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Distorted | Week 1 | Full Service · Rewind

Rock Point Church

63 min

Pastor Larry Osborne · Jun 8, 2025 · 4 min read · 63 min listen

The big idea

Faith has no power of its own to fix anything — it simply means trusting God enough to do what He says, even when doubt and fear are still present.

In this message

The big idea
Point 1 of 7Faith has zero inherent power — the power is in what faith is placed in
Point 2 of 7Biblical faith is simply trusting God enough to do what He says

Point 3 of 7We cannot please God without faith
Point 4 of 7Biblical faith has room for doubt and fear, but no room for disobedience
Point 5 of 7Faith is never risky — disobedience is risky
Point 6 of 7Faith is the map that guides us through the valley, not a power that rescues us from it
Point 7 of 7We don't need more faith — a mustard seed is enough; we need more obedience
Take it into your week
Transcript

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Scripture in this message

1 Corinthians 13
Hebrews 11:6
Acts 12
Acts 12:5
Acts 12:11
Acts 12:12

Rewind AI drafted the Big Idea and some point headings shown here from the sermon transcript. Always trust the sermon itself over anything here. How Rewind uses AI

Pastor Larry Osborne · Jun 8, 2025 · 63 min watch · 2 min read

Distorted | Week 1 | Full Service

In this message

Big Idea
Key points
Application

Scripture in this message

1 Corinthians 13
Hebrews 11:6
Acts 12
Acts 12:5
Acts 12:11
Acts 12:12

Big Idea Key points Application

Big Idea

Faith has no power of its own to fix anything — it simply means trusting God enough to do what He says, even when doubt and fear are still present.

Faith isn't a mental power we muster up to change our circumstances — it's simply trusting God enough to do what He says. Doubt and fear can coexist with real faith, but disobedience can't, and Jesus never called us to more faith, just a mustard seed's worth, paired with obedience.

Key points

1
1Faith has zero inherent power — the power is in what faith is placed in
Pastor Larry debunks the popular idea that faith is a Jedi-like force we harness to change reality. He uses the illustration of skydivers: whether a jumper is confident or terrified doesn't determine whether they survive — it's whether the parachute was packed correctly. In the same way, faith placed in something false won't work, and even weak faith placed in something true will.
2
2Biblical faith is simply trusting God enough to do what He says
He walks through how English translations split one Greek word (pistos/pisteuo) into three separate-feeling words — faith, believe, and trust — which has warped our understanding into thinking faith is mainly a feeling or mental fact-check. He tests the room on whether demons believe in Jesus to show that mere mental belief isn't the point; the word carries all three senses together: trust enough to act.
3
3We cannot please God without faith
He reads Hebrews 11:6, breaking it down to show that faith requires believing God exists and believing He rewards those who sincerely seek Him — not treating God as a distant 'cosmic consultant' but living as though He responds to how we respond.
4
4Biblical faith has room for doubt and fear, but no room for disobedience
Using the death-row-to-freedom picture of the gospel and the GPS-versus-instinct illustration, he shows that trusting God enough to obey — even confused, scared, or unconvinced — is what faith actually looks like. He tells the story of Peter's rescue from prison in Acts 12, where the praying believers were so full of doubt they didn't believe Rhoda when she said Peter was at the door, yet God still answered because they had simply obeyed the call to keep praying.
5
5Faith is never risky — disobedience is risky
He warns against the popular idea that God is impressed by reckless, risky decisions made in His name. Referencing Jesus's teaching on counting the cost before building a tower or going to war, and the stories of the burning bush and Peter walking on water, he argues that stepping out is only rational obedience when God has clearly spoken — not a leap based on a feeling or a hunch.
6
6Faith is the map that guides us through the valley, not a power that rescues us from it
He shares that his wife's stage-four cancer battle ended in healing while a friend's identical walk of faith ended in death, showing that faith isn't a formula for guaranteed outcomes. Obedience may lead to victory or it may lead to the cross, and either way faith is proven in the walking, not the winning.
7
7We don't need more faith — a mustard seed is enough; we need more obedience
He unpacks Jesus's teaching that even a tiny, mustard-seed-sized faith can 'move a mountain,' given in the context of the disciples being told to forgive someone seven times in a day. Jesus wasn't asking for more faith but for simple obedience, illustrated by the raising of Lazarus, where the mourners simply had to hold their nose and roll away the stone before they saw what God would do.

