Transcript
Week 4 of the series Yes². Transcribed from the service recording and lightly edited for readability.
Declaration Statement
Let's go ahead and get started with our declaration statement, and then we'll jump into this word:
I am a Christ chaser. I am here to be transformed. I am here to hear the voice of God. God, clear my mind and open my heart to receive Your word. Jesus, do not let me leave the same way I came. I am ready to be changed. Amen.
The Final Week of Yes²
This is the final week of the Yes Squared series. We talked about God's yes. We talked about my yes. We talked about the struggle between my yes and my flesh. And this week, we're going to look at the blessing on the other side of yes.
Scripture Reading: Genesis 22:1–18
The scripture this morning is Genesis chapter 22, verses 1 through 18. Let's read it, and then we'll jump into the message:
Some time later God tested Abraham. He said to him, "Abraham!" "Here I am," he replied. Then God said, "Take your son, your only son, whom you love — Isaac — and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain I will show you."
Early the next morning Abraham got up and loaded his donkey. He took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. When he had cut enough wood for the burnt offering, he set out for the place God had told him about. On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. He said to his servants, "Stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back to you."
Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife. As the two of them went on together, Isaac spoke up and said to his father Abraham, "Father?" "Yes, my son?" Abraham replied. "The fire and wood are here," Isaac said, "but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?" Abraham answered, "God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son." And the two of them went on together.
When they reached the place God had told him about, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. He bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. Then he reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. But the angel of the Lord called out to him from heaven, "Abraham! Abraham!" "Here I am," he replied. "Do not lay a hand on the boy," he said. "Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son."
Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram caught by its horns. He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son. So Abraham called that place The Lord Will Provide. And to this day it is said, "On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided."
The angel of the Lord called to Abraham from heaven a second time and said, "I swear by myself, declares the Lord, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me."
— Genesis 22:1–18 (NIV)
The Blessing on the Other Side of Yes
This morning we're looking at the blessing on the other side of yes. Here in Genesis 22, we find Abraham doing something rather strange. God had promised Abraham that he would be the father of many nations, yet Abraham had no children. Now God has finally given Abraham a child in his old age. He's a hundred years old and he has a child. And now God is saying, "Sacrifice that child."
Isaac on the Mountain
At this point in the story, Isaac is probably somewhere between twelve and fifteen years old. He isn't a little kid. He's an adolescent, middle-school age. He's seen a lot and experienced a lot. But as I look at this, he also has a lot of trust in his father. Here he is walking with his father: "Wait a second. We've done sacrifices before. But Daddy, where's the lamb? Where's the sacrifice?" And here's the funny part: they're walking up this mountain, and Isaac is carrying the firewood. He's holding the wood he is about to be sacrificed on. I wonder how much trust he had in his father, because it says Isaac found himself bound on the altar. That's a crazy situation when you think about it.
Yes Requires Trust
But here's Abraham saying, "I trust God 100%. God told me I was going to be the father of nations when I didn't have children. Now He's given me a child, and now He's asking me to sacrifice this child. I don't know how God's going to do it, but I know He's going to do whatever He says He's going to do. And I trust Him wholeheartedly." Here we find Abraham ready to give God his all.
"We Will Come Back to You"
I love this story, because when he left his servants, he said, "We're going up the mountain to worship. But guess what? We're coming back." What that tells me is that not only did he expect God to answer and come through, he expected Him to do it expeditiously. "We're coming back." So if I've got to sacrifice Isaac, God is going to be the God of resurrection. We talked about that last week: God resurrects what is dead. So even then, before anybody had ever been resurrected, Abraham already believed in God's resurrection power. Why? Because he said, "We are coming back." Abraham expected to come back with his son, because he knew his son was part of the promise.
Yes requires trusting the outcome to God. He fully trusted the outcome to God. But we don't really trust God. "God, it sounds good, but what about all this other stuff? What am I going to have to go through to get it?" I know next door is going to be ours. I don't have to worry about how it's going to happen. I don't have to worry about whether we're going to have enough money. Somebody's going to give it to us, or whatever. I'm not worried about any of that. Why? Because God said it's going to happen.
