Sarah Jakes Roberts - Mission Unstoppable - Part 2 (01/16/2026)
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In this continuation of the «Mission Unstoppable» sermon from Genesis 24, the preacher recaps Abraham’s servant’s mission to find a wife for Isaac and delves deeper into the story, focusing on the servant’s silence for confirmation after his prayer is answered and Rebekah’s family’s attempt to delay her departure. The central idea is that true service aligned with God’s mission makes one unstoppable, requiring us to expect resistance, seek divine confirmation rather than rushing, navigate betrayal from close ones who can’t join the next level, and boldly declare «do not hinder me» against obstacles. Ultimately, remembering who our Master (God) is empowers us to overcome hindrances, muster persistent faith, and step into our destiny without fear or compromise.
Recapping Mission Unstoppable
So last week, things got a little lit during Wednesday night Bible study. If you were here last week, make some noise! If you caught it on YouTube, if you weren’t here, make some noise! It’s all right; we’re not judging. Okay, I’m going to catch you guys up who weren’t here. The text that I used was Genesis 24. If you could put that on the screen for me. My message last week was «Mission Unstoppable,» and I only got about halfway through the message. So I’m going to recap a little bit. Maybe you were here; maybe there were some things that you missed to set the scene.
We have Abraham; everyone knows Abraham, the father of many nations, preparing to die. Abraham is on his deathbed. He has been promised that he will be the father of many nations, yet he only has one son. Has God ever made you a promise, but it didn’t look like what you had in your hand was what He promised you? He tells Abraham, «I’m going to make you the father of many nations,» yet he only has one son. When we find him in the text, this is a very pivotal scene because he’s going to use his head servant to locate a wife for his one son, and he gives him very specific instructions.
As I was studying, I found this just so fascinating because everything hung in the balance to a servant—seemingly the person who would be counted out, who would have no power at all, the one who perhaps all the odds were against, who was just supposed to do like every other servant had always done. He was trusted with multiplying Abraham’s legacy, and it was such a powerful word for me because I recognized that there were people in the room last week who saw themselves as servants, but not in the way that we see Abraham’s servants, but as servants who have been counted out—people wondering how their destinies were going to be manifested. So we named this «Mission Unstoppable» because I needed you all to recognize the power in service.
Chick-fil-A and Intentional Service
So I used Chick-fil-A as an example because I’m on a diet, and just everything looks good when you’re on a diet. No, they did not run me a check; even though my YouTube views are up there, Chick-fil-A did not send me any coins. But I used the example of Chick-fil-A because Chick-fil-A has separated itself from any other fast-food restaurant because they have been intentional about their service. When you are intentional about your service, you don’t have to do things the way everyone else does it because you know that you’re not just out here living your life for whoever; you have a mission. You have this mission, and when you know what your mission is, you can’t let anyone stand in your way.
Chick-fil-A makes so much revenue that they can afford to close on Sunday and still compete with their competitors because when you’re in your lane—so the question is then, how do we find our lane? I believe in this text we see a servant trying to discover his lane. It says, «Now Abraham was old and well advanced in age, and the Lord had blessed Abraham in all things.» So Abraham said to the oldest servant of his house, who ruled over all that he had, «Please put your hand under my thigh,» which was a sign of covenant at the time. In verse three, it continues, «And I will make you swear by the Lord, the God of Heaven and the God of Earth, that you will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites among whom I dwell, but you shall go to my country and to my family and take a wife for my son.»
Pulling Legacy Forward
You see, he didn’t want him to take his son back to the place where he was from, so he had to send a servant to pull something out of where he was from into where he was going. That’s so significant because some of us have to recognize that when God pulls us out of something, He’s not just pulling us out; He’s pulling our children’s children’s children out of generational curses.
There are some things that are going to be broken off with you, so much so that when God pulls you out, your children are going to have to go through that thing that you went through. That’s why God had to choose you to struggle because He knew that when He broke this thing for you, He was going to break it for everything connected to you. When He calls Abraham out of his father’s land, Abraham recognized that his child could not go back and that anyone connected to him would have to elevate to where he was. He said, «You can go find him a wife, but you’re going to have to pull her out of her comfort zone. You’re going to have to pull her out of what has been safe and normal for her because when you’re connected to me, everything must be elevated.»
