We Are. We Label. | Steven Furtick | Sermon Notes — Hello Pastor

Sermon Notes

We Are. We Label.

Elevation Church • Jul 31, 2026 • 23 min

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Take this message with you through a journey of Scripture, reflection, and prayer.

Summary

In this message, Pastor Steven Furtick explores how labeling things too quickly limits what God wants them to become. While humans naturally categorize and label based on limited understanding, God looks at who we are becoming through faith. Like Abraham, who believed God's promise against all hope and became what God declared, our lives are not restricted by past labels or human limits, but by whether we align our hearts to believe God's Word.

Themes

Faith and BeliefIdentity in ChristOvercoming LabelsSpiritual AlignmentBecoming vs. Having

Key Points

1.
Deciding or labeling something too soon can limit what God intends for it to become while it is still unfolding.
2.
When we align our heart and words with what God speaks, His divine authority stands behind us.
3.
Human beings naturally label things due to limited understanding, but God opposes labels used to restrict potential.
4.
People often attempt to label and judge things or individuals that do not even belong to them.
5.
The greatest limitation on your life is not your hidden potential, but what you actually believe.
6.
Like Abraham in Romans 4, true faith believes God's promise before seeing physical proof, enabling us to become what God declared.
7.
God is far more concerned with who you are becoming in the process of receiving than with what you end up obtaining.
8.
What determines the boundary of your life is not merely what God has spoken over you, but whether you choose to believe it.

Sermon Moments

“The Post-it Note Illustration: 'The moment I label it, I limit it. And I don't want to limit it while God is still giving it.'”

“The Fritos vs. Doritos Story: A girl spent ten years avoiding Doritos because someone told her as a child that Fritos were healthier, showing how unexamined lies deprive us for years.”

“The Pantry Metaphor: 'We love labels because we have limitations on our understanding. So the only way we can get through our life is to safely categorize people like we try to organize our pantry.'”

“On God's Authority: 'If I come into agreement with what He speaks, His authority will be behind it. If I say what I think, I have no divine backing.'”

“On Ownership: 'The difference between you and God is you label things you didn't even make. You try to label stuff that doesn't even belong to you.'”

“On Limitations: 'The greatest limitation on your life right now is not your potential, it's your belief.'”

“Sustaining What You Obtain: 'If you get it, and God doesn't get you, you will not be able to sustain what you obtain because it's going to take the same grace and faith to keep it that it takes to come into it.'”

This Week

Refrain from labeling situations, people, or your future before God has finished working.

Spend intentional time meditating on God's Word to ensure your spirit is led by Him rather than relying strictly on mental outlines.

Identify negative labels you have accepted about yourself and surrender them to God in prayer.

Avoid jumping to quick judgments or believing unverified rumors about others.

Shift your prayer focus this week from asking God for things you want to receive toward who He is calling you to become.

Practice stepping out in faith on God's promises even when you cannot yet see physical evidence.

Examine areas of your life where unbelief has created artificial limits, and replace those thoughts with scripture.

Remember This

Your life is not limited by your past or human labels, but by what you choose to believe about who God is calling you to become.

A Challenge for You

It is not what God said over your life that determines the limit of what you will be; that limit is determined by your belief.

These are personal sermon notes shared to help you remember the message — not a replacement for Scripture, your church, or your pastors.