The Crossover Blessing

Transcript

Week 2 of the series God's Crossover. Transcribed from the service recording and lightly edited for readability.

Welcome

Good morning, good morning, good morning. Give me one quick second; we're going to set it up a little bit. This series we're calling God's Crossover: When God Changes the Game, and this morning's message is The Crossover Blessing. This is actually the scripture that started the series. I've been thinking about it for a long time. The move God makes in this scripture is mind-blowing and life-changing.

Declaration Statement

We find ourselves in Genesis. Actually, let's do the declaration first. See, I'm excited; we're about to get going. Read it with me:

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.

Scripture Reading: Genesis 48:13–20

We find ourselves this morning in Genesis chapter 48, verses 13 through 20.

And Joseph took both of them, Ephraim on his right toward Israel's left hand and Manasseh on his left toward Israel's right hand, and brought them close to him. But Israel reached out his right hand and put it on Ephraim's head, though he was the younger, and crossing his arms, he put his left hand on Manasseh's head, even though Manasseh was the firstborn.

Then he blessed Joseph and said, "May the God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked faithfully, the God who has been my shepherd all my life to this day, the Angel who has delivered me from all harm, may he bless these boys. May they be called by my name and the names of my fathers Abraham and Isaac, and may they increase greatly on the earth."

When Joseph saw his father placing his right hand on Ephraim's head he was displeased; so he took hold of his father's hand to move it from Ephraim's head to Manasseh's head. Joseph said to him, "No, my father, this one is the firstborn; put your right hand on his head." But his father refused and said, "I know, my son, I know. He too will become a people, and he too will become great. Nevertheless, his younger brother will be greater than he, and his descendants will become a group of nations." He blessed them that day and said, "In your name will Israel pronounce this blessing: 'May God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh.'" So he put Ephraim ahead of Manasseh.

— Genesis 48:13–20 (NIV)

God's Crossover Blessing

God doesn't just change directions. God changes the outcome of the play. Throughout scripture, God performs what we might call the divine crossover. He continually chooses the unexpected over the expected, the unlikely over the obvious, and the overlooked over the celebrated. While people tend to evaluate based on appearance, position, experience, and birth order, God evaluates the heart and His sovereign purpose.

Our culture teaches us that we've got to climb the ladder. We've got to earn the next position. We've got to secure the bag. We believe that if we work hard, follow the rules, and hold the right title, we deserve the blessing. But God doesn't always operate according to human systems. And here in Genesis 48, He performs the divine crossover: Manasseh, the firstborn, takes second seat to Ephraim, the second-born.

Jacob, Esau and Birth Order

In that day and age, things happened a certain way. The firstborn got a double portion. And it's funny that it's Jacob in this situation, because Jacob tricked his brother to get the birthright. But now Joseph is saying, "No, Daddy, we've got to do this in order." Jacob had played tricks himself, and here he is about to do a crossover.

And he's already done something unusual. Joseph was his son, but Jacob says, "Your two sons are mine." So Joseph's sons are being blessed right alongside Joseph's brothers. Joseph is getting a double portion, and nothing is in the "right" position. And Joseph is like, "No, Daddy, we've got to follow the rules." He's confused.

But we have to understand: if it falls under the will of God, everything is perfectly arranged. It might not make sense, but it makes sense. And I love what Jacob says: "I know, my son, I know." This isn't confusion. This isn't blindness. He was going blind, and Joseph thought he'd lost his mind along with his eyesight. "No, this ain't my blindness. This is intentional."

God's Crossovers Aren't Accidents

God's crossovers aren't accidents. It was the assignment.

And here's the funny thing when I really look at Joseph's life. Joseph went through all kinds of hell to get to the position he was in. His brothers tried to kill him, then sold him off. And Joseph always had that good spirit. He was enslaved, yet he worked so hard the master put him in charge of everything. But Joseph was a little buff. He was kind of swole, kind of fine, so the master's wife wanted to holler at him. Then she lied on him and got him locked up. And even that was a blessing, because in that day and age, he should have been dead.

Yet in prison he's still not complaining. He's still working hard, still doing what God called him to do. And can you imagine being locked up, and the next thing you know, you're talking to the king? And after one conversation, the king makes you second in command. He woke up in prison and went to sleep second in command. So Joseph knows something about God's favor. He knows God does the unexpected. Yet when it comes to his own children: "Now we've got to do this right. We can't be mixing this thing up."

