Elevation with Steven Furtick - I Didn't Know I Fell Asleep (Robert Madu)

Episode Date: October 22, 2023

This is your wake-up call! In “I Didn’t Know I Fell Asleep,” Pastor Robert Madu gives us some tools to help us identify where we’ve fallen (spiritually) asleep. If you’ve just made a decision for Christ, please respond HERE: http://ele.vc/tIepfr To support this ministry and help us continue to reach people all around the world click here: http://www.elevationchurch.org/giving/ Scripture References: Acts 20, verses 7-12 1 Thessalonians 5, verses 5-6 Romans 13, verses 11-12 1 Peter 5, verse 8 Luke 9, verse 32See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed Human. How you feel in Elevation Church? I tell you what, I count up the highest honor and the privilege, the highest privilege, really, to be back here at Elevation. I do not take this lightly. Tiffany took the words right out of my mouth. I'm not a guest here.

I am family. I hope you know that. I'm your cousin from the great country of Texas. And it's an honor to be here, especially because of my husband. of what this house means to me, the impact that this house has made on my life, on my wife's life, on our church's life. And so it's always an honor to come back and to make a deposit into this amazing church. Do you know how blessed you are to be a part of this church? Come on, I hope you know that. That deserves more than a golf clap. You are not just blessed. You're spoiled.

Absolutely spoiled. And I hope you know the grass doesn't get greener anywhere else. You're at the right church at the right time, at the right place. And this is just evidence of God's hand and his favor, but also because you have incredible leaders and incredible pastors. And in this month that we take a moment to pause and appreciate pastors, how many of you know, we have to pause to appreciate Pastor Stephen and Holly Ferdick for who they are. I'm telling you, the leaders they are and the people they are. Come on, would you just let them know how much you love and appreciate them? Elevation, you can do better than that across every location. Let's give honor to what honors do. Please don't ever take the gift God has given you for granted. I fall short of words to

adequately express what Pastor Stephen and Holly mean to my wife and I. But I'll steal something I heard a Swiftie say. True story. heard of Swifty say recently, I feel sorry for Taylor Swift. I say, what? So yeah, I feel, I feel sorry for Taylor Swift because Taylor Swift doesn't know what it's like to experience a Taylor Swift concert. So I heard a Swifty say. So I'll say that, I feel sorry for Pastor Stephen and Holly Ferdic because they don't know what it's like to experience their leadership and to be on the other side of the incredible songs and the sermons. And so I love them. I'm thankful for all of the pastors that serve here at elevation.

Can we just thank God for them from every pastor at every location to the man, the myth, the legend, chucks. I celebrate you. I'm thankful for who you are. And I'm just going to pretend like I'm at home because I am. Is that cool? I act like I'm at Social Dallas. And I want to jump straight into the word of God today.

I want you to go with me to the book of Acts, Acts chapter 20. And I want to look at verses 7 through 12. Acts chapter 20. We start of verse number 7. and we'll land of verse number 12. I have to get excused absences from my wife to be at any other church. And so I'm glad that she gave me this excused absence. But I am families.

Can I show you my family? It's been a while. This is the Madoot crew. Let me show you my family. I've got that picture of my fam. There they are. Look at that, y'all. You wonder why I have this glow emanating from my face.

It's not just because I use exfoliating skin products. It's because I am a blessed man. That is the Madoo crew. And those are our three little humans. and I'm excited to preach. Let's go to work. Go to Acts chapter 20. And we're going to start at verse number seven.

And we'll land at verse number 12. When you're ready to read it, say yeah. If you need a little time to find the book of Acts, say, hold up. I heard that hold up. I'm going to wait for you. I'm away for you. I'm going to wait for you. Acts chapter 20.

And we'll start at verse number seven. And it says, on the first day of the week we came together to break bread and Paul spoke to the people and because he intended to leave the next day kept on talking until midnight

how many would stay here if I just kept preaching until midnight anybody? Y'all lying, don't lie some of y'all going to leave to catch brunch and says there were many lamps in the upstairs room where they were meeting and seated in a window was a young man named Eudacus

who was sinking into a deep sleep as Paul talked on and on. And when he was sound asleep, he fell to the ground from the third story and was picked up dead. Paul went down, threw himself on the young man and put his arms around him. Don't be alarmed, he said. He's alive.

