Beth Moore - God Is On The Move - Part 4
Jesus did this. He knew when it was time in the garden. Remember in the garden of Gethsemane? He takes Peter, James, and John with him, and he says, "You stay..." So he's got the 12. Judas has left, so he's got the 11. He takes 3 of them apart and takes them with him into the deeper part of the garden. Then he tells those three to stay there, and then he goes on further than there because they can't go there with him. He's got something, listen, there are things that happen in our lives we have to work out with Jesus, and nobody else can help us. They can't.
Let me tell you something: in death, it was the strangest feeling to me. My mother died of cancer, and oh, my goodness, it was about a 2-1/2 year ordeal almost 25 years ago, and she got so, so sick. But I will never forget that when she went in for one breast to be removed, that first time when we made that step into, we all just hovered around her. Her kids adored her, but they pulled her away from us and wheeled her into the operating room. I'll never forget it because not one of us could go. It was like we all just stood there like, "That's our person". And I thought to myself, "What's going through her mind"?
Well, it's just you and Jesus. And it's one reason why you gotta start now that it's... you know how to be with Jesus. Just you. That you know how to... it doesn't take your Sunday school teacher, your Bible teacher, or... you know how to go to him, because there are times when it's just you. We want people to understand what we're goin' through. We're mad at them 'cause we keep goin' back to 'em, and they've fallen asleep on our job. We needed them, and they don't even get it. They can't. But they're close by. Sometimes you just have to go, you know, give 'em a few points for stayin' close by because they can't enter in with you there. There's another place I want you to see.
I want you to go with me to John 21. John 21. I want you to notice this again. Now, this time it's Peter. This is just, I love all these relationships. I love thinking about what this was like for them in relationship to one another as the disciples, because you know the story. John 21. I'm gonna go there where it says that Jesus, you know, he's called them over to the shore. They were fishing. They realized that it's Jesus, and it says that Peter, you know, he just, once he realizes it's Jesus, he just, like, jumps in and swims to him.
And it says in verse 15, "When they had eaten breakfast, Jesus asked Simon Peter, 'Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?' And he says, 'Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.' 'Then feed my lambs.' A second time he asked him, 'Simon, son of John, do you love me?'" Now, what we know from this side, 'cause we've heard it preached and taught so many times, is he's reversing those denials and giving him three times to confess his love for him. So it's a gorgeous thing, but it's very confusing to Peter at the time.
"'Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.' 'Shepherd my sheep,' he told him. Then the third time, 'Simon, son of John, do you love me?' And Peter was grieved that he asked, 'Do you love me?' And he said 'Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.' 'Feed my sheep. Truly I will tell you,' Jesus said, 'when you were younger, you would tie your belt and walk wherever you wanted. But when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands and someone else will tie you and carry you where you do not want to go.'" And it says, "He said this to indicate by what kind of death Peter would glorify God. And after saying this..."
Do you see this repetitive, that he's going back and he's reissuing? He's reminding him, "You have been called". And he goes back, and he says, "Follow me". So look at this next couple of verses. "So Peter turned around and saw the disciple Jesus loved following them, and the one who would lean back against Jesus at the supper and ask, 'Lord, who is the one that's going to betray you?' When Peter saw him, he said to Jesus, 'Lord, what about him?' And Jesus said, 'If I want him to remain until I come, 'what is that to you? As for you, you follow me.'"
Okay, so go here with me, because this is another occasion of that, however it's happened, we don't know at what point they stood up because they've been at breakfast, but at some point they've kind of stood up now and kind of began moving around a little bit. And so we're assuming, since John was following Jesus and Peter, that they were now walking. So that Jesus has now walked off and is having a conversation with Peter. And Peter's a little bit disturbed because he knows, like, "Oh", I mean, nobody wants to be told you'll be taken where you don't want to go and you'll be tied up. I mean, like, "Woo-hoo! That's a green light".
So, I mean, Peter looks behind him, and it's a little bit annoying because, I mean, John's already the beloved. He's already leaned on Jesus at supper. "I mean, dude, what do you want here? I need a minute". You know, but here he is. He's followin' him, and so he goes, "What about him"? And he goes, "What do you have to do with that? If I call him to still be here when I come back, then that's fine". Do you hear the concept that sometimes... okay, scoot back a little bit, because your three callings are not the same. Melissa's call, she is my, I mean, my co-writer. Literally, my right arm in ministry. But her calling is not identical to mine, nor mine hers.
