Something In Between

Jesus can meet you in between.

In “Something In Between,” Pastor Steven Furtick reminds us that we serve a Savior who is greater than the guilt, grief, or grave that can keep us separated from God.

To support this ministry and help us continue to reach people all around the world click here: http://www.elevationchurch.org/giving/

If you’ve just made a decision for Christ, please respond HERE: http://ele.vc/tIepfr

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:02):
Hey, this is Stephen Ferdick. I'm the pastor of Elevation
Church and this is our podcast. I wanted to thank
you for joining us today. Hope this inspires you. Hope
it builds your faith. Hope it gives your perspective to
see God is moving in your life. Enjoy the message. Hallelujah, hallelujah.

(00:31):
You can feel it right. God is up to something today. Hey,
welcome Happy Resurrection Sunday. Everybody all over the world. We
greet you in the name of Jesus, the name above
every name, Jesus who is seated at the right hand
of God, Jesus who was laid down in grief and

(00:53):
awoke holding keys. May he unlock prison doors in your
life today. We believe He's going to do something awesome.
Tell your neighbor, I believe God is gonna not going
to gonna do something awesome in your life today, spectacular

(01:15):
in your life today, mind blowing in your life today.
And now look at him and say mine too. I'm
getting in on this. Another stone is rolling right now?
Is it you? Is it you he wants to call
out of depression? Is that you he wants to call

(01:36):
out of despair? I'm looking for me. God gave me
a word for this Easter Sunday. This is my nineteenth
Easter preaching here at Elevation Church. I would like to say,
and I hope that I don't jinx it by saying
this before the sermon. It's the best Easter crowd we've

(01:57):
ever had on the Easter Sunday. Now live up to that,
all right, it's a lot of pressure. Don't be acting
all stuffy because Aunt Susie came to church with you today.
Act how you always act. I know you will. So

(02:20):
I want to share with you from the Resurrection account
in Matthew chapter twenty eight, and offer a fresh perspective
that the Lord shared with me. I think one of
the greatest blessings God can give you sometimes is a
fresh perspective. You know, just where you look at things different.
Sometimes He changes things. Sometimes he changes the way I

(02:43):
see things, and then things change. So the perspective on
the Resurrection. You know, nineteen years of preaching this thing,
you would think I knew what was in it. But
God is so great and his word is so awesome.
It's just the most remarkable he ever told, the most
remarkable of an inhuman history that Jesus rose from the grave.

(03:04):
But let's go back there for a moment into a
flashback in Matthew chapter twenty eight. I'm going to read
verses one through four for context, but my lesson really
picks up at verse five. The Bible says, after the Sabbath,
at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary
Magdalen and the other Mary went to look at the tomb.

(03:26):
There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the
Lord came down from heaven, and, going to the tomb,
rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance
was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow.
The guards were so afraid of him that they shook
and became like dead men. Verse five. Pay attention. The

(03:51):
angel said to the women, do not be afraid. Really,
so the guards are over here dead, These big Roman
soldiers are like dead men, and the women are supposed
to not be afraid. Okay. But the angel said to
the women, this is this guy, this stone rolling, This

(04:11):
is a ba right here, a big angel. I don't
know what you what. Okay, it's easter, it's easter. I
will think for you. The angel said to the women,
do not be afraid, for I know that you are
looking for Jesus who was crucified. I need you to say.

(04:32):
The keyword was verse six. He is not here. He
has risen. All of that already happened. All of that
already happened. He is not here. He has risen, just
as he said. Come and see the place where he lay.

(04:55):
Then go quickly and tell his disciples. He has risen
from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee.
There you will see him. Now I have told you
verse eight, and will stop here for now. So the
women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy,

(05:20):
and ran to tell his disciples. I want to use
as a subject for this sermon today, something in between,
something in between. And would you look at your neighbor
real quick and say I'm something in between. Look at
your other neighbor, the one you rejected, scorned and bypassed

(05:44):
the first time, say I'm something in between, and you
may be seated. Wow, something in between. I'm so excited
to pre man. I know I was excited because I
was having weird dreams three in the morning, four in

(06:05):
the morning, about four I woke up. I was dreaming
about Clemson. I reckon I fell asleep when they were
losing their game. They made it to the Elite eight,
but then they lost. So I think that was in
my subconscious and so was the excitement of like Easter
and anything as possible. So in my dream, listen to this.

