Running to the Heights | Doug Sauder | Habakkuk 3:17-19

worship let's sing hallelujah which means praise be to God he's worthy do we believe that today yes he's redeemed us let's sing in victory sing it out come hallelujah you get all the praise we say hallelujah yeah you guys so wonderful let's sing it up again hallelujah hallelujah oh yes you worthy for the praise yes you are. Yes you are. Hallelujah. You get all the praise. Yes we've got God come on I've got it God who is for me. He is known for making way. He bought the battle so I would have to all glory belongs to his name yes I've got it God who's been faithful far more than I could explain and through every season in spite of my weakness he gave me a song I can sing I came to pray. Oh yes that's where we're here I came to pray that's why I woke up today. That's why I woke up today. I came to grace. Come on let's hear you. We say hallelujah. You get all the praise. We say hallelujah. You get all the praise all the way because I've got it King who is raised. He put my shame in the grave. Come on testify. We're two on the deck and now I'll never have to and he did it all in three days so I came to pray. Come on. I came to pray. That's why I woke up today. That's why I woke up today. Oh yes that's where we can praise. I came to praise. Oh yes we say hallelujah. ♪ I live, I live, I live, I live ♪ ♪ You get all the praise we say ♪ ♪ I live, I live, I live, I live ♪ ♪ You get all the praise, I live ♪ ♪ I'm singing, I'm singing in the morning ♪ ♪ I'm singing at night ♪ ♪ I'm singing the band over as alai pai ♪ ♪ Sing these songs ♪ ♪ I'm singing, I'm singing, I'm singing ♪ ♪ I'm singing this whole, I'm singing this whole life ♪ ♪ Singing the morning, morning, I'm singing tonight ♪ ♪ Singing the body, yeah, that's how I fight ♪ ♪ I'm singing this whole, I'm singing this whole life ♪ ♪ I'm singing this whole life ♪ ♪ I'm singing this whole life ♪ ♪ I'm singing this whole life ♪ ♪ Singing this whole life ♪ ♪ I'm singing this whole life ♪ ♪ Singing all the praise we say ♪ ♪ I'm singing, I'm singing, I'm singing the morning ♪ ♪ Singing all the praise ♪

♪ I'm singing, I'm singing, I'm singing ♪ ♪ You get all the praise we say ♪ ♪ I'm singing, I'm singing, I'm singing ♪ ♪ You get all the praise, all the praise ♪ ♪ I'm singing the morning, I'm singing tonight ♪ ♪ Singing the body, yeah, that's how I fight ♪ ♪ I'm singing this whole life ♪ ♪ I'm singing this whole life ♪ ♪ I'm singing this whole life ♪ ♪ I'm singing, I'm singing this whole life ♪ ♪ I'm singing this whole life ♪ ♪ You get all the praise we say ♪ ♪ I'm singing praise ♪ ♪ I'm singing this whole life ♪ ♪ You get all the praise ♪ ♪ Get all the praise out of my way ♪ ♪ Come on, we come to praise and sing the praise ♪ ♪ Praise the Lord, oh my soul ♪ ♪ Praise the Lord, oh my soul ♪ ♪ Praise the Lord, oh my soul ♪ ♪ Praise the Lord, oh my soul ♪ ♪ Praise the Lord, oh my soul ♪ ♪ Praise the Lord, oh my soul ♪ ♪ Praise the Lord, oh my soul ♪ ♪ Praise the Lord, oh my soul ♪ ♪ Praise the Lord, oh my soul ♪ ♪ Praise the Lord, oh my soul ♪ ♪ Praise the Lord, oh my soul ♪ ♪ I won't be quiet ♪ ♪ My God is the light ♪

♪ How can I keep this fire ♪ ♪ I've got to pray ♪ ♪ Praise the Lord ♪ ♪ Oh my soul ♪ ♪ Come on give a praise ♪ ♪ We thank you Jesus, you won ♪ Yes! - As we continue to sing together, we are gonna anchor our hearts on his faithfulness. In a culture where names and reputations they come and they go, today we get to sing to our eternal heavenly Father who is worthy of our worship. So join with me as we sing this together. Sing out and I. ♪ Out of my heart ♪ ♪ Oh He ♪ ♪ Is the great of Him ♪ ♪ Lives in me ♪ ♪ El Shaddah ♪ ♪ You are prints of peace ♪ ♪ Emmanuel ♪ ♪ Here with me ♪ ♪ Your name ♪ ♪ Come on let's declare ♪ ♪ Is great ♪ ♪ And greatly ♪ ♪ To be praise ♪ ♪ Your name Lord ♪

♪ Is great ♪ ♪ And greatly ♪ ♪ To be ♪ ♪ You have blood having here ♪ ♪ Your name ♪ ♪ Is great ♪ ♪ And greatly ♪ ♪ To be praise ♪ ♪ Your name Lord ♪ ♪ Is great ♪ ♪ And greatly ♪ ♪ To be praise ♪ Yes it is. ♪ Jesus would you let our transform ♪ ♪ Our worship ♪ ♪ And our song transform ♪ ♪ Our heart today ♪ ♪ You are the only one who is worthy ♪ ♪ You're the only one who deserves our affection ♪ ♪ So we declare this all across the room ♪ ♪ This morning you ready? ♪ ♪ Sing worthy ♪ ♪ Where do you work ♪ ♪ Worth it ♪ Yeah come on. (upbeat music) ♪ Where do you work ♪ ♪ Yes he's a Christ in our worship ♪ ♪ Where do you work ♪ ♪ Where do you are? ♪

