Stop Trying Harder, Try Higher

You've blocked, you've been blocked, but you have tried. It's very different than I just didn't even try it, I just didn't even do it, I just didn't. It's very different. It's a different kind of tired when you've really tried. That's why I like to preach to youth sometimes, because they haven't even really tried yet. They haven't even got tired of themselves yet. They're not even sick of themselves yet. You know, I don't even have to do all that. Half the work I have to do with you when I preach to you. All y'all over 30 people, over 40 people, over 50 people. I'm tired of this. I tried everything you're up there talking about. I tried all of that. They tried, and verse 18 says that they couldn't get in, but they tried to take him into the house to lay him before Jesus. Here's what I want to show you in verse 19, is what they did and what they could have done. When they could not find a way to do this, what? To bring this man to Jesus. Because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and lowered him on his mat through the tiles into the middle of the crowd right in front of Jesus. I love that. What I love about it though is it says when they could not find a way to do this, what they originally intended to do, because of the crowd, and then there's a comma, it doesn't say that they started a fight in the parking lot so they're frank to get in. I love that because do something for me real quick. This might disturb you, but I want y'all to take away the second part of that verse. When they could not find a way to do this because of the crowd, comma, now take away the rest, what would you do next in that situation? What are you doing in that situation?

Because if we make a few substitutions here, we're not talking about four men that lived 2,000 years ago anymore, we're talking about you. When they could not find a way because of the crowd, comma, they looked at each other and said, "Well, we tried and turned around and went home." This story would probably not be in the Bible if the men brought the man all the way to Jesus, encountered resistance at the door, tried, begged, bribed, "I'll do anything. Don't you see this man needs help?" Now see, you're wondering the same thing I wondered. I wouldn't somebody else give him their spot, but paralyzed people were not given special access in this time. There were no handicapped spots in this time for people in this condition. In fact, it was often seen as a sign of God's divine displeasure on your life if you had something physically wrong. So they assumed there's something that you are not doing right that has caused your legs to not be able to work, so they would actually ostracize you rather than including you. They would exclude you. So the man on the mat didn't get a special spot for having no ability to walk. In fact, he had more obstacles. The one who needed it the most had the least access to it. And might I just ask a question, Church, why do we make it so hard for people to come to God sometimes? Why do we put up so many restrictions for people to come into the presence of God? Why do we judge others for struggling with stuff that if we were in a situation, we might have the same struggle or truth be told, why do we judge people for stuff that we haven't been even free from ourself for five years? Why do we judge people for stuff that if they showed everything we thought about on a movie screen, we would be embarrassed about it too. I'm glad these men didn't start a fight because if they start a fight, they go to prison and their friend doesn't have a ride home. How do you deal with it?

Put the half verse up again because I want you to think about how you're going to finish this sentence in your life right now. When they could not find a way because of the crowd, when they could not find a way because of the debt, when they could not find a way because of the genetics, when they could not when they could not find a way because of the divorce, when they could not find a way because of the betrayal, when they could not find a way because of their boss. I'm coming all through this crowd. I'm coming all through this crowd. I'm coming all through this crowd until I find that place where you've been blocked because I came with a word from God today. There's always a way with God. Somebody shout with God. There's always a way and just because I don't see it when I first show up and just because I can't point to it yet and just because it's not obvious and just because I can't really get my truck through there and just because I can't get there dancing and just because I can't get there in style and just because I might be a few years late and just because somebody told me you can't go this way and people like you can't do that and people from our background can't rise there with God. There's always a way. Yeah. High five your neighbors say always means always and if the first way didn't work there must be another one because with God there's always. Now imagine you show up and you're like okay well I mean this is the way we're supposed to go through and this is the way you're supposed to work and the Pharisees and the teachers in the law are more important than us anyway and so if they've got the good seats we might as well go away. This is you stopping your miracle, your maturity, your ministry, your legacy, your freedom because you stop mid-sentence. How does this sentence in? Give me the half sentence again. When they could not find a way to do this because of the crowd they turned around and went home which they had every right to do because they already did more than anybody else in the whole passage except Jesus. They already did more than the Pharisees. What were the Pharisees doing again? Let me look at verse 17, book verse 17 up there. I just want to see what the Pharisees were doing. The ones that fill in an example, the ones that are supposed to be teaching the law. What did the Pharisees teach us the law were? Sitting there like they're about to judge Jesus. Yeah like they're about to judge Jesus, like they're about to catch him doing something wrong. I don't know whether to say this or to save it. You think I should say it? I don't know if you can handle it. I don't know if you can handle it.

