All In, All Flame | Holy Ground - Pastor Scott Silcox

Welcome to the Rock Family Sermon of the Week.

For more information about our church, please visit therockfamily.tv.

Now join us for a message from Pastor Scott Zilcox.

We're in the middle of a series talking about all flame, and I've just really enjoyed what God's done concerning this series.

It has really stirred something in myself and my wife and many of those who have been tracking with us.

But how many know if you can't take dedicated time in the Word and in relationship to what the Holy Spirit is doing and not get transformed?

It's just impossible.

It's impossible to be with the Lord and not walk away different.

And uh I'm here to tell you, I feel different.

I was saying that uh uh to to Sharon uh this morning, just like I feel like he's he's pulling something out of me uh and changing some things that I needed to get transformed in him, amen.

How many know we're not preaching sermons we're not trying to to live out?

They're they're they're they're they're changing us first, amen.

And so today my my greatest desire in the series that we're in is to see the body of Christ mature beyond when they hear the word Holy Spirit and everybody just go, ooh, you know, like it's some mystery, or avoid it altogether because we don't have a good definition for it.

And so we've been talking about all of the areas that we see uh God is represented as the flame.

And of course, we we've been through Acts and we've gone to Genesis.

Even last week we talked about Genesis, talk about an accepted sacrifice.

How many know that there is a there there is an there is a there's some there's a part of God that we don't like to talk about sometimes, and that is that he can accept and reject?

And that and that's hard because we we we've lived our lives believing that he only accepts everything, and that's just actually not his character.

It's not true about him, and you can prove that from Genesis to Revelation.

And so he's called the body of Christ to mature and to grow up.

What does it look like to live a life of service and care, but with the right motive?

How many know that if you come into worship, how many you can do all the extra parts of worship?

We can lift our hands, we can sing songs, we can even declare scripture, but if your motive for those things is wrong, then it's wrong.

You can do the right thing the wrong way.

Right?

And that's one thing that we talked about.

Today, I want to talk to you briefly about this idea of holy ground.

Holy ground.

Come on, touch your neighbor, say holy ground.

That's what we're talking about today.

And you can go to Exodus chapter 3, and this is a very, very, very familiar passage, one that I think everyone in the room absolutely knows, can relate to, and has heard.

Exodus 3 · chapter mention

I mean, with exhaustion, probably you've heard this story or this message.

But my hope is that by the end of it, we just get an idea of what holy ground should look like and what we can expect from holy ground and what that actually is.

And so, uh, because oftentimes you can hear that said, and am I blowing through this too hard or something?

What tell me if it gets weird sounding or whatever.

I'll get a regular mic, okay?

You guys tell me, all right?

Um, so holy ground, we're going to Exodus 3, 1 through 8.

It's actually going to be through 15, but we'll start through 1 through 8.

All right, so check this out.

I've got it up on the screen.

If you have your Bibles, you can do that.

You can just track with me.

This is gonna be a long passage of scripture here, but you guys should be familiar.

Now, Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian, and he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God.

And the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of the bush, and he looked, and behold, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed.

Anyone familiar with this passage?

Right?

Right?

This is Moses.

He's getting a commissioning, right?

He's getting a vision for who God is, and we're gonna talk about that.

And it's not just to get a vision for who God is, but he's actually gonna launch him into some purpose here.

And Moses said, I will turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned.

And when the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, Moses, Moses, and he said, Here I am.

And then he said, Do not come near, take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is what?

Holy ground.

Holy ground.

And he said, I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and of Jacob.

And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.

Then the Lord said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters, and I know their sufferings, and I have come down to deliver them out of the land of the Egyptians, and to bring them up and out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, the place, the Canaanites, the Hittites, Amorites, Pezrites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites.

Go to verse 9.

And now, behold, the cry of the people of Israel has come to me, and I have also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppressed them.

Come, I will send you to Pharaoh, that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.

But Moses said to God, Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?

And he said, But I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you that I have sent you.

When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.

Verse 13, then Moses said to God, If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, The God of your fathers has sent me to you, and they asked me, What is his name?

What shall I say to them?

God said to Moses, I am who I am.

And he said, Say this to the people of Israel, I am has sent me to you.

God also said to Moses, Say this to the people of Israel.

The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, has sent me to you.

This is my name forever, and thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations.