♪ Where do you will be forever? ♪ ♪ Where do you are? ♪ ♪ Where do you are? ♪ ♪ Where do you are? ♪ ♪ Where do you will be forever? ♪ ♪ Where do you are? ♪ ♪ Where do you are? ♪ ♪ Where do you are? ♪ ♪ Where do you will be forever? ♪ ♪ Where do you will be forever? ♪ ♪ Where do you are? ♪ ♪ Where do you will be forever ♪ ♪ Always ♪ ♪ Always say, "Money, your name is great ♪ ♪ And great me to be great ♪ ♪ Your name ♪ ♪ And great me to be great ♪ ♪ Your name is great ♪ ♪ And great me to be great ♪ ♪ Your name is great ♪ ♪ And great me to be great ♪ ♪ Come on, can we give you our worship, our best today? ♪ Church, let's pray together. Lord, we take a moment to recognize who you are. King of kings, Lord of lords, you sent your son to die for us. You are the Messiah, our Savior, our Redeemer, and our hope. That is the God that we worship today. So help us to worship from a place of awe, rather than a place of your team, Lord.

So Holy Spirit, come and move and speak to us. Speak to every individual here, Lord, who has come to meet with you, transform us through the power of your Holy Spirit, through our times of reflection, through our times of hearing the word, help us to respond and not just to respond in our own strength today, but through the faith that you give to us. Thank you, Jesus. We pray this all in your name, amen, amen. Church, you can go ahead and be seated. Father, we thank you first for your generosity to us. You so love the world that you gave, your one and only son. And so we stand in the shadow of that generous gift. Our lives have been changed by it. So now, Father, we ask that you would shape us into generous people from takers, to givers, to people who start as consumers, but end up being contributors because of the way the good news of Jesus shapes our lives. So, Father, we thank you in advance for all you've done and all you're going to do next. And we pray this together in Jesus' name, amen. So we've been on this journey through the book of a backache. If you're new, you're like a backache. I'm trying to figure out how to get through my life and pay the bills and keep my marriage together and how to get through the day at work and how to save for the future. What does a 2600-year-old prophetic book have to do with my life? So I'm glad you asked. It's one of my favorites because it's real. It's raw. A backache starts out by approaching God with two questions. The first question is, how long and why? Have you ever asked God the question, how long? How long will I have to work at this job with these people? How long will I have to endure this person who's making my life difficult?

How long will I have to live under this? Or God, why? Why me? Why now? Why? Why this long? And the backache doesn't stuff those feelings and go to church and pretend, praise the Lord. He takes those feelings and brings them right up next to God in a complaint. And he says, "God, I don't like the way you're running the world. I don't like the way you're not answering prayers. I don't like this feeling in God's. Don't worry. I'll take care of it." And God's solution is worse than Habakkuk's problem. He's going to take this situation in Israel and the Babylon is going to invade. It's going to go from bad to worse because sometimes it has to get worse before it gets better. How many of you know that's true? Right? God's not going to leave the status quo, the chaos forever. So Habakkuk doesn't like God's response. He says, "I'm going to go up into a tower and I'm going to go from wrestling." That's what his name is. I wrestle. I struggle. I'm going to sit and I'm going to wait and I'm going to get quiet and I'm going to listen. God, give me an answer. What's going on? And God gives him a revelation of the future that one day the glory of God will cover the earth like the water covers the sea and Habakkuk's role now is just to walk by faith and he

ends up writing a song about that journey from the valley to the tower and at the end of the song he ends up on a mountain. And this is very relevant because the questions he's asking are our questions, the angst, the sadness that he feels, that's what we feel and his song is going to be our song. This private conversation with God is going to be a public worship moment for an entire nation. We're going to experience that today as we walk through these different parts of his letter. So the beginning part of Habakkuk is just asking questions to God. So we're going to take a moment of quiet and we're going to be still a quieter heart and we're going to bring what's actually in our hearts and minds to God. So I'm asking you to close your eyes for a second. There's this beautiful invitation in the Bible to be still and know that he is God. And so how would you answer this question? What's wrong in the world? What do you read? What do you see that brings you disappointment or anger or sadness or anxiety? What's wrong in the world? Maybe it's war and violence, maybe it's the politics, the meanness of people. But if we're still will be reminded, this cast will not go on indefinitely. At the appointed time, God will set. What in your world, in your life, makes you sad or angry or questioned or doubt, feel disappointed. Invite him to speak. Word of peace. That situation you're thinking about will come and it will pass. That feeling you're feeling right now won't last forever. Be still and know. Everyone take a deep breath. What would happen if you did that every day? That just two-minute exercise where you allowed your thoughts and feelings and questions all to surface. You don't stuff them down, you allow them to come. You don't pray. You think you should pray. You pray what you're actually

