I decided that I wanted to set up my message by showing you some photos even before I actually tell you what I’m going to talk about. This will help me.

So the first photo is a football game between the Minnesota Vikings and the Indianapolis Colts. And the score is 33 to zero in favor of the Colts and it’s about 8 minutes into the third quarter for those who are detailed.

The second picture is an airplane with 155 people on board that hit a flock of geese and the pilot knows he can’t get back to the airport. So he’s anticipating an effort to land in a river.

The third one, David outsized by Goliath.

The fourth one, the prodigal son. Bad choices and he hits bottom.

And the fifth one is Jesus dying on a cross.

So by now you’re probably wondering what do these photos all have in common. I’m glad you asked. And here’s what they have in common: None of them tell the rest of the story.

The team that was down 33 to nothing made the greatest comeback in the history of the NFL and they actually won the game. Wow.

The airplane landed safely in the Hudson River. All 155 people on board were saved.

David against all odds defeated Goliath.

God gave the lions a bad case of lockjaw and Daniel survived.

The prodigal son, guess what? He returned home and he was restored.

And the best one of all, Jesus died on the cross on Friday, was buried, and rose again on the third day, and is alive. Wow. Wow. Come on. Are you thankful today that the story didn’t end on Friday?

So now the title of my message for you today is **Don’t Freeze the Frame on Friday**. Tell your neighbor, “Don’t freeze the frame.” Don’t freeze the frame. Tell your other neighbor, “Don’t quit too soon.” Don’t quit too soon. Tell that first neighbor, “There’s more.”

Go with me if you would to the words of Jesus that are found in Matthew 20. It’ll be on the screen for you today. And these are words that Jesus spoke when he and his disciples were headed to Jerusalem for the Passover. And here’s how it goes.

Jesus said, “We’re going to go up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests, the teachers of the law, and they will condemn him to death and will hand him over to the Gentiles to be mocked, flogged, and crucified. On the third day, he will be raised to life.”

So just for clarity, let me remind you that in the Easter story, Friday was the day that Jesus was describing where he would be condemned and mocked, beaten and crucified. Friday, we called it Good Friday. We had an incredible service last Friday night, an incredible time of worship. And Friday was—we call it good because of what it has done for us and what we have because of it. But Friday was a hard day for Jesus and a really difficult day for his closest friends and followers. Right.

The Third Day Promise

Now, having said that, I find it fascinating that when Friday arrived, none of Jesus’ followers seemed to remember a third day promise.

I just find this—I always have. I’ve been fascinated like I wonder, why wasn’t somebody speaking up and reminding the crew and assuring them as they were scattered, afraid, running for their lives, just full of anxiety and stress? Why wasn’t somebody assuring them and reminding them of the sequence that Jesus had given them of the events and how they were going to happen?

“We’re going to Jerusalem. I’ll be handed over to the Roman authorities. I’ll be sentenced to death, mocked, beaten, and crucified. And on the third day, the Son of Man will be raised to life again.”

Now, he didn’t just say that once, but he said it repeatedly. Jesus talked about several times in scripture what I’m calling the third day promise. He didn’t pull any punches. He was clear. “Following me is not always going to be easy. You’re not always going to be popular. People are not going to always like what you have to say. And sometimes your faith is going to be tested at the most extreme level.”

But when I read it, I think about why they stopped right there. Like it was some sort of human frailty, some form of spiritual or emotional amnesia that happened to them when they got to Friday.

None of them were talking about how he said he was going to be raised to life. Instead of denying that he knew Jesus, why wasn’t Simon Peter a voice of encouragement? Why didn’t he use his big boisterous loud voice to say, “Hey, everybody, as hard as this is, let me just remind you what Jesus said. We got to go through this, but Sunday is on the way.”

It’s as if they got to Friday and then froze the frame on Friday, right? Overwhelmed by Friday, fixated on Friday, right? Not remembering the promises of God.

And now, let me just say before we just trash all of them and throw them under the bus, this is something that’s common for everyone when you get to a Friday in your life.

Forget Not

So Psalm 103, you’re welcome:

“Bless the Lord, oh my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the Lord, oh my soul, and forget not.” Forget not. Forget not.

