A Biblical Critique of Steven Furtick's Preaching RE: Greater

Okay, we're back. I remember to a fighting for the faith sermon review time. Talk about timely Johnny on the spot. You know yesterday was greater day and today's greater day plus one.

So there's.

BG before greater and and then a G after greater.

All right, let's cue up our music and let's do this. The good the bad and the ugly we review it all here at fighting for the faith.

We're an equal opportunity sermon reviewing service today. His sermon is not a church sermon. It's a chapel sermon from Liberty University. Yeah, and it's Stephen Furtick. Yeah, that's right. Yes this morning he flew from Charlotte, North Carolina up to Liberty University and.

He.

Gave the chapel convocation today, and it's the first Public sermon that I've seen him give. Regarding any of the content of his new book?

Greater.

Now what one of the things we're gonna do today and yesterday I you know pointed out that the whole premise of the book is Wrong. Okay, that somehow, you know, the mundane is the evil thing and you know.

You know cleaning poopy diapers and snotty noses and being stuck in the routine. That's somehow bad. God has greater things for you. God may not have greater things for you. That's a fine way to love and serve your neighbors in your vocation if you didn't hear yesterday's segment where I Took him to task on his the false premise of the book.

You need to go back and listen to that before you listen to this. But what we're gonna do today as part of our Exposing and showing that the whole book itself is false teaching. We're gonna take a look at what he does with the gospel of John Chapter 14 verse 12.

Yeah, which is like a major piece of the book itself. So let me kill the music without any further ado. Here's Stephen Furtick from this morning's Chapel convocation at Liberty University and the name of the thing is greater.

Here we go.

Good morning, and it's good to be here. Let's pray together Lord, I believe you brought me here for a reason.

For a based on the false teaching that you're gonna hear I don't think God brought him there. I just saying person.

For a specific thing that you want to say to somebody and I offer myself to you today for that purpose. It's an honor to preach your word. It's an honor to be in your presence. I Love you. I'm your servant.

Speak to us now in Jesus name.

Amen.

Well.

Thank You Chancellor Falwell, and I want to thank everybody for having me everybody. Everybody that I should name, you know, you start naming everybody. Dr. Godwin John, you know, just thank you everybody.

How many of our Elevation Church students are here today? Do we have any? Elevation Church students. It's a big day for me to be here because this is my first time preaching Somewhere since the release of our new book and so it's an honor to share this moment with you for all of the Elevation students who are here today.

I Actually wanted to give you a free copy of the book. So I brought some for you if you stop by and get it on the way out. I love you guys and believe in you. It's an honor to be your pastor and it's an honor to speak into all of your lives here for a minute.

Turn to somebody Next to you and tell them you are so blessed To be sitting next to me. That's what I'm talking about.

No.

He didn't sound like that was a joke. You are so blessed to be sitting next to me. What kind of narcissistic nonsense is that?

Unbelievable. I want to preach to you. I Want to preach to you a short sermon today on a subject that goes along with the new book. The book is called greater and It's about dreaming bigger and starting smaller and igniting God's vision for your life.

And I want to preach to you from one verse of Scripture and then a short Old Testament story and.

One verse of Scripture and then an Old Testament story a verse out of context and Then an Old Testament story that he's going to Narcissus if you don't know what Narcissus is it's a term that We've coined here at fighting for the faith and basically it takes two words Narcissism or narcissism, you know narcissism and is a Jesus and sticks them together for Narcissus, okay.

Is a Jesus by the way is reading things into the text that ain't there okay, and that are not the right way of reading the Bible is to exegete to read out what God has revealed there in his Word-ice of Jesus is when you read yourself or other things into it that the text that should not be there by the way.

Kind of you know for free thing here. I was reading in Erin Aeus the other night in his book against heresies. Yeah, in fact, there's more than one book in front from Erin Aeus. This is a a man who was a disciple of Polycarp.

Now if you don't know who Polycarp was Polycarp with Christian martyr. Polycarp learned Christianity directly from the Apostle John himself when the Apostle John Was teaching and he was pastoring bishoping.

He was a bishop there in the city of Ephesus and so Really a tight little circle here. You got the Apostle John who was commissioned by Christ. He's an apostle. He goes to Ephesus and He you know after Paul establishes the church is there and he's teaching he's the bishop of Ephesus and one of his disciples.

