The Way Forward

You all ready for God's Word? You want to dive into God's Word together?

I'm really excited. Today I'm beginning a series of messages called Unstuck everybody.

Unstuck and this really has to do with something that God has put on my heart.

I'll share more about that in a moment but for now turn with me to Exodus chapter 14.

Exodus 14 · chapter mention

Exodus chapter 14. Now if you don't know what's going on Exodus 14, let me catch you up really

Exodus 14 · chapter mention

quick. Let me recap it for you. But we know that God's people ended up in Egypt. That was in the

days of Joseph and Jacob right? And then they eventually are enslaved in Egypt. Now most of

the time we say they were in Egypt or slaves. A lot of people will assign 400 years or 430 years

and I understand where we get that number. God said my people are going to be sojourners in a

land that's not theirs for 430 years and that was to Abraham. They were probably slaves in my opinion

if you look at the data. They were probably only slaves for about 215 years and a lot of that has

to do with if you look at what God said to Abraham and what the apostle Paul says in the New Testament

because he assigns the 430 years starting basically with Abraham and then Isaac and then so on.

And so but the point is they were slaves in Egypt for hundreds of years okay and theologians look

at it differently and it's not that the Bible is contradicting itself. It just depends on data we

either don't have and so based on the data we do have there's a couple of ways it could be applied.

But what we know and let me just say this very clearly. There is historical data that Hebrews

were enslaved in Egypt in the time the Bible says they were there because people will say well

there's no evidence of the exodus. It's not actually true. There is evidence that there were

Hebrew slaves in Egypt in you know up until 1446 which is when the Bible basically says if you do

the generations from Solomon that's about where it gets to. That's when the Bible says the exodus

occurred 1446. So there is actually extra biblical evidence that there were slaves. They did leave

Egypt in 1446 and they arrived in Canaan. We actually have archaeological extra biblical

evidence that they arrived in Canaan in 1406 and they've redated. There was a female archaeologist

who was not a person of faith who misdated the findings of Jericho but now what we know having

new data is in 1406 the children of Israel entered the promised land and if you like stuff like that

there's a great book written by Dr. Titus Kennedy called Unearthing the Bible and he's written two

or three different books. One is about evidence archaeological evidence for Jesus but my point is

this so we know the Hebrews were enslaved by the Egyptians and this is where God tells Moses

I want you to bring out my I want you to lead them out. Moses goes to Pharaoh. There's 10 plagues

and then Pharaoh finally lets them go after the plague of the firstborn and then they leave

and then they're wandering around essentially probably the Sinai peninsula. There's about four

viable options for where the Red Sea crossing actually took place but again a lot of that has

not been studied and a lot of that evidence would have been swept away over the years

but we know they left 1446. Archaeologists would tell us and they arrived 1406. So we know there

was an exodus so they lead them out and most you know the story they get trapped essentially if you

will and they'll use that loosely at the Red Sea and then God does a miracle parts the Red Sea and

he drowns the armies of Egypt. Okay so with that why don't you stand with me I'd love for us to

honor the word of God and we're going to start reading. I'm going to read a good portion of

scripture and then we're going to talk about it. Exodus 14 says then Moses said or sorry then the

Lord said to Moses tell the people of Israel to turn back and encamp in front of Pihai-He-Roth.

Don't you love coming to hear a redneck say Hebrew words?

Some of you got to be careful with Pharaoh's chair. I'm just being honest. Between Migdal and the sea

in front of Beelzebub and you shall encamp facing by the sea for Pharaoh will say to his people of

Israel they are wandering in the land the wilderness has shut them in and I will harden Pharaoh's heart

and he will pursue them and I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his hosts and the Egyptians shall

know that I am the Lord and they did so and when the king of Egypt was told that the people had

fled the mind of Pharaoh and his servants was changed toward the people and he said what is

this that we've done we've let our workforce go so he that's my version it's not actually in the Bible

so he made ready his chariot and he took his army with him and took 600 chosen chariots and all other

chariots of Egypt with officers all over them over all of them and the Lord hardened the heart of

