Embracing God's Transformative Promises in Our Lives

**Bible Reading:**

1. Exodus 6:6-7 (ESV)
"Say therefore to the people of Israel, 'I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from slavery to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment. I will take you to be my people, and I will be your God, and you shall know that I am the LORD your God, who has brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians.'"

2. 2 Peter 1:4 (ESV)
"By which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire."

3. Romans 7:25 (ESV)
"Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin."

4. Ephesians 1:11 (ESV)
"In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will,"

**Observation Questions:**

1. In Exodus 6:6-7, what are the four actions God promises to take for the people of Israel?
2. How does the passage in Exodus describe the relationship between God and the people following His actions?
3. What does 2 Peter 1:4 suggest is the purpose of God's promises?
4. Reflecting on Romans 7:25, what does the apostle Paul acknowledge about his own nature and struggles?

**Interpretation Questions:**

1. Considering the actions God promises in Exodus, how do these reflect the different stages of spiritual transformation?
2. What does it mean to be God's people, as stated in Exodus, and how does this relate to our identity in Christ?
3. How might "partaking in the divine nature" as mentioned in 2 Peter 1:4, influence a believer's life?
4. In light of Romans 7:25, how can one reconcile the tension between serving the law of God and the law of sin?

**Application Questions:**

1. Reflect on your own spiritual journey. Which of the four actions (bringing out, delivering, redeeming, taking as His people) do you currently find most relevant, and what specific step can you take this week to embrace it?
2. Identify a false identity or burden from your past that you need to shed. What is one practical way you can begin to embrace your true identity in Christ this week?
3. Think of a community or group setting where you can be vulnerable about your struggles. How can you actively seek freedom within this community?
4. Choose one area in your life where you can make a difference. What is a specific action you can take this week to impact that area for the kingdom of God?
5. Consider a promise of God that you need to claim in your life. What is one way you can actively pursue understanding and applying this promise in the coming days?

Day 1: Engaging with God's Conditional Promises
God's promises are not merely words to be read but invitations to action. The divine blend of unconditional love and conditional promises requires a response from believers. Understanding that some promises are contingent upon one's actions is crucial. It is not enough to passively receive God's grace; one must also actively participate in the journey of faith. This engagement involves studying the Word, discerning the promises meant for personal application, and taking deliberate steps to fulfill the conditions that accompany them.

"Show me your ways, O Lord; teach me your paths. Lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation; for you I wait all the day long." - Psalm 25:4-5

Reflection: What is one conditional promise of God that you feel called to pursue, and what practical step can you take today to engage with it? [07:40]

Day 2: Finding Freedom in Community
Deliverance is a journey that often requires the support and accountability found within a community of believers. It is in the sharing of one's struggles and the mutual bearing of burdens that true freedom can begin to take root. This process is not immediate but unfolds over time through consistent faith and obedience. The community provides a safe space for vulnerability, where individuals can find strength and encouragement from others who are also seeking to overcome their past and embrace a new life in Christ.

"Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ." - Galatians 6:2

Reflection: Who in your community can you confide in about a struggle you're facing, and how can you support each other in seeking deliverance? [27:10]

Day 3: Embracing Our True Identity in Christ
Restoration to one's original design is at the heart of God's redemptive plan. This process involves shedding the false identities and lies that have been adopted over time and embracing the truth of who we are in Christ. It is a journey of self-discovery that aligns us with God's purpose for our lives, leading to a more authentic and fulfilling existence. As believers come to understand their unique calling, they experience the joy and freedom of living out their true identity.

"For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them." - Ephesians 2:10

Reflection: What false identity or lie have you been holding onto, and how can you begin to replace it with the truth of who you are in Christ? [29:22]

Day 4: Making a Difference Through Service
Fulfillment in life is often found in the service of others. As believers are restored and come to understand their purpose, they are called to join with others in the body of Christ to make a tangible impact in the world. This service is an outworking of faith that not only benefits those being served but also brings joy and a sense of purpose to the one serving. It is through these acts of love and service that the kingdom of God is manifested on earth.

