Faith on the Rise

I invite you to stand to your feet. We are going to praise the Lord today, for he is good and he is worthy. Amen. Amen. Come on, we worship the way maker, and we're gonna sing about it today. Would you put your hands together with me? We sing. ♪ I won't waste a day with worrying ♪ ♪ Cause nothing in my past can stop your plans for me ♪ ♪ Though my future is a mystery ♪ ♪ Lord, I know that you're preparing me ♪ ♪ Cause I've been a beggar, been a lover, been lost without a center ♪ ♪ Even at my worst, you turn my pain into glory ♪ ♪ Since I met you, life is better, living in your frame forever ♪ ♪ Even at my best, you turn my praise into glory ♪ Let's sing. ♪ God, I thank you, oh, I thank you ♪ ♪ You always go before and make a way for me ♪ ♪ God, I thank you, oh, I thank you ♪ ♪ No matter what, I'm gonna give my praise to you ♪ We praise the Lord. For he is good. Amen. Come on, we can celebrate you today. Let's testify, sing, I remember. ♪ I remember all you brought me through ♪ ♪ Every sorrow turned to joy because of you ♪ ♪ Though there's pain within my suffering ♪

♪ Lord, I know that you're preparing me ♪ ♪ Because I've been a beggar, been a leper ♪ ♪ Been a lost, rebellious sinner ♪ ♪ Even at my worst, you turn my pain into glory ♪ ♪ Since I met you, life is better ♪ ♪ Living in your skin forever ♪ ♪ Even at my best, you turn my praise into glory ♪ ♪ God, I thank you, oh, I thank you ♪ ♪ You always go before and make a way for me ♪ ♪ God, I thank you, oh, I thank you ♪ ♪ No matter what, I'm gonna give my praise to you ♪ ♪ No matter what, no matter what ♪ ♪ I'll give my praise to you ♪ Come on, church, do you know he's worthy of all the praise? Come on, can we declare what he's doing in this room? ♪ I see that you are doing a new thing ♪ ♪ Believe that you are making the way for me ♪ ♪ I see that you are doing a new thing ♪ ♪ Believe that you are working it all for good ♪ ♪ I see that you are doing a new thing, come on ♪ ♪ I believe that you are making the way for me ♪ ♪ I believe that you are doing a new thing ♪ ♪ Believe that you are working it all for good ♪ ♪ God, I thank you, oh, I thank you ♪ ♪ You always go before and make the way for me ♪ ♪ God, I thank you, oh, I thank you ♪ ♪ No matter what, you give my praise to you ♪ Hallelujah, come on, lift up praise to him. ♪ No matter what, I'm gonna give my praise to you ♪ ♪ In every season, no matter what, no matter what ♪

♪ I'm gonna give my praise to you, hallelujah ♪ Come on, let's praise him for washing our sins away today. Why don't you clap your hands like this? ♪ I'm clean, sin was stained on me ♪ ♪ I was running deep, but love was spilled on Calvary ♪ ♪ Oh, hallelujah, I'm clean, but how can it be? ♪ ♪ I'm ransomed and redeemed, standing in your victory ♪ ♪ Oh, hallelujah, I've been washed in the water ♪ ♪ Washed in the blood, I'm as good as new ♪ ♪ Oh, hallelujah, I've been washed in the water ♪ ♪ Washed in the blood, all because of your holy blood ♪ ♪ I'm clean, it's not what I have done ♪ ♪ But what you've done for me, you painted all upon that tree ♪ ♪ Oh, hallelujah, I'm clean, your love has overcome ♪ ♪ And your mercy is supreme ♪ All because of You, all because of You, all because of You ♪ Hallelujah This is what He did. ♪ Cause you took away my shame ♪ And you nailed it to the cross ♪ You got me running out the grave ♪ Hallelujah, here I come ♪ Cause you took away my shame ♪ And you nailed it ♪ And you nailed it to the cross Yes, you did. ♪ You got me running out the grave ♪ Hallelujah, here I come ♪ Cause you took away my shame ♪ Oh yes, you did

♪ And you nailed it to the cross ♪ You got me running out the grave ♪ And I'm running ♪ Closer to you, Jesus ♪ Oh, cause you took away my shame ♪ And you nailed it to the cross ♪ And you nailed it to the cross ♪ You got me running out the grave ♪ You got me running out the grave ♪ Hallelujah, I'm coming, Jesus ♪ Hallelujah, here I come ♪ Hallelujah, here I come ♪ Hallelujah, here I come ♪ Hallelujah, here I come ♪ I'm coming closer and closer ♪ I'm coming to you, Jesus ♪ Hallelujah, here I come lift your hands, come on. ♪ Hallelujah, here I come Oh, if the son has made you free, can you give him a great shout of praise in this house? Oh, Lord, we are singing ♪ Halle, Halle, Hallelujah ♪ Halle, Halle, Hallelujah ♪ Halle, Halle, Hallelujah Oh, we praise you, Lord. All because ♪ I've been washed in the water ♪ Washed in the blood

♪ I'm as good as new Sing. ♪ Oh, hallelujah ♪ I've been washed in the water ♪ Washed in the blood ♪ All because of you ♪ Oh, hallelujah Is anybody thankful this morning? I'm so thankful for a God that we can trust for our soul's salvation. And I'm so thankful to know that I can trust him for everything in my life today. And I can trust him through every trial, through every storm, through every situation. If you've got that testimony, won't you lift your hands as we bless him this morning for being a God that we can trust, a God who is faithful and true. Sing. ♪ Blessed assurance ♪ Jesus is mine ♪ He's been my fourth man in the fire ♪ Time after time ♪ Born of his spirit

♪ Washed in his blood I know today. ♪ And what he did on me ♪ On Calvary ♪ Was more than enough ♪ So I trust in God ♪ My savior, the one who will never ♪ Who will never fail ♪ An unfailing God ♪ Who will never fail ♪ Yes you are ♪ So I trust, I trust in God ♪ I couldn't doubt you ♪ My savior, the one ♪ I know too much about you ♪ Who will never ♪ Never fail ♪ He will never fail ♪ Perfect submission ♪ It's all is at rest ♪ Because I know ♪ That tomorrow has ordered my steps ♪ So this is my story ♪ And this is my song What are we doing church? ♪ I'm praising my risen king ♪ I'm praising my risen king God, He's my Savior, the one who will never fail.

