Change is Coming, Week 3

Tim Ross | October 16, 2022

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Transcription

Tim: All right. I want to jump straight into the word. I feel like I've been sitting on this. It's been in the crockpot, and it's just, the meat's going to fall off the bone. [claps] I'm so excited. I'm grateful that Charlotte had an opportunity to contribute. One of the things that she said when I told her about this transition, she was in her sweet British voice, which I cannot emulate properly. Please, anybody from the UK, I'm not going to even try to do the accent because I don't want nobody to get mad at me. In her sweet British voice, she was like, "Oh, no."

[laughter]

The church may stone me.

[laughter]

They're going to always have me attached like, "You kicked our pastor out of our church." I'm like, "That's not the way it's going to go, Charlotte." I'm so grateful that she had an opportunity to speak into what God is doing, and so this message is within that same vein. We are in a series called Change is Coming and the message today is a significant part of what that change looks like. If you have your Bibles, throw them up in the air real high, real, real high. If you got it on your phone, real, real high. If you have on great deodorant, real, real high. If it's failing you, halfway.

[laughter]

Repeat after me real loud, today-

Congregation: Today-

Tim: -the Holy Spirit-

Congregation: -the Holy Spirit-

Tim: -is going to speak to me-

Congregation: -is going to speak to me-

Tim: -about the transfer zone.

Congregation: -about the transfer zone.

Tim: After today-

Congregation: After today-

Tim: -I will know-

Congregation: -I will know-

Tim: -and fully understand-

Congregation: -and fully understand-

Tim: -that God creates a space-

Congregation: -that God creates a space-

Tim: -and gives me a grace-

Congregation: -and gives me a grace-

Tim: -to transfer-

Congregation: -to transfer-

Tim: -in my race-

Congregation: -in my race-

Tim: -at a very sufficient pace-

Congregation: -at a very sufficient pace-

Tim: -where I don't have to chase-

Congregation: -where I don't have to chase-

[crosstalk]

Tim: -and never arrive late.

Congregation: -and never arrive late.

Tim: Bars.

Congregation: Bars.

Tim: Let's go. I had no clue it was going to happen.

[laughter]

That's a bonafide freestyle, y'all. I did not know. I had no clue that was about to happen, but it did. I want you to go to the Book of Numbers 27. Shout out to Vitamin E Family. I love you guys, no matter where you're watching from, no matter what time zone you are in, we see you and we love you, and thank you for being with us today. Numbers 27. I'm going to read a few verses in your hearing then I'll pray and we're going to jump right in because, ooh, this thing is good.

Numbers 27, starting at the 12th verse, here's what it says. One day the Lord said to Moses, "Climb one of the mountains east of the river and look out over the land I have given the people of Israel. After you have seen it, you will die like your brother Aaron, for you both rebelled against my instructions in the wilderness of Zin. When the people of Israel rebelled, you failed to demonstrate my holiness to them at the waters. These are the waters of Meribah at Kadesh in the wilderness of Zin."

Let me pause and say that when the Holy Spirit gave me this message, I was like, "Aye, okay, hold on real quick. I'm going to preach it, but that part ain't about me though, right?

[laughter]

That's not why I'm transposition in the church because did I rebel, sir? If you low key just dis me, I'm going to tape the message and just show the video on Sunday. I don't want to be in the room. I just want to make sure that I'm going somewhere-

Congregation: Good.

Tim: -but that doesn't apply to me."

[laughter]

Perhaps Moses is bad, it ain't my bad. Then Moses said to the Lord, "Oh Lord, you are the God who gives breath to all creatures. Please appoint a new man as a leader for the community. Give them someone who will guide them wherever they go and will lead them into battle so the community of the Lord will not be like sheep without a shepherd." The Lord replied, "Take Joshua son of Nun who has the spirit in him, and lay your hands on him. Present him to Eleazar, the priest, before the whole community and publicly commission him to lead the people.

Transfer some of your authority to him so the whole community of Israel will obey him. When direction from the Lord is needed, Joshua will stand before Eleazar the priests who will use the Urim, one of the sacred lots cast before the Lord to determine his will. This is how Joshua and the rest of the community of Israel will determine everything they should do. Moses did as the Lord commanded, he presented Joshua to Eleazar the priest, and the whole community. Moses laid his hands on him and commissioned him to lead the people just as the Lord had commanded through Moses."

