Generation Faith | Pastor Daniel Ethridge | Liberty Live Church

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music music Good morning. Welcome to Liberty Live Church. We are so glad you decided to join us. Today's your first day at Liberty. We'd love to meet you. So text CONNECT to 40371, tap the seat back in front of you, or visit us at one of our next step centers after the service today. We can't wait to meet you. Because of your generosity, lives are being changed right here in Hampton Roads and around the world. When you give, you partner with us to help change lives, communities, and the world for Jesus Christ. You can give through our website, tap the seat in front of you, or through an envelope at your campus today. Thank you for investing in all that God is doing through the work here at Liberty. You know, God is moving in so many incredible ways here at Liberty, from kids to students to young adults to senior adults. There are so many ways for you to find community, discover your purpose, and grow deeper in your relationship with Jesus. So right now, let's look at some exciting things coming up. Don't miss what's happening all throughout the week. So follow us on social media and connect with your campus Facebook group. Thanks again for being here today, where it's not just church, it's life. connect with your campus Facebook group. Thanks again for being here today, where it's not just church, it's life. Thanks again for being here today, where it's not just church, it's life. Good morning Liberty! What a great day to be in the house of the Lord. We are so glad you're joining us here for Church Online here at Liberty. No matter where you're at right now, you could be in your car, you could be on vacation, you could be at home, it does not matter. We are so glad that you're joining us and you are loved and seen and part of the Liberty family. That's right, and we would love to meet you. This is Kyle, I'm Jenny, and drop your name in the chat, let us know where you're streaming from, and if it's your first time ever, if you just stumbled on the stream, if somebody shared it with you, Kyle, what can they do? They can text LIFE to 40371 or you can scan this QR code right here on the screen and fill out that connection card and let us know it's your first time. We'd love to get to know you and get you plugged in here with the Liberty family. That's right. Y'all, we are in a series called By Faith, talking about the heroes

of the faith from Hebrews 11. Last week, Pastor Grant talked about a mother's faith, which is so appropriate because today is parent-child dedication. Parent-child dedication, get your babies on in here. Why don't you tell the Online family what we do for parent-child dedication. What is it all about? We spend a special time during service, you'll see it here online, and it is just the parents saying, I am dedicating my child's life to the Lord. It's not a baptism, it's not a salvation, it is just saying that the parents are committing to grow this child up in the faith. Yeah, it's such a special time. Sweet time during the service. So when y'all see that happen, just praise the Lord with us as we celebrate with these families. Pray for your own families, pray for your own kids, grandkids, and maybe if that's something you wanna think about doing in the future, our next one will be later this fall. So it's early, it's time to plan ahead. So it's a sweet time in our service today. But speaking of family, so much coming up this summer. There's so much coming up. We've got Kids Week and Student Camp. Make sure you check out those on the events page and get your kids signed up for Kids Week and your students signed up for Student Camp. Your kids and your students, your students and your kids, they're going all different directions. It's gonna be an exciting summer. So Kids Week is in June. It's free at all of our Liberty campuses.

Our Gloucester campus and Harborview have kids clubs. They'll be out in the neighborhoods of Gloucester and North Suffolk. And then Student Camp is in Chihuahuan. Chihuahuan. At Chihuahuan University, right? It's not in Chihuahuan? Or is it? No, I don't think Chihuahuan's a town. Chihuahuan's not a town. I can't remember. Murfreesboro. Yes, there it is. Thank you. North Carolina, our students head to North Carolina for a week of camp in the month of July. So y'all sign your kids and students up early. Even if you don't live around here, I knew a family once, they attended here, they moved to North Carolina, and they came back for Kids Week. They came back and brought their students to camp. So it could be like a summer vacation getaway. Come to Hampton Roads for a week, sign them up for camp or Kids Week, and you just hang out at the beach. There you go. Does that sound fun? It does sound fun. But you know what sounds even better

is getting to worship today. Yes, it's gonna be good. Pastor Daniel is gonna be bringing the word this morning. We can't wait to get you to it, so let's go. Church, give God a shout of praise in this place. Come on, you can do better than that. Give God a shout of praise in this place. We've come to worship the King of Kings today. Let's put our hands together. Let's bring them up back. ♪ I have found the hands that bear the scars ♪ ♪ Reach down and rescue me ♪ ♪ I have known the love of the Father's heart ♪ ♪ A prodigal now redeemed ♪ ♪ From where I was to where I'm now ♪ ♪ It's overwhelming ♪ ♪ More and more I see you move, all right ♪ Come on, lift it up. ♪ I can't help but praise you, praise you Lord ♪ ♪ I can't help but lift up shouts of joy ♪ ♪ When I think of how good you've been ♪ ♪ Faithful now to the end ♪ ♪ I can't help but praise you, praise you Lord ♪ Come on, for the blood. ♪ For the blood you spilled to save my life ♪ ♪ A debt I cannot repay ♪ ♪ For the cross you bore with open arms ♪ ♪ Salvation they call my name ♪ ♪ From where I was to where I'm now ♪ ♪ It's overwhelming ♪

