God Sees You As More | Pastor Drew McElhenny

There was no way, until you made one Grace upon grace, hallelujah Even though I don't deserve it, you did it Even though I couldn't earn it, you give it Who am I that you keep me on your word God I'm just grateful for you God I'm just grateful for you All my life you've been right here by my side God I'm just grateful for you God I'm just grateful for you Only, only, there's only one I give you glory, for all that you've done Even though I don't deserve it, you did it Even though I couldn't earn it, you give it Who am I that you keep me on your mind God I'm just grateful for you God I'm just grateful for you All my life you've been right here by my side God I'm just grateful for you God I'm just grateful for you Who am I that you keep me on your mind God I'm just grateful for you God I'm just grateful for you All my life you've been right here by my side God I'm just grateful for you God I'm just grateful for you He's been faithful He's been faithful And I, I'm lifting both of my hands Cause you give me chance after chance, after chance

And I, I'm giving all that I have Cause you give me chance after chance, after chance And I, I'm lifting both of my hands Cause you give me chance after chance, after chance And I, I'm giving all that I have Cause you give me chance after chance, after chance Who am I that you keep me on your mind God I'm just grateful for you God I'm just grateful for you All my life you've been right here by my side God I'm just grateful for you God I'm just grateful for you Who am I that you keep me on your mind God I'm just grateful for you God I'm just grateful for you All my life you've been right here by my side God I'm just grateful for you God I'm just grateful for you And who am I that you keep me on your mind God I'm just grateful for you And all my life you've been right here by my side God I'm just grateful for you God I'm just grateful for you And that's cause for celebration Come on, He brought you from darkness to light. That's cause for celebration in this place. Come on, some of you just walked through your storm and you're on the other side. That's cause for celebration in this place. Would you give Him your praise? Would you give Him your praise?

You're all alone. You're all I've ever needed. You're all that I want. Let me know You are near. You're all that I want. You're all that I've ever needed. You're all that I want. Let me know You are near. You're all that I want. You're all that I want. You're all that I've ever needed. You're all that I want. Let me know You are near. Come on, all across this place. You're all that I want. You're all that I need. You're all that I want. Let me know You are near. You're all that I want. You're all that I've ever needed. You're all that I want. Let me know You are near. It's a yes deep inside. I won't put up a fight. My answer is yes. Lord, yes. It's a yes through the years. Through the laughter and the tears. My answer is yes. Lord, yes.

Even now. It's a yes, even now. As I'm standing in my town. My answer is yes. Lord, yes. It's a yes, it's a yes. It's a yes deep inside. I won't put up a fight. My answer is yes. Lord, yes. It's a yes through the years. Through the laughter and the tears. My answer is yes. Lord, yes. It's a yes deep inside. As I'm standing in my town. My answer is yes. Lord, yes. I give it all. I give it all. Yes, I give it all. Yes, I give it all. My answer. My answer is yes. Lord, yes. I give it all. And I give it all. Yes, I give it all. Yes, I give it all. Yes, I give it all.

My answer, my answer is yes, Lord, it's yes It's yes, deep inside, I won't put up a fight My answer is yes, Lord, it's yes It's yes, through the years, through the laughter and the tears My answer is yes, Lord, it's yes It's yes, even now, as I'm standing in my doubt My answer is yes, Lord, it's yes My answer is yes, Lord, it's yes My answer is yes, Lord, it's yes Thank you, Jesus We worship you, we worship you with all we are Because of who you are You are our hope At all night, at all heat Greater yet, lives in me El Shaddai, Prince of Peace Emmanuel, here with me Your name is great and great need to be praised Your name is great and great need to be praised At all night, at all heat He's the greater yet, the greater yet Lives in me El Shaddai, You're our Prince of Peace Prince of Peace Emmanuel, He's here with me Your name is great and great need to be praised Worthy of all worship, worthy of all praise Your name is great and great need to be praised Your name is great and great need to be praised So great need to be praised

