Don't Call It a Comeback III // Pastor Chuck Colegrove // May 18, 2025

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
What's up?
Free Church, woo, it worked.
What's up everybody?
Man, you look good today.
You sound so good Outsing theband.

(00:20):
Come on.
Well, just before I dive in andpreach, just a couple of
note-keeping opportunities.
Just today's kind of atransition.
Sunday John Jonathan Connell andTiffany Connell we call them
John Conn and T-Con, brother andsister.
They moved here about two yearsago.

(00:41):
Tiffany has been a student atColumbia University getting her
master's degree or graduatedegree in film scoring and she
just she's graduating today.
You walked today, right Walkingtoday, and then she's on to San

(01:02):
Francisco to take on newopportunities and so we are
praying for her.
We're going to cover her inprayer, church family and the
Lord director steps.
And then John Kahn is righthere.
He's the one you see jumping,hitting his head on the ceiling
during worship.
We absolutely love these two.

(01:23):
John Kahn is headed back toFlorida for a second and then
he's going to move across thebig pond to Switzerland and he's
getting married in July, movingto Switzerland and begin

(01:45):
studies.
Their passion is to go intoNorthern Korea with the gospel
how many know that is unchartedterritories right now and we're
believing God for theirprotection and their safety and
provision and all that theyaccomplish.
So we love you too.
Thank you for sowing into ourchurch family, into our youth

(02:06):
and our young adults.
Thank you so much.
And then Pastor Ben andPriscilla led worship today.
Next Sunday will be their lastSunday with us.
They'll be around a little bitin June maybe, but they've
already sold their home and weare so thankful for the
investment they've made intothis house.
And this is what I shared withthe team, the monastery team, on

(02:28):
Wednesday that there's always.
Life is full of transition,life is full of promotion and
step ups and step outs, and youknow we celebrate it in the
corporate world and we see itall the time.
In the sports world, I mean,people leave all the time to go
somewhere else and we just, youknow, like we get the New Jersey
.
It's no big deal and it happensin the education world, but in

(02:50):
the church world we act likeit's not the right thing.
So we bless Ben and Priscillaas they go to their next step.
They've been a tremendousblessing to our family and this
house, and next week afterservice we'll have a little
reception on the patio.
So if you want to bring a cardor a note or something just to
say hey, we love you and Godbless you on your next step.

(03:10):
We'd love to do that and we'reso thankful for you guys.
We love you all so much and Iappreciate everything you've
done for this house.
So, with all that said, I amready to preach God's word.
Are you ready to receive ittoday?
The year was 2018 and it wasbasketball tournament time for

(03:34):
college basketball, and I'm aMichigan fan.
I grew up in Michigan.
I've always been a Michigan fan.
I cheer for the maize and blueHail to the victors.
I do not care for MichiganState, although I love you.
If you are a fan of MichiganState, I love you, I will put up
with you, but if you like OhioState, we got a problem.

(03:55):
Yeah, see what took down thechurch?
It was Michigan-Ohio State.
That's what did it.
So, anyway, 2018, michigan'sbasketball team was in the
national tournament, thebasketball tournament.
They were on their way and youknow, like my whole in just a

(04:27):
few moments, for Michiganbasketball, michigan football,
detroit Lions, detroit Tigers,detroit Pistons I mean ripped my
heart out.
So I'm used to the pain and I'mused to being beat up.
I'm used to being beat up.
In this year, they actually hada decent team.
They won the first few games onthe way to the Sweet 16.

(04:50):
Then they were playing to go tothe Final Four.
I'll never forget Maybe it wasthe Final Four guys you can
remind me In 2018, they wereplaying the University of
Houston.
I had vested interest in thisbecause we also lived in Houston
for a bunch of years, and so Iwas watching the game and it was
back and forth and withliterally 3.9 seconds left, the

(05:14):
University of Houston was up bytwo points and Houston had the
ball and they were shooting freethrows, which means it's an
uncontested 15-foot set shotthat most of these guys make
about 85 to 90% and their bestfree throw shooter was on the

(05:34):
line with 3.9 seconds left toice the game and walk away with
the victory for the Universityof Houston.
And at that moment I was fed upwith the pain and agony of
being a Michigan fan and Iturned the TV off and told her
Shauna, I cannot watch this anylonger.
3.9 seconds.
I said I can't watch it, andshe was like just watch it to

(05:57):
the end.
I'm like no, I'm done, it'sSaturday night.
I don't wanna have a badattitude when I preach tomorrow.
I'm turning it off.
So I turned off the game and Iput the remote down and I turned
out the light and I closed myeyes and just went to bed mad.
Sunday morning I woke up and gotthe family up.