Application

Pastor Larry's charge is to stop trying to feel your way into faith and just hold your nose and roll away the stone.

Redefine faith in your own mind
Drop the idea that faith is a mental power or a positive-thinking trick, and start seeing it simply as trusting God enough to obey Him, whatever you feel.
Let doubt and fear coexist with obedience
Don't wait to feel confident or certain before obeying God; like the praying believers in Acts 12 or Jesus in Gethsemane, act in obedience even while afraid or unsure.
Stop chasing risk in God's name
Don't mistake reckless decisions for great faith; only step out when God has clearly spoken, not because a leap feels bold or spiritual.
Look for the area you're avoiding
Identify the specific thing you know God wants you to do but you're afraid it won't work out, and take that next step this week regardless of the outcome.

Take it into your week

Rewind AI contributed study material from the sermon transcript; church-authored wording and verified sermon quotes keep their own source. Always trust the sermon itself over anything here. How Rewind uses AI

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Scripture in this message

From the transcript
“You love somebody when you put their needs and interests first. It's an action. You know? First Corinthians 13, if you wanna look it up later, tells us a list of things I can do whether I want to or don't want to”
From the transcript
“Hebrews chapter 11 verse six reads this way, and it is impossible to please God without faith. So that's why I told you to write that down. And then he says, let me explain it to you a little bit more”
From the transcript
“I wanna give you a biblical example and story, one of my favorites. It's found in Acts chapter 12. And it's a story about the apostle Peter in the early days of the church being imprisoned”
From the transcript
“I'm gonna read to you from Acts chapter 12 verse five, explain a little section, jump down to 11 and go on. But but here's what happens. We're told at the beginning, while Peter was in prison, the church prayed very earnestly for him”
From the transcript
“And then you jump down to verse 11, it says he finally came to his senses. Well, here's what happened. An angel showed up in his cell, unlocked his chains, led him somehow through the prison out into the street”
From the transcript
“Peter finally came to his senses. It's really true, he said. The Lord has sent his angel and saved me from Herod and from what the Jewish leaders have planned to do to me. Verse 12, when he realized this, he went to the home of Mary, the mother of John Mark, where many were gathered for prayer”
From the transcript
“Verse 15, they said to Rhoda, you're out of your mind. And when she insisted, no, no, it's true, they decided, crap, he must be dead. It's his angel or his ghost”

Rewind AI contributed study material from the sermon transcript; church-authored wording and verified sermon quotes keep their own source. Always trust the sermon itself over anything here. How Rewind uses AI

7-day devotional

A personal reading plan from this message — scripture, reflection, and prayer for each day.

Sign in to track your progress through this devotional.

Day 1

There is a version of faith that gets talked about a lot — the kind where you visualize what you want, believe hard enough, and watch reality bend to your confidence. It sounds appealing. It also sounds nothing like the Bible. Pastor Larry was direct about this: the power in faith is never the faith itself. It is entirely in the One the faith is placed in. A seatbelt does not save you because it is a remarkable piece of engineering. It saves you because it holds you to something solid. Faith works the same way. Hebrews 11:6 tells us that coming to God in faith means believing two things: that He exists, and that He rewards those who sincerely seek Him. Notice what it does not say. It does not say you need to believe hard enough or feel certain enough or manufacture the right emotional state. It says seek Him — sincerely. That word 'sincerely' is doing a lot of work. It is not asking for perfection. It is asking for direction. Your heart pointed toward God, even on a shaky morning, is faith. And that, according to Scripture, is what pleases Him.

For reflection

When you think about your own faith, are you more focused on how strong it feels, or on Who it is aimed at?

Pray

Pray for a clearer sense of where your trust is actually resting right now — in your own certainty, or in God Himself.