♪ To more and more I see you move, all right ♪ Come on, the worship. ♪ I can't help but praise you, praise you Lord ♪ ♪ I can't help but lift up shouts of joy ♪ ♪ When I think, when I think of how good you've been ♪ ♪ Faithful now to the end ♪ ♪ I can't help but praise you, praise you Lord ♪ ♪ Sing I can't help but dance cause I'm free ♪ ♪ Got no chains on me, I'm healed and redeemed ♪ ♪ Sing I can't help but call on the name that buried my shame ♪ ♪ Who opened my grave, sing I can't help but dance cause I'm free ♪ ♪ Got no chains on me, I'm healed and redeemed ♪ ♪ I can't help but call on the name that buried my shame ♪ ♪ Who opened my grave, I can't help but praise you, praise you Lord ♪ ♪ I can't help but lift up, shout to shore ♪ ♪ When I think, when I think of how good you've been ♪ ♪ Faithful now to the end ♪ ♪ I can't help but praise you, praise you Lord ♪ I can't help but praise You, praise You, Lord I can't help but praise You, praise You, Lord Come on, give Him praise in His praise! Holy praise! So many reasons to praise, so many reasons to be thankful. If God has been faithful to you, let me hear you right now. Thank you, Jesus, for everything you have done. Man, this morning, we're going to take time out of what a normal Sunday looks like, and here's why. Because this morning, we have parents bringing their babies across the stage to say, Jesus, I know You've given me this blessing, and I'm trusting Him or her back to You. And so, we take time on a Sunday morning, aside from everything else, because we believe God has given us a gift to steward, and this morning, we're going to go to war for the

gift He's given us to steward. We're going to pray for these families, we're going to pray for these kids. Why? Because when you are dead and gone, they will be the people that carry the banner of the local church. They will be the people that push back darkness. They will be the people that stand on stages like this and declare of the good things that God has done in their life and the lives of the people around them. John writes in 3 John, nobody reads 3 John, right? When do we get to 3 John? He writes in verse 4 of his third letter, and he says this, I have no greater joy than to know that my kids are walking with the Lord. No greater joy. A man that walked with Jesus, a man that saw miracles, a man that watched the local church explode. And he says, no, I have one thing that I would rank above every other thing Jesus has let me experience, and it is to watch my kids walk with Jesus. What an incredible statement. This morning, that's what we're going to do. We're going to pray that that would be true of these families. And so, I want to invite up Stacey Dunbar. She's our preschool director here. Everybody give it up for Stacey. I love it. Good morning. This morning, we have 11 families that are dedicating their children to the Lord, and it's such an honor to serve them. First, we have Mason and Olivia dedicating Isla. We have Austin and Jesse dedicating Sawyer. Jonathan and Katie Beth dedicating Aspen.

Nick and Kylie dedicating Mason and Matthew. Dylan and Millie dedicating Autumn Faith. Brian and Bailey dedicating Sunny. Manuel and Edna dedicating Abriella. Kelsey and Adriana dedicating Talaia. Alexis dedicating Rhea. Sammy and Jean dedicating Hazariah. I love it, I love watching all the babies, all the families, the grandparents, the people who are supporting. Here's what I'm gonna do, I'm gonna ask any staff or life team to come down front and we're gonna pray over these families. We're gonna pray, why? Because one, God will use them. Two, because there's a target on their back and the enemy wants to tear down everything God meant for good, but we will not allow him a foot in the door with these families. And so life team, pastoral staff, come down front. We're gonna just lay hands on the families and then here's what I want you to do. If you're not on the life team, but you're here this morning, this is not just for them, this is for you. Reach out a hand for me this morning and join me during this time of prayer. Give life team a couple more seconds to come down front. I love it, I love being a part of a church that believes this is the church of tomorrow.

I love being a part of a church that takes time to celebrate moments like this. God, thank you for every family that's represented up here. God, thank you that you have plans for every little baby that walked across that stage. God, thank you that you're a God who says, I will do exceedingly and abundantly more than you could ever ask or think. So right now, Father, we're asking for exceedingly and abundantly more than every family up here could ask or think, than every prayer that's been prayed over them already. God, I'm asking for more in the lives of these kids. God, I'm asking that these kids would grow up and they would be image bearers, they would be light bearers and they would push back darkness and they would thwart the plans of the enemy and we would see them push back the gates of hell. God, I'm asking that you would use these babies down here right now to make heaven a little more full and hell a little more empty. God, would you use these families? God, would you protect these parents? Would you give them grace when the days are long? Grace when the nights are long. Grace when they don't know what to do next and grace when they don't know what to do next. God, would you use these parents? God, would you use these parents

in such an incredible and tangible way? God, we give you all the praise, we give you all the glory and we offer every kid right here back to you. So God, we love you, we praise you and it is in Jesus' name, everyone in here said, amen, amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. We praise you. Amazing. He's so- He's a Heaven-heavenly God. He's God. And you're a heaven-heavenly Father that his love for us has been growing with him. And you're a loving God that his love for our children and grandchildren has been growing with Jesus because finality and power. Jesus is He who made us what we know we are.

Father, we try to give you everything we need but in all of your mercy and songs, your voice with me, he's worthy of all our praise. Blessed are those who walk with him, whose hearts are set on pilgrimage with Jesus, they'll see his glory. Blessed are those who die to live, whose joy it is to give it all for Jesus and for him only. Oh, Jesus, all for your glory. Come on and praise the Lord with me. Come on and lift your voice with me. Sing it, you'll love his name. Come on and lift your voice with me. He's worthy of all our praise. Come on and bring your offering. Sing it, you'll know his grace. Come on and lift up your holy hands. He's worthy of all our praise. ♪ Bless God in the sanctuary ♪ Bless God in the fields of plenty ♪ Bless God in the darkest valley ♪ Every chance I get I bless your name ♪ Bless God when my hands are empty ♪ Bless God with the praise that calls me ♪ Bless God when nobody's watching ♪ Every chance I get I bless your name ♪ Bless God when the weapons pouring ♪ Bless God when the walls are falling