Upstairs again and broke. bread and ate. You know you gangster. When you do a resurrection, don't even wash your hands and go right upstairs and break bread and eat. He says the people took the young, after talking until daylight, he left and the people took the young man

home alive and were greatly comforted. Can you say amen? Thank you so much. What? A peculiar passage of scripture. I obsessed with this scripture for a long time, especially about this young dude named Eudacus. Because he made the Bible, y'all. Not for something he said, but for what he did.

Homeboy made the Bible from falling asleep in church, falling out of a window, and dying. He didn't even say anything. But if Euticus could come back today, I think he would tell you what my mind. my title is today. He would say to you, I didn't know I fell asleep. I didn't know I fell asleep. Would you help me preach and look at your neighbor, whichever one you like the best across every location? Just say neighbor. Oh neighbor. Sometimes you don't know when you're asleep. Come on find another neighbor in case that neighbor were stuck up. Come on find another neighbor. Come on say other neighbor. You're my second option. But don't sleep on this message. Give God some praise if he got expectation for him to speak today.

Father, have your way. Speak to our hearts today. In Jesus' name, I didn't know. I fell asleep. When I read this text, it immediately took me back to a moment in church that I will never. never forget. It's happened a few years ago, actually, during the first year of our marriage, some of you would know that before we planted our church, Social Dallas, I traveled for 16 years as an evangelist, had an itinerant ministry preaching at churches all across the nation and preaching from Genesis all the way to the maps in the back. And I remember we had just gotten, we just gotten married and it was a crazy week of traveling. We're newlyweds, and I was actually trying to show my new bride. It's real.

here in these ministry streets. It's not vacation. I'm living out of the suitcase and going from city to city. And it was a crazy week. We were in a different city every single night. And then Saturday night we get into Middilothian, Virginia. I'll never forget it. And the pastor picked us up and he said, hey, I just want to let you know that tomorrow we have three Sunday morning services. Since the first one starts at 8 a.m. So I looked at my bride, my new bride. And I said, babe, it's been a crazy week. I said, you do not have to go to all three of these services. I said, why don't you just pick one or come to the last one? You don't have to come to all three.

Now, keep in mind, this is the first year of our marriage, okay? Now we got 11 years in. We got double digits on the board. If I asked her today, she'd be like, I wouldn't plan on coming to all three. I'll come to the last one and catch you at lunch. But when you are newlyware, it is different. So she was like, babe, no, I'll come to all three. We can't be disconnected.

All right, it's going to be an early morning. And so get to the church, I'll never forget it. It's the first service of the day and I'm preaching and I'm getting ready to land the sermon, land the plane. My wife, who is on the front row, I look at my peripheral and I see her eyes are close. So my first thought is, my first thought is, see, I picked the right one. She is praying for her man right now. She knows that this is the most important part in the sermon, that I'm about to land the plane. And she is preparing the atmosphere with the gift of intercession.

She is praying for me. Then all of a sudden I noticed her eyes were all the way in the back of her head. Her mouth was open. Then she started rocking like this and going back and forth. And I said, wait a man, we're Pentecostal, but we ain't that Pentecostal. Why is she rocking back and forth? And before you know it, she is sound asleep on the front row of the church. And I'm panicking because I notice it.

And then I noticed other people noticing her. And then I just panicked. I just called the worship team back in. I said, come back out. Everybody stand. Everybody stand to your feet. She woke up and stood and I prayed to praying. Ooh, and I went back to the green room. I was living at you.

I said, babe, what is wrong with you? I told you you didn't have to come. Did you notice everybody noticing you fall asleep? And she said in that sweet voice, babe, I'm sorry. I couldn't help it. And I didn't know. I was falling asleep.

When I look back, I shouldn't have got mad because, come on, let's be honest. This happened to the best of us, hasn't it? Oh, come on, I don't care how saved, how spiritual you are. You could have floated in here, had communion for breakfast. I promise you, you have had you a sleepy Sunday. How many are you honest across every location to admit? You've had a Sunday where you were dozing. You're like, look, I'm here.

At least I made it. That's the win today. I'm not impressed with people that tell me they've never fallen asleep in church. If you've never fallen asleep in church, all you're telling me is you don't come to church consistently. Let me know, of course you can stay awake. You just come on Easter and Christmas. Those of us who fall asleep are faithful.

