Praise the Lord. I have really enjoyed being in King, North Carolina, and being at Calvary Baptist Church. I have really enjoyed the music. Sometimes, you know, we don't know what we have when we have it, and I hope you'll never take that for granted. I'll go a little step further. Sometimes we think that everybody has a church like this, And I want you to know not everybody has a church like this. And you should be deeply grateful to the Lord for just having you in this place and having this church. You say, well, this church ain't perfect, preacher. That's because you're, I mean, that's because we're here, amen? I know it's not perfect, but man, I tell ya, I have loved the direction. I love that God is obviously here. I love that you like each other. I think you like your preacher. I'm not sure, but I think you like your preacher. And don't take it for granted. and pray for your church, and pray for one another, pray for the staff, and be part of it, because not everybody has a church like this. The music, as I said, has been outstanding. I know it's way more than one person, but Brother Delp, I really appreciate your spirit in leading the choir, and choir, you've just done such an outstanding job. Can I be honest with you? I just love that instrumentation over there. You guys do a fabulous job with that. I was telling Preacher before, my roots are Kentucky. And I said to him, I said, do you listen to stained glass bluegrass? And I can tell he's not legitimately a hillbilly because he didn't ever heard of it, all right? He must have some city in him from somewhere. Has anybody ever heard of stained glass bluegrass? Yes, thank you. I knew I wasn't the only one. And it's, I don't even know if it's on anymore, but it used to be on every Sunday morning. It was a real blessing to my heart. Living up there in D.C., they needed a dose of that up there, but I couldn't get it up there. Thank you so much for letting me be here today. I have truly, truly enjoyed being with you. Now let me holler at you for a while, all right? Exodus 35. Exodus 35. Now pastor said, that he knew they had taken some time and that I had till 10 o'clock. So, boy, I've got you scared to death, don't I? Exodus chapter 35, and let's begin reading in verse four. There the Bible says, and Moses spake unto all the congregation of the children of Israel, saying, this is the thing which the Lord commanded, saying, Take ye from among you an offering unto the Lord, whosoever is of a willing heart. Let him bring it, an offering of the Lord, gold and silver and brass and blue and purple and scarlet and fine linen and goat's hair. rams, skins dyed red, badger skins and shittum wood and oil for the light and spices for anointing oil and for the sweet incense, onyx stones and stones to be set for the ephod and for the breastplate. And every wise hearted among you shall come and make all that the Lord hath commanded. Let's pray. Father, I know this is a well-known portion of scripture. Help us to see truth in it tonight that'll apply to our hearts and our lives. Speak to us. We pray that you would convict our hearts. Lord, beyond convicting it, would you encourage our hearts and help us to be overjoyed in the church family that we have. The privilege to serve you in and out of from this place. Speak to us through your word, we pray. Amen. The Lord gave the command to build the temple, I'm sorry, the tabernacle first in Exodus 25, but then repeats that command in verse 35, and I, I'm sorry, chapter 35, and I think it is because He wants to expand on what He wants Israel to do. There are two great phrases that stand out to me in the passage that we read for our text. In verse 5, I want you to notice that phrase where it says, let him take ye from among you an offering unto the Lord, whosoever is of a willing heart. I want you to notice in verse 10 this phrase, and every wise hearted among you shall come and make all that the Lord hath commanded. Willing hearted people give to the work of God and wise hearted people use their time and their talent to be part of what God is building. Boy, how we ought to strive tonight to be known as willing-hearted people and then be involved at the ministry that God is doing in this place. I never understood people who would come to a place, a church like Calvary, and never serve, never get involved. Be wise-hearted, willing-hearted to give so that the work can be accomplished, wise-hearted to be part of doing the work. I wanna concentrate on that thought of willing-hearted tonight, and I just want you to notice three things. I'll preach pretty fast for me. Yeah, think about that. I want you to notice, first of all, what does the Lord request of them? I think it's important to understand that this is a command to build the tabernacle, but I want to draw a very clear distinction in the way that the Lord speaks about the offering to build the tabernacle and how it differs from the tithe or the firstfruits offering. For the sake of time, I don't want you to turn to some of these passages, but in Leviticus chapter 27 and verse 30, It gives us a very