(06:26):
I was at Clemson as a student, as a forty
four year old man, and I was going to football
practice to see if I could walk on and play.
That's how excited I was. I didn't even play little
league football. I've never played football in my life. That's
how excited I have been to be with you. I
was dreaming about Dabbo, and of course that has everything

(06:47):
to do with Matthew twenty eight. But I'm just excited,
you know. And when I get excited, I'm an extreme person.
I am. I'm going to get excited about something that
I'm all in. I sell everything, buy everything, sell everything,
and then buy everything, buy it, and then sell it.
I'm very extreme. So for me, it was a real

(07:07):
insight to realize that everything in this text, which is
about as extreme as you get angels, rolling stones, earthquakes
shaking the foundation of the planet, dead men rising, that's
as extreme as it gets. A crucifixion where the innocent

(07:28):
son of God was treated as a common criminal. That's
as extreme as it gets. And yet everything in the text,
everybody say, and yet everything is in between. One man said,
life is what happens while you're busy making other plans.

(07:49):
And as the women are bringing their spices to anoint Jesus,
he's already taken a stroll on a Sunday morning. So
we love this text because everything is in between. But
just reading it for the exclamation point of the resurrection
misses some of the intricacy. First of all, let me
give you this in a few different ways. The ministry

(08:10):
of Jesus in Matthew chapter twenty eight is at an
in between moment, in that he has already fulfilled his
earthly mission, which is to save us from our sin
by dying on a cross, so that everybody who puts
their faith in him, and that could be you today
could be saved in his name. And then after he

(08:32):
did that, suffered a horrible death that we could not abide.
He rose again with all power in his hand. He's
done with that now, but he has not yet ascended
to the right hand of God. So his earthly mission
is complete, but his heavenly ministry, where he sits at

(08:54):
the right hand of God, what he's doing now has
not yet begun. He's in between. One thing I was
tempted to skip over, but when I slowed down and
read it became very important is that the Bible says
it was after the Sabbath at dawn on the first
day of the week when the ladies found the tomb
of Jesus empty. So think about that. Not only was

(09:16):
the ministry of Jesus in between, but this is an
in between moment as well. The ministry is in between.
The moment is in between. It's dawn, not exactly morning,
it's not exactly night. It's something in between. That's why

(09:39):
I wore this today. It's springing Charlotte, and it's not
exactly cold, and it's not exactly hot. It's something so
I've got coverage and ventilation. It's something in between. Graham
was picking on me. I had this shirt that I

(10:00):
thought was really cool, and I bought like fifty of
them because I'm extreme, and he said, I hate tell
you this because I then he got fifty. I did
not get that shirt. It's not a compression shirt, and
it's not fashionable. It's got a scoop neck and it's
too tight, and it's not an athletic shirt you can
work out in, and it's definitely not something you need
to wear on stage. It's something in between. Some of

(10:24):
y'all came to church today with your they're not exactly
just your friend. Little dtr might happen in the car
on the way home from elevation today. I'm here to
serve you know well, no, we're not dating, but not

(10:49):
evangelizing her either. I invited her to church with maybe
some ulterior motives. There's something in between. It's dawn, it's morning,
it's night. The night is losing its grip on the morning,
but it is just peeking through the shades of pink.
The sky is not yet blue and clear yet, it's

(11:10):
just a little bit of it that I can see
as the night relinquishes its whole. Is something in between,
you see what I mean. It's a beautiful text, a
beautiful text because not only is the ministry of Jesus
in between, not only is the moment in between, but
the messengers are in between. The messenger the angel. The

(11:31):
Angel is not Jesus. The Angel is not God. But
the Angel is not a human either. The Angel is
Maybe if I preach this till Christmas, y'all will finally
get my call and response Kate and say it is
something in between. Put it in the chat. It's something
in between. Now look at your neighbor and say, you're

(11:53):
not an angel. Tell him, but I don't think you're
a devil either. Now repeat the next line. You're something
in between. I need everybody in this church that is
not an angel. But you're not a devil. I'm not

(12:18):
the best Christian in the world. I'm probably not the
worst one either. I've seen how some of y'all drive
with your elevation stickers on your car. I didn't know
that was a worship signal when you did that one
finger up in the air. Does that mean something in between?
We all are pink, purple, indigold, blue, violet. I don't

(12:41):
care what you wore in here underneath that is your flesh.
And although you may be ready for heaven when you die,
because Jesus Rose, don't you need him in between? Come on,
don't you need him in between? Wave at me if
you need him in between? I mean Lord, I appreciate

(13:01):
one day you're coming to get me up out of
here and take me to a place where there's no
more tears. But there's tears here, and I need you
in between. So the ministry of Jesus is in between,
the messenger is in between, the moment is in between.

