June 29, 2026
Hey, I'm glad everybody's here. We are starting a summer series. I'm calling it a summer series. I'm going to stay in it all summer long. And what I want I'm simply calling it house rules. Every house has the house rules. These are the house rules. because the reason you have rules in your house is because you have a standard that you want to keep in your home. You have something you're wanting as a parent you're wanting, achieve in your children. this is who we're going to be. This is how we're going to be known. These are house rules. And so what I want to do, I'm I don't know, maybe it's too clever because I'm gonna have to explain it every week. Then it's too clever of a title. But the reason I'm calling it that is because people have silly questions about doctrine. They have what your doctrine or what's your thoughts on this? And so what we're looking at is the doctrine of this house is based on what the names of God are. Because if God says this is my name, this is who I am, this is my attribute, then that's who he is. So that's what we get to live in. And so he doesn't change.
There's no shifting shadows on him. He's not the He's the same yesterday, today, and forever. It's who he is, then it's who he is in your life. It's who we have the privilege to live with, to walk in his Truth. And so, that's what we're trying to accomplish. And last week, we introduced this idea. And it's interesting because when we say the Word, the name, we talk about the term, the name, we about the name, and it's like, what do we what are we really saying? What are we talking about? And I don't want to unpack everything from last week by any means because it was a whole sermon. But I do want to highlight a few things. When we're when we're referring to a name, there's a reputation that goes with a name. When you hear somebody's name, you associate it with things. You associate it with certain traits, with certain actions, with the history of who they are. And so when we call on the name of Jesus, what are we calling on? You have to recognize what it is. When we start saying the name of Jesus, we're calling on his traits, his character, his power, his victory over death. We're recognizing the message of the Gospel. And we got to really meditate on it. So we say it real casually throwing out the name of Jesus. We mention it.
We sing songs about it. Blessed be your name. We remember the name, all the things that go with it. And we don't really grasp what we carry. We bear his name, which means we bear his attributes. We bear him now. It's no longer us that live, but Christ that lives in us. And so, we have to begin to identify with what it means to bear his name. We we've taken his name. Now, we've submitted to the lordship of Jesus. We've acknowledged him. And so, what does it mean to now bear his name? To carry his name. And so, we've we know one of the ten commandments is don't don't take his name in vain. And I said it last week, goes well beyond some kind of verbal assault when you're angry. That's just the evidence of what's going on in your heart. Your words are always the evidence of what's going on in your heart. Just in case you're wondering. That's why the Bible says what's comes out of what's in your heart is what comes out of your mouth. It's the overflow.
And so when we're doing that, it's a disdain in essence for who he is. It's a lack of reverence for who he is. That's just the verbal evidence of what's going on in your heart. So you can say, "Well, I know that Jesus is true. I know it's there. But if that's the kind of language, then that's the evidence of what's in your heart. Then I'm not really surrendered in my heart. " Are you tracking with what I'm saying? And so I'm not talking to you about your language tonight. But what it really means to take it in vain is to take it with an irreverence manner, but to take it with no purpose. That I that that you have to understand now that when I take his name, I say, "I believe who you are. or I recognize the message of the Gospel and I bear your name. You now your purpose has changed. You now have new purpose in your life. The purpose of your life has shifted and changed. I you don't have to change jobs right away. You don't have to change them at all. You don't have to change your hobbies. You don't have to change your hairstyles. You don't have to change who you are.
But the purpose of your life has changed. I use this building a lot. The moment we signed the papers, the purpose of this building changed. The moment you acknowledge the lordship of Jesus, the purpose of your life changed. Your identity is not in the value of what the world says it is. Your identity is now in him. And who he is. And the mission of your life through your job, through your hobbies, through your things is for one mission, one purpose, which is to represent him in all that you do. This is the mission that we're about. The great co-mission that Jesus gave us. He sent you with purpose. He said, "Go and make disciples. " And you bear his name. And then he says to go and begin to make disciples. Right? We talked about the standards, the values, the credibility of using a name. We would call it named dropping today, right? We say, "Well, I ate lunch with so- and so. " Like, it's to lend some kind of credibility. What I'm doing is borrowing on their credibility so that you will listen to me and respect who I am.
