1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:11,440 Thank you for listening to this message from Life House Church. 2 00:00:11,440 --> 00:00:18,180 Good morning, Life House. 3 00:00:18,180 --> 00:00:20,840 Happy Father's Day. 4 00:00:20,840 --> 00:00:21,840 Come on. 5 00:00:21,840 --> 00:00:22,840 Happy Father's Day. 6 00:00:22,840 --> 00:00:23,840 Yeah. 7 00:00:23,840 --> 00:00:27,800 It's one of my favorite days of the year because I am a father. 8 00:00:27,800 --> 00:00:30,480 No, it's good to have you at Life House. 9 00:00:30,480 --> 00:00:31,480 Thank you for being with us. 10 00:00:31,480 --> 00:00:32,480 It's good to be back. 11 00:00:32,480 --> 00:00:34,040 We were on vacation last week. 12 00:00:34,040 --> 00:00:36,320 It's good to be back in the house. 13 00:00:36,320 --> 00:00:41,520 And I got to be honest, being a father is one of the greatest privileges of my life. 14 00:00:41,520 --> 00:00:46,960 I have wonderful children, wonderful spouses to my children, wonderful 2B spouses to my 15 00:00:46,960 --> 00:00:47,960 children. 16 00:00:47,960 --> 00:00:48,960 I've got grandchildren. 17 00:00:48,960 --> 00:00:50,360 I am a blessed man. 18 00:00:50,360 --> 00:00:51,600 And I am grateful. 19 00:00:51,600 --> 00:00:54,200 And it is truly an honor. 20 00:00:54,200 --> 00:00:57,840 And as I thought about Father's Day this year and the message I was going to speak this 21 00:00:57,840 --> 00:01:00,840 morning, I started thinking about guy things. 22 00:01:00,840 --> 00:01:05,800 And I thought, what better way to do a message than to bring a weapon to church? 23 00:01:05,800 --> 00:01:06,800 I was like, yeah. 24 00:01:06,800 --> 00:01:07,800 Yeah. 25 00:01:07,800 --> 00:01:08,800 Come on, give me a whoo-hoo. 26 00:01:08,800 --> 00:01:10,320 Yeah, there it is. 27 00:01:10,320 --> 00:01:11,320 All right. 28 00:01:11,320 --> 00:01:12,480 And so I brought a spear. 29 00:01:12,480 --> 00:01:16,600 And I really wanted to do a message on the tip of the spear. 30 00:01:16,600 --> 00:01:22,760 And a spear is really one of the most ancient weapons probably in all of time. 31 00:01:22,760 --> 00:01:24,360 It's a very simplistic weapon, right? 32 00:01:24,360 --> 00:01:26,520 It's a very simplistic tool that was used. 33 00:01:26,520 --> 00:01:29,440 It's really just a rod or a shaft. 34 00:01:29,440 --> 00:01:32,160 And they would take it and they would have fixed something to the end of it. 35 00:01:32,160 --> 00:01:35,880 Now this one's made out of steel and they would sharpen that tip. 36 00:01:35,880 --> 00:01:36,880 And it could have been glass. 37 00:01:36,880 --> 00:01:38,360 It could have been rock. 38 00:01:38,360 --> 00:01:40,400 It could have been steel of some kind. 39 00:01:40,400 --> 00:01:42,480 And they used this for various things. 40 00:01:42,480 --> 00:01:45,880 If it was a hunter, right, they might spear a fish. 41 00:01:45,880 --> 00:01:48,800 They might get some kind of game that they're after. 42 00:01:48,800 --> 00:01:50,840 That would be dinner that evening, right? 43 00:01:50,840 --> 00:01:55,360 If it was a warrior, this would be taken out onto the field against the enemy. 44 00:01:55,360 --> 00:01:59,720 If it was in a competition or where they were competing, they would be throwing this to 45 00:01:59,720 --> 00:02:03,480 try to hit some kind of fixed target that was out beyond them. 46 00:02:03,480 --> 00:02:08,920 But whatever the reason, the tip of the spear is the most important part of this simplistic 47 00:02:08,920 --> 00:02:10,560 weapon, right? 48 00:02:10,560 --> 00:02:14,320 Because without the tip of the spear, all you're doing is throwing a stick. 49 00:02:14,320 --> 00:02:15,320 Okay? 50 00:02:15,320 --> 00:02:18,480 Without the tip of the spear, you know, if the hunter, all he's doing is scaring the 51 00:02:18,480 --> 00:02:19,480 game. 52 00:02:19,480 --> 00:02:20,840 He's going to bounce off of the game. 53 00:02:20,840 --> 00:02:24,040 Without the tip of the spear, the fish is going to keep swimming. 54 00:02:24,040 --> 00:02:29,040 Without the tip of the spear, right, the athlete is just going to have a stick bounce off the 55 00:02:29,040 --> 00:02:30,040 target. 56 00:02:30,040 --> 00:02:34,320 And without the tip of the spear, a warrior is in a whole bunch of trouble, right? 57 00:02:34,320 --> 00:02:36,640 It is the tip of the spear. 58 00:02:36,640 --> 00:02:40,760 And it is the tip of the spear that makes this weapon effective. 59 00:02:40,760 --> 00:02:43,120 It makes it what it is. 60 00:02:43,120 --> 00:02:44,560 It makes it fly straight. 61 00:02:44,560 --> 00:02:46,680 It's part of what makes it fly straight. 62 00:02:46,680 --> 00:02:52,520 And it is the tip of the spear that God is calling men of God to be. 63 00:02:52,520 --> 00:02:54,880 He's calling us to be the tip of the spear. 64 00:02:54,880 --> 00:02:56,160 He's calling us to be the head. 65 00:02:56,160 --> 00:02:57,480 He's calling us to lead. 66 00:02:57,480 --> 00:02:59,400 He's calling us to cut through the air. 67 00:02:59,400 --> 00:03:02,080 He's going, now listen, he didn't call you to take somebody out. 68 00:03:02,080 --> 00:03:03,800 I got to clarify that, all right? 69 00:03:03,800 --> 00:03:05,840 That's not what I'm talking about this morning. 70 00:03:05,840 --> 00:03:11,000 He called you to be a weapon in the master's hand against the enemy who is seen. 71 00:03:11,000 --> 00:03:15,000 We don't wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities and power. 72 00:03:15,000 --> 00:03:18,600 And this morning, I really want to take you into the book of Joshua and talk about a man 73 00:03:18,600 --> 00:03:21,000 who really was the tip of the spear. 74 00:03:21,000 --> 00:03:22,920 He really functioned as the tip of the spear. 75 00:03:22,920 --> 00:03:25,600 If you got your Bible, you can begin to turn there. 76 00:03:25,600 --> 00:03:30,120 Joshua was a great, great leader in scripture. 77 00:03:30,120 --> 00:03:31,440 He was a warrior. 78 00:03:31,440 --> 00:03:33,800 He was basically a king. 79 00:03:33,800 --> 00:03:35,040 He was a leader. 80 00:03:35,040 --> 00:03:38,640 He functioned as the head of a country. 81 00:03:38,640 --> 00:03:44,280 And he was one of those men who never, ever lost sight of what God's calling was in his 82 00:03:44,280 --> 00:03:46,360 life to be the tip of the spear. 83 00:03:46,360 --> 00:03:50,240 And I believe that every man, I believe that every woman, every teenager in this house 84 00:03:50,240 --> 00:03:55,360 can learn something from Joshua about what it is to be the tip of the spear in God's 85 00:03:55,360 --> 00:03:56,360 hand. 86 00:03:56,360 --> 00:03:59,200 So if you got your Bibles, again, Joshua one, I'm going to put this down so I don't harm 87 00:03:59,200 --> 00:04:03,200 myself or anybody else this morning. 88 00:04:03,200 --> 00:04:05,520 Please keep your children from playing with that after church. 89 00:04:05,520 --> 00:04:08,600 Okay, we don't want any stories for next year. 90 00:04:08,600 --> 00:04:13,480 Joshua chapter one verse one says this, after the death of Moses, the servant of the Lord, 91 00:04:13,480 --> 00:04:14,880 he came to pass. 92 00:04:14,880 --> 00:04:20,040 The Lord spoke to Joshua, the son of none, Moses' servant saying, Moses, my servant 93 00:04:20,040 --> 00:04:21,040 is dead. 94 00:04:21,040 --> 00:04:25,400 Now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, you and all this people, to the land which 95 00:04:25,400 --> 00:04:28,040 I am giving to them, the children of Israel. 