A lot of us are the same way. Even though we've seen God bless us in tremendous ways, we still expect the line to follow what tradition says.

What Manasseh and Ephraim Mean

Joseph has these two boys, Ephraim and Manasseh. Manasseh, the firstborn, should get the right hand. But look at what their names mean. Genesis 41:51 says Joseph named his firstborn Manasseh and said, "It is because God has made me forget all my trouble and all my father's household." And he named the second son Ephraim and said, "It is because God has made me fruitful in the land of my suffering."

There's something about that suffering. We don't like it. But God makes us fruitful in the midst of our suffering. God has a purpose. I've told y'all, we don't always understand why we're here, but God has a purpose.

Purpose, Not Position

And that brings me to my first point: God's choice is based on purpose, not position. Joseph saw the birth order. God saw the future. While people elevate résumés, appearance, popularity, and status, God evaluates heart and destiny.

Come here, David. "David, what you doing?" "I'm just sitting out in the field watching my father's sheep, doing what I do every day." And one of the servants comes running. "What you want, man?" "You've got to come in the house." "What for? I'm supposed to be out here watching the sheep." "David, come in the house. Somebody's here to see you." "What are they here to see me for?" And David ain't in no hurry. He just gets on to the house.

As soon as he steps in the house, Samuel says, "That's the one." Samuel had looked at all those boys. These were military-trained boys who served the king. They were soldiers. David was out in the field doing his little shepherd duties. Samuel came in looking for the next king and said, "I don't see him among these. You sure you ain't got any more sons?" "Yeah, I do. David. He's out in the field." "Go get him." And they couldn't even eat. I can picture the brothers sitting around: "Y'all know David's going to be slow. He'd rather be with those sheep. We can't eat till he gets here? What did they call us in for if it ain't any of us? Can we just go?"

But God has a purpose. Even though David was the youngest, the least expected, he had been through some things. I don't even know if his brothers knew what he'd been through. Because when he got to Goliath, he said, "Man, I've killed lions and bears. I can do this." Who does that?

Before I Formed You: Jeremiah 1:5

I'm still new on the block, so y'all are still getting to know me a little bit. One of my favorite scriptures is in Jeremiah. Listen to me, young people; I want y'all to hear this. Jeremiah 1:5–8:

"I chose you before I formed you in the womb; I set you apart before you were born. I appointed you a prophet to the nations." But I protested, "Oh no, Lord GOD! Look, I don't know how to speak since I am only a youth." Then the LORD said to me, "Do not say, 'I am only a youth,' for you will go to everyone I send you to and speak whatever I tell you. Do not be afraid of anyone, for I will be with you to rescue you. This is the LORD's declaration."

— Jeremiah 1:5–8

Before I was born, He knew me. The reason I connect with this verse is that I've been doing this since I was 16 years old. God revealed this to me in this verse. And I protested too: "Oh no." I told y'all, I tried to be a Christian rapper before I was a minister. But the Lord has a purpose for each and every one of us, and He's going to get His purpose out no matter what the situation looks like.

You wonder about that quiet person sitting at their computer typing, not bothering anybody, just doing their job, doing the best they can. They ain't complaining. They ain't saying nothing. One day you're going to look up and they're going to be your boss. You're sitting there watching TikTok, trying to figure out who the next influencer will be, or who the next great athlete is going to be. We watch the people we think are going to be next, but it's somebody we don't see who's going to be next. Why? Because when you're faithful to God, when you're truly obedient, God will switch hands and cross over when it's unexpected.

God's calling also isn't limited by human systems. Tradition said Manasseh should receive the greatest blessing. God said otherwise. Even Jesus chose some very peculiar people to be His disciples: fishermen, tax collectors. "Jesus, why are You even talking to these people? You know the tax collector is a crook. Nobody trusts him. These fishermen are dirty. They talk a little rough. They're a little mean sometimes." But these were the men God chose, and they ended up changing the world. He chose the man who was out there persecuting Him, and that man ended up writing a big part of the New Testament.

God's Decisions Are Always Intentional

Here's the thing about God's decisions: they are always intentional. Jacob wasn't confused. He deliberately crossed his hands. God's choices are never accidents.

