Elevation with Steven Furtick - Get Out

Episode Date: October 29, 2018

To the things in your life that are holding you back...it may be time to say, “Get out.” To support this ministry and help us continue to reach people all around the world click here: http://ele.vc/TI55jRSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed Human. Hey, this is Stephen Ferdick. I'm the pastor of Elevation Church, and this is our podcast. I wanted to thank you for joining us today. Hope this inspires you. Hope it builds your faith. Hope it gives you perspective to see God is moving in your life.

Enjoy the message. You are about to be, I want to say inspired, but sometimes we use that word incorrectly. You think it just means to have a feel-good feeling. You are about to hear an incredible word from God. from someone who I greatly respect in ministry, Pastor Robert Madhu. He's going to come and share with us in just a moment. He is one of the, let me think I want to say this now.

One of the, sometimes you get people who are good preachers, and sometimes you get people who are nice people, and sometimes you get both in one package. He is both, and I thank God for he and his wife Taylor. God is using them all around the world. Pretty much any given day that you wake up, you can guarantee that somewhere he's blessing somebody in a different time zone than you. God has taken him all over the world, but he is a good person too.

Don't you like good people? Yeah, it's good. And he's very committed to this thing that we do to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ. What I told him was that at 1130, the real Christians, the people with extra Bible depth and sensitivity to the Holy Spirit of God come to church. And I said, if you want to just save all the good stuff for 1130, they'll be ready for you at 1130. So can we make some noise at all of our locations?

Elevation. Let's welcome to the stage. Pastor Robert Madoo! Come on, Elevation. Can we make some noise for Jesus today? Oh, come on, this is the day that the Lord has made. Come on across every location, let us rejoice and be glad in it. Hallelujah.

Hey, will you do me a favor before you take your seat? Would you just look at your neighbor? You're tired of talking to your neighbor yet? Come on, do you like the person you're standing next to? Come on, get in their face, get in their personal space across every campus, and just say, neighbor? I've got a feeling that this is going to be a good service. Just in case that neighbor was stuck up, find another neighbor, find another neighbor. Come on, say other neighbor?

You're my second option. But I want you to know, I've got a feeling. This is going to be a good service. Come on, if you believe that thing, give God one more stand in ovation of praise. Hallelujah. You may be seated in the presence of the Lord. Don't get comfortable. You might be back up again.

Come on. Come on. I'll say what I always say. I'm not just excited to be at Elevation Church. I am Red Bull excited. Expresso-elated. I've been waiting. I've been waiting to get my chocolate face back in the place. I absolutely hear me positively. Love, love, love this church. I'm from the great country of Texas. But Elevation Church will mess you up. Elevation will have you looking on Zillow. trying to find a house in Charlotte. Come on, how many of you know, you are ridiculously blessed to be a part of this church. This is absolutely amazing. And not only that, you're crazy blessed to have Pastor Stephen Ferdick and Holly Ferdick as your pastors, as your leaders. Oh, come on, y'all can do better than that. Come on across every campus, I want you to make some noise. If you know, God loves you too much.

And I know preachers always say stuff, and this is not a platitude for me. There's so many things I could say. He's one of the greatest communicators of the gospel on the planet. And an incredible leader writes songs that reverberate around the nation. But I think I love the most about Pastor Stephen and Holly is that they're amazing up close. You know what I mean about that? Some people you love from a distance, but, man, I'm telling you, when get up close, it's amazing to see their hearts for people.

And he could have anybody on planet Earth in this pulpit. So I'm extremely honored. And it ought to be a pastor appreciation minute at elevation because y'all are crazy blessed. Come on one more time. Would you let them know how much you love them? How much you appreciate them? Thank God for y'all. I am here with my super duper fine wife.

Taylor Madhue is in the building. I preach better when she's here. So it's going to be good. And this is almost like a honeymoon for us because our three kids are at home. Hallelujah. They are with the grandparents. And I know how some preachers, they always put up pictures of their kids because they think they got the cutest kids and they want to everybody see how cute their kids are. I am not that preacher.

It's about me preaching Jesus, not you seeing my kids. So you ain't got to worry about me putting them on the screen. We're good. We good. That's not true. If y'all don't put my kids on our screen up in here. Hey. Come on, elevation.