96 00:04:28,040 --> 00:04:31,320 Every place that the soul of your foot will tread upon, I have given to you. 97 00:04:31,320 --> 00:04:35,920 And as I said to Moses, from the wilderness and this Lebanon, as far as the great river 98 00:04:35,920 --> 00:04:41,320 Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites and to the great sea toward the going down of 99 00:04:41,320 --> 00:04:45,520 the sun shall be your territory. 100 00:04:45,520 --> 00:04:52,120 God speaks to Joshua and installs him as the new leader of the children of Israel, the 101 00:04:52,120 --> 00:04:54,840 Israelites and nation. 102 00:04:54,840 --> 00:04:56,680 Moses was the former leader. 103 00:04:56,680 --> 00:04:58,000 He is now passed on. 104 00:04:58,000 --> 00:04:59,000 He's now dead. 105 00:04:59,000 --> 00:05:02,320 And God is calling Joshua to lead. 106 00:05:02,320 --> 00:05:05,000 He's calling him to be the tip of the spear. 107 00:05:05,000 --> 00:05:08,080 And his job is not a simple one. 108 00:05:08,080 --> 00:05:13,800 Because God calls Joshua at a time when this nation that God had pulled out of slavery, 109 00:05:13,800 --> 00:05:19,360 it is time for them to go in what they call, or what God called, the Promised Land. 110 00:05:19,360 --> 00:05:23,280 It's a time for them to cross over the Jordan River and to head into a place called the 111 00:05:23,280 --> 00:05:24,280 Promised Land. 112 00:05:24,280 --> 00:05:28,000 Now that sounds really nice, but you have to understand something. 113 00:05:28,000 --> 00:05:31,880 In the Promised Land were people who were already established in that land. 114 00:05:31,880 --> 00:05:33,840 And God said this is going to be your land. 115 00:05:33,840 --> 00:05:36,320 And they weren't going to give it up without a fight. 116 00:05:36,320 --> 00:05:40,120 So there were fortified cities across the Jordan River. 117 00:05:40,120 --> 00:05:44,360 They were literally walking into hostile enemy territory. 118 00:05:44,360 --> 00:05:46,800 They were not going just to pass through. 119 00:05:46,800 --> 00:05:48,520 They were not going there for a vacation. 120 00:05:48,520 --> 00:05:51,160 They were not going there to get a little rest and R&R. 121 00:05:51,160 --> 00:05:53,020 They were there to take the land. 122 00:05:53,020 --> 00:05:59,240 So this so-called Promised Land boundaries, if you looked on a map, Egypt would have been 123 00:05:59,240 --> 00:06:00,760 to the south of it. 124 00:06:00,760 --> 00:06:02,480 Mesopotamia would have been to the north. 125 00:06:02,480 --> 00:06:08,360 And it was this area or region between the two that God promised to this nation, to this 126 00:06:08,360 --> 00:06:09,360 group of people. 127 00:06:09,360 --> 00:06:10,600 They were really nomads. 128 00:06:10,600 --> 00:06:12,840 They were traveling around in tents. 129 00:06:12,840 --> 00:06:17,960 And where they were going into really didn't have one leader, but actually 31 different 130 00:06:17,960 --> 00:06:23,480 fortified cities with kings of their own that they would have to go in and conquer. 131 00:06:23,480 --> 00:06:30,120 So Joshua as a leader, as the tip of the spear, the stakes were high, really high. 132 00:06:30,120 --> 00:06:33,440 He was leading into a place where there was enemy territory. 133 00:06:33,440 --> 00:06:37,400 He was leading a nation of a million plus people into this spot. 134 00:06:37,400 --> 00:06:40,320 And he was responsible for the lives. 135 00:06:40,320 --> 00:06:46,480 And he didn't know, if he failed in this mission as he went in, his people could either be 136 00:06:46,480 --> 00:06:50,720 enslaved or they could all be annihilated from the face of the earth. 137 00:06:50,720 --> 00:06:52,120 He had to lead. 138 00:06:52,120 --> 00:06:53,400 And he had to lead well. 139 00:06:53,400 --> 00:06:55,000 He had to hear from God. 140 00:06:55,000 --> 00:06:56,480 He had to be sharp. 141 00:06:56,480 --> 00:06:59,280 He had to know that God was with him in all this. 142 00:06:59,280 --> 00:07:00,520 And Joshua does. 143 00:07:00,520 --> 00:07:01,800 He leads well. 144 00:07:01,800 --> 00:07:06,160 And one of the first things that I noticed is I read about Joshua and the story of Joshua 145 00:07:06,160 --> 00:07:11,800 and how he went in and conquered the land and led a group of people is that Joshua was 146 00:07:11,800 --> 00:07:17,680 coached by a man who was the tip of the spear himself, Moses. 147 00:07:17,680 --> 00:07:24,320 Anyone who wants to become the tip of the spear should be coached or mentored by someone 148 00:07:24,320 --> 00:07:28,120 who already is the tip of the spear. 149 00:07:28,120 --> 00:07:33,880 People was an apprentice of one of the godliest men in history, Moses, long before he ever 150 00:07:33,880 --> 00:07:35,560 became a leader. 151 00:07:35,560 --> 00:07:37,720 Moses was a great leader. 152 00:07:37,720 --> 00:07:42,720 Moses led the children of Israel before they actually became a country, before they became 153 00:07:42,720 --> 00:07:45,040 a people, they were slaves. 154 00:07:45,040 --> 00:07:51,320 And he led them out of slavery to become a nation and really wandering around in a wilderness. 155 00:07:51,320 --> 00:07:55,360 And Moses was a great leader in many, many different aspects. 156 00:07:55,360 --> 00:07:57,640 We could really take time to unfold that. 157 00:07:57,640 --> 00:08:01,440 But one of the great things about Moses is that Moses heard from God. 158 00:08:01,440 --> 00:08:03,440 Actually Moses spoke with God. 159 00:08:03,440 --> 00:08:08,200 The word of God, if you read about Moses, when the children of Israel were traveling 160 00:08:08,200 --> 00:08:14,120 around in the wilderness and they all were living in tents, the people would set up camp 161 00:08:14,120 --> 00:08:17,480 in a certain manner according to the tribes of Israel. 162 00:08:17,480 --> 00:08:20,400 And they would sit, of course, sleep in their tents. 163 00:08:20,400 --> 00:08:25,320 And it says that the word of God says that there was one tent that was outside the area 164 00:08:25,320 --> 00:08:26,640 where they would camp. 165 00:08:26,640 --> 00:08:30,800 It was Moses' place and it was called a Tabernacle of Meeting. 166 00:08:30,800 --> 00:08:34,200 And Moses would go out on a daily basis to the Tabernacle of Meeting. 167 00:08:34,200 --> 00:08:38,600 And he wasn't going out there to meet with different leaders in the community. 168 00:08:38,600 --> 00:08:42,880 He was not there instructing leaders with people of Israel. 169 00:08:42,880 --> 00:08:44,560 He went there to meet God. 170 00:08:44,560 --> 00:08:47,720 And it said in the morning when they would get up, they would literally go outside, they 171 00:08:47,720 --> 00:08:49,080 would open up their tent doors. 172 00:08:49,080 --> 00:08:50,240 I don't know what kind of doors they had. 173 00:08:50,240 --> 00:08:51,800 I'm thinking flaps, right? 174 00:08:51,800 --> 00:08:55,720 They pulled the flaps back and they would watch Moses as he went out to the Tabernacle 175 00:08:55,720 --> 00:08:56,840 of Meeting. 176 00:08:56,840 --> 00:08:59,840 And they said that they would literally worship God during that time. 177 00:08:59,840 --> 00:09:04,120 Because when Moses got to the Tabernacle of Meeting, the word of God says that a cloud 178 00:09:04,120 --> 00:09:06,960 would descend upon it and it was God's presence. 179 00:09:06,960 --> 00:09:10,840 God would literally meet with Moses in that tent. 180 00:09:10,840 --> 00:09:14,400 He would come and he would speak face to face with God. 181 00:09:14,400 --> 00:09:15,640 That's amazing. 182 00:09:15,640 --> 00:09:16,640 That's incredible. 183 00:09:16,640 --> 00:09:20,480 He would literally hear God speak to him in this cloud. 184 00:09:20,480 --> 00:09:23,800 And God would give him instruction in leading these people. 185 00:09:23,800 --> 00:09:26,280 And Joshua mentored, right? 186 00:09:26,280 --> 00:09:28,800 He was mentored by Moses. 