We keep showing up, even when we worked late last night. And so, it's not a big deal. In fact, you want to sleep today, it's cool. Because it's happened to the best of us, and I didn't come all the way from Dallas to Charlotte to tell you that if you fall asleep in church, you're going to die. It's not my stuff.

It's not my assignment today. Nor do I think that's the reason that this story is in the Bible. But the question I have been asking myself is why is this story in the Bible? Come on, of all the things that Dr. Luke could have put pen to paper to write about, why do we need to know about this young dude named Uticus that fell asleep in church? Of all the things to put in the book of Acts, Why do we need to know about this young dude named Eudicus falling asleep in church? Of all the things he could have written about in the Book of Acts,

you understand that the Book of Acts is giving us the first 30 years of the history of the early church. It's not telling us everything that happened. It's just telling us snapshots that happened, just a few of the events that happen. I love the Book of Acts. Read it when you get to the crib because the Book of Acts lets me know that God will always keep his promise. because you understand that he gave those in the upper room a promise.

He said, and the Holy Spirit will come upon you and you'll receive power to be my witnesses to Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. Think about that. That's something that started with a small group of 120 in an upper room began to spread around the world and the gospel is still being preached today. I want to pause right here and tell somebody, don't despise small beginnings. How many know you can start small, but if the Holy Spirit starts blowing on the thing that small, how many know, it has the power to go around the world? Don't despise small beginnings because when God starts something small, if the Holy Spirit gets on it, it can get big.

Look at what you're sitting in here today at Elevation Church. This didn't start with all these campuses and packing out arenas. How many are thankful that some families and Pastor Stephen and Holly were faithful to step out. of a sudden because the Holy Spirit blew on something to change the game. But I'm trying to figure out why we got to know about Paul and Euticus? This don't make sense to me. I get knowing about Paul and Ananias. Come on, you know, Paul is like some of y'all.

He went from ratchet to righteous. He had a testimony. He actually persecuted the church before he started building the church. God knocked him off his high horse and a light blinded him. Only God could use a light to blind you. and a light blinded him. And he needed Ananias because when God is taking you from who you were to who you're going to be, you need an Ananias to lay their hands on you and show you the way.

I get Paul and Ananias. I get Paul and Barnabas. Because come on. God didn't just save you for you to come to church and sit on your blessed assurance and do nothing. Come on, you got to get plugged in. You have a purpose. He created you on purpose for purpose. So I get Paul and Barnabas.

You need Barnabas. Barnabas is the one that got connected. connected to Paul on his first missionary journey. I get Paul and Silas. Because how do you know, when you're in a dark place, you need somebody that will praise God with you. I need somebody that when I say hallelujah, they say, loy. When I say praise up, they say Lord.

I get Paul and Silas, but Paul and Eutychus, why do I need to know that he fell asleep in church? Surely the message is don't sleep in church. Surely that can't be the message. Surely the message isn't preach short. I vehemently come against that. That can't be the message of this text. I had a Bible college professor.

He said, you should preach 15 minutes or less. Fifteen, he said, yes, the mind cannot retain what the seat cannot endure. Preach 15 minutes or less. I'm thinking, well, you're boring. You should preach 15 minutes or last. So surely the message is not preach short. And surely the message can be that the Apostle Paul was a boring communicator. Because if he was a boring communicator, I believe the text would have said, everybody

fell asleep. But everybody didn't fall asleep. Uticus is the only one that started dozing off in the room. That means, I don't know how many people are in the room, but Uticus was the only one that was sleeping. That means everybody else in the room must have been leaning in going, Paul, if you got more to say, we got more to receive. If you're going to pour out, we're ready to receive it.

I want to pause right here and thank God that first of all, Paul had the depth of content to keep preaching past midnight, but I want to shout out to other people in the room that had the depth of capacity to. receive what Paul was pouring out. See, sometimes we think that God doesn't have enough content to pour out to us, but sometimes it has nothing to do with what God wants to pour out, but everything to do with your capacity to receive what God wants to pour out. Is there anybody in here that knows that God has so much more that he wants to pour out?