feeling and thinking and struggling with. Habakkah is teaching us. That's what God invites us to do. We take all those things and we hold them up next to God and we watch as he quiets himself. He's able to have a different perspective because even though his complaint hasn't changed his circumstances, his heart begins to change. We see that in this song where we left off, Habakkah chapter 3 verse 17, he says something that sounds crazy. He says, "Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice. I will be joyful in God my Savior." What is he saying? Well, make this relevant to us. Even if I lose my job, I will rejoice. Even in my retirement account goes down to zero, I will be joyful even if my marriage struggles or my health declines. My child walks away from God or the family yet I will rejoice. Where does that kind of faith come from? Well, he knows that God is sovereign. He knows that God is in control and he knows that his role has been given to him by God in that tower. Habakkah, you have one job as I bring about this revelation that the knowledge of my glory will cover the earth like the water covers the sea. In the middle of the mess, you are to walk by faith. Faith. Without faith, it's impossible to please God. And though his circumstances have not changed on the outside, his posture of his heart has changed on this side. He's going to live in hope and he's going to demonstrate this. And one of the most powerful verses about living in hope comes from Romans 15 and 13. As New Testament Christians, how can we live in hope in the middle of the mess, knowing that God is in control. And at the end of the day, we're going to watch his glory cover the earth. Here's the verse, Romans 15, 13. "Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit." Now, hope is like oxygen to the soul. Hebrews says, hope is the anchor to our soul. It keeps us grounded when all these things are going on. And God says he is the God of hope, and he's going to fill us so that we overflow with hope. That it's not on the outside that hope comes. It's on the inside. This well that doesn't run dry. God's power. God's love. God's faithfulness. And notice this verse, "As you trust in him," which means you're walking, and the thing you're praying for hasn't happened yet. Is there something you're praying for that hasn't happened yet? Oh, come on. Let me ask that again. "Is there something you're praying for that hasn't happened yet?" Something like, "I should pray that you're with a lottery." Maybe, maybe, just...

Listen, we all have needs and desires and wants, and we want to be praying about those before God. But as we pray and trust, God can fill us with two things, joy and peace. You know, I know a lot of Christians who are waiting for the outside circumstances to change so they can be joyful. And if you do that, you will wait your whole life. See, there's always a reason to rejoice in the good, in the bad, because God has a plan. Say this after me, "God is greater than my trouble." Now say it again like you mean it. God is greater than my trouble. So there's always a reason of joys. In life, you're going to suffer. But joy is optional. Don't let someone take away your joy. The only person who can take away your joy is you. You see, as we trust, we can experience joy. I will rejoice. Jesus said, "In this world, you will have trouble, but take heart. I have overcome the world." Aren't you grateful for Jesus, right? This beautiful, beautiful picture. And then he says this joy can be followed by peace. One of my favorite definitions of peace comes from Dallas Willard. Peace is the rest of will. It comes from a settled assurance about how things will turn out. I'm not in control, but my will as it rests, I'm no longer wrestling or striving to try to manipulate a certain outcome. 'Cause I have a settled assurance

that God is at work and his ultimate will will occur. That everything and ultimately, everything sad will become untrue. Every moment of injustice will be revealed and made right. God has a way to take the darkest, most broken things in life and redeem them and make them something that is a picture of his faithfulness. And so I am not in control of the outcome. I can have peace, even though on the outside, there is chaos. And so this is the invitation of Habakkuk to his people and the song, it's the invitation of the Bible that we can live in hope and we can worship in hope. And so we're gonna have a moment where we get to practice this because Habakkuk chapter three is a song about how God shows up and God delivers and how he's bigger than our troubles. And so we're gonna sing a few songs about that, like blessed be his name in the good, in the bad, in prosperity, in difficulty. I will bless the name of God because he is worthy of my praise. Do you know that's true? God is faithful in all those things. And as we sing these songs, we're gonna watch trust rise 'cause trust is the foundation of worship. And as you sing the song, you're gonna hear someone next to you sing in the song

and you're gonna realize I'm not alone. The people in this room are gonna experience God in the good times and the bad times and they're expressing joy and faith and trust and hope. And we're gonna open up the altar. And if during this moment you feel so inclined, like I'm in the valley, I just need hope, then come and get on your knees at this altar. If you're gonna need revelation and come and pray, God, as an expression of faith, God, I want to experience your hearing voice. If you want to just thank God for his goodness, however you want to express that in raised hands, moments of kneeling and coming to the altar, this is the time where you can meet with God and express your faith in who he is. Let's take that moment and let's worship together. (gentle music) Just stand with us and sing. (gentle music) (gentle music) ♪ Blessed be ♪ ♪ Blessed be your name ♪ ♪ And that is plentiful ♪ ♪ Where your streams of abundance flow ♪ ♪ Blessed be your name ♪ ♪ Blessed be your name ♪ ♪ I've found in mountains a place ♪ ♪ Though I walk through the wilderness ♪ ♪ Blessed be your name ♪