The problem with so many of us is that we go back to situations that God pulled us out of, thinking we can elevate someone, but God never told us to go back. He said, «You stay where you are, and if you’re supposed to be with that person, I’ll send someone for them,» but you stay in your position because I can’t trust you back where you were yet; you’re not strong enough back where you were. So when I pulled you out, don’t go looking back. If that relationship, if that opportunity, if that door was meant for you, I’ll send someone to bring it to you. Isn’t God so good that He brings things to us? He brings things to us because He recognizes that in our own strength, we may go back and stay where He pulled us out of. So instead, He sends someone for us. He says, «Go to my country and to my family and take a wife for my son Isaac.»
Expecting Resistance
Verse five continues, and the servant said to him, «Perhaps the woman will not be willing to follow me to this land.» So the servant says, «Okay, here’s the problem, though; what if she won’t follow me?» I shared this last week, and I told them that whenever God calls you to do something, you should expect resistance because what the servant was saying is, «I understand what you’ve called me to do,» but he knew that what he called him to do wasn’t going to be easy. So he started thinking in advance of issues that may spring up. When we start strategizing on potential issues, then God’s able to give us the ability to maneuver when obstacles come our way. See, when God gives us a promise, we think we’re just going to walk into that promise, that there’s not going to be any issues or any struggles. So when things start getting shaky, we start questioning the promise. But if you learn to expect resistance, you won’t be surprised when people can’t be connected to you any longer. You won’t be surprised when doors start closing because you recognize that your master sent you on a mission, and resistance was a part of the deal. You recognize that nothing comes without persecution. So I’m not surprised you’re talking about me, but you don’t let that distract you from your mission. I’m not surprised that you don’t get me, that you don’t understand me, that you can’t connect with me the way you used to connect with me because I was expecting a little bit of resistance. I knew that once I got into alignment, it was going to break some things off of me. I was expecting you to hate on me just a little bit; I was expecting for you to not get me just a little bit. I learned to expect resistance, so I put my faith in God and the one who sent me. So anything that comes up against me, I know it’s not going to prosper. So let your resistance come—just know that I’m on a mission, and this mission is unstoppable. Regardless of how you feel about it, regardless of whether or not you agree with it, I know God sent me to do something, and I’m going to live the right way, and I’m going to speak the right way, and I’m going to have faith for what He’s called me to do, and not everyone’s going to get that.
So the servant here in the text begins looking for areas of resistance, and Abraham tells him, «Don’t take my son back, no matter what. If the woman is not willing to come, then I will release you from this vow.» Then I picked up in verse 14, I believe it was, because the servant loads up the camels and he loads up some other men with him and begins to make the journey to Abraham’s hometown. Mind you, it’s not like Abraham told him, «She’s got to have brown hair. You know, find her on match.com. You’re going to know it’s her because she has on a red sweater and one eye is bigger than the other.» He had no idea what his promise was supposed to look like, but he still started moving in the direction of the promise. He was moving and wondering at the same time, and that’s what happens to us when God calls us to do something. He never reveals the full picture; He just wants to see if our feet will move without all the answers.
Moving While Wondering
So we see a servant on a mission, unclear of how he’s going to actually fulfill it, yet he didn’t let that keep him from moving. He was moving and wondering, moving and questioning, «Do I have what it takes? Am I qualified? When I get in the room, will they listen to me? Will they recognize that I’m more than what I look like on the outside? That there’s something down on the inside of me?» He had to move in the direction of his purpose and wonder. But there’s something so powerful about recognizing who sent you because he recognized, above anything, that whether they accepted him or not, he had the name Abraham attached to his destiny. When he got in the room, he would be able to say, «My master, the master, the one who sent me, this is who He is and this is what He’s accomplished.» He put me on a mission, so when I get in the room, I’m not afraid. I may be wondering; I may be questioning. But something happens when we remember who has sent us, when we remember the master who put the gifts and talent down on the inside of us. When we remember the person who opened the door in the first place, when we remember that we didn’t get here by ourselves, that we’re surviving not by our own grace but because there is a divine plan and a divine strategy, something happens to your anxiety when you remember your master. Something happens to your depression when you remember your master. Something happens to fear when you recognize who sent you. It’s like a black American Express card. Come on, somebody, won’t He do it! I pray into that right now.