I'm using the credibility of this person's name to establish something about who I am in your heart so you can hear me. That's name dropping. Well, we use that. And I'm not assuming or suggesting that every time you name drop, it's an ill motive. You're doing it to communicate that you have some degree of authority or some degree of worth or value in what you're about to speak on. Are you listening to what I'm saying? And so because everything is spiritual, what I'm saying to you is you bear the name of Jesus. And so that everything that you're that resists you in the world, which is constant, the constant resistance, the constant desire to want to quit, the constant desire to give up, the constant desire to want to be selfish, the constant desire to go back to that old thing, whatever it is, the constant desire to want to be prideful and look out for you first before you lay your life down to serve other people. that thing that's in you, that thing that's wanting to lure you away from the life that God has for you, that deception, that offense, that fear, that worry, that anxiety, all that stuff, you get to bear the name of Jesus, and you now have the credibility of his name against that. You have an authority and a position, a spiritual authority, an identity. If you'll get this identity of who you are, the authority comes with it and you can begin to impose who God is against the Enemy of God in your life. Are you listening? The Enemy does not like you. Does not, let me say it differently, does not like God, thereby does not like you. And he wants to lure you away from the Truth. And so you have the right and the responsibility to impose God's will against him. That's why I don't get on board with, oh, I'm under attack and the Devil's attacking me. Are you kidding me? You bear the name of the one who's already defeated him. You need to recognize who you are and go on offense and impose God's will against that thing coming at you.
But we'll sit back and take in the teeth and wait for the serendipitous wind to blow so that we can get everything in order again. And it's like, what are you talking about, man? And you're in a you're in a dog on battle. You say, "He's a he's battling. I'm in a battle. He's against me. " Well, then you better battle. You better you better be ready to battle. You better be aggressive. You better be assertive. Man, I say this back before about football, like play, if you're playing defense, you're as much of an offensive mindset on defense as you are if you were on offense. What I mean by that is that linebacker is thinking, "I hope that joker does run up through the hole. I'm going to smash him. I'm going to I'm going to hit him so hard his helmet flies off. He's seeing Tweety Birds. I'm gonna take his ball. I'm gonna go score. That's an offensive mentality. Even when you're on do defense, what if you could think about that way against the Devil who's been robbing and stealing and killing and trying to destroy and ruin and lure you away. What if you went on offense and said, "I'm going to hit that joker so hard that his helmet's going to fly off.
He's going to see Twitty Birds and he's going to be begging me to leave him alone. " Man, we get to resist him, number one, and submit to God. And when we submit to God, it is resisting him. When the Enemy is coming at you trying to lure you away, you're like, "No, no, no, no. Why don't you stick it? " And I submit to God and he's got to resist because he can't deal with me here. See, you get to live under the name. It's a banner of victory over your life. So, every opposing force wants to lure you out from under that banner. Wants to lure you out from under that name. Wants to get you to believe that it's not that big a deal. is not that significant and so that you will come away and not be the opposing force to him that you are able and capable of being. That's why he wants you here. It's why it's so hard to get to Church. It's why it's so hard to get in your Bible. It's why it's so hard to get to men's breakfast or whatever you call it, men's prayer. What do we call it? Bible study, whatever Jesus stuff. what I'm saying? It's so hard.
It's so it's so much going on. And so then what does it mean? We talked a little bit about what it means to come in that name, man. We we lay aside our opinions, our desires, our goals because we're about his mission. We're backed by the power and resources of the one who sent us and the one who sent us bears the responsibility of the outcome, watch of your authoritized actions. In other words, within the realm and the scope of the authority he's given you against the Enemy. If you are taking action in those authoritated actions that he's given you to take, then he bears the responsibility for the outcome. All he needs us to do is action. All he needs you to do is take action. He will take care of the outcome. And let me help you, he's not going to get defeated. He can't be defeated. He can't lose. So when we get the Word, we get the Truth, we get Revelation of who he is, we can begin to impose the Truth of the Word against that lie or that deception that's coming. And ultimately, that's how it is. That's how you win. That's the battle. How many of you have had a thought in the last three days that does not line up with the Truth of what God says about you? Seriously, let me see it. You've had a thought.
