Levi Lusko - On Your Feet

Don’t you think that if Jesus, in the Garden of Gethsemane, was contemplating the Cross, falling to his face again and again with blood coming out of his sweat glands, crying out to God, «If there’s any other way for them to be saved,» that if there was any other way for us to be saved, God the Father would have stopped His Son from this mission and said, «You know, we could just tell them to try and be better and recycle and stuff?» There was no other way. I have a message that is burning a hole in my soul at the moment, so I’m going to let it out. Is that alright? Would that be okay?

Leviticus 14, and everyone was like, «Wait, what? There’s a Leviticus in the Bible?» «Is Leviticus in the Bible?» I’m going to preach to you this message from The Book of Leviticus. I’m so excited about it. It surprised me, and I fought it all week. I felt like I was white-water rafting through this process this week. Many times I tried to move on. I’m like, «There are other places in the Bible that talk about feet,» and yet He had me here. So here we go. The title of my message is «On Your Feet!» And what I hope will be our reaction to the truth and the revelation of the Gospel: on your feet!

Isn’t it funny how we naturally stand on our feet in moments of intensity? Your team is tied, and there are seconds to go, and the pass is made, and the catch is complete. Right? You’re not going to sit there with your hot dog on your lap watching the Indian Wells Tennis Tournament taking place right now-the amazing match we watched yesterday: Alcaraz and Sinner and the rain delay, and then they’re back on. They fought through the heat. Some of you are like, «I have no idea what you’re talking about.» It’s fine. The whole arena is on their feet for the final point, for the moment. Isn’t that right? There’s something about it. And this should be our response. I’m not trying to tell you what I want this sermon to look like as we come to a climax, but what I am saying is that there’s something inside us that needs to stand, that needs to show our worship. I’m standing. I’m standing outside-on your feet!

Yet if we’re honest, is that not at times the one thing we most long to do, but feel most incapable of doing when circumstances have knocked us down? I’m talking about the loss of a loved one, loss of a spouse through divorce, an illness, a change in economic status, loss of a job, where you feel like there is no way to get your feet under you. All you want is to get back on your feet. I mean, even something as small as an injury-it’s amazing how it can render us immobile, inactive, stationary. My wife broke her right ankle on Mother’s Day in the pandemic-the week she launched a book and was going into one of the busiest months of her entire life. You watched and listened as she preached to you, but some of you don’t realize the toll of doing that and doing it in the midst of upheaval. I took this little video of her coming down the stairs to try and preach the second message in the series. Just to see her -it was dangerous, by the way — it’s like watching an artist paint. Really, God, don’t die. Everything’s fine! Come on, let’s hear it for this woman of God! Right?

But she tripped on a tennis ball, and we were in the midst of a fight right as it happened, so it was great. Life has a way, small and large, of throwing us things that knock us down. Here’s the truth of God’s word that I bring to you today: no matter what has taken you out, no matter what has caused you to fall and hit rock bottom so hard that it seems to you as though there is no way that you could ever get back up, God’s word contains the promise that a righteous man may fall seven times and rise again. When you fall in Jesus' name, you can get back up on your feet.

So we find in Scripture instructions in Leviticus 14 for how a person who had been handed, no doubt, the most crushing blow of death could re-enter and reintegrate into life and society and culture if he had leprosy and became cured. That’s what we’re going to dive into. I just want to get you ready for it. We’re going to read the instructions for a former leper. I had leprosy, but I don’t have leprosy anymore. Now I’m going to reintegrate into my life. How is that all to take place? Right now, the medieval name is leprosy. We now call it Hansen’s Disease. Hansen’s disease is characterized by the formation of nodules all over the body, but especially on the face. For those of you who have seen the movie Braveheart, think Robert the Bruce’s father-disfigured. You couldn’t hide it eventually. I mean, you could in the beginning, but eventually, you had these white nodules all over, specifically the face, that would enlarge and spread.

I quote: «This disease begins with specks on the eyelids and on the palms, gradually spreading over the body, bleaching the hair white wherever they appeared, crusting the affected parts with scales, causing terrible sores and swellings. From the skin, the disease eats inward to the bones, rotting the whole body piecemeal.» This is terrible but not even the worst part. Accompanying these tiny nodules, to see one of them, to see one white sore would cause there to be incredible fear. Is this leprosy? For what would inevitably happen would be the loss of sensation through a breakdown of the nervous system. You stopped being able to feel.