187 00:09:28,800 --> 00:09:31,160 He was Moses' assistant. 188 00:09:31,160 --> 00:09:32,840 Moses was coaching him. 189 00:09:32,840 --> 00:09:34,080 Moses was there. 190 00:09:34,080 --> 00:09:36,760 And Joshua saw what was taking place. 191 00:09:36,760 --> 00:09:43,040 Now I think it's super important to point something out at this place in the story because sometimes 192 00:09:43,040 --> 00:09:47,320 when we see these Bible characters, we're like, you know, for me anyways, a pastor like Moses. 193 00:09:47,320 --> 00:09:51,600 It's like, oh, you know, it's just amazingly, you know, tip of the spear. 194 00:09:51,600 --> 00:09:52,600 He's incredible. 195 00:09:52,600 --> 00:09:55,400 But Moses didn't start out that way. 196 00:09:55,400 --> 00:10:01,080 Moses had a pretty rocky beginning actually because he murdered a guy in Egypt and the 197 00:10:01,080 --> 00:10:02,480 Egyptians were after him. 198 00:10:02,480 --> 00:10:06,440 He buried this man in the sand and he actually fled to the backside of the desert. 199 00:10:06,440 --> 00:10:08,200 This is how he started out. 200 00:10:08,200 --> 00:10:10,880 He's hiding out in the desert for 40 years. 201 00:10:10,880 --> 00:10:14,760 God calls him to lead these people and calls him out of a burning bush. 202 00:10:14,760 --> 00:10:19,400 And when God finally meets up with him and calls him after he's hiding out for 40 years, 203 00:10:19,400 --> 00:10:20,840 Moses says, I can't do it, God. 204 00:10:20,840 --> 00:10:21,840 I'm so sorry. 205 00:10:21,840 --> 00:10:22,840 I can't do it. 206 00:10:22,840 --> 00:10:23,840 Not today. 207 00:10:23,840 --> 00:10:24,840 All right. 208 00:10:24,840 --> 00:10:28,040 And he comes up with a whole bunch of excuses that I don't got time to go into. 209 00:10:28,040 --> 00:10:30,040 And this is how Moses starts. 210 00:10:30,040 --> 00:10:34,080 And Moses begins to come up with excuse after excuse and God kind of finally rattles his 211 00:10:34,080 --> 00:10:39,160 chain and he accepts that the position of going and being the leader, bringing people 212 00:10:39,160 --> 00:10:41,400 out of Egypt. 213 00:10:41,400 --> 00:10:47,240 And I say all that to say this, God's not looking for utter perfection in you and I. 214 00:10:47,240 --> 00:10:48,880 Do you know that? 215 00:10:48,880 --> 00:10:50,960 He doesn't care about your checkered past. 216 00:10:50,960 --> 00:10:56,360 He doesn't care about if you've got struggles and anxieties because Moses did right. 217 00:10:56,360 --> 00:10:58,480 He's telling God, I can't talk very well. 218 00:10:58,480 --> 00:10:59,880 So you really can't send me. 219 00:10:59,880 --> 00:11:00,880 He had struggles. 220 00:11:00,880 --> 00:11:02,040 He had anxieties. 221 00:11:02,040 --> 00:11:03,680 God doesn't care about only that. 222 00:11:03,680 --> 00:11:06,520 All he's looking for, somebody they'll submit and say yes. 223 00:11:06,520 --> 00:11:10,080 All he's looking for and God will raise that person up. 224 00:11:10,080 --> 00:11:16,060 Man, woman, child, teenager, he will raise them up to be the tip of the spear. 225 00:11:16,060 --> 00:11:21,720 He will make them a leader and that's exactly who Joshua spent time with. 226 00:11:21,720 --> 00:11:24,120 Somebody who was submitted to God. 227 00:11:24,120 --> 00:11:25,360 Joshua was by his side. 228 00:11:25,360 --> 00:11:27,440 He was one of his right hand men. 229 00:11:27,440 --> 00:11:31,880 He listened, he watched, he learned, he participated in. 230 00:11:31,880 --> 00:11:34,080 And I think Joshua picked up on a thing or two. 231 00:11:34,080 --> 00:11:38,440 I think he saw, I think he saw Moses at his highest and at his lowest. 232 00:11:38,440 --> 00:11:42,640 I think he saw Moses when Moses was all stressed out because at times the children of Israel 233 00:11:42,640 --> 00:11:47,720 would run into problems like they couldn't find any water and he'd have to go and pray. 234 00:11:47,720 --> 00:11:52,440 And I think he saw the stress and he saw how the tip of the spear would go meet with God 235 00:11:52,440 --> 00:11:57,520 and God would give him a plan and God would give him an answer and the answer would come 236 00:11:57,520 --> 00:12:01,200 and God would just establish Moses one more time as a leader. 237 00:12:01,200 --> 00:12:07,920 God's looking for people who are gonna coach and be coached by other tips of the spear. 238 00:12:07,920 --> 00:12:10,040 Proverbs 27, 17 says this. 239 00:12:10,040 --> 00:12:14,760 As iron sharpens iron, so a man sharpens the countens of his friends. 240 00:12:14,760 --> 00:12:19,240 Men, ladies, teens, get this verse in your head. 241 00:12:19,240 --> 00:12:20,240 Get it in your heart. 242 00:12:20,240 --> 00:12:22,880 Adopt this in your, I talked about this a couple of weeks ago, adopt this into your 243 00:12:22,880 --> 00:12:24,080 belief center. 244 00:12:24,080 --> 00:12:25,640 You gotta believe this. 245 00:12:25,640 --> 00:12:27,360 Iron sharpens iron. 246 00:12:27,360 --> 00:12:29,040 You gotta live this. 247 00:12:29,040 --> 00:12:33,520 Make sure that you are rubbing up against a godly individual of some kind. 248 00:12:33,520 --> 00:12:35,040 Somebody that's mentoring you. 249 00:12:35,040 --> 00:12:37,240 Somebody that's an influence in your life. 250 00:12:37,240 --> 00:12:39,240 You know, somebody that can sharpen you. 251 00:12:39,240 --> 00:12:43,280 Dad, the mom, can I talk to you for just a second? 252 00:12:43,280 --> 00:12:47,560 Can I tell you that you will not be your child all in all forever? 253 00:12:47,560 --> 00:12:49,520 Some of you young parents are in here. 254 00:12:49,520 --> 00:12:51,960 We got newborns in the house this morning. 255 00:12:51,960 --> 00:12:53,200 Some are on the way. 256 00:12:53,200 --> 00:12:56,880 Some of you got children of various ages and when they're little, they're looking to mom 257 00:12:56,880 --> 00:12:59,920 and dad for everything, but I'm telling you they're gonna grow up. 258 00:12:59,920 --> 00:13:00,920 They're gonna hit 10. 259 00:13:00,920 --> 00:13:01,920 They're gonna hit 11. 260 00:13:01,920 --> 00:13:05,000 They're gonna hit 12 and they're gonna start looking at other people. 261 00:13:05,000 --> 00:13:07,520 You better make sure who they're rubbing up against. 262 00:13:07,520 --> 00:13:11,240 You better make sure there's some godly influence in their life because they're not just listening 263 00:13:11,240 --> 00:13:12,480 to you anymore. 264 00:13:12,480 --> 00:13:13,880 They're listening to others. 265 00:13:13,880 --> 00:13:17,400 Get them rubbing up against, rubbing it. 266 00:13:17,400 --> 00:13:22,160 Find somebody that is more tempered in God than they are. 267 00:13:22,160 --> 00:13:25,440 If you're gonna find a mentor, you gotta find somebody that's more tempered. 268 00:13:25,440 --> 00:13:27,160 Somebody that's been through the fire. 269 00:13:27,160 --> 00:13:30,960 Somebody that's been through the struggle and has come out the other side. 270 00:13:30,960 --> 00:13:31,960 How do you sharpen a knife? 271 00:13:31,960 --> 00:13:33,200 I didn't bring a knife up here. 272 00:13:33,200 --> 00:13:35,680 I've heard I had enough sharp objects. 273 00:13:35,680 --> 00:13:37,520 This is a sharpening rod, right? 274 00:13:37,520 --> 00:13:39,040 And how do you sharpen a knife? 275 00:13:39,040 --> 00:13:42,960 You take it and you slide it down this side and you bring it back and you slide it. 276 00:13:42,960 --> 00:13:49,200 You rub up against something just harder than the knife and there's friction, right? 277 00:13:49,200 --> 00:13:51,600 Come on, friction is not always a bad thing. 278 00:13:51,600 --> 00:13:52,600 There's friction. 279 00:13:52,600 --> 00:13:53,680 There's rubbing. 