Pharaoh king of Egypt and he pursued the people of Israel while the people of Israel were going out

defiantly the Egyptians pursued them all and Pharaoh's horses and chariots and the horsemen

and his army and he overtook them and encamped at the sea by Pihai-He-Roth everybody if you're

looking for a name like I don't know there's your good one Pihai-He-Roth anyways in front of Beelzebub

that's our word for the day sesame street anyways Beelzebub when Pharaoh drew near the people of

Israel lifted up their eyes and behold the Egyptians were marching after them and they feared greatly

and the people of Israel cried out to the Lord and they said to Moses is it because there were no

graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness what have you done to us in

bringing us out of Egypt is it not that we is it not what we said to you leave us alone that we may

serve the Egyptians for it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the

wilderness and Moses said to the people fear not stand firm and see the salvation of the Lord

which he will work for you today for the Egyptians have you see today you shall never see again

and the Lord will fight for you you have only to be silent I don't know about you but sometimes

I think when God's moving in my life the best thing I can do is be quiet

verse 15 the Lord said to Moses why do you cry to me tell the people of Israel to everybody say this

go forward lift up your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it and the people of

Israel go through on dry ground and I'll harden the hearts of the Egyptians so that they shall go in

after them and I will get glory over Pharaoh and all of his hosts his chariots and his horsemen and

the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord when I've gotten glory over Pharaoh and all of his

chariots and his horsemen come on everybody I called this message the way forward the way forward

let's let's pray together father thank you so much for this time together for your presence that we

have really not just felt but enjoyed just being in your presence today God thank you for the word

of God and Lord as we open it together Lord we open our hearts give us ears to hear give us eyes

Lord spiritual eyes that we can see your truth help us God to take it and pull it into our heart

put it into our hearts God that it would produce fruit in our lives in Jesus name and everybody

said amen you can be seated thank you so much for standing in God's house today

unstuck everybody unstuck I remember when I was preparing this I remember um when I was at high

school I had a had a Camaro and so you didn't get those much off the pavement but I had a lot of

friends that had Jeeps and I love Jeeps I don't own one I just think they're cool um and so uh

but we used to we would go anybody ever been muddin anybody now I know where the rednecks are in

the room you know it's like what do y'all do for entertainment we try to get our Jeeps stuck in the

mud right and so I have friends we had Jeeps and um and I remember one time we were on this it was a

pipeline right away because those things would flood after rain and and you get Jeeps out there

and we got this Jeep not just stuck we got it buried like it had water flowing through the Jeep

you understand what I'm saying like it is completely like it is stuck stuck and we tried

everything to unstuck it everybody we tried everything to get that thing out we broke two

different tow straps we had two Jeeps trying to pull one Jeep it was buried it was stuck and how

many know when something's stuck like that really the only thing you can think about is how to get

unstuck like it didn't seem feasible just to stay here the rest of our lives on this pipeline right

away in a Jeep with water you know running through it it seemed like no no we need we need to get

through it it seemed like no no we need we need to do something we need to find a way forward

and eventually we did back in those days we didn't have cell phones I know probably for my kids and

many in here you're like what yeah uh used to phones were attached to the wall it's kind of a

crazy thing they had lines and wires and uh and you didn't have them in your pocket so we had to

hike to the first house we could find with a phone and we had to call a tow truck and uh anyways

tow truck got us out but I was thinking about being stuck that just got me thinking about being

stuck and and in my opinion um I'm concerned that our in our nation I think a lot of people are

stuck I think a lot of people are stuck in the mud and and I'll say this um I think since the

pandemic everyone has shifted the way that we live and between the constant 24-hour news cycle

where something's about to kill us every day um I don't I just want to say this and I know you

know this but sometimes I just want to say you do understand that in order to sell news

they need to create a crisis so you'll watch the news I don't want to get into that I'm not trying

to take a political stance I'm just saying if you understand the psychology of how this works

if the news came on and said everything's going really well like no real problems in the world

see y'all next week they would sell nothing they would sell no advertisements no one would watch

their channel right that's why there's not tons of good news like they basically tell you every day

you're going to die and then right at the end they put a nice story about a puppy or something

like that isn't it nice and so my point is though I feel like since the pandemic a lot of and I'm

saying believers but the world have lived reactionary we're reacting to whatever the news

cycle is we're reacting to whatever they're saying is coming in other words we're no longer