That's good stuff. Three words, write it down, the transfer zone. That's what I'm going to talk to you about today, the transfer zone. That's what we are in over the next three months. we are in, say it with me, the transfer zone. If anyone asks you after October the 2nd will be made the announcement, "Hey, I heard you go to Embassy City. I heard some news. I heard like, oh man, heard there's a switch of teams. I don't know what's going on over there.

[laughter]

Heard you're switching out teams. What's that all about? Simply tell them we are in the--

Congregation: Transfer zone.

Tim: Make it very, very easy. If you don't feel like talking about it, tell them go read Numbers 27:12-23 and get a revelation. We are in the transfer zone. Bow your heads, let's pray, and let's jump right into it, shall we? Holy Spirit, help us to transfer. Amen. I want to dive right into this particular narrative and give you the three points because in the three points is where I feel the burden to speak. I told you last week that my voice and my tone has already shifted to that of more of an apostolic tone so that I can set the house in order so that our new pastor can literally lead us into the future where God is telling him to take us.

This particular scene in scripture in the book of Numbers is where Moses has a conversation with God, God is having a conversation with Moses. This is his friend, he talks to him face to face. They have a really, really close relationship and he's letting him know that some things are about to transition, that his time as a leader is coming to an end. I'll probably get in trouble with some theologians but I do believe that whether Moses struck the rock or not in disobedience, Joshua was going to always lead the children of Israel into the promised land.

It just would've been a matter of the fact that Moses got to go with them and watch Joshua lead in the same way he had led in the past. This is the scene that we're talking about. I want to jump straight to my point. Please write this down. Point number one, God told Moses when to start, and God told Moses when to stop. When you're in a transfer zone, you have to hear God tell you when to start, and get this, you have to obey God when he tells you when to stop.

Congregation: That's right. Good.

Tim: We love starting stuff, especially when we start something that works good. We love starting a new job that pays $15,000 more. We love starting a relationship that just started with a lot of passion. A lot of times when we start something that God tells us to start, we oftentimes don't stop when he tells us to stop because we fall in love with what God gave us instead of keeping our affection on the God that gave it to us.

Congregation: That's good.

Tim: Moses was in a desert minding his own business, a fugitive on the run from the Egyptian law and the authorities on the backside of a desert working for his father-in-law, and God says, "I need you to go back to Egypt and be their leader and lead them out of bondage." He told him when to start. Moses reluctantly after having this back and forth with God, "I shouldn't go. You can't be calling me, I don't talk that good, they not going to believe me. Who should I say sent me to them?" God's like, "I don't care about all of your insecurities and all the things you're talking about, you're going to go."

Moses goes, and he's successful every step in the way. Why? Because he obeys God every step of the way. Then after 40 years of leading, he gets an updated word, "Your time has come to an end. The reason why your time has come to an end is because you disobeyed me and you did not honor me in the sight of the people." Moses puts up no fight. He put up a fight when he started, he did not put up a fight when it was time to stop.

He was like, "This is implication, this is not in the text," but his response seemingly is just like, "Okay, you right because I did lose-- I was mad, and I bopped that rock twice with that stick. I wasn't supposed to bop it once, I was just supposed to speak to the rock. By the time I got out of your presence and into theirs, I had already lost sight of my assignment." Ooh, let me fall right back right there.

Can you maintain your discipline and your obedience from God's presence to the people's presence? Do they bother you so much and get under your skin so deep that you would disobey God within 15 feet of his-- "Your presence." We just sung it, but by three o'clock on Sunday, are you already out of it because you got a bad text, or the wrong person called, or you got cut off in traffic, or your eggs wasn't the way you ordered them at brunch?

Your presence. God told Moses when to start and God told Moses when to stop. God told me when to start Embassy City Church and he told me when to stop leading Embassy City Church. He's the one that gave me the start date. He's the one that gave me the end date and I did not strike a rock. Thank you, Jesus.

[laughter]

What wasn't going to happen is me hearing the word, "Hey, Tim, it's time for you to stop." Then me start going, "Really? Right now? We're on a roll. Things are good. I like being the pastor here. I love these people, I'm digging it. It's really awesome. I love teaching on the weekends," and it's time to go. "Is that really you though?"

