Stronger Together | Pastor Paul McGee

Welcome to the First Apostolic Church Podcast.

Our church mission is to love as God loves, showing compassion

every soul, thus winning those souls and equipping them to be

sent out to plant and to harvest.

Thank you for joining us today and we hope that you're blessed

by today's podcast. Amen.

Glad to see each you in the house, the Lord.

Glad to have the Johnson family back with us after.

Vacationing and fishing and and things not going as planned but

still making the best of it type of scenario a man and so we're

glad to have them back today in the House of the Lord.

A man we're going to be turning to.

Joshua Chapter #1A man Joshua Chapter #1 and we do Brother

Malone hit the nail on the head we do covet your prayers.

We're going to be apart, together and apart and all this

type of stuff for the next three weeks.

It's going to happen in the next three weeks. 3 camp meetings

will be preached in anniversary service.

Amen. And I'll be in Texas, Illinois,

New Mexico and North Carolina by the time those three weeks are

all said and done. And so I covet your prayers.

Amen. Absolutely.

And so my great wife, we're going to be traveling to Texas

and all of us as a family are going to Illinois.

And then me and Trevor is doing a father son trip out to New

Mexico and North Carolina. And so we're going to have a

good time. A man and I am not as young as I

used to be. I'm not as young as a matter of

fact. The last time I preached 3 camp

meetings back-to-back was in the year 2004.

And there's just a little bit of time that is a lapses between

then and now. And if you pray for anything,

just pray for this thing right here called a voice because that

will be the thing. Allergens and different

calignments and. It is all over the map.

I was listening this week to brother Nathan Cannon and

brother Simon King camp. Allah was going on this week in

Louisiana, which we preached last year.

And I've listened to almost all they're preaching down there and

I heard there toward the end of the week, that gravelly voice

going on. I thought Jesus helped me.

That's just one week and I got 3.

And so God's going to help us, I know, undoubtfully.

Amen. But we're we're excited about

it. Excited about everybody that's

going to Indiana district camp. Know the Lord's going to bless

you, got great speakers and no doubt people's been praying and

fasting for the Lord to do a good a great work.

Amen. Joshua, Chapter #1 and verse

#12. But with all that being said,

let's not forget everybody that's going to keep the fires

burning right here at home. Amen.

Keep the fires burning here. Those you're going to hear from

various ones of the ministry throughout the weekends.

Amen. In the next three weeks and

such. And so we absolutely tip our hat

Amen to them, Amen. Because they're an integral part

of what makes this be able to continue on.

Amen. Whenever we're not here.

And we appreciate that, you know, from my estimation and the

things I've read and what I've been taught is, and I'm not

saying this for me, but I'm saying this.

That they always say that a sign of a great leader is that he can

be absent and things can just still go on and carry on as as

regular and meaning that it doesn't just the fulcrum of the

church doesn't lie upon one person or just the pastor or so

and so forth, but it's a collective group of people.

Joshua Won and verse #12 this morning, the Bible says.

And just kind of give the setting or where we're at.

Here in the book of Joshua, this first chapter, there's there's

been a transition of leadership. Moses has has died, He's

ascended the mount, he has died, and now the one that has been

groomed, that's been under his shadow, so to speak.

Joshua's taken his place and they are on the cusp of passing

over into the land of Canaan, which is what they have been

trying to get to and trying to accomplish.

And so Joshua is taking leadership here in the Bible

says he's speaking some things to the nation of Israel, and

then he hones in on a few tribes in verse #12 and to the

Rubinites and to the Gaddites. And to have the tribe of

Manassas make Joshua saying, Remember the word which Moses

the servant of the Lord commanded you, saying the Lord

your God hath given you rest. And have given you this land.

Your wives and your little ones, and your cattle shall remain in

the land which Moses gave you on this side, which was the east

side of Jordan. But ye shall pass before your

brethren, armed all the mighty men of valor, and help them

until the Lord have given your brethren rest as he hath given

you. And they also have possessed the

land which the Lord your God giveth them.

Then ye shall return, and to the land of your possession and

enjoy it, which Moses, the Lord servant, gave unto you on this

side, Jordan, toward the sun rising.

Amen. And so he's admonishing 2 1/2

tribes. Men that wanted to stay on one

portion of the land that would be given them as an inheritance.