I feel like we're no longer charting a course and advancing and moving forward we're just trying not

to get wiped out we're just trying to hunker down if you will and play it safe and be conservative

right and try not to lose our money and try not to lose our job and try not to lose our health and

and I just feel like we're reacting to the world and and really to give you the overarching idea

and then we'll break it down together of the message today I feel the word of the Lord is

to give you permission to say you can move forward now that with God God is always advancing his

kingdom is always expanding God always has a plan and we're not supposed to live reactionary lives

to everything that's going on with the world but rather we're supposed to in unity with God

advance with him through life and being victorious may I remind you that he Jesus leads us in triumph

that applies a couple of things number one implicit in that scripture is he is leading meaning we are

moving and we are moving with him meaning we are unified and when we're moving with him unified

there is victory come on somebody help me this morning and so I want to talk about getting unstuck

and I want to talk about the way forward and and I want to look at Israel here um and I really just

have two points it doesn't make the sermon any shorter y'all know me but I just have two points

um and and and when you think about the way forward now there's a lot of things I could say

about the way forward but this is where I felt like the Holy Spirit led me and two things that

I want to that probably they almost don't even sound like sermon points but it's what I feel

like we need to talk about so write this down the first one is this the way forward is to possess

your own life the way forward is to take possession of your own life listen to me

before you can possess God's promise you will have to possess your life

when I'm looking at this story of Israel it's almost I don't know if it's the way I look at

it and probably let's be honest if I happen to be lucky enough to be in these days and be written

in in some type of Bible verse in other words if you wrote the history of Marty I mean we have the

history of Israel because it's God's elect people but but if you had the history of Marty and that

was in the Bible I would laugh at my own story trust me but sometimes when I read text like this

I'm a little bit perplexed I my my Jana laughs at me all the time because even just the other day

yesterday we were driving and we saw a person with a sign and when I read the sign I immediately

looked at her and this is my phrase I got questions and I spent the next 15 minutes trying to figure out

what was going on with this sign and having anyways it doesn't matter so the point is I read

scripture that way I read it I'm inquisitive and I think I got a question because what Israel is

saying is they pray that's good they pray to God then they get with Moses and how many knows if

it's going bad the first thing you do is blame the leader amen right no you don't what in the world

that's not what everyone's like yes it's your fault yes praise the Lord anyways so they get with Moses

and this is what they say were there not enough graves in Egypt Moses we could have died happy

there as slaves almost starving to death and making bricks with no straw it was a wonderful life and

then here you bring us out here you deliver us from the Egyptians and now we're going to die

I don't know you know what I failed to find in the text I failed to find where God forced them to

leave Egypt I failed to find where Moses kidnapped them there's roughly 600 000 men so you can say

most theologians think two two and a half million people and and I don't know I mean Moses is pretty

persuasive I guess but I didn't see where he got his staff and said look y'all get out of Egypt

or I'm gonna hit you with this stuff you know what you do find the Bible where God tells Moses

my children have been praying to me for deliverance for hundreds of years and I have heard them isn't

it interesting that sometimes we pray and then God moves and when he doesn't move the way we think

he should move then we're mad about him moving anybody else ever had that experience with the Lord

right I think that Israel you know Egypt's like you know yes Lord I guess deliver me from Egypt

but then I was expecting like a limo to the Red Sea and a yacht across it hello you're God and

everything it's so interesting to me a lot of times we pray and we pray and we pray and then