One of the early Christians was Polycarp. Polycarp is the guy who taught Erin Aeus and Erin Aeus writes his book in the early second century, okay, and he wrote against the the Valentinian Gnostics and Wrote three books in the book one two and three against Against heresies and in book number three if you were to you find this online if you type in Erin Aeus against heresies.

The way you spell his name, by the way there's a kind of a combo of letters that don't work because it's Latin but Erin Aeus. I R E N A E U S Erin Aeus against heresies. You can find it online. Go to book three Chapter one.

I want to read a little bit to you here because what he says against the heretics is Absolutely fascinating and applicable today, but let me read to you. Here's what Erin Aeus says he says we have learned from none other from none others the plan of our salvation.

Then from those through whom the gospel has come down to us. Which they did at one time proclaim in public and at later at a later period by the will of God Handed down to us in the scriptures to be the ground and pillar of our faith.

It is unlawful to assert that they preached before before they possess perfect knowledge as some even do venture to say boasting themselves as improvers of the apostles what so Erin Aeus points out that heretics often consider themselves to be people who are improving upon the message of the Apostles.

Okay. For after our Lord rose from the dead The Apostles were invested with power from on high when the Holy Spirit came down upon them were filled From from all his gifts and had perfect knowledge they departed to the ends of the earth preaching the glad tidings of the good things sent from God to us and Proclaiming the peace of heaven to men who indeed do all equally and individually possess the gospel of God.

Matthew also issued a written gospel among the Hebrews in their own dialect while Peter and Paul were preaching at Rome and Laying the foundations of the church after their departure mark the disciple and interpreter Peter did also hand down to us in Writing what had been preached by Peter.

Luke also the companion of Paul recorded in a book the gospel preached by him. Afterwards John the disciple of the Lord who also had leaned upon his breast did himself publish a gospel During his residence at Ephesus in Asia.

These have all declared to us that there is one God creator of heaven and earth Announced by the law and the prophets and one Christ the Messiah the Son of God if anyone does not Agree with to these truths.

He despises the companions of the Lord nay more. He despises Christ himself the Lord. Yay, and he despises the father also and stands self-condemned Resisting and opposing his own salvation as is the case with all heretics.

Okay, we continue chapter 2 when however, they are confuted. This be heretics. When the heretics are confuted from the scriptures they turn round and accuse these same scriptures as if they were not correct nor of authority and assert that they are.

And that they the scriptures are ambiguous and that the truth cannot be extracted from them by Those who are ignorant of tradition for they allege that the truth was not delivered by means of written documents.

But by a living voice of the of if of okay. Wherefore also Paul declared but we speak wisdom among those that are perfect. But not the wisdom of this world and the wisdom each. One of them all alleges to be the fiction of his own inventing forsooth so that according to their idea the truth properly resides at one time in Valentinius and then in another in Marcion and then in another in Serenthes and then afterwards in Basilides or Has even been in differently or in any other opponent who could speak nothing pertaining to salvation.

For every one of these men being altogether of a perverse disposition. Depraving the system of truth is not ashamed to preach Himself. That's right. Aaron a is writing in the early second century. Okay in the early second century fighting the the heretics of his days notes the fact that heretics that they're always depraving the truth and twisting God's Word and they're not ashamed to preach themselves.

That was written Literally 1 ,800 years ago 1 ,800 years ago and has anything changed. Not at all. Who does Stephen Furtick preach? He bomb preaches Himself now that by the way, and no that was at no extra charge, but now we continue with Stephen Furtick's Chapel convocation from this morning regarding his new book greater the verse.

I want to read.

To kind of incite your imagination today is in John chapter 14 verse 12. By the way, when I announced I was giving a free book to all the Elevation students Nobody cheered so I'm thinking I'm gonna take that offer back because they don't even care.

What?

How manipulative is that?

That was a really disappointing moment for me. I bring like free books up in here and they're like whatever shut up. I got class and I'm like, oh my god, I flew out here.

Yeah, you better do your proper obeisance and bow and kiss the ring of Furtick.

Otherwise, you don't get your free book here and left my kids this morning to be with you. So are you excited to to hear God's Word? Are you open? Can we have some church for 27 minutes? Are we just gonna get through this or are we gonna get something out of it?