Big passage of Scripture.

Lord, we love you for your word.

We thank you for what you're doing.

God, we thank you that you do speak to us boldly, directly, personally from your word today.

God, we thank you that through the life of Moses, God, we will get a revelation of what it means to be on holy ground.

God, we bless you today.

Bless your people in Jesus' name.

Amen.

All right, you guys ready?

Buckle up.

Everybody's gonna listen fast because I'm gonna talk fast.

And we're gonna start with this.

These are turn aside, holy ground begins with attention.

Holy ground begins with attention.

If you go back and look at what Moses is doing, he's busy, he's a shepherd, he's working for his father-in-law, right?

My father-in-law is, I don't see him here today, so I'll talk about him.

Nope, he is here.

I'm not talking about him.

No, he's got a task, right?

He's at work, he's doing busy work.

But how me know that when God is trying to get your attention and holy ground is what he's trying to establish, you need to know something.

That you have got to be less busy in your life.

We are constantly asking the Lord to move in and to give us a revelation on something that is happening.

But the truth is our busy lifestyle usually keeps us and hinders us from actually stopping, turning, and to see what God was doing.

Now I think it's interesting because the the burning bush or the bush is on fire, it's not consumed, but at this point he's not calling to Moses.

Moses is expected to see it and make an appropriate response.

When we're constantly waiting for God to give us the exact directions, God's just asking you to turn aside when you feel or sense that he's doing something in the moment, he's asking you to take a step in.

I'll give you an example.

Like when you bring kids up to pray over people.

That's an invitation to come and see.

That's the invitation to come and see what is he up to.

There's a strange thing happening here.

What is that thing?

It's an invitation to come and say, God, show me what it is that you're trying to teach me in this moment.

So we're modeling that live action today.

Alright?

So here's what we know the presence of God often requires interruption before it brings instruction.

When I'm looking for the next step, God's just saying, I want to interrupt your life.

I want to interrupt your time.

Has anybody ever noticed that when God steps into your life, it's the most inopportune time?

He never is answering when you're praying.

Hey, I need you to move now.

And he's like, Yes, a month later, when it's all settled, he's like, Here, I was this is what I'm doing.

But how many know that when he moves in that place, it's perfect?

That it needed that kind of time frame.

So this is something to be aware of.

How about this?

We are so accustomed to doing what?

We're rushing into church, rushing through songs, rushing into mundane, rushing through prayer, rushing through family moments, rushing through scripture that we rarely ask these questions.

What if God is already trying to meet me here?

What if in your daily life God is actually trying to meet you in the mundane, regular day in, day out?

But you're so busy trying to hit the punch list that we no longer can sense and feel when he's right in front of us.

Opportunities, right?

Like Barry, you know what I'm talking about.

Those opportunities.

Where if you'll pause and you'll allow him to show you, he'll give you insight to a situation.

Just running through the grocery store.

What if there is a burning bush in the middle of my routine?

Have you ever stopped to think how many burning bushes I've walked by because I needed to get to the next thing?

This is God giving us holy pause, right?

What if the presence of God is closer than I realize, but I haven't turned aside long enough to notice?

What if, Nathan, he is so present, but my circumstances are so loud?

I will guarantee you this.

God is always closer than you imagine him to be.

Because there's a sense in our humanity is that when he doesn't speak immediately, is that somehow he's distant and far away.

But it's really not true.

He's actually so very close, and it just takes one turn, half turn, right, towards his direction.

You find out he's actually been present.

So what do we find out about Moses?

Holy ground is important, but holy ground has got to be pursued.

He's never gonna get the full definition of what's going on unless he does what?

Stops what he's doing.

I mean, no, I'm nobody's asking you to not do your job, but at some point you might have to stop and pause because there are more important things happening.

Like, I don't know, that bush is on fire and yet it's not consumed.

That's a new thing.

I'm not used to seeing that out here in the wilderness.

I'm just out here messing with sheep, and that I'm either really hot, like we were a couple of days ago.

Anyone yesterday was just hot?

I mean, it was just 4th of July, but it was it's a scorcher.

How many know that you get in that point, you can get disillusioned about stuff?

And so you would imagine Moses is just like, I don't even know what I'm looking at.

I am tripping out here with these sheep.

You know, he's got to be thinking, what did I eat?