"As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace." - 1 Peter 4:10

Reflection: What is one way you can use your unique gifts to serve someone in your community this week? [30:31]

Day 5: Pursuing God's Promises with Intentionality
The pursuit of God's promises is an active endeavor that requires intentionality and commitment. Believers are called not just to know about God's promises but to live them out. This involves seeking a deeper understanding of Scripture, applying its truths to daily life, and allowing the transformative power of God's Word to shape one's actions and decisions. It is through this intentional pursuit that the promises of God become a lived reality.

"Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful." - Hebrews 10:23

Reflection: What is one promise of God you need to claim in your life, and what is a specific action you can take today to move towards that promise? [07:42]

I'm kicking off a new series today entitled "Promises." Can somebody shout "Promises"?

The message today is simply "God's Core Promises" or just "Core Promises." It's going to be the kickoff into what would be a 4 to 6-week series leading into Resurrection Sunday.

This series, if you would, is not a shouting, making-you-want-to-jump-or-dance-run type series. It is my way of showing you guys through the Word of God why our vision is to know God, find freedom, discover purpose, and make a difference. I want to show you it is a Biblical reasoning and rationale why that is our vision here at Hope City Church. I'm looking forward to hopefully seeing some of you guys find fulfillment in this knowledge—fulfillment in the understanding that, not that these are all of God's promises, but I'm going to talk about the core promises.

The Bible itself is a book of promises; there are so many promises in the Word of God. But if we miss the core promises of God, those other promises really do not matter.

Let's kick it off by starting in 2 Peter 1:4. Let's get this great revelation of how Hope City Church has come up with our vision of knowing God, finding freedom, discovering purpose, and making a difference through the Word of God.

It says here, "God has given us his very great and precious promises so that through them you may participate"—somebody say "participate"—"in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desire."

So there are two things here. It said God has given us these very great and precious promises, so the promises have a purpose. The purpose of these core promises is to, number one, allow us to participate in the divine nature of God, and it's also God's way of getting us free from this corrupt world. Are you with me here?

So God says, "I want to get a people who can participate with my divine nature." In order for us to participate in God's divine nature, you must understand or have taken advantage of His core promises.

And then also, our salvation and deliverance, if you will. He says, "I want to allow you to escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desire." So God has made us some promises. There are some promises on the table, and it is my desire today to help you take advantage of the promises that God has made available.

What is a promise? A promise is an offer with guaranteed results. Has anybody ever made you a promise and never came through with it? Yes, all of us have had somebody make a promise to us, and they did not fulfill that promise. But one thing about the promises of God: God will fulfill all of His promises. Somebody say "all."

Man may fail you; your spouse may forget something, but God's promises will not fail. Joshua 21:45 says, "Not one of all the Lord's good promises to Israel failed; everyone was fulfilled." I don't know about you, but God has made some promises to you, and He wants to fulfill every promise that He has made to you. Somebody say, "I receive those promises."

Look what it says here in Hebrews 6:17. "When God wanted to guarantee his promises, he gave his word, a rock-solid guarantee. God can't break his word, and because his word cannot change, the promise is likewise unchangeable. We who have run for our very lives to God have every reason to grab the promise hope with both hands and never let go. It's an unbreakable spiritual lifeline reaching past all appearances right to the very presence of God."

So here's two quick things you need to know about the promises of God:

1. God will not change His mind on His promises. If God has spoken it, He will bring it to pass. His promises are not conditional.

2. His promises are unconditional, yet His promises are conditional. "Knock, and the door shall be opened; seek, and you shall find; ask, and you shall what?" If I don't ask, I won't receive. If I don't knock, the door won't open. God's promises are there; there is a condition to the promises of God.