That's what I want to know I got I got a beautiful family at home I got a seven-year-old and a four-year-old and then an 18 month old and When I leave them, I like to know that I was useful to God and if God can if God can stir you up today through a word that you hear if God can of course correct something in your life through just any small thing.

I might say It would be all worth it to me. And I love this school and I love what God is doing here and I have this vision for what might happen in your life if you get a hold of this truth because um One time Jesus said in John 14 verse 12 Something that is so shocking that when when you read it You you kind of wonder if you read it wrong and I want to read it to you and see if you feel the same Way, he said John 14 12.

I tell you the truth. Anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing He will do even greater things than these because I am going to the Father everybody shout greater. Shout it like you mean it say greater.

Okay. Now while they're shouting greater, let's take a pause here and Let's put this verse back in context. By the way, the three primary rules for sound biblical exegesis. Understanding what God's Word says for real.

That's context. Context context. Anybody can rip sentences out of context and string them together as if somehow they all hang together. The issue is is that by the way, you doesn't necessarily mean you're twisting God's Word.

When you do that, the question is are they talking about the same topic and how are they to be understood? Well, here's the issue is that he's not preaching the gospel of John chapter 14 to us. He's simply taken Jesus's words from John chapter 14.

Verse.

12 Truly truly I say to you whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do and greater works than these. Will he do because I am going to the Father. Now, the question is what does that mean?

Well to figure out what that means you need to put it back in its immediate context. What's going on in this passage? What's Jesus saying before this? What's he saying after this? What's going on here?

See, that's the reason why you put things in context because when you put them in context You can see what's going on and see whether or not. The statement that the pastor is making is what Jesus intended to say or what God the Holy Spirit intended to say in that text.

So.

Let's add some context. So if you have your Bible the gospel of John chapter 14, I'm gonna start at verse 1. I'm gonna start at verse 1. The witness is Jesus speaking to the disciples basically telling him he's getting ready to leave.

He's Getting ready to you know crucifixion and then ascension. He's out of here and and they're they're troubled. You know because they've spent three years with Jesus like oh. What does all this mean, right?

Here's what Jesus said verse 1 let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God believe also in me in My father's house are many rooms if it were not. So I would have told you that I go to prepare a place for you.

And if I go to prepare a place for you I will come again and will take you to myself that where I am you may be also and you know. And you know the way to where I am going. Thomas said to him Lord We don't know where you're going.

How can we know the way? Jesus said to him. I am the way the truth and the life. No one comes to the father except for through me. If you had known me you would have known my father also from now on you do know him and you have seen him.

Philip said to him Lord show us the father and it's enough for us and Jesus said to him Have I been with you so long and you still don't know me Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the father. How can you say show us the father?

Do you not believe that I am in the father and that the father is in me the words that I say to you? I do not speak on my own authority, but the father who dwells in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the father and that the father is in me or else believe on account of the works themselves.

Truly truly I say to you Whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do in greater works than these will he do because I am going to The father whatever you ask in my name this I will do that.

The father may be glorified in the Son if you ask me anything in my name. Basically according to his will I will do it. Okay, so that's what Jesus is saying now you say basically saying see here. Jesus is saying we're gonna do greater works now.

What is he referring to that? We're gonna perform miracles. Is that what he's saying? What's going on there? Well, let me offer to you a good Commentator Lenski. Lenski is a great commentator. If you're not familiar with Lenski's commentary, it's fantastic.

It's written on a very high scholarly level. You got to know Greek in order to work with this particular commentary, but right commenting on this Lenski gives us pretty much what the church has been teaching all along.

Listen to this. Lenski says as though this were not enough Jesus adds and greater than these shall he shall do. Can there be greater? Indeed far greater. Here's the far greater works. Convert sinners by God's grace carry the gospel to the ends of the earth save souls for eternal life and.

And you know, look at the story of Acts. These are greater because in miracles only omnipotence and goodness are revealed. But in saving souls all the grace of God in Christ Jesus. The the great works deal with the material the greater with the spiritual for these greater works Jesus leaves the disciples behind the greater works of the disciples did is Carrying the gospel the good news to the ends of the earth right and Basically converting dead, you know dead sinners from being well God did it through their work?