I made that. Made that. Come on. That is my four-year-old daughter. Evie, that is my two-year-old son, Robert Madduh, the third, my man-child, and our newest and last edition, hello, Remington Elaine, she's just one year's old. And I'll put up the picture all the time because fatherhood is the best hood. There's just nothing like being a dad. But, hey, I'm excited to share the word. I want to jump straight into it. Do you have a Bible with you? Come on, if you got a Bible,

would you wave it in the air like it's just due care across every campus, every location? Awesome. Some of your Bibles are glowing. You're charged up your Bible today. I want to look at Mark chapter 5, if we can. Mark Chapter 5, verses 21 through 43. Quite a bit of Scripture, but I need all of it for you to get the context of where we're going. Mark chapter 5, starting at verse 21, and then we'll land at verse 43. When you're ready to read it, say yeah? If you need some time to find us, hey, hold up.

It's a desperate hold up. I'll wait for you. Verse 21, it says, when Jesus had again crossed over by boat to the other side of the lake. A large crowd gathered around him while he was by the late. Then one of the synagogue leaders named Jairus came, and when he saw Jesus, he fell at his feet. He pleaded earnestly with him. My little daughter is dying. Please come and put your hands on her so that she will be healed and live. So Jesus went with him. A large crowd followed and pressed around him, and a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for 12 years. She had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors, and it spent all she had, yet instead of getting

better, she grew worse. When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak because she thought, if I just touch his clothes, I will be healed. Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was free from her suffering. At once, Jesus realized that power had gone out from him, and he turned around in the crowd and asked, who touched my clothes? You see the people crowding against you. His disciples answered, and yet you can ask, who touched me? But Jesus kept looking around to see who had done it. Then the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell at his feet and trembling with fear, told him the whole truth. And he said to her daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be

freed from your suffering. While Jesus was still speaking, some people came from the house of Gyrus, the synagogue leader, your daughter is dead, they said. Why bother the teacher anymore? Overhearing what they said, one version says, ignoring what they said, Jesus told him, don't be afraid, just believe. He did not let anyone follow him except Peter James and John, the brother of James. And when they came to the home of the synagogue leader, Jesus saw a commotion with people crying and well and loudly. He went in and said to them, why all the commotion and welling? The child is not dead, but asleep. But they laughed at him. After he put them all out, he took the child's father and mother and the disciples who were with him and went in where the child was. He took her by the hand and said to her

Leitha Kuhn, which means little girl, I say to you, get up. Immediately the girl stood up and began to walk around. She was 12 years old. At this, they were completely astonished. He gave strict orders not to let anyone know about this and then told them, don't just stand there and look at the girl. Go to Chick-fil-A and get her something to eat. Come on, somebody. That is good all by itself. All by itself. In full sermon prep disclosure, I almost titled this message. I almost titled this message, Get Up. That's a good sermon title, Get Up, because I thought that was the culmination and the climax of the miracle when Jesus told this little girl to get up. Upon further reflection, I realized

that was a premature title. Premature and I had to back that thing up, biblically. To verses 40 and 41. I want us to hone in on verses 40 and 41, because remember, Jesus walks in and says, this girl is not dead. She's just asleep.

The Bible says that they laughed at him. They. Who is the they? The negative, doubting, hating, unbelieving, faithless,

cantankerous people in the... You know those people that light up a room when they walk out? Those people that, for every solution, they're going to find a problem? That's the day, okay? They laughed at him, and it says

after he, that's Jesus, put them all out. The Greek suggests that he physically put all of them out. I don't want to mess up with your theology or your Christology today because you might

think that Jesus is just kind and sweet and loving and caring and he's a good good father. And he is. But this text lets me know, don't get it twisted. He is so, so gangster. Because all of those negative doubting, unbelieving,

faithless people, he said, All y'all got to get. You ain't got to go home, but you got to get out of here. Savage Jesus. I love it. So before she got up, first some people had to get out. Elevation Church, what if the power of a miracle is not just in the miracle itself, but rather in the atmosphere and the environment that surrounds your miracle?