Now, you think, «Oh my God, what would life be without pleasure?» That would be bad. But that was far from the worst, for losing pleasure is nothing compared to what it means to lose pain. We all dread pain. We all hate pain. We all think in our lives, «I wish the pain would stop; I wish the pain would go away.» But can I pause it ever so gently that pain is its own way, in its own way, a gift? For when you stop feeling pain, what happens? You bump yourself but don’t know you did it. You injure yourself but aren’t aware that it happened. You’re sleeping, and rats come and begin to feast on parts of you, but you don’t have the ability to sense it, to detect it, to panic, to wake up, to stop it.

So for the leper, it would be the slow breakdown and eventually the losing of limbs, the losing of fingers, the losing of appendages. Over time, you were deformed and mutilated, and there was no cure for leprosy. To find out you were a leper was to lie there and know that you would never get back on your feet unless God touched you. For hear me, there was no, there is now no «quote unquote» cure. There is treatment, but there’s not a cure for this disease, for this virus. But there were times when, for whatever reason, God would just choose to touch someone.

So Leviticus-listen to this-it doesn’t tell a leper how to get cured, but it tells them what to do in the event of a miracle. And I wonder, do you still have language in your life for what would happen in the event of a miracle? Are you giving space for God to do something? Are you giving space for God to touch you? Are you giving space for God to move in your life in the event? I feel something on that — in the event, who knows what God might do? Let’s put ourselves in the event of a miracle.

Here’s what we’re going to do when we watch God move, when we see God touch us, when we watch God work in the way that only He can. What was a man to do? What was a woman to do who had been cured from leprosy by God? Well, they were to summon the priest, and the priest-Hebrews would love this, but we don’t have time to go into it-would go outside the camp to where the leper was. He would go to the leper colony. He would go to whatever cave these lepers had joined ranks in to create culture. He was there to meet with a leper and confirm head to toe through an inspection and a shaving of the head to make sure it had actually been truly performed.

Then a week was to be gone by, and finally, on the eighth day after the first visual inspection, what we’ve come to examine would take place. That would start with the killing of a bird, and the bird’s blood would be put into a basin, and another bird would be brought in, and the blood from the dead bird would be poured on the living bird. Then the priest would let the bird fly away with a little red puff of color shimmering in the sunshine as it flew. And that is the least weird thing that happened.

For then the priest shall take some of the blood from the trespass offering and shall put it on the tip of the right ear of him who is to be cleansed, on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe of his right foot. The priest shall take some of the log of oil and pour it into the palm of his own left hand. Then the priest shall dip his right finger in the oil that is in his left hand and shall sprinkle some of the oil with his finger seven times before the Lord. The rest of the oil that remains in his hand-big hand, obviously-he shall put some on the tip of the right ear of him who is to be cleansed, on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe of his right foot.

On the blood of the trespass offering, the rest of the oil-there’s still oil left in his hand; it’s amazing, never-ending oil-he shall put on the head of him who is to be cleansed, and so shall the priest make atonement for him before the Lord.

I remember my first tetanus shot in the'90s, and we were very excited to go on a water slide in Breckenridge, Colorado. We had skied all day, and so a hot tub! There’s nothing like the pre-ski dunk in a hot tub, right? You’re supposed to shower off? Who’s got time for that? We’re just bringing all our filth into this pool. My brothers and sisters and I loved the hot tub, but we loved even more the water slide. There was this big rec center in Breckenridge. Maybe it’s still there, where you would line up again and again. We probably rode that thing 60 times before our parents dragged us out of there.

It was my first time in line, and I was so excited. Finally, my turn comes to stand on the step, right-the step that steps down into the basin that fills up with water from the vent that shoots out the jet that just shoots out all the water going down the water slide so you can dive into the pool and then get up as quickly as you can while the lifeguard yells at you to walk, not run. Get back up and do it all over again. I’m standing there for my very first turn. I’m so excited. I should have taken a step, but instead, I was already mostly there, so I just found myself sliding down.

As I did, the metal grate grabbed the flesh of my heel and ripped it from top to bottom, so instantly was my heel sliced open. I didn’t even feel it, and I was dry, and now I’m in this water, and I’ve got the sensation of the jet just hitting the back of my heel. I’m so excited. I’ve got the bar here, and I am ready to full send, honey! I’m ready. Should the lifeguard give me the word? 'Cause he’s got to give you that-you’re good. He’s got to make sure the little Johnny swam away properly, and I’m ready to go.