One scripture talks about if a man doesn't treat his wife right, his prayers can be withheld from him. There is a condition to the promises of God.

So here's three things you need to know:

1. I need to know His promises. You need to know the promises of God. You'll be surprised how many Christians, people who come to church week in and week out, don't know the promises of God. The only way for you to know the promises of God is to get into God's Word. God's Word is literally a book of promises.

1 Chronicles 17:19 says, "O Lord, for the sake of your servant and according to your will, you have done this great thing and made known all these great promises." God wants you to know His promises—His promises made to your family, His promises made to your individual personal life, to the body of Christ. He wants us to know His promises.

Not only do we need to know His promises, we need to understand His promises. Many of you know what the Bible says, but you don't even understand those promises that God has made to you. It's like me promising my daughter a brand new car. I can give her the brand new car, and she has the brand new car, but if she doesn't understand how a car works, she can't know the promises of God.

But don't understand how to apply or use God's promises. Imagine her driving, and the car runs out of gas. If she doesn't understand that a car needs gas, she could know the promise of God; she could have the gift of her daddy but not understand how to use it.

Many of you carry your Bible in and out; you got your Bible app on your phone. You know His promises, but you don't understand His promises. You don't know how to apply them to your life, and your life now is parked on the side of the road because you don't know you need to put some gas in the tank.

You know His promises, but you don't understand His promises. 2 Corinthians 1:20 says, "For no matter how many promises God has made, they are yes in Christ, and so through him the amen is spoken by us to the glory of God."

I need to know His promises. I need to understand His promises. And watch this: I need to pursue His promises. Some of you are not going after the promises of God. God has made some promises to you, and you're not even pursuing the promises that God has made available for you.

Psalm 119:140 says, "Your promises have been thoroughly tested, and your servant loves them." He said, "I tried your promises; I tried your word; I put it to the test, and I love them."

Psalm 119:48 says, "My eyes stay open through the watches of the night that I may meditate on your promises." David said, "Man, I'm searching the scripture looking for promises from God." Some of you need to look for a scripture or a promise and put a promise on what God has said.

Look at your children's life and put a promise on it. As it relates to your finances, find a promise and put a promise on that thing. You're putting everything else on it but a promise that was made from God. What does the scripture say about that? Put that particular thing—put a promise on it.

You're finding yourself hungry; He said, "I've never seen the righteous forsaken or their seed begging for bread." You find yourself sick; "Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord will deliver them from them all." You have to get God's promises and put His promises on the things in your life. Can I get an amen right there?

So as we look at the overall promises of God, I will challenge some of you to just write out some of the promises that you need from God right now. Maybe it's a healing; maybe it is a financial situation. Whatever the specificity of the thing you need, I promise you there is a promise in the Word of God. You need to find it and begin to not only just know it but understand it and pursue that promise for your life.

Let me show you God's core promises that were first spoken to the children of Israel in the book of Exodus and were fulfilled through Jesus Christ. When we look at what God said to Israel in Exodus chapter 6, those promises that were made to them were manifested or fulfilled. Jesus Christ said, "I came not to destroy the law; I came to fulfill the law." Jesus is the fulfillment of what was even prophesied in the Old Testament.

I want to show you through Exodus how we are the benefactors of a lot of the promises that were made in the Old Testament that came through Jesus Christ.

Look what the scripture says here in Exodus chapter 6. This is a verse of scripture that is read every Friday before Resurrection Sunday for us. The Jewish people read this every Friday right before our Sunday as a reminder of the promises that God made to them. They are at a table, and they're having their supper, if you would, and they read the scripture here as a promise, as a reminder of what God did for them and what God is doing for them.

It is four "I will" statements, and these four "I will" statements were literally fulfilled through Jesus Christ. I'm going to show you over the next four weeks leading into Resurrection Sunday how we are the benefactors of what was promised to the children of Israel.

