Not Called to Be Safe | Nate Hilgenkamp

Kylen Perry: Porch, how are we doing? Are we doing okay? It's so good to see you. As always, welcome. Thanks for entrusting us with your evening. We're glad that you would be in this room. Really quickly, we want to do a special shout-out to some friends we have in the room, some friends who may have gone to Launch Retreat with us. If you were at Launch, let me hear from you. Man! How great was Launch? It was awesome. Right? It was amazing.

If you weren't there, it was an amazing weekend, but you're not missing out, because we brought a little bit of that Launch love home to share with you. We're really excited for where God is taking us this evening. I also want to recognize a few Porch.Live locations that are tuning in with us from all over the nation. Special shout-out to Porch.Live Fort Worth, Porch.Live Midland, and Porch.Live Scottsdale. Would y'all say, "Hello, Porch.Live" with me, please?

Hey, we have a very special guest in the room with us this evening. He's a minister up at Harris Creek, he's a cohost of Becoming Something podcast, and he's a dear friend of ours. I'm really excited to welcome Mr. Nate Hilgenkamp back to the stage. Would y'all help me with that right now?

Nate Hilgenkamp: I am originally from Minneapolis, Minnesota. Wow! Let's go. We have Christians from Minnesota. It's a miracle. A few weeks back, I went to visit my parents with my wife and two daughters. I have two girls, a 3-year-old and an 11-month-old. We were there. We woke up one morning. We had a few hours until we needed to be at the next place where we were going. Whenever you have two young kids, you learn that playgrounds are the best place to waste time.

So, we started thinking, "Where can we go?" and we realized my elementary school was within walking distance. I was like, "Hey, let's just get in the stroller, and let's take them to the playground." Now, thankfully, I hadn't been there in about 20 years. So, I show up at this playground, and I'm hit with so much of what I remember from 20 years ago, but then I look at another part of the playground, and it's totally different.

This playground is cut in half, and half of it is what I grew up with, and the other half is completely brand new, and they looked so different. In fact, let me show you a picture I took of the playground I grew up playing on. Here's what it looks like. Yeah. (I had to do some Photoshop up there because there was another kid in it. Be impressed.) I just remember looking at this thing, going, "I cannot believe this is what I played on."

Looking at it, I can remember my fingers getting stuck in those wheels over and over again. I cannot believe I still have 10 of them. You can't really see it, but as you go down the slide, there's this chain hanging there. It's a perfect place for you to choke on right before you go down the slide. Elsewhere, there are not bars in the right places. It is a playground if you're trying to build it in a way in which kids are going to get hurt, but back then, in the 90s, they were like, "Whatever. Getting hurt is good for them."

Looking over at the other half of the playground… I didn't take a picture of it because I felt creepy taking pictures of a playground with kids around, so you're just going to have to take my word for it. It looked very different in that it looked incredibly safe. It's like they had thought through all of the "what ifs." Like, "What if the kid falls that way? What if the kid falls this way? What if he can't do this? What if she can't do that?"

It's like they had thought through everything so that whenever a kid would enter that playground, you would know they were not getting hurt. As a parent, I really appreciate that, because I don't want my kids getting hurt, but as I looked at these two different playgrounds, I thought it was a picture for where we've been over these last 25 or so years. As culture has grown over these past 25 years, we've grown in our desire for safety, which is great when it comes to building a playground. It's not great when it comes to building a life.

Here's what I've realized doing young adult ministry. I've gotten to be with young adults for a while now. Here's what I've realized: you guys are really anxious about this time of your life because this time in your life is so important. This time of your life launches you, if you will, into the next season of your life, so you want to make sure everything in your life goes according to plan in this season. You want to make sure your life feels safe now, but because of that, you're paralyzed by "what ifs."

I've heard "what ifs" like, "What if I never get married?" or "What if I get married but I get married to the wrong person?" or "What if I really want to move to a different city but never have the guts to move to a different city?" or "What if I do move to a different city and it's the wrong decision?" or "What if I take a different job and it is the wrong job?" or "What if I stay in this job and hate this job?"