But he said, in order for you to do that, in order for you to

have that rest and inherit that, and even in order for you to

enjoy that, you need to go along with all the other tribes and

walk the whip and the breadth and the depth of the land that

God has promised and yoke up with them, Yoke up with them.

And conquer the land. For lack of any better title

today. Amen.

I just want to talk about stronger together.

Stronger together. Amen.

Can we go to the Lord in prayer right now?

Father? You're able to touch us today,

God. I lean Lord upon your

everlasting arms this morning. I pray, O God, today that you're

able to minister in this place. You're able to guide us.

The Lord by the Holy Ghost. God, in your spirit, you're able

to make yourself known in this place today.

God encourage your heart and encourage your soul.

And God help us, the Lord, to open our eyes.

God to this collective Lord membership, Lord of the body

that we call the church. God will not fail to thank you

and praise you, Lord, for what you do, Jesus, in this place

today, and we'll give you the praise and the glory for it.

In Jesus name. Amen.

And Amen The Church. Amen.

You may be seated. Few weeks ago or so I suppose it

is now that I come across the story or read a story that

somehow just touched my my mind and my heart concerning the days

of war which America seemingly has always been in some type of

day of war throughout its history.

But it was a captain by the name of Charles Charles Plum.

He was a graduate from the Naval Academy and his plane was shot

down after having 74 successful combat missions over North

Vietnam. He he parachuted to safety but

was captured and he was tortured and spent some 2103 days in a

small. Box like Cell and After

surviving this ordeal for almost over almost six years, Captain

Plum received a lot of high honors and respect for his

service and what he endured and what he accomplished.

He received the Silver Star and he also got awarded to him the

Bronze Star. He had the the Legion of Merit

that was bestowed upon him. He went away with two Purple

Hearts. From all of this and he returned

to America and began to go almost on tour.

And he spoke to many groups about the hazards that he faced,

the torture that he endured, the successes of it all, how his

experience and how it could compare to some of the

challenges of the everyday lives that we face.

And then shortly after coming home, he was setting just in a

quaint little restaurant where they lived and.

Someone spoke out to him, he and his wife as they were sitting

there, this man arose from his seat and he approached their

table and he walked over and said to this gentleman, he said,

your your Plum, your Charles Plum, you you flew jet fighters

fighters, fighters in Vietnam from the aircraft carrier Kitty

Hawk that that's you you you were shot down.

And surprised to understand that this man knew who he was, and

greater than that, knew what he had went through and knew that

he had been shot down. He was a little surprised and

looked this man steely in the eyes and said, how in the world

did you know that? And the man replied.

He said. I'm the man that packed your

parachute. And was surprised.

Charlie took a few steps back there in his seat and shrugged

his shoulders and scooted over. And the other man just pumped

his fists and looked at him and said, well, I guessed it worked.

I guessed everything went all right.

I guess what I'm getting at this morning is that Charlie Plum

probably is going to concentrate more in his life on those over

2000 days that he spent in the cell.

Those over 2000 days that he was tortured and maybe barely made

it with the skin of his life, and maybe never second thought

that he would not even endure 2103 days in the cell had not

there been some cellar in the belly of a aircraft carrier.

That was just properly folding over a parachute and making it

ready and it was Charlie's. He survived his being shot down

from the sky and landing because there was another man that was a

part of the team. He had survived 64 accounts in

the air and his mission and made him.

Many of those were by himself, but the idea and the concept is

this. There is always somebody else.

That is a part of the team. Whenever we look at this thing

that we call the church. This is not a Lone Ranger type

of scenario. This is not a this is a pastor

or this is a certain group of people or a certain family that

is charging, if you will, the mountain.

This is a team type effort and it takes everybody that's

involved in this team, Amen for us to have any type of success.

The Bible says that in this thing called the Church that

there is neither Jew nor Greek. There's neither male nor female.

There's neither bond nor free. There's neither circumcision nor

uncircumcision. Yes, there are all those types

of people, from various walks of life and from various races and

from various identities that make up this thing called the

Church. But whenever we become a part of

the church, we yield all of that just to be known as the Church.

Whenever Christ comes back someday, he's not coming back

for the McGee. Family, whenever Christ comes

back someday, he's not coming after the Penrod family.