He chose Moses to speak for the people, and Moses said he had a speaking problem. I wonder if Moses really had a speaking problem, or if he just didn't want to speak. Because later in scripture, in the New Testament, they talk about how powerful he was in speech. So did he learn to speak better, or was that just him talking down on himself? Sometimes we try to talk ourselves out of situations. We know God is telling us to do certain things, but we're like, "No, God, I can't do that. That ain't me. You chose the wrong one." But God will do the unexpected. He'll show up in situations, and you won't know how He's going to switch it, and bam, He'll do what He's going to do. Because God doesn't work according to our human expectations or our human limitations.

Like the old saints said, God makes a way out of no way. Have y'all ever really sat and thought about it? Think back to Grandma, Big Mama. They didn't make nearly what we make now, but they were always feeding the whole neighborhood.

His Crossover Creates Space for Your Destiny

God's crossover creates space for your destiny. God's favor often disrupts expectations.

Remember Jesus sitting with the woman at the well. She's really saying, "Man, why are You talking to me? We come from two different societies. You know your society's rules. You know mine. Men ain't supposed to be talking to women like this. And not only are You talking to me, You're talking crazy. You're talking about giving me living water, and You ain't even got a bucket. You're talking about water that I'll drink and never thirst again. None of this makes sense." But God is constantly breaking tradition, and He breaks tradition to show us how much He loves us.

And I'm going to tell you, we've got sin messed up, because Jesus was constantly healing people on the Sabbath. People thought that was a sin. But He's like, "How can I be wrong and doing right at the same time?" It's evident that what He was doing couldn't be sinful, yet people called it sin because it broke their tradition.

And here's where we've got to start questioning ourselves. When somebody gets promoted over us, now we want to question the boss. But we didn't question the boss when he promoted us; we thought he was smart and intelligent then. But when he puts somebody over us, "Oh, no, there's something wrong with that." If we believe God has our lives in His hands, we have to understand that sometimes God crosses over, and we're going to be on the back side, and we've got to be okay with that.

Sometimes God disrupts your plan because He's building something greater than you ever expected. As long as God is blessing, we've got to be excited that God is still in the blessing business, and He's still blessing us. Even when the crossover puts us at the bottom and somebody else at the top, it's still a blessing. When the brothers sold Joseph into slavery, it was wrong, and they eventually felt bad about it. But what they did led to them being able to survive the famine years later.

So we've got to stop holding on so tight. Stop worrying about what's blocking our progress, wondering why God ain't opening that door. If He closed it, He closed it for a reason.

God's Crossover Opens Doors

God's crossover opens doors no one else can open. But He also closes doors no one else can close. And as much as we don't want to, sometimes we've got to say, "God, close whatever doors ain't for me." Because we've all walked through some doors we weren't supposed to walk through, and once we got there, we were trying to figure out how quickly we could get out. "I don't know how I got here. Can You please get me out?"

Room for His Purpose

God's blessing also creates room for His purpose. He crossed over and said Ephraim would be bigger than Manasseh. We know the story of how the Israelites left Egypt and headed for the promised land. Eventually Moses dies, and Joshua leads them into the promised land. Y'all know what tribe Joshua was from? The tribe of Ephraim. God was positioning him for future influence.

Sometimes it's not about a particular person right now. It's somebody further down the line that God needs to position to take over and do what He wants to do. But most of us think too much about ourselves. It might not be about me. It might be about my son, my grandson, my granddaughter, my great-great-granddaughter. We're so caught up in ourselves, and God is talking about kingdom business. We're looking at it like ants; He's looking from an airplane view, positioning all things to work together for His glory.

Even Esther. She was trying to win a little beauty contest and move up in status a little bit. She figured, "I'm pretty, I can win like everybody else," and she did. But once she won, she had to do something she didn't want to do. "I can't just go talk to this man. I know I'm the queen, but I can't just go see the king when I want to. He's got to call me in." But Mordecai says, "Who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?"

I hear stories over and over of people who came from humble beginnings and achieved a lot of success. And when they made it, most of them wanted to go back and help the community they came from. Sometimes God is going to position people ahead of us who can do things we can't do and reach places we can't reach. Why? Because He has something else for you.

I think I told y'all about my crazy dream involving a vice president investing in my company. And finally God revealed this to me: "I'm going to bless your friend before I bless you." Okay, I can rock with that. When He told me that, I wasn't even going to tell my friend, because now I understood my position. But one day my friend mentioned that one of his ministry friends had told him God was about to bless him tremendously, and he wasn't receiving it. "I don't see it." So I told him what God had told me. And he was like, "Whoa." I said, "I need you to get ready for what God is doing." And here's what I didn't see coming: my friend said, "Okay, I receive it. Now I'm praying God blesses you tenfold." Some of us don't want people to go before us. But some of the people going before us are going to set it up for us to go greater.