Look what He says here in verse number six: "Therefore"—somebody say "therefore"—"say to the Israelites, 'I am the Lord, and I will bring you out.'" He said, "I will bring you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians. I will free you from being slaves to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgment. I will take you as my own people, and I will be your God. Then you will know that I am the Lord your God who brought you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians.'"

Now I want to read that one more time very slowly, and I want to show you: know God, find freedom, discover your purpose, and make a difference.

He said, "Therefore say to the Israelites, 'I am the Lord, and I will bring you out.'" The first thing that God wanted to do for the children of Israel was not trying to deliver what was going on in their heart; He just wanted to physically get them out of Egypt. He says, "I want to get you out of Egypt."

You can only get out of Egypt by knowing the power of God. He said, "Then I will free you." First, I want to get you out, and then I will free you from being slaves. In other words, I'm going to get you out of Egypt, then I'm going to get Egypt out of you.

Come on, somebody! He said, "I'm going to get you out of Egypt, and then I'm going to get Egypt out of you." The sad thing is many people are on their way to heaven, but they never got Egypt out of them.

Yeah, you are saved, sanctified, and on your way to heaven, but you're dealing with a lot of stuff that God wants to get out of your heart. We'll go deeper into that in just a moment here.

He says, "I will bring you out. I will free you, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm." In other words, redeem means I will restore you back to your original design. He said, "Before life jacked you up and messed you up, you were supposed to be somebody, and now I'm going to restore you back to your original design."

I'm going to get you out of Egypt; I'm going to get Egypt out of you. Once I get Egypt out of you, I'm going to put you back to your original design. This is the reason why it is important that He first gets Egypt out of us before He restores us back to our original place.

Because if He restores us back to our original place before we get Egypt out of us, we're going to mess up what God has for us. This is why many people are messing up their lives because they're saved, on their way to heaven, and now they're walking out their purpose, but they didn't deal with their yesterday, and their yesterday keeps messing up their today.

Some of y'all are just happy to go to heaven. I just want to go see what—yeah, I'm happy to go to heaven; I don't want to go today. Come on, somebody! I'm happy to go to heaven, and while I'm down here on Earth, I want to experience a little heaven on Earth as well.

He said, "I'm going to get you out of Egypt. I'm going to get Egypt out of you." Once I get Egypt out of you—because imagine being in Egypt all those years. Imagine being a slave. He got them out from being a slave, but the slave mentality was still in their mind.

I mean, you're out of Egypt; you're out of slavery, but you're still acting like a slave. Come on, somebody! Some of y'all, you're free from Leroy. You—sorry, Leroy, not that Leroy. You—yeah, not you, Leroy, not you, L, my barber, man, you're good. You're free from that man; you're free from that woman. You're out of the environment, but you can't get them out of your heart.

See, you stopped going to their house at 1:00 and 2:00 in the morning. You threw their stuff out of your house, but about 3:00 in the morning, Leroy is in your mind. Come on, somebody! Play with me in this Baptist church today. You're out of Egypt, but Egypt is still up in you.

I'm going to get you out; I'm going to get it out of you. I'm going to put you back to your original design, and then I'm going to take you as my own people.

The interesting thing about taking you as my own people is that notice it was first about "I will do this for you." The first thing was about you, you, you, and now people.

So I'm going to get you out of Egypt—know God. I'm going to get Egypt out of you—find freedom. Come on, somebody! I'm going to restore you back to your original place—you're going to discover your purpose. And then I'm going to take you as my own people. I'm going to put you on a team so that you can make a difference.

Come on, somebody! So if we were saying the whole world, He'll be saying the body of Christ is a team. But since we're saying Hope City Church, we set a Dream Team here. Come on, somebody!

I'm going to get you out of Egypt; I'm going to get Egypt out of you. I'm going to restore you back to your original design, and then I'm going to help you make a difference.