(13:22):
And then you have something that the angel says to
the women. And it is like these annoying parents that
try to coach their kids from the bleachers. When I
go to watch my kid wrestle, they'll say things to
the kid that is probably the right thing to say
to the kid, but it's not that easy to do
when you're out there doing it. I heard one parent

(13:45):
say to a kid who was wrestling the other day.
His kid was getting beat and he said, that's the
wrong move. That helps dad, Thanks, I let you know
the right one. And here's the angel. Look what he
says to the women. He says, don't be afraid. And
that's easy for you to say. You're an angel. You're

(14:10):
big angel, a ba a bold angel. You've been in
the presence of God. You weren't there when we watched
him die. You're not bound by this flesh. Don't be afraid,
and the Bible gives a very, very instructive phrase. And

(14:32):
this is where I want to teach you today. I'm
gonna teach you a lesson today. If you are gonna
look this good to come to church. We are going
to get the most out of your outfit today and
teach you something. All right, because it was crowded when
you came here to Valentine today, right, and you had
to fight through some things to get here. Now, I
don't worry. Next week, there'll be plenty of room for everybody,
So come on back. I'm probably gonna start a new

(14:56):
series next week, an eight week series, so you should
come back next week. But look what the angel said.
He said, do not be afraid, for I know that
you are looking for verse five again. Please Jesus who
was crucified. He is not here where you expected him
to be. He is not dead, which is the last
way you saw him. He is not lying in this

(15:18):
place anymore. He has risen just as he said. Won't
he do it just like he promised? Now, come and
see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and
tell his disciples he has risen from the dead and
is going ahead of you. Into Galilee. There you will

(15:42):
see him. Now I have told you verse eight. The
women were full of faith and doubted nothing, and so
they did what the angel instructed. Is the way this
should read. If we were angels. God's got me and
it doesn't matter that they're laying people off in my
division because God's my provider. Is how it should read

(16:03):
if we were angels. I know that God's going to
bring my kid back, so I'm not going to spend
all of my time worrying about it. I'm going to
turn it over to the Lord and do the best
I can. Is how it should feel if I'm an angel,
And if I didn't believe in God at all, then
I would have complete despair. But I believe in Him.

(16:24):
But yet I have to be in this body, and
so I'm something in between. Like the women in this passage.
It says verse eight, look at this police they hurried
away from the tomb. And I love this phrase because
this is how I feel, afraid yet filled with joy.

(16:47):
This is not a translation error, by the way, because
most of us think like you're either gonna be afraid
or filled with joy. I had somebody ask me the
other day, I was going to do something that was
a big deal, and they said, are you looking forward
to it or are you dreading it? And I was like,

(17:11):
are those the only two options? Because I'm not exactly
looking forward to it. I'm not exactly dreading it. I'm
something and it can change from moment to moment. I'm like,
really grateful for this life God has given me and
this influence that He gave me. And then sometimes that

(17:34):
anticipation feels like anxiety, and sometimes my anxiety feels like anticipation.
And sometimes listen to this. The difference between anticipation and
anxiety is the way you label it. Some of the

(17:55):
things in your life today. Now I'm going to talk
right to where you live. Let's get away from two
thousand years ago history and bring it right into your
current situation that I'm saying, I'm anxious. If you look
beneath the anxious feeling, there is actually a future that
you are anticipating. And every time you step forward, you

(18:15):
shake a little bit. Every time you reach for the
right thing, it feels a little foreign in your hands
because you've been reaching for the wrong thing. But the
Bible says that you can be afraid yet filled, that
you can be empty in your energy and filled with

(18:36):
God's spirit. That you can be empty and not know
the solution of how this is going to work out,
but yet somehow have complete confidence that He who began,
he who began a good work in me, will be
faithful to complete it. Somebody say, I'm yet filled. I

(19:00):
like the way that felt when I said it. I'm
yet filled. I don't have all the money I need
to start the business, but I'm yet filled with faith
that if God wants me to do it, the supply
is on the way. No, I don't know how this
is gonna exactly turn out yet, but I'm yet filled
with the knowledge that the God who was with me

(19:21):
before in the previous season would not abandon me between
winter and spring. At this point, if you interviewed these marys,
they would say, our minds are back and forth. We're grieving.
I want to put these on the board so you
can see it real quick. Put the first ones up.