Okay, so I don't know if you guys looked around or noticed because everybody's like, "There go I guess I'm here. " Okay. But you are not the only one that raised your hand. So the way you combat that is with Truth. That thought that says you're not enough. YOU HAVE TO COMBAT IT. You don't go, "I know. I maybe one day I will be. " No, you are. But you have to now step stand up and come at it. You bear the name of Jesus. You get to carry his name. And we don't carry it without purpose, right? And so we begin to talk about the name of Jesus. Let me just highlight a couple things. These are the things I referenced really quickly last week. Salvation is through his name. Believers gather in his name. Prayer is to be made in his name. When that when we're saying that, we're talking about his character, his credibility, his legitimacy.
That's how that's who we not gathered here under anybody else's name. There's nothing else that makes us legitimate. There's nothing else that makes us valuable. The only reason we're here, we could be in any color building. We could paint any color walls. We could be at any time of the day. community. The only thing that makes this credible and legit is this message of the Gospel of who he is. Otherwise, we're just it's another party. It's just more snacks again. It's not. But what the reason, the purpose is because of who he is. The servant of the Lord who bears the name will be hated. Ding. Who wants some of that, right? Like it's coming. People are going to Why? Because the God of this world does not like the Spirit of God that's on the inside of you. And so because you represent, it's going to resist you. It's going to not like you.
It's going to accuse you. He's the accuser of the brother. It's going to be accusation against you. There's going to be hate for you. There's going to be disdain for you. And it's not really for you. It's for who you represent. But dog gone it. That's what I'm telling you. We're in a fight. We're in a army. We're in a battle. We have to be on offense. We have to know that we bear the Truth and go forward marching forward with the Truth, carrying the Truth out. Right? I'm saying all that to set up this soul summer sermon series that this is the doctrine of who you are. This is the doctrine of how we believe. If this is who he is, this is his name, then that's how we roll. The there's mention of worship, service, and suffering in the name of Jesus. That's at the name of Jesus.
Every knee will bow, every tongue will confess. Jesus, of course, said, "I am God. " This is the covenant name of God. We go back to Moses in the burning bush. I'm a savage for anybody that wasn't here last week. And so, he says, "I am who I am. " In other words, the Hebrew term for that was Jehovah or Yahweh. Jesus said in John chapter 8, he said before Abraham was, "I am. " He was saying, "I'm God. " Okay? So today in this new and better covenant when we're declaring Jesus, we're declaring the one true living God who said, "I will be your God and you will be my people. " Jesus took care of what was separating us so that we could walk and talk with him anytime, every time we ever want to. See, now you have the privilege to live in the Truth and the Spirit of Truth lives in you. It's cyclical. You're in him. He's in you. We have to walk and talk with him regularly. That's what Jesus did because Jesus was Yahweh, Jehovah, God. And the reason I'm connecting this dot for you again tonight is because each week throughout the summer, I'm going to introduce you to another name, another covenant name of God who introduced himself to us. We didn't ascribe these names to him.
He demonstrated these attributes. Gave us Revelation. When I say us, you're going to see how it plays out. Revelation of who he is because he demonstrated these attributes in Scripture. And so when he says, "I am," he's the covenant name of God. We call on the name of God, the name of Revelation and redemption. All right. So, here's what I want to talk to you about tonight. I want to talk to you about the story of Abraham taking Isaac, his Son, up to an altar. This is the first covenant name of God I want to introduce to you tonight. If you don't know the story, Abraham is considered the Father of faith. This is Genesis chapter 22. You can go read the story for yourself. He was promised a Son. He had a desire to have a Son. He and his wife could not get pregnant. They were not pregnant. They had no children. And he was promised a Son. And then he was told he'd have a Son.
It didn't happen for a long time. I don't know if you guys have ever heard a message that was full of promise and hope and nothing changed right away and so you quit and tried a different route on your own. That's what Abraham did. And so his wife Sarah said, "Yo, Abe, Abe the babe, this isn't happening, right? This ain't working out. We're not we're not coming here. Why don't you take my handmaiden, I guess what they called it, my servant, girl, whatever, whatever it was, and let's make it happen that way. And they did. And so Ishmael was born, but that was not the promised Son. Abraham was 100 years old, Sarah was 90 years old, and they became pregnant then. Woohoo. There's still hope for me. I mean, I wanted four. He's and Hey, you think your birthday was embarrassing? so they have the baby boy. Okay, his name is Isaac. And then God asks him, tests his faith. Please understand very clearly, testing and temptation are not the same thing. A test of your faith in God. Can you trust God even though something doesn't make sense or it's hard or it's difficult?