This is the psalmist telling himself, “Soul, soul, listen to me.” Sometimes you just got to talk to your soul. Your soul is in your mind. You got to talk to you right here. And you got to say, “Hey, soul, forget not all the benefits of the Lord, who forgives all my iniquities, who heals all our diseases, who redeems your life from destruction, who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies.”

It’s like he’s on a roll as he’s writing the benefits of God who satisfies your mouth with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagles.

Friday Is Not Final

See, Friday is not meant to be final in your life. In my life, in our life, together—like Friday. Fridays are not forever. Not unless you freeze the frame. That’s right.

God uses Fridays in our life to fulfill his purpose in us. Are you getting this? Yes, sir.

Romans 8:28 says, “We know that in all things”—somebody shout, “All things.” All things, God works for the good. Everybody say, “God works.” God works for the good, for the good in all things, in all things of those who love him who have been called according to his purpose. God works.

On Friday. Friday is when things don’t go as planned. Plans get messed up. Hearts get broken. Your dad walked out on you. Your husband left. Your business failed. Your marriage ended. Your dreams got shattered.

God works on Fridays. He doesn’t take Fridays off.

Come on, somebody that knows what I’m talking about. Celebrate the fact that he is still working in the hard time. Amen.

I took a call from a young couple in our church in November 2021 and I listened as they told me about the impasse that they had come to in their life. He had experienced an unusual level of success at a very young age in business. And the only way forward for him in his company was to uproot and move his family.

And I remember pulling off the road. I was talking to them on the speakerphone. And I remember tearing up and pulling off and getting in a parking lot. As I listened to them and their emotional moments, they just didn’t have a peace about leaving. They felt devastated by the idea that he would lose his future, but felt like God was telling them to stay planted at Champion Center specifically. And in the Northwest, it was the hardest thing that he had ever been through.

They grieved, they wrestled, they felt angry that he had been put in that position.

But Fridays are not meant to be final.

There was a call to ministry on his life and he needed some time in the aftermath of that day to heal and to unfreeze the frame of a Friday. But today he now serves as a leader in our Team Church organization and he’s just become the location pastor at our Bellevue location. Pastor Troy Pollock and his wife April.

Somebody say, “In all things, in all things God works.” God works.

See, your pain has a purpose. That’s good. We sing that song. “When I don’t see him, he’s working. When I don’t feel it, he’s working.”

In all things, God works. In all things, God works. You might feel like, “God, where are you? God, why aren’t you helping me?” He is helping you in the lowest most difficult times of your life. In all things, God works.

Your pain is for a purpose. Friday is not meant to be final.

Friday Is a Frame

Friday, you see, is a frame of the unfinished works of God. Like I showed you a frame, a picture in the before and after slides that I showed you, graphics I showed you earlier. So Friday, think about it this way, is a frame in the film. It’s not the film.

It’s not the story of your life unless you make it the story of your life. It’s just a chapter. And a chapter is just a chapter. It’s not the story.

What you see on a Friday might be real, but it’s not finished. Yeah, God’s not dead and God’s not done on Friday.

I don’t know who I’m talking to. Maybe everybody today, but you need to hear me when I tell you that Fridays have a place. They fit into the overall plan and purpose of God. And you can’t allow yourself to settle into a Friday and expect God’s blessing in your future.

Friday is an unfinished work. Don’t freeze the frame and talk about it too long, stare at it too much. It’s just Friday. Somebody say, “It’s just Friday.”

Imagine going to the baker or bakery and pulling out the half-finished cake. It’s half done. Baker might slap you, scold you, but you know it would be messy. It would have no shape really to it, fall apart when you try to put icing on it. That’s right. Imagine it. I imagine that you pull it out, you try to ice it, you taste it, and then you judge it. You take a photo of it. Like, it has no resemblance to what it would be if you just left it in the oven. It’s an unfinished work. Yes.

Don’t Get Stuck

And some people who have had bad experiences, let me say it like this, even in a church, a bad experience in a church in their life or just an awkward, strange experience in a church froze the frame and formed an idea, a negative bias about church.

God could have used their experience and then used them as part of his church. But they got stuck in the Friday. They decided to not be a churchgoer. And some still like to think they’re good with Jesus even though they’re not part of his church.