You will never fail. You will never fail. Oh, I trust. I trust in God. He's my Savior, the one who will never fail. He will never fail. He's an unfailing God. Oh, He's still a miracle-working God. He's still a storm-calming God. It's who He is. It's what I know. I've experienced it, church. This is our testimony. I sought the Lord, and He heard, and He answered. I sought the Lord, and He heard, and He answered. I sought the Lord, and He heard, and He answered. That's why I trust Him. That's why I trust Him. I sought the Lord, and He heard in my darkest time. I sought the Lord, and He heard. He changed my life. I sought the Lord, and He heard, and He answered. That's why I trust Him. Somebody testify. I sought the Lord, and He heard. He answered my prayer. I sought the Lord, and He heard. Oh, He was always right there. I sought the Lord, and He heard, and He answered. That's why I trust Him.

That's why I trust Him. I sought the Lord, and He heard in my prayer. I sought the Lord, and He heard. He cares about me. I sought the Lord, and He heard, and He answered. That's why I trust Him. That's why I trust in God. He's my Savior, the one who will never fail. Never fail. No, fail. Jesus never fails. Jesus never fails. One more time with great faith. I trust. I trust in God. Oh, my Savior, the one who will never fail. Never fail. He will never fail. If you believe that about Him, can you give Him a mighty shout in this house today? A shout that says, God, I believe. A shout that says, God, you are victorious. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Well, praise the Lord. It's going to be an amazing time in church today in the presence of the Lord. Why don't you take a moment to greet a neighbor around you. Tell somebody hello. Tell somebody that you haven't seen all week.

And we'll be right back in just a few moments to continue with service. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. Welcome to Faith Church Orlando. Here's a look at upcoming events. Church, Awaken Night is this Wednesday, March 4th at 7pm. Join us for powerful worship and an encouraging message from Pastor Peter Reeves. Mainstream youth will be joining us in the main sanctuary and child care is provided in Faith Kids. You don't want to miss it. Exciting things are happening at Faith. Here's a look ahead. Faith Kids. FaithKids.org FaithKids.org We encourage you to connect, grow, serve, and reach here at Faith. So stay connected through the Faith app or our website. Have a blessed week. Indonesia is the fourth largest country in the world, home to more than 250 million people. A nation rich in culture, warmth, and tradition, and the largest Muslim population in the world at roughly 88%. And right now, a generation of university students is searching for the truth. When Jamie and Tasha Kemp moved there in 2009,

they carried a bold vision. To reach this next generation, millions of students across Indonesia for Jesus. When my wife and I moved here in 2009, we really had a heart to reach the next generation. When we got here, we discovered that the university campus was wide open. There's like 70 campuses in our city alone. And so there's like a million university students. But right now, every Friday night, we have over 100 Muslim young people join us for Bible study. We're really going to do something significant here in Indonesia. We need a team. One of their goals is to leave an eternal legacy by equipping ministry leaders like Millie and Golda to spread the gospel throughout the vast network of university campuses. I never thought I would be a full-time ministry. I experienced God when I was a college student. I joined that community. I saw the people really showing care to one another. We've been able to build a network of over 100 churches that are doing local church-based campus ministry. Our local ministry is really just a laboratory. We're trying to figure out what's going to work best to reach this country. God can win every student, university students in Indonesia.

It can bring a lot of change to Indonesia. But I know that, man, this thing's going to outlive me. I experienced him in my darkest time. And he became the answers of everything. This kind of students, who would they go to? And that motivates me. A generation of young people are open and looking for and ready to respond to the truth of the gospel. The workers are so few. That's what we want to be about, raising up more and more workers for this harvest in Indonesia. Church, God has given us the chance to come alongside missionaries on the front lines. And because of that, we've committed $25,000 to help Jamie and Tasha continue expanding their network of churches, raising up ministry leaders on university campuses, and equipping pastors who will leave an eternal legacy in Indonesia. Thank you for your generosity. Together, we're investing in a generation that will transform the nation with the hope of Jesus. Praise the Lord. Isn't that a wonderful, wonderful video? Did you see what Jamie and Tasha said? There are 70 campuses with over a million students. And they're open. That means that they can go in there and share the gospel of Jesus Christ. And he mentioned multiple times in the video that they need a team.

They need workers. In the Bible, in Matthew chapter 9, verses 37 and 38, Jesus says this. He says, the harvest is plenty, but the workers are few. Pray to the Lord of the harvest to send out workers. And so that's what we're going to do today. We're going to pray that the Lord would send out workers. We're also going to pray that the Lord would provide resources. And I'm also praying that the Lord would send some of you, maybe not to this mission field, but to another mission field. This is our time to receive God's tithe and our kingdom builder's offering. Praise the Lord. We get happy when we're able to worship the Lord and bring the resources into God's house. We have two steps of giving here. The first is the tithe. That's the first 10%. The second step is everything above and beyond. And that goes into the kingdom builder's program. As I get ready to pray and we receive the tithe and the kingdom builder's offering, I also want to lift up a family today. One of our dear, precious saints, Francesca Spadaro. Look at that. She was just a few days away from her 97th birthday. Francesca was here for years. She actually used to usher here in this section when she was in her 80s.