(19:42):
I'm grieving, but I've got good news, and I know
that it's going to be good in the end. But
my grief didn't go away just because I got good news.

(20:03):
This is why you can throw up your hands and
worship God even while you're going through hell. That's how
you reach for them. Now, let me make sure I'm
making this clear, because I get so worked up and
I start moving too fast. Their grief over the depth

(20:24):
of Jesus did not disappear to make way for the
good news that he was risen. And in the text
it says a little conjunction. It says afraid yet filled
yet is a conjunction. Jesus is my conjunction. Jesus is

(20:46):
my in between thing. Jesus is how I can say.
You know, how people say it's all good. I can't
say that. I got some habits that are not good.
I've got some people in my life. I must skip
that one. I'll come back to that next week. I've
got some things I'm dealing with that are not good.

(21:07):
So it's not all good. How are you doing? It's
all good? We say that all the time. I don't
say that. I don't say that anymore because it's not
all good. But it's not all grief either. And you
got to remember that when you're going through a dawning
season where it's not exactly dark, it's not exactly light.
My marriage isn't exactly back on track, but it's not

(21:30):
yet falling apart. I haven't yet lost my mind, but
I'm not really that same yet either, So don't test me,
because I could pop loose real quick. I'm something in between.
But I read a Bible verse I want to give
to you from the New Testament in Romans eight twenty eight.
Romans eight twenty eight says that in all things God

(21:54):
works for the good of them that love Him and
our call according to it purpose. It doesn't say everything
will be all good. It says, even when it's not
all good, it's still all God. God, help me shout.
That's what I want you to say about your life today.

(22:16):
It's not all good, but it's all God. Somebody shout,
is all God. That's how I made it high. Find
somebody say, oh God. I wouldn't dismay if I did
not believe that I would see the goodness of the Lord,

(22:37):
that I would see it. Can't see it right now,
can't prove it on a charge, can't draw it on
the ground.

Speaker 2 (22:44):
So I got God, God, God, I shout a God,
and I got grief.

Speaker 1 (22:59):
Are you grief? Ask your neighbor? Are you grieving? Or
are you good. Tell him I got something in between.
I got something seek. God is my in between. God
will take whatever happens. If it's bad, he'll make it good.
If it's good, he'll get glory out of it. If

(23:22):
it's bad, he'll make it good. And they'll no' live.

Speaker 3 (23:25):
Look God, Oh God, Oh God, Oh God, Oh God,
oh God.

Speaker 1 (23:41):
So if you see me play in Division one NCAA football,
you know it was Oh God, something must have happened
in between. Now watch this? Can I give you more?
There is a quote that changed my life from the
Austrian psychologist Victor Frankel. He wrote the book Man Search
for Meaning. It is one of the best selling books
of all time. And I know why from this one quote.

(24:03):
Put it on the screen. Look at this goodness what
he said, between stimulus and response. There is a space.
In that space is our power to choose our response.

(24:24):
In our response lies our growth and our freedom. Wait,
I should have told you more about him before I
read what he said. He was a Holocaust survivor. So
Victor Frankel didn't say it's all good. I don't know

(24:45):
anything about his religious belief, but I found this to
be true in my life. Sometimes the only thing I
have is that space between stimulus. Do you know what
I mean by stimulus? Not the checks they gave to
everybody over the age of three or a while back.
But what happens a stimulus like bop, you hit my hand,

(25:06):
I'm gonna slap your face, or and this is where
he talks about the space you slap my hand in
between my slap back is a space, somebody say space.
Look the quote again, between stimulus, between stimulus and response.
The women were afraid, yet that's the space filled. And

(25:34):
so they ran on the revelation that they had, even
though they didn't know what the result would be. Now
they only have to go about a mile to get
to Jerusalem, where the disciples are still saying, But there's
eighty miles to go to Galilee, where Jesus said he