So great need to be praised There's no one like you No one beside you, Lord Worthy, you are Worthy, you are Worthy, you will be forever Worthy, you are In every circumstance, you're worthy Worthy, you are Worthy, you will be forever Worthy, you are You will always be ♪ Always be of good will ♪ Worthy you were ♪ Worthy you are ♪ And worthy you will be ♪ Forever your way ♪ Worthy you were ♪ Worthy you are ♪ And worthy you will be ♪ Forever your way ♪ Your day is great ♪ And ready to be glad ♪ Your day is great ♪ And ready to be glad ♪ Your day is great ♪ And ready to be glad ♪ Your day is great ♪ We will always be glad ♪ Worthy you were

♪ And worthy you were ♪ And worthy you are ♪ Worthy you will be ♪ Forever your way ♪ Forever your way ♪ Worthy you were ♪ Worthy you are ♪ You are the glory ♪ You are the honor ♪ You are the praise ♪ Worthy you were ♪ And worthy you are ♪ And worthy you will be ♪ Worthy you will be ♪ And worthy you will be ♪ Forever your way Wow, it's gonna be such a good day. You can be seated. I am so honored to be sharing God's word today. And Pastor Sam, thank you for entrusting me with that privilege. And we pray that you guys are being refreshed right now. We love you and we miss you. We look forward to when you guys are back with us. And so church, come on. I know how much you love our pastors. Go ahead. Would you just tell them how much you love them? We miss you guys. We can't wait to see you when you're back.

And boy, I don't know about you. Does anybody else feel blessed? I really mean it. I feel blessed. Every Sunday, God is taking us deeper. He's speaking new words to our hearts. He's shaping us. He's molding us. And every week, I come with anticipation that God is gonna draw me into a deeper relationship with him. God is gonna take me one more step deeper into the calling that he has for my life. Does anybody else have that same anticipation this morning? Do you have that same anticipation? Well, if you don't, you will when you hear God's word today. I promise you. So go ahead and open your Bibles. We're gonna turn to Ephesians. Ephesians chapter three. We're gonna start in verse 14 through 21. So here, we know Paul as the great apostle, the theologian, the church planter. But Paul, he's the man that wrote really much of the New Testament. And Paul, in this instant though, is talking to the church in Ephesus as a founding pastor. This is a church that he loves,

but it's founded in one of the hardest places, the city called Ephesus. And you see, Ephesus, it wasn't just a godless city, but it was a city that was full of false gods, gods like Artemis or Diana. And this city did not want the gospel, right? But God shows up anyways. And let me tell you, he still does that today. He still shows up in the hardest cities. He still shows up in homes that have closed the door and people that said, no, God still is showing up today. And Paul, he's so overwhelmed by God's grace, especially here in the hardest of places, that suddenly he's brought to his knees in prayer and praise as he writes these words. And so can I invite you to stand with me in the honor of reading God's word this morning. Would you stand? And it's gonna be on the screens. And as we read, I want you to capture the depth of Paul's emotion. I want you to see his gratitude, his awe, because you need to understand what I'm about to read. This is not just history, but this is actually a word for you today, right here, right now, this morning. Are you ready? Ephesians chapter three, starting in verse 14, says, for this reason, I bend my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven

and on earth derives its name, that he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in the inner self, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ, which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled to all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Somebody say amen. Amen. Let's pray this morning. Father, we come to you in the mighty name of Jesus, the one who declared for all time that he is able to do more, more than we could ask or think. And so Spirit of the living God, would you loose the power of your word over your church this morning, and would you help us to see us not as we see ourselves, but how you see us. In the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ,

say amen. Amen. You could go ahead and be seated on your way down. Tell somebody, say God sees you as more. Tell somebody else next to you, say God sees you as more. God sees us as more. He sees us as more. Boy, we just read a packed passage of scripture. I'm gonna tell me, that's a lot that we just read there. And we don't have time to unpack everything that Paul wrote here. But today, I wanna focus our attention on that one famous, powerful passage in verse 20. And I want, I really, we need to get this in our spirit today. And so I wanna read it aloud together. And so go and put it on the screen, and let's read this verse aloud together. Say it with me. Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think according to the power that works within us. Go ahead and read it again in your mind just for a second. Go ahead, get that in you. Now to him, go ahead and read it. Far more, far more beyond. Not a little more, not slightly beyond, far more abundantly beyond.