♪ Bless God good he goes before me ♪ Every chance I get I bless your name ♪ Bless God for he holds the victory ♪ Bless God for he's always with me ♪ Bless God for he's always worthy ♪ Every chance I get I bless your name ♪ Every chance I get I bless your name ♪ Every chance I get ♪ Come on and praise the Lord with me ♪ Sing if you love his name ♪ Come on and lift your voice with me ♪ He's worthy of all praise ♪ Come on and bring your offering ♪ Sing if you know his praise ♪ Come on and lift up your holy hands ♪ He's worthy of all our praise ♪ Yes he's worthy of all our praise ♪ All our praise Bless your name Jesus. ♪ Sing you're worthy of it all ♪ You're worthy of it all Come on all over this room. ♪ For from you are all things ♪ And to you are all things ♪ You deserve the glory Come on one more time. Sing you're worthy. ♪ You're worthy of it all No one else Jesus. ♪ You're worthy of it all

♪ For from you are all things ♪ And to you are all things ♪ You deserve the glory We worship you Jesus. Jesus we worship you. We honor you. We bless your name and we declare that you're worthy that there's nobody like you. There's no one beside you and we worship you for who you are and for what you've done. Thank you Jesus. We bless your name. And everybody said amen. We're so glad you joined us for church today. Why don't you turn to your neighbor, greet him and say I'm so glad to see you this morning. Y'all can be seated. Say I'm so glad to see you this morning. Y'all can be seated. Good morning and welcome to Liberty. Are you excited to be at church today? This morning we are continuing our series called By Faith in Hebrews chapter 11. I want you to take out your Bible. your Bibles at every location. Turn to Hebrews chapter 11. We're going through the heroes of the hall of faith. And so excited to continue this morning. As you turn in your Bibles to Hebrews 11,

I wanna let you know about two things coming up. The first one is the Liberty Leadership Institute, they're putting on a symposium. And I'm just so thankful for what God's doing among our business owners and business leaders in our community. And it's gonna be an incredible day. It's a half day experience. It starts out with a breakfast that morning. You'll hear from different teachers throughout the day. Everything from building a business plan to emotional intelligence and being a leader that leads with emotional intelligence. We'd love for you to come be a part of that. It's on May 30th right here in the chapel at our Hampton campus. And you can go online and sign up for that. Libertylive.church slash events. It's where you always sign up for the events that happen here. And the second one is, it's already been a big weekend. I know so many people have graduated from college and some of the private schools even having their high school graduations. And so it's that season where we celebrate graduates and we take time out of a service every year to honor our graduates and what God's done in their life. So I just want you to know, we're gonna honor our graduates on June 7th. We'd love for you to register

so that we know who your graduate is and where they're graduating from. And we'd love the opportunity to get to celebrate what God's doing in their life and to get to pray over them as they step into the next chapter. So moms, dads, grandparents, if you have a graduate, please go on and register them so that we can honor them that day. Well, have you found Hebrews 11? Hebrews chapter 11. Today, we're only looking at two verses. We're gonna look at verse 20 and verse 21. I've entitled this message, generational faith. Generational faith. This is such an appropriate text, especially in light of parent-child dedication at every location. And I can't wait for you to see this. It would really be impossible for me to cover the entire lives of the two characters we're gonna look at today. And so I'm gonna try to stay focused just simply on what the writer of Hebrews focuses in on. Hebrews chapter 11, starting in verse 20, this is what it says. By faith, Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau concerning things to come. By faith, Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph

and he worshiped, leaning on the top of his staff. Let's pray together. Holy Spirit, we welcome you here. We invite you here. We need to hear from you today. We need what only you can do. We need your encouragement. We need your strength. We need your spirit. We need your guidance. We need your correction. We need your joy. And so God, I pray right now that you would meet with us like only you can. Right where everyone is listening, I pray that you would surround them with your Holy Spirit. God, I pray that there would just be an awareness of your presence at work in our lives and among us. God, I pray as I always pray that my preaching would not rest in the clever or cunning words of men, but in power and in demonstration of the spirit of God so that our faith might rest in your spirit. God, would you do what only you can do. God, my thoughts. God, my words. Speak now to your people. In Jesus' holy, precious name we pray. Everybody said? Amen. Amen.

This morning we're looking at the faith of Isaac and Jacob. The faith of Isaac and Jacob. It's impossible to capture somebody's entire life in one verse. And yet the writer of Hebrews only gives each of these characters one line. We're gonna look at the one line that he gives them. And if you want homework this week, to go spend time and really study the depth of this, starting in Genesis 21 and going all the way to Genesis 48, you get the lives, the full lives of both of these characters. And I'm gonna warn you in advance, it is a mess. Their lives are a mess. Their family, their stories are messy. And praise God, we know as a church that the gospel isn't for people who have it all together. Hello, somebody. The gospel is for those who need Jesus the most. For those of us. who are falling apart, the gospel is for every one of us. And I'm so thankful we're not a church of perfect people and we don't claim to be and we don't try to be, hello. But we are a people who know our need for Jesus. And so I want you to see just in these two verses, three clear things that I think stick out in scripture. The first thing that I see are strongholds from the past. Strongholds from the past. The verse starts out, by faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau concerning the things to come.