God starts moving because everything that's happening at this point is two things it's the

purpose of God it is in the response of their plea but it's the plan of God so essentially God

is answering their prayer and they're mad about it because it doesn't look like it's supposed to look

right it's like when you're praying for you need a financial increase and you're praying and God

gives you overtime come on somebody like somebody guys like he got a little guy up in my pew already

what's he doing in my pew God I need you to bless me and multiply I need more money God over time

oh god I was praying for lottery numbers I wasn't praying for overtime right

you may want to write this down but but I want you to to understand this

this may sound a little off but let me explain God is not actually actually responsible for you

God is responsible to you and those are not the same thing for God to take responsibility for you

would be a violation of his nature and a violation of his creation and that he created you as a free

will moral agent but for God to be responsible to you is no violation at all that means as long as

God is true to himself as long as God is who he says and does what he says he's going to do

then he's responsible to you God is responsible at this point yes to God but you got to follow

God is responsible to save but you have to accept it God is responsible to forgive but you've got to

ask for it you see what I'm saying so God is responsible to you to be responsible for you

God is responsible to you to be everything that he says he is and do everything that he says he was

going to do but he is not responsible for what you do he's not responsible for your decisions

he's not responsible for your attitude he's not responsible for your emotions

he's not responsible come on somebody for some of the messes that we make

but he is responsible to be exactly who he is you see the problem that I see in our culture

is our culture is beginning to be marked by it's like a value of irresponsibility it's almost like

we value it like no one's really responsible for themselves in fact what's kind of crazy

is in our world it's like we don't possess our own life but we want to possess everybody else's

in other words I don't want to be responsible for me I don't want to be responsible for my emotions

I don't want to be responsible for my life choices but I do want to tell you how to live your life

I do want to tell you what to value I do want to tell you what decisions to make in fact if you

don't live your life the way that I prescribe now all of a sudden I've got a problem see the problem

with being irresponsible and when I'm not taking responsibility for my own life is now I am living

in reaction to the world around me just like we see with Israel here they're reacting to Egypt

to Egypt right and so they're living in reaction to their circumstances they're living reaction to

what's going on they're living reacts to the world around me and they're not owning their own life

they're not taking control of their own life come on the fruit of the spirit everybody is

self-control not others control

so that word self-control in the Greek it actually means to gain mastery up so the

Holy Spirit empowers me to master myself the Holy Spirit empowers me to master my decisions

to master my emotions to master how I feel and what I do and what I choose

he actually empowers me to master my purpose and to master my calling God see God is responsible too

but not for so here's what God does he said I'm going to be God I'm going to give you the Holy

Spirit but you're going to have to yield to him I'm going to give you the Holy Spirit but you're

going to have to follow him I'm going to give you the Holy Spirit but by the power of the Holy Spirit

you're going to have to actually choose to control yourself

and what I see in the culture is something very very different in fact what I see in the culture

is this irresponsibility that's kind of marked really by these two kind of what would you call

them facets of this or probably not categories maybe facets maybe manifestations but how this

works out in people's lives what I see now more than ever on this side you have the victims and

on this side you have the entitled and sometimes you have entitled victims

think think with me because what I see in our culture so many times listen when when people

listen let me say this so I can say what I need to say and you know that I care and I'm empathic

and I understand we have all been victimized we have all we have all had trauma in our lives

it's unlikely that I could find any person in here that hasn't experienced some sort of trauma

and some of those traumas we might classify as being greater than other traumas but that may be

that's very subjective depending on who you're talking to does that make sense but what is true

we've all endured things that's my point and what I want you to know is those things are real those

things are painful but I also need you to understand this what may what whatever happened to you was not

your fault but it is your fault what you do after are you with me like it if someone hurt you abused

you wronged you that was not your fault that was their sin right but what you do after that is your

fault and if you spend the rest of your life living as a victim then make no mistake you're

you're putting the person who hurt you in charge of your life for the rest of your life

that's why forgiveness is so powerful because forgiveness says you don't get to be in charge

of my life I get to be in charge of my life and can I remind you by the way forgiveness is so

powerful because while we love talking about how the Lord has forgiven us Jesus died for my sin