She was also, I believe, our first community ambassador. What Francesca used to do is take business cards all the time and witness to people about the love of Jesus in her neighborhood, her community. She would pray for people. She would go to the Walmart, the Publix, and she would just witness to people all over the place. Many people, I remember over the years, she would introduce me to people for the first time that she had witnessed to and she had invited to church. So she leaves a wonderful legacy. We are going to pray for her daughter and her son-in-law, Ruth and Hector. Both of them are on staff here. We're going to be announcing a memorial date for her in the weeks to come, but we want to pray for that family plus other families that have lost loved ones recently. Let's go to the Lord in prayer. Father, we come to you in the mighty name of Jesus as we receive your tithe and your kingdom builder's offering. We bring it into your house. We ask you to bless, multiply it, use it to build your kingdom. I pray for a blessing of the people as they give. We also pray for workers, Lord, that you would raise up an army of workers and send out not only into that mission field, but into our local mission field here in Orlando and throughout the world. Father, I also lift up to you Ruth and Hector Vargas and the entire family. We pray for mercy and comfort and peace for them and also a couple of other families that have lost loved ones recently. Father, we lift them up into your presence. Be with them now in Jesus' name. Amen. ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ Amen. Church, I want to invite you to stand back to your feet.

We're just going to continue to worship the Lord. How many of you know and believe that the name of Jesus is worthy to be praised forever? Come on, we echo what it says in the scripture. Worthy are you, Lord, O God, to receive all honor, all power, all praise. Come on, I invite everyone in the room. Would you praise the name of Jesus right here in this moment? No other name that is greater. ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ There's just something about your name, Jesus There's just something about your name It makes me worship you, Lord Oh, it makes me cry holy Cause there is no other name, Lord No, there is no other name, I know There is no other name Oh, Jesus, you're worthy You're worthy of all the worship Oh, if you believe he's worthy

Lift your voice, lift your hands Pour out your praise Come on, Jesus, his name has the power to save, to heal, to restore Would you speak his name out? Would you sing his name? Jesus, we sing about you Cause Jesus, your name is like the morning light The one the darkness can't deny The resurrection and the life Jesus, oh, Jesus, your name can save, your name can heal Your name can make the storm be still You never fail, you never will Jesus, Jesus, the bread of life Broken for us, the wounded and the worthy one The first in life and still to come Jesus, Jesus, the king who overwhelmed The great, the Lord who will forever reign The name above all other names Jesus, oh, Jesus, be the name Jesus, be the name Oh, Jesus, be the name That gives all the glory Oh, Jesus, be the name Jesus, be the name Oh, Jesus, be the name That gives all the glory Sing, Jesus, be the name Jesus, be the name Oh, Jesus, be the name That gives all the glory Jesus, be the name

Jesus, be the name Oh, Jesus, be the name That gives all the glory Hallelujah Oh, we sing it out Oh, Jesus, be the name Oh, Jesus, be the name We sing, Jesus Hallelujah, Lord Jesus Come on, church, there's something about the name of Jesus The Bible says that every knee will bow, every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord There's something about the name of Jesus Come on, one more time, can we just lift his name up? Your name is high, your name is great There is no name like the name of Jesus Why? Because there's healing Why? Because there's power and there's redemption in your name So, Jesus, we call on your name today God, I pray that as we open your word today that you would anoint it God, that you would reveal your presence to us in a supernatural way God, that we would experience healing in our lives and hope in our lives in a new way And God, we give you all the praise and all the glory Come on, here and at every campus right now, can we put our hands together right now and thank God? Amen Amen, God bless you, you may be seated today Hey, let me take a quick moment and just welcome our campuses that are joining us right now Our Red Bug Lake campus, our Michigan Street campus, our Narcoossee Road campus Also, this service today is being streamed at the Central Florida Reception Center, the correctional facility So come on, here's how we do it, we clap and give it up for all of our campuses joining us

I'm so glad you're here today, and church is a good place to be. Somebody say amen to that. Amen. So we're glad you're here. In fact, if this is your very first time, you've never been with us here at Faith Church, we wanna say welcome to you. My name is Matt Ingle, I'm the executive pastor. Pastor Johnny, our lead pastor, is away this week ministering, but he's gonna be back preaching next week, and so be looking forward to that. But if this is your very first time, never been here before, here at this campus, at our other campuses, would you kindly just raise your hand right now, and we're gonna go crazy for you and welcome you, God bless you, all over the house. Yeah. If you would, just keep your hand lifted up until one of our ushers sees you and hands you that booklet. And if you've yet to talk with somebody from our team, will you do us a favor and just unlock your phone and tap one of the seat backs near you, and that's a great way for us to connect with you. Man, again, we're so glad that all of you are here in church. And speaking of church, this Wednesday night,

we have Awaken Night. Is anybody excited about Awaken Night? I hope so, it's gonna be incredible. On Wednesday nights, we've been in these nights of prayer, and God has been showing up in incredible ways, and we've just been seeking the presence of God. Of course, that's our year, our word for the year is seekers. And we have been, we've been seeking God, and God has been showing up in great ways. And so we're gonna have an Awaken Night this Wednesday night and we're gonna have a portion of that as just focused prayer time. We're gonna keep that going. So as you saw in the announcements, that's coming up Wednesday, but we just wanted to encourage you to make it out this Wednesday. Well, today, I get the privilege to continue our series on the miracles of Jesus. And Jesus performed all kinds of miracles. And so let's define what a miracle is. A miracle can be defined like this. A miracle is when God steps into a situation in a way that only his supernatural power can explain. I wanna read that again, listen to this. A miracle is when God steps into a situation in a way that only his supernatural power can explain. Let me just ask this question. Is anyone glad that you serve a miracle-working God today?