No one else in this, as good of friends as you've been, can you differentiate when it comes to your calling and when it comes to direction? Do you know that just because your best friend is taking a ride there in the name of Jesus, that doesn't mean you're supposed to go with her or with him? So we have to learn when do we need to kind of scoot back and go, "Okay, as much as I consider this to be my kindred". Paul had to scoot back from Peter in Antioch because Peter suddenly stopped eating with the Gentiles. This is Galatians 2. Stopped eating with the Gentiles because the people from, it's called the circumcision party. In other words, those who still believe that those Gentiles that were coming to know Jesus ought to have to be circumcised.
Paul is going, "They are free from the Mosaic Law. They do not have to. All they do is come to Jesus by grace through the power of the cross. That is the gospel". And he won't budge. Well, suddenly, Peter's gettin' all antsy because he doesn't want them to hate him. And so he goes back into his old patterns. Anybody know what I'm talkin' 'bout? Like, God set you free from so much legalism, but your old legalistic friends, you get with them, and suddenly you're acting just like them again. Just like 'em. Differentiation. 'Cause Paul had to go, "You know what? I realize he was in here before me. I realize how powerful he's been used, but I'm gonna tell you something: he's not right here, and I'm gonna oppose him to his face".
That takes some kinda guts. So, you might say to me, and I would want you to, "Move back enough for what"? And so I'm just gonna spit out a few things so you can get the idea straight. Move back enough to think straight to regain some clarity. How about scooting back so that you can see the larger picture? Maybe you're too close to it to even read the situation to hear from God for yourself. Move back enough to hear from God for yourself. This is a big one: move back enough to keep from drowning. Move back enough to let that person feel their need for Jesus and you feel yours.
Number five, move at the speed of light. Okay, what do I mean by this? I'm gonna read you a couple of verses in just a moment, but I wanna say this to you first. What do we mean by that? Well, we've just said...so get me up to speed here. This is our fifth point. So our first one was what? Our second one was? Our third one? Our fourth one? Move back enough. And our fifth one? Move at the speed of light. Move it. So this is not just about moving back enough. This is now run for your ever-loving life! There is a word that the scripture uses, that the Holy Spirit uses, numerous times.
If you want to know the Holy Spirit's terminology for move at the speed of light, it would be flee. And you would see it not just in a few places that may be most familiar to you, like, "Flee from sexual immorality". But you would see it from the very beginning and on and on and on that God would say to a people or say to a person, "Flee". It's something that we see of Joseph and of Mary. When God comes to Joseph in a dream and he says, "Hurry, flee with the mother and the child to Egypt because of Herod," and then he comes back to Joseph and tells him when he can go back. But, "Flee," "Flee," "Flee".
This is when you don't just scoot back. There really are some situations that we need to be in tune enough to the Holy Spirit to go, "I am flagging all over the place". Something that we will say in Texas is, "I mean, I am like Six Flags Over Texas right now". You know, where you're just like, "Uh-huh, uh-huh. Something does not feel good here. Not only that, something feels very, very wrong here".
I want to talk to you about also understanding that we need desperately to learn, I want to be careful with this 'cause I want you to understand. If you've already blown this, so have I. Numerous times. Numerous times. But that we would advance in learning how to discern the Holy Spirit when we are near a predator and someone is dangerous. So many times we get paralyzed. I want to say this to you because some of you have been in a situation, you say, "Beth you're saying that I should have run. I couldn't run". I have been there. I have been there. But I'm saying now let's see what could we do? How could we teach our daughters differently without scaring them to death? How would we, like, "This is predatorial behavior".
And there's all sorts of predatorial behavior. It's not just sexual. It can be, like, psychological. It could be financial. But that sense of that something is not just wrong. "There is someone dangerous in my life," or there is something, some organization, some group that is a predatorial. I want you to hear these words. This is hard to hear. Look at 2 Thessalonians 3, verse 1. "In addition, brothers and sisters, pray for us that the word of the Lord may spread rapidly and be honored, just as it was with you, and that we may be delivered from wicked and evil people, for not all have faith. But the Lord is faithful".