I shouldn't have done that, whatever it is, I shouldn't have sampled that herb over there.

I don't know.

I don't know.

I don't know.

But I'm just saying, at some point he's gotta wonder, man, I'm looking at a burning bush that ain't on fire.

That's a strange thing, that's a different thing.

I need to look.

Oftentimes that looks like for you is something that breaks into your regular day unexpected, and you view it as a problem, and it might be an opportunity.

Right?

Do you follow me?

Think of it more like an opportunity, not a problem.

All right, so let's move fast through it.

Number two is this take off your sandals, holy ground requires reverence.

Holy ground requires reverence.

Let me just also get real clear about holy ground.

And I think I will talk about this in a second, but I just want so that no one's confused.

Holy ground is wherever God is and he is in present there, right?

Holy ground is not some patch of grass or dirt in this case, sand, right?

Saying that's holy ground.

Holy ground is wherever the presence of the Lord is, where he is, he has established that as a holy moment.

You guys tracking with me?

All right.

So, because of that, there's two extremes oftentimes when we talk about reverence that we find in the church.

It's these two extremes.

God is so holy that I can't really come near him.

It's an extreme thought.

We'll split the room in half right here.

Everyone on the left, you all represent, I don't know when I say you all represent the lollipop kids.

And that's not what I mean, but like it can't, I'm just telling you, that's what comes to mind when I say that.

But you are these guys, number one.

You are, you, you, he's too holy, we can't approach him.

And then this side of the room, you guys are gonna be over here on the right.

Use your your hang up is this God is so approachable that I'll lose my sense of reverence.

He's too close, he's too comfortable, and all of a sudden you treat him differently.

And so, what are those in comparison?

So, those on the left over here, number one, it usually looks like this.

It says, God is so holy that I can't really come near him.

It is, God is distant, God is angry, God is inaccessible, God is mostly looking for reasons to reject me.

This is the this is the extremes we find ourselves in.

He's too holy, and that's because he hates me.

He can't be near me anymore.

So that's a lie of the enemy that if you'll stay there, you'll live in a place of rejection.

We talked about that last week.

If you want to go back and listen to it, you can live in a place of rejection, and it really isn't, it's just the extreme opposite of the way we feel, but you're gonna find out even in this passage, God does give us neither one or the other.

He doesn't, he doesn't do either.

He's he there's something in the middle that he's trying to teach us.

God is so approachable that I lose my sense of reverence.

What does that mean?

God is casual, God is ordinary, worship is common, and the presence of God doesn't need preparation, attention, or awe.

That's how we can come into a church service and actually not ever feel anything because we don't recognize that when we come together as the body of Christ, where he is present, it is holy.

And because where he is present, it is holy, there's actually a proper response when you come into the house of God.

Anybody want to mature this morning?

Come on, somebody.

Listen, because your your emotions and your circumstances want to tell you to stay here, and our society would love for us to live here.

They would love for us to live in a place where we live in slippery grace.

We can do whatever we want in the presence of the Lord because He's required to cover us.

And this sounds terrible when you say it like I'm saying it right now, but it is it too terrible, or is it so terrible that we won't follow it when we leave the room today?

We have to get ourselves in check here, and this is what God's trying to do.

Well, there's a couple other things when you take your sandals off, what does that mean?

Holy ground requires reverence.

What does take your sandals off sound like today?

So I wouldn't lead with that today, Michael, and be like, hey, just take your sandals off, Michael, with the Lord.

Like, that's gonna make a weird conversation for you and I.

Right?

Because it doesn't, it doesn't it doesn't connect.

But what does connect is this.

What do I need to lay down before I approach him?

It's a real simple question.

What Moses is bringing into the relationship, he says, take your shoes off.

This is holy ground.

He's saying, I want you to set aside anything that would separate you from me.

And everywhere you've walked represents your past, your your everything that you're you're not.

And he's saying, I want you to separate yourself from that.

When you're in this place, I want you to be in direct contact with what I'm trying to do.

So when God is inviting us, he's inviting us to ask better questions, like what attitude needs to come off?

Maybe it's not shoes.

Come on.

I mean, anybody grew up in the church in a in a in a good good old foot washing church?

No, the three of y'all will admit that.

They're like, uh come on, man.

When when they would get the basins out and stuff, I was like, yeah, I think the Lord's called me to serve in children's today.

You know what I'm saying?