Does anybody else feel like when you read this passage, it almost feels like Paul is reaching for language, like he's almost running out of words here. I think the Holy Spirit is trying to get our attention because what God is capable of doing in your life simply does not fit in the boundaries of our language or our human imagination. What God is saying through Paul is that God, by his power, is able to do far more than we can comprehend in our natural mind or put into words. It is not kept by what you see. It is not restricted by what you believe about yourself. By his spirit at work in you, God is able to do more through you, more than you could have ever done on your own, more than you've attempted, more than you've ever dared to claim over your life. See, what happens is you see your limitations, but God, he sees your potential. Some of you, you see, you're stuck on your past. All you see is your past. Let me tell you, he sees your purpose. Some of you go, you don't know what I've done. All I can see is what I've done. Listen, God sees what you still have to do through him. God sees you as more. God sees me as more. Say that to yourself. Say it over yourself.

God sees me as more. You know, a few years ago, my son Benson was learning how to swim. And how many parents were you at that have taught your kids how to swim or have taken them to lessons? Where are all the parents? Yes, you understand, you know where I'm going with this because there are only two types of children. There's only two types. There's the first type. They love the water. I mean, they want to swim before they know how to swim. There's no fear of the water. They just want to be in the pool. They are a fish. They love the water. Then there's the second child, the one who screams at the top of their lungs. They got the white, you know, they got the white knuckle death grip on the ladder. They're shaking and they're looking up at you saying, you said we were going to Chick-fil-a. That's an impression of my daughter, Ellie, for those of you who didn't know. And we've experienced both types. And our son Benson, though, he loved the water. He loved to swim before he knew how to swim. And, but we gave him swim lessons and he's learning how to swim. And I can see it. The boy, he's got it. I mean, he's moved. Don't get me wrong. I mean, he's flailing his arms everywhere, but he's swimming. He's got it. He's moving forward. I can see he's got it in him. And so we're on vacation and we're at the pool. And, and I said, Benson, let's, let's take your, let's take the shark floaties off. Let's do it. And so we take the shark floaties off and, and he's at one end of the pool and I go swim down to the other end of the pool. And I say, Benson, come on, jump in the water, jump, come swim to daddy. And that boy looks at me like I have lost my mind. He's like, no, no, no, dad. No, no, I can't. I don't want my floaties on. I know I can't, I can't do that. And, and I'm sitting there going like, like, son, I just saw you do this. I, I know you, I just saw, I know you can do this, but he's not jumping in. He's not just, so I come closer to the edge and I say, all right, Benson, what about here? What about here? And you can tell he's nervous. He's so nervous. And so all of a sudden he does it. He jumps in very, very quickly. He's kicking his