280 00:13:53,680 --> 00:13:59,240 There's leaning in to someone that's more tempered than you are. 281 00:13:59,240 --> 00:14:03,280 If you're gonna be the tip of the spear, go find another tip of the spear. 282 00:14:03,280 --> 00:14:06,720 Don't rub up against something that's soft in Jesus. 283 00:14:06,720 --> 00:14:07,720 Come on. 284 00:14:07,720 --> 00:14:08,720 You can. 285 00:14:08,720 --> 00:14:11,640 You can go find somebody that's soft in Jesus and you can rub up against them. 286 00:14:11,640 --> 00:14:13,160 They're gonna make you feel all good. 287 00:14:13,160 --> 00:14:14,720 They're gonna tell you you're doing just fine. 288 00:14:14,720 --> 00:14:16,480 Go find somebody that's tempered. 289 00:14:16,480 --> 00:14:20,240 Find somebody that's tougher than you are in Christ and somebody who shoots straight 290 00:14:20,240 --> 00:14:21,400 with you and tell you the truth. 291 00:14:21,400 --> 00:14:22,400 Amen? 292 00:14:22,400 --> 00:14:23,400 It's true. 293 00:14:23,400 --> 00:14:24,400 It's true. 294 00:14:24,400 --> 00:14:25,400 Find that person. 295 00:14:25,400 --> 00:14:27,960 Just start rubbing up against them. 296 00:14:27,960 --> 00:14:30,560 Find out who they're and what they're about. 297 00:14:30,560 --> 00:14:34,120 You know what happens when you rub up against somebody that's soft? 298 00:14:34,120 --> 00:14:36,400 Softer in Jesus than you are? 299 00:14:36,400 --> 00:14:37,400 Absolutely nothing. 300 00:14:37,400 --> 00:14:38,400 Okay? 301 00:14:38,400 --> 00:14:42,000 You ever, you rub a knife up against a piece of wood all day long. 302 00:14:42,000 --> 00:14:43,080 It's not gonna get any sharper. 303 00:14:43,080 --> 00:14:44,080 Right? 304 00:14:44,080 --> 00:14:45,080 You can stick it in. 305 00:14:45,080 --> 00:14:46,440 Matter of fact, less than nothing will happen. 306 00:14:46,440 --> 00:14:47,440 You can stick a knife in the ground. 307 00:14:47,440 --> 00:14:50,240 You ever stick a knife in the ground a couple of times when it's soft? 308 00:14:50,240 --> 00:14:52,040 You know, and it's soft and it's gushy. 309 00:14:52,040 --> 00:14:55,040 You can stick a knife in there and then you go try to go cut something with it. 310 00:14:55,040 --> 00:14:56,040 All right? 311 00:14:56,040 --> 00:14:57,160 It's dull, right? 312 00:14:57,160 --> 00:15:03,320 But Joshua spent a significant amount of time walking, watching, learning, and listening 313 00:15:03,320 --> 00:15:04,320 to Moses. 314 00:15:04,320 --> 00:15:09,240 So you gotta ask yourself this morning, who's the tip of the spear in your life? 315 00:15:09,240 --> 00:15:10,240 Spiritually. 316 00:15:10,240 --> 00:15:11,240 I'm talking about spiritually. 317 00:15:11,240 --> 00:15:13,760 This happens out in the world all the time, physically, right? 318 00:15:13,760 --> 00:15:17,560 But if somebody's gonna train you, they never put you with somebody that knows less than 319 00:15:17,560 --> 00:15:19,440 you do about the job. 320 00:15:19,440 --> 00:15:21,760 They always put somebody that's more experienced, right? 321 00:15:21,760 --> 00:15:23,000 That's more tempered. 322 00:15:23,000 --> 00:15:26,400 Who's more tempered in your spiritual walk? 323 00:15:26,400 --> 00:15:28,320 Who you robbing up against? 324 00:15:28,320 --> 00:15:29,760 Who you leaning in on? 325 00:15:29,760 --> 00:15:32,160 Who's leaning in on you, right? 326 00:15:32,160 --> 00:15:33,960 It makes all the difference. 327 00:15:33,960 --> 00:15:38,360 How many of you have ever heard of a man who sings, named Lecrae? 328 00:15:38,360 --> 00:15:39,360 Anybody over here, Lecrae? 329 00:15:39,360 --> 00:15:40,360 Yeah. 330 00:15:40,360 --> 00:15:41,360 Very good. 331 00:15:41,360 --> 00:15:42,360 Okay. 332 00:15:42,360 --> 00:15:43,360 Three of you. 333 00:15:43,360 --> 00:15:44,360 Awesome. 334 00:15:44,360 --> 00:15:45,360 Okay. 335 00:15:45,360 --> 00:15:46,360 I read a little something about Lecrae. 336 00:15:46,360 --> 00:15:48,160 It says this, God met me where I was at. 337 00:15:48,160 --> 00:15:50,280 Baggy jeans and an earring. 338 00:15:50,280 --> 00:15:55,080 With these words, the celebrated hip hop artist Lecrae Moore begins his story. 339 00:15:55,080 --> 00:15:58,360 Growing up without a father, he experienced a childhood of abuse and neglect. 340 00:15:58,360 --> 00:16:02,280 He filled his life with drugs, theft, alcohol, sex, and gang activity. 341 00:16:02,280 --> 00:16:05,880 He was so wild that his friends nicknamed him Crazy Crae. 342 00:16:05,880 --> 00:16:11,080 What it took to bring him to Christianity was someone who was not afraid of the subculture. 343 00:16:11,080 --> 00:16:16,520 Who knew that the real problem with Lecrae was that not his culture, but his sin and 344 00:16:16,520 --> 00:16:18,040 brokenness. 345 00:16:18,040 --> 00:16:24,480 Lecrae, a man named Joe, loved his teenager enough to enter into the culture and to speak 346 00:16:24,480 --> 00:16:25,480 his language. 347 00:16:25,480 --> 00:16:30,520 Today, Lecrae is the president and co-founder of Reach Records and is the winner of several 348 00:16:30,520 --> 00:16:32,600 double awards and a Grammy Award. 349 00:16:32,600 --> 00:16:38,960 His album Anomaly was the first album ever to top the gospel albums and Billboard 200 350 00:16:38,960 --> 00:16:39,960 chart. 351 00:16:39,960 --> 00:16:45,040 Lecrae said the key turning point in his life was when he grasped what comes after conversion. 352 00:16:45,040 --> 00:16:49,880 When he understood that Christianity is not just religious truth, it is total truth. 353 00:16:49,880 --> 00:16:53,640 In other words, the real transformation came when he realized that Christians are called 354 00:16:53,640 --> 00:16:59,200 to roll up their sleeves and work out the implications of a biblical worldview for justice, for politics, 355 00:16:59,200 --> 00:17:04,200 for science, for scholarships, for art, for music, and all the rest of life. 356 00:17:04,200 --> 00:17:08,280 We've limited Christianity to salvation and sanctification, he said, but Christianity 357 00:17:08,280 --> 00:17:10,080 is the truth about everything. 358 00:17:10,080 --> 00:17:14,080 If you say you are of a Christian worldview, that means you see the world through the lens, 359 00:17:14,080 --> 00:17:20,000 not just how people get saved, but what and just what you stay away from, but Jesus first 360 00:17:20,000 --> 00:17:21,440 and everything. 361 00:17:21,440 --> 00:17:26,160 This is what happens when iron sharpens iron. 362 00:17:26,160 --> 00:17:31,080 Lecrae had somebody in his life who was willing to walk in his culture and begin to talk to 363 00:17:31,080 --> 00:17:35,000 him about Christianity, begin to talk about what it is to follow Christ. 364 00:17:35,000 --> 00:17:37,400 You got to have somebody temperate in life. 365 00:17:37,400 --> 00:17:38,720 You should be mentored. 366 00:17:38,720 --> 00:17:41,200 You should be mentoring, right? 367 00:17:41,200 --> 00:17:42,480 And I know what some of you are thinking. 368 00:17:42,480 --> 00:17:45,040 Some of you are thinking, well, the Holy Spirit mentors me, right? 369 00:17:45,040 --> 00:17:48,440 Some of you Bible scholars are like, well, that's why Jesus sent the Holy Spirit. 370 00:17:48,440 --> 00:17:51,160 The Holy Spirit's mentoring me, right? 371 00:17:51,160 --> 00:17:52,160 That's true. 372 00:17:52,160 --> 00:17:54,160 Jesus did send the Holy Spirit. 373 00:17:54,160 --> 00:17:57,400 But do you know what some of the last commands of Jesus was? 374 00:17:57,400 --> 00:18:00,920 One was that the Holy Spirit would come, the promise would come and he would coach you 375 00:18:00,920 --> 00:18:01,920 and he would mentor you. 376 00:18:01,920 --> 00:18:04,400 But do you know what another thing he said? 377 00:18:04,400 --> 00:18:05,400 Go make disciples. 