(06:18):
The boys were downstairswatching SportsCenter, having
cereal before church and I hadbeen lamenting walking through
the house because Michigan lostand the boys screamed Dad,
michigan won.
I was like boys, it's Sunday,you cannot lie on Sunday, maybe

(06:39):
Monday, maybe Tuesday, butSunday we do not lie.
And they're like no dad, theywon.
And wouldn't you know, with 3.9seconds left, the kid from
Houston missed the free throw.
Michigan got the rebound hitlike a 40-foot three-pointer to
win the game with no time on theclock.
It's the year I was remindedagain and again.

(07:01):
It ain't ever over until it'sover.
Reminded again and again, itain't ever over until it's over.
Hashtag.
God always has one more move.
Why don't you just turn to yourneighbor and just say hey, you
better stick with it to the end.
And to the one you've beenignoring all service, just lean

(07:22):
back over there and just saydon't call it a comeback, I've
been here all service.
Just lean back over there andjust say don't call it a
comeback.
I've been here all the time.
Today we close out our series.
Don't Call it A Comeback.
And this series has been aboutreminding us that, even though

(07:43):
things won't go our way, wemight get tripped up or knocked
over.
Life might not go as we plannedit, we might not be in the
moment that we asked for.
No matter what, we always havethe chance to get back up again.
Have the chance to get back upagain.

(08:06):
Our key verse is Proverbs 24,16, and it says that the
righteous man may fall seventimes and he rises again.
He gets back up.
Everybody tell your neighboryou got to get back up.
And we don't call it a comebackbecause we've been here all the
time.
Because we've been here all thetime.

(08:27):
There's a famous painting thathas been on display in the world
famous galleries around theworld.
It actually was commissioned inabout 1831 and it's called
Checkmate.
It is a here we go.
It is an image of on the oneside sits.
That is a depiction of Satan,the enemy of our life, and you

(08:50):
can see he's got the sinisterlook.
You can tell how many pieces ofthe opponent he has on his side
.
He has taken the queen, he hastaken the rook.
He has taken every singleimportant piece except for the
king.
And then on the other side yousee a young man, dejected, looks

(09:12):
like defeat is settled in, hisshoulders are slouching and it
seems like the game is over.
And it's titled Checkmatebecause it is in this moment
that the enemy of this young manhas put that young man in the
last move of chess, which iscalled Checkmate, meaning

(09:33):
there's no more hope, it's over.
And the painter is depictingthe image that the enemy has won
and, no matter what you do next, there's nothing you can do
because it's over.
The king has been positioned ina spot where he has no more
moves and this art piece hasbeen on display for years and it
took about 50 years.
And one day a chess grandmasterchampion walked into the

(09:58):
gallery and was looking at thisimage and watching it and just
spending time studying all ofthe pieces.
And it's called Checkmatebecause it's over.
And after a few hours oflooking at it, he screams in the
gallery to the crowd saying shh, but he screams, there's
something wrong.
The king has one more move.

(10:20):
It's not over, it's notCheckmate, it is actually about
to be turned in his favor.
There's always one more movethat the king has, and that is
where I want to spend my lastmoments of this series.
The king has one more move foryou.

(10:44):
God's not done.
His promise still stands.
Great is his faithfulness.
He's been so good to me.
God has one more move.
In every situation that lookslike there might be defeat, it
looks like you might be knockeddown, if you will get back up.

(11:05):
Get back up knowing inconfidence that God has one more
move for you.
Today I'm going to camp out inthis story with a glimpse of the
life of Elisha, who was, forbetter purposes, an armor bearer
for Elijah, the prophet Right,the great prophet Elijah.