And honestly, that line, it feels like a very clean, very pretty line. Isaac blessed his two sons. But if you know anything about their story, you know that this is a crazy story to end up in the faith hall of fame. Isaac, excuse me, Jacob and Esau are twin boys. And from the very beginning, those twins are completely against each other. They're at odds. They're polar opposite. And they're at war from literally the moment that they're born. In fact, scripture will tell us when they were born, the younger one was clutching the other one's heel. He was holding on to his foot. And that's how they come into the world. And the rest of their lives, they're gonna be at war with one another. I told you, dysfunctional family. And Isaac goes to bless Esau and he ends up blessing both sons. And that's what the writer of Hebrews draws our attention to. Genesis 27 is where the story's found. Isaac was getting on up there in years. And he decides that he needs to call his oldest son to him to bless him. This is what scripture says. Genesis 27 verse one, when Isaac was old,

and his eyes were so weak that he could no longer see, he called for Esau, his older son, and said to him, my son, here I am, he answered. Isaac said, I'm now an old man. And don't know the day of my death. Now, can I tell you something? This is not really to do with the sermon. It's just an important note. He's gonna live for another decade. But he's reaching the point in his life where he knows he's getting older and he immediately starts making preparation. It's so wise. We need to think about those who are coming along after us and make preparation for the day when we will die because none of us know when it's gonna happen. And so we need to have our house in order. He's getting his in order. Now then, get your equipment, he says to Esau, your quiver and your bow, and go out to the open country to hunt some wild game for me. Prepare for me the kind of tasty food I like and bring it to me to eat so that I may give you my blessing before I die. I told you the boys are very different. Esau is a rugged man. He's a ruddy man, scripture would say. He's a tough man. He spends all of his days out in the field and hunting. And his father loves his oldest son.

This is not a shock because culturally in that day, the blessing, the birthright, and all of the inheritance went to the oldest son. That was the cultural precedence. And so Isaac is getting ready to die, is what he thinks. And he says, well, now that I'm old and I can't see well anymore, I'm gonna call my oldest son to him and I'm gonna bless him. But what happens is Rebecca, his wife, hears him making that plan and she has another plan of her own. See, the boys weren't the only ones divided in the house. The parents were divided too. Look at this. Genesis 25 tells us Isaac loved Esau because he ate of his game. This is so funny to me. The way to a man's heart is through his stomach. Amen, somebody. Isaac loved Esau because he was the oldest son. That's not what it says. Isaac loved Esau because he was a strong man. That's not what it says. Isaac loved Esau because he ate of his game. And ironically, that's what he tells Esau. Hey, go get me something to eat and make it the food that I like. But look at this. Rebecca loved Jacob.

It wasn't just the boys that were divided. The parents were divided. I mean, parents, can you imagine having a favorite child? I mean, surely y'all wouldn't have a favorite child, would you? Not that we would claim anyways. My kids aren't that old, but I'm just convinced in every season, somebody is gonna be my favorite. So I have a favorite in this season, but the other one was my favorite in another season, you know, but they definitely have favorites. And I think Rebecca loved Jacob for a reason. When the boys were born, the Lord had given her a very specific promise. Genesis 25, verse 23. The Lord said to her, two nations are in your room. Two peoples from within you shall be divided. The one shall be stronger than the other. Listen to this. The older shall serve the younger. Now think, before the boys were ever born, a God had placed something in her heart, a prophecy about the future of their lives. And it's the reason that she took special care and attention. of Jacob, and Jacob is a mama's boy. He loves his mom, and spends most of the time in the house. Scripture would tell us he's a good cook, but it's a very different type of cooking

than Esau's doing. And when Rebecca hears that Isaac is gonna bless the older son, she says, no, no, no, this isn't the plan of God, and I'll devise my own plan. And she convinces her son to dress up as his brother. She helps him get ready. And she convinces him to lie to his dad, and pretend to be his older brother. It's important for you to know, God had actually told her that the older would serve the younger. God had already spoken a prophecy over their lives, but God did not need help fulfilling what was gonna happen. Every time, when we go about things our own way, when we come up with our own plan, when we do our own thing, it always brings destruction and heartache. Well, you say, but yeah, but she already knew that the blessing belonged to Jacob. It wasn't her job to get involved in the plan of God and help God work it out. And it's not our job either. You say, well, God spoke something over my life. Well, if he spoke it, he'll fulfill it. Faithful is he who called, and he will also do it. He who began a good work will see it to completion. And a lot of us spend all of our time getting ahead of God.

It's like Moses who kills an Egyptian trying to vindicate the people of God. Well, they're gonna be vindicated, and God's gonna use Moses to do it, but not right now, and not like this. And Rebecca and Jacob get ahead of the plan of God. And Jacob has full responsibility over the sin, and he ends up going to his father and lying to him. Genesis 27 records it in verse 19. Jacob said to his father, I'm Esau, your firstborn. No, he's not. And I've done as you've told me. Please sit up and eat some of my game so that you may give me your blessing. Now, look what happens. Remember, he can't see. So he went to him and kissed him. And when Isaac caught the smell of his clothes, you know what that means? Esau was stinking. He was stinking. He didn't smell good. He smelled like the field. When he caught the smell of his clothes, he blessed him and said, ah, the smell of my son is like the smell of the field. I told you that the Lord is blessed. May God give you heaven's due and earth's riches, an abundance of grain and new wine. May nations serve you and peoples bow down to you.