378 00:18:05,400 --> 00:18:07,800 Do you know what discipling is? 379 00:18:07,800 --> 00:18:10,440 That's mentoring and being mentored. 380 00:18:10,440 --> 00:18:12,040 He said it's both. 381 00:18:12,040 --> 00:18:14,040 You got to have that person in your life. 382 00:18:14,040 --> 00:18:17,640 You got to be that person in someone's life. 383 00:18:17,640 --> 00:18:21,360 Can I tell you, you are not good enough to do this on your own. 384 00:18:21,360 --> 00:18:23,080 Can I shoot straight with you this morning? 385 00:18:23,080 --> 00:18:24,320 Come on, it's God's days. 386 00:18:24,320 --> 00:18:26,320 I got spears up here. 387 00:18:26,320 --> 00:18:28,640 I'm shooting straight. 388 00:18:28,640 --> 00:18:31,480 You are not good enough to do this on your own. 389 00:18:31,480 --> 00:18:35,000 You need the Holy Spirit and you need other people in your life. 390 00:18:35,000 --> 00:18:36,560 It's not optional according to Scripture. 391 00:18:36,560 --> 00:18:40,480 Let me read a little more about the man who was the tip of this spear. 392 00:18:40,480 --> 00:18:45,680 Joshua 1, verse 5 says, No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life. 393 00:18:45,680 --> 00:18:47,920 As I was with Moses, so I will be with you. 394 00:18:47,920 --> 00:18:50,320 I will not leave you or forsake you. 395 00:18:50,320 --> 00:18:52,160 Be strong and of good courage. 396 00:18:52,160 --> 00:18:57,120 For to this people you shall divide in adherence the Lamb which I swore to their fathers to 397 00:18:57,120 --> 00:18:58,680 give them. 398 00:18:58,680 --> 00:19:03,560 Only be strong and very courageous that you may observe to do according to all the law 399 00:19:03,560 --> 00:19:05,640 which Moses my servant commanded you. 400 00:19:05,640 --> 00:19:09,800 Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left that you may prosper wherever you 401 00:19:09,800 --> 00:19:10,800 go. 402 00:19:10,800 --> 00:19:14,880 The book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and 403 00:19:14,880 --> 00:19:18,480 night that you may observe to do all according to what is written in it. 404 00:19:18,480 --> 00:19:20,200 For then you will make your way prosperous. 405 00:19:20,200 --> 00:19:21,560 You need to catch this part. 406 00:19:21,560 --> 00:19:23,160 And then you will have good success. 407 00:19:23,160 --> 00:19:24,640 That's God's success by the way. 408 00:19:24,640 --> 00:19:26,360 That's different than the world's success. 409 00:19:26,360 --> 00:19:27,400 Have I not commanded you? 410 00:19:27,400 --> 00:19:31,320 Be strong and of good courage do not be afraid nor be dismayed. 411 00:19:31,320 --> 00:19:34,520 For the Lord God is with you wherever you go. 412 00:19:34,520 --> 00:19:41,040 What makes a spear effective in hitting the target is that you do not veer to the left 413 00:19:41,040 --> 00:19:43,600 or you do not veer to the right. 414 00:19:43,600 --> 00:19:48,440 The tip of the spear is going to hit the bull's eye if it doesn't veer to the left or to the 415 00:19:48,440 --> 00:19:49,440 right. 416 00:19:49,440 --> 00:19:52,800 God instructed Joshua, he said, listen, do a couple of things that I'm telling you to 417 00:19:52,800 --> 00:19:55,360 do and you're not going to veer. 418 00:19:55,360 --> 00:19:56,600 You're not going to miss the target. 419 00:19:56,600 --> 00:19:58,560 You're not going to miss the bull's eye. 420 00:19:58,560 --> 00:20:01,000 You're going to be effective on the battlefield. 421 00:20:01,000 --> 00:20:02,560 You won't die on the battlefield. 422 00:20:02,560 --> 00:20:03,880 You won't get confused. 423 00:20:03,880 --> 00:20:06,680 You'll accomplish what I placed in front of you. 424 00:20:06,680 --> 00:20:07,680 You won't veer. 425 00:20:07,680 --> 00:20:13,560 And I could ask this question, how many of you have ever shot a bow and arrow in here? 426 00:20:13,560 --> 00:20:16,040 A lot of you, most of you, okay? 427 00:20:16,040 --> 00:20:18,080 All right, rednecks, awesome. 428 00:20:18,080 --> 00:20:21,280 All right, you know, bow and arrow. 429 00:20:21,280 --> 00:20:22,880 You know, maybe you were at camp. 430 00:20:22,880 --> 00:20:24,680 Maybe you're a hunter. 431 00:20:24,680 --> 00:20:27,600 If you shot an arrow, that's a small spear. 432 00:20:27,600 --> 00:20:31,440 You know what I'm talking about because the smallest of things will make that arrow veer, 433 00:20:31,440 --> 00:20:32,440 won't it? 434 00:20:32,440 --> 00:20:36,440 A poor release will make that arrow veer away from the target. 435 00:20:36,440 --> 00:20:41,600 A small twig or a branch just brushing against that arrow as it's released will make it veer 436 00:20:41,600 --> 00:20:42,600 from the target. 437 00:20:42,600 --> 00:20:43,880 The smallest of things. 438 00:20:43,880 --> 00:20:48,600 The tip of the arrow being the proper weight will make it veer. 439 00:20:48,600 --> 00:20:52,720 The fletching on the back, the feathers on the back, the slightest imperfection there 440 00:20:52,720 --> 00:20:54,360 can make an arrow veer. 441 00:20:54,360 --> 00:20:55,600 I see some of you nodding. 442 00:20:55,600 --> 00:20:56,600 I like it. 443 00:20:56,600 --> 00:21:00,160 It is, this is a redneck group, all right? 444 00:21:00,160 --> 00:21:02,800 God told Joshua, do things my way. 445 00:21:02,800 --> 00:21:04,240 Get this right. 446 00:21:04,240 --> 00:21:08,640 Follow my commands and don't veer left or right from them. 447 00:21:08,640 --> 00:21:09,640 Stay focused. 448 00:21:09,640 --> 00:21:12,800 Because if you don't veer, you're going to hit the bullseye. 449 00:21:12,800 --> 00:21:15,640 You're going to accomplish exactly what I'm telling you you're going to accomplish, right? 450 00:21:15,640 --> 00:21:17,640 How many of you know when you're driving a car? 451 00:21:17,640 --> 00:21:18,640 Maybe you didn't shoot a bow and arrow. 452 00:21:18,640 --> 00:21:20,040 How many of you know when you're driving a car? 453 00:21:20,040 --> 00:21:23,240 If you look out the side window and you get gawking at something, right? 454 00:21:23,240 --> 00:21:25,080 You start to veer. 455 00:21:25,080 --> 00:21:27,240 I've got a co-pilot in my car. 456 00:21:27,240 --> 00:21:28,320 Her name's Dixie. 457 00:21:28,320 --> 00:21:29,320 Okay? 458 00:21:29,320 --> 00:21:31,440 When I veer, she doesn't say anything. 459 00:21:31,440 --> 00:21:35,320 She grabs my right arm and squeezes and I know what that means. 460 00:21:35,320 --> 00:21:36,800 Get focused, boy. 461 00:21:36,800 --> 00:21:37,800 Look ahead. 462 00:21:37,800 --> 00:21:38,800 Right? 463 00:21:38,800 --> 00:21:41,600 Come on, straighten up. 464 00:21:41,600 --> 00:21:45,400 God told Joshua, if you stay focused on it, if you think, come on, y'all laugh because 465 00:21:45,400 --> 00:21:46,800 it happens to you, too. 466 00:21:46,800 --> 00:21:47,960 All right? 467 00:21:47,960 --> 00:21:50,120 Don't get looking around. 468 00:21:50,120 --> 00:21:51,800 Don't veer left or right. 469 00:21:51,800 --> 00:21:52,800 Come on. 470 00:21:52,800 --> 00:21:54,320 It's some of the things that He said. 471 00:21:54,320 --> 00:21:55,800 You're going to hit the bullseye. 472 00:21:55,800 --> 00:22:02,640 Secondly, He said this, understand the fact that I will never leave or forsake you. 473 00:22:02,640 --> 00:22:05,880 God told Joshua, I'll never leave you or forsake you. 474 00:22:05,880 --> 00:22:11,960 God will launch you further and faster in life unless the idea or if you understand that 475 00:22:11,960 --> 00:22:16,560 God is always with you, that He will never leave you or forsake you. 476 00:22:16,560 --> 00:22:21,200 If the God of the universe who is bigger and more powerful than anything in your life, anything 477 00:22:21,200 --> 00:22:26,920 you can conjure up, anything that ever has been conjured up is with you personally, how 478 00:22:26,920 --> 00:22:29,360 can anything be against you? 479 00:22:29,360 --> 00:22:30,360 Right? 