(25:55):
would meet them. Keep that in mind. As important as
we talk about space, stimulus, response, let's talk about God.
Let's talk about Jesus. Since this Eastern the cross was
God's response to your sin. The stimulus was your sin.
All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God,

(26:17):
and God's response to your sin could have been wrath.
Instead it was grace, the distance was fixed between me
and God so that I could not come to him.
His response, he came to me. The suffering was the stimulus.
Forgiveness was his response. You're starting to see what I'm

(26:40):
talking about. That space in your life right now is
what happened to you and what you will do next.
And the resurrection speaks to that. Because if there is
a space, put it up one more time between the
stimulus and response. And if that's space, is my power

(27:01):
to choose my response. I know one thing about me, Okay,
I don't do very good with that space. I had
one this week. This guy texted me something crazy. I
hadn't heard from him in eight years, and he just
decided to text me something crazy out of the blue.
Happy Easter. Here's something stupid, antagonistic, irritating, ignorant, all of it. Now,

(27:24):
what I want to tell you is I prayed for
him and sent him some boots, some pink boots for Easter.
I made the best text. And you'll know I'm pretty
good with words. I put every word I've ever learned
in seminary and in seventh grade in a text. I

(27:49):
tried seven different drafts. I typed them all up and
I deleted him, and then I typed another one, and
I deleted and everyone I typed up got better than
the last one by the time I finished texting him back.
By the time I finished texting him back, now this

(28:09):
is important, By the time I've ended up texting him back,
I didn't send it all right, I'm gonna save you
a lot of trouble. Look at your neighbor and say
you need space before you hit sind What in the

(28:33):
world would we have paid to know that earlier in
our life, not just on a text, but on a response.
A response, and thankfully, if you are too weak in
your own strength to make the right response, Easter comes
to say that you have a savior who emptied the grave,

(29:00):
and all power is in his name, and that same
power is in you. What am I trying to say?
Your Savior is a space maker? How many need a
space making savior in your life today? To see the
good I want to do? I don't always do it.

(29:22):
And this is why this church is so excited about
Jesus in case you're a first time guest, because our
Savior is our space maker, because we were bound in sin,
we were wrapped in our past, we were trapped in
our trauma, we were locked in our loneliness, we were
down in our despair, and the space maker came to

(29:45):
show us that all things are possible. I five me
and say, I got a space maker. I'm praising the
space maker. Now, let's contrast this. Victor Frankle said there
is a space between stimulus and response. The other philosopher,

(30:07):
Willie Nelson, said, I got to give you what Willy said. Y'all.
I go over to my mom's every Wednesday night for
dinner and she picks out different I got a record player,
and I asked her to pick a record every Wednesday,
and lit's listen to music and eat, and then we
watch will of Fortune and Uh, pass a Jack. I
still want to meet you. If you ever watched me preach,
that would be a real bucket list for me. I

(30:29):
love pass a Jack. I pray for him every time
before he goes on. But uh, I came in the
other night and my mom was playing a record by
Willie Nelson, and it got my attention. I thought I
would use it in my Easter sermon. Willie says this, Well,
I gotta get drunk, and I sure do. Dread it

(30:49):
because I know just what I'm gonna do. I'll start
to spend my money calling everybody honey and wind up
singing the blues. I'll spend my whole pay check on
some old wreck and brother, I can name you a few,
but I gotta get drunk, and I sure do dread

(31:11):
it because I know just what I'm gonna do. I
researched it, and Willie said, that's the dumbest song he
ever wrote. He said, it's a good song, but it's
a stupid song. But it was true at the time.
I gotta get drunk. I gotta go off. Did you
hear what they said about me? I gotta go off.

(31:32):
I gotta do it. I gotta do you disrespect me
like that, I gotta do it. I think this Easter
the space Maker wants to change your gotta watch me
from I gotta do it to I gotta God. Somebody

(31:58):
say I gotta God. I don't gotta do it anymore
because I got a God who made space, who shed blood.
And if I call on his name, and if I
stay in his word, he can change me from Simon
to Peter. He can change beauty out of ashes, he

(32:22):
can turn graves into gardens. So I've got a grave.
Watch this, but I've got a god who can turn
it into a garden. Put it in the comments right now.
I got a god. I got a god. What I
used to have to do, I'm not powerless to do anymore.
Because he got up. That's fifty percent of a shout

(32:45):
that should have happened there. I'm gonna give you another opportunity.