Amen. But the voice of heaven was not

this that the Penrod family would make themselves ready,

although they should. But the voice was this, that

he's coming after a church, a glorious church that have made

herself ready. Because this is not a lone

individual or a lone group of people or a particular family

that this hinges upon. We are the body of Christ.

And as it states over and over again in scripture, there are

many members, but it always emphasizes there is one body,

there are many divisions, there are many operations, but there

is one body. Can someone say man for that

matter, whenever we understand this concept and this Organism

called the Church? I read in Scripture that

whenever Jesus spoke unto Peter, he said, Peter, who do men say

that I am? And they had all these things

that were going on. And he finally came to the

conclusion with Peter. Amen, that that that Peter said,

Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.

The Lord said, Amen, and thou art petered upon this rock.

I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail

against it. Notice what the Scripture says.

Amen. The gates of.

Hell shall not prevail against it.

And the IT that is being referred to is the church. the

IT wasn't Paul McGee. the IT wasn't Timothy the IT wasn't the

Apostle Peter the IT was this conglomeration and body of

people that have been born by 1 spirit into one body.

The gates of hell shall not prevail against the church.

What are you saying then this morning, Pastor McGee, I'm

saying this morning. Stronger together because the

gates of hell may come a man against.

You but when you've. Made yourself a part of, and

you've sewn yourself into this organization called the Church.

The Gates of Hell shall not prevail against it.

It's not going to prevail against it.

So we have this type of terminology over and over again

in the scripture about this collective body of believers.

It was the New Testament church. The Bible says that they were

selling all things, and they had all things in common.

The Bible says there was equality among the church, Amen,

Those that had surplus, and there were those that lacked,

but there was equality among them because the surplus have

won. Amen met the need of the lack of

the other. And there was a.

Equality among them. Why?

Because they were a part of this thing called the Church.

If someone lacked and they were by themselves, they're just

going to lack. If someone had surplus and they

was by themselves, they're just going to have surplus.

But because you and I are born again of the water in the

Spirit, and we're a part of this thing called the church, when

you lack a brother over here has surplus to meet your lack.

And you might not lack every day of your life.

There might be other days you have surplus.

But because you're part of this Organism.

Yes. You asked me this morning.

You tell me. You tell me the numbers of times

that you have been down and someone else has been

encouraged, yet they have been the wind in your sail because

you were a part of this Organism called the Church.

You tell me the other times that you were a voice of

encouragement to somebody else, that we're going through some

struggles and some hardships, and we're overwhelmed by life.

Amen. And you came alongside them and

helped uphold their hands because you were.

Part of this grouping and this Organism called the Church and

the Church of the New Testament is very reflective of the church

or the nation of Israel found in the Old Testament.

With good reason. In our text this morning, this

is probably going to be common for several weeks.

We have good reason. In our text this morning, Joshua

as the new man in command, he begins to jar the memories of

the 2 1/2 tribes with the words of Moses.

This agreement that was made with the 2 1/2 tribes was made

under the leadership of Moses. But Moses is dead now, and so

it's up up to Joshua to honor the agreement that was made.

And so he's jarring the memory of these 2 1/2 tribes.

Namely, he's jarring the memories of Reuben and Dad.

You can read of it in your scripture.

Go home and read it in Numbers, chapter 32 where Moses first

Numbers 32 · chapter mention

made this agreement. Hey man, the tribes of Reuben

and Dad had approached them about remaining on the east side

of the Jordan because it was a land that accommodated their

possessions. They had tattled, the Bible

says, quite a good bunch or multitude of cattle, and the

land that seemed to be good for housing, cadible.

It seemed to be suitable to them and suitable for them, and so

they desired to stay on the east side of Jordan.

And inherit that land and allow their cattle to graze in that

land that was good for them. Furthermore, the battle had

already been waged and won for this particular land on the east

side of Jordan. Most of what they desired to

have as land, and as pasture had already been secured in battles

against the kings of Sighon and Aug, it had already been

accomplished. But there's something that

happens in Numbers 32. When these two tribes first

appeal unto Moses, why don't you give us this land?

And why don't you allow us to secure this land?

Because it's accommodating to what we have.

It suits where we are. There's something that rose up

inside of Moses at this request of these 2 1/2 tribes.

Sure, that land was a part of the original promise that God

had spoke to Abraham that could be theirs, and sure that.

Land was respectable and good, a man for raising cattle there.

