Michael Todd - Stop It
For everybody who is a part of what God is doing here or if you’re visiting for the first time, welcome! We love you! We’re regular people who are jacked up, who have been saved by grace, and all we want to do is offer you the opportunity to walk in that level of freedom. Does it mean that everything becomes perfect? No. But what it does mean is your life will start to gain forward momentum, and you will begin to progress. At this church, we believe in the model of progression over perfection. If you’re looking for a perfect church, you have not found one. If you think you have, when you show up, it is no longer perfect. So what I’m telling you is you might as well get around a bunch of believers who are going toward Jesus, will admit when they are wrong and need correction, have accountability, but are going to enjoy the journey and see what God has to do. Amen! Amen!
I feel happy. There are so many exciting things happening right now, and I want to tell you about a few of them. I want to thank God for what he’s doing in this church. I don’t know if you have recognized it, but this year we decided that the motto here is «fruit.» This is the year that God prophetically told us that we would be not just ones who need fruit from others, but we would be ones that bear fruit in our lives. Somebody with faith, say, «This will be my year! This will be my year of much fruit!» Y’all know the year is not over yet! It seemed like when I said that, people were like, «Yeah, I can’t wait until 2025.» Hold on, wait! It’s November 10th. It doesn’t even matter; we still have over 50 days left in this year! When I read in my Bible, He only needed three days to defeat death, hell, and the grave. You should get hopeful right now!
Somebody say, «It ain’t over!» Yep, y’all quit back there, 'cause I don’t need much today. Just one more time, somebody say, «It ain’t over!» God can let the last quarter of this year rewrite the whole narrative of the year! Y’all ever seen a movie that was going badly until that last little bit? All right, don’t leave this year too early. Some of y’all are about to get the surprise of your life! Somebody just receive that—it’s about to flip so quick, things are about to change so fast that you’re going to be like, «I was just planning.» Your ring is going to have weight on it! Some of y’all don’t know. I’m going where the faith is. Some of this stuff is about to flip so fast! Yep, he that has an ear to hear, let him hear.
There are some people judging your praise right now, but they’re going to be asking to borrow something in a minute. Don’t let anybody keep you from giving God praise in faith! This thing is about to flip so fast. Jay, don’t stop! All right, here we go. All right, all right, all right, all right! For you, bro, one time—your word is final. Your word is final! I will—if there’s a will, there’s a way! Say your word! Your word is, «Go with this year!» Yet believe! Just one more time, say your word! Your word is, «I will!» You look complete. Happ! Stop! I got a praise! I got to get it out! I got to! I got to! I got to praise! I got! I got to! Only God can do it! Only God can do it! Only God can do it! Only God can do it! Only God can do it! Only God can do it! Only God can do it! Only God can do it! Only God can do it! Only God can do it! This is, guys. You can’t start running on the second level! All I need is a memory! All I need is a memory! All I need is a memory! All I need is…
Alright, guys, 'cause all my life you have been faithful! Yes, you better say it! To all my life, you have been so… Oh! At home, say with every breath that I breathe—this is your last time! Say, «I will!» You better give it! All I need is a memory! All I need is a memory! All I need is a memory! All right, God made it fail! God made it fail! Everything that the devil tried, God made it fail! Somebody should thank God for that. God made it fail! God made it fail! He made it fail! Everything that the devil tried, God made it… I’m done with y’all! Alright, there’s a praise in this house! There’s a praise in this house! There’s a praise in this house! Whoa! This thing is shaking people’s houses! You’re going to get home, and it’s going to be different! This thing is moving stuff!
Alright, alright, here we go! It’s very difficult as a public speaker, 'cause everything I want to say feels like putting lighter fluid on a fire. I need an «Alright,» and «Amen!» Enough! Sit down! Album Sunday’s next Sunday! We can do this all day! Next Sunday, we don’t have to sing any songs! I’m looking for a new band currently 'cause the one I have is disobedient, but when the praises go up—oh, I said when the praises go up! When the praises go up—oh yeah! I’m telling you, the blessing, the favor, the miracles, the transformation—it’s coming down! It’s coming down! It’s coming down! Have you tried Him? Have you tried—alright, I have 30 minutes now! Sit down! Tony, give me your drumsticks! Thank you! Hold on!