right but you also know Jesus died for the sin committed against me

so my point is that yes I may have been hurt and wronged and and all those things are true and they

have consequences but I get to decide am I going to see a pastor am I going to get in a life group

or a freedom group am I going to go to discipleship class am I going to see a counselor am I going to

forgive see what happens after that's 100 my fault and when I choose not to take responsibility for

myself and I say no I'm just going to stay a victim because it always gives me an excuse

then you're making the person who sinned against you in charge of your life you're giving them

authority of your life you're not even giving God authority of your life you're giving them

authority of your life because every decision is run by what they did other thing I see is this

entitlement which basically says I was born so the world owes me something

aren't we having fun pastor I just wanted to be encouraged we're getting there we're getting there

um but it's so prevalent today that it just seems to me that there are a lot of people that

that almost feel like yeah yeah I got the loan but I shouldn't have to pay it yeah I made the

decision but I shouldn't suffer the consequences um yeah I you know this person should do this for

me like you know what I'm saying like yeah I want the promotion but I shouldn't have to work for it

I want the pay but I shouldn't actually have to work for it it's like this sense of entitlement

that exists in our world today and it's crippling us and I'll tell you why both of these cripple us

whether it's you're talking about being a victim or you're talking about being entitled listen to

me very carefully they're both powerless positions they're powerless the victim says I'm not

responsible for me what they did is responsible for me and I have there's nothing I can do about

it that's powerless entitlement says in other words they wronged me and I'm powerless and

entitlement says they're not giving to me so there's nothing I can do like here's an idea if you want

a promotion show up early and work hard take the overtime when it's available right like I've talked

to my kids about this when I started I was 15 years old start out in the oil field and I took

every bit of overtime they'd let me have because I like money you do too that's why you have a job

I liked eating I liked having clothes I liked having gasoline anybody else like those things

I didn't assume that the government was supposed to give me those things all the time

I assumed that I was supposed to go earn a living this doesn't seem very popular I thought I'd get

more excitement from this my point was that whenever there was overtime I took the overtime

I showed up early I was there and because of that when you hire in the oil field as a teenager

you're a worm that's your status and you weed eat uh pits and plants and it's hard work right

but because listen to me but because I was reliable because I was faithful I spent about a month on

that crew and I got upgraded to a road crew where I drove a piece of equipment I don't know about

you but when you're 15 listen that's high cotton because I wasn't running a weed eater like this

all day long I was sitting on track to my what's up my point is that that there's irresponsibility

and it manifests itself and please understand that that even God no one really owes you anything

so take responsibility for your life and please understand what they did was wrong

but what you do determines where your life's going from here so take responsibility for your

life are you with me because listen to me listen to me listen to me I understand that God is sovereign

okay sovereign just means that he is he reigns supreme there is no rule higher there is no

authority greater but that doesn't mean God controls everything right so there's something for me to do

and I'm afraid some of us are sitting back in reaction to the world

and then some of us are sitting back saying I'm just waiting on God to do something

and I'm concerned maybe God's waiting on you to do something

are you with me you say well God's sovereign he's in control and I don't have time to teach this but

yes there is the sovereignty of God but but it's misapplied I think many times a day that that does

mean God is control in control ultimately but it doesn't mean that God is in control of every

decision and we are free will moral agents so you have to balance sovereignty with man's

responsibility does that make sense so we're talking about the sovereignty of God he is supreme

there is no one higher there's no rule greater right in fact theologian A.W. Pink one of the

great theologians of the 19th century he said this is what makes God God he called it his godness is

his sovereignty there is no one above him if that if there were anyone above him they would be God

are you with me but he's the highest and he is the author and so he has the authority and his kingdom

reigns right and I could show you a lot of scriptures on that but I think most people

are grasping the fact that God is sovereign but that doesn't mean that God is going to control

every facet of your life and make every decision for you so we have to couple God's sovereignty

with man's responsibility does anyone know who King Charles is it used to be Queen Elizabeth you

know King Charles is the King of England everybody right would everybody agree like he's the greatest

authority in England but would we all agree that everybody in England makes their own decisions

about what they wear what they eat where they go what they do do you see it's the same with God