Can you trust him? Can you continue to live by faith trusting him even though you're not preferring something? That is a test of your faith. Tests are designed to grow. Tests are designed to promote. Tests are designed to qualify. Tests are designed to promote and elevate. That's the design of a test. That is not temptation. That is two different things. And so Abraham's faith was being tested. I want you to recognize something that Abraham wanted a Son. And now he's miraculously conceived this child who he sees and knows because of that first miracle. This is obviously a God thing. And then God who provided this Son for him asks him to offer him up as a sacrifice to him. Now let's put this in context of the culture in the time. That was not unheard of. There were other godlike deities that people chose to worship and human sacrifice was not completely off the table. And so when Abraham was asked to do this, it just he just got up and went to do it trusting this God who said, "I want you to come away from a land. " Listen to me.
You go all the way back. Everything from this moment, God was doing differently. Please try to hear what I'm saying to you. And I hope I'm helping you with this. Okay? He asked Abraham, he said, "I want you to get all your stuff and move away to a land I will show you. " And he says, "I will make you into a great nation. I will make you into the Father of many nations. " The way it was done is by conquering other families and other people and building your empire. God says, "We're not going to do it that way. We're going to do it my way. I want you to come over here with me, and I'm going to make you into a great nation. You're not going to have to conquer and defeat all these other people. And I'm going to give you a Son. And through that lineage, I'm going to bring salvation. I'm going to bring a great nation. And I'm going to I'm going to make myself famous for the world. I'm going to bring redemption and healing through it through your lineage. Okay? We're going to do it my way, not everybody else's way, human ways.
Okay? This was the beginning of God saying, "This is going to be different. " And so he comes away. He gets pregnant. He has the boy. And now this God who has made himself real to him, who's promised him, who has called him away, is now testing his faith. And so he goes up on the mountain. He takes his Son. He gets him all the way on the altar. And God provides a ram. I'm getting to the point of the story, cutting to the chase. Okay? And here's what I want you to understand. When Abraham came off that mountain, he called that place, the Lord Yahweh, Jehovah, a covenant name, the covenant name of God, Gyra. The Lord will provide Jehovah Gyra. He called that place Jehovah Gyra. He called that location where God demonstrated who he was, provision. Stick with me. I'm going somewhere. The provision of God was given to Abraham.
Let me show you something and please catch what I'm about to tell you. Abraham wanted a Son. Abraham had a Son. Abraham was asked to give up this Son because God was wanting to accomplish something bigger than what his own desire was. You have desires in your life and you're wanting God to shows up and you have this desire and if you will but lay that one thing down that you value so much. God is wanting to accomplish infinitely more through that Son than just you having a Son. God is wanting to do infinitely more through the desire that you have. If you can but sacrifice and lay down your preference with it and say, "God, I'm going to give it back to you. " He will take it and do something supernatural because historians have helped us prove that it was this same mountain, this same place where God would provide himself to be the sacrifice. He does not want you to give up your Son because he gave up his Son for you. He does not want you to give up your Son for him because he gave up his Son for you. This is how it's going to be different. I'm going to invite you out of this land because I'm going to make you into a great nation. I need you to get on my page. I need you to do it my way. I need you to submit to my Word. I want you to follow my leadership. And I'm going to build something in you and through you if you will but trust me. I will do infinitely more, significantly more than what you could hope for. I'm going to give you what you want, but I'm going to do even more than what you want because of who I am and what I'm capable of in your life.