480 00:22:30,360 --> 00:22:32,760 You want fear to start mowing away from you? 481 00:22:32,760 --> 00:22:34,320 Just understand this. 482 00:22:34,320 --> 00:22:35,760 Get this in your belief. 483 00:22:35,760 --> 00:22:40,720 God's bigger and faster than anything you can imagine. 484 00:22:40,720 --> 00:22:43,720 If He's with you, He said that to Joshua. 485 00:22:43,720 --> 00:22:48,720 He says it to those who follow Him, I am with you wherever you go. 486 00:22:48,720 --> 00:22:53,040 There's no place you can try that He's not there. 487 00:22:53,040 --> 00:22:54,040 Understand this. 488 00:22:54,040 --> 00:22:55,960 He'll never leave you or forsake you. 489 00:22:55,960 --> 00:23:01,000 Not only does it accomplish that, what it accomplishes, it relieves the fear and begins 490 00:23:01,000 --> 00:23:02,360 to launch you forward. 491 00:23:02,360 --> 00:23:06,080 The other thing is if you understand that God never leaves you or forsakes you, it also 492 00:23:06,080 --> 00:23:07,080 keeps you accountable. 493 00:23:07,080 --> 00:23:11,000 Do you know that? 494 00:23:11,000 --> 00:23:14,920 If God never leaves you or forsakes you, that means He's with you all the time. 495 00:23:14,920 --> 00:23:18,040 If He's with you all the time, you do know that God knows all things and that He can 496 00:23:18,040 --> 00:23:19,040 read your thoughts. 497 00:23:19,040 --> 00:23:20,800 You don't even have to verbalize it. 498 00:23:20,800 --> 00:23:21,800 He knows what you're thinking. 499 00:23:21,800 --> 00:23:24,360 He knows what the motives of your heart. 500 00:23:24,360 --> 00:23:26,360 How many know that keeps you accountable? 501 00:23:26,360 --> 00:23:27,360 How many know it? 502 00:23:27,360 --> 00:23:32,160 He knows the secret thing that you thought yesterday that nobody else is ever going to 503 00:23:32,160 --> 00:23:33,160 know. 504 00:23:33,160 --> 00:23:37,600 That thing that crossed your mind, that thing that you entertained, the only one that knows 505 00:23:37,600 --> 00:23:40,160 is God. 506 00:23:40,160 --> 00:23:43,040 Here's how He keeps you from veering to the left and to the right. 507 00:23:43,040 --> 00:23:46,080 One, you know that God is always with you and He'll never leave you or never forsake 508 00:23:46,080 --> 00:23:47,080 you. 509 00:23:47,080 --> 00:23:48,680 What should empower you to launch forward? 510 00:23:48,680 --> 00:23:50,920 It should make you go forward without fear. 511 00:23:50,920 --> 00:23:54,480 The other side of that should create great fear because God knows what you're thinking. 512 00:23:54,480 --> 00:23:55,480 He knows what you're doing. 513 00:23:55,480 --> 00:23:59,560 He empowers you to go forward and He also keeps you on the straight and narrow because He knows 514 00:23:59,560 --> 00:24:01,240 what you thought. 515 00:24:01,240 --> 00:24:02,720 He knows your motives. 516 00:24:02,720 --> 00:24:04,200 He knows what's going on. 517 00:24:04,200 --> 00:24:08,840 He told Joshua, just know I am with you wherever you go. 518 00:24:08,840 --> 00:24:10,920 I'm with you, right? 519 00:24:10,920 --> 00:24:13,400 So you should be like, yes, God's with me. 520 00:24:13,400 --> 00:24:18,920 You're like, at the same time, you should be like, oh snap, God's with me all the time. 521 00:24:18,920 --> 00:24:19,920 It's both. 522 00:24:19,920 --> 00:24:21,480 It really is. 523 00:24:21,480 --> 00:24:23,760 It keeps you going straight. 524 00:24:23,760 --> 00:24:26,040 It keeps you from veering. 525 00:24:26,040 --> 00:24:27,920 He told Joshua this. 526 00:24:27,920 --> 00:24:29,560 Joshua, big stakes. 527 00:24:29,560 --> 00:24:31,960 Man, he's walking into enemy territory. 528 00:24:31,960 --> 00:24:36,040 He's walking into people who are going to want to take him out and every person that's 529 00:24:36,040 --> 00:24:37,480 with him out. 530 00:24:37,480 --> 00:24:42,160 The last thing he says, and I'm going to be closing up with this, be strong and of good 531 00:24:42,160 --> 00:24:43,880 courage. 532 00:24:43,880 --> 00:24:47,640 God repeats to Joshua over and over again, be strong. 533 00:24:47,640 --> 00:24:51,760 If you read about the story of Joshua, be strong and be of good courage. 534 00:24:51,760 --> 00:24:53,480 Be strong and of good courage. 535 00:24:53,480 --> 00:24:55,080 Be strong and step out. 536 00:24:55,080 --> 00:24:57,320 Be strong and step in, right? 537 00:24:57,320 --> 00:25:01,160 Be strong and go to the destination that I placed in front of you. 538 00:25:01,160 --> 00:25:05,360 Be strong and tackle the thing that nobody else will tackle. 539 00:25:05,360 --> 00:25:09,440 How do I muster up that kind of courage? 540 00:25:09,440 --> 00:25:14,960 How do I get that kind of courage to rise up inside of me where I am willing to walk 541 00:25:14,960 --> 00:25:19,120 into hostile enemy territory? 542 00:25:19,120 --> 00:25:21,840 Is it a matter of just stiffening my resolve? 543 00:25:21,840 --> 00:25:24,000 You know, or psyching myself up? 544 00:25:24,000 --> 00:25:26,240 You know, the players out on the field, right? 545 00:25:26,240 --> 00:25:31,600 All players smacking their helmets, psyching each other up, slapping each other, right? 546 00:25:31,600 --> 00:25:36,360 Is it a delusional sense of pride that I just need to keep building up so I get enough courage 547 00:25:36,360 --> 00:25:38,680 to go do what God called me to do? 548 00:25:38,680 --> 00:25:44,440 Do I study till my intellect carries me to a spiritual utopia where I all of a sudden 549 00:25:44,440 --> 00:25:47,960 achieve courage because of everything that I know? 550 00:25:47,960 --> 00:25:52,280 Does it happen automatically if I have the right mentor in place, the right person speaking 551 00:25:52,280 --> 00:25:57,040 into my life? 552 00:25:57,040 --> 00:25:58,040 How do I become courageous? 553 00:25:58,040 --> 00:26:01,800 How did Josh would do this? 554 00:26:01,800 --> 00:26:09,920 Courage, spiritual courage comes from somebody who has radical confidence in God. 555 00:26:09,920 --> 00:26:14,840 Your courage will rise when you have radical confidence in God. 556 00:26:14,840 --> 00:26:17,000 I'm not talking about lazy confidence in God. 557 00:26:17,000 --> 00:26:20,080 I'm not talking about Sunday morning confidence in God. 558 00:26:20,080 --> 00:26:21,960 Everybody can have confidence in God Sunday morning. 559 00:26:21,960 --> 00:26:22,960 Amen? 560 00:26:22,960 --> 00:26:25,440 It's easy to come here and have confidence in God Sunday morning. 561 00:26:25,440 --> 00:26:28,760 I'm talking about radical confidence in God. 562 00:26:28,760 --> 00:26:32,280 Confidence that whatever you go, I think Joshua, I don't know how he attained this kind of 563 00:26:32,280 --> 00:26:33,280 confidence. 564 00:26:33,280 --> 00:26:34,280 It doesn't really tell us. 565 00:26:34,280 --> 00:26:37,480 I don't know if it was because he walked beside a man who was the tip of the spear and he 566 00:26:37,480 --> 00:26:41,680 witnessed over and over again just how God brought Moses through. 567 00:26:41,680 --> 00:26:46,280 It could be that testimony that did that and that's a part of that mentorship. 568 00:26:46,280 --> 00:26:51,240 I'm not sure how that comes, but somewhere along the way, somewhere in the mix, Joshua 569 00:26:51,240 --> 00:26:57,560 got to this place where this deep, deep confidence in God began to rise up with him because he 570 00:26:57,560 --> 00:27:05,360 took a nation, walked across a river with tents and probably spears into fortified cities 571 00:27:05,360 --> 00:27:11,200 with trained warriors and he walked right through and in. 572 00:27:11,200 --> 00:27:16,240 He had supreme confidence in the God who spoke to him. 573 00:27:16,240 --> 00:27:20,120 See here's the, that's how courage comes. 