feet. He's moving his arms and he crashes into me and I pick him up and his eyes are wide. And he goes, dad, he goes, I did it. I did it. He goes, dad, can I do it again? Can I do it again? So I put him back up there and I moved a little further back this time. And I said, Jim, come on, Benson, jump on in. And he jumps in. He's so excited. He's kicking his legs. He's swinging his arms, crashes into me again. I go a little further back, crashes into me. I go further back. I get all the way to the backside of the pool where I started 60 seconds ago. The child told me, dad, I can't do it. I can't do it. And now this boy jumps in the water, goes all the way, crashes into his daddy and we celebrate together. And, and I'm sitting there going, I'm sitting there going, son, I knew you could do this. I thought I knew all along. I knew you could get there, but all he could see was the distance. All he could see was the distance. He just said, dad, I, I can't do it. I don't want my floaties. I know. I just, I can't do it. And I'm saying, son, if you only knew what I saw in you, some of you didn't realize I'm preaching already today. God sees the calling on your life. He sees the full purpose. He sees the final destination. And you might be sitting here this morning and say, it's too far. It's too far for me. I can't get there. All you see is the distance. Let me tell you, God, he's already in the water and he's coming towards you. And he's saying, come on. He's saying, come on, jump on in because God doesn't see you where you are. He sees you as more. Listen, God does not see you where you are right now. He actually sees you as more. And maybe there's some of you that don't believe that this morning. And let me tell you, that is perfectly all right. It is absolutely okay because you are in great company because almost every other person that God ever called did not believe it either. And so can we look at some people that we know in the Bible this morning? Can we do that? And I want to show you this. But before we do that, before we get into these stories, you know, I think sometimes when we read the Bible, we read about these characters that we know, we view them through these stained glass windows, these heroes that are larger than life. They, they stop feeling like people. They almost start feeling like a monument or they're untouchable. They're perfect there. I tell you, they're nothing like me, but the Holy spirit, when he was inspiring the scripture, he was faithful enough to tell us the whole story. He's honest enough to show us their flaws. Sometimes in embarrassing detail, who was here a couple of weeks ago when pastor Sam talked about this, remember with doubting Thomas, you remember that? And listen, all you have to do is just open up the new Testament,

open the new Testament. You don't have to go very far. Once you actually just start in the first book, just start in Matthew. Frankly, you don't even have to go very far. Matthew just start in the first chapter, right? The first chapter. And Here we see the great lineage of Jesus Christ. And right in the middle of it, the Holy Spirit inspires Matthew to bring up that part about David's wife Bathsheba being the former wife of Uriah the Hittite. Remember, this is the man that King David has killed so he can take his wife. And you think, Matthew, did you really have to bring up that whole thing again? And if that wasn't enough, Matthew goes on, he lists Rahab in the same lineage, a former prostitute in the family tree of Jesus. And you say, Matthew, you did it again. Matthew, is that really necessary? Let me tell you, God says, yes, because God needed you to know that he uses imperfect people to do extraordinary things. That's my first point this morning. If you're taking notes, you're gonna wanna write this down. You need to get it in you. God saw your destiny before you saw your doubt. Say that with me. God saw your destiny before you saw your doubt. Let's start with Abraham for just a second. God calls him the father of our faith. That's a pretty, I mean, that's a pretty noble title,

the father of our faith. You go read about it in Galatians chapter three. But let's look at the story for just a second. Abraham, he's 75 years old. Sarah is 65. They have no children. They've never had children. This is not a young couple that's still hoping. This chapter is closed. And God speaks into that silence. And he shows up, and what does he say? You know, he says, I'm gonna make you a father. I'm gonna make you the father of a great nation. Not just a father, I mean, the father, the defining one, the one in every generation of Judaism and Christianity would point back to. And here's what gets me. God doesn't wait until Abraham has his faith figured out to actually give him the promise. God knows that Abraham and Sarah, they're gonna waver in their faith. They're gonna take matters into their own hands. And 25 years will pass between the promise and the birth of Isaac, 25 years of waiting. But here's the thing. God wasn't fixated on Abraham's doubt. He was watching his destination. God sees in this childless old man, a lineage through which the Messiah himself would one day come, because God saw Abraham

and Sarah as more. Then there's Isaiah. Isaiah, he's one of the most significant prophets in all of Scripture. Now, Abraham, he doubted the promise, but Isaiah, Isaiah actually doubts himself. In Isaiah chapter six, you could go read it. The heavens open and he sees the throne of God and the room is shaking, the room is filling with smoke. Angels are covering their faces. And Isaiah's first instinct isn't excitement, but it's actually shame. And all of a sudden, he goes, woe is me. He goes, I'm lost, I'm undone, for I have seen the king. And let me explain, he is not being dramatic here. He just genuinely believes, God, you got the wrong guy. And he starts to tell God the reason that he doesn't belong there. And most of us are just like that. You know, we just start giving reasons to God. Well, you can't really mean me. Well, God's calling it. It's gotta be for someone more put together than me. It's gotta be someone with a cleaner past. It's gotta be someone who didn't come from what I came from. But God didn't focus on Isaiah's mess. You know what God saw? He saw one of the greatest prophets who would ever live, a man who would confront kings, who would challenge corrupt religion