But there's something, a man that is in Moses, his mind.

The whole nation of Israel fought for that land on the east

side of Jordan. Zebulon and Natalia and Simon, a

man, and Judah, all of them fought for that land that was on

the east side of Jordan. And because of their fighting

and because of their victory, that makes that land available.

Even to inhabit. And there's something that

arises in Moses right now. He asked them a question in

Numbers 32 and Six. He says, You're telling me you

want to settle here. You're telling me this fits your

needs. You're telling me that this

accommodates who you are and what your possessions are.

And they even said, don't bring us over the Jordan, don't take

us over the Jordan. We're fine right here.

But something arose, and Moses he questions him.

He said, Shall you? Shall your brother and go to war

on the opposite side of Jordan and you sit here?

Are you going to allow them to go over and fight for everything

that God promised them? Amen.

And when I say them, I'm saying the nation of Israel and you're

going to sit here. In other words, how in the world

can you 2 1/2 tribes settle in a land here, reaping the benefits

of the land that not 2 1/2 tribes won the victory up?

But a nation won the victory of and then not go to war alongside

your brother and your sister and their children and apprehend the

land on the opposite side of George.

Someone say man, he says. You don't understand, he says

we've gotten to where we are because we did it together.

Someone say man, and there's something about God that says, I

brought Israel out of Egypt together.

They celebrated the first Passover together.

They left Egypt with a high hand together.

All 12 tribes passed over the Red Sea together.

And if I brought them out of Egypt together, I'm going to

bring them into the land together.

They're one nation. No, no, no.

There's one nation. God, has he, he, he somehow just

looked at this and exploited this all throughout the

Scripture. How this nation, though it may

be many tribes, it is primarily 1.

And so Moses is a little bit troubled.

You've done all this together. You ate a man from heaven.

Together. You ate from you.

You drank water from a Flintstone.

Together you've been dirt, fiery serpents.

Together. You lacked bread.

Together. There were times.

Amen. You didn't know where your next

meal was coming from, and you did that together.

You ward against adversaries together.

And now you're telling me that while you're at the very cusp of

having everything God wants, you're going to sit here and

you're going to let them fight? No, no, no.

This is not just a 7 1/2 tribe battle.

This is a 12 tribe battle. We're one nation.

We're one Israel. We're Someone came in.

Moses was troubled. It's a bit of boldness rose in

him. Stay with me here today.

Moses is no doubt at a place with the 2 1/2 tribes in numbers

32 that you want the nation to fight for you, but you don't

want to help fight for the nation.

You you want to experience a major of rest that's been

brought to you by Israel without laboring for any other portion

for the rest of the people. Moses saw this.

What he saw was this proposal almost threatening Israel's.

Unity. They had endured Egyptian

bondage as a collective of 12 tribes.

They'd done many things together.

They'd received the law of God from the Mount of God together.

And Moses is dead, and Joshua was serving in his stead.

And what Moses now has brought the nation to, Joshua's going to

bring them through. But here being at the Jordan

River in Moses's mind and in Joshua's mind, it's been anti

climatic before. Because this isn't the first

time we've been at this river. This isn't the first time that

we looked with longing eyes for everything that God said he had

for us 40 years earlier. There were voices that were

doubtful about crossing over, which held a whole generation

hostage from claiming and enjoying the land of God.

And God had rightly said that it was theirs.

And there were only two tribal members that were optimistic.

But God was so saddled upon his nation being a nation, that he

said I'm not going to allow two to have it without the 10, not

going to allow two to have it without the 10.

If they're going to have this, all of Israel is going to have

this, all 12 tribes. Because the promised land was

not a tribe of Judah promise. And the promised land wasn't

just a tribe of Ethereum promise.

The promised land was a children of Israel promise.

And there are some places that God wanted to take his nation

that belong to the whole nation. And I'll declare on this Sunday

morning, there's some places God wants to take the church that he

wants the whole church to have. He's not interested in taking a

portion. He's not interested in taking a

faction. He's going to wait if he needs

to until all we'll go over. Even now, in Joshua one and two,

he says all this people, everybody say all all this

people, he tells Joshua the children of Israel are to go

over this Jordan. Yes, they have been 12 tribes of

people, but together they were a nation.

As a matter of fact, through scripture, each tribe was

counted separately for the different censuses that they

had. Each had its own stone.