(11:29):
I mean Elijah was man.
He had these miracles happen,eight of them, in fact, that are
recorded.
Crazy God inspiring no doubt,miracles that Elijah prophesied
and walked through.
And Elisha was the armor bearer, the servant traveled with him,

(11:52):
saw all of this.
And when we pick up thescripture here in 2 Kings,
chapter two, we're picking it upnear the end of Elijah's life
and Elijah's about to be done inministry and it's transition
and he's got all these thingshappening and he's telling
Elisha like it's okay for you togo on back home, go ahead and

(12:15):
go find your own thing to do andyou're going to be all right.
Elisha's like I'm not leavingyou, I'm not going anywhere.
He's like no, you need to go,you can go back home, you don't
have to be with me because I'mabout out of here.
Elisha's like no, no, sir, I'mnot leaving your side, I'm gonna
be with you.
And that commitment reallypressed into Elijah.

(12:36):
And this is where we pick thestory up.
In 2 Kings, chapter nine, itsays and so it was when they had
crossed over that Elijah saidto Elisha ask what may I do for
you before I am taken away fromyou?
Elisha said before I am takenaway from you, elisha said
Please, let a double portion ofyour spirit be upon me.

(12:58):
So Elijah said you have asked ahard thing.
Nevertheless, if you see mewhen I'm taken from you, it
shall be for you, but if not, itshall not be.
So Can I just spend two minuteson this phrase?
You have asked a hard thing.

(13:21):
Can I preach for about twominutes about your prayer life
and how there's nothing too hardfor our God?
And for some reason we get intoa space where we ask for prayers
that we think could be answeredinstead of asking God for only
what he can do.
Like we pray on the way to workas we drive past our favorite

(13:42):
donut shop.
Lord, if it's your will for meto get a donut, let there be a
front row parking spot, and whenit's not, when the parking
lot's full, we drive around theblock and pray it again.
We pray the prayers we want tohave answered, we think could be
answered.

(14:02):
We ask for the safe thing, weask for the little thing.
We ask for you know what mightseem right, but can I tell you
God is not offended by yourobnoxious, audacious prayers.
God is offended when you don'ttrust him enough to pray for
what seems impossible.

(14:23):
Let me lean in here.
It's time for us to stoppraying for the safe things.
Pray for that marriage to behealed.
Pray for that son to come home.
Pray for that provision of ajob that you've been dreaming

(14:44):
about.
Pray for that house that you'vebeen driving past.
Pray for revival to fall evenmore strongly in this house.
Pray for souls to be saved.
Pray for your kids to be calledinto ministry.
Pray for your kids to bedoctors.

(15:05):
Pray for your kids to belawyers.
Ask God for the impossiblethings, because he's not moved
when you God for the impossiblethings, because he's not moved
when you ask for the simplethings.
When Jesus walked on this earth,there were a couple of moments

(15:26):
where people came and asked himfor things.
One was he was a leader in thearmy and he asked Jesus to come
for his and he actually justasked for his son to be healed.
And in that day most peoplefelt like Jesus had to be in the

(15:47):
place for the miracle to happen.
And if you look around, most ofthe miracles, jesus was
standing in front of the personwho needed the miracle.
But on this occasion he saidyou don't have to come with me,
just say the word and I knowhe'll be healed.
And in that moment Jesus saidwhat great faith is this?

(16:09):
That you would ask for me tosay the word Seems like the most
difficult thing, but Jesus wasmoved by that difficult ask.
Another occasion a woman theBible says she was a Gentile and
in these days before Jesus diedon the cross, really it it was

(16:30):
only that God's chosen peoplewere the only one that got the
benefit of what Jesus was doingand she asked Jesus for a
miracle and he was like, andeverybody was moving her aside
and Jesus was like it's not yourtime yet.
And she said but, jesus, eventhe dogs get the scraps that

(16:51):
fall from the table.
You know what he said.
He didn't say nah.
He said I'm so moved by yourfaith that you would step into
an impossible situation and askan impossible thing that the
timing's not right, that it'sdone.
What great faith.
Listen, we need to ask God forthe difficult thing, not so our

(17:14):
world gets better, not for ourname to be broadcast around, but
for his name's sake.
God's not going to destroy hisperfect record on you.
We've got to get that into oursystem.
Let's pray the impossible thing.
Let's pray the difficult thingsystem.
Let's pray the impossible thing.
Let's pray the difficult thing.
Let's pray the thing thatnobody's been praying for.