Does that mean when you think you’ve lost something God can restore? I got to get out of here! I got to get out of here! It’s restoration season! Everything that the enemy stole, we’re getting it all back! Yeah, all of it! I want it all back! I want it all back! Look at your neighbor and say, «I want it all back!» Yeah, family wants it all back! Resources, I want it all back! Yeah, the time, I want it all back! Now! Now! Now! I heard you! You can’t get time back! Well, my Bible says—I don’t know what Bible you’re reading, but it says all of the time that the canker worm had stolen, all of the time that the palmer worm had eaten—my God will restore back to you! Some of y’all lost decades! Get ready! Get ready! I’m getting it all! Okay, I need to be honest: like 10 minutes ago it was all good. I stepped over into my blackness 10 minutes ago.
Okay! I just want to let y’all know, the last 10 minutes is just how I was raised. This has nothing to do with anything! This is my culture coming out, and I like to praise God. I just want to acknowledge—okay, alright, alright! Cool! Sit down, please! Hold your applause! Please start it back up in the car! Please bring it next Sunday! Please! Beautiful segue! Next Sunday, I think all of the—I don’t just want to say energy; I feel like momentum. I feel like all of the momentum that’s in the room right now, we’re going to bring it next week as we celebrate God together. I’m just letting you know anything can happen next week! We are releasing an album this Friday called «Undefeated Champion,» and I want to be very clear with you: this whole album is a hip hop and R&B album, okay? It is meant to go into culture and cast the net that brings people that are far from God.
This is going to be a beautiful picture! But I’m just telling everybody right now that’s like, «Oh, this is for the young people.» No, it’s not! No, it’s not! Or, «This is just for the people you know that like that style of music.» No, it’s not! Y’all are me and Pastor Roo and the band—we’re at rehearsal this week, and I’m just telling you: wear strong deodorant next week! If you’re a five-spray person, double up! If you use light, get the full strength! Okay? Help the environment, save the ozone! We actually have a lot of friends and guests who are flying and coming in for this! I’m encouraging everybody: you need to be here before it starts, 'cause it starts immediately. You’re going to be salty that you missed it! 9:30—be in the building! We’re going to see God do something very special! And for all our Transformation Nation people, I want to let you know we are ready for you! We’ve already seen in the chats and the comments: «I’m coming.»
Y’all didn’t do the conference this year, so I’m coming—this is going to be my… We hear you! Come on! And for all my brothers and sisters that are watching on the Pando app right now that are currently incarcerated, y’all need to cheer for them! They’re part of this movement! I want to let you know that we have intentionally made a decision that all of these worship Sundays, we are putting them on the Pando app as standalone worship experiences. They told me our worship experiences have hundreds of thousands of views! When we did Overflow and Dominion and Thy Kingdom Come, these people are watching them over and over in a day! Let me just give you a stat 'cause y’all think this is about—oh yeah, we’re doing outreach to the prison.
Let me help you understand something: this year alone—somebody say, «This year!» In the correctional facility department, who has been a part of what Transformation Church is doing, get ready for this! 11,000 people have said yes to Jesus in prison! If you’re going to shout for something today, that’s the one thing you need to shout about! Hallelujah! I didn’t say 11, and if it was 11, Heaven would’ve turned up 11 times! 11 parties! I said 11, and these weren’t rededications! The way that this system is set up, they can only press it one time, and these are people who decided for Jesus during potentially the worst season, by man’s standard, of their lives! I just want to let you know: transformation is really happening! We’re grateful for you, thankful for you, and you are a part of this! I want to let you know that we have inmates—I just needed everybody to know what type of church we’re in, 'cause some of y’all are like, «Oh no, inmates!»
You just didn’t get caught! Y’all nasty! Ew! I just had a lot of things come to my mind! I got to stay focused! But we invite you to come to this church when you get out! There are about a thousand of us that will tell you, «Welcome home! You are not what you used to do! Any man that be in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away!» I just want everybody to realize, man, that’s what we celebrated today with baptisms! Over 50 people decided to make Jesus Christ their Lord! There are some people in this room right now that still need to do that! This is how we’re going to do it: I’m not going to preach this today 'cause I feel—no, somebody said, «Oh no!» You’d be mad at me 'cause if I open this thing up, we’re here another hour and a half! Okay, y’all, no! Stop! 'Cause I won’t see you for six weeks! You would come, you’d be like, «Woo! That was enough! Thank you, Lord!»