[laughter]

"I could see if-- I was frustrated. I could see if the church was in decline. I could see if we didn't have enough money in the bank. I can see if my feelings were not the same as it was when I started, but man, I'm in a really good place right now." It's time to stop. "Oh, that's probably not the Lord. The enemy be trying to attack my assignment when I'm doing something for the Lord." Do you know how many times we have called God the devil because it sounds completely incongruent to the thing he told us to do?

Yes, I'm the person that told you to start it and I'm the God that stops it because I am the Alpha and the Omega, I am the beginning and the end. I am the first and the last. I'm the one that calls the shot, fam, not you. Now, you can, in this season, Timothy Charles Ross, with a stop crossover, push Byron Russell in the back, top of the key, hit this jumper,

[laughter]

and walk off with six, or you can end this season in a Washington Wizards' jersey looking like a plum fool.

[laughter]

Your choice. Thank you, Holy Spirit. I have seen people overstay their welcome, and God's saying, "Trust me like you did in the last season. I want you to go this way now." We're so in love in what he gave us. Our identity is so tied up in what he gave us that we don't want to be without the thing that people have known us by because we don't want to learn what he wants to teach us next. You can't call him the God when he starts and then call him the devil when he says, "Stop." [laughs] Ah, he's so good. He told me when to stop. That is the literal ending of this season for me. "Why you stopping?" Because you told me to. "Probably got tired, huh? COVID probably took a toll on you. COVID was a vacation."

[laughter]

Do you hear the words coming out of my mouth? I am a complete introvert, COVID was a vacation. I'm not saying I didn't miss y'all. I'm also saying I was okay.

[laughter]

Not that I don't love you. I'm just saying, every other week I came in here and preached two sermons to nobody, that's the way I started preaching. My mom is on the front row, she can attest to this. When I started preaching, I started preaching to myself in a room with no furniture in it. 45 minutes on a Memorex tape side A. Preached a whole sermon, book, chapter, verse, come up with a title, preach the message, flip it over to side B, press play and record, preach another 45 minutes to myself.

2020 didn't give me no blues, it took me right back to the beginning. I was with God before anybody got here. I was with God before anybody knew it. I was with God before anybody knew my name. He put me back in a familiar position not knowing that I was resetting so that I could prepare to step away because he's the one that said stop. When God said stop, you don't owe anybody an explanation outside of what he told you. When they be trying to figure it out, but I just don’t—it's just over. Why? Because he said it's over. It's not over. Yes, it is.

[laughter]

When God says it's over, then it's over. Ooh, I'm trying to get off of it. Jesus said that no man can take my life, I lay it down. He was always going to die on Passover. No man could tell Him when to lay His life down, but His daddy was. His daddy was the only one that could tell Him, and he said, "You're going to die on Passover," which is why when He got up on the cross, He said, "It is finished." He didn't say I am, He said it is.

See, a lot of people don't want to stop because you think that when you stop, it stops in you. Do you know that Jesus has been our ancestor longer than he was our apostle? He said, "This part is finished, but I am not finished." Don't associate stopping with your life ends, "But you won't be like in the-- What are you going to do with all that free time?" Sleep.

[laughter]

Point number two, please write this down. You have to understand about the transfer zone. Moses asked God to appoint the next leader, not the people. Hear me on this one. Moses asked, who?

Congregation: God.

Tim: God to appoint the next leader, he did not ask the people. Here's what it says in Numbers 27:15, "Then Moses said to the Lord 'Oh Lord, you are the God who gives breath to all creatures. Please appoint a new man as the leader for the community. Give them someone who will guide them wherever they go and will lead them into battle so the community of the Lord will not be like sheep without a shepherd.'" Let's go with this sequence real quick. Moses did not have a list of suggestions he gave to God. "Hey, I have a list of guys that I really like. I want to bring them before you want to ask you to pick one." No. He just went to God and said, "God, can you show me who the leader is?" Moses didn't assume who it was.

He took his feelings out of it. He wasn't looking around immediately at his kids. Oh, I'm going to say something. Ooh, I'm about to say it, I feel it. It's about to come out. Can't stop it here-- we want to hear it, here it go.

[laughter]

God's church is not a McDonald's franchise. You cannot bequeathed to your children just because they have your last name. They might love Jesus and they might have grown up in your house that does not make them God's choice. When you assume and don't ask, you can wind up getting a replacement instead of a successor.