Did you know that with the black American Express card, you can get stores to open when they’re closed because they recognize who granted you the access? And somebody needs to remember before this night is over that God’s faith in them is all of the credit they need in the room. That when they go into situations, they don’t need to be well connected or well-educated. All of that—those are cherries on top—because what God has really done is give you the grace to do what He’s called you to do. You are unstoppable in your lane. No one is messing with you in your lane. There is no competition in your lane. When you do what God has called you to do, no one can do it like you. So you don’t have to be jealous or envious when you see people doing well because you recognize, «That’s great for them; they’re in their lane,» but about this thing that God has called me to do.
So the servant gets there and he says, «Now let it be that the young woman to whom I say, 'Please let down your pitcher that I may drink, ' and she says, 'Drink, and I will also give your camels a drink, ' let her be the one you have appointed for your servant Isaac, and by this I will know that you have shown kindness to my master.» So the servant says a prayer to God: «If this is what’s supposed to happen, let it happen this way.» And I love verse 15, and this is when everybody got hyped, and we had to shut the message down because it said, «And it happened before he had finished speaking.» Before he had even finished the prayer, Rebecca came into the environment. What got us so excited was that there were no arrows or signs pointing towards Rebecca, but his prayer was in the room. And because his prayer was in the room, his miracle was in the room too; he just didn’t realize it.
The reason why that blessed us so much is that some of us have been wondering whether or not we’re in the room. And God just spoke so profoundly last Wednesday that you’re already in the proper position, that you’re already in the room. Before you had even finished your prayer, God had started opening doors and bringing people into the room. You may not see it, but He saw it. You may not recognize it, but He saw it. Before he had finished speaking, behold, Rebecca. She was in the room, and she came out with her pitcher on her shoulder.
Then I want to pick up at verse 21 because between 16 and 21, it goes down exactly as he prayed. He asked her for a little bit of water; she gave him water and camel water. That was another point from last week; what the servant really prayed was that the person who was connected to his destiny would serve in such a way that she was willing to go the extra step. As a servant, this was so incredible because basically what he asked for was for the person who was connected to his destiny to be of the same heart as him, to be his servant as well. And I just believe that God is going to bring people into our lives, into our circles and environments, who recognize service in such a way that they match your service, that they match what you put out in the environment—that the days of us giving and giving to people until they overdraft us and don’t recognize that what we gave them was the best of what we had are over.
God is going to start bringing people, as we are on our mission, who understand this—that I’m serving you; I didn’t get this cheaply, so you need to value this. You need to take care of this. This is my heart, blood, sweat, and tears; these are my experiences and my wisdom, and I cannot cast my pearls among swine. So God, please bring people into our lives who recognize service, who aren’t just about what they can get from us and how they can use us and abuse us, but they recognize that we’re treasures. Maybe we’re not perfect; maybe we haven’t done everything the right way, but still, there’s a treasure down on the inside of us. When you really start to believe that, you don’t just hand yourself out so cheaply; you start recognizing when someone doesn’t see you the way they’re supposed to see you.
Silence for Confirmation
So the servant, he prayed such an incredible prayer. He said, «Let her be like me,» and everything happened just as he prayed. We didn’t get into verse 21, so we’re going to pick up from here. The man, wondering at her, remains silent so as to know whether the Lord had made his journey prosperous or not. I wondered how this servant prayed that God would do something, and then when God did it exactly as he prayed, he stayed silent. He stayed silent. Has God ever started answering your prayers, and then you were like, «Oh, I didn’t know you were actually going to do that»? Now I have to become the person who’s capable of living in this role that you opened up for me. I didn’t—at first he should be rejoicing; he should be celebrating, but he remains silent.
I recognize that sometimes God requires our silence; that He wants to know that we don’t want what we want so badly that we start celebrating at the first sign of our miracle. There was something about him remaining silent, so as to know that he didn’t just grab it because it was available and it looked like everything he ever wanted; that he didn’t just move so quickly that he lost everything in the process. He was willing to say, «God, is this really You? I know it looks like what I prayed for; I know it talks like what I prayed for; I know it sounds like what I prayed for. I’m— I need confirmation on this because if it’s not You, I don’t want it. I don’t care how much it looks like what you’re doing in my life. I don’t care how much it looks like what I’ve prayed for. I don’t want the deal if it has strings attached. I don’t want the doors if it means that I have to kiss a ring when I get in there. I want to know, is this really You?»