Bring people from death to life. Regenerating them causing to be born again. Sins are forgiven people are being are being brought to repentance and faith and trust in the one true God and in Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of their sins people are Abandoning.

Abandoning idolatry and idols and I worshipping of idols and are turning to the one true God. You look at what happened in Ephesus. Paul preaches the gospel there for a few years, right? And things got so bad for the idolaters there that the temple of Artemis was hit with hard times.

It was big business before Paul blew into town and nobody believed in Artemis anymore. Right, you see Jesus here is talking about the work the work of Bringing the gospel the good news to the ends of the earth.

And by the way, the Apostles are still working to this day and you say well how so they've been dead for 2 ,000 years. Ah.

But see.

Look at the gospel of Matthew the gospel of Mark Luke John. Their work continues to this day. Because they still preach from the biblical text themselves and the good news is being proclaimed all over the world.

Jesus when he left he only had a handful of believers when the disciples were done with their work. With their with their course and they're still not done. The whole world's gonna be brought to you know.

The whole world's gonna hear the good news, right? That's what this is referring to. This isn't saying Jesus here isn't promising that he greater works. Means that you're going to receive.

Your.

Freedom from a mundane life and yet when you read Stephen Furtick's book which by the way, I'm now about 90 finished. That's pretty much what he's trying to save you from from the mediocre. From the mundane.

You know from the pile of laundry from from the routine at work in a dead-end job and I like it. That's not what Jesus is referring to here. That's not what this is about the greater works that the Apostles did and that we continue the work of two is Proclaiming Christ and him crucified to the world bringing people to repentance and faith and trust in Christ for the forgiveness of their sins right.

That's the greater work not performing miracles. The miracles were there. In fact, Jesus's miracles were performed in a supporting role to the message. He proclaims same with the Apostles. The miracles that they performed were performed to support and buttress the message.

The message is the primary mission, right? The the miracles weren't the big thing. They were the supporting thing. The big thing was the proclamation of the gospel. That's what Jesus is referring to here in John chapter 14.

Not that he's gonna rescue from a mundane life so that you can do something great. The great thing is preaching the gospel. Go do it. That's the greater thing that's what's good what Jesus is referring to here and yet Stephen Furtick in classic Furtick ease Narcissistically can't understand what's going on.

So he starts off by ripping this passage out of context not paying attention to what it means in context. What Jesus was really saying in order that he can make it say what he wants it to say. Here we go.

And so what Jesus is saying here if I understand it even remotely Correctly has implications that seem to run contrary to the experience of most of our lives. Doing greater things than Jesus. And I want you to understand that if you want to be greater than Jesus you need to.

You need to put down your your crack pipe because that's not happening. He's not talking about being greater than him. He's talking about being greater Through him and his power inside of you. He said that there is a kind of greatness That you that you have available to you as his follower as a believer in Jesus that no, he's not.

He's not saying you have a type of greatness that's available to you as a follower. That's not what he's saying at all. He's saying that the greater works are gonna do has to do with the proclamation of the gospel to the ends of the earth.

That is completely out of human reach and even human comprehension. And so you and I live so often in this place called good enough. And I know some of you came here got on campus a few weeks ago with like great visions for what this year was gonna be like and what your grades were gonna be like and what your social life was gonna be like and what your relationship with God and your impact for him was gonna be like and.

And greatness is kind of a slippery aspiration. What I mean by that is when you're reaching for it. You never seem to quite get it and if you get it somebody's got that more than you've got it. And if you get a hold of it, it's hard to hang on to it.

Greatness can be a slippery thing to reach for and if you ever get on top of it. It can be a wild beast to ride because you can have it one day and lose it the next. Now I'm not interested in in really preaching a sermon to you about How to have a good school year or or how to be great like the world talks about greatness.

I want to talk to you about something called greater what Jesus said greater. Things will you do in my name if you believe in me. And for a Bible character I want to connect what Jesus said in the New Testament to passage of Scripture in 1st Kings chapter.

19 verse. Now, do you think 1st Kings chapter 19 has anything to do with what Jesus is talking about here?

Answer not on your life verses 19 through 21. And they're gonna put this on the screen. I want to read the passage to you. Wonder if it'd be alright if I had you stand on your feet in honor of the reading of God's Word for one more Moment today.