Are you listening to what I'm saying? But it requires this obedience. Oh. It requires this patience. Oh, they waited years just to get the dude, the boy, the dude, and then this one thing they've waited their entire lifetime for or asked to give it back up. And that's the test of faith. Can I trust God with it? Can I trust God with my life by putting him first in my fi finances? Can I trust him with my salvation, with my hope? With my marriage, by choosing to walk in his way of doing things, by choosing forgiveness, by choosing mercy? Can I can I can I can I experience more in my life if I will like take what he's given me? Think about it for yourself for a minute. Everything you have, your resources, your body, your health, your talents, your personality, your giftings, all the things you have, some of them have been developed, but they were given to you. You didn't pick them. You didn't pick who you are. You didn't pick being born. And everybody in here has value because you were handpicked by God. And you have giftings. And if you will take your personality, take your story, take your gifting, and give it back to him, he will do infinitely more through it. That's what he wants to do.
He wants to be glorified in your story. He wants his name to become your name. And the way people used to know your name, now they're going to hear your name this time. And it's going to be a completely different thing because of who he is in your name now and who he is in your story. See what Abraham did is he obeyed God and went up to offer him something that was not his to begin with that God gave him and he understood that and when he gave up what he understood was not his watch here's what happens he got a Revelation of who God is if we are willing to sacrifice and willing God wants to reveal himself to you in your life and so here it is now paying it forward he is your provision the reason I like to do this one first is because he's the provider. He's also provided all the other attributes of who he is. We're going to get into he's the healer. He's your righteousness. He's your sanctification. He's your victory. He's your banner. He's your everything. He's the one who's always there. All of that is his provision in your life. So now, let's talk about it. What is provision? What do what does that mean? Number one, we recognize just the semblance of this story is that he's the provision of salvation for you. I don't need you to give me your Son. Stop.
We're not doing it like the rest of the world does it. We're not doing it like everybody else does it. We're going to do it my way. I don't need you to give me your Son. I need you to be willing to give me your Son. I'm going to let you keep your Son. And in fact, I'm going to make you a great nation because you trusted me with it. This is what God wants to do. In fact, I don't need you to give me your Son. I'm going to provide my Son as a sacrifice so that you don't have to provide your Son. See, we begin to see the message of this Gospel. It's like, wait a minute. He provided from himself for you. You can't earn your salvation. You can't work hard enough for it. You can't do enough good things. You can't give enough. You can't do anything to earn it. He provided it for you. It's his provision.
He's the provider. Here's the definition of provision. arrangement or preparation beforehand. As for the doing of something, the meeting of needs, the supplying of means, the arrangement or preparation beforehand, God has predetermined, he had arranged beforehand to provide for you. So then what God wants to do is he wants to give you vision that's in alignment with his promise for your life. And if you will trust him with the vision that he's put in your heart to want to build and be about his mission, he's going to be the provision that you need to go do it. Well, go back to the building again for an example. You get vision for a Church that's lifegiving, that's healthy, that's a place for people that don't like Church, people that can find Jesus, people that can grow. And three years later, you come across this building and it comes to you for a fraction of the price. and it's a place that we're meeting and there's so much opportunity and things we can do and it's like, well, how you going to do this? How you going to do that? The provision's going to keep coming. That's right. And that's why my hope's not in you. My hope's not in anyone else. You're going to be a vessel of obedience because now watch, because you're about his mission, because you bear his name and he's a provider, God's going to provide for you to be part of the vessel of healing that brings provision for others. You're part of the provision for other people. You have the greatest news in the world now. Provide it to them. You're part of the provision process now because you bear his name.
You've taken his name. It's who you are. Provision is simply having what is necessary. You need a Savior provided. You need resources provided. You need personnel provided. You need hope provided. You need love, it's been provided. He's provided it for you. He is our provision. Hear these verses. Isaiah 43:16's on the on the TV. I am the Lord. Watch who opened a way through the waters, making a dry path through the sea. I want you to hear this verse in the next few verses. When we talk about provision, everybody wants to start thinking monetary. I'm going to touch on it today just because it's the subconscious. Everybody's wanting to You're thinking it's all about finances and money. Money is a means of exchange. Nothing used to be seashells.
Now it's like this, paper currency. It's just a means of exchange. It's for barter and trade. They had to put a value on things because I can't give you an apple for a cow. It takes five million apples to equate to one cow. They had to put So they said now it's $20 for this that's equal to $20 of that. They had to put a number on it. It's a means of exchange. And so now we start thinking literally about currency and money that it's just about his provision for your monetary gain. No. God gives you leverage. God gives you provision. God gives you margin. God gives you increase and elevation and growth so that you have more than enough to give to every good work. It's well beyond monetary. This is the provision that God wants to do in your life. Look, he opened a way through the waters. How are we going to like when they were escaping, the Israelites were coming out of Egypt. They come up to the Red Sea. The Pharaoh and the army are coming behind them.