God in his sovereignty he is working his plan but he's working it through people and he's working

it through creation and he's doing that without violating free will are you with me so yes God

is working his plan but that doesn't mean God's micromanaging what socks you wore today

so you have to couple God is sovereign but I'm ultimately responsible for me God's responsible

to me I'm responsible for me in fact let me give you just wonder let me give you a couple

scriptures Paul to the Galatians this is Eugene Patterson this is how he interpreted in the

message Bible it says each of you must take responsibility for doing the creative best you

can with your own life that's a good verse for the year isn't it take responsibility for doing

the best you can with your own life I mean oh here's this is I just put this in there because

I love this verse Proverbs 19 3 people ruin their lives by their own foolishness and then they are

angry at the Lord like you don't need to even put points for that that's a good sermon

are you with me so here's the bottom line I'm responsible for how I respond to the gospel or

how I respond to God I'm responsible for my obedience to God I'm responsible for my decisions

I don't know if you know this I'm responsible for my emotions be angry and sin

so I've actually got to be responsible for me if I want to see God work and move in my life I have

to be responsible for me I can't just sit back and say God when you want to do something with my life

like I'm here God when you want to I'm here no no no you get up this way you know this is

it's the irresponsibility like God you know my life you know my life just stinks God may be saying

change it

I don't like where I work apply somewhere else

right listen the greatest amount of change you can experience in your life is not when you change

someone else or when you change your environment but when you change yourself you have very little

control of your environment you have typically no control over anyone else if you've ever raised a

two-year-old you understand what I'm saying are you with me but you do have control over you

take responsibility for you right and so we have to possess and take possession of our own lives

here's the second thing and then practice being proactive in other words so I'm owning my own life

and I'm taking initiative so practice productivity in other words practice being proactive look look

at what we read it together Exodus 14 15 it says and the Lord said to Moses why are you crying to

me now I'm gonna come back to that just a minute and then the joy that he said tell the children

Israel go forward now here's here's why I want to come back to that Moses said why are you crying

to me I don't know about you but I thought Moses response was good I'm about to die what should I

do prayer seems logical are you with me right I don't think that's a bad thing like here comes

the greatest military force in the world and we have a bunch of slaves with sticks seems prayer

would be on the highest part of the list for a strategy at this moment are you with me but isn't

it so interesting that God says why are you praying to me in other words God said your

deliverance is not based on what I'm about to do your deliverance is contingent upon what you're

about to choose to do because he didn't say stand back Moses and I'll take care of it he said no

you tell Israel to go forward anybody else see the problem with that forward was water go forward I

think they're thinking where and this makes a great point that many times trusting God is about

taking steps that don't make sense that moving forward many times is about taking a step where

there doesn't seem to be a step are you with me and God says why are you crying out to me I'd be

like I don't know because you're God and I'm out here with two million slaves and I got a stick

okay God that's why I'm crying to you you didn't give me a yacht I don't even have a canoe I got a

stick right sometimes you got to take inventory in your life because God used that stick to deliver

them so many times and God said yeah the sticks all you need just stretch it out come on somebody

it's God listen God never uses what you don't have that's so good God will never call you to

be something you're not and he'll never try to use something you don't have God always starts with

who you are and uses what you have are you with me so when God says move forward know this you

have everything you need to move forward when God says move forward no you're all you need to be to

move forward you and God y'all got it it may look iffy it may seem confusing but God says why are you

praying to me tell Israel to why are you crying out to me it's time for you to

come on look at somebody right now and say this year I'm going forward I'm going forward this

year I'm not holding up this year I'm going forward this year I need to tell you one thing

about God I'm gonna try to get us out of here well okay I may have lied

let's work this out together this is what you need to know about your God your God cannot react

there's not been one time in the course of human history where you could even say the history of

the whole universe that God ever reacted you know why because God these are characteristics of God