This is what I just heard a couple of weeks ago: "What if my friends invite me to hang out a few weeks in a row, and I say no to them because I have stuff going on, and then what if they just stop asking me to hang out?" I'm like, "You guys, you're exhausted because you're crippled by all of these 'what ifs,' because you're trying to make sure your life is exactly how you want it. You're trying to make sure your life is safe."

Here's what I want you to know: safety is a façade. The only thing you can plan for in life is that sometimes you're going to get hurt. Sometimes life is going to feel unsteady. So, tonight, rather than putting forth an effort to make sure you have a safe life, I want to propose a better option is putting forth an effort to have a courageously faithful life. Your goal is not a safe life but a courageously faithful life.

Sometimes it won't feel safe. Sometimes it'll feel like you're climbing the monkey bars and looking down, going, "If I fall, it's going to really hurt, but getting up and climbing is better than not climbing at all," because we're not after safety; we're after courageous faithfulness. So, tonight, how do we move away from a life of safe and into a life of courageous faithfulness?

We're going to look at a random part of Scripture. I mean, random, random. I'm going to mention this guy's name, and I bet none of you have even heard of him before. I've never heard a message preached on this. I've never really noticed him in Scripture before until a few weeks ago when I was reading the book of 2 Samuel. Something about his life just gripped me. We're going to look at a guy named Ahimaaz. We see him in 2 Samuel 15 and 18.

To give you some setup on where we are in Scripture, at this point in Israel's history, there have been two kings. Israel originally had no king, but they said, "God, we want to be like the rest of the people around us, so give us a king." So God selected a man named Saul, and he was anointed as king over Israel, but as he became king and as he was king, his heart drifted from God, so God anointed another man by the name of David.

Saul became jealous of David. He began to fight David to try to kill David, and eventually, there's this moment in Scripture where Saul's armies are fighting against David's armies and David's armies win. Saul is defeated, and then David becomes the king over Israel. Now, he rules largely with wisdom. He largely does a great job leading God's people, but then he gets old. He has a son named Absalom.

Absalom was an evil son, and he started to think, "I think I could do a better job ruling these people than my father is." So, he starts to slowly but slyly convince the people of Israel that he would be a better king than his father. He would go around telling people, "Hey, he has gotten old. We need someone who's strong. We need someone who's courageous. We need to move forward, and he's just taking us backward, so you need to start following me."

One by one, it says, the hearts of the people turned from David to Absalom. Then in a moment there's a coup where David and his army are driven out of Jerusalem and Absalom and his army begin to take over. They come into the city and begin to act like they're truly in charge. Now, as David and his army are running away from the city, he taps on a few people, a few of his followers, and tells them to stay.

He says, "I need you here. I need you to stay in Jerusalem underneath this false king to spy on them. I need you to tell me everything that's going on so I can come back." He has convinced a few people to stay, and we're going to pick up and read in 2 Samuel 15:35 when he's specifically speaking to a man named Hushai and trying to convince him to stay. He has already convinced two other people, Zadok and Abiathar. He says this in 2 Samuel 15:35:

"'Won't the priests Zadok and Abiathar be there with you? Tell them anything you hear in the king's palace. Their two sons, Ahimaaz son of Zadok and Jonathan son of Abiathar, are there with them. Send them to me with anything you hear.' So Hushai, David's confidant, arrived at Jerusalem as Absalom was entering the city."

Okay. What can we learn about Ahimaaz from this text? Well, first, he lives in a land that has been overthrown by an enemy. The true king has been driven out. The good king has been exiled, and this false and evil king rolls into town and starts to take over. Think about how terrifying that would be if you were one of David's followers.

The best description I can think of is imagine you're in Europe in the 1940s and you see Hitler and his Nazi regime overtake your city. Meanwhile, you're going, "This isn't their land. He is not the king, yet he does have the power. He's not supposed to be here." It would be terrifying. This is what is going on in Jerusalem in this time. For David's followers, they're going, "You're not supposed to be here. The good king should be in charge." But evil has come into the city and is now in charge.