[ applause]

There's a difference between a successor and a replacement. I seen a lot of replacements, they all suck. You know it and I know it. We've seen replacements not just in church, just in organizations, in companies. You're like, "Mm-mm I'm not mm-mm. I'm not going there, no." Moses did not assume who it was. He said, "Will you please show me? Because if I pick, I could pick out of my feelings, I could pick out of familiarity, I could pick out nepotism, I could pick because this person is going to listen to everything I say, I might pick because I'm Jerry Jones and I really want to still control the entire organization.

I fire any coach that doesn't listen to me and I keep finding a simp who I can just manipulate and by the halftime, if I don't like what the score is, I can be down on the field calling plays myself. That's why y'all haven't won since the '90s.

[applause]

Because there's too much manipulation, there's too much control, there is too much ego, there is too much pride and you cannot get God's selection if your ego does not die. Moses said, "I know I can't go over to the promised land, but if my last assignment is to choose who's next, I done already struck the rock twice and messed that up. I don't want to go out, went back to back ales.

I don't want to choose someone out of familiarity and wind up messing up what's supposed to happen next. I need you to pick you the one chose me, I need you to choose who's next. I'm not smart enough to choose who's next. I'm not bright enough to choose who's next, I need you to choose." Thank you, Holy Spirit. Some of you all need to pray into that relationship real hard.

I'm not talking about the people that are already married.

[laughter]

Because I'm telling you, some of y'all be, some of y'all already married and be trying to take something, I'm trying to give to somebody dating and be like, that's for me.

[laughter]

No, you need to go to marriage counseling. I'm talking to the people that haven't made that decision yet.

[laughter]

Listen man, I'm in a different season of life. These DMs is tripping me out. These people crazy. I need to know who God's choice is, I need God to choose because I need God to be pleased with his movements. When we started singing, you're worthy of it all, I was on my knees, I just started going like this —— This is all yours. This church never belonged to me, this is all yours. Anything that has been successful, I cannot attribute it to me, it's been all you.

I said, "We are not equal partners in this relationship, sir. You are 99%. If I've done anything, it's 1%. I am not the majority stakeholder in this relationship, sir. This has been you and the only thing I've been doing is doing exactly what you tell me to do." Back in September of last year when the Holy Spirit started talking about your transition is coming, I'm like, "Okay," and then we got into the new year and we knew, "Okay, you want us to be apostolic missionaries," which is biblical language. That's anybody that asked me, I'm like, "I'm apostolic missionary." When it came time for the press release, they were like, "Nobody's going to understand apostle missionaries so we're going to put Christian advisors."

I'm like, "Okay, cool but I'm still an apostolic missionary." I can find that in the Bible, I don't find no Christian advisors in the Bible. If the secular people don't know what that mean, go ahead and put Christian advisors, I'll explain it when I get in their face.

[laughter]

I said, "Lord, who is your person because I don't know, and here's the thing, I know a lot of people. I've mentored a lot of people," so people that have gone on to be incredible in the body of Christ, I was like, "Who is this for?" He said, "Tim." I said, "For real?"

[laughter]

Because I have been mentoring Tim for like three and a half years. Had never had him preach, had never heard him preach because I don't need to hear nobody preach if I hear them talk. I've been doing this 26 years, this is just-- that's not arrogance. I'm just telling you. If I hear you spit game, I don't know if you can preach or not. Just need to hear you talk. I knew you could preach, but it went like I was following them, checking them out, this was a mentor-mentee relationship. Tim lives in Benbrook, Texas, on the West side of Fort Worth. Over there with all them Longhorn cows and things.

[laughter]

I live in Denton. He was like, "Hey, I believe that we're supposed to have a connection." I felt the same way. I said, "Well, if you want to hang out, would you be opposed to driving to Denton?" He said, "No." Homie would jump his Jeep and drive from Benbrook to Denton so we can sit in a restaurant and talk and then drive back down to Benbrook. I had no idea what God was doing. He sure didn't know what God was doing. Just another person that I'm mentoring.

