In a world where challenges and hardships seem relentless, it’s easy to feel trapped by our circumstances. Yet, as Pastor Steven Furtick eloquently illustrates in his sermon, what may appear as struggles or traps are often divine setups for something far greater. Drawing from the life and ministry of Jesus Christ, Pastor Furtick shows us that even in our darkest moments, God is in control, orchestrating every detail for our ultimate good.
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Jesus: Always in Control
Throughout His ministry, Jesus faced constant opposition. The Pharisees, the Sadducees, and even Judas, one of His own disciples, sought to trap Him. However, as Pastor Furtick emphasizes, “Jesus was always the one in control, even when they thought they had Him.” This control was not just evident in His ministry but also in His death.
The crucifixion, which appeared to be the ultimate defeat, was, in fact, the greatest victory. As Pastor Furtick notes, “There were over 300 messianic prophecies that Jesus fulfilled in His life and in His death.” Each step Jesus took, from His birth to His final breath on the cross, was a fulfillment of God’s divine plan. Jesus was never truly trapped, and neither are we.
The Samaritan Woman: A Setup for Transformation
One of the most profound examples of a divine setup is Jesus’ encounter with the Samaritan woman at the well. The woman, unaware of who Jesus was, initially saw Him as just another Jewish man asking for water. But as Pastor Furtick points out, “He’s trying to give her something. God doesn’t really need anything from you. He can have another you in a minute.”
Jesus’ request for water was not about His physical thirst but about revealing the woman’s deeper, spiritual thirst. When He asked her for a drink, He was setting her up for a life-changing encounter. She didn’t realize at first that she was the bucket, and He was the living water she so desperately needed.
The woman responded to Jesus by saying, “Sir, if there’s some kind of water, if there’s some bottomless well, if there’s free refills… Give me this water so I won’t have to be trapped.” This moment, as Pastor Furtick explains, was a setup. Jesus had brought her to a place where she could no longer deny her need. She was trapped not by Jesus, but by her own life circumstances—a life of searching for fulfillment in the wrong places.
When Jesus revealed her past, saying, “You have had five husbands, and the one you have now is not your husband,” He wasn’t condemning her but rather setting her free. He was offering her something that no earthly relationship could provide—living water that would satisfy her deepest needs. As a result, she left her water jar behind and went back to her town, transformed. “The Bible says many in Samaria believed because of her testimony,” Pastor Furtick highlights, showing how Jesus used a “thirsty woman to transform an entire region.”
The Cross: The Ultimate Setup
If there is one event that epitomizes a divine setup, it is the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. To the onlookers, it appeared that Jesus was defeated, trapped by the very people He came to save. But as Pastor Furtick powerfully declares, “The cross was a setup, but it wasn’t set up by Judas, and it wasn’t set up by the Sadducees, and it wasn’t set up by the Pharisees, and it wasn’t set up by Herod. It was set up by heaven.”
Even in His final moments, Jesus was fulfilling Scripture. Pastor Furtick delves into the moment when Jesus said, “I thirst,” a statement that seems paradoxical for the one who is the source of living water. But as Pastor Furtick explains, “The thing they used to mock Him was actually the thing He used to finish the work God gave Him to do.” Jesus’ thirst was not a sign of weakness but a fulfillment of prophecy—a necessary part of God’s plan to bring salvation to humanity.
The cross, which seemed like a trap, was actually the place where Jesus trapped death itself. “Jesus was setting the trap for death,” Pastor Furtick says, reminding us that what appeared to be the end was actually the beginning of new life. Through His suffering, Jesus provided a way for us to be free from the power of sin and death. “If He did not die, He could not rise,” Pastor Furtick emphasizes. “It’s not the end. It’s in the parentheses.”
Trusting God in the Parentheses
Life often feels like a series of parentheses—those moments when we’re stuck in the in-between, unsure of what’s next. We face challenges that seem insurmountable, and we wonder if God has forgotten us. But just as Jesus was not trapped by the cross, we are not trapped by our circumstances.
Pastor Furtick encourages us to “trust God in the parentheses, in the tight places, when it looks like you’re trapped.” These are the moments when God’s greatest work is often being done. Just as the Red Sea felt like a trap for the Israelites, it was actually a setup for their deliverance. The same is true for us.
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The very struggles that seem to imprison us are often the means by which God is setting us up for something greater. When we feel most desperate, when our faith is tested to its limits, that’s when God is at work, preparing us for a breakthrough. “