Obedience means moving even when God hasn't revealed the outcome. We have to move without knowing the outcome. Most of us want to know the plan: "God, show me the full plan." Because we use our intellectual minds. I'm a serial entrepreneur, and as an entrepreneur you've got to put a business plan together. You're supposed to have it laid out point to point to point. And some of us put so many points together that we never move. Sometimes God just wants you to move.
Trust grows when we obey God without knowing the full plan. That's what trust is. This is a relationship: "You're not going to know every single step, but if you trust that I'm not going to hurt you, that I'm not going to put you in a bad situation, then we can go." Think about it with your friends. Some friends can call you up and you'll ask no questions. They say, "Let's roll. I'll be by your house at five," and you'll be ready at five. They don't have to tell you where you're going or what you're about to get into. You're just ready to roll. Why? Because that's your friend. You have a relationship. You trust them. You know they won't put you in a bad situation. God is saying, "I want that same intimate relationship with you. Whenever I say go, whenever I say I'm picking you up at six, be ready at six."
Yes becomes powerful when I believe God's heart more than my fears. The reality is, you're going to have fears. God is calling you to some big stuff. Yes, it's scary, and there's nothing wrong with that. I told you a few weeks ago that I look at megachurches and think, "Man, that's a lot of souls, God. That's a lot of responsibility." But guess what? If that's what God brings my way, there's nothing I can do about it. One thing I believe about most megachurch pastors is that they didn't ask for it. They were just trying to be diligent in serving God, and God grew their ministry. All I pray is, "God, whatever You send my way, give me the strength and the ability to take care of it."
It's the same with you. Whatever God is calling you to, God has a book He wants you to write. God has a business He wants you to start. God has a foundation He wants you to open. God has things He wants you to do. Trust Him. Trust Him. Believe God's heart more than your fears.
The Cost of the Blessing
Come here, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Let me holler at y'all for a second. They said, "We are not bowing down to any god but the true and living God." The king finds out about it. These were the king's boys: they and Daniel had been elevated to high positions because they were smart and intelligent and getting things done. So the king says, "Oh, my boys. Let me holler at them real quick. They'll go ahead and do this thing we set up." And they said, "King, we're sorry. Our God is able to save us. But even if He doesn't, we still aren't going to bow down." I'd rather go to heaven knowing I didn't bow down to your god than go to hell because I worshiped something I didn't believe in.
More than once in the Bible, people say, "I will not offer to God that which costs me nothing." This worship thing will cost you something. Honoring God is going to cost you something. We want the blessing, but we don't want to go through what it takes to get the blessing. But the struggle, the strife, the in-between times: that's the training ground for the blessing.
I was thinking about this the other day. We like the mountaintop. We don't like the valleys. But I told you, I'm a roller coaster man. I like roller coasters. And on a roller coaster, you've got to go up to come down. Going up is work. It's hard. It's a struggle. Coming down is the fun part. But wait a second: when we get down, we don't like being down. The thing about a roller coaster is that it builds enough momentum going down to carry it back up. Our problem is that when we get down, we don't have enough mojo to get back up. Why? Because we act like we didn't know we were going down. But if you're going up, you've got to come down. You've got to ride the ride so you can go back up again.
God walks you through the valley of the shadow of death. He's trying to bring you through this thing, but most of y'all get to the valley and camp out. We aren't here to camp out. We've got to go through it, which means using the momentum going down to carry you back up. Know that God is taking you down for a season to give you enough energy to climb that hill and do all He's called you to do. This life isn't going to be boring. It's going to be fun. But to have fun, we've got to have ups and downs. If it was always up, you wouldn't even know it was up. Think about that.
Yes Attracts Provision
I think I'm way off topic, but I'm on this thing. Let's go. Yes attracts provision: resources, all the things you need. Provision meets me on the other side of obedience. Think about that. We're always waiting on God to provide: "God, provide the funds for me to get a new car." "When are you going to get a job?" You've got to do something to get something. When you're about My business, I'm going to provide everything you need to handle My business. Like I said, that's why I don't have to worry about next door. As long as I take care of this, God is going to provide everything we need to get more. But until we take care of what He's already given us, until we take the steps of obedience and move in the direction God wants us to move, He isn't going to provide. You're waiting on God, but God says, "I'm waiting on you. My yes has been My yes since the day I created everything. I'm waiting on you to align your will with My will. I'm waiting on you to get on the plan I created for you since your inception."