Now, my goal today is not to break all these down. My goal is to give you a general view of God's core promises. Then over the next few weeks, I'm going to break each one of them down, and they're going to perfectly align with what's next Sunday called Palm Sunday. It's going to line perfectly with Palm Sunday, Good Friday, and Easter, and you're going to get the revelation of how knowing God, finding freedom, is actually God's Great Commission for us.

What I just read for you is all tied into the New Testament. It was always God's desire.

So let me finish my overview for today. Let me give you a little bit more because this is good, right? Amen.

Now, for those who don't know, what really stirred me up to teach this here was at our Dream Team event. Y'all were there, and I was asking them some questions about our vision at the Dream Team party, and half of the people didn't even know our vision. Y'all, I was mad! I was so mad!

I was mad, man! You go to Hope City, and you don't know our vision? You're on a team, and you know—you’re serving every single Sunday, and you don't know our vision? So I'm taking four weeks to make sure you know the vision and to understand that the vision is biblical.

We don't have a vision for a lot of stuff. Our vision—somebody asked me, "What's the vision of Hope City Church?" I don't start off by saying getting land, building property. My vision is to help people know God, find freedom, discover their purpose, and make a difference.

The other stuff doesn't matter if I'm not having people know God, find freedom, discover their purpose, and make a difference. All the other will come as long as we're having people know who God is and finding freedom and discovering their purpose and making a difference.

That's when buildings should come; that's when land should come; that's when more space. But many people want buildings and land before they help people know God because, why? It's about us at that point. It's about my image at that point.

This is good; I don't care what y'all say!

Okay, let me give you four things, and we're going to be done for today. These notes are available on the church website, so feel free to study it some more.

But let's look at these four.

So number one, He says, "I will bring you out." That's know God for us. Our Sunday mornings for us are all about helping people know God. Not the preacher, not the worship team. It ain't about me; it's not about the worship team.

It's creating a service that will allow people to get into the presence and encounter who God is. We're not trying to address the best, not getting all kinds of styles and stuff. When the image is on the people, we are in trouble.

We want to create an atmosphere where it's between that person and God, and they're having a God encounter in that moment. That's the reason why we're okay with the lights being dimmed because we ain't looking at what people got on.

We get so caught up on what they got on that you can't even get into the presence of God. So we want to bring people out to help them know God.

Sunday mornings—I'll preach on this next Sunday.

So I will bring you out—know God. Here's the churchy word for my deep Christian people who have to have a spiritual word for know God: it's God promises me salvation.

So when we talk about knowing God, we're talking about salvation. We want people to know God, find salvation. Remember that scripture in the book of Acts when Saul was on the road to Damascus? He didn't know God. He was on the road to Damascus on his way to kill Christians, and the scripture says a light shone from heaven, knocked Saul off his donkey, forced him to look up, and said, "Lord, who are you, and what would you have me to do?"

I believe that those two questions that Saul asks—who is now Paul—those two questions that Saul asks are two questions every church should be answering for people who come through the door: "Lord, who are you? Who is God? I want to know you."

And "What will you have me to do? What is my purpose?"

God promises me salvation.

For us to know Him, look what it says in Titus 3:3. "It wasn't so long ago that we ourselves were stupid and stubborn." I didn't say that; I mean, the message version comes out just punching people right in the face.

"You stupid, you stubborn." You know, we beat around the bush and say, "Well, I don't know how to say this to you here. I'm going to try to say this the best way that I can." You know, "I ain't trying to hurt your feelings right now."

The message don't—the message says, "You were stupid, stubborn dupes of sin, ordered every which way by your glands, going around with a chip on your shoulder, hated and hating." In other words, clapping back. They were clapping back 2,000 years ago. Come on, somebody!

He hated and been hated. He said, "But when God"—somebody say "but God"—"but God, our kind and loving Savior, stepped in. He saved us from all that."

Talking about knowing God, it was all His doing. We had nothing to do with it. He gave us a good bath, and we came out of it new people, washed inside out by the Holy Spirit.