Be Lord over your brothers, and may the sons of your mother bow down to you. Now, listen to this line. May those who curse you be cursed, and those who bless you be blessed. Genesis chapter 12 records the blessing that God gave to Abraham, the promise that God gave to Abraham. And that last line is the exact blessing that God himself spoke over Abraham. Now, Abraham's grandson is receiving the blessing of God. And yet, Isaac is doing this as an act of faith. God's gonna fulfill his promise to my father. And in his moment of faith, Jacob is deceiving him. Well, Esau comes back in from the field. When Esau heard his father's words, he burst out with a loud and bitter cry and said to his father, bless me, me too, my father. But he said, your brother came deceitfully and took your blessing. And Esau said, isn't he rightly named Jacob? The name Jacob literally translates deceiver. I mean, wouldn't you like that to be your name? One of my best friends is named Jacob. He's in the service. He's a good guy though, not a deceiver. I mean, nobody, when you're thinking about your baby's name and you're like going through the baby books and you're looking at all these meanings of names, nobody is like, you know what I want my kid to be?

A deceiver. I think that's a good identity for him to walk in. Nobody does that. And Jacob, you're gonna learn, he receives a new identity and praise God, he doesn't live the rest of his life. I think his name today is even redeemed because of the life that he lived. But there was an identity over Jacob. And I want you to see, this is a problem in their entire lineage. Abraham lied multiple times and said that his wife was actually his sister. I mean, if you're gonna lie, that is not the lie to choose. And he was afraid and he thought it would spare his life. Isaac ends up lying and doing the exact same thing. lying about who his wife is. And now Jacob comes along and follows in this deceitful patterns. I'm trying to tell you there are strongholds from the past that are very alive in Jacob's life. Generational sins that have been passed down. You ever notice you look like your parents? I mean, it's a terrifying day when you look in the mirror, you hear yourself talk and you go, that is my dad. Oh Lord, help us. I look like my dad, I'm talking like my dad. You know what's even more terrifying than that I think? When you hear your kids and you go, that's me. They sound like me and it's never the good parts of me. It's like of all the things I say in this house,

that's what you're gonna walk around repeating? We look like our parents, we talk like our parents, we act like our parents and if we're not careful, we sin like them too. And you know I'm telling the truth. There are these generational strongholds that have been passed down from generation to generation. Patterns of sin that we walk in. Some of it, honestly, I think it is our environment. It's what you see, it's what's modeled for you. I think when Isaac lied about who his wife was, he had seen his daddy do that. But honestly, some of it feels so much deeper than that. I mean, there is this sin nature that just absolutely takes over our life. There are these strongholds. And have you noticed people are inclined to different sins? Your issue might not be my issue. These generational patterns of strongholds. In fact, many people call this idea generational curses. I actually almost use that as the title for this point. But I chose strongholds from the past on purpose because there's something about this phrase that I just do not like. It feels like something that's happened to me or been spoken over me that I cannot break free from. And there are some of you who actually believe, I'm preaching to somebody this morning. You actually believe that who you are is what you've done. You're actually defined by your sin.

Like Jacob, you don't just lie, you are the deceiver. Our culture loves to grab onto sins and make them our identities. One of the most powerful things you can ever say as a parent is I know that's what you did, but that's not who you are. Because if they ever realize who God created them to be, the identity that God gave them from birth, if they ever knew who they really were, they would live and act different. So we have to be so careful in speaking the wrong identity over our children. I'm asking you, what if people spoken over you that still has a stronghold on your life? Somebody, a teacher, a coach, a friend, a coworker, a grandparent, a parent spoke something over you and you held on to that and your whole life you've lived under the identity of that. It might even be what you did, but listen to me, that's not who you are. That's not who God made you to be. And we've got to take responsibility because the reality is every single one of us have these sins that we're bent toward and these patterns of sin that we walk in, but you can be free in Jesus. I'm so tired of meeting with church members and watching families that generation after generation, decade after decade, fall to the same sins over and over. And if just one person in the line

would step up and walk with God, if just one person would receive the power of the Holy Spirit and what Jesus had done, if just one person would wake up to the idea of who God made you to be, I'm telling you the stronghold would be broken in your life. I really don't like the term generational curses because this is what scripture says about Jesus. Christ redeemed us from the curse by becoming a curse for us. For cursed is everything hung on a tree. It comes from an idea in the Old Testament. When they put a snake, Moses lifted high the snake in the desert, and it was a picture of how Christ would be lifted up as the sin sacrifice for all of us. He became the curse so you don't have to live under it, which means today, the very things that have defined all of your life and the very things that have bound you, you could leave here free from, come on somebody. I love how Peter puts it. You're a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation belonging to our God so that you can declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. The strongholds from the past. that I see in this story are unbelievable. This family is so messed up. And yet Isaac in faith chooses to bless,

listen, both of his sons. You know why I believe he chose to bless both of them? Because he'd already given the rightful blessing and birthright to his younger son on accident. But I believe he blessed both of them because he loved both of them. And his blessing over Esau is one day you're gonna break free from your brother's rule. He knew that would so bother him for the rest of your life, but that prophecy over his life came true. He broke free from it. Can I tell you, there's something greater than generational curses, and it's generational blessing. The second thing that I see is blessings for the future. Blessings for the future. It's what the verse emphasizes. By faith, Isaac, you say it, blessed. By faith, Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph. I think this is the main idea that the writer of Hebrews is trying to focus in on. Both of them chose to bless their sons and their grandsons. The word here that's used for bless is where we get the word eulogy. Eulogy. Well, we think a eulogy as a statement encapsulating someone's life after the fact. That's how we use it still today. After someone passes away, we honor all of their life with this eulogy,