clear command that was given to Israel that as we said this morning, simply enshrined in the law what was an eternal principle that God gives us all we have and that we are to give him the first fruit, the firstling, the tithe, the 10th. Here's how it's stated in Leviticus. All the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land or of the fruit of the tree, is the Lord's. It is holy unto the Lord. Now I want to be very clear about it. Though God puts it in our possession and we are stewards of it, in God's view, it is His. And we are called to be wise stewards, and God says, recognize this, that all that I give you, that tenth, those first fruits, those are mine. They are holy unto me. Does it mean that they are somehow grace-filled and holy in the sense of high and lifted up? No, what he means is those are separated unto me. I remember when my wife and I first got saved. We were in our 20s, just had a baby. I was working in a factory, a roofing factory, and I mean we were as poor as the proverbial church mouse. And I remember after we got saved, we started going to church, and we had this fellow who had led us to Christ, and he was talking to us, and I remember one of the first conversations, he came over to the house, and he said, now, what I wanna talk to you about tonight, you know, first was baptism and church attendance, and he worked around to it about the second or third week, I wanna talk to you about tithing. Now, you may have recognized what that was. My wife and I, neither one of us were raised in a Christian home. We didn't own a Bible. We didn't know the Bible. We didn't know what tithing was. But I want to tell you, it got my attention when he told me what it was. He said, you need to start giving a tenth. You know the answer I gave him, the answer that we so often give? I can't pay my bills now. How can you expect me to give a tenth of what I make? I mean it. I remember my wife and I sitting down at that table and me looking across at her and say, let's do it. And that Saturday evening before we were going to church, her trembling hand, writing that check, I think it may have been as much as $20. They say, $20? Hey, I'm talking back before the flood, all right? Back before Noah's day. And it was fearful. I mean it. And just as the preacher talked about tonight, I guess God knew we needed it bad. He started showing us what he could do and how faithful he was. And it was one of those lessons that as a young couple knew in the Lord, we looked at each other and you know what my wife said to me one time? She said, I think this thing is real. That may not be earth shattering to you. It was earth shattering to us. I think this thing is real. I don't take the time to go to Malachi, but we learned in Malachi chapter three in verse eight, that because that tithe was wholly unto the Lord, to refuse to give it to him was as if you were robbing him. Boy, I don't want that on my testimony, do you? God robber? I'm not trying to be unkind. I'm just telling you what God says. Listen to what he says as recently or as close to this chapter as Exodus 34. He says about the firstfruits offering, the first of the firstfruits of thy land thou shalt bring into the house of the Lord thy God. He just simply says, the first of the first fruits, you bring that into the house of God. Because it was obligation. It was what they were supposed to do. It is what we were supposed to do. And what I want you to see very quickly tonight is how radically different God speaks about the tabernacle offering. I want you to quickly notice this. Look at verse five. Again, take ye from among you an offering unto the Lord, whosoever is of a willing heart. Just a chapter ago, he was talking obligation. Now he's talking a willing heart. Notice in verse 21. And they came, every one whose heart stirred him up, and every one whom his spirit made willing, and they brought the Lord's offering to the work of the tabernacle. Verse 22 says, as they were willing-hearted. Do you notice that great difference? Listen, the tithe, the 10%, is obligation. God says, I've marked that off as mine. That's holy. I've separated that unto myself. You bring that to the tabernacle. In our day, we bring that to the storehouse, the church. But then he says, now wait a minute. I want to give you an opportunity to demonstrate love and to demonstrate your concern for others and for the work of God, and I want you to be willing to be a part of doing something more than just the tithe. Boy, now I've got you really frightened, don't I? I want you to notice what the people's response to that was. They were willing. They gave. Why were the people's hearts so willing? Notice three things with me. Number one, because it was fresh in their mind that they had been delivered from bondage and slavery in Egypt. Hey, let's be very careful that we don't sanitize in our thinking what it was to be a Hebrew slave in Israel. They were worked ruthlessly hard. They were made to be bitter. What do you mean by that? They were despised. They were never appreciated for the bricks they made and the work they