(17:36):
Let's pray big, audacious,crazy prayers, because it is no
longer time for us to survive.
God wants us to live insignificance.
So alright, that's not what Icame to preach about.
I just got to tell you thisGod's not a God that meets

(18:05):
expectations.
He shatters them.
Every time I turn around, godkeeps making a way.

(18:25):
Every time I pray a prayer, goddoes it better.
God does it way beyond what Icould think, ask or imagine.
He's not the God ofexpectations, he's the God of
excellence, the God of above andbeyond.
So pray big, believe big andwatch a big God do what only he

(18:53):
can do.
Well, that's not what I came topreach about.
Back to Elisha.
Back to Elisha.
So Elisha asked for a doubleportion and I told you that
Elijah performed eight miraclesand just for the sake of time,

(19:15):
let me just breeze through themquickly.
Actually, we have them on notes.
So, number one he prophesied adrought and there was a drought
over the land for three and ahalf years.
Thanks a lot, elijah.
He caused the widow's supply ofoil and flour to last
indefinitely.
He raised the widow's son backto life.
He called down fire from heaven.

(19:37):
He prayed for rain from heavento defeat an army.
He parted the waters of theJordan.
And then the last miracle, theeighth miracle he was taken
miraculously.
Elijah's one of the guys thatdid not see death.
The Lord just picked him up ina chariot and took him to heaven

(19:58):
.
I don't know, that kind ofsounds cool, can't even say it.
It's so crazy.
Kind of sounds like a flex.
You know, you imagine when youget to heaven, elijah's there.
So how'd you get here.
Well, you know it's old age.
Elijah's like man.

(20:20):
I got a chariot.
That just I don't know my mind,that's how my mind works.
So, eight miracles, eightmiracles.
And don't you know, on thateighth miracle, when that
chariot showed up, picked upElijah and took him off into the

(20:41):
sunset, that Elisha was rightthere.
He stayed true, he stayedfaithful, he stuck to his
promise.
He was right there.
And what's amazing is, as he'sthere and that chariot's going
up the mantle and a lot of timeswe talk about things in the
spiritual sense, like aspiritual mantle we talk about,
but this physically, it was theshawl that Elijah wore came

(21:07):
falling back down from thatchariot and Elisha picks it up
and imagine, imagine, becauseyou know what you prayed.
That is impossible, but imagine, you know the promise that was

(21:27):
given.
As long as you're here, whenI'm taken away, you're going to
get what you asked for.
And, ladies and gentlemen,elisha is now on the clock.
He picks up that mantle.
You know the first thing hedoes is he smacks it on the

(21:50):
Jordan River and that riverparts, just the way it did for
Elijah when they crossed thefirst time.
And then that's the beginning,that's number one.
And then Elisha purifies thewaters of Jericho so they can
drink.
Then he prophesies hisprotection over from from a

(22:14):
couple of bears that heprophesies against these kids
who are making fun of him andthey're mocking him.
And he just speaks a word andthese bears come out from the
trees and the Bible uses theword maul, like M-A-U-L, not
like the kind you go shop at andthose bears take out those kids

(22:37):
that were mocking.
God's chosen, so be careful,students.
Then he fills by prophecy avalley with water that in the
morning, without rain, and inthe morning it looks like blood
has filled the valley and theenemy starts celebrating that
they won without a battle.

(22:57):
And they start celebrating somuch they forget the enemy's
actually there, because it wasall a setup and the enemy's
defeated Number five.
He multiplied the widow's oil,just like Elijah did earlier.
He multiplies the widow's oilso that she can cook for herself
and save her life and her son.