In the midst of this it would be tremendous terror. Ahimaaz would be absolutely terrified about what was going on. He would want to run from the city because evil was now in charge. In the middle of that, he gets a message. He gets a message from the true king. David says, "Hey, Ahimaaz, I need you to stay. I know you want to run, but don't go anywhere, because I have a job for you. I need you to stay here. I need you to spy on this false king.

I need you to learn everything about this false regime, and then I need you to run as fast as you can to where I am and tell me everything you've learned. Then I need you to go back, learn all you can, and do it over again. I need you to do that, because although it looks like there is a man who has taken my power and my position, he won't have it long. Although it looks like the true king is dead, the true king is just planning his comeback."

Here's why I've grown to love this passage. That right there is where we are. We find ourselves in a very similar position. In our world today, it can seem like the true King has been overthrown. It can seem like evil is winning, but this is actually how the New Testament describes the world we live in today. Take a look at 2 Corinthians 4:4. "Satan, who is the god of this world, has blinded the minds of those who don't believe. They are unable to see the glorious light of the Good News. They don't understand this message about the glory of Christ, who is the exact likeness of God."

Satan here is called the god of this world. That doesn't mean he's the king over this world, but he does have tremendous power in this world. Why? Because just like Absalom, he has slyly deceived the majority of people in this world. He has convinced them to follow a false king. If he's the god of this world, that means he has tremendous influence on the ideals, opinions, goals, hopes, and views of the majority of people. If that's the case, evil will feel like it's winning. In the midst of that, here's what you have to know as a follower of Jesus.

Jesus has tapped you on the shoulder and said, "Although sometimes it's uncomfortable living here, I need you to stay. I need you to be here. You can't run, because I have a mission for you. I need you to learn all you possibly can about this world. Then I need you to go to me, and we're going to talk about it, and I'm going to send you back with a new mission, because here's what you need to know. Although it seems like someone has taken my position and power, he won't have it for long. While it may seem like the true King is dead, he's just planning his comeback." This is where we are if we're following Jesus today. So, if you want to live a life of courageous faithfulness, you have to start with this. This is true of Ahimaaz. This is true of us.

1. The King has given us a job within enemy territory. This has a couple of implications on your life. The first is this. Imagine how the purpose of Ahimaaz's life has shifted. Evil has come in to reign over his city, and his response, along with everyone else who followed the true king, was to run. He was going to have to abandon all he ever knew and run away from it, but then the king says, "Hey, I need you to be a spy on my behalf." It changes everything for him.

It means when he goes to the market, he's on mission. That means when he goes to his job, he's on mission. That means when he's talking with his neighbors, he's on mission, because the king has given him a job to do within enemy territory. He's learning all he can about this land so he can participate in the overthrow of this land.

The same is true for you. When you've been tapped by the King to work for him, when you've heard him say, "Follow me," the purpose of your life shifts. You're not just at work to get money; you're there as a spy and an overthrower. You are not just randomly in the city of Dallas; you are here to overthrow this city. You are not just randomly placed with roommates; you are there as an ambassador of the King, as a person of light in the midst of darkness. Your purpose has changed because you've been given a job by the King.

Secondly, I just want you to imagine what it would be like for Ahimaaz to carry a message to the king. He and those other few people who stayed in Jerusalem would gather intelligence, and then he, under the cover of night, would run as fast as he possibly could to where King David would be. Imagine what it would feel like to be in the king's presence. After spending all day in enemy territory, after spending all day on guard, finally you're with the king. It would be like, "Oh my goodness! What a relief. I'm where I want to be."

Is that what it's like for you when you're with your King? This is how it should feel like for us. We should be eager to run into his presence. We should, throughout our day, make space to sit with him, because in the presence of the King is the only place we're truly safe. All throughout our day, we're in the midst of enemy territory. We have an enemy who's prowling around us like a roaring lion, trying to take us out. Then we get to be with the King, and it's like, "Oh, I'm safe."

Now, I know we've learned to call these times quiet times. You know, spend a quiet time. Like, go sit in time-out. Just go be quiet. Think about what it would be like for Ahimaaz to spend time with the king. He would run as fast as he could. He'd get to the king, and then I just imagine him unloading everything going on in his life. Then he'd sit back and listen to the king.