And I’ll see you at Christmas! Stop! Don’t even be hyping me up like that! Please, please don’t—don’t—don’t get it twisted! God’s already speaking! Many times we want Him in a form and a formula, but He’s already speaking! He was requiring praise from you today! He was requiring thanksgiving from you today! Some of us did not take the opportunity to give Him—you came looking for something, and He came requiring something! What you don’t understand is that anything you give to God, He doesn’t let you outgive Him! So many times what we need is wrapped up in what we give! And so I’m encouraging you. This is what I feel very strongly to do: as we are in here, number one, I want to let you know that God is calling this church to another level of bearing the fruits of the Spirit.
I had a message prepared on kindness today, and I’m going to give it to you. Please don’t get it twisted; nothing is wasted around here. No! But I think that God is pleased by the praises of His people. I just want you to know, like, this is the moment where you realize that God can minister to you in several different ways. I believe He’s pleased. So what I want to let everybody know is that we had an election this past Tuesday, and there are too many Christians that are out of character right now. I have it very well said in the message—it’s very articulate and very powerful and potent. I’ve got points, but I just want to let you know that you will give an account for everything you post, and everything you say! I don’t care that you’re black! I can say this! I don’t care that you were raised Republican! I don’t care!
Yeah, what you believe, the government can’t save us anyway. You can’t legislate love; they can’t save us anyway. And some of y’all are acting like Jesus died and didn’t rise again. Our future is secure! I just… I’m coming to beg the church to act like you know. Look at your neighbor and say, «Act like you know!» You’re losing friendships, equity, loyalty, jobs, and business over getting some likes on a post, right? And retweeting things, you’re looking less like Jesus. Today, I’m coming to beg the church. I’m not talking about people who don’t know God; politics can be a big deal for you. I’m not saying don’t take things seriously; I’m saying don’t let them change your character. I know this is hard for somebody to hear right now, but I want to let you know that it was a baby that was sent here, and it said, «The government shall be on His shoulders,» and we call Him Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. I feel God. He’s the Great I Am, the One who was, who is, and who is to come. His name is Jesus.
So today, my message is: stop making Jesus look bad. You need a title for a sermon? Stop! It came right from the Spirit! Ah, I felt that! Everybody say my title with me: Stop it! Stop! You ain’t got nothing good to say? No, no, this is another «S» word: shut up! Stop it! And for some of y’all, to stop it, you got to shut up. And some of y’all, you’re ready to stand up; you need to sit. I feel the presence of God in this place. You need points: stop it, shut up! I think it was the prophet Kendrick who said, «Be humble.» Huh? Huh? Sit down! Walk in humility! We don’t have to agree; there are real issues out here. But at the end of the day, you don’t look like what you claim to represent.
And I just… I just… I just came to the Gathering Place where you came knowing what this was. You knew this was about the Bible, about Jesus, about worship. So I just need to talk to us. If you ain’t with us yet, all good. Love you; so glad you’re here. We’re about to have a Salvation prayer in a moment; we want to invite you in. But I got to talk—you just tuned into a family conversation right now. Y’all stop it! Because what many of you are doing is creating a chasm to the people God assigned for you to help draw in. The reason you’re at that job is 'cause God sent you there on assignment. The reason you’re at that school is 'cause God sent you there on assignment. And you’re hiding behind a screen, watching Fox News and CNN, trying to build your case to go in and argue with somebody. It ain’t even about y’all winning; it’s about their soul at the end of the day!
Some of y’all need to stop asking your first question when you’re sitting there with your nail tech. «So, what do you think about the election?» Shut up! 'Cause you know your feelings are all about that; in the end, it’s not going to show the love of Jesus. I know I’m being strong right now, but what I’m saying is two years from now, what will be the carnage of our carelessness in this season? Don’t be careless right now. Don’t think that somebody is inherently bad 'cause they believe something different. I told the staff this week: I was an idiot about parenting until I had a kid. When a parent like, «Woo, I’m so tired,» I’d be like, «You had the kid; why are you so tired?»