did. It was expected of them and they were never encouraged in it. They were never rewarded for it. They were slaves. Their children were not their own. And the truth is, many of those who felt the lash of the master on their back were the same people that had seen their children drowned or taken to some other camp, some other place to be put to work. Don't make it pretty, friends. It was ugly. They were broken in spirit and they had no hope. And one day, God sent a man named Moses. And I'm not gonna go through all that Moses did, but I am gonna tell you this, that for the first time in many, many years, in the lifetime of some of these people, they experienced grace. And God delivered them from the horrible life that they had been living. And man, they were breathing air that they'd never breathed before. Breath of freedom. I know they complained. I know they were frightened. But they weren't slaves anymore. I said a moment ago, I was not raised in a Christian home. My father got saved at 63 years old. Became a deacon at 69. We didn't know the Bible. We were lost people. My wife was not raised in a Christian home. We were people of the world. I don't mean that we were the most vile or wicked people that were in Cincinnati, Ohio. I'm not trying to say that. We weren't drug addicts. But I want to tell you, we were as lost a young couple as could ever be. I don't know that we'd even be married today had God's grace not changed our course. And I know that John 3.16 may not be something special to you. I remember the first time I ever laid eyes on it. I went into the roofing factory, I drove a forklift. I started talking to the guys whom I had been drunk with the week before. I said, fellas, do you know that John 3.16 says that God so loved the world? I mean, it was new to me. They said, everybody knows that. I didn't know it. Have you forgotten where God got you? When I was a little boy, there wasn't shopping malls. You went downtown to a department store to shop. And one of the department stores in Cincinnati was a department store called Shilitos. And Shilitos, when you went on the street level, that's where the good people and the wealthy people bought clothes. They had what they called the bargain basement. You ever been in the bargain basement? That's where Edwards has shopped. You know where God found me? Not on the first floor, man. God found me down in the parking basement. And I've experienced grace. And I remember His grace. I've seen my little wife get on her knees and get saved. I know what it is to have a life that changes direction. What in the world happens to us? We forget how gracious God has been to us. Why did these people gather up these things and give them willingly? Because God had just delivered them! Hey, not only did they know that, I won't drag you back to chapter 32, but they had just been forgiven for a wicked, horrible sin. Moses had tarried up on the mountain. They got fearful, didn't know if He was coming back or not. So they went to Aaron. They said, Aaron, we don't have a God. We're out here by ourselves. And Aaron, he said, well, bring your gold earrings. Have you ever considered where do slaves get gold earrings? I'll talk about that in a moment. And they brought their gold earrings. And I love Aaron's story. I threw them in the fire and a calf came out. No, Aaron, you fashioned a calf. and you danced around and hooped and hollered and partied like the world. And Moses heard it and showed up in camp. And had he not interceded for you, Israel, God would have destroyed you that day. But God, long-suffering and merciful, forgave you and restored you. Hey, how many times has the man who stands in this pulpit before you tonight experienced the long-suffering patience and the forgiveness of God for being a fool and making mistakes and making unwise choices and bad decisions. I'm telling you, I don't want to trot out all the times God has just had to take care of me and forgive me. And every single time when I go on my face before God and say, Oh God, will you forgive me for that? God meets me and says, I will forgive you of that. How in the world do you develop a stingy heart towards a God like that? How do you meet that God with anything but a willing and wise heart to be part of His work? How dare we be willing to live lives that withhold that from a world that is where we were? Hey, they had been delivered from slavery. They had been forgiven for their failures. Notice finally that their hearts were stirred up. Verse 21, their hearts were stirred. Say, preacher, what's that mean? Man, they were lifted up. They saw what God had done and they loved him. I said this morning to the 830 crowd, I don't think I said it at 1030. My wife and I, I hope you don't get tired. I'm an old man. Old men are allowed to repeat their stories, all right? So just put up with me. This was our 50th anniversary. You know what I got my wife? I got her a $5 McDonald's certificate for a happy meal. And I told her, honey, you've been so good to me. You're so worth this. You go get you a happy meal. Enjoy it. Now some of you are thinking, did