On the breastplate of the high priest and upon the shoulders of

the garments that he wore. There were twelve of them.

As a matter of fact, they each had a designated position in

their marching order where they were to be, and where they

pitched their tent around about the Tabernacle when they first

approached the Jordan River. Each one of them had a solitary

representative Amen, that represented each of the tribes.

But I will say this. Israel seizes to be Israel.

Without them all. Israel ceases to be Israel

without them all. It was a nation composed of 12

parts. Anytime they built an alter the

Old Testament scripture, it consisted of 12 Stones each

representing each tribe. And whenever a memorial is

finally built here in Joshua, whenever they pass over the

Jordan River, it is a memorial. That's bill that stands for the

nation of Israel. Not memorials, but it's made-up

of 12 Stones. But the rider of the scripture

and God himself said those 12 Stones are a singular memorial.

It stands for Israel because I know that they are made-up of a

lot of working pieces and parts, but they are my people.

They aren't my nation. They aren't my son.

I count them as one. Here's the body, here's the

body. When you look at the Old

Testament writh and and Jacob did the blessings up on the Suns

that would manifest and develop into tribes of people.

Judah had the majesty of the lion is a car.

The donkey's perseverance Dan the snakes ingenuity was placed

upon him. NAFTA NAFTA, lie had the

swiftness of a gazelle and so on and so forth throughout the

mall. But they were one nation.

Judah produced kings and legislators is a car Scholars.

Zebulon had seafaring people and merchants.

Warriors came from the tribe of Dad, School teachers came from

Simeon, all of growers from Asher.

Shepherds came from the tribe of Manassa, so on and so forth.

But they were one Nation. Someone say man.

They all had different talents and different abilities and

different things for them to offer a man, and different

places of locations where they would live, but certain things

that they would raise up among the tribal people.

But what made the nation wasn't just a bunch of school teachers,

but it was school teachers yoked with merchants, yoked with kings

and legislators, and yoked with olive growers.

It was people that had the perseverance of a donkey in the

swift this other gazelle, and the majesty of a lion and the

ingenuity of a snake that make someone say man.

There were one nation, some of you may aspire, and you might be

good. Praise and worship someone else

at prayer, someone else at kindness, someone else at

generosity, somebody else, if you will abodeness somebody else

at confidence. But it won't be built upon any

one of you. It will be built upon the

collective of all of you. That's what makes the church,

the Church. 12 sons of Israel develop into 12 tribes different

of these boys. They all come from four

different mothers, but at the grassroots of it all, they all

share 23 chromosomes from the same Father Jacob.

And even God recognizes the solidarity of this nation.

When He has Moses plead for captive Israel and Egypt, notice

what he labels Israel notice. And when I say Israel, I'm

talking about all 12 tribes. Exodus 4 and verse 22 and verse

23. They're in bondage.

God wants Moses to address Pharaoh.

And he says, And thou shalt say unto Pharaoh, thus say of the

Lord. Israel is my son, even my first

born. They're comprised of 12.

But the Lord has Moses address Pharaoh as them being one.

He did not say Israel or my sons, and they are no, no, no,

He said my son, my first born, and I saying that he let my son

go, that he may serve me again. God did not address them as a

plurality. Amen saying these plurality of

sons need to be free. No, he said.

It's my son. They are many.

They make up various tribes. But when I look up on him, I see

one. When I look up on him, I see

one. And if they're going to be freed

as one nation, then I want them to inherit as one nation.

If I bring them out of Egypt, I need to bring them as a nation

into Canaan. Folks, I don't.

I don't know if you realize this, but the church is like a

finely woven garment that whenever you pull a string over

here, it's going to snag all. Over this just a few weeks ago

our our daughter was was staying there with Grace and Alex and

they got those those many horses in their house.

Those dogs are theirs and and they like to play and they like

to play around and they were doing whatever.

I'm a Ryan it just caught just a little thread in a in a skirt of

hers and now you can just see this trace mark of snag all the

way across because that garment is 1 but it consists of threads

that's interwoven and you couldn't touch the thread

without impacting the garment. New Testament scripture says we

weep with those that weep and we rejoice with those that rejoice.

And I don't know necessarily, Sister Milin, if it's so much a

choice as it is a byproduct of being part of the church.