a statement about who they were and what they did. And yet, the Greek here has this idea. It's the exact same concept, but instead of coming after somebody's life, you're speaking what somebody's gonna walk in and become. The power of the spoken word is so important. In Hebrews, this idea is the word, in Hebrew, rather, the idea is from the word barak. And I'm gonna talk about this at the end of the sermon as well. The word barak means to bless or to praise. And it's used in multiple ways throughout the Old Testament, but the very first time we see the word is in Genesis 1, verse 22. God baraked them. God blessed them. And this is what he said. Be fruitful, multiply, and fill the waters of the seas, and let the birds multiply on the earth. I do not think it's an accident that the very first time we get the idea of blessing is God speaking everything into existence. Because you have to know this morning that death and life are in the power of the tongue. You have no idea the power of what you speak when you proclaim the truth of the word of God and you speak it into somebody's life. We've gotta get to the ability as a people to see what God sees and to call it out. When you come into contact with somebody,

to see what God sees, to see them as God sees them, and to call it out of them so that they can walk in the fullness of it. See, beyond generational curses, there's the idea of generational blessing. That's the very thing that we just tried to do with parent-child dedication, to speak over these children's lives what we believe God has for the fullness of them to walk in. The second illustration that he gives here is Jacob blesses both of the sons of Joseph. Now, I don't have time to recount the whole story, but you know Joseph ends up by the sovereignty of God in Egypt. A famine comes up and Joseph is able to save not just his own family and people, but literally the known world at that time, the most powerful nation, the nation of Egypt, because God had sovereignly placed him where he was supposed to be when he was supposed to be there. And he gets the opportunity to bring his father to see him all these years later after his father thought he was dead. The story's found in Genesis 48. When Israel saw Joseph's sons, he said, who are these? See, his whole life, he thought his son Joseph was dead. And yet, he's been living this life that his father knows nothing about, and now he has family and children of his own. And at his old age, Jacob, he's now called Israel,

Jacob comes to Egypt and he meets his grandchildren he didn't even know he had. This is so amazing. Joseph said to his father, these are my sons. God's given me here. And so Israel said, bring them to me and I will bless them. Look what it says, just like his daddy. His eyesight was poor because of his old age, and he could hardly see. So what happens is Jacob gets ready to bless them, but he can't see. And so Joseph brings both of the sons close. And because the strong side in that day was known as the right side, that's why Jesus is at the right hand of God. Acob knew that he would position his oldest on his right and his youngest on his left, and he was gonna lay hands on them and bless them. But as he went to bless them, he crossed his hands over, and he gave the greater blessing to the younger son. Does this sound familiar? It's what happened to him. And he chooses to cross his arms, and Joseph sees it, and he tries to correct it. When Joseph saw that his father had placed his right hand on Ephraim's head, he thought it was a mistake, and he took his father's hand to move it from Ephraim's head to Manasseh. And Joseph said to his father,

no, not that way, my father. This one is the firstborn. Put your right hand on his head. But his father refused and said, I know, my son, I know. He too will become a tribe. He too will be great. Nevertheless, his younger brother will be greater than he, and his offspring will become a populous nation. Now, listen to this. So he blessed them that day, put Ephraim before Manasseh, when he said, the nation Israel will invoke blessings by saying, may God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh. Jacob's old. He's coming to the end of his life. He goes to bless not just his sons, his grandsons in Egypt. And I believe the writer of Hebrews calls this out because this statement is unbelievable. Listen, the nation Israel will invoke blessings by you saying, may God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh. There's one problem with that statement. The nation of Israel didn't exist yet. At the end of his life, a famine has almost destroyed the known world. His family has almost starved to death. He finds out that his son that he thought was dead is actually alive, and God provides what they need

and brings all of them to Egypt. And Jacob blesses his grandchildren, telling them, hey, when God keeps the word he gave to my dad and my grandfather, that nation will call you blessed. You gotta see the faith of this moment. It's unbelievable. And then the scripture that we read in Hebrews gives us this detail. By faith, Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph, and he worshiped, leaning on the top of his staff. This is the last thing that I see. I see worship in the present, not just strongholds in the past, not just blessings for the future. I see worship in the present. The verse comes just a few verses before the one we just read in Genesis chapter 47. When the time approached for him to die, he called his son Joseph and said to him, if I have found favor with you, put your hand under my thigh and promise me that you will deal with me in kindness and faithfulness. It was a sign of a covenant. Look at this. Do not bury me in Egypt. When I rest with my ancestors, carry me away from Egypt.

Bury me in their burial place. And Joseph answered, I will do what you have asked. And Jacob said, swear to me. So Joseph swore to him. And then Israel bowed in thanks at the head of his bed. And Hebrews 11 tells us he worshiped. What a picture of generational worship. A grandfather over 100 years old can barely stand bowing at the foot of his bed. Hebrews would tell us leaning on his staff to worship the God he knew would keep his promises. But the promise hadn't come yet. But the land wasn't theirs. But now three generations in, the promise remains unanswered. Where is this nation that God promised Abraham? Where is this land that he told him he would give it to him? Well, it's under the control of somebody else. And Jacob, as he's dying, says, son, when I die and you go to the land God promised, I want you to dig up my bones and I want you to take me where God told me he would take us. The unbelievable faith that he would worship at the end of his life, believing that God was going to keep his word. What promise feels impossible in your life? What did God tell you that hasn't been fulfilled yet?