♪ Every blessing ♪ ♪ Every blessing for I'd out ♪ ♪ Turn back to your face ♪ ♪ When the darkness closes in Lord ♪ ♪ And still I will still ♪ ♪ Blessed be the name of the Lord ♪ ♪ Blessed be your name ♪ Come on, sing it out. ♪ Blessed be your name ♪ ♪ Blessed be your name ♪ Amen, come on. ♪ Blessed be your name ♪ ♪ The sun shining down on me ♪ ♪ In the world's all as it should be ♪ ♪ Blessed be your name ♪ ♪ Blessed be your name ♪ ♪ And the Lord will march with suffering ♪ ♪ There is pain in the offering ♪ ♪ Every blessing ♪ ♪ Every blessing ♪ ♪ You pour out our turn back to things ♪ ♪ When the darkness ♪ ♪ When the darkness closes in Lord ♪ ♪ Still I will say ♪ ♪ Blessed be the name of the Lord ♪ ♪ Blessed be your name ♪ ♪ Blessed be the name of the Lord ♪ ♪ Blessed be your glorious name ♪ ♪ Blessed be the name of the Lord ♪ ♪ Blessed be your name ♪

♪ Oh, yes ♪ ♪ Blessed be the name of the Lord ♪ ♪ Blessed be your glorious name ♪ ♪ You give and take away ♪ ♪ You give and take away ♪ ♪ My heart will choose to say yes ♪ ♪ Blessed be every season ♪ ♪ You give and take away ♪ ♪ You give and take away my heart ♪ ♪ My heart will choose to say ♪ ♪ Blessed be your minister ♪ ♪ Blessed be the name of the Lord ♪ ♪ Blessed be your names for blessing ♪ ♪ Blessed be the name of the Lord ♪ ♪ Blessed be your glorious names ♪ ♪ And again, blessed be the name of the Lord ♪ ♪ Blessed be your name for blessing ♪ ♪ Blessed be the name of the Lord ♪ ♪ Blessed be your glorious name ♪ ♪ Yes, we bless your names ♪ We thank you, Jesus. (audience applauding) ♪ You are here ♪ ♪ You're moving in on mist ♪ ♪ I worship you ♪ Let that be a response. ♪ I worship you ♪ ♪ You are here ♪ ♪ You're working in this place ♪ ♪ I worship you, Lord ♪

♪ I worship you ♪ Do you believe it? ♪ You are here ♪ ♪ You're moving in on mist ♪ ♪ I worship you ♪ Yes, Lord. ♪ I worship you ♪ ♪ You are here ♪ ♪ You're working in this place ♪ Yes, yes, Lord. ♪ I worship you ♪ Let's respond to him. ♪ You are way-maker ♪ Sing it in faith. ♪ You are my God ♪ ♪ That is who you are ♪ Remind your heart this morning. ♪ You are way-maker ♪ ♪ Here we are ♪ ♪ You are here ♪ ♪ You are my God ♪ ♪ That is who you are ♪ ♪ You are here ♪ ♪ You're touching every heart ♪ ♪ I worship you, Lord ♪ ♪ I worship you ♪ ♪ You are here ♪ ♪ Healing every heart ♪ ♪ I worship you ♪ ♪ Yes, I worship you ♪

♪ You are here ♪ ♪ Turning lives on ♪ ♪ I worship you ♪ ♪ I worship you ♪ ♪ You are here, Lord ♪ ♪ Mending every heart ♪ ♪ I worship you ♪ ♪ I worship you ♪ ♪ 'Cause you are way-maker ♪ ♪ You are here ♪ ♪ Let's declare ♪ ♪ Mom singing like you believe in this morning ♪ ♪ Darkness ♪ ♪ My God ♪ ♪ That is who you are ♪ ♪ Yes, you are ♪ ♪ Way-maker, miracle-work ♪ ♪ From a scheme ♪ ♪ Light in the darkness ♪ ♪ My God ♪ ♪ That is who you are ♪ ♪ Sing that is ♪ ♪ That is who you are ♪ ♪ Yes, that is who you are ♪ to remind our own hearts, whether we're walking through a season where we feel weary, or we've been interceding for a long time, remind us that you are moving and you are working even when we don't see it. Holy Spirit, give us eyes to perceive what you are doing, how you are interceding on our behalf. Thank you Lord. So we choose to declare these lyrics, even in a season of drought, even in a season of weariness. We know you are always moving and always working, so we sing this with confidence today. Church, Amen? Call us to