Mike Penrod came up here today and for prayer know what's

everything going on with all the different nerves and his O in

there and and and his median, his radial nerve, all these

things. And he comes up here and we're

starting to pray and tears start going down my face.

I didn't approach their thinking I'm going to cry this morning

over Mike Penrod. But something happened.

There was a piece, There was a piece.

There was a tribe. There was a portion.

Hey man, there was a snag there and it pushed it just, it just

brought, it just brought a little bit of something out of

me. Amen.

Because we're a part of this network called the Body.

And I thought, my God, he's going through and in the same

mode I'm going through because I have a connectivity, I have an

association, I have a fellowship.

Yes, with him God can do anything.

Listen. And this is kind of side note.

The Bible says many times Jesus was in areas where there are

those that were sick and afflicted and had disease and

some things that were totally incurable.

That's what the Bible says in many of the places.

And he had compassion upon them and healed them.

Healing takes place. Healing takes place in the arena

of where compassion is, And compassion happens whenever your

need becomes my need. Compassion happens whenever

you're affected. And because you being affected,

that affects me. Compassion happens when you're

tethered to this thing called the body of Christ.

When that happens, we are all set up for witnessing healing.

They say the best healer of the body is the body.

The best healer of the body is the body.

There have been scientific studies.

Yes, prayer is very important. They've done them actual science

studies that whenever that's the reason why, you know there's a

lot of hospitals now that they they are not going to go without

a chaplain, somebody to come in pray with whoever's in need and

with the family. They have done studies that

prayer helps. But they also, they also have

done studies that whenever the nurses are kind, when those that

are tending to those that are in need are kind and compassionate

toward those that are going through a very traumatic thing

health wise, that the kinder nurses have greater success of

seeing their patients come back to health.

Because there's a spirit of compassion.

Honey, if you want to be a island alone by yourself, go on,

meet your trouble head on. Deal with your hell, your head

on. Rejoice all by yourself, but

connect me if you will, to another person and another

person and another person that whenever we throw the party,

says Erica, we're all going to be able to celebrate that

whenever I'm down. And how the Bible says two are

better than one because if they both fall, then there's one

that's going to be able to pick the other one up.

The Bible says that one may be able to be prevailed against hey

man, but two may be able to withstand them.

And a three folk forward is it's not quickly broken.

What's that talking about? That's talking about a nation,

Israel. That's talking about a grouping

of body members that make up the charts.

Strogger together. I need a hurry.

You see this over and over again.

Listen, even other people's failure.

I don't want to miss this. Even other people's failure

should have impact upon all if they've been tethered to this

thing called the body. Whenever Aiken took the

Babylonious garment, the shackles, the golden wedge

Israel was going into, like here in Joshua, right here in the

book of Joshua going into the land of Canaan, he took those

things that the Bible says were a cursed.

He took those things that were accursed.

And the Bible says that God laid the burden of the sin of Aiken.

Upon look at it now upon all of Israel and Joshua, 7 Aiken,

Aiken of the tribe of Judah failed.

But the sin, the impact was up on the whole nation of Israel.

We do read in scripture whenever Miriam spoke things against

Moses and she was struck with leprosy.

Miriam was of the tribe of Levi. It wasn't just that tribe that

was set aside, hey man, and had to stay in one place for seven

days and the rest of the nation went on.

No, that's not what the Bible says that she was set aside for

seven days and the whole nation stopped and for seven days they

didn't go anywhere. They did not move forward until

Miriam was brought in again. So in your successes, we're

going to do it in your celebrations.

We're doing it together, Yeah, yeah, yeah.

In your woes and your trials, we're doing it together.

And when you fail, it does not go without affecting us.

Or should not, the apostle Paul recalled to the church at

Corinth. He says listen here, he says the

Church of Corinth. He says, Let you remember all,

hereby say all. All our fathers were under the

cloud. They all passed through the sea.

They did all eat the same spiritual meat and did all drink

the same spiritual drink. In other words, he says listen.

I know they had different temperaments and different

abilities and different faults that they brought to the table,

but they were one. So Josh was bringing all these

things to the memory of these 2 1/2 tribes in the agreement that

they made with Moses. Because the final agreement was

this. You 2 1/2 tribes, you're going

to have a major of rest, but you will not have complete rest

until you go with your brothers and you fight in their battles.