and describe the coming Messiah in such pinpoint accuracy. We are still amazed by it today because God saw Isaiah as more. Are you getting what I'm saying this morning? Then there's Gideon. You remember Gideon? Gideon, you gotta realize the world that he's living in is brutal. Israel is being terrorized by a massive multinational army and the people are so afraid, they're hiding in dens and in caves. And Gideon, he is no different. When we find him, he's hiding in a wine press. This is not a man plotting his comeback. I mean, he is literally just trying to make it through the day. And in that moment, that low, hiding, fearful, hidden moment, an angel shows up. Gets me about the angel says he goes, listen, he does not go Gideon. I know things are hard, but God has a plan. He doesn't go, listen, hang in there. You know, things are better. Days are coming. He looks at the trembling, hiding Gideon and says, greetings, valiant warrior. Valiant warrior. This is angel. That is the hiding man. He is afraid. This man has every reason to believe that the enemy's already won and God calls him a valiant warrior before he ever acted like one.

This is a word for somebody today. And what happens next is almost hard to believe. Gideon raises an army of 32,000 men. You know, the story and, and God goes, that's too many. We can't do it with, we can't do it with 32,000. We need less. We need less. And so he whittles it down and he whittles it down until there's only 300 men left, 300 men against an army of over well, well over a hundred thousand. And you know what? God gives them his weapons. He gives them clay pots, torches, and trumpets. Listen, I love a trumpet. Like I'm all about it. Like I have a first person say trumpets are great, but Lord, really for a weapon. That's the battle plan. And in the middle of the night, those 300 men, they go out, they smash their pots. They raise their torches and blow their trumpets. And the enemy turns on each other in total chaos, total confusion. They destroy themselves from the inside. Israel never has to swing a sword. And here's what I need you to get. The man who started the day hiding in the wine press ended it as the man that God ended it as the man that God would work through to bring a nation's enemy to its knees, because God saw Gideon as more. Then there's Simon Peter. And so, you know, you're already smiling because you know, you know, Simon, Peter, Pete, Peter's the guy that just makes you feel a little bit better about yourself. When you read them, anybody need that from time to time, just a good read to make it just feel a little better about yourself.

He's passionate. He is loyal. He loves Jesus deeply. And he reacts before he thinks he speaks before he listens. His title could have been open mouth, insert foot, Simon Peter. But here's the moment that changes everything. Jesus asks his disciples, he says, who do you say that I am? And while the room goes quiet, Peter blurts out, he goes, you're the Christ. You're the son of the living God. And Jesus stops and he looks at him and he says something that nobody saw coming. He looks at Peter, he goes, Peter, from now on, you are Peter, the rock. The rock, I mean, you think of the rock that speaks of stability, the rock speaks that the dependability, the rock is immovable, unshakable. For a man who's done none of those things yet, that is a enormous name to carry. And Jesus gives it to him knowing full well what's about to happen, because same conversation, just go down about seven verses, Peter pulls Jesus aside to rebuke him. Peter, the rock is trying to talk Jesus out of going on to the cross and Jesus has to look at him and say, get behind me, Satan. Same conversation, same man named the rock compared to the enemy in just the span of minutes. It doesn't stop there. The night Jesus is arrested, right? Peter draws the sword in the garden. He's brave enough to go fight on the temple guard alone. And then hours later, he crumbles in the courtyard outside the high priest's house with those four simple words. I don't know. I don't know. I don't know. Three times he does that. But Jesus knew every single one of those failures before he ever gave Peter the name the rock, because Jesus, I can tell you, he was not focused on his failures. He was focused on the man that he would see in the balcony of the upper room