And y'all are probably more like me than you realize. I went to Disneyland in California with my cousin. I'm excited. And because I'm the only child, I've got to be first. Bam, I got my ticket punched and walked in. He got his ticket punched and walked in, and bells are going off, sirens ringing: he won the prize. That's how it goes sometimes. You've got to be in the position you're supposed to be in. When you're out of position, you ain't going to get your blessing. Because like we said, blessing is Yes Squared: my yes matching God's yes. You're blessed through obedience, and when you're out of obedience, God can't bless you. So if God crosses His hands, we've got to say, "Okay, I'm going to take it and run with it." It's not easy, but we've got to do it.

Trust God's Hands, Even When They Cross Yours

Here we go, point three, and then we've got to get home: we've got to trust God's hands even when they cross ours. I didn't say this was going to be easy, but it is what it is.

God's ways often surprise us. For me, God always surprises me, because it don't make no sense. And we're like Joseph, trying to fix it. "Uh-uh, God, don't cross Your hands. We ain't doing that." But how can we fix what God is putting together? He created the universe. He created the world. Yet we want to fix what He's trying to do in our lives. And there are other people just like us, like Peter. The whole time, Peter's saying, "Uh-uh, Jesus, You can't die." What if Jesus had listened to Peter? We'd all be in trouble.

Things happen in our lives. Some people get promotions, or a job, and they've got to move somewhere else. And don't nobody like to move. Don't nobody like going somewhere different. But sometimes when you get elevated, you've got to move. You've got to let go of that friend you ain't supposed to be running with.

But we're like Abraham. "Leave your family." "All right, cool. Let's go. Me and my family are gone. All right, Lot, come on." "Didn't I tell you to leave your family? Why are you bringing Lot?" "Oh, he ain't got no daddy. His daddy passed, so I need to bring him with me." "I told you to leave your family and go." And then what happened? They get there, they've got conflict, they're butting heads, and finally they have to separate. Don't fight God's purpose simply because it feels unfamiliar.

God's timing is always perfect. Jacob waited until the last minute. He was on his deathbed before he crossed his hands. He didn't tell Joseph too early. He waited until "This is it. I'm dying. This is the blessing." That's the thing about God: He never moves too early, and He ain't going to move too late. He's right on time. Just like Jesus waiting four days for Lazarus. We still need to talk about that one. When I get up there, I'm going to have to ask Him, "Jesus, come on now. Messing with Lazarus. He was in heaven, and now he's got to come back." When I make it there, y'all better not be praying for me to come back. I'm staying.

When God Told Me to Move

Sometimes you have to move, and we don't want to move. And it's crazy that I'm sitting where I'm sitting, because there was a time in my life when I had to move. I was here when my dad founded His Way Baptist Church. I designed the logo, did a lot of his creative work, set up the website, all of that. But there came a time when God said, "It's time for you to move." People probably had all kinds of stories about why I left. But I moved because God said it was time. And it was amazing: as I moved out of the way, I got to see God do things through this church that probably never would have happened if I had stayed in the way. And since God has a plan and a purpose, He brought me right back when it was time.

So when God is moving you, you've got to move. I'll never forget, I was at another church, and it was a Tuesday or Thursday in November of that year. As soon as I finished teaching the class, I felt God telling me, "It's time to go." I had a radio show at the time, and as I'm doing the show, I remember thinking, "All right, this is it." And I had to move. Why? Because I don't want to be in the way of anything God's got going on. And I don't want Him to have to force me out. I ain't trying to end up in the hospital unnecessarily, or in a car accident unnecessarily. When He says move, I've got to move, whether it makes sense or not. Because once you move, you can see what God is going to do.

And what I realized is that it's kind of arrogant to think, "If I move, nobody else can do it." That's why a lot of us don't want to move: "If I ain't doing it, who's going to do it?" Move, and see.

Receive the Blessing in Any Package

Let me go to my seat on this one: trust God's wisdom above your preferences. Some of us right now, God is trying to bless you, but like me, you don't like the way He's trying to bless you. I'm going to tell y'all today, I rode up here in that truck with the windows up, and it was a cool breeze. You've got to accept how God is trying to bless you. It might not come in the package you wanted, but if God is trying to bless you, you've got to receive it. Because what's for you is for you.