declare. Even when I don't see it, you're working, yeah. Even when I'm a fan of working. You never stop, you never stop. No, he doesn't. You never stop, you never stop working. Even when I don't see it, thank you Lord. Even when I don't feel it, you're working. You never stop, you never stop working. Let's sing it one more time. If you want to speak today. Even when I don't see it, you're working. Even when he's not good. You never stop, you never stop working. You never stop, you never stop working. Even when I don't see it, you're working. Even when I don't feel it, you're working. You never stop, you never stop working. You never stop, come on, thank you. You ain't making miracle work, promise keeper. Lying in the darkness, my God, that is who you are, yes. That is who you are. You ain't making miracle work, promise keeper. Let's make it personal today. My God, that is who you are, yes. That is who you are. That is who you choose to believe in. And that is who you are, yes. That is who you are. That is who you are. That is who you are. That is who you are. That is who you are. Yes, and that is why we can trust Him. Yes, thank you, Lord. Thank you, Lord, that you hear us. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, God, you are moving and you are working. We choose to trust you. Thank you, God. Sing, sing, I sought the Lord. Oh, I sought the Lord and He heard. Yes, I sought the Lord. Justify this morning. I sought the Lord and He heard any answer. That's why I, yes. I sought the Lord and He heard. You're so good Lord. I sought the Lord and He heard any answer. That's why I trust Him. That's why I'm trusting God. My Savior, the One who will never fail. Oh, I trust in God. My Savior, the One who will never fail. No, we will never fail. I trust in God. Yes, we declare that today. You can have a seat for just a moment. So you know what we just heard? We just heard a song of defiant hope. Usually those two words don't seem like they go together, but defiant hope says no matter what's happening out here, no matter what my circumstances are conspiring to teach me about "He will not fail, he fights for me." The God who delivered in the past is the God who will deliver in the future. And this is Habakkuk's song. What starts out as a private struggle with God. Turns into a public song of worship. How do we know it's a song?

Well, Habakkuk chapter three, the very beginning. First one says, "A prayer of Habakkuk, the prophet, "on shikonah." And you're like, "What's shikonah?" Shikonah is a musical term. Like if you see a symbol and a musical scale that symbolizes forte, it means sing this with strength. Sing it loud or fortissimo, very loud, very strong. Habakkuk is saying, "I want you to sing this song." Very loud and very strong. And for Habakkuk, it's not just passionate, it's personal. Do look at the very last line, the description of the song, it says this. "For the director of music on my stringed instruments." Habakkuk is, "I want to play this song "on my stringed instrument. "I want to play it myself." And so it's this invitation to say what can be personal and private and struggle with God as you allow him to shape your life can become this beautiful expression where you watch faith arise in a congregation of people. And he concludes the letter or concludes his prophecy with this verse in 19, "The sovereign Lord is my strength. "He makes my feet like the feet of a deer. "He enables me to tread on the heights." This is a powerful picture. I don't know if you've ever seen a deer climb of Mount, I was just at the Billy Graham Center

in Asheville, North Carolina, and I stumbled across a deer as I turned a corner and I watched that deer climb up that mountain through trees and brush and rocks in such a fast and graceful and beautiful way. I was like, wow, how amazing a deer is climbing up mountain. And the back looks like I saw that too. And this is what God can do in my faith. He can take me higher than I can go on my own, farther and faster than I can go on my own. God is the one who takes me on the heights. So so many allegorical books were written about this single verse, "Pilgham's Progress" about this ascent up the mountain of God, high and speed, high places where Christians go, "God, I want you to take me higher, to do more than I could ask "or imagine on my own according to your power." That's at work within me. And so this last part of the song is about revival. It's about saying to God's people. Remember the God who did it in the past wants to do it again. I mean, Habakkuk says it right to God, "I've heard of your fame and I stand in awe of your deeds. "Now repeat them in our day, in our day, make them known." God, do it again, do it again, do it again. The God who delivers, who fights for his people. He describes the deliverance of the people of God from slavery in Egypt and how God fought. He says that same thing doesn't happen with Babylon.

God's gonna continue to deliver his people 'cause that's who he is. So you can sing with great confidence in one of my favorite lines of this song is in verse nine. He says, "God, you uncovered your bow "and you called for many arrows." What an amazing picture of our God, the mighty warrior. Now what you might not know is in Isaiah chapter 49 in several places in the Bible, we are called God's arrows. Now you are handcrafted by God, awaiting his quiver for the moment. He's gonna launch you to be his representative. You are God's arrow. He's been crafting to fight in his bow. He can do it on his own, but he delights to use us in his battles, that's why he says to the back, "I want you to write down the revelation "and make it clear so you can run with it. "You have a role in this, to walk by faith, "to share this message that one day, this entire world, "but the knowledge of the glory of God will cover the earth "as the water covers the sea." And this is a description of revival. How many of you want to see God bring revival, right? To this church, to this community, to this nation, to this world, well, where does revival begin? It doesn't begin out there, it begins in here. It began in Habakkuk in a private conversation. God, I want to know more of you, I wanna bring all this to you, I wanna bring my real self to you and show up,

fill me, stir me, and then as you share what God is doing, community people begin to share that vision. And you watch the congregation sing louder, show up for prayer meetings, give generously, serve in these different ways, And then there's this exponential growth. We showed you this triangle, this sort of graphic that two weeks gone on a vision for generations. It starts personally, then spreads to a communal vision and ultimately becomes way bigger than we could ever imagine it to be. And Habakkuk is expanding our minds to think about what God will do next. And so as a church, we've been asking you, what would God call you to run with? If it starts with you first, God do it in me first. Well, where do my passions and my gifts and my experiences and my calling all meet together and intersect? And so many of you have filled these out and shared this with God. I feel called to the next generation. I feel called to teach the Bible. I feel called to serve the vulnerable. And I just want to take a moment where we share with each other what God's stirring. Now, if this is your first weekend hearing, you're like, I don't even know what to share. That's okay, just say I'm new here,

but I'd love to hear your story. We're gonna spend two, three minutes. I'm gonna ask you all to stand up. And we're gonna watch faith get stirred as you hear the stories of the people right next to you who also have this calling that God has placed in the heart, this growing passion and burden for something in the world. And so for the next two minutes, just have a conversation with two of the people, introduce yourself and talk about what does God's stirring in me and watch faith be spurred on as we have the conversation. (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) All right, church, I wanna give you 30 more seconds to finish that conversation and then we're gonna continue. (gentle music) All right, church, if you can look this way, I just wanna say what is an amazing sight it is.