You've been telling some things to get up, but perhaps this is the season of your life to check your environment and start telling some things to get. Oh, I feel like preaching in here today. Come on, would you just look at your neighbor and tell them my title, just say, get out. Oh, come on, look at another neighbor like you've got an attitude with him. Say, get out. Not now, but later. Come on, let's pray. Long prayer. Father, thank you for your word. Speak to us today. Amen. The divine intersection and collision of characters in this text today immediately gave me a nostalgic parental fatherhood flashback to November 2014. I remember it quite vividly because I was getting ready to leave our home in Dallas to go preach at a conference,

which isn't anything unusual. I often leave to go preach at a conference, except this time everything was different. Everything was different because I was not just leaving the house as a husband. Now I was leaving the house as a father. My firstborn daughter, Evie, had just entered the world, and I was in that emotional, precarious predicament of leaving my firstborn daughter for the first time. Come on, every parent in here will attest to the fact that things are different with your first child. Oh, come on, there are things that happen with your first child that none of your other children will ever experience.

Okay? Like now, now Taylor and I, we have three kids plus a demonic dog. So, when I leave the house now, I leave like I got warrants for my arrest, and I take the long route home, okay? Often, Taylor will call me with chaos in the background. She'll be like, babe, where are you? I'll go, I'm in traffic. She's like, no, you're in the driveway. I see you.

Come in the house and help me with these kids. But when is your first? It's different. It's different. your emotional, tears are going this way, slots going the other way. I'm like, Daddy loves you. I can't put you so much.

You is kind. You is smart. You is important. I mean, I was a mess. I get to the conference. I get to the conference. I think it was in Florida. And I'm about to get up to preach.

And a guy by the name of Eddie James is leading worship. And of all songs, of all songs, he's actually singing, You're a good, good father. I was like, no, I'm not, Eddie, no, I'm not. Just the mess. And I don't even think I preached.

I just put up a picture of my daughter, said, that's point one, two, and three. And got in the green room afterwards, and the worship leader, Eddie James, comes up to me, he says, Robert, congrats on your daughter. She's beautiful. I said, thank you. I made her. I then said, hey, Eddie, you know, my daughter, Evie might not have ever been born if it wasn't for you.

Eddie looked at me like I had lost my mind. I said, Eddie, you probably don't remember this, but in December, 2006, you were scheduled to lead worship and preach at Christ for the Nations Institute in Dallas, Texas. But en route to Christ for the Nations, your van broke down on the side of the road. Eddie goes, I remember that night. I said, you picked up the phone and you called a man by the name of Adam McCain, and you let him know that by the time your van would be fixed, there was no way you would make the service. So regrettably, you had to cancel. Adam McCain got off the phone with you and looked at a room full of people and said, Eddie James

just canceled for our Tuesday night Bible College Chapel. Who in the world can we get last minute to fill his spot? In that room was a man by the name of Brian Ming. He lifts up his hand and says, I just heard this young guy named Robert Medoo preach. He's local. Maybe he can do it. All of a sudden my phone

rings and a voice on the other line says, is this Pastor Robert Maddo? I say, yes, it is. Says, Robert, I know this is last minute, this is crazy, but we've just had a cancellation for our Tuesday night Bible College Chapel. Is there any way you could come and speak to our young people? Now, keep in mind, during this time of my life, I myself am a Bible College student at Southwestern Assembles of God University. So I said to Adam McCain, you know what? It seems like yesterday I was a Bible college student myself. What an honor it would be to come in part to your young people.

Drove from Sagu to see if and I, I'm about to get up and preach. But before I get up, they say it's Tuesday night. So it's time for our Tuesday night testimony video. We're going to show a video of a student in our body whose life has been changed by Jesus Christ. And all of a sudden on the screen comes the finest girl with the strongest Arkansas accent I have ever heard. And she starts telling her story of Jesus changing her life. Don't meet the girl. I'm at my school the next day. A girl taps me in my shoulder.

She goes, hey Robert. I said, it's Pastor Robert Maddo now. She goes, was that you that I saw last night at Christ of the Nations getting up to preach? I said, yeah, they called me last minute. They had a cancellation. She goes, oh my goodness, oh my goodness. Did you see the girl on the screen telling her testimony before you preach? I said, yes, I did.

She said, I've known her for years. I've known you for years. And I always thought that you two would be perfect for each other, but I never said anything. But the fact that you were there preaching and they showed her video, you two have got to meet. I said, Eddie, the next week, that girl and I went on our very first day at the illustrious international house of pancakes.

I said, Eddie, to make a long story short, That girl's name was Taylor Mitchell. It's now Taylor Maddo. We did what married people do. Evie is the evidence of that. Eddie, I am so glad your van broke down on the side of the road. And I share that story today. First of all, get some hope to the single people.