Day 2

If you want a picture of biblical faith in action, Acts 12 is a good place to camp for a moment. Peter is in prison, chained between two guards, sleeping the night before what everyone expects to be his execution. His friends are gathered together praying — and when an angel wakes Peter up and leads him out through locked gates and past sleeping soldiers, he thinks he is dreaming. He does not walk out with a triumphant grin and a perfectly rehearsed speech about the power of believing. He walks out confused. And when he knocks on the door, the servant girl is so shocked she leaves him standing outside while she runs to tell everyone. The people praying for Peter's release do not believe it is actually him. This is not a story about people who had their faith completely together. This is a story about people who prayed, who kept praying, and whom God moved through anyway. Pastor Larry's point lands here: biblical faith has room for doubt, room for fear, and room for the kind of shock that makes you leave someone at the door. What it does not have room for is giving up on the obedient next step.

For reflection

Is there a place in your life where you have been praying but quietly expect nothing to change? What would it look like to keep praying anyway?

Pray

Pray for the people or situation you have almost stopped believing God can reach.

Day 3

There is something quietly funny and deeply honest about Acts 12:15. Peter is standing at the door. The servant girl has told the praying group that he is there. And their response? 'You're out of your mind.' Then, 'It must be his angel.' These are the same people who have been on their knees asking God to do exactly this. Pastor Larry pointed to this moment not to embarrass them but to show what real faith actually looks like in the wild. It is not polished. It is not self-assured. These believers prayed with doubt mixed in, and God showed up anyway. If you have ever caught yourself praying for something while simultaneously preparing for it not to happen, you are in good company. The point is not that doubt cancels faith. The point is that they kept praying. They did not let their uncertainty talk them out of the obedient act of asking God. Their faith was not big or bold-feeling. But it was aimed at the right Person. And He answered. That gap between what we pray for and what we actually expect — that is not a disqualifier. It is just honest. Bring it to God and keep going.

For reflection

What is one thing you have been asking God for while doubting He will actually do it? What does it look like to keep asking anyway?

Pray

Pray honestly — bring both the request and the doubt, and ask God to meet you in the gap.

Day 4

First Corinthians 13 is usually read at weddings, which means most of us have heard it in the context of romance, not theology. But Pastor Larry pulled it into this conversation for a reason. Paul writes that you could have enough faith to move mountains, and if you have not love, it amounts to nothing. That phrase — faith to move mountains — is not just poetic. It is a deliberate pushback on the idea that faith is primarily about getting results. Paul is not saying faith is unimportant. He is saying that faith stripped of love and obedience to God is an empty performance. It is faith as a technique rather than faith as a relationship. The sermon's thesis rests here: the power is never in the faith itself. A person can work up tremendous emotional conviction and channel enormous mental energy toward a desired outcome, and none of that is what the Bible means by faith. What God is after is trust expressed in how we actually live — especially in how we love the people in front of us. If your faith is not showing up in your relationships, it is worth asking what it is actually connected to.

For reflection

Where in your closest relationships does trusting God most need to show up in the way you love someone right now?

Pray

Pray for the specific person or relationship where obedience and love feel hardest today.

Day 5

Related passage

Pastor Larry did not mince words on the mustard seed: we do not need more faith. We need more obedience. That is worth sitting with. Jesus tells His disciples that faith the size of a mustard seed — one of the smallest seeds a first-century farmer would handle — is enough to move a mountain. He is not setting a bar so low that it becomes meaningless. He is demolishing the excuse that says, 'I'll obey when I feel ready, when my faith is stronger, when the fear goes away.' The disciples had just failed to heal a boy, and their instinct was the same instinct most of us share: we need more. Jesus flips the question. The issue was never the quantity of their faith. It was what they did with what they had. A tiny seed of trust, acted on in obedience, is all God is asking for. That re-frames things considerably. The question is not 'Do I have enough faith to take this step?' The question is 'Am I willing to take the step I already know I'm supposed to take?' That is where most of us actually live — not in a shortage of belief, but in a hesitation to act on the belief we already have.

For reflection

What step do you already know God is calling you toward — and what has been keeping you from taking it?

Pray

Pray for the courage to take the next obedient step, even if the fear does not go away first.