or attributes of God God number one is all-knowing we call it omniscience his omniscience

right and also God is unchangeable

and so I don't know about you but you need to understand it helps me to know that God is not

waiting on tomorrow to come up with a plan that God has actually been working his plan since creation

and today is just a part of it here what I just told you Israel is looking at what's going on

like we're trapped by the Red Sea here's this big army and they're like this was a miscalculation

and God was like no this is my master plan

by the way sometimes God's master plan looks like a miscalculation

but it is still not what it looks like see Israel thinks they're under attack God thinks Egypt is

under attack you see it you see it God's like no remember I told you like God is the one they had

it said in ways they leave Egypt they've got the promised land set in ways they're out there going

if you remember God started this thing with no I want you to jig a little bit to the left then

once you turn back to the right in other words God got in there and started rerouting them

and he said because if you'll move this way and then this way Egypt Pharaoh will think you're lost

and they'll come get you in other words God is baiting the enemy with Egypt I don't know that's

not very comforting to me I don't really have a good quib for that at all it doesn't sound like

fun to be the bait for the enemy but that's exactly what God's doing with Israel at this moment

are you with me and God's drawing them in and so Israel thinks run to the right way

so Israel thinks we're under attack and God's like no you're not under attack Egypt's under attack

they just don't know it because God can't react I understand let me just say this time out because

I will get these questions and they're good questions people say well in the Bible it looks

like God you know we're talking about the immutability of God so when we talk about the

immutability of God that's just the doctrine that's what we call it it just means God cannot change

I-33 God doesn't change right James 1 there's no variation of shadow of turning or changing in God

Hebrews 13 Jesus Christ the same yesterday today and forever right all of these point to God

doesn't doesn't change okay but I understand in scripture if you read it like this is where I

think we have to be we have to allow questions and we also have to study the word so we understand

because there are places in the Bible where it looks like God changed his mind

right I mean I mean God repented that he made man that's Noah right God with Moses was going to wipe

out it appears that God's going to wipe out Israel and then Moses intercedes Jonah is sent to Nineveh

and God said I'm going to bring judgment to Nineveh and then God supposedly doesn't but actually

there's a revival in Nineveh then there's Hezekiah and it looks like so there's a lot of places in

scripture but let me help you these are not God's immutability and some of the things we see in

scripture where it looks like God is changing his mind are not irreconcilable when you understand

scripture and how it came to be and without getting real deep in that inspiration doesn't means

inspiration doesn't mean God took over or possessed the hands of men and they wrote the Bible it wasn't

mechanical writing inspiration means God moved on them is what Peter says inspiration means God

no prophecy of scripture came by the will of man but what they were moved on and led about by the

Holy Spirit so God's superintendent he moved on man in a way that gave us the Bible does that make

sense but man is still man and so the language of the Bible most of the Bible is prose language and

it's written in I'm going to give you my word and then I'll give you the theological word if it means

anything to you my word is the language of observation the language of observation the

theological word is phenomenological language okay and so all that means is they wrote down as they

saw it meaning when Joshua says the sun stood still he's not a scientist and in that day

you know or when the Bible says the sun moved across the sky well we know the sun doesn't move

but remember it wasn't written by scientists it was written by men and they're saying well it looked

like the sun stood still to us right that's what it looked like to us so many times when you see

like Jonah and Nineveh or Hezekiah and those things you have to understand because God is immutable

and because God is omniscient God already knew the interactions of man so the the changes that you

see are because man is reacting to God it is not because God is reacting to man so his purpose was

fixed but the Bible being written in phenomenological language many of the times we they the writers put