But also to say, who in the world would have ever thought that Eddie and my Evie were connected? Because their connection is not one that is easily seen on the surface. But once you begin to peel back the layers and dig down deep into the archaeological value of a person's life, it becomes so clear that none of us get to live our lives in autonomy with just me, myself, and I. But how many you know, all of us are connected? We are deeply connected. Miracles merge with miracles. Testimonys touch each other. Our stories intersect.

Whether you like the person sitting next to you or not, all of us are deeply and intrinsically connected. Oh, yes, our lives are not straight lines. Our lives are actually links. We are all connected. And then it frustrates you when people you love don't understand this premise and they got the nerve to tell you, don't worry about me. Don't worry about me. You do you, I'm a do me. You do you, I'm a do me.

And you want to look at them and say, well, you do and you is affected me because all of us are deeply. Oh, we're connected. We're connected. So don't find it strange in Mark Chapter 5. Mark begins by talking about the synagogue leader by the name of Jairus. But in the middle of Jiris' story, we're abruptly interrupted with the story of a woman with the issue of blood. And the reason Mark has strategically sandwiched these two stories together is because the two of them are connected, deeply connected. In fact, to talk about Jaris, a synagogue leader and never discussed a woman with the issue of blood,

is really to do an injustice to the integrity of this text because the two of them are connected. So connected. Now, not on the surface. Ooh, not on the surface. If you just look at the surface of their lives, they cannot be more opposite. Come on, if you look at the surface,

one of these things is not like the other. Come on, let's just start with biology one-on-one. Jiris is a man. She is a woman. Hello. Jiris is named in the text. The Bible doesn't even give us this woman's name. Jiris was honored and respected.

This woman has been shamed and rejection. Jairus is a ruler in the synagogue. This woman can't even come near the synagogue because her sickness has made her ceremonially unclean. Jiris is actually affluent. He's got some money in the bank. This woman is broke, busted, and disgusted, and has spent all she had on worthless physicians who had made her worse instead of better. Let me bring the text to the 21st century. Jiris is driving the bins. This woman is robbing the bus. They have nothing in common on the peripheral, but yet life has put them in the exact same. place, posture, and position, because they both have been hit with something that they cannot handle. How many of you know life will do that? Life has a way of evening the playing field. Life is an equal opportunity employer. Life will hit you upside the head with some stuff that'll make you scratch your head that'll take your breath away. Life will hit you with stuff.

Come on that your money can't fix. Your degrees can't fix. Your Instagram followers can't fix. Life will hit an atheist. with some stuff, then I'll make him throw up his hands and say, the Lord is in this play. Life will hit you with some stuff you cannot handle. And might I suggest that if life has hit you with something that you cannot handle, how many know that thing is a job for Jesus? That's time for you to throw up your hands and say, God, I don't know what to do about this. But surely you look at Jairis in this woman.

Nothing in common on the surface. Both ended up in the same place, having to push people. out the way to get an appointment with Jesus. I love it. Because now one of them had a pretty pathway with rose pedals to Jesus. They both had to physically push people out the way to get an appointment with Jesus. Just push. You know, Javis is a pastor. You're not supposed to push people. I can see people coming to the jar and saying, hey, I really left your sermon the other day. He's like, you did? Good. Move! As to the way. Jesus, pushing people out the way. This woman is ceremonially unclean. She's not supposed to be touching people. She touched her. She touched her.

Everybody that's a no, more pushing people out the way. You know why they're pushing? I'll tell you why they're pushing. They're pushing because desperate people do desperate things. Oh, come on. How many know when you are really desperate for God to do something in your life, you come to church differently. You approach God differently.

When you are desperate for God to show up, you don't care what the traffic is. You'll be in here before the countdown video. When you are desperate for God to show up in your life, you will lift up your hands. You will sing the songs alive. You don't care whose nerves you get. When you are desperate for God to show up, tears will come down your face.

You'll mess up all that Mary Kay and Mac Maker. Because there's something you need God to do in your life. And I'm wondering, are there any desperate people in this place that say, there is something I'm desperate. You can be quiet. But if you're actually desperate across every campus, I need something about desperation. Hear me, God will often use desperation. to push you into your purpose.

God will often use desperation to push you into your destiny. In fact, watch this. Desperation is the door that breakthrough walks through. Ooh, I'm going to say that again. Desperation is the door that breakthrough walks through.