I need you to hear that it says that we may be delivered from wicked and evil people. I know how we want, I want it to always be that someone's just been hurt and we ought not to flee from 'em. We ought to help 'em. You know, all those things are right, and all those things are good. But I need you to hear the scriptures tell you that there is such a thing as wicked and evil people. Do you understand what I'm saying to you? Wicked and evil people. There is. There is. And when you begin to discern that you might be around a wicked or evil group of people or person or personality that may be dripping with all sorts of flattery, to be able to get a little sense, and it may be something you never get to explain. Like, they just think you ghosted 'em. Ghost with everything in you.
Paul says, I love this because he says, "Let no one deceive you with empty arguments, for God's wrath is coming on the disobedient because of these things. Therefore, do not become their partners. For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light". So that's why we're talking about Moving at the Speed of Light. Is anybody getting this? This is why I put a capital L, and I hope you did too. Move at the speed of light. In other words, when you sense that you are in a dark, that it is darkness there. I mean, there is darkness. And we're gonna think, "No, I'm big enough to..."
Well, I mean, do pray through it. But you know what? Pray from a distance, 'cause what you need to do, you are a person of light. You have no place in that darkness. So, at one time, I mean, that was you. That is not you anymore. That is not me anymore. We are people of light. We're people of light. And so what are we to do? We are to scoot out and run for our life. Pray for it over here. Pray for it over here. Doesn't mean don't be in touch with any of those people. It means get away from it. There are some people you never need to be in contact with again as long as you live. I'm sorry. I'm sorry.
You're saying, "Well, maybe they're sorry". You know what? When there has been deep and malicious wrong and evil, you know how you will know when they've repented? You will hear from them. I'm sorry. I'll take that to the bank. Maybe I'm wrong about that, but I'm gonna tell you that when we have wronged someone terribly and we have repented, we want to humble ourselves and go, "Listen, there's no way I can make this up, but I just want to tell you I recognize my wrong, and I am sorrowful over it. I'm sorrowful".
Move at the speed of light. Jonathan told David to flee from his father, Saul, and it saved David's life. There were times when Paul walked straight back into a city where he'd been beaten, and other times he'd quickly escape. And what occurred to me, and something that I've been thinking about, is that God, when he tells us to flee, instead of just being because he's stuffy, or he's just, like, "I don't want you anywhere near that". When he says, "Flee," it is always for rescue. When the enemy says, "Flee," it is always that he wants you to run in fear. He wants you to be so scared of a situation that God has called you to that you flee. But anytime the Lord says, "Flee," to you, it is always for rescue. Always for rescue for me. Always.
Would you turn with me to Matthew 17:14-21? "When they reached the crowd, a man approached and knelt down before them. 'Lord,' he said, 'have mercy on my son, because he has seizures and he suffers terribly. He often falls into the fire and often into the water. And I brought him to your disciples, but they couldn't heal him.' Jesus replied, 'You unbelieving and perverse generation, how long will I be with you? How long must I put up with you? Bring him here to me.' Then Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of him, and from that moment on the boy was healed. Then the disciples approached Jesus privately and said, 'Why couldn't we drive it out?' Jesus answered, 'Because of your little faith. For I tell you, if you have the faith, the size of a mustard seed, you will tell this mountain, Move from here to there, and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.'"
Now, I wanna talk to all of you for a moment who are let's say 50 and over that have, I was gonna say gray-headed, but then it occurred to me how many of us are gray-headed without the world knowing it. I'm thinking about it slowly. What's happened to me is that the Lord chose that I would just go blonder. I don't know if you believe that or not. I don't know if you discerned a lie just then. What am I getting at? What point am I on? Oh, oh, oh. So, we can have been in this so long, and you know what? You don't have to be that age for this to happen. You just have to kind of have a long journey of faith where you no longer even believe that, you know why? 'Cause you've told so many mountains to move and they didn't. But I'm gonna tell you something: I too have spoken to a lot of mountains, and they didn't move. But I'm gonna tell you something.