The text told us in verse 21 that he just wanted to know whether the Lord had made his journey prosperous or not. He was willing to stay there a little bit longer if it wasn’t the right one. He was willing to stay on that level. He was willing to be empty-handed if that wasn’t what God had for him. We cannot be so desperate for the validation of success and the validation of having certain people in our lives that we snatch things before God has confirmed whether or not it was for us. We cannot be so desperate to look like everyone else, to look like we have it together, that we start grabbing things that don’t have our names on it.
Because the truth is, some of the people we admire for what they have snatched things that were never theirs to begin with, and so we’re jealous over a lifestyle that’s actually causing the misery when doors closed because it didn’t have their name attached to it. You don’t know really what you’re envious of, so it’s better that you sit in silence, so as to know. So the servant, he waits, and he gets confirmation from the Lord, and he asks Rebecca, you know, «Where are you from? What’s your mama’s name? Do they make cornbread on Thanksgiving?» You know, like really making sure she had all the proper qualities. So she takes him back to her parents' home—her father, mother, and brother—they all agree that this is of the Lord. And so they say, you know, «We agree with you; you take it. Everything is coming into alignment.»
Navigating Betrayal and Delay
Then something happens in verse 54, and you all, when you get in your own time, read all of the chapter; it’s incredible. But this is what kind of shook me because everyone was on the same page about how things were supposed to go. They said, «Rebecca, pack your bags and head out; this is from the Lord. We won’t argue with what God is doing.» Then I recognize something tricky that happens when you are on a mission, and that is that we have to learn to navigate betrayal. Because it says, «But her brother and her mother said, 'Let the young woman stay with us a few days.'» The very people who said this was from God, when it was actually time to go, tried to sabotage the mission—the very people you never thought you’d have to say goodbye to. The very people you never thought would betray you—the very people who you thought would always have your back, the very people who you thought would be your number one cheerleader, the very people who prayed for you and said, «God really do something in their life,» and then the moment it was time for her to actually step into that thing, they started holding her back.
And not because they were evil. This is the tricky thing about betrayal—is that we think that the only people who can hurt you are people who are evil, and that’s why we’re shocked when people who we thought were good start hurting us. It’s not because they weren’t good; it’s just that some people can’t move with you to the next place. Some people can’t fully understand who you’re going to be on the next level, and so they hold on to who you were before because it’s all they understand. It’s who you were before. We find ourselves torn between who we once were and who God is calling us to be, and these people—they’re close. If it would have been just maidservants or just a farmer in the field who was saying, «Let her stay,» but no, this was her brother and her mother who couldn’t bear to see her change.
When we step into certain roles and certain capacities, sometimes answering the call of God on your life makes you lonely. It leaves you in a position where you knew you were going to have to step out on faith, but at least you were going to have the support of your brother and your mother. But for some reason, right when you were about to take that step, it feels like everything started shaking around you—almost like right when you thought, «No, I can’t do this without them,» that they try to convince you to stay. So it says, «Let the young woman stay with us a few days, at least ten,» bargaining with her destiny. «Please, I’m not saying you can’t do it; just do it my way. I’m not saying that you’re not going to be successful, but you just have to be successful this way.»
I’m not saying that I won’t let you go; I’m just saying, «You got to do it my way.» Have you ever had somebody want you to do it their way? And then you have to choose whether or not you please them and hurt you or hurt them and do what God is calling you to do? Can I be friends with the same person who I used to be out clubbing with, doing all kinds of things? Can I bring that person to church too, or do they like me better when I’m in the club? Do they like me better when I’m broken, lost, and insecure, or can I actually be the confident person that God has called me to be? Have you ever had someone hold you, trying to convince you that you can live both ways?
You can still go; you can still do it; just kick it with me on the side. That was personal for somebody. Want to talk about that? Sometimes when we make transitions, it means that someone has to mourn who we were in their life, and we have to be willing to allow them to hold a funeral for the memory of who we were so that God can resurrect who He’s called us to be. Somebody’s going to have to say goodbye to the old Sarah because the new Sarah has to believe a certain way. She has to act a certain way; she has to talk a certain way. I know you’re used to me talking kind of crazy, and I know you’re used to me doing things a little differently. But for where God is calling me, I had to shed some dead skin off of me. I had to shake some things off of me, and I can’t afford to be a double-minded man in this season.