There wouldn't be a whole lot of quiet about it. It would be a very loud time. He'd be communicating to the king, and then he'd receive communication from the king. This is what it should be like when you're spending time with the King. You're not just sitting there quietly. You are speaking to him, and then you're receiving orders from him so you can go out and do the mission he has called you to do. Those times are not a burden; those are the times you live for.

So, let me ask you this. Do you live like you've been called? Do you live like you've been put on mission or are you just trying to get by, hoping it'll be Friday already so you can party, get drunk, have sex, and do it all over again? I just want to tell you this: There's a better way to live than that. There's a more exciting way to live than that, because the King has given us a job within enemy territory.

Now, the next time we see Ahimaaz is in 2 Samuel, chapter 18. He has faithfully been doing his job, running back and forth from Jerusalem to King David, but eventually there's a major battle between Absalom, the false king, and his army and David, the true king, and his army. Whoever would win this battle would have the power.

David's army ultimately wins and kills Absalom. For David's safety, David actually wasn't there. He wasn't at the battle. So, once the battle is completed, someone has to go tell David the news, which would be Ahimaaz's job. So, Ahimaaz goes to Joab, who is the commander of David's army, and says this. Verse 19:

"Now Ahimaaz son of Zadok said, 'Let me run and take the news to the king that the Lord has vindicated him by delivering him from the hand of his enemies.' 'You are not the one to take the news today,' Joab told him. 'You may take the news another time, but you must not do so today, because the king's son is dead.' Then Joab said to a Cushite, 'Go, tell the king what you have seen.' The Cushite bowed down before Joab and ran off."

So, just to bring clarity to what's happening here… Ahimaaz goes to the commanding officer and says, "I have a job to do. My job is to communicate to the king. I need to run to the king." But Joab, the commanding officer, says, "No. You're not the one to take the news today." Now, why would he do that? That doesn't make a whole lot of sense. This is Ahimaaz's job. Why would you not send him? Well, he's not sending him because he really likes Ahimaaz, and the last time a king died under David's watch, something happened to the messenger. It's in 2 Kings, chapter 1.

As I said earlier, there was a battle between Saul's army and David's army. When David's army won, the person who killed Saul ran from that battle and ran to David and said, "David, I have good news. I've killed the king. You are now in charge." David's response was, "How dare you put your hand on the Lord's anointed?" and he killed the messenger. It feels extremely harsh, but that's what happened.

Now, once again, a king has been put to death. Joab is going, "Ahimaaz, you aren't going this time. I don't want you to die. This mission is incredibly dangerous. I don't know how David is going to respond. I don't want you risking your life. So stay here, and I'll send someone else." Which is kind of Joab. The only issue was the king told Ahimaaz he had a job to do, and Joab was trying to tell him not to do it. This is the second thing we can learn from this passage.

2. There will be excuses not to do your job. Here, Joab is truly being a friend to Ahimaaz. He's saying, "Hey, I know the king gave you a job to do, but it's too dangerous to do, so don't run. Let someone else do it." But what seems kind is actually an opportunity to abandon the king's call. What you need to know in your life is that you've been called by God to run hard and fast. He has offered you an opportunity to partner with him in a supernatural mission of overthrowing this world, but there will be many, many opportunities for you to step aside from your job.

Good-meaning people will tell you, "Oh, don't run today." Life circumstances will tell you, "I probably shouldn't run in this season." Your own thoughts and feelings and emotions will say, "Maybe I shouldn't run today." There will be very, very good excuses for you not to do the job the King has given you, because life is hard and this mission is hard.

I think this is sometimes what it can look like. In honor of the Olympics, I brought my pink balance beam here today. Admittedly, I've seen this illustration done before. Let's just imagine this. You start following Jesus, and you're like, "I'm going to be brave and courageous, and I'm going to do whatever it takes to follow him. I'm going to get up here, and I'm going to do this amazing routine that's going to impress God, and it's going to be awesome." So you take a step forward in faith.