But what the question is for us today is what does need to come off?

Maybe it's not the physical shoes, right?

I was in a service with teenagers years ago where a guy was leading worship and he thought it was a really great idea to have all the kids in a youth conference.

There's about 900 of us jammed into a building smaller than this, and he's like, This is gonna be amazing.

And he begins to sing this impromptu song, and he says, I want everyone to take their shoes off and their socks, and I want you to swirl your socks around, right?

Let me just tell you something.

There's never been anything that displeased the father more than that.

I mean, nothing.

There's nothing, nothing that has displeased him more than that moment.

I'm serious.

It David, the most foul.

Because we had already had like an hour of worship, so sweaty feet, everybody's been jumping around, you're talking about kids, they're all wet.

And so I'm pretty sure I got splattered with like, yeah, no, it's terrible.

I'm just telling you, that is not of Jesus.

So if you thought that's what we're referring to today, no, what we're referring to is these things.

What pride needs to come off?

When I'm approaching the Lord, when there's holy ground at stake, then pride has to fall off.

What about this one?

What distraction needs to come off?

What cynicism needs to come off?

How many know you can't get what God's trying to do in holy ground in a holy moment?

You are not gonna be able to take away from that if everything you filter is through cynicism.

Well, it didn't work last time.

Well, I saw on the internet they failed, which means you're probably gonna fail too.

Can I just help everybody with that?

Yes.

If you at any point are going to follow the Lord and you're going to partner with church, you're gonna follow men.

Can I tell you something?

Men will fail you.

But that's not why you're here today.

You're not here to follow me, as I am not here just to lead you.

I'm here to follow Christ and at my very best effort bring glory to the kingdom of God.

And as we follow Christ, he can be trusted, his kingdom can be advanced.

And if this guy doesn't do what he's supposed to do, the Lord will handle him.

And it doesn't have to derail your faith.

Because your faith wasn't displaced.

But if it is displaced, get it back in the Father's hands.

Come on, somebody, get it back in the Father's hands, touch your neighbor, say, get it in the Father's hands.

Come on, you need that.

Somebody, because you can start to think about something from the platform, you start to elevate people above their capacity or ability.

God already showed you that men were flawed.

That happened in page three.

Right?

So this is not this is not hard.

He showed you our capacity.

Right?

But we have to ask ourselves, what hurry needs to come off, right?

Number three, I have seen.

Holy ground reveals the heart of God.

I have seen.

This is for somebody in this room today.

You need to hear this today.

I have seen.

What was God showing Moses?

He's revealing a character quality of himself.

I mean, forget the fact that it's a burning bush, it's a fire that's not consuming.

That's terrifying.

It's talking now, giving me very clear instructions.

Take my shoes off, right?

And now he is further talking to him about this idea.

I have seen my people.

Now, this is important because when there are young men and women who are constantly waiting to be validated and called into the ministry and called and called and called, can I tell you something?

When God is looking to call men, he does that after.

He has associated himself with the pain of the people and the problem.

See, he didn't call me to fix the problem.

He understood the problem and found a man.

He went after Moses after he had already identified with the persecution.

I'm not, nobody has my back, and I want justice, and nobody is protecting, and nobody speaks for me.

Can I tell you?

God already knows what you're dealing with.

He already knows what's happening on the earth.

You are not more justice than he is.

You're not more than he is, but you are.

You are in partnership with him to bring justice and righteousness, but he is the judge.

Right?

You guys are y'all tracking with me on this?

And so here's what he's saying.

He's like, I my heart, I'm revealing something.

So the holiness of God does not make him distant from suffering, it moves him toward it.

The holiness of God doesn't separate, it draws him into to be an advocate for us.

Come on, touch your neighbor and say, He knows my problems.

He knows what I need, he knows what we need.

God's first revelation to Moses is not, here's what I need from you.

Oh God, just stop right here.

Moses' first revelation is not, here's what I need from you.

It is what?

Here's what I know about them.

Why does that matter?

Because I don't believe God is going to move anyone to solve a problem that He didn't make you burdened with the problem first.

He is going to burden you with something that you have to give your life away to.

That's why the mission field matters.

That's why Kyle is in here today.

Beth Strickland is in here today.

Two missionaries that are off the field, they're here telling their story about how God's using them.

They were burdened in the secret place.