Yeah. So when we talk about the miracles of Jesus, yeah, we're believing that it applies to us today. But you know, sometimes we use that word, it was a miracle. We use it kind of casually, knowing full well that it wasn't a real miracle. We're just saying, oh, it was a miracle. Like some of you guys have been caught in traffic before. And I especially feel for all of you, Narcoossee Road people. You're out there at the campus and you're Narcoossee, and it's like, it only takes about an hour to get anywhere you wanna go, even if it's a couple blocks and you're stuck in traffic. But that one time, the traffic actually flows smoothly and you say, oh, it was a miracle. And you realize it's not really a miracle, but kind of in that case, it might be supernatural work in play, I don't know. It was a miracle. Or you're at your mall or supermarket or something like that and there's no parking spots and somebody pulls out and then you have a perfect opportunity. You say, oh, it's a miracle, honey. We found our parking spot. Or how many sports fans are in the house today? You have your favorite team and your team is struggling and you're not winning. And then finally you win a game. Some of you Jets fans,

New York Jets fans are identifying right now. It's okay, I'm a Bears fan. I'm used to that too. But you say, no, we won a game. Guys, it was a miracle. And you know what you're talking about. You don't actually mean a miracle. But when Jesus performs a miracle, no, it's actually supernaturally his hand at work. And so you can go through scriptures and you can read about Jesus's miracles and the miracles that he performed. Last week, Pastor Johnny preached a message on deliverance and that is one of the categories of miracles that Jesus performed where he set people free from demon possession or torment or even oppression. And he delivered people and God is still a God who delivers today. Or you can read through the New Testament and see nature miracles at work where he would step out and there would be a massive storm and suddenly he would say, peace, be still and nature would obey him, incredible. Or he would walk on water and Peter walked on water as well. Can you imagine if that was happening? Maybe we had a baptism service and people went to go into the baptismal tank and be immersed in water and yet all of a sudden, they're just standing on it. Wouldn't that be cool?

I think our church would grow rapidly if that was the case. But what's going on at faith? But nature miracles could be a thing or provision miracles, that's where. God would supernaturally supply when resources ran out. Jesus turned water into wine, for example, or he fed the 4,000, he fed the 5,000. I remember talking to Pastor Johnny and Jamie who had five kids growing up, and they said that at one time they were going through one gallon of milk every single day. That's crazy, right? Like in my house, it's a half a gallon, and we have to force ourselves to drink it before it goes bad. And here they are, you know, the fruity pebbles and the fruit loops. God provide a miracle, you know, just provide so that this multiplies. Provision miracles is something that Jesus did. Resurrection miracles, the dead raised to life. Even Jesus raised his friend Lazarus from the dead. But the category that we're gonna focus on today is the category of healing miracles. And you can read all about Jesus opening the eyes of the blind, incredible. Causing the lame to walk again. He would go through and heal chronic diseases. And if you go through and you look at all the accounts of Jesus' healings, there are 30 different

healing miracles that are recorded, but it's implied that there are hundreds more. And so many believe that Jesus healed back then, which is great. You believe it on a historical account where you're going, okay, I believe that Jesus back then healed. But can I ask you this question? How many of you today believe that Jesus still heals like he did back then, anybody? Come on, at the campuses, do you believe that Jesus still heals today? I hope so, because he does. And I don't know where you land today, because some people, man, you can clap with confidence knowing that Jesus still heals today and you believe it with all your heart. And others of you, you have a little bit of faith and you're not quite there yet. And you more believe that Jesus did it historically, but you're not quite sure if Jesus heals today. I don't know where you land, but I have been praying for us as a church that our faith would rise up. In fact, I've just titled this message today Faith on the Rise. Faith on the Rise, that wherever we are, whether we have great faith or we have a little bit of faith that our faith level, like a tide, would just be, would rise up and we would have greater faith today. In fact, at the close of this message today,

here at this campus and at our other campuses, we're gonna take just a few moments, an extended time, and we're gonna pray for those that are sick in their body and we're gonna pray for divine healing in their lives. And we're gonna watch what God does, all right? Man, there are a lot of things that are on the rise in our world. Some might say, Pastor, crime is on the rise, or abuse is on the rise in our culture, or addiction is on the rise. But I think it would be so fitting and so awesome to hear at Faith Church, if we could declare out loud that faith is on the rise, that our faith is building. Is anybody with me today? We gotta believe that. Not just in name, but in practice. And I wanna read to you out of Luke chapter eight, verse 42, it's the story of the woman with the issue of blood. And it says this about Jesus. It says, as Jesus was on his way, the crowds almost crushed him. And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for 12 years. But no one could heal her. So I want you to imagine this. There's this woman who has been suffering 12 years of pain, 12 years of disappointment, 12 years of spending money and trying to get better. And instead of getting better,

she actually was getting worse. 12 years of being labeled unclean. And she was kind of pushed to the side, and yet something rose up within her spirit that she realized that Jesus was the answer. And she thought this, if I can just get to Jesus, my life could change. If I can just get to him, maybe I can be healed. In verse 44, let's see what happens. The Bible says, she came up behind him, touched the edge of his cloak, and immediately her bleeding stopped. Right then, immediately her bleeding stopped. Who touched me, Jesus asked. When they all denied it, Peter said, Master, the people are crowding and pressing against you. But Jesus said, no, someone touched me. I know that power has gone out from me. Then the woman, seeing that she could not go unnoticed, came trembling and fell at his feet. In the presence of all the people, she told why she had touched him and how she had been instantly healed. Then he said to her, daughter, your faith has healed you. Somebody say faith. Faith. Your faith has healed you, so go in peace. And I'm here to tell you today that that same Jesus is our healer today. Did you hear that?