Some people wonder, how come I hadn't got my breakthrough yet? Sometimes it's because you hadn't got downright desperate enough for God to do it in your life because desperation will open up doors that complacency will keep shut. I'm telling me, I'll travel and people will often ask me, Robert, where's your favorite place to preach? Your favorite place to preach. And to be honest, I struggle to name a place.

Because I want to articulate to them that the effectiveness of preaching and ministry has little to do with an address or a destination of a place. But everything to do with the attitude and the disposition of the people that are in the place. Come on. I would rather preach in a basement with three desperate people than to preach in the Bahamas with thousands of boozy stuck-up people who act like they don't need God to do anything in their life. But if you give me some desperate people, miracles will break forth. If you give me desperate people, signs and wonders will show. If you give me desperate people, the atmosphere will shift and change,

and God will show himself strong and mighty when you're desperate. When you're desperate, and it was the rolling tides of desperation that brought Jairus and this woman. Watch this, both at the third. feet of Jesus. They both ended up at his feet. I love it. Nothing in common on the surface, both ended up at the same place at the feet of Jesus. This is a picture of the gospel and the power of the church that we can come in here today across every location with all of our differences of the surface, but we all end up at the same place at the feet of Jesus saying

there's something I need you to do in my life. Are you bored yet? Because I would love to delve into the details of their desperation. Jiris gets to Jesus first and boy is he desperate. He's desperate because his baby girl, his little daughter is dying. She is dying. So when he gets to Jesus, he is talking to Jesus with the vocal intonation of a 911 caller. He's saying, Jesus, I don't just need you to come to house. I need you to hurry up and get to the house.

This woman is just as desperate. But her situation has been going on for a while now. It's chronic, this bleeding, this hemorrhaging in her body. And watch how much Mark, the gospel writer, wants us to know that the two of them are connected. Because it just so happens that Jiris' little girl who is dying is 12 years old. And this woman with the issue of blood has been dealing with it now for 12 years. They're connected. So you got a 12-year-old dying daughter and a 12-year-old disease.

A 12-year-old dying daughter and a 12-year-old disease. So that means, chronologically speaking, the same year that this little girl was born was the exact same year that this woman was diagnosed with her disease. That means, cinematically speaking, if Mark Chapter 5 was a movie, and the producers of This Is Us were making the movie. This is the scene in the movie where it was flipped from the feet of Jesus and say 12 years earlier, and it would go to a hospital. And coming out of the hospital would be Jairus, his wife, and them holding a brand new baby

girl, smiling ear to ear with the full elation of parenthood, and then perhaps walking out of that same hospital is a woman. Tears coming down her face, because she's just been diagnosed with a disease, and the doctors don't even know what to do about it. And maybe they were in the same hospital that day, but didn't even see each other. Come on, church, isn't that just like life? Sometimes in life, you can be so preoccupied with your promise or so preoccupied with your personal pain that you don't even see other people around you. You can be so excited about what God has done in your life or so disappointed about what hadn't come to pass yet that you are oblivious to other people around you. And can I suggest in this narcissistic, individualistic,

self-saturated society in which we live, we have forgotten Romans chapter 12 that says you've got to rejoice within that rejoice, but also weep with those that weep. And don't be so concerned about you that you miss other people around you. Oh, come on. Thank God for Jesus. Because the two people that didn't see each other at the hospital were forced to see each other at the hem of his garment. And now the two 12s are touching.

Somebody say 12. Oh, say like you had your coffee, say 12. How many do you know? You don't need a Bible college degree. You don't have to be a student in biblical numerology. To know, there are some numbers in the Bible that God has given you biblical blues clues that these numbers are a big deal. Okay?

Twelve is one of those numbers. Twelve is a big number to God. You remember that when God began his covenant with his people, a covenant that commenced with the call of Abraham continued with Isaac, but culminated in Jacob. You remember that Jacob had not one, not ten, twelve sons, representing the power and the authority of God's covenant with his people.

Those twelve sons became the twelve tribes of Israel, representing the power and the authority and the strength of that nation. You remember in the Old Testament, whenever the high priest were going to the Holy of Holies on behalf of the people of God, he would stand there with a breastplate that had 12 precious stones

representing those 12 tribes of Israel, and he would stand there in power and an authority. Come on, you know our New Testament, High Priest, who is Jesus. The first time we see him teaching in the temple is at the tender age of 12, and they marveled at the wisdom and the power and the authority that came out of a 12 year.