God always keeps his word. And even if you go into the grave without seeing the fullness of it, I'm telling you the fullness, the fulfillment of it is still coming. I love this word. I told you. In the Hebrew, I think I'm frozen, guys. In the Hebrew, the word blessed is barak. And all throughout the Old Testament, it's used as a word which means to praise, to bless the Lord, to praise, to worship. And that's exactly what Hebrews tells us he was doing. But as I was studying, really what it meant, because I got confused multiple times, and in the passage I just read you, it's translated to bow down or to be brought low. And I read this in a commentary, and I wanna read it to you. When humans barak God, it means they offer praise and adoration. When God baraks humans, when he blesses humans, it carries the idea of bringing down in humility to elevate and to empower. There was a moment in Jacob's life where his identity forever changed. The moment is found in Genesis 32. Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him until daybreak. When the man saw that he could not defeat him,

he struck Jacob's hip socket as they wrestled and dislocated his hip. And then he said to Jacob, let me go for it's daybreak. But Jacob said, I will not let you go unless you barak me. Bless me. What is your name? The man asked. Can I tell you something? He already knew his name, and he already knew his identity. God knows you. He knows what identity you sit here with this morning. He knows what sin and what struggle has overcome your life. He understands the depth of the stronghold that has threatened to ruin every season of your life. And God knew Jacob in this moment. But he says, what's your name? Jacob, he replied. Your name will no longer be Jacob, he said. It will be Israel. Because you've struggled with God and with men and have prevailed. And then Jacob asked him, please tell me your name. But he answered, why do you ask my name? And he baraked him there. He blessed him. And Jacob then named the place Penuel. For I have seen God face to face, he said, yet my life has been spared. And the sun shone on him as he passed by Penuel,

limping because of his hip. Jacob wrestles all night with a man. And that man wasn't just any man, it was the angel of the Lord. I think it is an Old Testament Christophany. I think the reason he can't say his name is because the name of Jesus will be revealed soon, but not yet. It's my personal opinion. But he wrestles all night with the Lord and the Lord throws his hip out of socket. And the rest of his life from this moment on, he will drag that leg behind him with a cane. And yet that brokenness, scripture tells us, is the blessing of God. He limped away from that place broken, but it was the greatest gift he had ever been given because it was the blessing of God. For the rest of his life, he would know how much he had to depend on the Lord. Every step, I can't take this step without you. He would know how much he depended on God. He would know his need for God like never before. Now I'm telling you, when God barracks you, when he breaks you, when he brings you low, it is really a blessing because in those moments you see him like never before. Look, I have seen God face to face. It's like Job saying at the end of the book of Job, I'd heard of you with my ears,

but now I see you with my own eyes. And the breaking of God became the blessing of Jacob's life. And from that time on, he left behind that old identity. He walked with a limp, but he walked under the identity of the nation of Israel. And you think the circumstances of your life, God allowed to destroy you. Now I'm preaching to somebody. You came in this room this morning, you logged online this morning, you came to one of our campuses this morning. It feels like the enemy's attack on your life has all but killed you. It feels like he, all of this has happened so that the enemy can destroy who God meant you to be. And I'm telling you, God sovereignly allowed it. not just to break you, God wants to bless you. And he understands that men and women cannot be used by him until they're broken of their flesh, until they're fully surrendered to his will, until they give him everything and receive the identity that only he can place on him. And what the enemy means to destroy, God will turn it for good. The enemy will play into the hand of God so that he can make you into who you're really supposed to be. It's why it's so significant that the writer of Hebrews adds this little line. "'Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph,

and he worshiped, leaning on the top of his staff. In the last moments of his life, he pulled himself up on that staff, the very staff that God had used to break him, the very staff that God had used to show his dependence on him. And he held himself up on that staff and he worshiped the Lord, fully surrendered to him.'" I had just started traveling in college and I really loved the Lord. I wanted to go into ministry and to serve him. And I started traveling, leading worship. And I love, still to this day, I love worshiping the Lord in music. I just love it. But in my college years, but in my college years, I just, I started doing things I shouldn't do. And I stopped spending time with God and I got away from God. The problem was I still had a ministry almost every day of the week to perform and do. And platforms and opportunities, ministry will take you further. Talent can take you further than characters can sustain you. And I was serving the Lord, traveling, doing ministry. And I became so miserable because I was a hypocrite. And I knew that what I was preaching and singing every night, I wasn't living out.

And I got really desperate for the Lord. It's the only time in my life where genuinely I felt suicidal. I so hated who I was that I thought, I know I'm a believer, but I can't live in sin like this. And if God will just take me home, then I won't be left with all this struggle and mess. And I begged the Lord to help me and He did. And I had just gone to one of the largest churches in America in Texas for an internship. And I went in the office and I got called in and all of my sin came to the surface, not because I chose to, because God in His grace allowed it to be exposed. And they fired me on the spot. I got a call from the man that I worked for back at Liberty University. They fired me on the spot. I was 20 something hours from home. I had lost my job, lost my ministry. I had ruined the opportunity that God had given me. And I got in the car and I jumped on that interstate to drive 20 something hours home by myself. And it was the lowest I'd ever felt. And I thought, I need to end it all right here. There was a particular highway that I was pulling over that didn't have railings on the side. And I thought if I just, it was this overwhelming pull. If I just cut off this bridge, then it'll all be over.