Speaker 4 (32:49):
I don't gotta steak down.

Speaker 1 (32:51):
Does he got out? I got a god, give me
my next set. So they're standing at the tomb the
next worse and they're standing in a grave. But the
angel says, go to Galilee. And they can't stay at

(33:15):
the grave because he's not there. Somebody say, he's not here.
He's not in this depression. He's not in this giving up.
He's not in this failure. He's not in I mean,
he's in it to help me, but he's not in
it to leave me. He's calling me forward to Galilee.

(33:36):
And so the women, all the women make some noise.
They did it, and it's annoying, right because where are
the guys. The guys are eating fish and chips and
protein bars and Monster Energy drink and they say, now

(33:58):
we got to go stop by and tell the guy
that Jesus is gonna meet them in Galilee. I'll probably
have skipped it and just went right on the Galilee myself.
This is eighty miles, Benn, take like three or four days.
So let's get ahead start because we want to see Jesus.
Somebody say, I want to see Jesus. So what they do?
They're afraid? Did you notice Vers? Eight? But they ran.
They used their fear for something productive. I know you've

(34:23):
been through some things. Use them. I know you got
something on the inside of you chasing you. Well point
it in the right direction and let's go. You've been
an attic helping at it. You've been through horrible abuse.
Put your arm around somebody. They need to hear that
God can do a miracle for them. I'm leaving this grave.

(34:44):
Everybody in here has got a grave. God is calling
you away from everybody in here's I got a place
in you, a place in life, a place you can't stay,
and a long way to go. Oh, it's a long
way to Galilee. I don't know if we can make
it eighty miles to Galilee to see Jesus again. I
don't know if I can make it through this season.

(35:06):
I don't know if I can do it at this
stage of my life. I don't know if I have
the fuel left to do it again. I don't know
if I have a repeat performance in me. The first
time we followed him, it was hard, but then he died.
I don't know if I have a second wind in me.
But they're running, and this whole Sunday hinges on a
word in Matthew twenty eight, verse nine that God brought

(35:29):
you to this moment to show you. As they are
leaving the graves and eventually going to Galilee, the Bible
says Matthew twenty eight, verse nine. Suddenly, because not only
do I have a space making savior, but I have
a suddenly savior. Shout suddenly, come on, shout it with

(35:54):
your lungs, baby, say suddenly suddenly? What suddenly Jesus met them? Oh?
You mean they didn't have to go all eighty miles nah,
because while that angel was still talking about Galilee, the

(36:15):
Savior was headed your way. No, I need you just say
this my thing. He's coming my way.

Speaker 3 (36:23):
He's headed my way, He's handed my way.

Speaker 1 (36:27):
He's headed my.

Speaker 5 (36:28):
Way, I'm leaving this grave, and the Lord wants somebody
to know.

Speaker 1 (36:41):
You are not going to have to go all the
way to Galilee to get to him. He's coming to you.
See the scene with me, See the scene with me.

Speaker 4 (36:53):
They're running, they're running, and maybe between the two of
them they're sharing.

Speaker 1 (36:58):
I don't know if we should trust that big man
sitting on the stone. He said he was an angel,
but who knows. You can't trust any men. And the
other sister says back, the other Mary says back, well,
what are we going to do?

Speaker 4 (37:09):
We can't stay at the grave. We've got to go.
We can't stay in this dead place. We've got to go.
If we stay here, it will only ever beat dead.
We's not coming back to the grave. We've got to go.
And so they're going, and they're going, and they're calculating
all the distance between them and Galilee.

Speaker 1 (37:30):
We got seventy miles left between where we can't stay
and where we want to be. And somebody is there
right now. You're calculating the distance between where you are
and where you think you need to be. But put
my verse back on the screen.

Speaker 6 (37:46):
The Bible says, suddenly Jesus met them and on their
way from the grave to Galilee, they hear something in between, greetings.

Speaker 1 (38:01):
Could that be greetings? It sounds like him, greetings. Yeah,
that's his voice. I thought we were gonna have to
go all the way to Galilee, but suddenly somebody shouts, suddenly,
I see something in between. Jesus met me in the

(38:21):
middle of my mess. Jesus met me on my first mile.
Jesus is gonna meet me in this moment. What a savior,
I said, What a savior? Not only is he a
space making savior, not only is he a suddenly savior.