It's the same verse. They were sitting there. They were teaching the law. They had come from every village of Galilee and Judea and Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was with Jesus. Told you you weren't ready. The power of the Lord wasn't with them. The power of the Lord was with. I think you need to take your power back from people. And bring that thing to Jesus because the power is not with them. The power is not with them. I'm not saying God can't use people. I just told you to join an e-group. But what I am saying is that there have been times in your life where you have thought that people needed to give you permission. People needed to cheer you on. People needed to understand you. Do you know what I would say in this pulpit if I needed every person to vote before I said it? The sermon would be so short. We wouldn't even need to come. So there has to come a point in your life where you decide that I'm not going to spend another minute trying to convince people of what I need to believe Jesus for. I don't mean don't be nice. I don't mean don't make friends. teachers of the law can do to stop God from doing what God has made up his mind to do. The power of the Lord is with Jesus. Jesus is the Son of God. If Jesus is in the house, healing is in the house. If Jesus is in the house, freedom is in the house. If Jesus gives the command and faith makes the move, then the glory of God will be the result. How many are glad that the power is with Jesus? So they try to get in. They can't get in. This is me every time I try. I'm inspired. I'm trying. I try harder. I try harder. It gets heavier. It gets heavier. This is what keeping the laws like. This is what trying to be right with God through your works is right. This is what discipline without actual grace in your life. This is what not accepting your current lot in life and being grateful for it while aspiring to what you are. This is trying harder, harder, harder, harder, harder, heavier, heavier, heavier, inspired. Let's take our friend to Jesus. Tired, he was heavy. Well, we tried. Give me my half sentence again. Watch what they did. Oh, I love the Bible. When they could not find a way to do this because of the crowd, that's what's right in front of you and you can't push through it and you can't

go over it. It can't go on. When they could not find a way to do this because of the crowd, now finish the verse, they went up. The spirit of the Lord says, don't try harder. Try higher. Holly Furtick, I'm preaching this thing. If it's just for me and you, I hear God saying, try higher. Try higher. Try higher. Because see, there's plenty of room on the roof. I said, there's plenty of room on the roof. I said, there's plenty of room on the roof. It's not that you hadn't tried hard enough. You've been trying. You got dirt under your fingernails. You came a long way. You did a lot of stuff. It's not that you haven't tried harder. It's that you haven't tried higher. And I know a man. I said, I know a man. Give me my camera so I can preach it. I want to preach it from Milwaukee to Mozambique. I know a name that is above every name. For God has given Jesus the name that is above every name. That's the name of Jesus. Every knee has got to bow and every tongue has got to confess. Hard five three people say I'm going higher. Hire. Hire. Hire. Not harder. Hire. Not harder. Hire. Not harder. Hire. Not harder. Hire. Not by my flesh. By my face. Cause with my blood, there's always a way in my face. Not by mine. Not by power. But by the spirit. I hear John the Revelator saying, come up higher. Come up higher. Come up higher. Hire. Now high five everybody you can reach and say, I'm going up whether you come or not. Hire. Hire. Hire. Oh, now I get it. It's not that I wasn't doing enough. It's not that I wasn't trying enough. It's that I wasn't trusting enough. Cause I kept thinking if I couldn't get in the way I wanted to get in, it wasn't meant to be. No, it's not trying harder. I don't have to force it. I can make it by faith trusting him who was and is and is to come. So that means I don't I don't try harder. If I just had to try harder, then Christ died for nothing. The gospel isn't try harder. It's try. Because if you ever call his name, he will reach down and pick you up. Do I have three witnesses in the whole church that if you ever humble yourself and say, "Almighty Father, I need you right now," he'll look upon you with mercy and grace and compassion and help for your time of need. That's the word I needed, man, because sometimes it gets heavy because I try harder, harder. But God said, "Try higher."