But some of us keep coming to him with a little saucer. Thank God, I'm ready to receive. So I want to shout out the other people in the room that had the depth of capacity to receive what Paul had. I want to shout out the other people in the room that said, Paul, if you got something to say, I am ready with anticipation and I'm ready to hear it. Is there anybody in here that says, I came to receive something from God? I actually have expectation. Sometimes we think the problem is with the seed, and it has nothing to do with the seed, but everything to do with the soil that receives it. That's why when Jesus told the parable of the

sower. The thing that was constant was the seed, but the only thing that changed was the soil. Because oftentimes the problem is not with the person that has the microphone. It's with the people that have the capacity to receive it. So sometimes I'll preach a message and it'll be terrible. And somebody would be like, ooh, that's the best message you ever preached. And I'd be like, nah, fam, that's the best time you ever listen. I know that wasn't the best one. But sometimes when you actually have the capacity to receive it, it'll hit the ground better. And I know this room had capacity to receive. In fact, they had something that I call proof of expectation. They had proof that they were expecting God to speak to them through Paul. Proof of expectation.

I don't ask church people anymore, do you have expectation? Because everybody's like, yeah, I got expectation. I ask them, show me the proof of your expectation. Prove to me that you're actually expecting God to do something. something in your life. Is there anybody in there that actually has proof of your expectation? Somebody will say, I got expectation. I'm believing God for a house. Really? Are you actually sewing right now? Are you giving? No, I'm just expecting a house. Really? Okay. Have you downloaded Zillow? No, not yet. But I'm just expecting a house. You got to have proof of your expectation. And I'm telling the people in this room, they had proof of expectation that God was going to do

something. Can you prove it in the text? I will. Verse number eight of Acts chapter 20. I want you to see something. If you read too fast, you'll miss it. It says, there were many lamps in the upstairs room where they were meeting. There were how many lamps? How many? Many. Many. There were so many lamps in that upstairs room. That lets me know the people in the room had expectation to receive. because this is how we're down. I don't think Paul planned to preach law. We never do. I think he jotted off and it kept going and kept going and kept going all throughout the middle of the night.

But guess what the people in the room already knew that this meeting might go long and Paul's going to pour out to us and we might not ever see him again. So before they ever got in the room, they set the atmosphere of that room and put many lamps in there. I'm talking to some of y'all, you've got to start setting the atmosphere with some expectation. talking to some of y'all, you've got to start praising God on your way to church. Don't wait until you get in the building. You ought to start praising all the way on your way to church. The lamps were proof of their expectation. They had many lamps. You know how long it took them to set up all those lamps? So y'all know Paul might get long-winded tonight. Let's just set them all up.

Setting up all these lamps as proof that they had expectation for something to happen. Not only that, wait a minute. You have to also have. oil in those lamps. It's not enough just to have the lamps. You better have some oil. You remember when Jesus told the parable about the five foolish bridesmaids and the five wise one. And remember all of them pulled a eutychus and fell asleep. And when the bridegroom came, the only thing that separated the wise one from the foolish ones were the ones that have enough oil that were in their lamps. Is there anybody in there saying, I don't just have the lamps? I got some oil. I got some anointing. I am expecting God. Do something. Those lamps stood as proof that they had expectation

for God to speak to them in that upper room. Not only those lamps stand as proof of their expectation, it also shows the power of illumination. Anytime you see a lamp in the Bible, it is a picture of the word of God. How many have realized that life is above your pay grade? And you need a word from God. You need his word for direction. This is what he says. Your word is a lamp unto my feet. It's a light unto my path.

This is the power of the word of God. I need his word for direction. Oh, it's a lamp unto my feet, meaning that oftentimes his word will just tell you the next step. Often when God speaks to you, he's not going to give you a 20-year plan. I know that messes up, you planters. He would not give me you a 20-year plan, but he will tell you, this is what you do next.

This is what you do next. Take this step. And some of you haven't taken that step, you're like, God, I need a new word. He's like, do the last one I told you. The lamps proved that his word is illumination in that room. And so all of them had tipto anticipation that God was going to speak to the great Apostle Paul. And I have to be honest with you and tell you something. I don't usually like to brag about places that I go, but I've been to this upper room.

I've been to this room. I've been to this room. I've seen this upper room where they gathered. I was there. I was there, y'all. Not in reality in my exegetical imagination. But I went to Troas, and I worked all day. I worked long and hard all day.

And I was filled with excitement, because everybody was talking about how Paul was going to show up at this undisclosed location. And they said he was going to be the great Apostle, Paul. So after working all day, I went straight for work to this upper room. I remember it, y'all. I remember walking up the flight of stairs, three stories. I remember walking in. The room was packed with people.