(23:18):
And then he prophesied thebirth to a Shunammite woman who
had been barren.
And he prophesied the birth ofa son.
And in one year's time he goesback to visit and she has a son.
That son fell and hit his headand died and when that happened,
she called on Elisha.
He went back and he raised thatShunammite woman's son back to

(23:38):
life.
Then he made a pot of stew safeto eat because it had been
poisoned, and he prophesied thatit would be okay to eat it and
everybody could eat it and theywere fine and the army went on
to win victory.
Then he multiplied 20 loaves ofbread.
Then he healed Naaman ofleprosy by sending them to dunk

(23:59):
himself seven times in theJordan River and then, because
of that situation, he cursed hisservant Gehazi with leprosy
because he tried to takesomething from Naaman for that
miracle.
Then, the twelfth miracle hemade an axe head float for a guy

(24:19):
who had borrowed a friend's axehead and when he went to swing
it onto the tree it went intothe river and fell to the bottom
.
And Elisha prophesied and that,you know, axe heads don't float
.
But it did that day.
Then he blinded the Arameanarmy so that God's army could go
and win victory.
Then he prophesied food in themiddle of a famine and everyone

(24:40):
had plenty to eat.
And then the 15th one.
Let me look at my nose, becausethat doesn't look right.
It's off.
Number 15.
Oh, I did 12 two times, that'swhy?

(25:05):
Well, so that's 15, 15 miracles.
And then Elisha dies bummer, andthen Elisha dies Bummer.

(25:27):
Because if you're any kind ofmathematician, eight times two
is so close, elisha, so close tothat double portion, but now
you're dead.
So I guess the promise is nottrue.

(25:52):
I guess the promise is broken.
And I've preached this entireseries and you would say I have
repeated this line over and overand over again.
But this series is for theperson sitting in these seats,
for the person watching onlineand listening as they drive down
the car, drive down the road,that you feel like you got to 15

(26:18):
, and then the promise died, soit must be over.
Or you prayed the prayer for 15years and you haven't seen it
fulfilled, so it must be over.
Or you were so close, but everytime you got so close that one

(26:40):
more step just could not becompleted 15.
I'm going to write a book 15and so close.
How many feel like that in yourlife?
Sometimes Like so close, 15.
And Elisha dies.

(27:03):
But you know what's crazy?
They take, elisha dies, but youknow what's crazy?
They take Elisha, they bury him, they put him in the grave,
they put the headstone there.
I don't know about you, but Ifeel like somewhere it says this
is what I'm going to tell you.
Elisha would have said I wantyou to put on my tombstone the
man of a double portion.

(27:24):
And the world is like the manof 15 out of 16, because the
world, the enemy, wants you tofocus on what didn't get
accomplished, not what God did,but you know what that grave
it's there and one day these twoguys are fighting and a guy

(27:49):
gets pushed and he falls andhits his head and dies and they
throw him on the grave of Elishaand when those dead bones hit
that grave, that guy gets backup to life because the promise

(28:09):
still stands.
The man of the double portionis in fact, the man of the
double portion that what seemeddead and seemed lost and seem
hopeless, the promise was stillalive, because God does not need
your permission to complete hispromise.
If God said it, he will deliverit.

(28:30):
And on that day the 16thmiracle hits when no one says
it's possible, when no one saysit's possible.
That's why I titled this.
Don't Call it A Comeback, callit A Promise Kept, because the

(28:53):
enemy may have you in checkmate.
People have buried you withyour dream.
You may feel like your time isdone or your chance is gone.
You may feel like your time isdone or your chance is gone.
You may feel like the bones ofyour past disobedience are still
chasing you down.
Guess what?
Number 16 is a promise from God.

(29:15):
The double portion is a promisefrom God.
Your answered prayer is apromise from God.
Your answered prayer is apromise from God.
Your faith from the past stillechoes today when we sing songs
like God you've been so good tome, you've been so, so good.
All the echoes of thosevictories should be stirring you

(29:36):
up to know that the one beforeyou is still able, and
exceedingly, to do what you'venever imagined possible, even
when it looks impossible.
Don't call it a comeback.
Call it a promise kept.
Can you receive that word today?
Get back up.

(29:58):
Get back up.
Don't give up.
Don't quit, don't give in.
Don't go and just find a seaton the couch and turn on the TV
and just call it a day.
Listen, god's in it with you.
You're going to make it.
He's going to deliver on hispromise to you.

(30:18):
He's going to answer thatprayer that seems impossible.
He's going to walk you through,because you are on your way to
your best year yet, andsometimes you might get tripped
up, but get back up becauseGod's not done Amen.