Listen, listen, listen, listen, listen: I still believe. It does not stop me from talkin' to the next one. You know why? Because I have spoken to some mountains, and they have moved. Now, he says something very... now, I want you to take this down in pencil. This means you don't even take it down in your notes. I just want you to think about it. I don't know if I'm right here or not, but I want you to see that he says in verse 20, "For I tell you, if you have the faith the size of a mustard seed, you will tell this mountain".
What mountain is he talking about? I think it's very possible he's just come down the mountain and this stir is going on down there, and so it seems to me it is very possible that he's going, "You could say to this mountain". The reason why I want to pick that out is because this is what began, I don't know. It's the way I approach it, and it has blessed me completely. Is that if it doesn't move, then for cryin' out loud, climb it. Climb it. Go up on top of it and see Jesus transfigured. If he has told you, "If you will use your faith," and in Jesus's name say, "I need that obstacle to move," I believe this is the will of God according to the scriptures, and I'm saying to that mountain, "Move from here to here".
If it doesn't, maybe that's your Mount of Transfiguration. You crawl up that mountain with Jesus, and you see a different side of him that you have never seen before and get a fresh glimpse of his glory. And let me tell you, either way that mountain is under your feet because it blessed you or it moved. Oh, let me say that again. Either that mountain blessed you or it moved.
Number six is move some mountains. The reason why I said "some" is because you're gonna find some aren't gonna move, but what are you gonna do if they don't? Oh, you're gonna... Yes, that's what you call climb-it-change. Y'all, I feel that that was of the Spirit because that's the first time that's ever occurred to me.
Number seven is this: move out of shame and shadows. And I can promise you that the cross was big enough to handle your shame. Some of you are still paralyzed in shame, and that that you're paralyzed over happened 25 years ago. You have long since repented of the sin, but you cannot get over it where you can get freed up because you think you're not worthy. Listen, we can all just receive it. We're not worthy. Jesus is worthy. Jesus is worthy. What he says to us is what the Apostle Paul said in 1 Corinthians 15 when he said, "Listen, I'm the least of all of 'em. I mean, I was untimely born. I almost don't even count. But the one thing I can tell you is that his grace to me has not been in vain".
That's it. It's time to move out of the shame and the shadows. And by the shadows, I wanna say this to you because what this means, Travis, is that there are times where it's not that we're hiding over shame. It's that we're like, "Well, I want to get good enough first". You know what I'm saying? Especially in the social media world, 'cause it looks like everybody's perfect out there. Do you know how many times they've taken that picture to get their hind in lookin' just right? I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Are y'all gonna leave that on tape? Because I want you to. It needs to be said. It needs to be said.
Do you know how many times they had to suck their stomach in? Do you know how many times they did that clip? Do you know how many filters are on? I'm just simply saying, do you think they're puttin' their worst stuff out there? They're not. They're not. I'm not. You're not. Let's not go for that. "Let your light so shine before people, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven".
He has left us here to shine our light. I don't care how corny that sounds. Shine your light. If the Holy Spirit is indwelling in you, then what you want to do is walk enough with him, yield enough to him that the light, it's not that you're looking for a spotlight. That could not be more contrary to it. It's that you're looking for the light that is in you to be so effusive that it radiates from you. Light, shine. Quit hiding. So you've got a terrible past. Oh, for heaven's sake, My past has got to be worse than yours.
Do you know what I'm saying? Maybe not, but I'm just gonna say to you, the power of the cross, y'all, just own it. You don't have to go tell the graphics. Just say, "I need you to know". If you're servin' somewhere and you think, "I don't have any right to be up here," go, "You know what? I have to really fight somethin' in me because I have been through such a journey that I really fight self-condemnation when I come up in a place like this, but I just want you to know, please know I have been greatly graced by God, and now can we just go forward"?
Get out from under it. Get out. You only need to be in one shadow, and that's the shadow of the Almighty. That's it. That's it. Let your light shine. The only way you're gonna grow in that gifting is to use it, girlfriend. You're not gonna perfect it over there in that side room and then come out and use it. You do the humility of just, like, stumbling along in front of people until you kind of learn how to walk. And then what I find over and over is that I still just stumble all over the place. So what?