They're only living out the burden that God seated in them as children, young men and women.

And it is in a place of prayer and a holy place that He gives them a revelation that it's worth caring about, and then they put action to it.

If you want to know what that looks like, they'll be in the lobby after service.

You need to say hello to them.

You need to find them.

Y'all find a post up in the corner somewhere, wave at somebody.

You need to hear the testimony of how God's using their life and how God's transforming their ministry and people through their obedience.

And it cost.

It costs time, it costs money.

But how many know God was already seeding their heart with compassion so that they didn't get disqualified or disqualify themselves from the cost.

You're not understanding.

You don't understand.

What keeps a missionary on the field is that God seated their heart with compassion towards a problem that needed to be fixed.

So that when all hell breaks loose or the money doesn't come in or it seems like you're alone somewhere.

Am I right, Beth, about this?

Right?

What happens?

He reminds you of what he seated in your heart to begin with, so that you have the endurance to trust him in faith that he will do what he says he's gonna do.

Okay.

God may be quiet, but he is never indifferent.

He may be quiet, but he isn't indifferent.

He has an opinion, he knows what he's trying to do, and he's trying to mobilize his body to do it.

Amen?

For who am I?

I am.

Holy ground reframes identity.

Holy ground, when you're in the presence of the Lord, when you have made him the center of attention, when he shows up in your life, it will bring a new identity to who you are.

Moses is in a conundrum here.

And I'll tell you why.

Moses is has already killed a guy.

He's got a victorious story.

He's saved miraculously as a boy.

He's grown up in the house of Pharaoh.

He he understands the the social uh setting and the network, he he knows what it is, but he's he's on the run.

He's a murderer.

He's hiding.

So what what what's interesting is that when God says, hey, I'm gonna send you to be a deliverer, he's asking the wrong question.

His question is what?

Who am I?

Who are you serious right now?

Come on, somebody.

You you you you you never you never you ain't lived enough life probably.

You ain't you and you you ain't been separated from God to to to realize like when he saves you like radically, how many know that sometimes it feels sort of like I I feel so guilty sometimes that he anybody else ever feel this way?

You're just like I am so undeserving of your love.

Did anybody else feel this way?

Moses is caught up in his own personal identity.

And in fact, he's so caught up, he's asking the wrong question.

Who am I?

What are we learning?

On holy ground, Moses' insecurity gets exposed.

When you get in the presence of the Lord, don't be shocked that your deepest insecurities start to rise to the top.

This is why when you come into church, some people that are really dealing with like an identity crisis already, you get in church and you feel like it starts to rise.

That usually causes you to run or disengage or to say, like, hey, that's a bad environment.

I would argue if you'll stop and recognize that you're probably in the presence of the Lord and He's bringing something to the surface that he wants to exchange.

This thing that I'm dealing with, he wants to actually replace it and say, actually, I have a better identity for you.

I have a better purpose for you.

You do not have to live like this.

You do not have to live in this sway.

You may be walking through a thing where you feel this like this worry or this anxiety, but I'm just telling you, it's a it's an opportunity to recognize holy ground and to take a divine exchange.

I hope you can hear it today.

God's first answer.

Oh, holy ground doesn't just reveal God's holiness, it also reveals the places where we don't trust him yet.

Where don't I trust him yet?

Holy ground, that's what that is.

When there's holy ground, that's what that's what's surfacing.

God's first answer to who I to who am I is not a compliment, it's a promise.

I'm gonna just unpack this for just a second.

God's response to Moses is first, he doesn't answer the question.

Who am I?

He's like, right.

You have to imagine, you put yourself in a circumstance where all these like wild things are happening, and Moses actually pulls himself together to ask a pretty decent question.

I would say, I would say it's probably the most human question we all ask.

The deep part of insecurity that says, why, why are you know.

This is the way I was like, you know why you can't ask me to do stuff.

You know?

You know the way I feel about myself.

You know who I am, you know what I've done.

That's just the human nature.

But but he doesn't respond with, notice this, I'm gonna show you a societal shift.

What happens in our world, this is what we do, and this is what God does.

First of all, God doesn't say anything to him, he doesn't compliment him into security.

So I'll tell you what we do.

He doesn't do this, he doesn't say, Christian, you're called.

Christian, you're better than you think you are.

Christian, don't you know God's got a special anointing on your life?