What an amazing sight it is to watch your faces as you have this conversation. Because I'm watching people from every tribe and tongue and nation and language. I'm watching people who are younger and people who are older. People who wouldn't be in the same room except for Jesus. And you're sharing what? You're sharing the knowledge of the glory of God. If Habakkah could see what I just saw, his mind would be blown. His mind would be blown. All of these people purchased by the blood of Jesus. Lives have been changed since it's been forgiven because once you were blind but now you see. That's the knowledge of the glory of God. Once you were lost and now you're saved. That's the knowledge of the glory of God. Anybody know what I'm talking about? Once you were broken and God has redeemed your life. You know that even suffering can be turned to glory in the gospel. And so we have this common beautiful knowledge that he has filled us with his spirit. And he's filled the room with us. And so this is our passion. So we're going to sing this boldly that Jesus is our firm foundation. We're going to sing it loud. So I'm going to ask you to stand again and we're going to sing this as a declaration of faith that God would revive his people and remind us to always keep our eyes on Jesus. Christ is my firm foundation, the rock on which I stand when everything around me is shaken. I've never been more glad than I was my faith in Jesus. He'd never let me down. Faithful through generations. So why would he fail now? He won't, he won't, no, no, no, no, no. He won't fail. He won't fail, he won't, no, he won't, no, he won't fail, he won't fail. Oh, rain came when, blue my house was built on you. Oh, I'm safe with you. I'm gonna make it through, rain came when, blue my house was built on you. Oh, I'm safe with you. I'm gonna make it through. Oh, I'm gonna make it through. 'Cause I'm standing strong on you. Oh, I'm gonna make it through. 'Cause my house was built on you. Christ is my firm foundation. Oh, the rock on which I stand when everything around me is shaken. I've never been more glad than I was my faith in Jesus. He'd never let me down. Faithful through generations.

So why would he fail now? He won't. This next song, let's make it our anthem today. As we call upon the name of Jesus and we declare it over our own hearts and our minds, our families and our homes, let's take ground in Jesus' name, amen? And I pray into the atmosphere. Spirit of God, you'll hear you have all the thought. Yes, He does. And I pray over my heart and mind. I am healed by your stripes, your blood declares that I am free. Come on, here we go, in the mighty name of Jesus. Calling on the power of heaven, that every weapon formed against me must break in the mighty name of Jesus. Amen. In the mighty name of Jesus, I know all the power of fear and darkness must go. Every key to every victory I hold in the mighty name of Jesus. When the enemy comes near On the door frame of my life Is the blood, yes I will not fear, no I will not fear There's an army of angels here I'm protected on our sides By the blood of Jesus Christ I will not fear, I will not fear When the enemy comes near On the door frame of my life Is the blood of Jesus Christ I will not fear, I will not fear There's an army of angels here I'm protected on our sides By the blood of Jesus Christ And the mighty name of Jesus I pray, calling all the power of heaven I proclaim, every weapon formed against me The spread, in the mighty name of Jesus The mighty name of Jesus I know, all the power of fear and darkness Must go, every key to every victory

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♪ Your promise ♪ ♪ Your promise to stand ♪ ♪ Great is your faithfulness ♪ ♪ Faithfulness ♪ ♪ I'm still in your hands ♪ ♪ This is my confidence ♪ ♪ You'll never tell me ♪ ♪ Your promise to stand ♪ ♪ Great is your faithfulness ♪ ♪ Faithfulness ♪ ♪ I'm still in your hands ♪ ♪ This is my confidence ♪ ♪ You'll never tell me ♪ (audience cheering) (audience applauding) - One more time here. We give God praise because He is worthy of our praise. He has never failed us. He is a faithful God, a faithful God. Hey, so I'm gonna ask you to sit down for just a moment 'cause I wanna describe the greatest victory that God has ever won. It wasn't over the Egyptians bringing his people from slavery to freedom, and it wasn't over the Babylonians freeing his people from their oppressive grip. The greatest enemy that he defeated was sin and death and the enemy of our soul that has come to steal and kill and destroy, and he defeated them on a cross. Our greatest enemy, our own sin we couldn't pay for, our own debt, our own fear of death, and Jesus died.

And one of the last things He said is, it is finished, it is paid in full. I have won the victory for my people, and all who come to me and receive the gift of salvation can have a whole new life. Are you grateful for Jesus' sacrifice or the way He fought for us? And we're gonna celebrate that today in communion. And so if you have your communion elements, I'm gonna ask you to take them out. If you don't, you can raise your hand. Listen, for you who aren't Christians, you're visiting. I'm just gonna ask you to watch this because what's gonna happen next is not a religious ritual. It's people remembering that Jesus came for them and died for them and forgave their sins. Because we put our faith and trust in Him as our substitute that we have now eternal life, that we are the sons and daughters of God. Now, if you're not a Christian, you can, even right now in this moment, just pray, God, I want that for me. He's only a prayer away. The beautiful thing is if you call in the name of the Lord, you put your faith and trust in Jesus, you can be saved. And you can take communion with us. So we're gonna take a moment of quiet reflection. I want you to think about these few things. What is Jesus done in your life? How has he brought forgiveness and freedom?