I look over, basically saying to the lifeguard, «At my signal, unleash hell!» I’m fixing to set a land speed record. Cheetah ain’t got nothing on me, right? I’m going to arch; it’s all about shoulder blades and heels, three points of contact. The lifeguard’s got a horrible look on his face, and I’m just like, «Hello? Is anybody there?» He just points down. I look down, and it’s strange because now all of a sudden they’ve dyed the entire water slide red, and I can’t figure out why. I’m like, «Bro, that is a neat trick.»

He goes, «No.» And I look down again, and there’s a river of life springing out of me. It was me! I was doing it! Then it hit me, oh God! As I look, and I’m like a sliced-open fish on the back of my heel — water is going down the water slide! Now you have to understand, some of you Gen Zers don’t know anything about Greg Louganis or the AIDS scare of the'90s and how this swimmer diver didn’t tell anybody he had HIV at the Olympics and struck his head on the platform, and blood in the water, and all these other divers swim around in it.

I’m telling you, they all start blowing their whistles: «Out of the pool! Out of the pool! Out of the pool!» I’m up there like, «Do I get a ride or not?» I just want to know because you haven’t made that clear at any point in this process! I’m prepared to go as fast down that slide as I can. Did not get a ride that day. I was on my way to get my heel stitched up, and that was the last skiing and the last water sliding I did on that trip, in case you’re wondering.

So we come to the leper in Leviticus 14 who has endured this ritual, and I hope we have some sense of the relief-the tears-watching that bird fly free. The joy of seeing the blood coming from his ear or thumb. «You want to do what? Great, awesome! I’ll take my sock off! Yeah, have at it.» Offering his right foot to the priest to be cleansed, to be declared free. For the medical issues of leprosy were just the beginning of the problems because we have not even begun to address the social implications.

In Christ’s day, I quote again: «No leper could live in a walled town; though he might live in an open village, wherever he was, he was required to have his outer garment torn perpetually as he walked around as a sign of deep grief-to go bareheaded, nothing covering his head, and to cover his beard with his mantle as if in lamentation at his own virtual death.» He had further, if he saw a passerby coming towards him on the road, to keep them away from him by declaring «Unclean! Unclean!» Don’t get near me! «Out of the pool! You don’t want what I’ve got! You don’t want to come near me!» He was forbidden by law to speak to anyone, receive, or return a salutation since, in the East, this always involved an embrace, and sometimes a kiss.

So at that first spot on your hand or your back or under your armpit, you were receiving the notification that you were embarking upon a life of misery, solitude, and being very, very, very alone.

Hey, I promise we’ll get back into the message in just one moment. Thank you for listening to this sermon, but I just wanted to real quickly invite you to a Bible study on a boat. That’s right-the incomparable Cruise! Carrie Job leading worship! Come on, the blessing! Cody K, firm foundation! So many great songs! Lisa Harper, a hilarious, powerful Bible teacher. Then Jenny and I as well. We’re going to be traveling from Rome to Athens, stopping in Ephesus, and it’s going to be along the way that we discover so much that played out of significance in the New Testament.

This is an amazing opportunity. I can’t promise I’ll ever do anything like this again, but we’re going to go this summer. You can sign up at levi.com; click there for information about the incomparable cruise, and I really hope we will see you this July in the Mediterranean. Now, back to the message from God’s word.

Now, for those of you wondering why we would be spending so much of our time on this, it is for this simple reason: all throughout Scripture, beginning to end, leprosy is held up singularly as a symbol of sin for four reasons: 1) Leprosy and sin are both slow-moving; 2) Incurable; 3) They leave you miserable; and 4) In the end, are fatal. Sin always starts small, grows slowly, makes you miserable. There’s nothing that can be done about it, and in the end, the wages of sin-we know from Romans 6:23–is death.

Hear this: the wages of sin is death! In case you’re wondering, «Gosh, who are these sinful people that need to hear this sermon so much?», you should be looking in your own general direction. For all, someone say, «All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.» None of us, on our own, in our own power, can measure up, can stack up. There’s no amount of tissues we can shove into our shoes like we’re trying to sneak on a roller coaster at an amusement park that we’re too small for. Heaven has a «You must be this holy to ride» sign, and it is scrupulously, unceasingly held to. There’s no loosey-goosey. There’s no «I can just style my hair big on that day.»

All have fallen short of the glory of God. And it’s not like you think, «Oh, I have to sin more than most people, like a curve, or have more in my plus than in my minus.» Obviously, there are scales in heaven, and if I have just a few more good deeds than bad, I’m okay? No, no, no, no! Scripture presents this idea that we are hanging by a chain. How many links in the chain must break for you to fall? Even one sin is enough to separate us from a holy God forever.