(38:45):
Do you understand the power of the savior suddenly that
a lifetime of sins can be washed away with one
call upon his name, with one mention of his name,
with the bowing off your knee, Everything that speaks the
name of Jesus will be saved because he's a suddenly savior.

(39:08):
And the thing that you're so stressed about, if God
is real, what makes you think he isn't already planning
to do something in between, because that's how the devil
will get you. I was talking to somebody the other
day and they said, I'm so worried about my kid
going to college and this college and that college. Their

(39:29):
kid is in the seventh grade. I said, don't worry
about that. Worry about something else. You can worry about stuff,
but don't worry about that. So much could happen in between.
You understand, you think you are going to just be
lonely the rest of your life. God could have one
greeter out those doors. And in between the time I

(39:51):
say Amen and the time you try to eat some
ham for lunch, God could do something in between. That's
all that. Holly, she was traveling through Monk's Corner. I listen,
she was living. She grew up in Miami, Florida. She
was traveling all over the country doing ministry with this team,

(40:12):
this ministry team, and they would ride around in an
RV and do ministry. And their travels brought them to
Monk's Corner. All right, So you got Miami, you got
Monk's Corner, very different, very different. And she saw a
very handsome young man at the church where they were
no she did, and listen how good her game was.
She comes up, She's like, I'm homeschooled, and uh, I
need to take the act. And I was wondering, maybe

(40:34):
if you could go to your guidance counselor and get
me an act prep pack. That is the most masterfully
understated pickup line in the history of great romances. Could
you go to your guidance counselor? And when I looked
at her, I was like, Oh, I know another guidance
counselor that I believe. Come on, somebody, you got a

(40:55):
guidance counselor. Because while I was growing up in Miami,
in Monk's Corner six hundred and fifteen miles away in Miami, Miami,
two months corner, if God could do that from a
grave to Galilee and everything in between, you don't even

(41:21):
know what he can do in between. All right, preach
it to your fear for a minute. Let's talk to
your fear of say, God always does something in between.
So the outcome you're dreading is based on the events
that you are hypothetically creating. What if God does something

(41:42):
in between. What if it doesn't even go to trial.
What if you get through it. What if you get
through it and it ends up being the best thing
that ever happened to you? What if God does something?
What if God does something in between? He must be

(42:02):
doing something in between. He did it for Daniel. Daniel
spent the night in a lion's den, but their teeth
never touched him. There must have been something in between
Daniel and those lions. He did it for the three

(42:23):
Hebrew boys. They were thrown in a fire. The fire
was heated up seven times hotter than normal, but they
didn't smell like smoke when they came out. I mean,
if you even get close to the fire, you're gonna
smell like smoke. So if they came out of the
fire and didn't smell like smoke, God must have done

(42:44):
something in between. Will not this same God, will not
this same Savior who met the women, not when they
got to Goalie. And now I don't feel sorry for
them anymore because the boys had to wait. They got
to see him first. I stand before you today, excited

(43:11):
and afraid. I stand before you today a sinner and
a saint. I stand before you today a flawed man
and a child of God. And I'm never all of both.
I'm something in between. What Jesus said to those women

(43:31):
will touch you so deeply. He said, I'm going ahead
of you, but I met you on the way. I'm
already in your tomorrow. But I'm going to show up
right now to remind you who you're walking in. Thank you, Jesus.

(43:53):
Say thank you Jesus. When you talk back to the
preacher in church, don't talk to the preacher, talk to God.
Say thank you Lord for that word. Thank you Jesus.
I received that coming to me right now on this
first mile of my eighty mile journey. I got to
get to Galilee, but I'm thankful that you met me
in between. And he tells them, go, I know you're afraid,

(44:18):
Verse ten, but go go tell my brothers. You still
calling them brothers after they left you at the cross.
Every single disciple except John went away, and Jesus called

(44:39):
them brothers. Every person in this room today, if we
could look inside your heart, you are carrying the guilt.
Put my final slide on the screen, because I want
to give an invitation to you now of what you did,