574 00:27:20,120 --> 00:27:26,400 If you don't have spiritual courage, what you will do is you will settle. 575 00:27:26,400 --> 00:27:27,640 You'll settle. 576 00:27:27,640 --> 00:27:31,240 You'll settle for this much. 577 00:27:31,240 --> 00:27:33,280 And here's the thing about settling. 578 00:27:33,280 --> 00:27:34,280 Nobody calls you unsettling. 579 00:27:34,280 --> 00:27:36,480 I don't know if you realize it or not. 580 00:27:36,480 --> 00:27:41,320 If you settle in your spirit, nobody, unless you have a really close mentor, they might 581 00:27:41,320 --> 00:27:43,960 call you unsettling, but otherwise nobody else will. 582 00:27:43,960 --> 00:27:46,160 Everybody else will look at you and say, you know what, they're not pretty good. 583 00:27:46,160 --> 00:27:47,160 Right? 584 00:27:47,160 --> 00:27:48,160 They're going to church, right? 585 00:27:48,160 --> 00:27:49,600 They've been following God. 586 00:27:49,600 --> 00:27:50,600 They're saved. 587 00:27:50,600 --> 00:27:55,720 You know, and you can settle and everybody's like, yeah, high five, you're doing awesome. 588 00:27:55,720 --> 00:27:56,720 You're doing great. 589 00:27:56,720 --> 00:28:03,480 But God knows when you have no spiritual courage, when your confidence in him is lacking and 590 00:28:03,480 --> 00:28:06,200 everybody else will cheer you on. 591 00:28:06,200 --> 00:28:07,720 But God sees you. 592 00:28:07,720 --> 00:28:08,720 He sees you. 593 00:28:08,720 --> 00:28:09,720 Come on. 594 00:28:09,720 --> 00:28:10,720 He sees you. 595 00:28:10,720 --> 00:28:12,720 He sees you. 596 00:28:12,720 --> 00:28:14,600 He knows if you settle. 597 00:28:14,600 --> 00:28:17,320 He knows if you've only given this much. 598 00:28:17,320 --> 00:28:20,240 If your confidence only goes that far. 599 00:28:20,240 --> 00:28:22,200 I want to be the tip of the spear. 600 00:28:22,200 --> 00:28:23,200 I do. 601 00:28:23,200 --> 00:28:25,200 I really do. 602 00:28:25,200 --> 00:28:28,560 Both statement, I know. 603 00:28:28,560 --> 00:28:30,360 But I got to have confidence in God. 604 00:28:30,360 --> 00:28:33,080 I don't have confidence in me. 605 00:28:33,080 --> 00:28:38,440 Some of you, some of you need to understand that God is so powerful that you can have confidence 606 00:28:38,440 --> 00:28:41,080 in what God's going to do in you. 607 00:28:41,080 --> 00:28:44,840 Some of you are plenty of confidence in God, but you don't have confidence in you as because 608 00:28:44,840 --> 00:28:46,840 you're looking at what you got. 609 00:28:46,840 --> 00:28:49,800 I'm here to tell you, God can take you anywhere you need to go. 610 00:28:49,800 --> 00:28:54,320 He can run you over any mountain that you need to leap over and it's not confidence in 611 00:28:54,320 --> 00:28:56,360 yourself, it's confidence in him. 612 00:28:56,360 --> 00:28:57,360 Amen? 613 00:28:57,360 --> 00:28:59,760 That's a different kind of confidence. 614 00:28:59,760 --> 00:29:00,960 I'm going to ask you to stand. 615 00:29:00,960 --> 00:29:03,200 Where's the team if you'd come? 616 00:29:03,200 --> 00:29:06,680 Dads, I want you down front this morning. 617 00:29:06,680 --> 00:29:09,840 I'm going to ask if the dads would all come and stand in front. 618 00:29:09,840 --> 00:29:12,600 I'll put the spear down. 619 00:29:12,600 --> 00:29:15,400 We're getting people saved this morning. 620 00:29:15,400 --> 00:29:19,720 If you'd all come down front and we're just going to pray over you. 621 00:29:19,720 --> 00:29:24,760 And while you come, I want you to reach over, go over there by that offering bucket by this. 622 00:29:24,760 --> 00:29:26,640 I want you to grab one of those tips of the spear. 623 00:29:26,640 --> 00:29:29,440 We got a tip of the spear for every dad here this morning. 624 00:29:29,440 --> 00:29:30,720 I want you to grab a hold of that. 625 00:29:30,720 --> 00:29:36,080 Somebody bring me one of those please. 626 00:29:36,080 --> 00:29:37,200 Sometimes we forget. 627 00:29:37,200 --> 00:29:38,200 Thank you. 628 00:29:38,200 --> 00:29:41,600 Sometimes we forget when we leave. 629 00:29:41,600 --> 00:29:44,600 What's been spoken and I don't want you to forget. 630 00:29:44,600 --> 00:29:49,680 I want you all just to stand, line up across the front here because we're going to pray 631 00:29:49,680 --> 00:29:51,880 over you. 632 00:29:51,880 --> 00:29:55,000 I want the fathers furthest in the front. 633 00:29:55,000 --> 00:29:57,320 I want the other men in the house to come in behind them. 634 00:29:57,320 --> 00:29:58,800 If you're not, fathers move up. 635 00:29:58,800 --> 00:29:59,800 Come on, move up. 636 00:29:59,800 --> 00:30:00,800 Get up close. 637 00:30:00,800 --> 00:30:02,880 Fathers, come on up. 638 00:30:02,880 --> 00:30:04,040 Okay. 639 00:30:04,040 --> 00:30:06,320 I want other men in the house that are not fathers at this point. 640 00:30:06,320 --> 00:30:10,000 I want you to come in behind them and then ladies and teenagers, anybody else I want 641 00:30:10,000 --> 00:30:14,360 you in the house, I want you to come in behind there because we're going to pray over you. 642 00:30:14,360 --> 00:30:17,640 I wanted to give you a reminder this morning and you can hang this on your mirror of your 643 00:30:17,640 --> 00:30:18,640 vehicle. 644 00:30:18,640 --> 00:30:21,840 You can place it somewhere where you see it on a daily basis. 645 00:30:21,840 --> 00:30:25,000 But I wanted you to have something in your hand to remind you that God has called you 646 00:30:25,000 --> 00:30:27,920 to be the tip of the spear. 647 00:30:27,920 --> 00:30:31,920 That he's the one that will call you. 648 00:30:31,920 --> 00:30:36,560 I want you to remember that you need a mentor in your life. 649 00:30:36,560 --> 00:30:38,760 You need somebody that's harder, right? 650 00:30:38,760 --> 00:30:42,480 Somebody that's rubbed up against God a lot more than you have. 651 00:30:42,480 --> 00:30:44,240 You need somebody speaking into your life. 652 00:30:44,240 --> 00:30:48,640 I want you to, some of you that are tempered, some of you that have been through the fire, 653 00:30:48,640 --> 00:30:50,240 some of you that have walked for God. 654 00:30:50,240 --> 00:30:52,040 And listen, this doesn't have to do with age. 655 00:30:52,040 --> 00:30:54,080 This has to do with how long you've been with God. 656 00:30:54,080 --> 00:30:57,080 Some of you need to start mentoring someone else. 657 00:30:57,080 --> 00:31:00,080 Somebody, I'm constantly reminded this. 658 00:31:00,080 --> 00:31:02,520 People die and go to hell because I don't do my job sometimes. 659 00:31:02,520 --> 00:31:03,520 You know that? 660 00:31:03,520 --> 00:31:04,520 That's not just me. 661 00:31:04,520 --> 00:31:05,520 That's you. 662 00:31:05,520 --> 00:31:06,960 Because I don't mentor somebody. 663 00:31:06,960 --> 00:31:08,840 They don't take time with someone. 664 00:31:08,840 --> 00:31:12,440 Be the tip of the spear. 665 00:31:12,440 --> 00:31:13,880 Have confidence in God. 666 00:31:13,880 --> 00:31:16,560 Your courage will rise. 667 00:31:16,560 --> 00:31:20,200 You will do things that you never thought you could do. 668 00:31:20,200 --> 00:31:22,800 The job you're in got me a place to you there. 669 00:31:22,800 --> 00:31:24,480 You're there for a reason and purpose. 670 00:31:24,480 --> 00:31:27,840 But I'm telling you, the thing, the job that you're doing is not your only reason for being 671 00:31:27,840 --> 00:31:29,000 there. 672 00:31:29,000 --> 00:31:31,560 There are deep spiritual implications for wherever you're placed. 