Day 6

Related passage

The Lazarus story is the sermon's anchor image for a reason. By the time Jesus arrives, Lazarus has been dead four days. Martha, who loves Jesus and believes in Him, still tells Him plainly: 'Lord, he will smell.' She is not being irreverent. She is being human. She believes in resurrection at the last day. She is just not sure about this Tuesday. And Jesus does not correct her theology or tell her to manufacture more positive energy. He tells her to roll away the stone. That is the ask. Not certainty. Not emotional readiness. Not a feeling of confidence that something spectacular is about to happen. Just: move the stone. Pastor Larry's application of this moment is about as plain as it gets. Most of us already know where our stone is. A conversation we have been avoiding. A forgiveness we have been postponing. A step of generosity that feels unaffordable. A direction that feels too risky. God is not asking you to know what walks out of the cave. He is asking you to move what is in front of you. The rest is His.

For reflection

What is the 'stone' in your life right now — the one obedient act you could take today, even if you are not sure what comes next?

Pray

Pray for willingness to move the stone — and for trust that what comes next is in God's hands, not yours.

Day 7

Related passage

Looking back over this week, a single thread runs through every passage: faith is not a force you generate — it is a trust you express through obedience to a God who is entirely capable of doing what He says. Hebrews says seek Him sincerely. Acts 12 shows a community that prayed in doubt and watched God move anyway. First Corinthians 13 reminds us that faith without love is hollow. A mustard seed is enough if you actually plant it. And Lazarus's tomb shows us that God does not need your certainty; He needs your willingness to roll away the stone. None of this means the hard things stop being hard. Fear is real. Doubt is human. Circumstances are sometimes genuinely painful. But the invitation from this sermon is not to feel differently — it is to act on what you already trust, even at a mustard-seed level, and let God be God with the results. You do not have to manufacture the right emotions. You do not have to have it all figured out. You just have to take the next obedient step. That is faith. And according to Scripture, that is enough.

For reflection

As you look back at the week, where did God meet you in a moment of obedience — even a small one? What do you want to carry forward?

Pray

Pray a prayer of honest surrender — name the area where you are still holding back, and ask God for the willingness to trust Him there.

Rewind AI contributed study material from the sermon transcript; church-authored wording and verified sermon quotes keep their own source. Always trust the sermon itself over anything here. How Rewind uses AI

Small-group discussion guide

For leading a group conversation about this message.

Open

This message tackles one of the most common ideas about faith in our culture — that if we just believe hard enough, or feel it strongly enough, things will change. Let's dig into what the Bible actually says faith is.

Discussion questions

1
In Hebrews 11:6, we're told it's impossible to please God without faith, and that coming to God requires believing He exists and that He rewards those who sincerely seek Him. What do you notice about how faith is described there — what does it seem to require, and what does it leave out?
2
In Acts 12:5–15, Peter is rescued from prison while the church is actively praying for him — yet when he shows up at the door, the people praying refuse to believe it's really him. What does that moment suggest about the relationship between doubt and faith?
3
Pastor Larry drew a distinction between faith as a feeling we generate and faith as trusting God enough to obey Him. How does that distinction change the way we might think about what it means to "have faith" in a hard situation?
4
Pastor Larry pointed to the scene at Lazarus's tomb — where Jesus asks the grieving, skeptical crowd to roll away the stone — as a picture of what obedient faith looks like in practice. What stands out to you about that image as a picture of how God calls people to act?
5
Pastor Larry said the message isn't that we need more faith, but that we need more obedience — even a mustard seed of trust is enough. How might that reframe the way a community of people approaches the places where following Jesus feels risky or uncertain?
6
Pastor Larry described faith as a map that guides us through the valley rather than a power that guarantees a particular outcome. What difference does that picture make in how we walk with someone who is trusting God through a hard season and not yet seeing the result they hoped for?

Pray together

Courage to take the next obedient step — not because the fear is gone, but because God is trustworthy

Rewind AI contributed study material from the sermon transcript; church-authored wording and verified sermon quotes keep their own source. Always trust the sermon itself over anything here. How Rewind uses AI

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Distorted

Week 1 · 7 messages

Where these passages are preached

1 Corinthians 13 Hebrews 11 Acts 12

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