I'll give you another one human characteristics you know they ascribe human characteristics to God

theological word anthropomorphic if you care but but that means where we give God hands and arms

and and eyes and ears and that he hears us with his ears and sees us with his eyes and the strong

arm of the Lord well God is incorporeal which means that God does not have a body he's a spirit

he doesn't have a body but the authors trying you know because the way God moved on them they're

trying to understand it and they're trying to write it so they ascribe characteristics to God

and that's many times when they're saying God changed his mind it wasn't that God ever changed

his mind it appeared to them God changed his mind it seemed to them that there had been a change in

the mind because they're noting the power of intercession or the power of God are you with me

so God doesn't react never has he's omniscient and he's immutable uh J.I. Packer said when we talk

about the immutability of God he said when we're talking about the immutability of God his

character is immutable his truth is immutable um his being is immutable but one of the things he

said is his purpose is immutable meaning that if God doesn't change and he doesn't react now by the

way all this is to get somewhere so please stay with me if God is immutable he doesn't change

and his purpose doesn't change and if Romans 8 says I'm called according to his purpose

then God's plan for me doesn't change God's purpose for me is unchanging listen to me I don't know

about you but this helps me because it doesn't matter how much I've screwed up in my life it

doesn't matter whether I feel like today I'm winning or losing it doesn't matter if I feel

like I've sinned too much gone too far done too much or not done enough because God is immutable

and because his purpose is immutable then his purpose for me is immutable the giftings and

callings of God are without repentance come on somebody and you need to understand today that

you can move forward regardless of what this world looks like and regardless of what's going on why

because God's moving forward his purpose is moving forward his plan is moving forward and you are

created and called according to that plan and God's purpose for you is fixed God's purpose for you is

movement and so I want you to hear me today hear me today church it's time to stop staying stuck

and it's time to own our lives take initiative and move forward with God it may look like a red

sea but that doesn't mean God's not calling us forward and so my challenge really for all of us

is that we get the heart of God you could write this down these I'll give you three p's um

pray plot proceed you know like you want to plan forward you have to take ownership of your life

you have to be proactive and pray now you just said well wait a second pastor you know God got

onto Moses for praying well yeah but I think it's a difference in asking God to do something and

asking God what you need to do those are different prayers and so today this year we're going to move

forward number one ask God what do I need to do to move forward what do I need to do not not like

God I wish you would God I hope you do God no no no God what do I need to do to move forward that's

number one and then you make a you plot a course based on what God shows you you plot a course maybe

start a business maybe it's change jobs I don't know what it is maybe it's forgive someone I don't

know what it is but you plot a course all right God I'm moving forward you said go forward and

this is the course I'm going forward and then I'm going to proceed I'm going to proceed forward I'm

actually going to carry this this plan out right so I'm going to pray I'm going to plot it out I'm

going to proceed listen to me very very carefully I think the word of the Lord and this came one of

our elders uh text I didn't even know what I'd be preaching on this like two weeks ago I think I got

a text and he was talking about how the Lord was speaking to him about advancement and to me it was

just confirmation because I already knew what the Lord was talking to me about moving forward

and I think it's the word of the Lord that we stop living in reaction to the world around us

and by the grace of God of children of God who are called according to the purpose of God

in unity right with him in collaboration with him we plot a course forward and we move forward

this year and we don't live in reaction to the world right we move forward you say what if

something happens we just find a different way to move forward but we move forward because I don't

know about you I don't want to live the rest of my life sitting back here thinking about the

pandemic and thinking about this and this no no no no no God's too big for that God's too big for

that and God's plan for you is too big for that and God's calling on you is too great for that

and God's calling on you is too great for that this year we find the way forward this year

we're going forward amen come on can you give Jesus praise today

hey pastor Marty here from pathway church I just want to say thank you for joining us and I want

to encourage you to get connected and stay connected and there's several ways you can do

that number one you can download the pathway app that we are all the time offering resources and

information on that app for you you can also subscribe to our youtube channel and if you do

make sure you click the bell so that you never miss any life-giving and life-changing content

as we add it to the channel and then also make sure you follow us on social media on instagram

on facebook look our hope and heart for you is that you walk in the purpose for which God made

and created and redeemed you for we love to connect people to purpose we thank you for giving us this

opportunity and if you're ever at long view or you are at long view I'd love to invite you to join us

in person each weekend listen I pray God's best for your life I believe if you follow Jesus your

best is ahead