So, Levi, how can we get there? Can anyone be saved? A no is the answer-not by power, not by might, not by money. All my righteous deeds? Levi, I’ve done all these good things. I give to the poor; I walk little old ladies across the street; I do good deeds every day. I try to just show up and be good. Well done! You’re going to hell! I don’t believe that. Well, you’re wrong. All your righteous deeds- how does God see them? As filthy rags! Can you imagine trying to pay for something priceless with filthy rags?

«I would like to buy that Monet painting.» Well, would that be cryptocurrency, a bank transfer, a wire? «No, I would love to pay for it with these filthy rags.» I would love for you to feel this in the pit of your stomach-this is you at the gates of heaven trying to argue your way in on the basis of church attendance or being an American, because obviously that counts for something. You see that American flag right out there? No, actually, I don’t.

I see one thing hoisted into the air: holy, holy, holy. And baby girl, you ain’t it. That’s the bad news, without which there is no good news. We have a sin problem. But God — thanks be to God for his indescribable gift-that while we were dead… that was such a bad time for that water bottle to fall! I mean, it could have happened at any point, but during the whisper moment?

I’ve been building toward this slow crescendo. I thought at the moment I said this next verse, some people were going to be on their feet with joy, and you had to kick your water bottle over, right? Why? Why you gotta play me like that? I worked all week on this. While we were dead in sins, Christ died for us. Come on! Jesus hung on the cross because the wages of sin is… the wages of sin is death! And Jesus said at the cross, «I’ll foot the bill!»

Come on, somebody! The right foot of Jesus, His power on the cross. He was wounded for our transgressions. His blood was the currency. His blood was the money. He, at the cross, footed the bill. Do you understand why it’s so insulting to God to insinuate that we can be saved any other way?

Don’t you think if Jesus, in the Garden of Gethsemane, was contemplating the Cross, falling to His face again and again with blood coming out of His sweat glands, crying out, «God, if there’s any other way for them to be saved,» that if there was any other way for us to be saved, God the Father would have stopped His Son from this mission and said, «You know, we could just tell them to try and be better and recycle and stuff.»

There was no other way! And it always had been the plan and predetermined solution to our problem before the world was even created for Jesus' heel to be bruised, crushed, pulverized (Genesis 3:15)-this is moments after the Adam Bomb had gone off. «And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed. He- Jesus-shall bruise your head, and you, Satan, shall bruise His heel.»

To crush, to pulverize-Jesus is on display in every page of Scripture, starting with this, what has been called the Proto -Evangelion, the first instance of the Gospel in all of the Bible. It is a declaration of a Savior who has His heel crushed. Archaeologists who have found examples of crucifixion depicted have told us that crucifixion did not take place with the toes crossed over as we often see Jesus in the crucifix, but it was through the stacking of the heels, and the nail was driven-think about Jesus, spread out, presumably naked, bowlegged on the cross, hips out of joint from being hung in such a way.

Hear me: for you and for me, He was bruised in the heel. His heel was crushed! A nail was driven through His heel. He is the bird that died so we could fly free! As we fly in the hope of the Resurrection, the hope of joy, the hope of life, the hope of freedom, it is the blood of Jesus in the air, like a red cloud in the sun. He died so we could fly free!

My blood caused everyone to want to get out of the pool like there was a great white shark in it. Jesus' blood becomes a waterfall that leads to a river of grace, with healing power for all who have the sense to dive into that pool. For as William Cowper put it, «There is a fountain filled with blood, drawn from Emmanuel’s veins, and sinners plunged beneath that flood lose all their guilty stains.»

The dying thief rejoiced to see that fountain in his day, and there may I, though vile as he, wash all my sins away. Do you see it? By His wounds, we are healed-healed from our sin, from wandering from God’s path, our sin. We went our own way; our feet took us to iniquity. Our feet took us to adultery. Our feet took us to steal, to hate, to pride. Our feet plucked the fruit from the forbidden tree, and so He had a nail driven through His right foot-the foot of power, the foot of strength-the right foot!

We talk about getting off on the wrong foot-Jesus, on the right foot, a nail driven through it for me and for you — not just so we could be healed! Hear me! And this is so important-so we could also be commissioned. For it was not just blood placed on the ear and the thumb and the toe of the right foot. It was also followed by oil-oil! Oil placed on it. Oil, a symbol of commissioning, oil, a picture of anointing. This whole ceremony tells us three things.