I love this passage of Scripture Concerning a Bible character named Elisha. He's the main character in the book that I wrote that I told you about and and the reason I love him is because God's calling.

God's greater calling came to his life in an unexpected way and It produced a miraculous result and I just want to share a few verses about how God called Elisha. I Believe God's gonna speak something to you today.

That'll be life-changing as well. The Bible says this in 1st Kings 19 verse 19, so Elijah went from there and found Elisha son of Shaphat. He was plowing with 12 yoke of oxen and he himself was driving the 12th pair.

Elijah went up to him and threw his cloak around him. Elisha then left his oxen and ran after Elijah. Let me kiss my father and mother. Goodbye. He said and then I'll come with you. Go back Elijah replied.

What have I done to you? So Elisha left him and went back. He took his yoke of oxen and slaughtered them. He burned the plowing equipment to cook the meat and gave it to the people and they ate. Then he set out to follow Elijah and became his attendant.

It was an ordinary day for Elisha. Just like this day started for every one of us. Just like this year started for every one of us just like this semester started for every one of you.

Okay, stop stop stop stop stop. I'm gonna read a little bit from the greater book chapter 3 the name of it is dragging behind. I'm gonna point something out along the way. This is from the books. As Stephen Furtick writes says there's nothing glamorous about Elisha's first appearance in the pages of Scripture.

He's no miracle worker. No prophet. No sage. We see no evidence that he's even a holy or a devout person. He's just a guy plowing a field. He was plowing with 12 yoke of oxen and he himself was driving the 12th pair as first Kings 1919 plowing is Backbreaking work.

Not only can Elisha taste his own sweat. He can taste the very smell of the oxen. He has dust and dung caked in his hair and coating his nostrils and lungs and when you spend every day Plowing the smells and scenery are always the same.

Monday you have a ringside seat for oxen rears Tuesday. If you look out at the window on your to your right more oxen rears. Wednesday's in-flight entertainment oxen rears Thursday you click on www .oxenrears .com.

Friday's special more crust and filth from your master chef oxen rear the next Monday. You get up and start the cycle all over again. It might sound bad but plowing with oxen pays the bills on the day Elisha receives the calling that ignites God's greater vision for his life.

He's shuffling to the slow pace of the ordinary as He always has wake up get dressed get to the plow drive the oxen cough up dust eat lunch drive the oxen. Cough up dust eat clean eat dinner. Go to bed.

Wake up the next morning start all over again. There's nothing wrong with good hard work. Some scholars think that 12 teams of oxen belong to a wealthy landowner and Elisha was the man in charge of them.

Also what his job lacked in sex appeal it made up for instability. It was Constant consistent work consistent scenery consistent smells and there were days when Elisha was swept up in the intoxicating tyranny of the familiar.

But every morning as he steps into the slow crawl behind the plow, he is not just chasing the oxen's tails. He's chasing his own. That's what he does with his text by the way. I'm nowhere in the biblical text.

In first Kings or anywhere else does it say that Elisha was swept up in the intoxicating tyranny of the familiar? First Kings chapter 19 is not written to tell us you bait you basically listen. This is God's plan for you.

That you see just like Elisha was swept up in the ordinary looking at oxen, but That God's gonna save you, too.

Um.

Elisha was a farmer and by the way Plowing doesn't happen every day of the year. When you're a farmer plowing occurs during the Sowing phase of the farming cycle, okay? It generally can get done pretty quick and You know from there you've got it, you know.

You got to tend to the crop as it's growing and then you've got the whole harvesting thing going on, too. So I don't know where Stephen Furtick learned his details about the you know ancient farming techniques, but it didn't involve looking at oxen rears You know every day of the year.

That's ridiculous. And this text is not written to basically say look at see. Just like Elisha was caught up in the mundane and then he ignited God's vision for his life. Nothing of the sort. Nothing of the sort.

How many farmers do you think were living in Israel at the time?

Hmm.

Did God rescue them from the mundane work of being a farmer? Not at all. Okay, God called him for a specific purpose and a specific reason. Few were chosen by God to be prophets. Okay, and God didn't rescue him from a you know a mundane existence.

That was not the purpose of this and nowhere in Scripture. Does it say that Elisha is the model that God then is going to apply to your life? So you can ignite God's vision for your life the way Elisha ignited his.