Just to give some illustrations from my life… Early on, when I started following Jesus, I was like, "I'm going to be courageously faithful. I'm going to share the gospel." So, I find a friend who doesn't know Jesus, and I'm sharing the gospel with him, and that totally broke our relationship. He said, "Absolutely not. What you said is hateful and hurtful." I've gone years without talking to him. In that moment, I'm like, "That didn't feel very safe. I didn't like that very much, so I'm just going to get a little bit more safe." So you lean down a little bit.

Then, later on, I still do go into ministry and start working at a church in Waco, Texas, doing college ministry. I'm believing again. I'm like, "God, you're going to do big things. Let's do big things for the kingdom." So, we rent out an event space in Waco. We're going to do a worship night. I'm like, "Lord, you're going to save all of Baylor University. You're going to bring them here. We're going to have revival."

We do the worship night, and there are about 13 people who show up. It could hold, like, 300. I just remember lying in bed that night, going, "He didn't make me to do this job. I can't do this. Somebody else would have gotten more people there. This doesn't feel very safe. I just want to get a little bit more safe." So you stop stepping out as much. You're still kind of trying to follow God, but then…

A couple of weeks ago, I preached a message at Harris Creek, my church in Waco. You know, I'm trying to help people follow God. Then I open up my email on Monday, and it says, "Yesterday's message." I'm like, "Oh, this is going to be awesome. I just saved this guy." It's a long email. I didn't save him. In fact, he thought I was deceiving other people. I was like, "Man! I'm just trying to do this mission God gave me, but this doesn't feel very safe, so I'm just going to stop stepping out at all."

Eventually, your life just looks like this. You're like, "I just want to hang on and make sure I don't do anything that's going to hurt me." Then you get to this spot where you're like, "Okay. What's the safest thing I could possibly do? Okay. I'm going to get married, and we're going to have 2.5 kids. We're going to have a house with a yard, and my kids are going to wear helmets all the time, because life is really, really dangerous.

We're still going to go to church, and we're going to give to the church, but we're going to give, like, 3 percent so I feel good but I don't even notice the money is gone. We're going to pray for missionaries. We won't live like missionaries, because that's dangerous. That could hurt us. We're just going to live the safest life possible."

Then life goes on, and you're like, "Okay, God. My one hope in life is that I would grow to be really old and then just die in my sleep. I don't want to feel any pain. I don't want it to be hard. I don't want to have to go to a hospital. I don't like hospitals. So can it just please be like this? I just lie down, and then all of a sudden slowly wake up in glory and go like this."

You shouldn't be clapping, because that's a horrible routine. Imagine if a couple of weeks ago you turn on the Olympics and Simone Biles gets up here and just goes like this, lies there for a minute, gets off, and goes like this. What would the judge do with a routine like that? She'd get a zero because she did nothing.

Here's what you need to know: that's the routine the majority of Christians are living. What's the judge supposed to do with a safe life like that? He's going, "I made you for more. You have the support of the King. You have a mission from the King. Let's go! Who cares if you fall off? I made you for more."

Maybe you're thinking, "God is not a judge." I've heard that a thousand times. "God is not a judge." Second Corinthians 5:10: "For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad." I want to be so clear. Salvation is a free gift of grace by faith in Jesus Christ, but Scripture does say that once you are saved there is another judgment in heaven because he has given you a mission.

For that to be your life, how is he going to respond? You might get to him and say, "But, Jesus, I was afraid of falling off. But, Jesus, other people said I looked kind of silly. But, Jesus, I was afraid of getting hurt." He'd say, "But I gave you talents, and you hid them in the sand. What am I supposed to do with that? I gave you a job, and you didn't do it because you wanted to be safe. I had your back the whole time. Why didn't you trust me?"

Porch, here's what you need to know. There will be good reasons not to run. You just have to decide now, "Am I going to listen to the call of the King or the excuses of this world?" So, if you want to be courageously faithful, you have to know there will be excuses not to do your job. Let's see what happens next, getting back in the text. Joab says, "Hey, don't run today, Ahimaaz. It's not safe. It's too dangerous." This happens next. Verse 22:

"Ahimaaz son of Zadok again said to Joab, 'Come what may, please let me run behind the Cushite.' But Joab replied, 'My son, why do you want to go? You don't have any news that will bring you a reward.' He said, 'Come what may, I want to run.' So Joab said, 'Run!' Then Ahimaaz ran by way of the plain and outran the Cushite."