Somebody told me this week, “I don’t do church.” And I didn’t say what I wanted to say, but I felt a bit of sympathy because I knew that at one point there were enough words spoken that somewhere down the line they had gone to church. Something happened. And I want to just say with as much love as I can to you today, if you don’t do church, you don’t do Jesus.

It’s a lie. It’s a lie to think, “Me and Jesus are good, but I don’t do church.” Well, Jesus champions his church. You can’t be for Jesus and not be for his church.

But see that whole thing I just described about somebody encountering something, having a bad experience. That’s the kind of thing I’m talking about. It’s an unfinished work of God. That’s really good. An offense. Getting stuck in an offense is an unfinished work of God.

Feeling offended and not walking it out with faith and confidence and trusting God means you are stuck in an unfinished work of God.

And sometimes you have to save your future from a Friday experience. You have to hit reset. You have to hit the play button. You have to believe that God is working for your good. Be confident. Don’t freeze the frame on the unfinished works of God.

Three Things Jesus Told His Disciples

Three things that Jesus told his disciples to prepare them for Friday. Three things that Jesus said about Friday. You can write this down. Might help you.

1. Satan Wants to Sabotage Your Future on Friday

The first thing is Satan wants to sabotage your future on Friday. Now, that’s my wording, but when I show you the verse, you’ll understand how fair it is.

Jesus said to Simon, “Simon, Satan has asked to sift all of you as wheat. Friday’s coming and Satan wants me to pull down protection from around you. I am praying for you. I’m praying for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, when you have got through Friday, strengthen your brothers.”

That’s great. I want to tell you that Fridays are not meant to be fatal, but they often are because you have a real enemy who will work through what you think is just an offense or a hurt or a decision you’re making to literally sabotage your future and sabotage the plan God has for your life.

I was a youth pastor getting started in youth ministry when six people, all of them in my inner circle of life, all of them in the prime of their life, experienced untimely deaths. I stood in my own Friday. Yeah, I questioned everything I believed about God, about him answering prayer, about him being good. I started making choices and decisions that I am not going to continue in ministry. I’m not going forward. I struggled deeply.

But thank God I made it. I found my faith again. I was restored. And I’m here today by the grace of God, fully confident in the goodness of God. That’s right.

I wrote a book called *Good Things*. A little bit of my story is in there to try to just celebrate the champion victory that I had through God in trusting him, having faith in him. But I want to tell you today, you have an enemy who wants to use Friday to sabotage your future. He wants to pull you down. He wants to put you on the ropes and pummel you. And if he gets you, he increases the chance that he can get your kids. He can derail the destiny and the plans that God has for you. If he gets you, he not only gets your life, he gets your legacy.

But greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world.

Jesus was like, “When you get there, just know you have an enemy on Friday. Don’t forget he is out to sift you as wheat.” Like don’t let your guard down. Don’t forget what this is all about. This is a battle you have to win. You’ve got to get through Friday.

2. The Holy Spirit Is Your Helper and He’s With You Forever

The second thing that Jesus said in advance of Friday is that the Holy Spirit is your helper and he’s with you forever. Yes. Jesus told him, “I’m going to ask the Father and he’s going to give you another advocate and he’s going to help you forever.” Amen.

And the Greek word here for advocate is *paracletos* and it means one called alongside you to help you. So Jesus is saying, “Hey, guess what? I’m going to go away, but the Holy Spirit is coming alongside to help you.”

And I want to just say to everybody today, the Holy Spirit is real. The Holy Spirit is with us right now. He is here to comfort us and encourage us. Come on. He is God’s presence and God’s spirit alive in the earth right now to teach us and to guide us. The Holy Spirit is a way maker. He is a miracle worker. He is a promise keeper.

3. I’ll Meet You on the Other Side of Friday

And the third thing that Jesus told him about Friday was, “I’ll meet you on the other side of Friday.” It was at the Last Supper when Jesus said to the disciples, “Now I’m going to go ahead of you to Galilee and I’ll meet you there. I’m going to go ahead to Galilee and I’ll meet you there.”

It was his way of saying, “Keep going. Keep going when you get to Friday. Know that I appear to be gone, but I’m not gone. Know that I won’t be here physically with you, but keep going. Keep going.”