You you're going to have a land of possession over here and

notice the scripture, but you won't enjoy it like you can

enjoy it until everybody's able to enjoy their allocated spot in

the land. And he says, So what I want you

to do is I want you to go over and fight alongside your

brethren, and if you'll fight alongside your brethren, that

will be your portion. If you fight alongside your

brethren, that will be your rest if you fight.

I know right now, if I can say it like this, I can see Moses

that's trying to pull the participation of somebody that's

starting to become disengaged, he says.

I know you say this is suitable for you and that it meets all

your needs. It's just, but I'm trying to

remind you you're a part of something that's larger.

Than you. I'm trying to remind you this is

bigger than the 2 1/2 tribes and I know you've had a major of

rest and you've built some sheep boats and you've built some

cities and all of that is fine and well, but you won't be able,

Amen, to draw the fullness of the enjoyment from that without

participating in the enjoyment of the others that you call

family man. Time gets awake.

Look at this very quickly. Look what this group of people

as a group of people had done together.

Watch me now. Whenever, whenever the

Tabernacle was created and all the members were created and all

the furnishings were created, the inaugural day of its

dedication, all 12 tribes came together.

You can read of this in like, #7.

Right around there, all the tribes came together on the day

of the dedication of the Tabernacle.

Now let's understand, God said, make me a sanctuary, that I

might do well among you, right? The Tabernacle, the sanctuary.

The church was always God's idea, he says.

You make me a sanctuary that I might do well among you.

And so this Tabernacle, even temple later it would be, if you

will, the thing that ushers and carries with the the presence of

the Lord, that God would come down right there and you'll just

have. Pardon me for a moment.

I don't need a fan. It's going to take me.

Amen. Too soon, voice wise.

Amen. I'll just sweat it out.

Amen. Amen.

But whenever they come together, it would be, it would be that

Tabernacle that would be usher in the presence of the Lord.

For on the day of its dedication, each tribe came with

an offering and was sacrifice and things that they gave.

I remember years ago, Brother Mason preaching on these verses

of Scripture because he's talked about a spoonful of praise.

If I remember it, Amen. Somewhere along those lines,

there were 35 items that each tribe brought and all 35 those

items. If it was an animal, it was the

same species. It had to be the same age.

It wasn't as though one tribe brought one three years old and

the other one brought one one years old.

It's not as though one of them brought a donkey and somebody

else brought a lamb. Across the board, all 35 items

were the same. It were to be so many shekels,

weight of gold. All of it across the board was

the was was the same. And when you get to that spot in

your Bible reading of numbers, you get there and it's like deja

vu because Judah brought item 123, and it lists them all,

their weights, their numbers, their species, their gender,

list them all. And then it says, well, the

tribe of the tribe of Judah brought the exact same thing.

And rather than just saying Ditto, you know, it's been great

to come to NAFTA, like Ditto according to the tribe of Judah.

No. You read your Bibles and you

probably kind of get just a little sway there.

You kind of get lost because you're reading the exact same

sentences. I've looked at it meticulously

before. It's the exact same for like 70

something many, many, many verses.

And it's every tribe bringing the same thing like God.

What is the big deal about this? The dedication of ushering your

presence in what's going to be carrying your presence.

And every tribe has come with the same the same weight of

spoon, the same species, the same animal and God, which is

underwriting something there as you read that after All in all,

Judah comes, but his sacrifice is the same.

Simeon comes, but his sacrifice is the same.

Not till I comes, but his sacrifice is the same.

They're 12 tribes, but they're one people.

But they all have the same sacrifice.

I'm here to tell you this morning.

Hey man, if it took all the tribes to fight for what the 2

1/2 had, it's going to take all the tribes for what the seven

and a half's going to get. It's going to be equal sacrifice

across. Yes, God purposely does things.

This Tabernacle that was in the wilderness, it's making its

movements throughout the wilderness.

I think the Bible says that they had 48 different times that they

pitched their tent and they pulled up steak 48 different

times, that they had locations that they stayed at.

And that meant the Tabernacle was set up at each one and then

tore down at each 148 times. And we know in Scripture that

the tribe of Levi, they're going to carry the arc of the

covenant. They're going to carry the table

of shoe bread. They're going to carry all the

furnishings, but the Bible says concerning the skeleton of the

Tabernacle, the boards and the members, and the curtains and

the badger skins and the goat skins.