Our Savior Jesus poured out new life so generously. God's gift has restored our relationship with Him and given us back our lives, and there's more to life to come—an eternity of life you can't count on.

Can we give God a praise for that?

So He promises us salvation. "I'll bring you out."

I'm going to save you.

And here’s the second thing: number two, "I will free you." We call that "find freedom" here through our small groups.

"I will free you," and that promise—the spiritual word, if you would—is that God promises me deliverance.

So when you see "know God," it's salvation. When you see "find freedom," we're talking about deliverance. Come on, somebody!

He said, "So then I myself in my mind am a slave to God's law, but in the sinful nature a slave to the law." This is Paul—this is church-planting Apostle Paul talking about how I'm dealing with a sin nature.

I'm trying to do right, but every time I try to do right, evil is right there. Paul said, "I'm saved, but I'm still dealing with some stuff that needs to be delivered." Come on, somebody!

Paul says, "I know God for real; I know Jesus for real, but there's a battle going on." And that's where that "work out your salvation with fear and trembling" comes into play.

I'm out of Egypt, Paul saying, but I'm still trying to get Egypt out of me. Egypt raises its face every now and then, and Paul said, "I find myself with a battle."

But then I like what he said for the believer. He says, "Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in"—in other words, for those who know God.

Now, if you don't know Him yet, you got to drink the first cup. He said, "Now, if you're not in Him, it is condemnation."

He said, "Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus."

This is the reason why grace and truth are important because we can't keep saying grace, grace, grace, grace, grace, and never speak the truth to people who are not in the family yet.

He said, "Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus because through Christ Jesus, the law of the Spirit of life has set me free from the law of sin and death."

That is unconditional. My salvation is secure; that's not the battle. My position in the kingdom is secure, but what's not always secure is the promises that I can take advantage of while I'm down here on Earth.

Some of that stuff is conditional; it's how you act. Come on, somebody! You just can't do what you want to do and use Mama and Daddy's car.

Come home on time, and you can hold the car, but watch what happens when you don't come home on time. Come on, somebody!

You ever withheld some promises or some stuff from your kids because they ain't do right? Who do you think God is? You think God is going to keep giving you, giving you, giving you, and you keep acting like you're going north and south at the same time?

Y'all don't know what that means because y'all from Georgia, but if you were in Florida, y'all already have got that, right?

Then y'all Georgia people—I'm Georgia; I've been here 10 years; y'all got me all Georgied.

So know God—salvation. God promises me salvation.

Find freedom, or "I will free you." God promises me deliverance.

Here's the third thing: "I will redeem you."

Let me go back up to number two for a second here because I got to make sure because some of y'all think salvation and deliverance are the same thing.

Now, not that you can't be in a service where God can't save you and deliver you from some stuff at the same time; He can. But there's some stuff as you go, you're going to be delivered as you go and grow. Stuff starts falling off.

You know, everything don't—don't get that sin nature still there. Somebody say, "Amen."

I got saved; everything changed. My feet changed, but no, your feet still ugly. Come on, somebody!

Salvation has not delivered your ugly feet.

And the same—come on! Everything look—now the scripture does say, "How beautiful are the feet of those that preach the gospel," and that's one of my prerequisites.

Someone say, "They're called to preach; show me your feet." Because the Bible says, "How beautiful are the feet of those that"—and don't let me take my shoes off because my feet—I naturally—I ain't got no pedicure; they naturally be.

The Lord has called me. Come on, somebody!

"I will redeem you."

So what I wanted to say quickly about the salvation and deliverance: salvation pretty much has to do with your position in heaven—your salvation, your eternal security.

Deliverance has everything to do with you being free from your yesterday.

You know, think about somebody even going back to "I'm going to get you out of Egypt and get Egypt out of you."

When a person is addicted to, let's say, alcohol or drugs, often their first goal is to get them out of the environment. It's not even to try to get them to get the stuff out of them yet.