I need all my parents to back me up right now. Y’all, until one of them jokers doesn’t eat the meal you prepared, and then you try to be a stern parent and say, «Well, fine; if you don’t want to eat it…» But then right before bed, «Ah, you better start eating it!» But you know you’re not built like that, so you go make some mac and cheese. You ain’t built like that! What I’m saying is our understanding many times has a lot to do with our maturity in life, and many times we’re cutting off places where it should be a bridge to Jesus because of disagreement. Stop it! Shut up! Sit down and be humble, 'cause that is what our example did.
Sir, I’ll just prove it to you. The people of the day when Jesus was here wanted Him to go up to the governmental structure and make the transformation from what they saw as the problem. And He never went to the power structure; He went to the vessel He wanted to empower. He went to the people! And every time Jesus would come across people that nobody wanted to be around, even His own disciples, we have proof that the disciples were racist. Oh God! Y’all don’t remember when He met with the woman at the well that day at noon? The woman she had came, and she was a woman of the night. The Bible tells us that Jesus prophesied to her and said, «Yeah, you’ve been with a lot of men, and the one you’re with right now isn’t even your husband.» She said, «Oh my goodness!» She felt exposed.
And the disciples were in the city at the time getting some food, and when they came back and saw Jesus just talking with her, they were like, «Why would you have anything to do with this woman?» So—so—so people close to Jesus still had issues they were working out. But what God was requiring is that He was one who would stop. Yeah, He would stop and at least converse with people so good! He would stop and find out what they were going through, what was going on. And what He would do many times is He would stop talking. Imagine God, with all knowledge of past, present, and future, listening to you ramble about something He’s going to fix in five minutes. Think about it! For many of us, if we were God, we would just be like, «Mm-mm. Let me just heal you.» But He saw value, and not just in teaching and talking, but He would be quiet enough to listen.
Where’s the real pain? Where’s the real offense? Where’s the real cry for help? And what He would do many times to let them know that He wasn’t this big God. They say, «You’re the Messiah.» They say He would sit with them. He would stop; He would be quiet, and He would sit with them. And what it takes for the God of the universe to sit in humility—He was humble enough to say, «Zacchaeus, I know they all hate you, and you make everybody’s taxes go up.» He was like, «Y’all don’t be thinking like they all hate you, but I’m coming to sit at your table tonight. I want to listen to you. I’m humble enough.»
And that one act of our example stopping, shutting up, and sitting down in humility turned into a blessing for the entire community. Zacchaeus got his life transformed and said, «I’m going to give back everything plus some.» Could your worst enemy actually be your ally if you stop, shut up, and maybe sit in humility for a second? Church, I’m not asking you to do something that I don’t have to actively do. I will never get up here and act like I figured this out. There have been some things said, some things posted, some stuff done that makes me feel anger. Makes me feel—can I go deeper in an emotion real quick? Oh gosh, I want to show y’all vulnerability as a pastor—it makes me feel vulnerable!
I don’t want to have to feel like this in America! I don’t want to have to deal with this with Evangelical pastors or this group of— I don’t want to show up in a room and be like… but when I come to the Holy Spirit, I say, «God, here I am; could you please make me more like You?» And many times you know what He tells me? «What you doing? Stop it!» And before you say anything else, «Shut up!» «Well, I got to go do something.» «Sit down and let me teach you how to be humble.» And how do you find humility? You find it in the Word of God when He puts scriptures in there that say, «Love your enemy.» It says literally, «If your enemy’s hungry, cook for them.»
Now, I don’t know if y’all just walk around with snack packs and meals, but if it says, «If they’re hungry, feed them,» that means it’s going to take some of my resources, some of my time, at least some of my money! «Here’s a Chick-fil-A for you. I don’t like you, but eat this number one deluxe.» Like it says, «If your enemy is thirsty, give them a drink.» I don’t know if you have a water dispenser on you, but that means it will require something of you to go get the water! Encouragement? You can give it right there! But He’s saying, «I want it to cost you something.» He said, «And by doing so, it will be like heaping hot coals on their head.» The kindness, the goodness, the faithfulness of God through God’s people may be the strongest reflection of who He is.