It tells us that we can learn to hear the whisper of God. For the blood of Jesus applied to our ears allows us to hear His voice, hear His word, love His word, crave His word. Let His word light the path in a dark world. Let His word set the pace for our life-being still and being quiet. Why? So we can hear Him whisper. But then, with His blood applied to our hands and then the oil applied to our hands, we are now commissioned to do the work of God and to raise hands that were once used in stealing, but now we steal no more! Now we work hard with our hands so that we may be able to supply and help those who are in need.

You see, God takes the same members that were offered in unrighteousness, do you see it? God cleanses them and commissions them! And I know you did harm with your words, and I know you did harm with your hands, but now God says, «I’ll take what the devil meant for evil, and I’ll use it for good. I’ll use it for My glory.»

So our hands, our thumbs, our fingers, our palms- they did evil. They can now do good. They can now overturn, they can now build, they can now heal. I’m not alone in the place where I once was. I’m now back in community. I now can hug! I now can be a part of the family of God! I didn’t have mercy, but I got it now! I didn’t have a people, but we got it now! We have each other, and we have our hands, and we’ve been saved, and we’ve been healed, and we’ve been called! And for a purpose-to touch and to change!

You see? And that’s not even my sermon! Because it was the hearing of the ear; yes, it was the doing of the work with the hands. But hear me now! We also get to walk in the ways of God! We have the blood and the oil both placed upon us. You see, salvation is just the beginning.

So many people stop it saved. «Oh great, that’s it. Check the box!» That’s just the start! God now wants you to walk in His ways! To walk in His ways-to walk after Him! What does Ephesians say? That we may walk worthy of the calling with which we have been called! Look at it on the screen: «I pray that you may walk worthy of the calling that you’ve been called with.»

Paul says, «Walk worthy.» No, that’s not what he says, is it? He says, «As the prisoner of the Lord, I beseech you, walk out your calling.» Paul wrote these words. Come with us on the cruise. We’re going to go to the place where Paul was incarcerated. You got to do the real extension add-on, but we’re going to do it. So I’m so excited to look at this place where Paul said, «I beseech you.» He’s talking to someone who’s coming to visit him, and they would write down the things he would say.

«I beseech you, walk worthy!» But tell him, «I’m a prisoner of God because that’s my calling! And I’m proud of it! Because my chains are in Christ, because He anointed and cleansed me, and He put oil on me. So whatever I get to do today, I’m doing as a prisoner of the Lord!»

So whatever my state, whatever my lot, He has taught me to say it is well. Oh, I wish I wasn’t divorced; I wish I wasn’t grieving; I wish that my uncle hadn’t molested me. But if it got to me, it went through Him, and it’s now part of my calling! My chains are in Christ! So we get to walk out our calling, wherever we are, whatever we have, whoever is around us, as a part of our calling. Let’s walk worthy of it!

Because God has dreams. God has plans. So let’s walk worthy of our unique calling, even in chains, even in crisis, even in sickness, even in suffering! Whatever our season, what can we expect, Levi? Like, sell me on it! Sell me on walking worthy of my calling! Alright! We can expect strength, security, and success!

This is part of the anointing of our feet. Your feet are anointed! Your right foot now is anointed! Just as Christ’s injury led to freedom, so you can believe for your deaths to lead to other resurrections-your denying yourself, picking up your cross, leading to other beautiful acts of redemption.

Do you see? Joseph knew this: I’m in my pit, but I’m sent into this pit! I’m in my pit for a purpose, and that purpose was made clear as he was elevated from the pit to the palace. And that only made his life more complex, by the way, for in success, we often find ourselves-this is what we saw last week-it can ruin us, where suffering doesn’t.

So be real careful once you get right. I need some verses, Levi! I need to-well, okay, how about Acts 3:7? How about the strength of Jesus on display in the man who was lame, finding instantly his feet and ankles becoming firm in Christ? Whether it’s physically or spiritually or emotionally-or all three-the weak can say, «I am strong!» And when I have no strength… we can just believe for the power of God to come upon us. That’s what the symbol of the oil represents!

Luke 1:79-"To give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death.» This is what the Messiah does-to guide our feet into the way of peace. And that’s why you’ve got to listen to His whisper because He’s going to guide you into a way of what? Peace! Thus safety and security and strength.