No, let's get you out of the environment first. Once we got you out of the environment, now I'm going to put you in a place to help you get the environment out of you—that detox, if you would.

Come on, somebody!

So you're out of the environment that's causing and feeding the problem. We're putting you into a place now where you're going to have withdrawals, and you're going to have shakes and headaches.

Why? Because we get Egypt out of you.

Some of y'all have not had enough withdrawals. You ain't had enough shaking in your life to get Egypt out of you.

So ride with me very smoothly for the next few weeks because we're going to have some deliverance taking place.

Okay, next few Sundays, it's a deliverance service. And watch here: I ain't got to call you out; you could be sitting right there where you are, and God can start delivering you and working on that heart and working on that problem, and ain't nobody got to know you being delivered.

Come on, somebody! All they're going to see is a new you and the fruit of the new you and the places you used to go.

"I don't want to go there no more." I'm going to disconnect from some people.

Why? Because I got out of Egypt, and now Egypt is out of me.

Come on, think about that!

That's why you could be letting somebody go, ladies, and say, "You know what? I'm done with Thomas."

Thomas—the new name—Thomas. Thomas, Thomas. Leroy is gone. Yes, I'm done with Thomas.

Thomas ain't no good for me. I'm done with Thomas.

But the girl loves Thomas, so she finally makes—I ain't going to Thomas' house no more. I got all my stuff out of Thomas' house. I'm done with Thomas.

But she don't physically go there no more, but Thomas is up in here.

And the friend girl says, "How you doing?" "I'm doing fine. I'm just thinking about Thomas."

He all up in my heart. She needs deliverance.

Come on, somebody!

She ain't going in there no more; she's free from Thomas' house, but Thomas still got her heart.

What thing has your heart? What thing do you need to be delivered from?

Okay, okay, I'll deal with that.

Let's finish this here. I got three minutes.

I hate that CL. I'm going to throw a rock at it and break the screen.

Don't do that!

Okay, I won't do it. Y'all took me literal, huh?

Okay, I'm going to end this here.

"I will redeem you." Discover your purpose—that's Growth Track for us, new members class. We help people; we do a spiritual gift test in Growth Track and a personality test to help you discover who you are, why you bent the way you bent, you know, why you got the quirks you got, you know, why you act that way.

You want the spiritual word for it? God promised me restoration.

So salvation, deliverance, restoration—know God, find freedom, discover your purpose.

He's going to restore you back to your intent. You're going to be like David taking off Saul's stuff because some of y'all, before you knew who you were, you was putting on stuff that don't even fit you.

You became—you took on personalities and desires and bents that's not even you.

But when your identity is restored, you're going to start taking some of that stuff off.

"This don't fit me; this is not who I am."

Ephesians 1:1 says, "It is in Christ that we find out who we are and what we are living for. Long before we first heard of Christ and got our hopes up, he had his eyes on us, had designs on us for glorious living, part of the overall purpose he is working out in everything and in everyone."

Yeah, that's good news!

And then the last one, we're done, and I'll break these down one by one starting next week.

He said, "I will take you as my own people so you can make a difference."

I'm going to put you on the Dream Team. In the universal way, it's the body of Christ—the whole church. But for this local house, we call it the Dream Team—a place where you're able to serve, and you can make a difference in this building, outside this building.

Here, that is God promises me fulfillment—salvation, deliverance, restoration, and fulfillment.

Know God, find freedom, discover your purpose so you can make a difference.

I jokingly said last week, it's a strategy why we don't say, "Put on our shirts; come to my deliverance group."

Ain't nobody coming to your—you got to show—"Hey, come, my—hey girl, I'm bringing my deliverance group."

I ain't going to your deliverance group, but they'll go to a small group.

They'll come to a group of people who's talking about a topic or a subject, and in that, people start taking the mask off, and they'll get personal and start sharing stuff in their circle that they won't share with the masses.