You remember when that 12 year old turned 30 and he got ready to pick his crew, his road dogs, his disciples. If it was me, I would have stopped at 11. But not Jesus. He said, I need a hater too. Come on, Judas. And he picked 12 dudes to roam the earth. And he gave him power and authority to heal the sick and to cast out. Twelve is the number of God's power.

Twelve is the number of God's authority. Do you know what Jesus is trying to teach us with the 12s? He's trying to teach us what he's been trying to say since the moment he landed on planet earth. God says, I don't care whether it's a blind eye, a death ear, a withered hand, an issue of blood, a disease, demon possession, a storm, or even death itself. There is absolutely nothing that you're facing that is not under the jurisdiction of my power and my authority. I got the power and the authority to handle whatever you're facing. Oh, somebody ought to give God some praise today. If you're faithful, then no matter what comes.

comes against you. He's got the power and the authority to fix it. High five your neighbors say, he's got the power. He's got the authority. Why is that important? Hear me today. That's so important because your awareness of his authority, his authority, will determine how much you receive from him. Your awareness of God's authority will determine how much you receive from him. See, often we reduce this text just to faith because he said, daughter, your faith has healed you. So we tell me, you got to get more faith, get more faith. And faith is important. Come on, this is the substance of things hope for. It's the evidence of things not seen. You need faith. Faith is our anchor. But nobody takes an anchor and just throws

it in the water. You're going to lose that anchor. You better connect that anchor to something. And my faith is connected to his authority, the authority of his word, the authority of his power. That's what my faith has got to be connected to. If you don't believe he's the ultimate authority, how many know your faith is going to struggle? Some of you think you've got a faith problem. No, your faith is good. You just need an awareness of his authority.

Because if you don't believe he's the ultimate authority, your faith is going to struggle. Give us some scripture for that, Robert. I'll give you some scripture. You remember the disciples? Remember when they're on the boat and the hurricane is going crazy? And Jesus is chelaxing in the boat, just sound.

sleeve on the boat and the disciples are having a panic attacks there and I love Jesus he gets up in a hurricane cool calm and collected with sovereign swag and gets up to the edge of the boat in a hurricane just be still and the winds and the waves are still in a moment and all the disciples jaws were on the floor they go who is this man that even the winds and the waves obey him they marveled at his authority and what did jesus say to them oh you of little faith you your faith is little because you didn't have an awareness of my authority. If you knew who I really was, who I really was. You should have looked at me when I was asleep on the boat and said, who is this man that is sleeping in a hurricane? If this storm ain't bothering him, it ain't going to bother me.

Scoot over, Jesus. Let me just cuddle with you because if you ain't stressed about this, you know what you're stressing about. The authority that is in his hand. I'm telling you, you don't got a faith problem. awareness of his authority problem. When you know he's the ultimate authority your faith can go to a whole other level, you think the doctor is the ultimate authority. You think your friend is the ultimate authority. You think your cousin and him are the ultimate authority. Oh, but once you know he's the ultimate authority, your faith can go to a whole another level. Oh, I got to hurry. Watch this.

Jiris got a house call because that was his awareness of his authority. Remember, he works in the synagogue. He's a pastor. He approaches Jesus as a classic pastor. He said, Jesus, please, my daughter's down. You've got to come to the house. Hallelujah, here below is already playing in the background. You've got to come.

You've got to lay hands on it. He's Pentecostal too. He said, you've got to lay hands on her because that's the way it works. That's my awareness of your authority. So Jesus goes, okay, I'll go because that was his awareness of his authority. This woman had a whole other awareness. of his authority. She had been in the synagogue. So she said, Jesus, no, you ain't got to come to my house? I ain't got time for that. All I got to do is

touch the him of your garment. If I just touched the him of your garment, I know I'm going be made whole if I just touched the him. That was her awareness. That was she got. Oh, but how many know a centurion, Matthew chapter 8 that had a whole other awareness of his authority? That soldier went up to Jesus and said, I'm a man in authority and under authority. He says, My servant is sick at the house, but I'm not worthy for you to come to my house. If you'll just speak the word, Jesus just sent a voice memo. I believe he'll be healed by you just speaking the word. And somebody got healed without Jesus laying hands on him because somebody understood a foreign.