addressing a massive crowd, giving the very first altar call in church history. And 3000 people would respond and Peter the rock ultimately being so faithful that he, too, is crucified for the cause of Christ. Jesus didn't name him for who he was. He named him for who he was becoming because Jesus could already see what nobody else saw. God saw Simon, Peter. Come on, tell your neighbor, say, God sees you as more. God sees you as more. But if God sees us as more, why don't we see it sometimes? Why is it so hard to believe? Because there is two forces at work in your life, and one of them has been working overtime to make sure you never find out what God already knows about you. And so this is my second point today. God sees your strength when you see your struggle. Now, Satan is one force. He is the great manipulator. And I need you to understand how manipulative he is, because he doesn't just work one angle, he works all of them. He will take the worst experience of your life, the thing that broke you, the moment you'd give anything to forget, and what he does, he doesn't just let it sit there, but he bends your whole life around that, like a pretzel. He'll twist your identity around that wound. He'll twist your relationships around that wound, the way you think about God around that wound. And then he bakes it right in the heat of your trials.

And listen, the pressure he puts on you, you need to understand, it doesn't just hurt you. Satan's pressure can form you into something that you were never meant to be. Paul sees this coming in Romans 12, verse two, where he says, don't let the world squeeze you into its mold. That's what Satan wants, to bend you towards the things of the world. He's not always loud. Sometimes he's just consistent. He's just applying that pressure over and over and over until the shape of you finally starts to change. And when the squeeze is on, it shows up differently in every person. For some, it's a poor self-image, that voice that says, you're not enough, you never were. For others, it's anxiety, it just won't let go. It's anger, maybe, that comes out sideways. Shame just makes you wanna disappear. But here's, let me tell you what's really dangerous. Satan doesn't just work in your pain, he'll work in your successes too. Your accomplishments, your title, your platform, your education, your income, the things that you've worked for, the things God gave you, and he takes all of it. And here's what he does, he doesn't destroy it. He just quietly infuses it into your ego. He feeds it, he flatters it,

until one day you look up and realize the thing that was supposed to be a gift from God has now become this monument to yourself. That's pride, and pride is so dangerous because it feels like confidence. It feels like you finally arrived right until the moment it takes you down. Worst experience, best experiences. Satan does not care which door he walks through, he just wants into your life. But aren't you thankful that God does not leave us powerless because there is a second force, and it's a second force that's greater, and that is the Holy Spirit. And if Satan is the great manipulator, then the Holy Spirit, he is the great equalizer. Let me tell you what I mean, the great equalizer. What that means is he makes you equal to the calling that he's placed on your life. Not almost equal to it, not working towards it, equal to it, and then some. Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the what? The power that works within us, through his spirit. And here's what the Holy Spirit does that Satan never saw coming. Because Satan, he'll take the worst experience and he'll use it to define you, to shrink you, to keep you stuck, but the Holy Spirit, he doesn't just comfort you through what you're carrying,

he'll actually convert it. He'll take the very thing that was meant to bury you and he'll turn it into a launching pad for his purpose. Can I show you what that looks like in real life? Let's look at Joseph. You remember Joseph in the coat of many colors. Joseph knew this better than anyone. You remember his brothers, they throw him into a pit, they sell him into slavery, let his father believe that he's dead. Listen, if anyone had a reason to be bitter, to be broken, To give up on the calling the dream that God gave him it was Joseph But years later When he's standing in front of those same brothers now he has the power to destroy him you remember what he says He says you meant it for evil against me, but God meant it for good same experience two different forces One wanted to use it to the end them the other one wanted to use it to position him So How did God do that? Well, can I be honest with you? It wasn't comfortable. It wasn't clean because Joseph. I mean he sat in the pit Right he he sat in prison. He went through the fire of it years of it And some of you you've been through your own version of that as I talk about that Just stuff starts to come to your mind your own pit your own fire seasons that went on longer than you thought you could survive I have a word for you today Because that is where the Holy Spirit does some of his best work not just around the heat But he actually steps into the heat with us now Satan He'll use the heat of your trials differently He wants to use that heat to try and dry you out to keep you under long enough at just the right temperature Till every drop of your life is gone until you are brittle and now all it takes just the slightest pressure a hard conversation a Disappointment one more thing to go wrong and all sudden you just snap and you give up on God's calling