Why? Because even the angels will be sent to protect you in the will of God! You are invincible, and you will have security on your way! You have to know, like Jesus, what is not the way of peace. And He did not claim that promise frivolously or selfishly. He only did so when He was following His Father’s will.

And then lastly, success. This is one of my favorite verses. I’ve preached this thing so much throughout the history of our church, some of you might not even have heard it though it’s been minute. Joshua 1:3-"Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon, I have given you, as I said to Moses.» We can and indeed do believe that as we walk in the will of God, worthy of His calling, that He will make a way for our feet where there is no way!

That every place, in His name, that we put our foot down, as we walk worthy of that calling, He will indeed prosper us! Wherever you put it, believe it for your foot. It’s anointed! Your foot’s anointed to walk in paths of peace and strength, and in so doing, in God’s eyes, you will have success!

Someone once said, «This is the way.» And so I say it to you now. This is the way to get back on your feet! The world’s way is the way of Jacob, who sought to grab hold of heels: I can only get if I pull you back. I can only get if I’m more, or at least equally as important as you. But in grabbing heels, we will always end up miserable.

So instead, what do we do? What we do makes us feel pathetic. We do what Peter had such a hard time doing in John 13. We allow Jesus to hold our heel and wash our feet. Don’t try and grab your heels! Let Jesus hold and wash your heel! For when the blood has been applied, the oil will be placed on top! Now cleansed, you are commissioned to walk in His paths, to do His work, and to hear His word.

If you receive it, this is how we get back on our feet! This is the way to our feet! It’s the way of humility; it’s the way of suffering-it’s the way of… this is how we get on our feet. This is how we stand again! This is how we emerge from our pits! This is how we walk in freedom!

I’m about to close. You can stay standing. I want to close with this. Marine drill sergeants are famous for the phrase, «On your feet, maggot!» Not Jesus. He stands with blood and oil and we say, «What’s that for?» He says, «I want to put this on your feet!» He’s not today from Heaven yelling at you, «Why haven’t you done more?» He’s wondering why you won’t let Him place on your feet the path to your healing!

It’s interesting, and I kept coming across it this week. There’s only one other time where the weird ear, thumb, toe thing happens: it’s lepers and one other time! It’s lepers and one other time-it’s lepers and the high priest of Israel! Leviticus 14 and Leviticus 8-those are the only two times in Scripture this hokey pokey thing takes place. Your right ear, in, your right thumb out, your right toe down, and the priest goes all about!

And I said, «Lord, why priests and lepers?» And I feel like He just said to me, «Because I give them both the royal treatment! Prophets, priests, and kings we get that would get anointed with oil. But a leper? I mean, the lepers' stories in Scripture are not great! Miriam rebelled against Moses-leprosy. Uzziah rebels against God’s authority- leprosy! Gehazi steals money that Elisha said don’t steal-leprosy!

I told you it represents sin! We can’t say for certain, but it would seem that those we come across being forgiven and touched from the sin of leprosy — that in some way it was connected to behavior in their heart and life. There are sins, friends, that lead to death. So God chose in His wonderfulness to let them be treated on their way back into the community with their big old scarlet A and their rent garments and their „unclean, unclean, unclean“ to treat them like a king!

We’re only left with this because of the blood of Jesus! Even the lowliest sinner stands on the same level ground as the high priest himself! And I ain’t talking about Aaron; I’m talking about the High Priest, Jesus Christ, who entered into the most holy place with a basin of His own blood, ready to coat our wings so we could be…

Well, we all yell at concerts „Free Bird!“ Because of Jesus, we are free like a bird to fly through the air! We are not going to hell; we’re going to heaven! We’ve been given His Spirit; we’ve been given a calling! Because of the cross, I was teaching Lennox how to tie his shoes the other week. I brought a little video to show you. I realized after the fact that’s something I’ve never seen before. You can’t get the bow if you don’t start with the cross!

Come on! You can’t get the bow! You’ve got a problem! You’re tripping over your feet! You’ve got to start with the cross! Some of you are going, „How do I get back on my feet?“ I’m telling you-you can’t get there if you don’t start with the cross!

So, Father, we embrace Your plan to save us, to heal us, and to anoint us. Touch our ears, Lord. Touch our thumbs, God, and yes, our big old toes! Thank You for wanting our big toe. Thank You for Your blood on our big toes! Thank You! Help us never see our big toes the same way again! God, that’s an anointed toe! That’s a commissioned toe! We can’t do it, but You can! Why? You’re holy! Holy! Holy! Holy! Holy! Holy! We stand in awe of You, God! We worship You!