I got to bring all of my faith into this mission. I got to bring all of my wisdom into this season. I got to bring all of my experience into this season. I can’t be who you need me to be and be who God called me to be at the same time. So allow me to reintroduce myself. Can you be connected to where God is moving me to be? Can you be connected? I know you know who I was, but as God is grooming me and growing me, if you’re going to stay connected to me, you got to be able to move when He says move. You got to be able to be silent when He says be silent. You got to put all of your faith—if you’re connected to me, I need your faith on my destiny. If you’re connected to me, I need you prophesying godly things over me. I need you prophesying the Word of the Lord over my life. If you are going to be connected to me, my faith needs to be stronger when I’m connected to you.
If you’re going to be in my circle, you got to recognize that we think on a certain level. We think on destiny levels; we think on kingdom levels; we think on light-chasing-darkness kind of levels; we think on breaking generational curses kind of levels; we think on He crucified and rose three days later, so there’s nothing that can stand in my way. We think on a certain level. We don’t take «no» from the enemy; we only take «yes» from God. I want to know if you can do things on my level.
Do Not Hinder Me
I love verse 56 because the servant continues talking to them after they’ve told him that they want her to stay a few days. He says to them, «Do not hinder me.» When I first read this, I thought he was begging them not to stand in the way. Then I read it a little differently, and I realized he was warning them that if they hinder him, since the Lord has prospered him, this is not going to end well for them. So sometimes when people tell you «no,» you have to tell them in your heart and in your mind, «You may not want to hinder me because I know who sent me, and He’s already prospered my journey,» which means that no weapon formed against me shall prosper. So I know you think you just shut me down, but you may have just shut your business down because I would have added something to you. I know you think you just broke my heart and walked away with pieces of me, but you actually just played yourself because I know who sent me, and everything you thought you took away from me, God is going to restore, and He’s going to do it right in your view.
So I know this isn’t about me; this is about you. Don’t hinder me. I’m from Texas; we say something like, «Don’t fool with me because I’m in my destiny. I’m in my purpose; I know who sent me. I know angels are dispatched to me.» Don’t fool with me. This is not about me; this is about you. Every tongue that rises against you, it would be better for you if you learn to be a bit more respectful when dealing with me because I am the righteousness of God, because I know who my master is, because I know that He wouldn’t get me this far and leave me. So I know it may look like you have the upper hand right now and that you’re going to throw a wrench into the plan that God has given, but I want you to know that your «no» has nothing to do with His «yes.» Your «no» has nothing to do with His «yes.» Because He has already said «yes,» He may not do it through you, but it’s going to get done. It’s going to get done; it’s going to get done because He said it, because He sent you, because He’s prospered you, because grace has been hovering over you from the day you were born.
Some of you should be dead and in your grave; some of you should be in cities where you don’t even see any lights. Some of you should be broken and depressed and in mental hospitals; some of you shouldn’t have even made it this far because broken homes should have broken you down, but you still believe in love. Some of you should be in jail cells and tied up, but God put you in a situation where He prospered you even when you were wondering. He prospered you even before you fully recognized who you were; that He was prospering you even when you were hurting. You, He was prospering you even when you weren’t sure who you were. He was prospering you; He was getting words to you; He was putting seeds down on the inside of you, and now He’s waiting for you to recognize who you truly are, but more importantly, who sent you.
Do not hinder me; don’t stand in my way. It’s not even about me not wanting to overcome the obstacles; it’s about the obstacle recognizing who sent me. Don’t hinder me; don’t hinder me, finances. Some of you need to start speaking to your finances and say, «Don’t hinder me.» Some of you need to start speaking to your situation and prophesying, «Don’t hinder me,» because I know who sent me. Some of you need to start speaking into your marriages and speaking into your children. Don’t hinder me; don’t hinder me; don’t stop me. I’m on a mission, and it’s unstoppable, and God’s faith is backing me up. Don’t hinder me; I’m going to do everything He told me I was supposed to do. Don’t hinder me; don’t stop me.