I remember the smell in that room because not everybody took a bath. I could tell. And the room was so packed. But nobody cared about the smell because they were just actually excited to hear Paul preach. I was there in the room as we began to take the bread. and we began to have communion and we remembered the sacrifice of what Jesus did.

I remembered the room. And I remember that moment when Paul walked in. The whole room got quiet. I don't know if you've ever met your heroes, but I remember seeing Paul walk in the room. I remember seeing the scars that were showing through his tunic

because in his body, he bore the scars of what he had suffered for the gospel. And there I was. Listening to the Apostle Paul preach, and I was trying to take it all in. It was like drinking from a fire hydrant. He just had depth of wisdom and revelation, and there I am, listening to the Apostle Paul, and I was so leaned in.

Nobody ever spoke like him, and I was with him for the first 45 minute. I was with him for the first hour. But after an hour and 15 minutes, I said, bro. you got to land this plane but he kept on preaching then my knees got tired so I said I may as well sit down like it's going to be a long message

and I sat down and I was good for the first hour and 15 minutes but then an hour and 30 minutes he's still preaching y'all at an hour 30 I had to go to the bathroom I had too much of the juice so I got up and I left and I went to the bathroom and when I came back from the bathroom

somebody stole my seat I said ain't that messed up And Paul is still preaching. So I just stayed in the bat. And two hours in, now he's taking questions. I'm like, Paul, come on, bro. And he keeps going and going. And then it was hot because all those lamps were in the room. And I started getting lightheaded.

And my stomach was full. And he's two hours and 38 minutes in. And so finally I was getting hot. So I just went by a window. I went by the window to just get a little air from my tunic. And I started airing out and I tune it just a little bit. And then when he's three hours in, I had to just sit in the window. And then he kept going.

And now he's three and a half hours in. And the lamps in the room kept flickering. And my stomach was full. I was saying, I think preach, Paul! I was trying to bounce and go. I was praying that. I just, okay. Then I started looking out the window.

I said, Lord, what's going on out here? Because this is going to be going on for a long time. Finally, I just laid my head on the window. You see how it happens? Do you see? Nobody intends to fall asleep. Nobody plans on going to sleep. I went through all that to show you.

let's not be so quick to throw a stone in euticus when it's happened to the best of us but my issue with euticus is not really his sleeping my issue is with where he chose to sit all the places that were in that upstairs room why in the world would you sit in an open wind on the ledge of an open with my issue is not with his sleep. My issue is with his seat. I'm going to say ludicrous, because it is ludicrous. Uticus? That's a dangerous place to sit, Uticus. I think you should have chose another seat of all the seats, because when you sit in an open window, when you're in church, but you still got open windows, when you're in church, and yes, you got your attendance, but God doesn't

have your attention when you're in church, but you still got open windows. It's only a matter of time before you go from a window to a fall. Because you got to be careful where you sit in the house of God. You've got to be careful when you have open windows. My issue with Eutychus is why would you sit in such a dangerous place? And I'm wondering if there's anybody in here who's just like Eudicus and oh, you're in church. I understand, Uticus is not in the club. Eudicus came to a campus. He was there, but he picked a dangerous place to sit.

Eudicus had some open windows in his life, even though he was in the house of God. Here's the thing. Your intention will get you in the room, but it's your attention that will keep you in the room. It is not enough just to come to church. You've got to be careful. words you sit and some of you in here today have some open windows and god just told me to ask you

is that the best place for you to sit is that the best place you know you're sitting in an open window when you're trying to see how close you can get to the edge of sin without it being sin when you're asking questions like what is lying really i mean what's cheating really it's it's an open window because you're trying to see how close you can get to the ledge. And God told me to tell somebody in this place today, it is a horrible thing to fight sleep in a window C. You need to get off of the window C, get away from the edge. You should go to a wall and stand up on something that's solid. Don't fight sleep in a window C. That's a horrible place to try to fight the war of falling asleep. The issue wasn't. his sleep, it was where he was sitting. Can we be honest? Have you ever been fighting sleep?