Christian, don't you know the leader I have prepared you to be?

Christian, don't you know you're good at talking?

Have you noticed that God doesn't take time to gas Moses up?

He doesn't take any time to try to convince Moses of what Moses is already convinced of.

I'm nothing.

So he doesn't try to coach him out of it, which is what all of us would do.

Anybody ever been around somebody who's like who's like it's just a giant Eeyore?

You ever been around just an Eeyore?

You probably got one in your family, right?

Who's just like everyone's happy, but they find the only sad thing to talk about?

Or they just, thanks for noticing me.

No, we love you, you're amazing.

Ah, you probably wouldn't even know if I wasn't here.

Right?

You guys understand the Eeyore complex?

Maybe you understand the Debbie Downer.

Who's just like, it doesn't matter how positive it is, right?

It's like, isn't it beautiful today?

We're celebrating 250 years, the 4th of July.

The hospitals will be the busiest they've ever been today.

Many people will get drunk, pass out, nearly die.

God bless America.

What the heck?

You know what I'm saying?

Like somebody was around that person yesterday.

Can I just be honest?

I'm gonna tell them myself I was that person yesterday.

I said that very phrase, so I'm telling them myself.

I did.

I'm I saw I'm a police officer outside of our little party, and I said, see that right there?

You see that right there?

Then all day today.

All day today.

All day today.

Like, somebody's gonna blow their hand off in fireworks today, and I just like, and my kids are just like, I don't wanna celebrate this.

Like, and I'm like, oh my bad, my bad.

David, it looked like backflips.

Do you guys remember yesterday?

Backflips.

My wife is just like, no backflips, no backflips, we're not doing backflips, nobody flipping off the diving board, we're not doing it.

And all the kids are like, What?

We just want to have fun.

She's like, no, is it fun when there's blood in the water?

No, the party's over.

The party's over when there's blood in the water.

So we were a real bright light yesterday.

Just a good, just a good team.

Just a good team.

We're just like, we're just like, what can the kid?

Anyway.

He doesn't gas him up with any kind of like guarantee.

He's not trying to explain to him who he is.

Instead, holy ground, you can move beyond this question.

When there, when you're in holy ground, you can move beyond the question, this, am I enough?

Probably the the greatest stronghold on the believer today, and really on the human today, is am I enough?

We're constantly needing that affirmation from the people we're sitting next to and some that aren't even in the room.

Some you need that affirmation on social media, some of you need it at your work, some of you think it's associated with your pay.

You do.

You just like, I'm not getting paid enough.

They don't, they don't, they don't see me.

It's like, well, first of all, whose attention are you trying to get?

Especially as a believer.

When I when I try to put my my my I need Brit to see me a certain way, I need her to respect me and this, and I need to be enough for her.

Like this, this is like not the right posture.

I I, first of all, will never be that because I'm already living in an inferior position.

And so when I live in a place where I'm trying to prove myself, I will overextend myself in many areas.

And here's the thing because I haven't been clear about the expectation, she will constantly disappoint.

And it won't be her fault, it'll be because I wasn't clear.

I just want to be enough.

See, it's a massive question.

I can run scenarios with all of us, but this is the question that plagues all of us.

Am I enough?

Guess what?

Holy ground, you can actually put that question to rest.

Because that is actually not the question, because I'm gonna help everybody.

You ready?

When you and I are in the presence of the Lord, I've got great news.

Touch your neighbor, say, get ready, good news is coming.

Here it comes, here it comes.

Get ready.

You and I are not enough.

See how easy that was?

Level the playing field for everyone in the room, everyone listening online, you and I, the absent Christ, will never be enough.

Is your identity based on God's what?

His consistency or your capacity?

When holy ground is present, when he's there, when he's established space with me.

Is it because he's consistent, or is it because I can carry more?

Capacity.

Or your lack of capacity.

Like in Moses' case, he's painfully aware of who he's not, so he's trying to figure out how is the God of the universe deploying me in his work, knowing good and well I don't measure up.

Why are they gonna listen to me?

Why do they have any reason to listen to me?

And it's so interesting because God doesn't do anything, but he just defines himself.

He doesn't say anything about Moses, he just says, I am.

Yeah, who am I?

Yeah, right.

Flip it around.

I am.

Yeah, but I was no, see, I was I was asking.

I need to be validated here.