So our strategy here at Hope is simple, but we also believe it's a biblical simple principle that we're going to study over the next few weeks leading to the resurrection.

John 10:10, I'm done.

"The thief comes only to steal, kill, and destroy, but I have come that you may have life and have it to the full until it overflows."

He wants you to have fulfillment. If you're not experiencing that fulfillment in your life, it is my prayer and my hope that as we take this journey to the cross over the next few weeks, that you'll be working out your own salvation, that God will free you from your yesterday—the things that are holding you back—so that you're able to grab a hold of every promise that God has for you.

Can we give God a praise right there for His Word?

Let's pray. Father, we thank You for Your Word.

1) "God has given us his very great and precious promises so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desire. So the purposes of these core promises is to allow us to participate in the divine nature of God and to get us free from this corrupt world." [01:37 ](Make clip | Crop for social media | Crop + Caption)



2) "What is a promise? A promise is an offer with a guaranteed result. One thing about the promises of God, God will fulfill all of his promises. Somebody say all. Your spouse may forget something, but God's promises will not fail. Not one of all the Lord's good promises to Israel failed; every one was fulfilled." [02:52 ](Make clip | Crop for social media | Crop + Caption)



3) "God's word is literally a book of promises. 1 Chronicles 17:19 says, 'Oh lord, for the sake of your servant and according to your will, you have done this great thing and made known all these great promises.' God wants you to know his promises, his promise that's made to your family, his promises that's made to your individual personal life, to the body of Christ." [06:00 ](Make clip | Crop for social media | Crop + Caption)



4) "I will bring you out from under the Yoke of the Egyptians. I will free you from being slaves to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgment. I will take you as my own people, and I will be your God. Then you will know that I am the Lord your God who brought you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians." [11:05 ](Make clip | Crop for social media | Crop + Caption)



5) "I will bring you out, he says I will free you, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm. In other words, redeem means I will restore you back to your original design. He said before life jacked you up and messed you up, you were supposed to be somebody, and now I'm going to restore you back to your original design." [12:47 ](Make clip | Crop for social media | Crop + Caption)



6) "I'm going to get you out of Egypt, I'm going to get Egypt out of you, once I get Egypt out of you, I'm going to put you back to your original design. This is why it is important that he first gets Egypt out of us before he restores us back to our original place because if he restores us back to our original place before we get Egypt out of us, we're going to mess up what God has for us." [13:18 ](Make clip | Crop for social media | Crop + Caption)



7) "The interesting thing about taking you as my own people, notice it was first 'I will do this for you, I will do this for you, I will do this for you,' and the fourth thing was people. The first thing was about you, you, you, and now people. So I'm going to get you out of Egypt, no God, I'm going to get Egypt out of you, find Freedom, I'm going restore you back to your original place, you're going to discover your purpose." [15:30 ](Make clip | Crop for social media | Crop + Caption)



8) "God's promises are unconditional yet his promises are conditional. Knock and the door shall be opened, seek and you shall find, ask and you shall receive. What if I don't ask? I won't receive. What if I don't knock? The door won't open. God's promises are there, but there is a condition to the promises of God." [04:47 ](Make clip | Crop for social media | Crop + Caption)



9) "The thief comes only but to steal, kill, and destroy, but he said I come that you may have life and the full until it overflows. He wants you to have fulfillment. If you're not experiencing that fulfillment in your life, it's my prayer and it's my hope that as we take this journey to the cross over the next few weeks, you'll be working out your own salvation." [32:11 ](Make clip | Crop for social media | Crop + Caption)



10) "Our vision is to help people know God, find Freedom, discover their purpose, and make a difference. It's not about getting land, building property. My vision is to help people know God, find Freedom, and discover their purpose and make a difference. All the other will come as long as we're helping people know who God is and finding freedom." [17:33 ](Make clip | Crop for social media | Crop + Caption)