I'm talking about it in the natural. You ever been fighting it? You ever see how stupid you look fighting sleep? Hitting yourself doing whatever you can. I'm the worst. I'm telling you, my wife is scared to drive with me. I'm telling for me, oh, long drives and the engine just drone in. And if there's no scenery, I am dangerous behind the wheel if it is more than a two-hour drive because I'll just, who I see why he went by the window, because that's what I do. I open up the windows when I'm about to fall asleep and I'll stick my head out the window. Ah! Just fighting. So you ever been fighting? I'm telling I am dangerous on a highway just doing whatever I can to stay awake. Yo, I like hip-hop, but when I'm telling you, when I'm driving, I'll listen to whatever I got to

to listen to, just stay awake. If you ever see me on the highway with my head out the window, talking about, said you'll be gone. Like, was that Pastor Robert? Yep. It's a horrible thing to fight sleep in a window seat. And all of us disciples have been there, haven't we? You remember when the disciples were with Jesus, Peter James and John in the Garden of Gassimony, and he told him, watch and pray, stay here, just pray with me. And what did they start doing? They pulled a Uticus. Fall asleep.

But do you remember what Jesus said to him? He went up to him, called him out first. Y'all sleeping? You know, they did like we do. No, man, we just praying for you, Yeshua. He said, watch and pray. He says, be careful that you don't fall into temptation. That's an awkward thing to say for somebody that's sleeping.

Y'all got real spiritual with it. Like, oh, yeah. What? What does temptation have to do with sleeping? It seems like he just said, be careful that you do not fall into a temperate. What does temptation have to do with sleeping? He says more. He says, the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.

He's given us a metaphor, the great teacher, that in the same way in the natural, when you're fighting to stay awake, that is the war between your flesh and your spirit. He's trying to let you know that we live in a culture that is always trying to put you to sleep. And you've got to do whatever you can to fight, to stay awake. You cannot go to sleep. I don't know who this is for, but this is your wake-up call today because the enemy is trying to get you to fight to sleep. That's what he's given us the metaphor that is hard to stay awake. And I came to tell you the disciples with the best intentions often fall asleep.

The disciples with the best hearts often fall asleep. Don't forget what happened in that passage when the disciples were sleeping. He says that Jesus was sorrowful to death. But another translation says even the disciples were sorrowful. Sometimes sorrow makes you sleepy. Because you've been through so much and you've been fighting to stay away. But the pain starts lulling you to sleep. And God says, you've got to keep on fighting.

and don't let the culture and the things around you put you to sleep. I love the Bible because it flows so well together. The Bible is replete with examples and scriptures about our need to stay vigilant, to stay awake. 1st Thessalonians 5 verses 5 through 6. It says, you are all children of the light and children of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness. So then, let us not be like the others who are asleep, but let us be awake and sober.

Paul says in Romans 13, verse 11 and 12, and do this, understanding the present time, the hour has already come for you to wake up from your slumber because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believe the night is nearly over. The day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of the darkness and put on the armor of light. 1. Peter 5.8 says be alert and of sober mind your enemy the devil prows around like a roaring line looking for someone to devour. I'm trying to show you the Bible has always been telling us as believers stay awake because it's so easy to fall asleep. I know some of y'all are super spiritual like I would never get sleepy. You know how long I've been coming to, I. I have scriptures memorized. I'm a child of the most high God. I tell you, it's easier to fall asleep than you realize. I would never.

Okay. You remember in Luke chapter 9 when the disciples, three of them, same three that fell asleep, go up to the mountain transfiguration with Jesus and something powerful happens as Jesus starts praying. He starts glowing in the dark. Can you imagine being with Jesus on a mountain top and his clothes get brighter than anybody could bleach it. Something crazy happens. Moses and Elijah show up on the mountain. Y'all, I'm thinking, if I'm on a mountaintop with Jesus, and Moses and Elijah show up and he is glowing in the dark?

Oh, I am wide awake. I am not missing this at all. Matter of fact, I'm going to have my phone recording the whole thing saying, wait until they see this when I get off this mountain. They ain't going to believe this. But guess what happened to the disciples who are on a mountain? with glow in the dark Jesus and most people who were dead. Look at what happens in Luke chapter 9 verse 32.

It says Peters and his companions were very sleepy. But when they became fully awake, they saw his glory and the two men standing with him. They fell asleep on a mountaintop with two people who came back from the dead. You're going to sit up here and tell me that you don't get sleepy and you don't get weary. even the disciples with the best intentions, the best hearts, fall asleep. I guess the question that I'm asking you today is that if I don't know when I'm falling asleep in the natural, you realize you don't know when you're sleeping. If I don't know when I'm falling asleep in the natural until somebody

wakes me up. Could it be possible? You don't know when you're falling asleep spiritually. You don't even know. You could be asleep spiritually for years. And it's not until somebody says, wake up! You realize I've been sleeping. Until somebody says, wake up!