Then the Holy Spirit said, "Bring him to preach in March of this year." I brought him to preach and then he said, "Now pay attention to him." So I paid attention to Him and He was like, "That's my choice. That's who I choose to succeed you at this church." Now guess what, I had a choice. [laughs] If he gives you free will to be in a relationship with Him, then he'll also give you a free will to obey Him.

I've seen a lot of people go past God's choice to the one they're comfortable with. Well, I've known them longer and I actually owe it to them because I actually said that I actually promised them some things, and God, you bring this person that's newer is probably going to mess up and the other person might be-- Hello she said, "And?"

[laughter]

If you don't take your emotions out of it, so I brought them in March, then the Holy Spirit's like bring them back you came in April as well. Then y'all know the rest because he'd been here like 10 times.

[laughter]

Then you—-up all the time. He been here two and a half months this year. Every time the Holy Spirit just kept confirming that's my choice, that's my choice, that's my choice, until I was like, "That's your choice, that's my choice." How would the people receive? That ain't my business. What if some people leave? They all go, and as soon as they walk out the door, some new people will come in.

[applause]

God has never been concerned with people's preference when it comes to His selections. There's not going to be no poll. "Hey gang, we've had several people come to Embassy City this year. We're looking for a new pastor. Just want to do a little online poll," like this is American Idol.

[laughter]

Like this is The Voice.

[laughter]

I've never done that in my life though, but I had to act it all the way out.

[laughter]

God chose Tim, in the same way, God chose Joshua, which brings me to point number three. Joshua has some of Moses' authority and all of Israel's obedience. Here's what it says. Numbers 27:18. The Lord replied, "Take Joshua son of Nun, who has the spirit in him and lay your hands on him. Present him to Eleazer the priest before the whole community and publicly commission him to lead the people." Here it is. "Transfer some of your authority to him, so the whole community of Israel will do what?

Congregation: Obey him.

Tim: Obey him." Now, here it is. Go back to that verse real quick. "Transfer some of your authority." In Numbers, when Moses lays hands on Joshua, he's not the full leader yet, but even with some authority being bestowed upon him, it requires all of Israel's obedience. "Transfer some of your authority to him so the whole community of Israel will obey him." Verse number 23, "Moses laid his hands on him and commissioned him to lead the people just as the Lord had commanded through Moses."

I'm going to ask Tim to come up right now because I need to both explain something to you and I need to demystify something to you. It has to do with the laying on of hands. Especially in Pentecostal circles. We have made the laying on of hands a dramatic event.

[laughter]

When I lay my hands on you, something is about to overtake you. You about to be able to do something you ain't ever done in-- The receiver's like, [groans] and the dude's like [groans]. He's like [shreiks].

[background noise]

I got you, and back up. I got you.

[applause]

Am I lying?

Congregation: No.

Tim: 15 minutes later, I'm going to do my best Saints. That's not what it is. That's not what it's supposed to feel like. It's a transfer of authority, not a transfer of exaggeration. It's a transfer of power, not a transfer of pageantry. This is a transfer that heaven peaks over the balcony of heaven and says he's legal. This is a transfer that hell looks for. Dang, we can't touch him. How come we can't touch him? They laid hands on him. The same authority he had now he has, so the same protection he had, he has.

[applause]

The same influence he had he has. I want to lay my hands on Tim. First of all, you see how anti-climatic that was? I want to lay my hands on Tim.

[laughter]

Speaker: You don't have a catcher. Oh, you bust your head right open if-- you got to have a catcher.

Tim: So it's not supposed to be theatrical.

Speaker: Right, it's good.

Tim: Because it's not supposed to be a sideshow, it's a display. Moses had to do it in front of the entire congregation of Israel. Why? So that none of them can say, "I ain't listening to him." Did you see the transfer?

Congregation: Yes.

Tim: Yes we all saw. I ain't going to listen to him, that's on you. I promise you, that's on you. Before you say I won't listen to him go to Covenant Church, it's in Carrollton. Go to Calvary Church, it's 2 miles away. Go back to Gateway if that's where you came from, go down to the Potter's House if that's where you came from, what you not going to do is stay here.

[applause]

I wish you would. That's what this transfer is about. The transfer of authority is to show everybody in the community that this man willingly obeying, God took some of his authority and put it on this man, so that the whole community will obey him.

