Get On The Team

Get On The Team

10/16/05 Exodus 36:1-7 2 Corinthians 9:6-15

There is nothing like being on a winning team. Do you remember what it was like when the Indians were winning back when the Stadium first opened. We were glued listening to our radios wondering who was going to make that next big play to pull us out of a jam. There’s a whole new excitement when you’re winning. You get in the mindset of expecting things to happen.

God is always looking to build a winning team. God provides everything that’s needed for us to be winners. God’s people had been slaves in Eygpt for 430 years. God decided its time to show my people a greatness they have never known before.

He sent a man by the name of Moses to be a leader of His people and to bring them out of Egypt. Eygpt was the military superpower of its day. But its power was no match for the power of God, and God left the nation in shambles when Moses led the people out.

God had called out a group of people to be on His team. When they left Egypt, anything the former slaves asked the Egyptians for, the Egyptians eagerly gave it. God’s people came out with designer clothes, gold, silver, jewelry and the best of the things of Egypt.

After they were out of Eygpt, God wanted them to build a tabernacle, which is sort of like a moving church that you put up and take down with you as you move. God wanted this tabernacle to look magnificent because that was the place that was going to be associated with God’s name and God’s presence. There was artwork that would go into the temple that would require skilled craftsman. God specifically raised up to fellows on the team named Bezalel and Oholiab to lead the others in all the craftsmanship to go into the building of the tabernacle.

When God told Moses, to build the tabernacle, probably the first thing that came to Moses’s mind was, “where is the money going to come from.” God already had that taken care of because God had called a team together. God said, “Simply tell the people to come and bring me an offering. Tell them what I need to have the tabernacle built. When they make me a sanctuary, I will come and dwell among them.”

When it came time to collect the offering, people came morning after morning bringing in gold silver, bronze, expensive fabric, wood, oil, jewels, and precious stones. They brought in so much, the people collecting the offering started to complain to Moses.

They said, “Moses we have a problem. We have too much money and materials. Please ask the people to stop giving.” Moses went out to the people and said, “I hereby order you not to bring any more offerings for the sanctuary” The Scripture says the people were restrained from giving more.

These people had eagerly wanted to be on the team. They showed their commitment to the team by the sacrifices they were willing to make. They gave willingly and freely. Why, because they wanted the presence of God in their midst. They were grateful for what God had done in their lives.

God is still in the business of calling together teams in the New Testament. When the early church came together not too long after Jesus went back into heaven, the church was made up of people who had a lot of money, people who had some money, people who had little money and people who had no money.

One thing they did all have in common though was a love for Jesus Christ and for doing what He had told them to do. He had told them to go into the world and make disciples of all people. Jesus had also told them to love each other and to meet the needs of the poor. It was going to take money for this to happen.

They recognized that they were all on the same team, and the presence of God was in their midst in a powerful way. Look at one of the most feared passages in the bible, for those of us who have as much as we have. Acts 4:32-35

All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they shared everything they had. [33] With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and much grace was upon them all. [34] There were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned lands or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales [35] and put it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to anyone as he had need.