Naaman's Story

There's a story in the Bible about a man named Naaman. He found out he could be healed if he went to Israel. And when he got there, he was told to go wash in the Jordan River. He said, "Huh? First of all, the man didn't even come out to holler at me. He didn't come out and lay hands on me. He didn't say anything to me. He sent his assistant out to tell me to go wash in the Jordan. The Jordan is dirty. Why would I do that? That don't make no sense." And his servants said, "If the prophet had told you to do some great thing, wouldn't you have done it? So why not do something simple?"

What simple thing is God asking you to do that you're not doing because you're waiting for something complicated? Who is God asking you to forgive that you still haven't forgiven, because you're waiting to do something more complicated? To obey is better than sacrifice. Some of us are trying to bring big checks to church instead of doing what God told us to do, which is forgive our neighbor. You can't pay your way to heaven. You can write all the checks you want, and you still ain't going to be able to sleep at night. You can do all kinds of acts of service in the church, but if you're not doing what God has called you to do, you still ain't going to be able to digest your food. You're going to have all these aches and pains you don't understand, wondering why. Because God is asking you to do something simple: be nice.

I heard a story about a man who was a great piano player. He was killing it for years. But over time, his hands became arthritic, and he couldn't play anymore. He got into church and into the Word, and he felt this strange sense that he needed to forgive his parents for something they had done a long time ago. So he went and talked to his parents, forgave them, and they began to mend their relationship. And the crazy thing is, over time, he got the movement back in his fingers, and within a month or two he was able to play the piano again. He didn't realize all that stress of unforgiveness had built up in his body so much that he couldn't even do the thing he loved.

Some of us are going to kill our greatness because we won't do the simple things, because we're holding all this bitterness, anger, and envy inside that we just need to let go. If you got crossed over, if somebody went ahead of you when you didn't think they should, and you're still holding on to that, you've got to let it go. Why? Because it was God's purpose. It was God's design. God was setting this thing up, and you're fighting against it. That's why you can't move the way you used to move, in whatever sense of the word. Maybe your crossover step ain't there anymore. Maybe your mind can't function the way it used to, to write those books you wanted to write. It's time to let go and let God have His way. Whether you're on the top side or the bottom side of the crossover, you've got to trust that God knows what He's doing.

Don't Uncross God's Hands

Here's the thing: when God crosses His hands, He's not withholding blessings. He's redirecting them according to His perfect purpose.

Imagine Joseph standing beside his father, having carefully arranged everything according to tradition: Manasseh on the right, Ephraim on the left. Then one unexpected movement: Jacob crosses his hands. Joseph immediately reaches out to correct him. "Father, you've got it backwards." And Jacob replies, "I know, my son. I know."

Church, I wonder how many times we've tried to uncross God's hands. We pray, "God, bless this relationship," and God says, "I have something better." We pray, "God, give me this promotion," and God says, "I'm preparing you for something greater." We pray, "God, open this door," and God quietly closes it, because He has another door waiting.

Sometimes we mistake God's crossover for His rejection. But what feels like rejection may actually be redirection. What feels like delay may actually be development. What feels like loss may actually be preparation for a greater purpose. The greatest blessing in your life may not come through the path you expect. It may come because God crossed His hands.

So when life doesn't make sense, when the promotion goes to someone else, when the relationship ends, when the door closes, when the plans change, don't panic. The God who crossed His hands over Ephraim is still the God directing blessings today. He knows exactly what He's doing. And God is telling you today, "I know, My child. I know." You can trust that His crossover is leading you in His perfect direction. Amen.

Weekly Challenge

• Reflect: Where have I been resisting God's direction because it didn't match my expectation?
• Act: Surrender one plan, timeline, or expectation to God this week, trusting that His purpose is greater than your preference.
• Pray: "Father, thank You for seeing what I can't see. Help me trust Your choices, Your timing, and Your wisdom, even when they differ from my expectations. When You cross Your hands in my life, remind me that You are positioning me for Your purpose. In Jesus' name, amen."

Prayer

Pray with me, church. Most gracious heavenly Father, we just come before You saying thank You. Lord, this word today is challenging, because it contradicts some of the things we've always believed in our lives: the times we hold on to our way, our tradition, our plan, instead of allowing You to truly direct and guide our lives. Father God, I pray that as You break down these walls and barriers in our lives, we will be able to see You clearly and move with the purpose You've designed us for. Lord, we love You and praise You. In Jesus' name. Amen.