That same Jesus that healed this woman is our healer today. we understand his heart, the more we understand his word, the more our faith, again, begins to rise. And so faith rises when we understand this. Number one, that healing is often on the other side of intentional pursuit. If you're taking notes, you can write that down. Healing is often on the other side of intentional pursuit. What do I mean by that? Well, verse 44 says, she came up behind him. And you gotta understand what this means. She doesn't wait for Jesus to notice her. And she doesn't wait for Jesus to give her permission. She does not stop when it gets uncomfortable because the Bible says that there are people all around Jesus, pressing in, crowding around him, and yet she's just so determined. She is on a pursuit, knowing that if I can just get to Jesus, my life might be healed, my body might be healed. And so she pushes through the crowd. And here's what I've noticed. Listen, many of us want healing, but oftentimes, we don't wanna reach out for it. Oftentimes, we're like, I want it in my body, sure, but am I willing to push through some stuff to get there? Am I willing to fight through some crowds to actually get a hold of Jesus? Maybe it's the crowd of shame. And we're going, man, I don't want anybody to know what I'm dealing with.

I'm sick of my body. I'm embarrassed by that for whatever reason. I don't want anybody to know. But you know what? If you reach out to Jesus and you pray for healing, you're saying, God, I don't care about any of that. I just want you. Maybe it's the crowd of fear. What if I hope again and I get disappointed again? Maybe I prayed before, but nothing's changed in my life, and so I'm a little bit hesitant. I'm a little bit fearful when it comes to stepping out and pursuing Jesus for my healing. Can I just encourage you today? Listen, never stop pursuing your healing. If you're sick in your body, every single day, wake up and say, God, today is the day that I declare healing in my body, healing over my life. I love, listen, I love watching people come down to this altar. Some people are healed instantly. Other people have been coming for weeks, service after service, for months, month after month, and I love seeing people that are just still determined, God, I haven't received my healing yet, but I'm believing. I'm believing that just one touch from you and everything can change. They're not doing it based off of hype. They're not doing it to try to gain attention for themselves.

They're just quietly standing there, reaching out, saying just one touch, and everything can change. So never, ever, ever stop pursuing your healing. Maybe it's the crowd of unbelief. Like, I know Jesus healed back then, but I'm not quite sure that he wants to do it for me, or I'm not quite sure that he can do it for me. Here's what I've noticed as I've gotten older, that when you're the one sick, you understand it a different way, right? Like, it can become sobering when you're the one in the hospital bed. It gets real when you're the one reading the doctor's report. I don't know if you've done this before. You have a blood test, and then you open up the little portal to read your blood test, and you're reading all the things, and then you're going online, trying to diagnose yourself, and it doesn't take very long before a paper cut turns into deathbed, you know what I'm saying? But when you're the one that's struggling, when you're the one that's experiencing the physical pain, when all of a sudden you're the one that experiences a symptom that's unusual, and you've never dealt with sickness before, all of a sudden you go, oh man, like, I believe it textbook-wise or historical. Like, I believe that Jesus can heal, but does Jesus really wanna heal me? And it gets real. But I wanna just challenge you in this way.

Rather than focus on the circumstances, rather than focus on the condition or the diagnosis, reach out to Jesus. Reach out to him. Don't forget to reach out to him. Why? Because healing is often on the other side of that intentional pursuit. And how many of you believe, again, that healing is still available to you and I? I've been praying that our faith level would rise, and in fact, there's a lady in our church, Julie Glenn, who attends the Red Bug Lake campus, and she shared a story with me several months back. And as I was preparing for this message, I asked her, I said, would you be willing to share your testimony, what God did in your life? And she agreed, and I think it's gonna really encourage us today, so take a look. Back in March 2025, I found myself experiencing some hip pain. I was starting to limp at work. It just started, every time I was walking, it got worse. Then I had to go and use the cane. I was in so much pain. I was taking some pain medication, and then I had to go to the walker. So I called the doctor and told him what was going on, and I. I already was aware from when I had my right hip replacement

that eventually I would have to have my left hip replaced. And the appointment wasn't until June, so that left several months of being in pain until I could get to see him. The thought of having to have a hip surgery really caused me a lot of anxiety. I had already been through it once. I knew what I would be facing. Even though I trusted the Lord, it was so much pain and it was a lot of work for my husband to have to take care of me. And, okay. And so my husband just, I found strength in him. He kept saying, we'll get through this. We got through the right hip, we'll get through the left hip. So on Sunday, Memorial Day weekend, my husband and I got up and got ready for church. And I was using the cane that day with my husband on one side. The pastor had an altar call and music was playing. And I originally went up to the altar just to pray, just to worship. When I got up there, people started laying hands on me and praying. And I really just felt the Holy Spirit. When the song was over, I picked up my cane and I just walked back, not even realizing that I was holding the cane and not using the cane.

That night we went out to dinner and my husband said, do you want to grab the walker or do you just want to grab the cane? And I looked at him and I said, I don't need either one. And that's when we both realized that I had been healed and I could walk. I had no more pain. I had still to this day, have no pain in my left hip and I walked just fine. I was so grateful. I think shocked. I really had never experienced an actual healing like that. I kind of pinched myself to say like, is this real? Like, God, did you really do this for me? I went to see the doctor and he goes, I looked at your x-rays. He goes, there's nothing wrong with your left hip. What's going on? You're not going to believe it. I was healed Memorial Day weekend at church. And he said, well, I'm glad I got to see you. There's nothing wrong with your hip. I would just encourage everyone. If you have a need, whether it's physical, emotional, physical, spiritual, go find somebody to pray with you. Go to the altar, reach out to the Lord. Nothing is too big for God. He can do it for you. He did it for me. Come on, can we thank God for that?