Be like these dudes who said, "Can't get in, can't get in, can't get in, gotta go up. I'll give you the picture again. Can't get in, can't get in, can't get in, gotta go up." You are saying to me, "Pastor Stephen, what exactly does that mean? Sit down, I'll tell you." Somebody say, "Try higher." Because I know there's a way, because with God there's always a way. By faith I will find it. What is faith? Faith is when I get my eyes above the waves and put it on the one who can speak one word to the waves and make them be still. You think God can't bring your kid back? You think God can't fix this thing? You think God can't turn an industry around? You think God can't raise you up in a famine? I said, "Try higher." Try higher. Try higher. Maybe out of closing news app and open a Bible app every once in a while, try higher. What does God say? What does his words say? I didn't come here to debate about it. I came here to declare it. God says, "I'm going over, not under." God says, "I'm the head and not the tail." God said, "I'm above and not beneath." He said, "I'm seated. Seated." High-five your neighbor again because I'm going to tell you five things. I need some too.

Come on. I need some too. Don't leave me out. Don't leave me out. Don't leave me out. I got five. You want to write them down? God said, "I'm going to tell you how to try higher." I'm going to tell you how to try higher. Not harder. So you don't just go and go. That was pretty good. I think he blew out his vocal cords trying to tell me something and all that. I don't know what I think about preacher rapping or nothing like that on the thing on the video. I don't even know if he had much flow or anything like that. I really don't know about that cardigan. What was that thing? You're wearing. I don't know about that. So you don't leave here, just sell some stupid stuff. I wrote down five things. I thought I had them in my pocket, but they're back there in the pulpit. Let's see if I can remember. One said, God said, "It's going to take prayer." Now you know why I came over here? They put on my sheet. They said, "The online prayer team is coming today." I said, "I know I've got the right word. I know I've got the right word.

Forty-two of y'all. While we're having church, all their online, pray in for the people in the comment section." Every time I tell somebody, every time I tell somebody, put your thing in the chat and we'll pray for you. I know they go, "All right, try to pray. Did you pray about it or did you--" Hold on, hold on, did you worry about it and label it prayer because those are different. I had to sit down on the side of the bed the other day. I was having shortness of breath about some things that I was worried about. I put my feet down and I said, "They're not moving until I say out loud to my father who I remember that he is and begin to get myself into a condition because I don't feel that right now." I felt blocked. You ever feel blocked? Anybody like me, sometimes you get so blocked you can't even breathe right? Yeah, yeah, yeah. I had to put my feet on the ground and if you would ask me, I would have said, "Yeah, I prayed about this, but I didn't pray about it today." You got to keep praying. Once you're going to pray once and say, "I tried it, it didn't work." You do that with restaurants? No, I ate back there in 1997, I'm good, and so sometimes it's heavy because remember what they did? the man before Jesus. and all this stuff that we try to do, and then go home and wonder why you're blocked. It's going to take prayer for you to try higher. You need God. You need God in your situation. You need angels in your situation. You need the Spirit of God to make it through some of the things we're going through today.

Hey, thanks for stopping by my YouTube channel. I hope you were blessed today. If you were, share this with somebody, like and subscribe and leave me a comment. Let me know where you're watching from, what we can pray for you about. Hope to see you back here again really soon. [MUSIC PLAYING] You