Say it to yourself right now. Say, “Self, self, keep going.”

Can I tell you today, you’re only stuck if you stop.

And this is the mistake that many believers make. A Friday happens and they stop the pattern of faith—the pattern of faith such as going to church, reading their Bible, praying to God. They stop worshiping. They stop growing in their faith. They just get stuck in the reasoning, the overthinking, the mindset of a Friday. They come to church on Easter and it’s like they’re doing their duty, but you’re really stuck. You know it and God knows it. You’re really stuck.

And I came today with this word for you. And I want to tell you, keep meeting him where he told you he would be. It’s not his job to follow you. It’s your job to follow him.

You got to come home. I said you got to come home.

He said, “Where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” He said, “Forsake not the assembling of yourselves together as some are going to do, and so much more as the day approaches.”

Don’t let Friday—don’t let Friday get you stuck. Don’t let Friday determine your faith. Come back to him. Let him restore you. Let him heal you. Let him give you a new beginning in your life and in your future. Wow, wow, wow, wow, wow.

Prayer

Stay where you are if you would at every location, standing to your feet right now. I feel this message so strong in my heart. I felt it all week. I don’t know if you’re a young man like you went to church as a kid and your girlfriend got you here today. I don’t know if you’re a mom and a dad that your kids said, “Come on, please come with me.” I don’t know. But God knows.

And I felt so passionate that I should come to you on this Easter and just appeal to you with all of my heart. Like don’t freeze the frame on a Friday. I don’t know what your Friday was like. I don’t know how it felt. I don’t know where it was. I don’t know who did it to you. But I’m just saying to you, don’t freeze the frame on Friday. He has a future for you. He has a hope for you. He has a plan for your life.

And there’s some of you today that God wants to free you from your Friday.

Father, I pray right now in the name of Jesus. I pray for every man, every woman, anybody here today who is resonating in their soul because of the things that I’m saying and you’re calling them. Holy Spirit, you are working right now in our life. And there are people in this room that you are ready to raise to new life, to provide a freedom that they haven’t had in a long time.

And I’m asking you right now by the power of the Holy Spirit to give them the strength. Every person who has the want to in their heart right now, I’m praying you give them the strength to unfreeze, to unfreeze what’s been frozen. To hit the button and go forward and to make Easter 25 the first day of a brand new beginning in their life and in their future. So be it for the glory of God. So be it. So be it today as a win over the power of darkness in their life, in Jesus’ name.

Heads are bowed and eyes are closed. I want to tell you next weekend is Baptism Sunday. Sign up. Invite friends and family and come and celebrate a new beginning in your life. That’s next week.

Today, I’m going to lead you in a prayer of new beginnings. I’m going to ask you to first of all, by show of hands, I’m going to ask you to raise your hand like a move forward in your own life and say, “This got me today. God’s talking to me today. Today, I want to receive a new beginning in my life, my relationship. I want to be right with God.”

Hands are going up around the room here today. Wherever you are, whatever room you’re in, hands are going up, up in the high level in the bleachers today, in the middle section in the name of Jesus. In the name of Jesus. Thank you, Lord. Just raise that hand high if you would. God sees it. Wow. Keep it up.

Thank you, Holy Spirit. Thank you in Jesus’ name. New beginnings are happening right now in Jesus’ name. New decisions are happening for the glory of God. Satan, you have no hold on us. Your power’s broken over our life. We speak restoration. We speak healing. We speak the power of a new beginning. We speak faith. Faith is being born. Faith is being refreshed for the glory of God. The enemy is being defeated.

Thank you. Thank you so much. With your hands still raised high, I’m going to ask everybody who would to join us in this prayer. Say with me:

“Lord Jesus, welcome to my world. Forgive me of all my sin and make me a new person. Make me a new person. I receive you now. I receive you now. As the leader, as the leader, as the Lord, as the Lord of my life and I boldly declare, I boldly declare I’ll never be the same again. This is my day. This is my day of freedom from Friday, from Friday. In Jesus’ name, in Jesus’ name. Thank you for Sunday. Thank you for Sunday. Thank you for Sunday.”

Come on, let’s celebrate.