And what did Jesus say to that centurion? Never have I seen a faith like this in all of Israel. He marveled at his faith. Jesus, why are you marveling at his faith? because he's got an awareness of my authority. This woman goes for 12 years, 12 years. I've been approaching people with no authority. I mean, this is so important because if you don't believe somebody's the ultimate authority,

you'll doubt the validity of their words. If I don't believe you to real authority, I will doubt the validity of your words. Come on, think practically. You've been on the phone with somebody that you knew was a mid-level employee. and they're telling you something that's contradictory to exemplary customer service. After you get frustrated enough, you're like, can I please speak to your manager? Can I speak to your supervisor? Oh, y'all don't do that.

Y'all super saved here. I do that. I speak to managers, okay? This happened to me not too long ago. I had a reservation at a hotel that had been booked for a while, and the girl behind the desk was like, I'm sorry, Mr. Medea, we're fully committed. We're sold out. I try to stay saved. I said, hold on.

And I said, this has been booked for several months. He's like, no, I'm sorry, we're fully committed. That was nice about it. I said, can I just speak to your manager? Can I speak to your supervisor? The manager comes behind the door. She goes, girl, move. I'm so sorry, Mr. Medew.

She's new. Here it is right here. Here's your reservation. I'm so sorry. For all your trouble, we're going to upgrade you to an executive suite. How did I go from about to be on the street to an executive suite? Because somebody with some power and some authority knew which button to push. Oh, I hope you get so annoyed by what the enemy is doing to your family.

to your mind that you throw up your hands and say, I need to speak to the supervisor. He's got the authority. He's got the final say. This woman goes for 12 years. I've been speaking to mid-level employees. I demand an appointment with the supervisor. She touched the hymn of his garment. Immediately she's made whole.

Somebody played softly behind me. I'll make this sound a whole lot more spiritual. Watch this. Her healing, as awesome as it was, don't forget it was actually an interruption to Jesus' journey to Jiris' house. Don't forget who got to Jesus first. Jiris did. He said, Jesus, I can see exactly how it went down. He's like, Jesus, please, please.

Can you come to my house? My baby girl is dying. Jesus says, yes, I'll go. Can you imagine the joy that filled Jiris's heart when Jesus said I'll go? The text is clear. There's a crowd of people there that day. A huge crowd. And time is of the essence.

So Jarvis' challenges to get Jesus through the crowd to his house so his daughter can be healed. Of course, see how it went down. You know how it is when it's a crowd of people in a hurry? Like, excuse me, excuse me, excuse me, excuse me, move, excuse me. And he checks back to make sure Jesus, you still, okay, good. Excuse me, excuse me, excuse me, excuse me, excuse me, excuse me, excuse me, excuse me, excuse me, excuse me. No, I got to him first. Move, excuse me, excuse me, excuse me, excuse me.

Excuse me, excuse me, excuse me. Excuse me, move, excuse me. You still there, Jesus. Okay, good. Excuse me. And all of a sudden, the text would suggest that he loses Jesus in the crowd. Wait a minute. I told him, smooth, I told him, this is an emergency. Excuse me, what did you know? And he finally finds him in a crowd of people talking about who touched me. And John says, are you serious right now? I just told you this is an emergency. You have been playing 21 questions? What do you mean? Who touched you? Oh, don't act like you ain't ever been there before. Don't act like you never told you.

Jesus, this is an emergency. You need a hurry. They're about to take my car. You better hurry it. And he just taken, who touched me? We'll wait. Our Gyrus is standing there. Who knows how long it takes for this woman to finally sheepishly come through the crowd

and says it was me. And Jesus, the compassionate Savior, takes his time to talk to her. Who wild Chiris is waiting? The Bible says that she told him the whole truth. Another version says she told him her whole story. She told him her she. Ladies, I love you. But have you ever had a lady tell you her whole story?

Oh, don't be in a hurry. Get you a comfortable seat. How long was this guy? Get a dude to tell you his whole story. He'd be like, I'm good. Conversation. And I can see the steam coming off of Jiris's forehead.