(45:00):
the guilt of who you think you are, the guild
of what you failed to live up to that you
meant to be. And then there is the glory of God,
who is Jesus Christ, who is the righteous one who
knew no sin but became sin that we might become
the righteousness. Of God. All have sin and fall short

(45:24):
of the glory of God. You're not the best Christian
that ever lived. His name is Jesus. But there is
nothing so wrong with you today that the Savior, who
is perfect and pure, cannot redeem it. Why are we
surprised to see him? Why are we surprised to hear

(45:49):
him in between the grave and galilee. We shouldn't be
surprised that he met us in the middle. We shouldn't
be surprised when he shows up in our shame. Wouldn't
be surprised when he gives us mercy for our mess
and righteousness for our rags. We shouldn't be surprised to
see him in between because the last time we saw

(46:10):
him on the cross, Look what John nineteen eighteen says
Jesus was doing there. They crucified him with two other men,
one on either side, back on the screen, and Jesus
in between. I see Jesus in between today. There's an

(46:38):
anointing on this word to bring you out of your grave,
to bring you out of your guilt. For wherever there
was guilt, grace was greater. Grace was greater whatever you did.
Wherever you've been but gone is breaking good morning. He

(47:02):
is risen, and his grace is greater.

Speaker 4 (47:11):
Your sin has separated you from God, but your savior
is greater than your sin. He is Jesus in between,
making you right with God. You could never be right
with God in your own righteousness. You don't have to.
You've got Jesus in between.

Speaker 7 (47:31):
Right now, while the presence of God is standing on
this road in this moment, what Jesus said to the women,
he says to you, greetings, be not afraid, but go.

Speaker 1 (47:45):
It's bowt eyes closed. Everyone standing at every location, no
one moving. This is a holy moment. This is an
in between moment. For though our sins where a scarlet,
he washed them as white as snow. This is an
in between moment. He is a stretching savior. He is
a suddenly savior. He is a space making savior. And

(48:10):
there is room at this cross for you, for everyone
online and at all of our locations who wants today
to meet Jesus. I want to tell you the great
secret of the mystery of the Gospel. While the women
were looking for Jesus, Jesus was already looking for them,

(48:31):
and he desires to meet you in this moment. Right now,
I'm going to pray a prayer. If you've been far
from God and you know it, and yet today he
calls you brother, sister, friend, child of God. If your
sins have been weighing heavy on your heart and you
haven't known what to do with them, and shame is great,
I introduce you now to the Savior, whose name is greater.

(48:54):
I'm going to lead you in a prayer. Won't be
a magic trick, but it is an act of faith.
The Bible says that if anyone calls on the name
of the Lord, they will be saved. It is by
grace that you are saved. Your guilt is great, his
glory is great. But His grace is greater than your guilt,

(49:15):
and you can receive it right now. Suddenly you can
be a brand new person today this day. So right now,
if this message was for you, I want you to
repeat this prayer after me. You're coming to Jesus. He
already came to you. You just repeat after me and
let him into your heart and turn from your sin,
and he will make you a brand new person. We're

(49:37):
praying out loud as a church family for the benefit
of those who are coming to God. For the first
time or coming back to God. Repeat after me, this
is your moment, Heavenly Father. Today is my day of salvation.
I am a sinner in need of a savior, and

(49:58):
I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God
and the savior of the world. I believe he died
that I would be forgiven and rose again to give
me life. I receive this new life. This is my

(50:19):
new beginning. I am a child of God. On the counter.
Three shoot your hand up if you prayed that boldly.
One two, three.

Speaker 7 (50:29):
We celebrate your resurrection today. We celebrate your resurrection today.

Speaker 1 (50:35):
That is what it's all about. Today. That Jesus met me,
that Jesus changed me, that Jesus is with me, and
I'll never be the same. I need everybody who believes
Jesus is it give him a great sound of lives.

Speaker 3 (50:55):
Wait a little better than that.

Speaker 1 (50:59):
Makes such stay on the side of and yet myself.
So thank you for joining us. Special thanks to those
of you who give generously to this ministry. Is because

(51:20):
of you that this ministry is possible. You can click
the link in the description to give now or visit
Elevation Church dot org. Slash podcast for more information and
if you enjoyed the podcast, you can subscribe. You can
share it with your friends. You can click the share button,
take a screenshot and share it on your social stories
and tag us at Elevation Church. Thanks again for listening.

(51:41):
God bless you.