This is the part of the story that stopped me in my tracks. This is the part of the story that lodged in my heart. "Come what may, I want to run. Sure, it's dangerous, but I want to run. I hear what you say, Joab, but I want to run. I might not even get there first, but I want to run." Joab says, "But you don't even have news that will bring you a reward." Ahimaaz has to be thinking, "You're crazy. I don't run to get a reward; I run as the reward. Working for the king is the reward. Faithfulness to the king is the reward, and man cannot convince me out of what God has called me to."

3. The courageously faithful run in the midst of opposition. I love this moment from Ahimaaz, because he throws all of the "what ifs" to the side. He isn't stuck thinking, "Well, what if I run to the king and he's mad at the news I bring? But what if I don't run to the king and he's mad that I didn't run to him? What if I run and Joab gets mad at me because he told me not to run? What if, what if, what if…?"

He throws that all to the side and says, "No, I have extreme clarity with what I'm supposed to do with my life. The king has called me to run, so I'm going to run." This is what I want my life's motto to be. "Come what may, I want to run. Sure, I may get tired, but I want to run. Other people may not understand, but I want to run. I may not have the strength to make it there, but I want to run. I may not have any news that brings me a reward, but I want to run."

Now, why can this be our response? Why can we so courageously run to the King? It's because the King has so compassionately run to us. There's a story in Scripture where Jesus tells a parable in Luke, chapter 15. There were two sons. He's a rich dad. This one son, the younger son, goes to his dad and says, "Dad, I really wish you were dead. I want your money. I want your stuff more than I want you." This dad says, "Sure. Take what I have."

So he takes what he gave him, and this son runs as far away as he can. He spends it on drinking, on partying, on gambling, on sex, thinking it would fill his heart. It did not fill his heart. After he had spent everything his father had given him, he found himself in the midst of the pigs. He was hired to work with the pigs, eating the pigs' food. As he's eating the pigs' food, he thinks, "I need to go back to my dad. I'm going to go back to him and say, 'Dad, if you'd just accept me as a slave, I'd be better off than where I am now.'"

As he's on his journey back, we read this. Luke, chapter 15: "So he got up and went to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him." If this is true, you cannot keep me from running to him because my sins did not keep him from running to me.

While I was still a long way off, while I had taken everything he had given me and spent it all, while I threw myself into a pit, he saw me in that state, and he saw you in that state. Jesus so loved you that he ran from heaven to enter into earth to live 33 perfect years, and then he died brutally on a cross, and three days later he rose again. He ran to you so you can run to him. Hebrews 12 says this:

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."

Porch, I think we have three different types of people in the room tonight. The first group of people are the people who are running hard. You're just running hard in the wrong direction. You're running hard after things you think will satisfy. You're running hard after pornography, relationships, alcohol, drugs, money, status, success, or a certain type of body. You're running hard after things that will not satisfy. I implore you tonight. Turn around and start running the other way. You're going to see your Father has already been running after you.

The second group of people in the room tonight… You are believers in Jesus, and you are really content with just that. You're a believer; you're not a follower. You're not moving in a direction. You are comfortably seated in your seat just kind of allowing life to go on, hoping you don't get hurt. I want to implore you. Get up and follow your King, because he's moving.

The third group of people in this room tonight… You're the people who are courageously, faithfully following after Jesus. I just want to tell you it's going to be worth it. You're going to enter into glory, and he's going to say, "Man, I gave you 5 talents, and you gave me 10 in return. Here's more. Come and share in your Father's happiness." If you're tired now, if you're exhausted now, if you feel hurt now, it's all going to be worth it, because you were made to run.

So, in summary, if you want to be courageously faithful, you have to know these three things. First, you've been called by the King to run; secondly, there will be legitimate excuses not to run; and thirdly, the courageously faithful run in the midst of opposition.