And I put it in my sermon—and I’m going to say it again in a week or two when I preach this, so act like it’s brand new when I say it the next time! But who’s the kindest person you know? No, for real! Like, who’s the kindest person? Not God; I’m talking about a real person! Y’all get so deep. God, the Father, the Holy One of Israel! No—real person! I love my church. Real person! Is it Granny? Is it a coworker? Is it a child? Who’s the kindest person you know? 'Cause one of the fruits of the Spirit that He says needs to be developed in us is kindness. And I don’t know about you, but the group of Christians is not normally referred to— I don’t know if you—I mean, generous, maybe, loving at times, but we would think of an organization like Chick-fil-A as kinder than the church. Why? When it’s supposed to be a fruit of our relationship with Him.
Remember when I asked you, «Who’s the kindest person you know?» My question really is: would you be on anybody’s list? Would anybody—not everybody—would anybody define you as kind? If not, we may need to humble ourselves and sit at the feet of Jesus a little more. We might need to wash some feet! No, no, no! I mean we may need to—do y’all remember Jesus literally putting His hands on the disciples' crusty toes? Now, I want you to— in the land of pedicures and athletic shoes and all of this other stuff, the feet would have been the most defiled part of the body back then as their feet were exposed to all of the elements. So they would have cuts on them; they would have been bruised from the sandals, the leather, or the rope rubbing against their feet. They would have had calluses; they might have had bites and bugs on them. And for another person who was supposed to be God to humble Himself—oh, what do you have to do to wash somebody’s feet?
Stop it! Shut up! I know we don’t believe everything the same, but because I’m a believer, I’ve got to put my hands on what you think is disgusting. I’m going to be kind to you! I’m going to show God’s love to you! I’m going to remember that I still need God to wash me, and I’m going to relate to you on a level that doesn’t make me seem better than you! Do you know what sitting—my daughter Gia is taller than me—in this position? Sitting is a vulnerable position. And many of us want to stay high when God’s asking us to come low! Today, I’m asking the church to not feed into the narrative that so many already believe. I’m asking us to represent— to actually give God, show God, and promote God differently.
When they start talking about politics, you come in and say, «I don’t care who you voted for; I love you anyway!» Some of you can’t even say that because you are so attached to your opinion that you have made your opinion an idol. And your beliefs that are not based on the Word of God have now taken the throne of your heart, and you worship them! You talk about them; you give to them; you try to get other people to believe in them. You’re only an evangelist of the thing that sits on the throne of your heart. Hear what I just said to you. You only evangelize and get other people to try to believe in whatever sits on the throne of your heart! And many of us are evangelists for our idols! If Beyoncé drops an album, we will hear about it from you. If your team gets a new jersey, you got four of them, home and away, and one for little Junior. You promote it everywhere you go!
Some of y’all got socks from high school 'cause they have your favorite thing that you love on them. I’m not coming for any one thing, 'cause all of us have things that we have to dethrone. Oh my God! All of us have things in our lives that we need to dethrone. There shall be no other God besides Him before Him. And I just think in this room today, as this is a completely Holy Spirit-led impartation of what I feel like God’s trying to say to His church today—we have to dethrone every idol. Put Jesus back in the only place He deserves to be in our lives: first place.
God, forgive me; forgive us for putting anything other than You on the throne of our hearts. Today, we come with contrite hearts, acknowledging that we need Kingdom priorities—whether it’s how we were taught, a defense mechanism, or just the things, Father, that we think are better. Today, God, we humbly submit everything at Your feet. And God, would You please, please make us more like You—not in a churchy, Sunday-type of way—but I’m talking about, Father God, when we’re cut off in traffic, make us more like You. When we know they’re trying to take advantage of us, make us more like You. When we see the transgression or the offense and we have proof of it, Father, I’m not talking about letting us be taken advantage of and living with no boundaries. God, I’m asking that You would give us a godly, Christlike response in the face of very difficult times. We know we cannot do this in our own power, so Holy Spirit, would You develop in us the fruits of the Spirit that allow us to walk in love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, and Lord, we all need self-control. It’s the only proof that we have a relationship with You, God. So do something in our hearts, because just wanting to do better doesn’t change anything; we need a transformation. God, I want to be altered here at this altar. I want to be altered here at this altar.
Wherever you are, it’s an altar right now; it’s where you need to lay something down. I want to be altered here at the altar. Come on, just say that; talk to God.
I want to be altered here at the altar. Jesus, God, do something brand new in me. I don’t want to act like I have it all together; I need You. I’m here at the altar. I don’t know who’s in here that really needs a transformation, but would you just lift your hands and say, God, I want to be altered. I want to be altered here at the altar.