They're trapped. How are we going to get out of this? I don't know if you ever felt that feeling before. How am I going to get out of this? And God looks at Moses. He says, "Moses, why are you crying to me? " Well, cuz I need some help. That's But God's like, "Why are you crying to me? " He said, "What's in your hand? " And he takes that staff that represents God's authority and he touches the water with it and it splits provision. He can make the resources come to you. He can make a way of escape for you. Who open the ways through the waters and he makes a dry path through the sea. That doesn't make sense logically. So you're believing God for the vision he's put in your life. You're like, I don't know how I'm going to I don't know how this is going to come to pass. I don't know how we're going to win. I don't know how we're going to make this happen. I don't know how we're going to make ends meet. I don't know how I'm going to get over this.
I don't know how I'm going to get through this. How about this? How about you take what's in your hand and you put it in action and watch what God will do with it. He's the God who can provide a way of escape through a Red Sea. Look at Isaiah 43:1 19. I'm doing a new work. He says, God's doing a new work in you. Go ahead and say that. God's doing a new work in me. It's a new work. He's he like the same old same old out. It's a new beginning for you. It's a new work for you. It's a new mindset for you. It's a new outlook for you. It's a new appreciation for you. Everything is new. It's a new life for you. It's a new name that you bear. It's not just your name.
It's his name that you bear. God is about to do a new thing. He's doing a new thing. See, I have already begun., he's already begun. Amen. We're listening. Thank you. This is a couple faces just need to let me know you're listening. No, WATCH. HE'S ALREADY BEGUN a new work in you. And you will believe a different story. It's like, I'm just waiting for God to show up. I'm just waiting for everything to change. I'm just waiting for that my hit them lotto numbers. I'm just waiting for my boss to give me that promotion. I'm just waiting. No, listen. It's way beyond all that nonsense. God has began a new work in you, a new outlook, a new vision, a new purpose, a new everything.
And then he says this, I've already begun. Don't it? I got I don't know why I feel like pausing on every part of this verse for you. Look at your life. Can't what he's already started in you? Can't what he's already doing in you? He's already started it. And here's what's great. That's not in this verse. Another verse that says God will be faithful to finish what he started. He's not going to change. He started something in you. And some of you need to get it on your face and get it in your mind and get in your heart that it's a new it's a new day for me. He's doing a new work in me. It's a new beginning and I can see that it's already begun. And then he says this, I will make a pathway or a road in the wilderness. Wildernesses don't have roads. You get it? I will create rivers in the dry wasteland. Rivers don't live in deserts.
What he's saying is, I will do the impossible. I will make it happen on your behalf. I know that circumstances don't make sense how it could come to pass, but I can do a new work in you that can change everything. You never thought you could have friends, man. I'm going to change your heart, heal you, and give you a community of people to live in. You never thought you could be healthy and strong again. I'm going to give you an old outlook and a new vision and a breakthrough and a victory over that old thing that was dictating your life. Man, I'm going to give you a new view, a new outlook. And what happens is he begins to do something that you thought was impossible. He begins to provide a way for you to experience and see the new thing happen. Look at 1 Corinthians chapter 10. I highlighted testing versus temptations. Look at this one. The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. See, you're not a unicorn. There is nothing that you are tempted to do that is not common to man that everybody else doesn't feel the same temptation. And what the temptation is? Quitting. That's it. That's it.
It might look like quitting over here in this in the in the world of a of of some kind of behavior. It might look like, but at the end of the day, you stopped trusting God. That's the temptation. You took matters into your own hands and I would have lost heart. The Bible says in Psalm 27, if I did not believe that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living, I would have quit. That's the temptation. I'm going to go back to doing what I do. I'm going to be selfish and do it my way. I'm going to do I'm going to go get I'm going to go get hammered. I'm going to pop off and tell them what I want to tell them. I'm going to I'm not going to Church tonight. I don't care about Bible study. I'm done hanging out with those people. Man, I went to Church four times in a row and nothing's any different in my life. Hey, God started something in you. Stay the course. Watch what he's going to do. The temptations in your life, they're not any different than whatever THAT'S WHY WE GOT TO GET TOGETHER EVERY WEEK and more THAN ONCE. THAT'S WHY YOU GOT TO GET IN THE Word MORE THAN 30 minutes a week because the temptation is constantly luring you away to quit. So what do I got to do?