And how might he be using you in this next season and just spend a moment thanking Him? And then we're gonna sing a song over you in Christ alone. That's our confidence, that's our hope. And then we're gonna come back and take communion together. And then we're gonna respond in another song in a moment of generosity. And so let's take this time right now and quietly reflect the presence of God. And then we'll sing a song over you. (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) In Christ alone, my hope is found. He is my mind, my strength, my soul. This cornstone, this solid crowd, firm through the fuses, drought, and stone. What heights of love, what depths of peace, when fears are still, when striving sees,

my comforter, my heart. In the ground, His body lay, the light of the love by darkness. In bursting forth in glorious day, up from the grave He rose again. And as He stands in victory, since curse is lost, it's grip hung for my lips, and He is mine. But with the precious blood of Christ. Jesus paid our ransom with His own blood. He purchased us from the power of the enemy. And the bondage of our own stupidity and sin. And He set us free. On the night He died, He took bread, and He broke. And He said, "This is my body, and it's given for you. Every time you eat it, remember me. Let's remember Jesus, our Savior, together." On that same night He took the cup, and He said, "This cup is the new covenant my blood, it's given for you. Every time you drink it, remember me. Let's remember Jesus, our mighty Savior, together." So how do we as the people of God respond to such generosity? One of the ways is we sing. So let's stand and sing. Let's finish the song in Christ alone, and let's sing it with all of our hearts, because He is worthy of our praise. This is the power of Christ in me, from Leyser's cry to find a breath. We sing from His hand to He returns, or calls me home, cheering the power of Christ, I say. Oh, I find my strength, I find my hope, I find my help, in Christ alone, with fearless selves, with darkness flows, I find my peace, in Christ alone, I give my life, I give my all, I see this soft, to rise alone, the King of kings, the Lord of all, our heaven sees, to rise alone, the King of kings, the Lord of all, the King of kings, the Lord of all, the King ♪ Oh, yeah ♪

♪ Oh, give a praise, thank you Jesus ♪ (congregation applauding) - And this is our generous response. You can have a seat for just a moment. Worship is a generous response. The question is, how can I respond to the generosity of Jesus in my life? For all he's done for me. I give my life, I give my all. And so I wanna point you back to where we began. This is commitment weekend for the vision of our church. For what God did in the past, we're praying God, do it again and do it through me and in me. We don't just want this to be a vision for our church or the pastors or leaders of this church. We want this to be your vision, our collective vision. God, bring revival, allow your generosity and your love to pour out into this church and into this city and all these spaces where people need to know Jesus. So the next foster child could find a home. So the next single mom who's living in her car could not just find a house, but find a family, a community of faith and come to know Jesus. That every elderly person that's all by themselves would find a visit from another Christian that we would find business leaders rising up in this city and making the gospel known. That we'd watch global missions expand. We'd watch new churches be planted

where people could wander in and sort of get stunned by the grace of God and find Jesus. And then all of us get to be a part of that. If this, if you call this your church home, I don't want anyone to miss this moment because it's not about the amount that you commit. It's about the heart that God wants to change. Jesus says, where your treasure is there? Your heart will be also. Jesus talked a lot about money. And he was never raising money to build buildings or plant churches. He was talking about the freeing the grip of money on the human heart and watching the expression of generosity, not as a rule or as a law or as a command, but as an act of worship. And so I want to tell you just what happened a year ago. One of the first people committed to this vision was a woman named Rachel. Rachel grew up in a very chaotic home. She wasn't allowed to go to church as a child. And that mess in the home led to a divorce and a lot of brokenness. And then she began to live her life and eventually came to a place where she knew she needed Jesus. She came into this transforming relationship that she found in Jesus. And she decided like this calling, I want to start helping kids like me when I was little. So she began to serve in Calvary kids.

And she was the first person that felt a commitment a year ago. And what's happened since? Well, her family began coming to church. Her mom came to know the Lord. Her brother came to know the Lord. Her mom was baptized just a few weeks ago and we're watching the faithfulness of God for a heart that's open to say, God, I belong to you, I'm bought with a price. It's not just about me, it's about something so much more. And so what began with 700 families a year ago? Well, we began to walk toward this vision, but this year we believed God's telling us to run with it. That all of us, they call Calvary home, we can participate in some way, whether it's a first time opportunity to give and God begins to stretch your heart and take you to the heights or whether you've been given regularly and God's calling you to a whole nother level of generosity. Listen, my whole life following Jesus, I've been stirred to become more and more and more generous by the people around me who are generous. And I was like, wow, that's amazing to watch people give that much to something that's not about them and watch their heart be shaped. And this is the most joyful and peaceful, faithful people. I wanna be around generous people. Something about generous people.