So he says, «Send me away so that I may go back to my master.» They said, «We will call the young woman and ask her personally.» This is when destiny was up to Rebecca. They called Rebecca, and she asked, «Will you go with this man?» His mission, his miracle—the one thing he was assigned to do—said, «I will go.» It overcame the obstacle. At the same time he was trying to get her, she was being prepared to leave. Right now, some of you are being faced with obstacles, and you’re having to muster the kind of faith that says, «Don’t hinder me.» It doesn’t come easy. Every day there are some days where it feels like anything could stop you. «Not one more thing; I can’t take one more disappointment, not one more 'no.' I’m giving this my all; please, please, please!» You come in here, and we say, «Don’t let anything stand in your way,» and it gives you enough fuel for one week, but you’ve got to keep coming back in here because you need to refill off that faith.
As you are gathering the courage to tell your mountain to move, your miracle is saying, «I will go.» The two of you are in alignment; you’re just waiting for the paths to cross. The need for your gift, the need for your voice, the need for your love—the need is already there. But on the other side of that obstacle, the miracle is still getting ready. It takes time, and it takes commitment, but more importantly, it takes persistent faith. It takes the kind of faith that says, «Regardless of what’s going on, don’t hinder me.»
Altar Call: Remembering Your Master
I want you to stand with me as I prepare to close because someone just recognizes that they have the ability to tap into faith that they didn’t even know was possible if they would just remember who sent them. If they would remember their master, they don’t have to be afraid of their mountain. If you would remember your master, then you don’t have to be afraid of your mountain. The problem is, some of us have had masters with many different names. We’ve allowed insecurities to be our master, toxic relationships to be our master, ambition that was rooted in insecurities to be our master. The world’s definition of success has become our master; riches and fame have become our master. We’ve had all of these different masters, and that’s why it’s so easy to give up because that master will not open doors for you; that master will not give you peace; that master will not give you joy.
But if you would remember the name above all names in the middle of your despair— if you would remember the master that has never left you nor forsaken you, the master that spared your life when everyone else could have given up, the master that got depression up off of you, the master that has you coming into service on a Wednesday night at 8:00, the master that brought you to Los Angeles, the master that protected you in your mother’s womb, the master that said, «No, not my child,» the master that put a roof over your head and food in your stomach, the master that said, «I know you’re being forsaken. It feels like right now, but I’m actually just building you up so when you get there, you can stay longer.»
If you would remember your master, your mountain would lose its power, and you would start speaking to that thing, «Do not hinder me.» We want to have a moment of prayer at this altar for people who are trying to muster up the kind of faith where they can look at their marriages, where they can look at their children, where they can look at their destiny, where they can look at book deals, where they can look at movies and say, «I’m not hindered by what I don’t have; I’m empowered by who sent me.»
People who are trying to find the courage to live this thing out for God with such ambition and such power and such strength that they don’t care what stands in their way-all that matters to them is that they have assurance in the one who sent them. For some of you, this may just be another Wednesday night, another feel-good message, but for someone else, this is a life-changing moment. And if you don’t have to go, please don’t go because I believe what happens at this altar is going to break chains off of people, that where two or three are gathered in His name, that He’s not only going to be in the midst, but we’re going to start chasing anxiety out of Hollywood, that we’re going to start chasing alcoholism out of Hollywood, that drug addiction can no longer exist in this room, that infidelity can’t exist, that broken hearts can’t remain.
What’s going to happen at this altar is going to clear the vision. It’s going to clear the vision of people in such a way that they recognize with such clarity who sent them and why they are unstoppable. They’re going to recognize that regardless of what they’re up against, they know what’s working down on the inside of them is greater than any of that, so they don’t have to be afraid any longer. You’re not in this thing on your own; you may be the only one in the room that you can see, but the spirit of the Lord is hovering; angels have gone ahead. The crooked path has been made straight; no one has walked away from you who you need to continue going.
Nothing has been taken away from you that you need to keep progressing, and it makes you feel naked and vulnerable and uncomfortable and unworthy and inadequate and anxious and afraid and all of these negative things, but we’re going to break that off of you because when you recognize who your master is, those things cannot have control over you any longer. When you live in the consciousness of who your master is, you don’t bow down to fear or anxiety; you don’t bow down to depression because you recognize who your master is. God starts to do something down on the inside of you that renews your mind and changes the way you look at things.