The resistance is coming at me. I got to go buffalo and run into the wind. Did y'all know they do that? They run into the storm. We don't cower and run from it. Oh, here it comes. We run into it. We days. I know he's just a little baby, little gentle thing. And God is watch. No, oh my gosh, the Word is so good. The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. Now look at this statement. And God is faithful. And God is faithful. The temptations you're dealing with common to everybody else in here. And also the same for everybody else in here. God is faithful. He's faithful for you in the temptation. He's faithful for you in the temptation.
He's faithful for you in the temptation. He's faithful for you in the temptation. God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. Well, there goes all your excuses. They just went flying right out the window. It's so hard. I know, but it's not too hard. It's just It's a lot. I know, but it's not too much. When you are tempted, the provider will make a way of escape for you. The provider will show you a way out so that you can endure, so that you can win, so that you can overcome. He will give you wisdom. He will give you direction. He will provide a way of escaping. When you feel like quitting, he wants to come into your life. He's going to bring somebody. He's going to have somebody text you. He's going to have somebody call you. He's going to He's going to do something that brings encouragement.
AND YOU CANNOT PICK UP THE PHONE. You cannot come. You can resist it. But he's providing a way of escape for you so that you will not give up and quit. Romans 4:17, God who gives life to the dead. Calls those things which do not exist as though they did. This is who he is. The reason I show you that verse is because that's dry land in a sea. That's a road in a wilderness. That's a river in a desert. That's a way of escape. The things that don't exist, he calls them as though they do exist because he is the resurrection and the life. Like we just sang about. He is that Lazarus is dead. Don't sweat it. I am the resurrection and the life. I know someday in the sweet by and by. No, no, no. I'm standing here. Jesus said, "I'm here.
I know one day if you would have been here sooner, he wouldn't have died. And someday he'll be alive again. And we miss the FACT THAT RIGHT NOW HE'S STANDING RIGHT IN front of you. What's in your hand? Hit the water with it. Right now, you bear THE NAME. RIGHT NOW, YOU'RE WINNING. RIGHT NOW, THE TEMPTATION is not TOO GREAT. RIGHT NOW, HE WANTS TO PROVIDE A WAY OF ESCAPE. RIGHT NOW. He wants to lead you. He wants to provide for you. Why? Because it's who he is. Luke 1:37. For with God, nothing will be impossible. Now, listen. When I tell you scriptures like this and that you bear his name and you have this authority, that does not turn you into your selfish carnal Spider-Man where you get to go around just zapping people, getting what you want, doing what you want because hey, man, in Jesus name. Bam. Right?
We have to have more spiritual maturity than that to understand that we carry his name. We carry his presence and we get to impose and change the atmosphere in the trajectory of life. I've used this example so many times. I've made my Son tear up a few times doing it. But if I have him standing here, if any of my kids were standing here, but if my I always use him for some reason, but if he was standing here and I told him three words and I say, "I love you. " or I tell him three words. I say, "I hate you. " When I change that one Word, it changes the trajectory and the course of his life. It changes the atmosphere of this room. And most of you want to take me outside now. You can't hear from me because of the power of my words. And I have altered his future with my words. That's a lot of power. SO, WHAT HAPPENS WHEN the Word of God is what's hidden in my heart and what's coming out of my mouth into your life and into your life and into your life? I'm speaking life into you. I'm speaking Truth into you. But here's the deal. Don't just wait for me to do it. You have the same access, the same authority, the same Bible to speak the Word over your own life. When the temptation comes, he provides a way of escape.