And right about that time, I looked down at my phone and my phone went off. It was a great friend, John Michael Ritchie. He texted me. He said, I was just reading this verse. He had no clue what was going on. I was just reading this verse in the Old Testament. And God told me to send it to you. And I looked down at my phone and it was out of Micah 6. You will not rejoice over me, my enemy. For though I fall, yet I will rise. The Lord will be a light unto me. I will bear the indignation of the Lord because I sin greatly against Him, but He will vindicate my cause. I started, I started crying so hard, I pulled over to the side of the road and I knew that the Lord was meeting me at the lowest point in my life. And for 20-something years, and hours on the way home, I worshiped Him like I had never worshiped Him before. Those next years, I wrestled with God. It was not an overnight journey, I'm telling you. I'd never wrestled with God like I did over those next few years, but He started healing me and restoring me, forgiving me, freeing me. And I would not be who I am today

without the blessing of that season. I'm telling you, I've never shared that story publicly like this. And I wrestled with this if I was gonna share it all week. And I'm sharing it this morning because there are some people right now in here, somebody listening online, you think your life is over, but it's not. You think all this is gonna destroy you, but it won't. But God intends to use this season to make you like never before, to speak a new identity over your life, to restore you, to give you the life He always meant for you, to make you into who you were meant to be. I wonder if you've ever truly surrendered your life to Him. I want every head bowed, every eye closed, every campus, every location, nobody looking around. Jesus bore all of your sin upon the cross. He became a curse for you so that you can be saved and freed. Have you ever trusted in Him? There is no way to be right with God apart from the sacrifice of Jesus. You can't work it up, you can't earn it. You can't become good enough, you can't do it on your own. All you can do is surrender to Jesus. So even right now, will you surrender to Him? You pray a simple prayer just like this, Jesus, I need you. Will you come and save me?

Will you be the Lord of my life? I give you everything I have. Lord, will you redeem my life? Will you rescue me? I need your identity. I need your grace. I need your freedom. I need your salvation. Jesus, I am yours. It's in your holy, precious name, the name of Jesus that we pray. Amen. Amen. Church family, I believe the Lord just used a man who limped for a season to call people home for the very first time. And God's word says, when one sinner repents and turns from their ways, all of heaven rejoices. Can we join heaven this morning? Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. If that was you, we wanna walk with you. It's just a bunch of people limping around, trying to get it right. By the grace of God, let us partner with you. If you have your phone, pull it out, tap the seat back in front of you.

You'll see some prompts there. If your phone doesn't have that capability, just text yes to 40371, and let us go on the journey with you. We wanna partner with you. Life is hard enough on your own. Let somebody come and bear some of the burdens with you. Maybe this morning, you're like, man, I need to lay some of that stuff down. I need to surrender a false identity. This morning, I know this is true. There are people in the room, God is calling you to be the one that breaks generational curses, but you're struggling because you are so, you're so under the belief that this is who you are. And I'm telling you, in a moment, God can break that this morning. In an instant, God can replace the false identity He didn't give you, and He can speak a new word over you, the one He's wanted you to carry all along. So stand with me all over this place. Stand with me, and we're gonna respond. The altar is open. I'm gonna invite our staff and our life team members down front to pray with you. Somebody's gonna be here to walk through that with you. It might be that you get down here and you don't have the words.

You can't cry out to God, and you just need somebody to carry the burden with you. Come on, we're here for you this morning. We wanna walk through that with you this morning. The altar is open. The response is simple. Come surrender everything. It's okay if you're broken. Jesus does some of His best work with broken people. Jesus, all over the room right now, I'm asking that you would reveal a new word to your people. Jesus, all over the room right now, I'm asking that you would speak a new identity over people who have grabbed one the enemy offered, but you didn't offer, that have grabbed one that they offered themselves that you didn't offer. Jesus, right now, in an instant, I pray that you would speak new words over people who are just broken and hurting. And God, that they would be people this morning that stick a flag in the ground and say, no more, no more generational brokenness for me and my family. It starts with me because of the grace Jesus offers me today. Would you do that for them right now? We love you and we praise you in Jesus' name, amen. When the music fades and all is stripped away And I simply come

Wanting just to bring Something that's of worth That will bless your heart I'll bring you more than a song For a song in itself Is not what you have required You search much deeper within Through the way things appear You're looking into my heart I'm coming back to the heart of worship When it's all about you It's all about you, Jesus I'm sorry, Lord, for the thing I've made it When it's all about you It's all about you, Jesus It's all about you King of endless worth No one could express how much you deserve And though I'm weak and poor All I have is yours Every single breath I'll bring you more than a song For a song in itself Is not what you have required You search much deeper within Through the way things appear You're looking into my heart See, I'm coming I'm coming back to the heart of worship When it's all about you

It's all about you, Jesus I'm sorry, Lord, for the thing I've made it When it's all about you It's all about you See, I'm coming I'm coming back to the heart of worship When it's all about you It's all about you, Jesus I'm sorry, Lord, for the thing I've made it When it's all about you It's all about you, Jesus It's all about you It's all about you, Jesus It's all about you It's all about you It's all about you Sing one more time, I'm coming back I'm coming back to the heart of worship When it's all about you It's all about you I'm sorry, Lord When it's all about you It's all about you, Jesus It's such a powerful word by Pastor Daniel. And if you prayed that prayer alongside him to believe and follow Jesus for the very first time, let me be the first to tell you, congratulations, that is the best decision that you will ever make. And we, as your Liberty Online family,

wanna come alongside you in this journey of faith. Text LIFE to 40371 so we can send you a free Bible because that is your new playbook for life. That's how the Lord is gonna speak to you each and every day as you grow in your faith with him. Maybe you've been following Jesus for a while, well, your next step is baptism. Get to a campus near you so we can have you baptized and just come alongside you as you grow in your faith. Whatever your next step is, you have won in your journey of faith and we wanna support you as your Liberty Online family. So hey, we love you. We'll see you right back here next Sunday as we continue to worship together. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. 🎧🎶🎶 🎧🎶 🎧🎶 🎧🎶 🎧🎶 🎧🎶 🎧🎶

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