You realize I've just been going through the motions and checking the box, I was thinking the church is just a country club that I come to. It can be years till somebody says, wake up, and you realize I've never even shared my faith with somebody at all. I think I'm in the witness protection program, and I'm just going to work as a secret believer. You don't know when you're asleep till somebody says, wake up. I want to give you a few signs that somebody comes to play softly and let you know I'm landing the plane. I wrote down some signs that you're getting spiritually sleepy. This isn't an exhaustive list, but some things I just thought about.

You know you're getting sleepy spiritually when you have little or no desire to pray. That's why Jesus told the disciples, watch and pray. Watch and pray. Pray is what keeps us vigilant. It's what keeps us awake and attentive to the purposes and the plans of God. You know, you're getting sleepy spiritually. If you have a loss of appetite for the word of God, God, if you're losing your appetite for the word, that might be a sign you're getting sleepy.

Anybody in there ever tried to eat healthy after eating bad? Isn't it crazy how it's nasty at first? But if you stay consistent, you start craving what you like? Come on, the first time you eat that kale, you're like, this is ridiculous. Do you stay consistent? You're like, you know what? Let me get that kale today. I'm feeling it.

It's the same with the word of God. You start craving what you eat. You know, you get it. sleepy spiritually if you're no longer convicted of willful sin when it doesn't feel anymore like a sin and you don't have conviction. That's a sign. You know you're getting sleepy when you have a desire to be served rather than serving others. You might be getting sleepy if you're easily offended. You might be getting sleepy if you're avoiding accountability. You might be getting sleepy. You You might be getting sleepy if you're consistently comparing yourself to other people.

You might be getting sleepy if you're spreading or entertaining gossip. That's why someone's asleep with our mouth open. Always got something to say about somebody else. That's a sign. Getting sleepy. You might be getting sleepy, hear me. If you've isolated yourself from the community of believers, the enemy. want you to be isolated so you can go to sleep. And this is my issue with this text. This is my

indictment against the people that were in that room that day. Because if Uticus is sitting in a window seat, if Uticus is sitting there in that window seat, I just want to know, how come nobody in that room walked up to Uticus and said, hey man, I see you dozing. That's not a good place to sit. How come nobody in that room? Said Eutychus, I wouldn't sit there, stand over here by me. How come nobody in that room just took a moment to say Eudacus, I've been there before and I worked all day too. Stand right next to me and let's keep each other away. The Bible even says he was a young person.

How come no older person, somebody from another generation could have just gone up to Euticus and said, Eudacus, that's a horrible place to sit. Let me tell you something, I used to be young. You better stand over here by me. I'm trying to tell somebody this is why you need the church. This is why you need community because we don't know when we're getting sleepy. We don't know when we're dozing off. So I need somebody around me to say, you got so much purpose on your life.

You can't sit there. You got too much anointing on your life. You can't go there. No, you can't date them. No, you can't live that low. Your calling is too high. I had enough concern to say eunuchess. Don't sit there.

Uticus, there's another place, Metapeg Uticus here. Lean home, me. Let's stay awake. I know you wanted to be here, Uticus. The fact that you're in the room shows me how much you love God. You're just tired. I worked all day. And Paul's going a long time.

So just stand by me and don't sit in the window seat. This is why we need the church. Because I don't know when I'm dozing off. I need somebody to tell me. Wake up. Nobody saw Eutychus sitting in the window. And I'm even wondering if they knew when he fell out the window. I'm curious.

Were they so enamored by the great preaching of the Apostle Paul that they didn't even notice that Eucharicus fell out the window? Have you noticed the people that used to be in church that aren't here anymore? And the reason God put you in their life so you can call them back, in the room? Are you so concerned with your own life and your own blessing and what you need from God that you don't even notice? Uticus has fallen out of the window. I wonder if it took the commotion outside to get the room to actually notice. Uticus is gone.

And here's how else I know something happened in the room that breaks my heart. I think the people in the room, when they noticed Uticus was down there, didn't do anything. They just looked out the window. I'll tell you how I know it in the moment. But isn't that what church people do today? I love the church. I hear crazy how sometimes when somebody who's falling out of the window, we will stay in the room.

