Keion Henderson - The Transition Position

I want to use this as a subject today. I want to talk about the transition position. That’s what I want to discuss: the transition position. You know, there are certain things that can only be done in specific positions. Talking on the phone is not one of them; if you want to talk on the phone, you can do it lying in bed. I’m sure some of you are watching this livestream right now in your house, and you’ve got a charger longer than an extension cord, plugged into the wall in the bathroom, but you’re lying in bed because you can watch this there. You can watch it while cooking in the kitchen or on your laptop computer or iPad, because it’s really not positional when it relates to how you watch this or how you talk on the phone. Some of us eat in the kitchen, sitting down at the table with family members; others eat off a plate while standing at the island in the kitchen. Some of you eat in your bedroom because there is no specific position necessary to eat a meal. However, there are some things you just can’t do any way you want. Some things require a certain position for them to be effective.

For instance, if you are going to bear a child, you can’t do that however you want. If you go to the hospital, more than likely they will put you in stirrups, and you will have to be in a specific position because giving birth requires it. For those of you who drive, you can’t drive a car standing up; you can’t drive a car with your eyes closed. You have to be seated with your eyes open because driving a car is one of those actions that should be done in certain positions. If you have to pick up something heavy, perhaps a box, you can lift it however you want, but there is a chance you will injure yourself. The proper position for lifting something heavy is to get low and ensure that you use your legs and back. Sometimes the proper position prevents injury. It’s not to say you can’t do things your own way, but if you choose to do certain things your own way, it’s no wonder you end up with injuries, because some actions must or should be done in specific positions.

Now, those of you watching at home, I want you to put that idea before you and let’s address some context regarding the text so that we don’t conclude with a pretext. It’s important that you understand that the substratum, the big idea, of this conversation is about ensuring you are in the proper position to achieve the results you have been praying for. When you take Isaiah chapter 43 and boil it down to its most consistent meaning, it outlines the fact—are you listening? —that God has a plan for your life that cannot be reversed. That’s the substratum of this whole ideology. So if you want to know the conclusion of the sermon before we get there, here it is: I’m proving to you today that God has a plan for your life that cannot be reversed, no matter what you do or what anyone does to you, no matter what missteps, mistakes, or mishaps you make. The promises of God are yes and amen, and God did not bless you, nor does He intend to bless you, based on what you have done right or wrong. Before you were formed in your mother’s womb, He had already called you a prophet to the nations. Before you were ever thought of, God had already orchestrated a plan for your life.

But watch this: when it comes to talking to the people of Israel in chapter 43, He proves the future by not promising the past. Don’t miss what I just said. When God shows up in this scene, He doesn’t reference eschatological ideologies about what’s going to happen in the future. In the church, all we talk about is the future—one day, God will do this, and soon this will happen—turn around and touch your neighbor, and in three months your financial problems will be resolved. God’s future talk is appealing, but when He proves Himself in this text, He does not point to the future; instead, He points to His past. God says, «I don’t need to get your attention with action; I can actually get your attention with my resume.» I don’t have to do anything else in the future to prove I am who I say I am; I can actually point to…