God Always Has a Ram Waiting
God always has a ram waiting on the mountain of obedience. Check this out. The ram was at an elevation where rams simply don't usually go. But as Abraham and Isaac are walking up one side of the mountain, guess what's walking up the other side? The ram. The ram wasn't just hanging out there. It didn't live there. God was sending the ram up one side while Abraham was going up the other. So the provision was already there. It was just waiting on Abraham to do what God called him to do. And then, bam, it's there.
A Story of Obedience
This happens over and over. I was listening to a story about a man in the military stationed in Hawaii. He was winning all these awards and competitions, and his parents on the mainland felt like they could never be there to support him. Finally his dad told his wife, "Next time he performs, you go." So she does. She flies over and meets him, and when she meets him, he's crying. "Mom, this is crazy." "What?" "This morning I prayed and asked God to have my family there to support me." He prayed that morning and received the answer that afternoon. But she was already on the way. Before he prayed, she was on the way.
God's yes, God's answer, God's blessing is already there. It's already in transit. It's already running toward you. It's already coming your way. But you have to open the channel to receive it, because it could be sitting right here, and God says, "I won't give it to you until you say yes."
The Widow and the Oil
When I say yes, God supplies what I need. There was a widow who said, "My oil is about to run out. The creditors are coming for my boys." And she began to pour the oil, and it says the oil kept flowing and flowing and flowing until all the jars were full. Why? Because she followed the prophet's instructions. She took what little she had, followed the prophet's instructions, and God multiplied it.
Are you following the prophet's instructions? Are you following the direction God has given you? Are you truly listening and trying to do all that God wants you to do? Stop waiting for God to give you provision before you're obedient. Act in obedience. Step out on faith. Now, I'm not talking about going out and buying a new car right now. God might have a new car for you, but I'm not saying step out in faith and buy a car when you know you don't have the money. That's not what I'm saying. I'm saying God has told you to do things that are inside your capability, inside your wheelhouse.
God is telling you to forgive somebody right now. God is telling you to get rid of that funky attitude. Stop being mean. "But this is just my personality. It's the way I am." No. Stop right now. Stop being angry. Let go. Stop letting other people steal your joy. Stop cussing people out just because they made you mad. There are things solely within our wheelhouse that we can do to show the love of Christ flowing through us. Simple things, and we won't do them. Some of us haven't talked to family members because of something they did a long time ago. Let it go. Some of us don't want to give 100% on our job because we don't think they're paying us enough. Let it go. Work to the best of your ability, as working unto God, and let God move mountains.
I told you, me and God used to compete, because God said He would be the one to avenge us, and I'm like, "God, let me help You out. Let me have some of that." But when you learn to let go and release, it's like I told you: I don't fight. I just tell my Daddy and go on about my business. Let's get ourselves right. There are some areas we can work on where God is waiting for us to release them to Him and love people the way He has loved us. And watch what happens.
Yes Multiplies Legacy
Here's the thing: yes multiplies legacy. God promised Abraham that he would be the father of many nations. Obedience today impacts my family tomorrow. I stand before you because Desso Douglas worshiped God, and Keith Douglas followed in that path and worshiped God. Now I stand on the shoulders of all who came before me. I had a Johnnie Lee Solomon and a Mother Dear who prayed like there was no more praying, and I tell you, when those women prayed, I could feel heaven stop. And there were men in my family I don't remember praying out loud, but there was something about the quietness of their spirit. I knew they worshiped the true and living God.
Whatever you're going through, you're here and still surviving because somebody came before you. If God hadn't seen fit to put Jesus Christ on the cross, we wouldn't have the relationship and connection to the Father that we have. That's the legacy. God told King David there would always be a king from his family on the throne. And Jesus was really like a stepgrandchild of David, because Joseph wasn't His biological father, but Joseph is what brought David's lineage into the line. What am I saying? I don't care how you were born or what your situation was. God has grafted you in. So rejoice in that.
You're worried about how it looks and how it's shaking out, but God is using everything to build you into the person He needs you to be: to move the way He tells you to move and do the things He tells you to do. He's preparing you for the blessing that's going to change your life. But you have to allow it to happen.
