v Speaker 2>of God and the Savior of the world, and right

0:29:49.880 --> 0:29:53.840
<v Speaker 2>now I give him my life. From this stay forward,

0:29:54.720 --> 0:29:59.080
<v Speaker 2>I will follow you. I receive your love, and this

0:29:59.240 --> 0:30:03.880
<v Speaker 2>is my new beginning. I turn from my sin. I

0:30:04.000 --> 0:30:09.440
<v Speaker 2>trust in you. Make me a new creation. Head still bowed,

0:30:09.440 --> 0:30:11.400
<v Speaker 2>eyes still closed. If you just prayed that on the

0:30:11.440 --> 0:30:13.280
<v Speaker 2>count of three, shoot your hand up in the air

0:30:13.320 --> 0:30:14.160
<v Speaker 2>and make it official.

0:30:14.240 --> 0:30:17.680
<v Speaker 1>One, two, three, This is the day. Now is the time.

0:30:18.320 --> 0:30:21.480
<v Speaker 1>This is the day. Now is the time. This is

0:30:21.520 --> 0:30:23.480
<v Speaker 1>the day. Keep your hand up for a moment.

0:30:23.800 --> 0:30:24.400
<v Speaker 3>We have a gift.

0:30:24.440 --> 0:30:26.400
<v Speaker 1>We want to give you. God, bless you, God, bless you.

0:30:26.960 --> 0:30:30.040
<v Speaker 2>God bless you, God bless you.

0:30:30.080 --> 0:30:32.520
<v Speaker 1>Hands shot up everywhere. I wish you could have seen it.

0:30:33.920 --> 0:30:36.120
<v Speaker 1>I mean, there's a party going on in heaven. I

0:30:36.120 --> 0:30:38.600
<v Speaker 1>think we ought to join in. On the earth.

0:30:39.800 --> 0:30:43.280
<v Speaker 2>People say, and this is the time, this is the time,

0:30:44.240 --> 0:30:45.600
<v Speaker 2>this is the time, and a.

0:30:45.720 --> 0:30:47.560
<v Speaker 1>Shoot, we'll come up from the stuff.

0:30:47.760 --> 0:30:50.560
<v Speaker 2>I've seen you coming up all around you.

0:30:50.600 --> 0:30:51.400
<v Speaker 1>I've seen new.

0:30:51.280 --> 0:30:53.960
<v Speaker 2>Beginnings in your family, in your.

0:30:53.840 --> 0:30:57.800
<v Speaker 1>Heart, in your situation. Come on, let's look our hands

0:30:57.840 --> 0:30:58.520
<v Speaker 1>to heaven.

0:30:58.360 --> 0:30:59.840
<v Speaker 2>Right now, let's join the.

0:31:05.960 --> 0:31:07.040
<v Speaker 1>Thank you for joining us.

0:31:07.400 --> 0:31:09.840
<v Speaker 2>Special thanks to those of you who give generously to

0:31:09.920 --> 0:31:13.400
<v Speaker 2>this ministry. Is because of you that this ministry is possible.

0:31:13.880 --> 0:31:16.360
<v Speaker 2>You can click the link in the description to give now,

0:31:16.960 --> 0:31:20.800
<v Speaker 2>or visit Elevationchurch dot org slash podcast for more information

0:31:21.360 --> 0:31:24.120
<v Speaker 2>and if you enjoyed the podcast, you can subscribe.

0:31:24.400 --> 0:31:25.719
<v Speaker 1>You can share it with your friends.

0:31:26.000 --> 0:31:28.280
<v Speaker 2>You can click the share button, take a screenshot and

0:31:28.360 --> 0:31:30.480
<v Speaker 2>share it on your social stories and tag us at

0:31:30.480 --> 0:31:31.320
<v Speaker 2>Elevation Church.

0:31:31.400 --> 0:31:38.040
<v Speaker 1>Thanks again for listening. God bless you.