They were going to be carried just by men on their shoulders,

but they were provided with oxen and wagons, and the Bible says

there were six wagons with 12 oxen, 2 a pair of yoke.

For each wagon there was one ox from each tribe.

And then two tribes had to pair up to furnish a wagon so that in

order for this presence of God to move through the wilderness

to get to the Jordan and pass into the Promised Land.

It hinged upon the tribes coming together.

Judas Hawks next to Naturalize Hawks.

One wagon that's carrying some of the boards and the beams and

the curtains and the goat's hair.

Amen. It's going to take their

efforts. Amen.

Together that there was no single tribe that could have

brought Amen or ushered that presence by themselves.

It was the collective body. And it's whenever we come into

services and I start sensing the presence of the Lord, you know

what I sense? There's been somebody's tribal

Hawks that's come along, my tribal Hawks, and it's hearing

something that's going to usher the presence of the Lord.

When I feel little presence of God begin to come down, I say

there's the members that are supplying what each joint needs

in order for this thing to mechanically work.

Amen. To usher in the presence of the

Lord, he says. And you understand with me, I

see the red, he says. When everybody's had rest, you

can return to your portion and you'll have rest.

When, when we've totally did all the warfare that needs to be

done, you can return to your possession and you'll be able to

enjoy it, because we're stronger at this together.

Do you know it's been a ploy from the beginning of the nation

even to now the church, for there to be separation among the

members? It happened before there was

ever a nation. You see all the schisms and the

heartache and between the brothers of J of Joseph trying

to cause division among the brothers, Even so much so that

one time as they were leaving Joseph and he finally made

himself known to them. He says As you go along the way,

he basically was saying, don't you all get caught up in all of

those divisive things. Again, he says, because we're

all going to bring Jacob over and we're all going to come into

this land. We see it.

Then throughout the scriptures, we see a moment of time that

there's two tribes separated from the 10 tribes.

There's there's Judah and there's there is Israel.

There's the division of the tribes.

Amen. And there was nothing really

good Amen happening during these times of division.

But it's when the church comes together, when the members come

together, when the body comes together.

We function. We propel.

We operate at the height of what God would desire for his people

to operate at. We close our eyes.

This morning, you were not meant to celebrate alone.

You were not meant to fight alone.

You were not meant to suffer alone, and you were not meant to

deal with your failure alone. He's given us a nation.

He's given us a church. And when God comes back, that's

what he's coming after. The church, the church.

So let's go on and celebrate together now.

Let's go on endure the hardness together as a good soldier of

Christ now, because whether you realize it or not, you didn't

pack your own parachute. We're a body of interdependent

people. It's something that the world

calls community. Some people have hard hardships

with community because communities are messy.

Communities are messy. You put anybody of people

together for any length of time and they don't always get a

loan. They got difference.

Differences of opinions guarantee you there's someone

that you work with, that you have probably some pretty sharp

differences of opinion with, but you still go to work every day.

Some of you been part of certain groups and clubs or me, maybe

even sporting events and team sports, that there's certain

people on that team that it's just hard to belly sometime.

But you know what? You still go out on the field

and you try to work together as a group of people.

And whenever the game is won, everybody celebrates it because

you couldn't play pitcher, catch your third base, shortstop and

outfield by yourself. We're stronger.

We're stronger together. These altars are open this

morning if anybody would like to come to a place to pray and just

maybe boaster in their own life. God, individual parts by

themselves are not as strong. It's not as beneficial as all of

us together. This is the last time you're

going to hear my voice for three weeks.

We're stronger together today. Do you have a woe?

Let us bear it together. You dealing with the

intimidation of a failure. Let's bear it together.

Or maybe you're on the mountain of rejoicing.

Let's grass pans. And let's raise our voices and

clap. And let's exalt the name of the

Lord together, because I know your allocation of land came

because everybody thought. And that allocation of land came

because everybody thought. And we all passed over Jordan

and we all came out of Egypt. And we all have made the drink,

that spiritual drink. The body was stronger together.

Hallelujah, Jesus. Thank you for listening.

If you would like more information about our services

and activities, you can find us on Facebook, Instagram and

Twitter with the username FACMC. Again, that's FACMC.

Thank you and have a blessed day.