A yes to God plants seeds that bless generations. We talk about seeds all the time. One apple seed isn't going to produce one apple. It's going to produce an apple tree that produces many apples. And those apples have seeds that produce more trees that produce more apples. If you keep sowing seeds of negativity, don't be mad when that's what you get. If we keep sowing seeds of anger and bitterness, don't be mad when that's what you get. If you want to be blessed, you have to plant the seeds of God.
Obedience Over Comfort
Legacy is built when I choose obedience over comfort. Let me talk to you, church. Here in America, we sell comfort. That's what we sell. But nothing about the Christian life is going to be comfortable. Jesus said, "They hated Me, so they're going to hate you." God created all of this, and there are still people who say, "I don't believe in You." He created the world. You look up at the wonderful stars in the sky. Look at the weather going on outside right now. He has all of it in the palm of His hand, and yet you don't want to obey Him.
But guess what? You don't have to. He gives us free will, the ability to do what we want. But then we have to deal with whatever falls out. If we don't want to obey what God tells us, we don't get the blessings. You want to be blessed, but you don't want to obey God? You don't get it. It's simple. You have a choice. So what are you going to choose? I love where it says, "As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." And I know that as long as I'm faithful, God is going to produce more blessings than I can imagine. He's going to send my life places I never thought I'd go. He's going to do things in my life I never thought He would do. So we've got to stop getting attached to the outcome and just know that if we trust God, He always has a ram waiting for us.
What Four Weeks of Yes² Taught Us
Church, these four weeks have added up to something powerful. The equation is so simple: God's yes times my yes equals blessed. It sounds so simple, but to truly live it is going to cost you everything you have. You're going to have to recreate how you know yourself to be, how you know life to be, how you think this world is supposed to be. It's going to cost you letting go of a lot of things to truly hold on to God. But if you truly take on everything God has for you, and you begin to say every morning when you wake up, "I want to align my will with God's will," it's going to be amazing what He'll do.
Today, Abraham shows us the final truth of this journey. We learned that yes requires trusting the outcome to God, because obedience is not about certainty; it's about confidence in God's character. We learned that yes attracts provision, because God doesn't provide before obedience; He provides through obedience. And we learned that yes multiplies legacy, because what we surrender today becomes someone else's blessing tomorrow.
Abraham didn't climb the mountain knowing how it would end, but he climbed it knowing who God was. He's the I AM. Meaning whatever you need, God is that. Jehovah Rapha, Jehovah Nissi, Jehovah Shalom, Jehovah Tsidkenu, El Shaddai, Elohim: the various names of God speak to the different ways He cares for us. The God who provides. The God who sees me. God Almighty. The God of peace. And if you can't remember all that, all you have to say is Jesus. The name above all names. The Lion and the Lamb.
Your Blessing Is Already on the Mountain
Here's the part we often miss. The ram didn't appear when Abraham lifted the knife. The ram was already on the mountain. God wasn't scrambling to figure out how to provide for Abraham once he obeyed. He was saying, "Your blessing is waiting on your obedience. It's already there."
So this is our decision. Some of you have been standing at the base of the mountain, holding tightly to what God asked you to trust Him with. You're not afraid of losing it; you're afraid of what will happen next. But hear this clearly: if God told you to climb the mountain, He has already placed provision at the top. Your obedience is not ending your story. It's expanding it. Your yes is not just about you. It's about your children, your family, your future, and the generations that come after you. And the blessing is always waiting on the other side of your yes. God's got you. I just need you to trust God as much as He trusts you.
Weekly Challenge
All right, let's wrap this up.
- Reflect: Where have I been holding back a yes because I'm unsure of the outcome?
- Act: Take one bold action of obedience this week, even if it stretches your comfort.
- Pray: "Lord, I trust You with my yes. Lead me, provide for me, and use my obedience to bless the generations after me."
Closing Prayer
Most gracious and heavenly Father, we just come before You saying thank You. Father God, thank You for trusting us with this thing called our lives. Thank You for giving us free will. Now, Lord, I pray that You do what only You can do. Massage our hearts, our minds, and our souls, so that we can trust You more. Let us say yes in one area of our lives and see how You act, and then say yes again, and yes again, until we've built a trust and relationship with You where, whenever You speak, we don't even hesitate. We just move. Not because we want the stuff, not because we want the blessings, but because we want an intimate relationship with You. Father God, I love You and praise You for what You're doing and about to do in the life of this church and in the lives of the people You've set before us. In Jesus' name, amen.