673 00:31:31,560 --> 00:31:32,560 And it could be the job. 674 00:31:32,560 --> 00:31:33,560 It could be the position. 675 00:31:33,560 --> 00:31:34,560 It could be the place. 676 00:31:34,560 --> 00:31:38,080 Whatever, wherever God's put you, wherever He's placed your feet. 677 00:31:38,080 --> 00:31:41,320 If you're a dad, this is especially true. 678 00:31:41,320 --> 00:31:43,400 You have people in your household, little people. 679 00:31:43,400 --> 00:31:44,400 Okay? 680 00:31:44,400 --> 00:31:48,680 You have to be the tip of the spear. 681 00:31:48,680 --> 00:31:50,680 If you aren't, somebody else will be in their life. 682 00:31:50,680 --> 00:31:52,680 And you'll be the wrong spear. 683 00:31:52,680 --> 00:31:55,960 So we're going to pray this morning. 684 00:31:55,960 --> 00:31:58,520 I want you to lay hands on these dads. 685 00:31:58,520 --> 00:31:59,520 I want to change. 686 00:31:59,520 --> 00:32:02,360 Just hands laid on top of shoulders the whole way up through. 687 00:32:02,360 --> 00:32:03,360 All right? 688 00:32:03,360 --> 00:32:04,880 I don't want anything unbroken here. 689 00:32:04,880 --> 00:32:06,760 I want hands laid on top of shoulders. 690 00:32:06,760 --> 00:32:07,760 This is biblical. 691 00:32:07,760 --> 00:32:08,760 Laying on hands. 692 00:32:08,760 --> 00:32:09,760 We're going to pray. 693 00:32:09,760 --> 00:32:10,760 We're going to pray. 694 00:32:10,760 --> 00:32:13,840 I want courage to rise up. 695 00:32:13,840 --> 00:32:15,840 I don't want you to settle. 696 00:32:15,840 --> 00:32:19,400 I know if you settled, don't settle. 697 00:32:19,400 --> 00:32:21,960 Nobody else is going to know this but you. 698 00:32:21,960 --> 00:32:22,960 Don't settle. 699 00:32:22,960 --> 00:32:23,960 God knows. 700 00:32:23,960 --> 00:32:24,960 Father, we come to you today. 701 00:32:24,960 --> 00:32:27,680 God, you see each man that's in the house? 702 00:32:27,680 --> 00:32:29,680 You see each father that's in the house? 703 00:32:29,680 --> 00:32:31,360 Lord God, I pray right now. 704 00:32:31,360 --> 00:32:33,280 God, that your hand would be upon them. 705 00:32:33,280 --> 00:32:34,720 God, that you would guide them. 706 00:32:34,720 --> 00:32:36,200 God, that you would direct them. 707 00:32:36,200 --> 00:32:37,840 Lord, that you would call them out. 708 00:32:37,840 --> 00:32:40,640 God, I don't want one spirit in this house. 709 00:32:40,640 --> 00:32:42,800 God, to be a spirit of settling. 710 00:32:42,800 --> 00:32:45,720 God, to be an okay, we're just going partway with you. 711 00:32:45,720 --> 00:32:48,840 They're not having complete confidence in your hand. 712 00:32:48,840 --> 00:32:50,800 Complete confidence in you you are. 713 00:32:50,800 --> 00:32:52,520 Complete confidence in your power. 714 00:32:52,520 --> 00:32:57,600 God, when that happens, God, courage will rise up in these men. 715 00:32:57,600 --> 00:32:59,080 Courage will come to the surface. 716 00:32:59,080 --> 00:33:02,560 And God, they'll step into positions and places and spaces. 717 00:33:02,560 --> 00:33:04,000 God, that they never dream. 718 00:33:04,000 --> 00:33:05,640 God, you can take them. 719 00:33:05,640 --> 00:33:07,480 Lord, to where they need to be. 720 00:33:07,480 --> 00:33:11,240 Lord, I ask right now, God, that you would touch them. 721 00:33:11,240 --> 00:33:12,920 God, that you would minister to them. 722 00:33:12,920 --> 00:33:15,800 God, that you would be around them and surround them. 723 00:33:15,800 --> 00:33:19,600 God, let them see, Lord, the power of a mentor in their life. 724 00:33:19,600 --> 00:33:21,800 Holy Spirit, we thank you for your coaching 725 00:33:21,800 --> 00:33:22,960 and your guidance and direction. 726 00:33:22,960 --> 00:33:25,200 But Jesus, we're going to follow what you said. 727 00:33:25,200 --> 00:33:27,480 And you said, Lord, one of the things we're going to do 728 00:33:27,480 --> 00:33:28,480 is disciple. 729 00:33:28,480 --> 00:33:30,160 We're going to have to have a coach. 730 00:33:30,160 --> 00:33:31,960 And we've got to be coaching. 731 00:33:31,960 --> 00:33:34,840 Lord, in Jesus' name, in Jesus' name, 732 00:33:34,840 --> 00:33:36,520 I pray for each man in this house. 733 00:33:36,520 --> 00:33:38,640 God, I pray that your spirit would surround them. 734 00:33:38,640 --> 00:33:41,000 God, I pray that they would stand in the authority. 735 00:33:41,000 --> 00:33:45,160 God, that you've given them and placed upon their lives. 736 00:33:45,160 --> 00:33:47,400 And Lord, we just give you praise. 737 00:33:47,400 --> 00:33:51,000 And we give you the Lord and honor in Jesus' name. 738 00:33:51,000 --> 00:33:54,800 And amen, and amen, amen. 739 00:33:54,800 --> 00:33:56,920 In Genesis, you can go into the book of Genesis. 740 00:33:56,920 --> 00:34:00,440 And when God created man, he put man on the earth. 741 00:34:00,440 --> 00:34:02,720 And he did not just say, go wander around the earth. 742 00:34:02,720 --> 00:34:06,080 He literally told him to subdue the earth, 743 00:34:06,080 --> 00:34:08,760 to have authority over all the earth. 744 00:34:08,760 --> 00:34:11,880 And he placed woman by his side and said the same thing 745 00:34:11,880 --> 00:34:13,360 to her. 746 00:34:13,360 --> 00:34:18,400 We are to rule over everything. 747 00:34:18,400 --> 00:34:20,800 We don't rule over God, but everything on this earth, 748 00:34:20,800 --> 00:34:22,280 you rule over. 749 00:34:22,280 --> 00:34:23,600 You rule over your head. 750 00:34:23,600 --> 00:34:24,960 You rule over your heart. 751 00:34:24,960 --> 00:34:28,120 You rule over what you've got around you. 752 00:34:28,120 --> 00:34:30,520 Tip of the spear. 753 00:34:30,520 --> 00:34:31,320 Tip of the spear. 754 00:34:31,320 --> 00:34:33,360 Amen. 755 00:34:33,360 --> 00:34:35,480 Stand firm. 756 00:34:35,480 --> 00:34:37,280 We need men of God. 757 00:34:37,280 --> 00:34:38,840 We need men of God. 758 00:34:38,840 --> 00:34:39,640 Amen. 759 00:34:39,640 --> 00:34:42,800 Ladies, we need you as well. 760 00:34:42,800 --> 00:34:44,480 Amen. 761 00:34:44,480 --> 00:34:48,560 Ladies, tip of the spear. 762 00:34:48,560 --> 00:34:50,880 There's matriarchs in this house. 763 00:34:50,880 --> 00:34:52,680 It really is. 764 00:34:52,680 --> 00:34:54,120 God bless you. 765 00:34:54,120 --> 00:34:56,400 You need some beef jerky. 766 00:34:56,400 --> 00:34:58,120 You need some ribbed beer floats. 767 00:34:58,120 --> 00:34:59,200 Pastor Eric's coming off. 768 00:34:59,200 --> 00:35:02,600 He's going to say one word, short word. 769 00:35:02,600 --> 00:35:04,160 If you're listening online, thank you 770 00:35:04,160 --> 00:35:06,440 for being here this morning. 771 00:35:06,440 --> 00:35:08,360 If you need prayer, the prayer team 772 00:35:08,360 --> 00:35:09,720 will slide over here to the left. 773 00:35:09,720 --> 00:35:11,880 I know there's going to be lots of activity in the back. 774 00:35:11,880 --> 00:35:14,640 They'll slide over here to the left up here in the front. 775 00:35:14,640 --> 00:35:16,280 If you need afterwards, just come up. 776 00:35:16,280 --> 00:35:17,440 They'll pray with you. 777 00:35:17,440 --> 00:35:19,080 They'll pray over any need that you've got. 778 00:35:19,080 --> 00:35:20,400 You've got something specific. 779 00:35:20,400 --> 00:35:21,400 Pastor Eric. 780 00:35:21,400 --> 00:35:33,160 Thank you for tuning in to this message from Life House Church. 781 00:35:33,160 --> 00:35:36,840 We pray that you were impacted powerfully by this message. 782 00:35:36,840 --> 00:35:39,800 If you have been personally affected by our ministry 783 00:35:39,800 --> 00:35:42,720 and you would like to partner with us as we love God, 784 00:35:42,720 --> 00:36:03,600 love people every day, visit our website at www.lifehousecog.com.