That's not what this text is about. Okay, he's engaging in narcissistic eisegesis and Not only that he's adding details to this text that are not there nowhere in the text. Do we find Elisha? going. Oh I'm just trapped in the two in the tyranny of the familiar and then God shows up and rescues him from that.

It's not what's going on at all.

When God's greater calling found him not in a spotlight.

But in a farm field.

Not doing something that most people would consider great but doing something that most people would consider menial and mundane. And God doesn't bring convocation into your life. And bring some of the the best speakers, and I'm not talking about me I'm talking about all of the other people that are coming through here this year.

He doesn't bring them into your life. Without an intention to interrupt the mediocrity. That you settle into a place called good enough and call you to something greater. If you turn to the person next to you one more time before I share my sermon with you today.

I want so notice God's he's doing this to you know get you out of the mundane in the mediocre. Uh-huh, right. This is a despising of the vocations that God has established in which we do good works. Mom dad son daughter employee employer.

All of these things. There's a certain you know Mundane aspect to it nothing sexy or glamorous about it and yet God's Word says all of these things are a good work. I.

Want you to tell them God is talking about you behind your back. You may be seated one more time. Do any of you? Do you watch that show called the voice. I didn't intend to get hooked on it, but my kids started liking it and and I got into it, and I'm kind of a musician a Frustrated songwriter.

I was a worship leader before I became a pastor and and the thing about that show that I really like is. Kind of how unexpected it is you know if you haven't seen it raise your hand if you've never seen the voice.

I Didn't watch every episode. But but the first the first stages the blind auditions the reason it got my attention is because you don't American Idol the person sings and the judges decide whether or not to put them through to the next round and they go stand in line and they try out but in.

The voice they have this thing called called called the blind auditions. Where they'll walk up to somebody and and hand them an invitation to come try out while they're doing their normal job there. They're just going about their business.

Making sandwiches fixing cars going to school doing whatever they do and they get an invitation to audition. For the voice and then they show up and here's the crazy part about it and again. This is why I got hooked on the show because it was just so different when you sing for the judges.

You know it's just a singing competition, and so they're deciding the judges are deciding who they want on their team. But when you sing for them, they don't look at you while you're singing they have their chairs turned around backwards.

So when you start singing they don't judge you based on what they see. They judge you based on what they hear. So I thought that was cool for a singing competition. You know because sometimes they put the the prettiest or the cutest Person through to the next round and you're like she can't sing is a singing competition, but she looks good.

But this show changes that because they they turn around backwards the person starts singing. And they hit the button now if the judge hits their button and turns their chair around. That means I want you on my team and in fact when they hit their button and their chair turns around.

This little thing lights up on their little judging booth that says I want you and so that's an indication I've chosen you for my team and. And I'm gonna coach you and each judge gets to pick a certain amount of people and some of y 'all like why is he telling?

Us this is the most random thing. I've ever heard he's talking. He's talking about the Old Testament now. He's talking about you know Christina Aguilera and CeeLo, but what I'm trying to tell you is God started speaking to me watching the voice.

What oh.

Really so. God was speaking to you while you were listening watching the voice. Hmm. Yeah, based on how you're twisting God's Word in your book. Seriously seriously doubt it. There's no reason for me to believe that God has revealed any of this stuff to you because when I test what you say Against God's Word like the Bereans I find that what you say doesn't line up to God's Word.

So there's no reason for me to believe that you're receiving direct special revelation from God.

Prophet style about how he doesn't call you to greater things through something that people see through appearances through an outward External reason that you're great. But based on something he put inside of you before the world ever began.

Mm-hmm. Biblical texts that say that God has done any of this. Yeah, cuz I'm seriously doubting this direct revelation thing.

And I was watching the voice and I grabbed my notepad and I started writing down all these notes about it. How Elisha was plowing in the farm field and how and how they they they didn't they didn't know he was there.

He's plowing behind 12 yoke of oxen. He's just he's just plowing I guess mindlessly to the slow shuffle looking at oxen.

Yeah, you're you're putting details into the biblical texts that are not there.

Rears, he's 12th in line. All he sees ahead of him is the next oxen and the next oxen and the next oxen and the next oxen. And then all of a sudden God hits his button and Sends Elijah who was the greatest prophet that Israel had ever known and and God says I want you Elisha to follow me into greater things.