The temptation's there. You think, I'm going to go back and do this. I'm going to do that. I'm going to quit. done. He's like, "Why don't you get in the Word? " And you're like, "Nah. " He's providing a way of escape. He's wanting to show you something. He's wanting to reveal something, right? He's wanting to make himself known to you. I want to go to Philippians chapter 4, starting in verse 12. And this is just a hint on the idea of finances and money. Listen to me. If God wants to heal your heart and your heart is healing, then your life is elevating. Finances and money is one angle of that. People get so hung up on it and harp on it as if to assume everybody's motives. I don't care if you give anything here. I don't care. Take it.
Go to McDonald's. Do whatever you want with it. What I'm asking you to do is what Proverbs 3:9 says to honor God with your wealth. I want you to honor God with your words. I want you to honor God with your time. I want you to honor God with your relationships. And I want you to honor God with your wealth. I want you to honor God in everything that you do. And so the idea of his provision and increase, look at what Paul wrote. He said, "I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I've had it all. I've had money coming out of my pockets and I've had pockets that have holes in them and I don't have any money in them. I've had everything and I've had nothing. " Look what else it says. He said, "I have learned the secret of living in every situation. " I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it's a full stomach or if it's an empty stomach. Watch. My external circumstances do not change who he is. My external circumstances do not change who you are because of who he is. I have learned that whether my circumstances are in my favor or they are difficult.
It does not change the position that I am in Christ. It does not change that he's the provider still. It does not change that he is with me. I have learned the secret of living in every situation that I'm going through. I have learned the secret of living and overcoming every adversity the world can throw at me. The world is full of trials and tribulations. But I am of good cheer because I serve the king and I bear the name of the one who has already overcome the world. So, if I've already overcome it, I don't get shook when the world throws me a curveball. It doesn't rattle me because it didn't watch. It didn't change my position. It changed my circumstance. It did not change who I am. More importantly, it did not change who he is. So, he says this, I know how to do all this. I know that whether I'm hungry, whether I'm full, whether I have money, whether I don't. In every situation, I've learned the secret of living. What is it? The next verse. I can do everything through Christ who gives me strength. Listen, you've heard that verse a million times and seen on every kind of poster and every kind of everything.
Tie it with the preceding verse we just read. It is Christ in me regardless of my circumstances. It is Christ in me if we win the game, if we lose the game. It's Christ in me if the house burns or the house gets an addition. It's Christ in me. If I live in Missouri, if I live in Canada, it's Christ in me. That's the mission that I'm on. That's the name that I bear. That's the purpose for my life. And so I again lay down my preferences for his glory in my situation. Psalm 20:7, "Some boast in chariots and horses, but we will remember the name, and we will boast in the name of the Lord. " Watch the New King James says some trust in I I don't have any room to trust the science. I don't have any room to really trust the government. That's for sure. I don't have any room to trust in money because all of my trust is in him. And so I don't trust and depend and boast in my chariots and my horses. Look at my new boat. Look at my new truck. Look at my new Look at my Look at my abs. Look at my Look at my whatever.
We're not boasting in it. Enjoy them. Have them. Get them. Buy them. GET ME ONE. DO all the things. Okay. Find my abs, right? Please. They're out there. What was MY POINT? DON'T BOAST in those things. My pride is not in those things. I boast in the name of who he is. All of my confidence, all of my security is in him. Are you with me? Look at Isaiah 31:1. What sorrow awaits those who look to Egypt for help? Man, this is pretty easy.
Go ahead and replace the Word Egypt with about anything you want. What sorrow awaits for your employer to show up? What sorrow awaits for the government to help? What sorrow awaits for your spouse to help? What sorrow awaits for those who put their hope in anything other than him. They are not the provision. They are not the provider. They are not the Creator. He is what sorrow awaits for those who look to Egypt for help. Watch. trusting their horses and their chariots and their charioteers and depending, leaning on, anchoring on the strength of human armies instead of looking to the Lord. The moment you begin to put your hope in anyone other thing to be your provision, it's going to disappoint you. It's going to let you down. And the hope deferred makes your heart sick. People have let you down. Everybody in here has been let down by someone at some point in your life. Everybody has been let down by that thing that you begin to put your hope in. We put our hope in the doctor. We put our hope in that new job. We put our hope in that paycheck.
We put our hope in that girl. We put our hope in that boy. We put our hope in that in something. And at some point it did not come through. At some point it failed. And now my heart becomes sick.