[applause]

I'm laying my hands on the shoulders now, December 18th, my last sermon as lead pastor, I'll lay my hands on your head, but I'm transferring some of my authority to him now. He's going to preach for the next four weeks and what he preaches the next four weeks, he preaches as the lead pastor of this church. Well, you still the lead pastor. We both lead Pastor I told you, don't be confused.

[laughter]

Everything I'm saying as I go out, everything he's saying as he comes in, so as I lay my hands on him in front of all of y'all, I am placing some of my authority on you, so that you can tell us what to do next. For the last seven years, I've been the one to instruct Embassy City of where we were going. After today, I no longer tell this community where we go. You do. The same God that has been with me for the last seven years will be with you for your entire season.

[applause]

With this authority, hear from God and tell us where to go, for where you lead we will follow.

Congregation: Yes.

Tim: I will follow. I trust you. I love you. He called you, be you, don't be me.

Congregation: Amen.

Tim: You don't have to think like me, you don't have to act like me, be you and we will do it everything that God has put in your heart for us to do. [applause]

You're so good, I love you so much.

[applause]

Tim: That's what that look-- y'all sit down. I appreciate that, though. That's beautiful. That's what this looks like. I laid my hands on him. Y'all all saw it. That's it. I didn't have to bring out a horn of oil. I didn't have to turn into a Roman Catholic for a day and put on a long flowing rob with a gold chain with a cross tucked into my left pocket.

[laughter]

Listen, if you're from a denomination or a particular circle and they like that, I honor the liturgy and the popping circumstance, but not over scripture. If you want to do it, that's cute, that's nice but don't let it overwhelm or overthrow the importance of the event itself. The reason why I've been here with authority for the last seven years is because somebody laid their hands on me. It's the only reason why the enemy hasn't taken me out.

Many pastors, as you've seen, fall, there's only one reason that hasn't happened because somebody laid hands on me, and I never let them take their hands off of me. I've always been accountable to him, always been submitted to him. I haven't been out here robbed, and the enemy knows if you're not out here as a lone wolf, his chances of taking you out are slim to none. In the same way, Tim is going to be my lead pastor, but I am him and Genesis's apostolic elder. We are connected for life. I'm not walking out the door. If Moses wouldn't have struck the rock-- come back up here, Tim. Come back up here. If Moses hadn't struck the rock when it was time to cross over Jordan, just start walking. Moses would have been behind him like, "Oh, this is great. It's your assignment now."

[laughter]

You got to do nothing, just-- What do you want to do? Okay.

[laughter]

We ain't done that before.

[laughter]

It never crossed my mind. Okay. Oh, we spinning now, okay, I didn't know. Okay. That's how you feel? Okay. Oh, and then we going to back it up. We going back, back, back it up. Back it up. Back, back, back it up. This is the vibe. The transfer of leadership, and the transfer zone is so that we put our attention on God's selection. When you see that I laid hands, here's why it has to be done publicly, so that I can't be tempted to take it back.

I don't want to have a Jay Leno spirit.

[laughter]

I got a cultural reference for everything. I'm telling you everything preaches. I don't want to give it to Conan and then take it back from Conan and then have NBC kick me out and choose who they want, all because I wouldn't get out the way. I can't give it and take it back. It's not the way the transfer of authority works. We're in the transfer zone. This is what it looks like. We didn't have no shaky music behind us, and I laid my hands on him, and heaven saw it.

[laughter]

Heaven saw it and hell saw it. The gates of hell shall not prevail-

[applause]

-against the church that knows how to transfer. Would you —- hands and close your eyes? What's the Holy Spirit saying to you about this message? One of the things I'm very, very acutely aware of is that in every series we've ever been in, it represents a large amount of people in the congregation that are going through some type of transition of their own and trying to make sense of it, and you're trying to figure it out. I just want you to understand and know that however this is supposed to look for you, however, this is supposed to look in you, apply it to your situation, apply it to your life right now.

What do you need God to help you navigate? What transition are you trying to successfully navigate that you cannot do without God's help? I believe that the best days and the best years of Embassy City are in front of us not behind us. As we walk through this season of transition, God, I'm asking that you would help all of us understand and know that the transfer zone can be if we allow it, one of the most beautiful seasons of our life.

As one person receives and another person relieves, we get to see you bless both because of our obedience. Holy Spirit, make us obedient to every single one of your transitions for Your glory and none of our credit, in Jesus name.