I want to close with something that, ironically, I actually learned while writing this message. Have you guys ever heard about a guy named Alex Honnold? Has anyone seen the documentary Free Solo? This guy is crazy. I think we have a picture of him. He's a free climber, which means he climbs massive mountains with no harness, with no rope. It's unbelievable.

Free Solo is all about him climbing Half Dome in Yosemite. It's this massive rock formation that you stand at the bottom of and are like, "I can't ever possibly imagine climbing this with a rope, let alone without a rope," yet this is what he does. He's known for doing this all over the place. If you look at this picture… One misstep and he'd die. It's crazy.

So scientists were like, "We have to study this guy. How in the world is he able to do these things?" So, they put him under some machine. If you're a doctor, you'd know what it is. It's some machine that measures your brain. They showed him a bunch of different things. Your brain is supposed to light up in different areas.

After they ran this machine with him underneath it, everything began to make sense, because as they looked at his test results, they realized his amygdala flat-out doesn't work. Why does that matter? The amygdala is the fear center of your brain. Whenever you're doing something dangerous, whenever something scary is happening, your amygdala is lighting up, telling the rest of your body, "You need to get out of here." For Alex, it's telling him nothing. He can do all of those things because he has no fear.

As followers of Jesus, this is who we are. First John 4:18: "There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love." As Christians, our fear centers don't work anymore because perfect love has driven it out. The Enemy is going to tell you things like, "What if you don't get married?"

"It's okay. I'm headed to the best wedding ever, the wedding feast of the Lamb. I'm going to be okay."

The Enemy is going to tell you, "What if you're in Dallas by mistake? What if you're in Boise by mistake?"

"Oh, no. I've been placed here. The King has placed me here."

"What if you're going to be all alone for the rest of your life? What if you're in this city and have no community?"

"Oh, I'm not alone. I know my God is with me and for me wherever I go."

"What if you don't make enough money at your job?"

"Oh, I'm not about money."

"What if you don't like your job?"

"Oh, this is just what I do on the side. My true job is an ambassador of the kingdom of heaven. This is just my second job."

Listen. There's nothing the Enemy can tell you that should drive fear to your heart, because perfect love has driven out fear. Jesus is alive and with you and for you, and he has tapped you on the shoulder and said, "You have a call from the King. You have the support of the King. Now run. Do your job."

As followers of Jesus, we get to partner with him in the overthrow of this land from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light. This is what we've been called to. There may be a god of this world who seems like he has a position and power now. He won't have it for long. It may feel like the true King is dead. He isn't dead. He's just planning his comeback. So, as followers of Jesus, may we have the courage of Ahimaaz to say, "Come what may, I have a job to do, so I'm going to do it." Let me pray that we would.

Heavenly Father, I pray that you'd drive fear out of this room tonight. I know that so many young adults in this room or watching online are paralyzed with all of these "what ifs." "What if this doesn't happen? What if this does happen? What if this goes wrong? What if this never goes right?"

Father, I pray they would know that they don't have to wonder about all of the "what ifs" because they know, "Even if the tomb is still empty, even if Jesus is still alive… Even if those things never happen, I know where I'm going, because I know who I am and whose I am." So, Father, I pray that we'd leave this room tonight sent out running with a mission and a purpose from the King. Father, I pray we'd run hard and fast after you, not confident in our own abilities or our gifts but just confident in the fact that we can run hard and fast in the job you've given us because you first ran hard and fast after us.

Father, would you use us for your name and your glory, and as people see us running hard after you, may they follow in our footsteps, running hard after their King. God, we do pray, as we're in the midst of a land that is under the influence of an enemy, that is under the influence of an evil king, that you'd overthrow it, that, Jesus, you'd come and you'd come quickly and we could see your return, that we could see the true King coming back.

God, we're confident in the fact that even though this is not home, one day we will get to experience home where you will be the King, where you will be the one we get to gaze upon all of the days of our lives. God, I pray that we'd do that even now because of the fact that Jesus is alive and with us and for us. It's in his name we pray, amen.