And so as we think about this prophetic book of Habakkah, that we're called to write down the vision and make it plain and run with it. Well, God bought a prophet to us in a prayer meeting a few months back, we were praying God, as we enter year two of this vision, as it's time for the whole congregation to run together, well, she came and said, you know, I don't even go to Calvary, but God has appointed me to pray for this church. And that got our attention. And then she said, "Calvary has done great work "over the last 40 years, "but there's also great work ahead." And then she said this, "And everything you need for this vision "is already here." And there is something about that phrase, everything you need for this vision is already here. It's the people of God as we give our fish and loves and God multiplies them. And so I'm gonna invite you just to open this pamphlet one more time and just look at this last page. And here's what we're gonna do. We're not gonna collect these. We're gonna ask you just in the presence of God, just to pray God. What is my grateful and generous response to your generosity? And maybe you've been praying for this for a couple weeks

already and you've already already decided this is what we wanna do as a family. And maybe this is your first time and you just begin the journey. Listen again, it's not about the amount, it's about the heart. So we're gonna ask you for the next 60 seconds. Just to pray God, what is my generous response to all you've done and how can I now run with it and help the next person come to know Jesus? And then we're gonna ask you to rip that card off and just put it in your Bible between you and God Let's take that time right now in the presence of God. [MUSIC] [MUSIC] [MUSIC] Father, right now we come to you as a people. You've given us a vision, not just personally, but collectively. To reach our community, to change our world, to bring the message of Jesus, the gospel, to every corner, that the knowledge of your glory would cover this community like the water covers the sea. And God, you make a promise to us that generous people will prosper, that those who refresh others will themselves be refreshed. And so God, remind us of the overflow from the inside out of hope and joy and peace and generosity, that's the only response we can give to all that you've done for us, for everything you've done for us, there's nothing we want to withhold from you. So as we offer these gifts and commitments, shape us and impact others. I pray for every single life that will be shaped by these gifts as you multiply them to reach our community and change the world around us.

And we pray, Jesus, that your name would become famous in South Florida and all around the world as it is in heaven. Bring your kingdom here. We pray this together in faith in Jesus' name and all God's people said, Amen. Amen, can we give Jesus praise one more time? And so church, as we run with it, listen to our mantra the last year, that prayer for back of God, what you did in the past, do it again. We want to offer this final act of worship. This is a song about faith that comes straight from the book of a back. Let's stand together as we sing God, do it again and again and again. Let's worship. [MUSIC] ♪ All of our faith in the God who sees ♪ ♪ Turn in the master, master of peace ♪ ♪ A new generation will be deep ♪ ♪ And you are able ♪ ♪ You are faithful ♪ ♪ All of our faith in God who sees ♪ [MUSIC] ♪ Holding to what you've found this year ♪ [MUSIC] ♪ Moving me on all of these dreams ♪ ♪ 'Cause you are able ♪ ♪ You are faithful ♪ ♪ Come like a wild fire ♪ ♪ Come like a rushing wave ♪ ♪ Just like you did back there, Lord ♪ ♪ I know you do it again ♪ ♪ We need your holy presence ♪

♪ We need your power within ♪ ♪ Just like you did back there, Lord ♪ ♪ I know you do it and do it again ♪ [MUSIC] ♪ We know the stories of your faith ♪ ♪ So heaven on earth is what we pray ♪ ♪ All of our worship to your way ♪ ♪ 'Cause you are able ♪ ♪ 'Cause you are faithful ♪ ♪ Yeah ♪ ♪ Come like a wild fire ♪ ♪ Come like a rushing wave ♪ ♪ Just like you did back there, Lord ♪ I know you do it again. We need you holy presence. We need you by living. Just like you did by fellow. I know you do it again and again and again. I know you do it again and again and again. ♪ Look how your sinner saved ♪ ♪ How many bodies raised ♪ ♪ Look at those empty graves ♪ ♪ I know you do it and do it again ♪ ♪ How many chains undone ♪ ♪ How many battles won ♪ ♪ He's only just begun ♪ ♪ I know you do it again and again ♪ ♪ How many sinners saved ♪ ♪ How many bodies raise ♪ ♪ Look at those energy graves ♪ ♪ I know what you're doing again and again ♪ ♪ How many chains are in love ♪ ♪ How many battles won ♪ ♪ He's only just begun ♪ ♪ I know you're doing again and again and again and again ♪

♪ I know you're doing again and again and again and again and again ♪ ♪ Oh, like a wild fire ♪ ♪ Oh, like a rushing wind ♪ ♪ Just like you did back there ♪ ♪ Oh, I know you're doing again ♪ ♪ We need your homey presence ♪ ♪ We need your homey presence ♪ ♪ Just like you did back there ♪ ♪ Oh, I know you're doing again and again ♪ ♪ I know you're doing again and again and again and again ♪ ♪ Oh, like a wild fire ♪ Church, we hope that today you are filled with faith and that you go and you run with it. Before you leave, if you are in need of prayer, please come forward. We have a prayer team that's going to be right up front ready to pray with you. If not, we will see you again on Wednesday night. We hope you have a wonderful rest of your Sunday. Thank you for joining us. ♪ ♪ ♪ [BLANK_AUDIO]