God still heals today. I feel the faith level in this room rising already. And I just want to say something about a testimony like that. It's not necessarily a guarantee that God's going to heal like this. In other words, it's not a formula that God is going to heal you exactly like he healed her. A testimony is not that. A testimony is a reminder that God is still good and God still heals today. And so that's what causes our faith level to rise as we hear a testimony like that. Secondly, faith rises when we understand that it's your faith that actually moves the heart of God. It's your faith. What do I mean by that? Well, in verse 45, Jesus says, who touched me? Peter said, Master, the people are crowding and pressing against you. He says, no, someone touched me. I know that power has gone out from my body. And at first glance, when you read this text, it almost sounds like a dumb question, doesn't it? You ever heard the phrase, there are no such thing as dumb questions? But then you've heard dumb questions in your life before and you're like, actually, that's not true. That was a dumb question. I wonder if people are listening to this going, Jesus, I don't know if you noticed this,

but there are people that are pressing in all around you. You've been touched many times and you're just gonna stop everything and say, who touched me? But Jesus was not confused. He was actually teaching in this moment. He wanted everybody to understand what had taken place. Many people were around Jesus. That's true. One person actually reached out to him in faith. So being around Jesus is proximity. Reaching out to Jesus is faith. Somebody say faith. Proximity can put you near him, but it's faith that actually connects you to his power. And so you can be around Jesus and still not connect to his power. And there are some people that week after week, maybe that describes you, you're around worship and you're around the preaching of God's word and you're around prayer, but that is not the same thing as reaching out to him. Listen, power did not flow because she brushed past Jesus. There were a lot of people that were doing that. Power flowed from Jesus because she reached out for him with faith. Same crowd, same Jesus, but different results. Listen to what it says here. Then he said to her, daughter, your faith. Faith has healed you, so go in peace.

And maybe there's some skeptics out there saying, oh, pastor, are you one of those faith healers? And maybe you've turned on the TV and you've seen that. Oh, if you use your credit card, and for $19.99, I'll send you this healing water. But wait, there's more. If you act now, we'll add in another pouch or something like that. So are you one of those guys? Well, no, I'm not a faith healer like that. But I guess, yes, I am in the sense that I believe it's faith that activates the hand of God and activates healing in our lives. And so, yes, we are believing in healing. We believe that faith is what activates the hand of God. Sometimes it's other people's faith, yes. But more often, it's our faith that Jesus responds to. So my role is to just simply pray and to believe with you and point you to the one that brings healing in your life. So it's not a gimmick, it's not a transaction. It's trust in the character and in the power of God. If you believe that, say amen. So when it's addressing the church when it comes to prayer, James chapter five puts it this way in verse 14. Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. Verse 15 says, and the prayer offered, here it is again, in faith, will make that sick person well

and the Lord will raise them up. It's the Lord who does the work, not us. The prayer of a righteous person is both powerful and it's effective. Can I just encourage you by reading you another testimony? And by the way, this was turned in on a praise card. And here at this campus and your seat backs, if God's touched your life or if God heals you, we wanna know about it because we wanna share with the church family so that our faith can be encouraged and our faith level can rise. At the campuses, they're available as well. But this is Mark from Red Bug and he said this. About a week ago, I suffered a back injury so severe that I couldn't stand or walk on my own. And my wife reached out to Pastor Jason to let him know what was happening. That Wednesday night during service at the Red Bug Lake Campus, the church prayed for me while I was at home, though I didn't know it at the time. Later that evening, I suddenly felt the urge to try standing up on my own. To my amazement, I was completely healed. I was able to stand and walk without pain. I later found out that this happened at the exact same time that the church was praying for me. I am beyond grateful for the power in the prayer and for a church family that stands together in faith. God still heals today.

Or if you have a prayer request, you can submit it through our church app. You can go on our website and you can submit it because we wanna pray. We are a church that believes in the power of prayer. We believe in divine healing. And I see posts online of tragedies that happen or maybe somebody posts that they're not feeling well, they're sick, and there's this kind of cordial response that I think people mean well, but it can be dangerous where you just say, oh, thoughts and prayers. You ever seen that before? And you're like, wait, that person isn't even a believer. And you're saying thoughts and prayers. They probably have no intention of actually praying. It's just a cute little cordial way to say, hey, I'm thinking about you. And although it's polite, if I'm sick, if I ever get sick, I don't want you guys to write, oh, thoughts and prayers for Pastor Matt and not really mean it. I want you to be like on your knees, calling on God, believing in divine healing, saying, no, I'm actually gonna attach faith to this thing. I want God to restore his body. That's the kind of faith that we should have. Examples of faith moving the heart of Jesus. There's a man with leprosy that came back to Jesus, and he fell at his feet thanking him. And verse 19 of chapter 17 of Luke says,

rise and go, Jesus says, your faith has made you well. Your faith. Blind Bartimaeus screams out. He says, Jesus, son of David, have mercy on me. And Jesus says in Mark chapter 10, your faith has healed you. I wanna contrast two different times that Jesus was amazed when he saw the faith of the people. One was this. A Roman centurion had a sick servant, and Jesus was going to him, and before Jesus gets inside the house, he says, I don't deserve to have you under my roof, and so you just say the word, Jesus, and my servant will be healed. And here's how Jesus responds to this. Check this out. When Jesus heard this, he was amazed at him. So this is a level of amazement that is great. Look at the great faith. Jesus was amazed at the kind of faith that this Roman centurion had. And turning to the crowd, he said, I tell you, I have not found such great faith in all of Israel. But on the flip side of that, there's another time that Jesus was amazed, but he was amazed for the opposite reason. It was when he returned to his hometown of Nazareth. The Bible says in Mark chapter six, verse six,