But God let me tell you He will take that same heat and he's gonna step into that heat with you And he's gonna forge in you a backbone of steel the kind that does not snap under pressure The kind that can carry the weight of a calling that from the outside looks completely impossible Same heat two completely different outcomes because it's not just about the fire you go through but it's about who's holding you in it Who is holding you in your fire Maybe you're sitting there thinking You're maybe you're thinking well, you don't know what I've done You're thinking Joseph that's that's not my story. I wasn't the victim. I was the problem and If you'd say that today this last point today is for you. It's my third point God sees your purpose even after your past God sees your purpose even after your past Can I give you one more biblical example this morning the Apostle Paul But it's not how we first meet him. We first know him as Saul of Tarsus in That name it does not inspire hope It inspires terror He's killing Christians making orphans and widows He's throwing people in prison for the gospel Listen if Satan ever had a weapon walking around in human skin, it was Saul of Tarsus No one further from grace No one more disqualified and yet God Stops him in the middle of the road and it's not after he gets cleaned up. It's not after he's turned it around It's not after he had something to offer Right there in the middle of the rampage One encounter with Jesus changes everything his direction changes his destiny Changes and now the church that Saul was bent on destroying Becomes the church that Paul would spend the rest of his life building and giving his life for Paul is a living Breathing marvel of the grace of God because God saw Saul of Tarsus as more

But here's what I don't want you to miss this morning God didn't just forgive Saul But he actually repurposed him because Every city he persecuted Paul preached in every chain that he put on believers Paul wore himself for preaching the gospel isn't interesting that God would use the very Mechanisms that were going to be used for destruction turn them into instruments of construction He doesn't waste a single thing not even the worst of it Not even the worst of it I Want to bring you back to where we started this morning that passage those words that we read together now to him Who is able? to do far more Abundantly beyond all that we can ask or think according to the power that works within us I need you Think about something for just a moment. Not what was written, but who picked up that pen? Paul. Paul did. The Apostle Paul, Saul of Tarsus, wrote that. The man who terrorized the church wrote the words far more abundantly beyond all we can ask or think. The man who dragged believers out of their home wrote according to the power that works within us. The man who had no business being in the room, let alone writing the letters, sat down, told the whole church that God is able to do more than you can imagine because, let me tell you, Paul could say it because he lived it. He wasn't reaching for poetic language to try and sound inspiring.

He was a man who had experienced the impossibility of what God can do firsthand. The transformation was too big. The grace was too wide. The calling was too far beyond what anyone, including Saul himself, could have imagined on that road. So all of a sudden, what does he do? He begins to pile word on top of word, trying to hold it all far more abundantly beyond all that we can ask or think because ordinary words couldn't hold all that God had done in his life. And what he's telling you across 2,000 years is that the same God that rewrote Paul's story wants to finish yours, not the power you used to have, not the power you're trying to get back, the power that is already working in you right now, today, with everything that you're carrying, the Holy Spirit, the great equalizer, making you equal to a calling that you couldn't manufacture on your own. The same fire Satan tried to use to destroy you, God is using it to forge something in you that cannot be shaken. So the question this morning isn't whether God can use you. The question is, are you ready to let him write the next chapter? Because the same God that stopped Saul on that road is standing in front of you right now,

and he sees you as more. He is able. God is more than able. Who am I to deny what the Lord can do? In a minute, I've really felt like the Lord said, we need to sing that song over our lives today. We need to make it a declaration. We're gonna do that in just a moment. We are gonna sing that God is more than able, and you need to understand, he was able before you ever needed him. He knew you before you ever drew a breath. Psalms 139, it says he saw your life before you ever lived a single day of it. He knew you on the mountaintop. He knew you in the valley. He knows your greatest achievement and your worst failure, and he will not define you by either. Your greatest achievement won't impress him because he's God. Your worst failure won't surprise him because he's God. And he was never watching from a distance, wondering how your story would turn out. Every page, every chapter, every moment, he already knew it, and he called you anyways because God sees you as more.