Look out the window and go, oh, can you believe that? Shouldn't have sat there. I wouldn't have sat there. I would never do that. In fact, let me text somebody just so they can be praying for you to kiss and let them know what happened. Isn't it crazy?

Now some people who have fallen away, we stand at a distance and look out the window, talking about how they fell, talking about how they shouldn't have sat there. But thank God for the Apostle Paul. Thank God for Paul, because the Bible says perhaps the most powerful words in that passage. While everybody else is in the room looking at Euticus through the window, the Bible says what Paul did. The Bible says that Paul went down. Paul is showing you what a believer is supposed to do. Paul is showing you what ministry really is that when somebody is falling out of the window and gone down and made a bad decision, you don't stand in judgment from the window.

The Bible says that Paul went down. You want to know what ministry looks like? Ministry doesn't start on a platform or a stage. Ministry is coming down to where people are who has the resurrection and the life. I'm telling you I'm learning more and more every day. ministry is not about being up there looking pretty and preaching ministry is when you do like the apostle Paul

who went down threw himself on the young man and said he's not dead there's still life in him isn't this what our Savior did for us and when we were fallen stuck in our sin he did not try to redeem us from heaven

the king of glory came to put on human skin to feel what we feel and go through what we go through it when humanity had no hope we were all eunuchas he said I'll throw my life on a cross get up from the grave get up is proof that no matter

what has held you down you can get up to it's crazy because this says that this gathering was on the first day of the week Sunday just like this, this is a change. This is the first biblically recorded gathering on a Sunday.

The Sabbath used to be a Saturday. Why is it changing? Because they changed it to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus. And didn't it just like Jesus to give them a resurrection on the day they are celebrating the power of his resurrection? I say that they say Eutychus,

all hope is not lost. You are not defined by your mistake. Even Utica's life became a testimony. God's still in the business of raising things that were dead back to life. I didn't know, but I also didn't know that even after I fell, I'm going to ask every head be bowed and eyes be closed today. Father, I thank you today for your word. Lord, I thank you that you don't give up on us.

That when everybody else says it's over, Just like the Apostle Paul, you come down to where we are. They say, no, there's still life there. They are praying for my brother, my sister. I don't know what location. I don't know if they're Epham, but I do know you're speaking to them. And today is not just another sermon. It's their wake-up call.

We're so weak. We're made of flesh. We don't know when we're dozing off. God, I thank you that you are always in us and what you want to do through us. Heads about eyes are closed today, but I'm wondering if this is somebody's wake-up call, whether in this room or watching online, and you need to surrender your life to this beautiful Savior.

Hear me, maybe you think you've got to get yourself together to come to him, but you can't get yourself together. Euticus didn't have time to get himself together. You don't clean yourself up to come to a Savior. You just come to him as you are. So with heads bowed and eyes closed across every location, if you've never surrendered your life to Jesus, today's your day to come home.

He's the resurrection and the life. Doesn't matter what the enemy is telling you is dead. He can breathe life back in. Because if that's you, he said, Pastor Robert, include me in this closing prayer. I need to surrender my life to Jesus. Would you just lift up your hand high enough and long enough to where I can see it?

Thank you. Yeah. Hands are going up all over this room. Wherever you're watching, across every location. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, God. Can we just pray this prayer as one big family? I'm going to give you the words.

Would you just say it from your heart? Would you say this? Say, Jesus, I need you. I cannot do life without you. Because you are my life. Jesus, I believe that you are the son of God. You live the life that I was supposed to live. You died the death that I was supposed to die.

You took my place. So my response is to give you all of me. Forgive me of my sin. From this moment forward, I'm walking with you in Jesus' name. Amen, amen, amen. Come on, if you meant what you prayed, can we give King Jesus praise today. Oh, come on, you can do better than that. Can you praise them like you know?

You got your breath back. You got your life back. Come on, give them a real, real resurrection praise. today. Hey, I hope you enjoyed the podcast. And if you did, make sure to share it and subscribe so we can get you all of these new messages as soon as they're available. I also want to take a moment and thank all of you who are a part of elevation. Whether you support us financially or serve with us or just share these messages, it's because of you that we're able to reach people all around the world. And if you want more information on how to be a part of elevation, click the link in the

description. Thanks again for listening. Make sure to leave a review, share the message, and subscribe. God bless you. This is an IHeart podcast, guaranteed human.