that he was amazed, not at their great faith, but he was actually amazed at their lack of faith. So there was one place that Jesus didn't do great miracles, and it was in his hometown. Why? Because people were saying, oh, that's just the carpenter. That's just Joseph's son. It was familiar. I have no faith to believe. And that's what kept Jesus from performing incredible miracles. In fact, that's exactly what Matthew chapter 13 says. He did not do many miracles there. Why? Because of their lack of faith. So let me ask you this question. In what way would God be amazed at your level of faith today? Would he be saying, oh, man, I'm amazed at how great of a faith level they have. They're calling and asking me for great things. Or would he be amazed, saying, why aren't they calling on me for healing? Why aren't they asking me for things? How many know God can do it, right? So why don't you take inventory of your life? What kind of prayers have you been praying to God? Are they little prayers that don't take the miraculous? Or are they mountain-sized, faith-filled prayers where you're saying, God,

I believe that nothing is impossible for you. So therefore, the kind of prayers I'm gonna ask you are for great things. God, even if I'm sick in my body and the doctor has said that it's impossible and the doctors have written me off, I still choose to trust in you. Why, God? Because you are able. Not only are you able, you are more than able. Does anybody believe that? It's almost like stoking a fire, right? There's a little fire and you just breathe on that fire and it begins to grow and grow and grow. That's what I've been praying that God would do to us today. Let our faith level grow and rise. And I think thirdly, if you're taking notes, you can write this down too. Our faith isn't based on what God does. Now, this is important because this throws a lot of people off. Our faith isn't based on what God does. Our faith is based on who God is. So here's what this means. I believe God can. In fact, I even believe that God will, but what if he doesn't? What if he doesn't? I mean, all of us have probably prayed for someone and they were not healed.

Of course, we celebrate all the healings, but what about the people that aren't healed when we pray? And I started to look at the New Testament and do you realize that not everyone in the New Testament was healed? Paul writes this in 2 Timothy 4, verse 20. He says, I left Trophimus sick in Miletus. He left his friend there. These are one of the eight friends that accompanied him on his missionary journey. And so he said, I left you sick in this city. Another area or portion of the scripture in 1 Timothy 5, verse 23. Use a little wine because of your stomach and your frequent illness. Well, why didn't he just heal right then? Why wasn't it just healing all the time for everybody? In fact, Paul himself prayed three times about this thorn in the flesh and we don't know exactly what that is, but rather than getting healed of that, God just simply replies, hey, my grace is sufficient for you. So here's this tension, right? We know God heals and we claim it and we just clap for it, but he does not heal everyone every single time. And if we're not careful, this tension can rattle our faith. It can shake our faith. And some of you have asked questions like this.

If God is so good, then why wasn't my mom healed like I was praying for? And if God is so good and God is all powerful, then why did my child still have to pass away? God is a healer, then why isn't he healed my body, pastor? I've been praying for a long time and I've still yet to get my healing. And as a pastor, the only thing I can tell you is an honest answer to that. And the answer is this, I don't know. I don't know why God heals in some moments and I don't know why God doesn't heal the way we expect in other moments, but I do know this, that God is still good. And I don't think we're ever gonna fully understand on this side of eternity. In other words, you could say this, divine healing is important. Yes, but our faith being formed throughout that process might even be more important. God is, yes, interested in what is happening to us, but he may be more concerned with what is happening in our lives. His ways, we'll never understand his ways. Isaiah chapter 55 says, "'For my thoughts are not your thoughts, "'neither are your ways my ways. "'As the heavens are higher than the earth, "'so are my ways higher than yours.'" This is God talking.

My thoughts are higher than your thoughts, and so what we can do when we have these moments of doubt, we have these moments of not understanding, not quite connecting all the dots. Listen, we will never be able to connect all those dots. We don't know why. I mean, we know we live in a fallen world and that sickness is a part of it, and both things can be true. God is still a healer. So we go back to what we know about Jesus, and you can answer this out loud in every campus. Is God real? Yes, come on, let me ask that again. Is God real? Yes. Is he good? Yes. Can he be trusted? Yes. Why, because his ways are higher than ours, right? Is he able? Yes. Yeah, he's more than able. Does he care about your life? Yes, absolutely he does. How do we know that? Because the cross settled that forever. When Jesus died on the cross, we know he cares for us. He has not abandoned us.

So faith does not rest on certain outcomes, the way we think it should be, and God, I want you to heal in this way, and unless you heal in the way that I'm asking, then I don't have any faith. No, faith can still rise, because we say, God, I don't understand all your ways. Your thoughts are high above my thoughts, and so I'm just gonna choose to let my faith in you continue to rise, because you're still good. You're still sovereign. You're still in control. I love reading about the different visitation reports from our team, our care team, that goes and visits people that are in the hospital, and I'll read about those that are diagnosed with things and are experiencing even pain, recovering from surgeries. I mean, you name it, and what stands out to me is not fear or hopelessness. What stands out to me is the peace of God, even in the midst of those struggles. Even though they're going through a storm, they're saying things like, I still trust in God. It's faith that says, yeah, God, I'm going through this, but Lord, you're with me. I love the phrase that says, even your worst days are better with Jesus. Aren't you glad for that? So even when I don't understand his hand, I still trust his sovereignty.