Like, are you serious? Girl, get your healing and go. Oh, Peter, you're always running your mouth. It would be a good time to tell your boy to hurry up. Oh, ain't that frustrating? God makes you wait. Not only that, he had to watch her get her miracle. If it's not frustrating enough to wait on your miracle,

What do you do when you're waiting on your miracle and God makes you watch somebody else get theirs? You got that fake smile on your face like, oh, you got here. Hallelujah. Here we go now. It's funny. Till it's you. Waiting to be healed, watching other people get healed. Waiting to have a baby.

Watching other people post pictures of their baby on Instagram. What do you do when you've got to wait on your miracle and watch somebody else get theirs? And I found God will often, often make you watch a miracle while you're waiting on a miracle. Not to discourage you. No, he's a good, good father, but to encourage you to let you know that if God did it for them, oh, come on, he can do it for you too. He is not a respecter of persons. If God bless them, he can bless you too.

That's why you are not hate on anybody. be jealous of anybody. That's good news. I'm glad you clapped at that. I'm a preacher. I set you up for that clap. I'm sorry. Because we say that a lot. If God did it for me, he'll do it for you too. And it's true. But I think there's an erroneous ideology attached to that.

Because often when we say, if God did it for me, he'll do it for you too. We think that means he'll do it in the same way. So if God blessed you with a house, he's going to bless me with a house in the same neighborhood and with the same square footage. I'm a measure Jesus, so keep it even. They do it for you too, but often it won't be in the same way. Because Jiris and this woman hear me, both wanted the same thing. They both wanted healing.

Jiris didn't get a healing. He got a resurrection. Which sounds awesome. Don't clap too soon. Until you remember that the prerequisite for resurrection is death. So can you imagine how Jirus's heart sunk in his chest and while he was waiting and watching, they tap him on the show. and says, Gyrus, don't bother the teacher anymore. Your daughter is dead. Oh, I felt

Gyrus's pain, but I realized Jiris has horrible friends, terrible friends. Hashtag the worst friends ever. Not because they told him his daughter was dead. That was the facts. It was the commentary they added to the facts. They said, Jiris, why bother? I have to use this voice. They annoy me. Jiris, why bother the teacher anymore? Your daughter's dead, Jiris. Your daughter's already In essence, Jiris, this is the time to give up. Jiris, this is the time to throw in the towel. Watch out for people in your life that are so quick to tell you to give up on what God spoke in your spirit, on the promise he gave you.

How are you going to tell me to give up? This is not your daughter. And how are you going to tell me, don't bother the teacher. You don't have an awareness of his authority. He's more than a teacher. He's a healer. And finally, Jesus speaks to him and says, Jiris, don't be afraid. Just believe.

Don't be afraid. Just believe. And I think that's when the journey switched. I think that's when Jesus started leading Jairus, saying, Jaris, come on. I know you think it's over, but follow me. Come on, Jiris. I need you to walk with the same enthusiasm that you have it for.

It's not, no, come on, Jiris. I know where you live. Come on, follow me. This is the way it's supposed to be. You're never supposed to be leading Jesus. He's supposed to be living. Walks in the house and started the funeral. He said, while y'all crying,

the girl's not dead. She's just asleep. And they laughed. So you think that's funny? Every single one of y'all, they laughed. Get. Oh, no, I saw you laughing. Get.

Oh, unbelievable. Always laugh at the language of faith. Getz. Oh, somebody needs to serve an addiction notice on the enemy today and start telling some things to get out. Oh, come on. Fear, get out. Anxiety, get out.

Depression. Get out. Some things won't get up until some things first get out. God just sent somebody today to check your environment so that the dead things can come to life. I'm going to ask every head be bowed, every eye be closed across every campus. Can I pray for you, Father?

Thank you for your word. Lord, I thank you that you have power and you have authority. God, I also thank you that you've given us power and authority. So today, we check our atmosphere. Lord, we speak to ideas, we speak to mindsets, we speak to people in our lives, Lord, that need to get out so that dead things can get up. And I thank you that you are the resurrection and the life. You can do it today. In Jesus, mighty name we pray.

Everybody said, amen, amen. God bless you, elevation, Jim. Well, I hope you enjoyed the podcast today. If you did, there are just a couple things I'd love for you to do. Number one, subscribe to our show. That way, the most recent episode will always be in your feed, waiting for you, ready when you are. And secondly, if this ministry has impacted you,

and you'd like to help us continue to reach others, you can click the link in the description, and you can give now. And I'll see you next time on the Elevation Podcast. This is an IHeart podcast, guaranteed human.