I need I need your approval.

And he said, right, right, right, right, right.

Um, yeah, I am enough.

Like, I am everything you're gonna need.

All you need to do is tell people that the I am sent you.

Isn't it awesome?

Because he deputizes Moses with full power and authority that he didn't earn.

What?

And guess what we get to do?

Guess what Christ did when he came into your life?

He has given you all authority under heaven and earth.

Says it's with Christ, and Christ says what?

I give it to you.

And yet we're believers who who are operating from an inferior position.

Amen?

You guys tracking with me?

Last one.

Alright, Ben, come help me.

Help me.

Help these people.

They're hungry.

We're there.

1145, we're done.

Now go.

Holy ground is ascending place.

Holy ground is ascending place.

Holy ground is a sending place.

Every real encounter with God carries the possibility of assignment.

Here's the heartbreaking part.

Many people will come into the presence of the Lord through worship services, through time in the scripture, but many will leave without purpose and destiny.

And that's actually not God's best.

Every single time we come into the presence of the Lord, once he starts to deal with our identity issues, once we relinquish up that control, here's the beautiful part.

It this freedom has a cost, but it also has action attached to it.

You and I have to get more comfortable in looking into the moment that he provides for us, and instead of figuring out which one of the things on my list he's gonna answer for me, and start asking myself, maybe you're trying to mobilize me into something.

Can you track with me on that?

How do we know this?

Isaiah sees the Lord and then he hears, Whom shall I send?

How about this?

Peter encounters Jesus and then receives what?

Feed my sheep.

Jesus is right, Peter's rejected, he's run away, he's disqualified himself.

Jesus shows up with a little breakfast on the beach, invites him into a little dinner, restores him three times, right?

Feed my sheep, right?

He brings him back into full restoration, full identity, but it comes with a what?

I'm deploying you into the work of the ministry.

How many know that what God is doing isn't done yet?

It's not done, it's not in the done call.

He's calling us forward, forward, forward, more.

What does he want to do on the earth?

He's going to use his people to do it.

And Paul knows this.

Paul encounters Christ, then what?

He's sent to the nations.

Moses encounters Yahweh, then he is sent to Pharaoh.

This is the two questions I want you to ask yourself.

When you're in holy ground, you're in that place with the Lord, what are you doing in me?

And what are you doing through me?

I would encourage us, anytime we're in worship together in this house, these are questions I want us to get more comfortable with asking.

And not coming in being like, hey, I'm here, I don't want to be here, fix everything.

Like, he loves that because he loves it, you're here.

But he wants more for you.

Because the truth is, if you'll get this first one done, what are you doing in me?

If you'll be honest, you are really asking, how am I to change so I can look at my situation differently?

Many of us are wanting the situation to change so my perception will change.

But that's not faith.

Faith is to change the way I see it and to watch the circumstances change so he gets maximum glory.

If he changes circumstances first, then he never fixed your bad behavior on how you got there to begin with.

He wants to change the way you see yourself first.

Then he wants to mobilize you into something.

Now, God, how do you want to work that through my life?

You're changing the way I view, you're changing the way I have I worship, you're changing the way I do friend, you're changing the way I'm doing husband and dad, and you're you're you're you're you're you're you're fine-tuning who I'm supposed to be in Christ.

Now, God, how does that supposed to manifest through my life?

What does that look like?

And can I tell you something?

When you start to worship the Lord and to recognize that kind of that kind of relationship, you start walking into situations totally different.

You will want a circumstance will happen in your life and you'll immediately start to you you just you're pivoting.

And I'm just saying, I I want our people, I want you to get comfortable with this way of life.

This is something that we're trying to teach.

This is a spirit-filled, spirit-led life.

This this overrides emotion.

When you're in the spirit-filled life, it overrides human response.

It doesn't mean you don't have an emotion.

It just means when those emotions come, you're so you should check those to the character of Christ.

The emotions will come.

It's just, I have to take that and then check it with the Holy Spirit.

Is this what you're asking of me?

Is this going to maximize your effectiveness?

Not mine.

And sometimes that feels different, right?

That's what we were you're talking about, that today in our pre-service gathering with our servant leaders.

It's like, the God, how do you want me to prefer my brother?

How do am I to see him differently?

Not what I want, God, what you want.

Amen.

We hope and pray.

This message was encouraging and act.

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