Even when I don't understand his hand, why he chooses to say yes or wait or no, I still understand, I still trust that God is good. Why? Because faith rests in his character. Pray with what you have. So here's where we land today. I believe that God can heal. I believe that God still heals, and I even believe that God will heal. Even if he doesn't heal the way that I expect, he's still good, he's still faithful, he's still worthy of my trust. That is faith that rises. We've intentionally kind of closed a few minutes early for this reason, because at the campuses and here at Curry Ford, we're gonna open these altars and there are people that are sick in their body, and we as the church, just like James says, we're gonna offer up prayers to God and believe that the Lord will heal today. So get ready for this, because I'm gonna pray, and then the campus pastors are gonna take it over, and at all of our campuses, we're gonna be praying for divine healing. Would you get ready for that? Come on, close your eyes, and let's pray to God right now. God, we pray for the miraculous to take place in these next few moments. God, we believe with all of our heart

that you are a God that heals, and I pray that our faith level would rise, that our faith would be on the rise, that we would truly believe as we pray, not just ritual prayers, not just because we're in church, but God, that we would have faith-filled prayers, and there are people that are sick today that we're believing are gonna be healed in the mighty name of Jesus. There is power in your name. There's power in your name, and we're gonna call on that name and believe that you will accomplish what only you can accomplish, and we'll give you the praise for it. In Jesus' name, in Jesus' name. Would you do this? Would you stand to your feet as quietly as you can, and if you're here today, and you're saying, you know what, pastor, that's me, I'm. maybe been diagnosed with something, or I heard a doctor's report that concerns me, or I'm experiencing pain of some kind, that's one of the things that I've even been praying for throughout these last several weeks, that those that are struggling, those that are experiencing pain, that that pain would go away today as we pray. And so the team's gonna lead us, and if that's you, our prayer team is gonna make their way forward,

our pastors are gonna be here, we're gonna believe together, but as they lead us, come on, right now, you need healing in your body, we're gonna spend some time and pray for that healing. Why don't you make your way down? ♪ Oh, I trust in God, my Savior, the one ♪ ♪ Who will never fail, He will never fail ♪ ♪ I trust in God, my Savior, the one who will never fail ♪ ♪ I trust in God, my Savior, the one who will never fail ♪ ♪ He will never fail, I trust in God, my Savior, the one ♪ ♪ Who will never fail, He's a healing God, He will never fail ♪ ♪ I trust in God, my Savior, the one who will never fail ♪ ♪ He will never fail ♪ Come on, church, can you stretch your hands in this direction, and can we pray with great faith? God, we pray to you right now, knowing you are a miracle-working God. Jesus, you are a Savior, you are a healer, and we call upon the mighty name of Jesus right now. We pray for every sick person, God, that you would touch their body. Physically, God, I pray that healing virtues would flow from your side into bodies right now, God. We pray for divine healing. God, we lay our hands on those who are not doing well, God, and I pray for life and wholeness and wellness in Jesus' name. God, for those that are experiencing pain in their body, I pray that that pain would go away right now

in Jesus' name. God, take away headaches. Oh, God, heal bodies right now. God, touch backs right now. In Jesus' name, thank you for the divine that is at work right now. God, you are sovereign and you are working, and we trust in you. God, we are not responsible for the outcome, but we choose to have faith in a very real God right now. And so, God, our faith level is rising. We know that you healed back then, but we also know that you healed today. And so, God, I pray that it will be done. And I come against every attack of the enemy right now. The devil is a liar. He wants to steal from us. He wants to kill us and destroy our lives. But, God, you want what is best for us. And we thank you that we can call on the name that is above every other name. We call upon the name of Jesus Christ. There's healing in that name. Oh, God, there's freedom in that name. There's redemption in that name, and we declare it, God. Touch bodies and touch lives right now in Jesus' name. God, let it be done. As we pray together, God, let it be done in Jesus' name. In Jesus' name, thank you, God. Oh, God, we trust in you.

♪ Lord, I trust in God ♪ ♪ My Savior, the one who will never fail ♪ ♪ He will never fail, yes, I trust, I trust in you, Lord ♪ ♪ Lord, I trust in God, my Savior, the one who will never fail ♪ ♪ Never fail, he will never fail, we believe today, I saw it ♪ ♪ I saw the Lord, and he heard, and he answered ♪ ♪ I saw the Lord, and he heard, and he answered ♪ ♪ I saw the Lord, and he heard, and he answered ♪ ♪ That's why I trust him, that's why I trust him ♪ ♪ I saw the Lord, and he heard, and he healed me ♪ ♪ I saw the Lord, and he heard, and he answered me, I saw it ♪ Son of the Lord, and he heard, and he answered. That's why I trust him, that's why I trust him. Eyes on the Lord, and he heard, And he moved on by the half-icos. Son of the Lord, and he heard, He turned it around, eyes on the Lord, And he heard, and he answered. That's why I trust him, That's why I trust him Lord. Don't watch it, I want you to continue to pray here at these altars, but I do wanna do one more thing before we go. Listen, if you've never accepted Christ before, that is the greatest miracle that could take place, is you surrendering your life to him and watching him cleanse you and shape you and turn you into a brand new person. What a miracle that is, the miracle of salvation. So if that's you today,

and you know that God is tugging at your heart, because you're not in right relationship with God, when I count to three, if that's you, would you raise your hand and we're gonna pray all together? If that's you, one, two, three, I need Jesus. Come on, lift your hand. God bless you, God bless you, God bless you. Anybody else? Come on. Today is the day of salvation, the Bible says. God bless you. God bless you. Church, can we all repeat this together? If you're praying up here at the front, that's fine, but everybody else, just say this out loud. Say, Jesus, I give my life to you. Forgive me of all my sins. Cleanse me. I wanna serve you. And I need a savior. So I need a miracle in my life. Do what only you can do. I am yours. Thank you for saving me. I give you the praise. In Jesus' name. Come on, one more time. Can we just praise God for everything that he's doing in this service at every campus?

Amen. God bless you. We're not gonna have a formal dismissal, but if you need to slip to that aisle, have a wonderful day. Hope to see you on Wednesday night. God bless you guys.