that rascal really do that? No, I didn't. I've been saving for 10 years. She has granddaughters, and it's big in her mind. That's just her life, or her daughter, her sons, her grandchildren. And in her mind, she had these granddaughters that she wanted to give something of hers, a ring to each of them. And then our kids had another granddaughter, so I had to save 10 years to get another ring. One of the most precious moments in our lives. And I want to tell you, I don't know what you think, I mean, I had to say for a long time, and to put that on her finger this week, was as great a joy in my heart to give it as to her to receive it. You know what it's saying when their hearts were stirred up? It's saying they loved God. No, they weren't perfect. Man, they were hard-headed. Man, they had stiff necks and they'd pull their shoulder back. But I want to tell you, they knew that God had been good to them. And when they had the opportunity to build this great work and to be part of this free will offering, their hearts got stirred up in love. And man, they gave! They gave. Hey, notice quickly, what did they give? Did you notice what it says they gave? I won't go back, but verse 22 said, bracelets, earrings, rings, tablets, all jewels of gold. Every man that offered, offered an offering of gold unto the Lord. Where did they get that? Slaves don't have tablets of gold. I don't think there was a K jeweler on the way out of Goshen. The book of Exodus tells us that on the night of the Exodus, as Israel was fleeing Egypt, God caused a spirit of fear to take over the Egyptians. And God says literally they plundered, they spoiled the Egyptians. They went and they said, can we borrow? And the Egyptians were so happy to get rid of them, they loaded them with jewels and gold and gifts. And so my point is very simply this, they gave what God had given them. The Egyptians had no love for the Hebrews. God worked and God provided and God moved on the Egyptians to give to the Hebrews these great treasures and now it was their privilege to give back to God what God had miraculously given to them. Hey, don't know if you've noticed it, but no matter how smart you think you are, or how winsome you think you are, or how talented you think you are, all you have is because God gave it to you. And God says, let your heart be stirred. And when you have the opportunity to give so that others can know, I love that, reaching people with the gospel across the street and around the world. When you have the opportunity, let your heart get lifted up with love for Him who has given you and who can give to you again and again and again. As a matter of fact, the only thing that will ever stop the flow is when our stingy hearts Stop the giving. Number three, and I'm done. I want you to notice the wonderful result. Victory in people's lives and victory in the nation of Israel. Every pastor, to every pastor, Exodus 36 and verse six and seven is a dream. Notice it with me. And Moses gave commandment. And they caused it to be proclaimed throughout the camp, saying, let neither man nor woman make any more work for the offering of the sanctuary. So the people were restrained from bringing, for the stuff they had was sufficient for all the work to make it." And too much. Your pastor at night, he talks in his sleep. And I've heard that what he says is, no, it's too much. Stop bringing it. Stop bringing it. Has that ever happened? No, that's never happened. So willing was their heart, so stirred up was their heart that they said, let me be part, let me be part. And they all brought it. You say, preacher, I guess you're just a typical preacher and you're just glad because it was a big offering. Honest to goodness, I'm not. You know what I'm thrilled about? Because to me, what that evidence is to me is a Hebrew father sitting down with his family and saying, you know, we put this stuff under the blankets there, we were hiding that, and we were gonna use that for something else, but we're building a tabernacle, and I just want you to know, family, that we're gonna take that stuff out and take it down and put it in the offering. And the kids saw Dad make a decision. And they saw Mom and Dad pray together and make a choice and make a decision with willing hearts to give to what God was doing in their nation, in their home. People decided to trust the Lord rather than to hold on to what they had. People took part in something that became bigger than just they themselves. And I'm saying to you what a tremendous blessing it is to be a part of a church like this where you see God doing something big. Not only that, but God was honored and His glory rested on the tabernacle. I won't have you turn there, but Exodus chapter 40 says this. Then a cloud covered the tent of the congregation, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle, and Moses was not able to enter into the tent of the congregation, because the cloud abode thereon, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. Oh, I wish I had time to paint this scene. All of Israel is now looking at the finished tabernacle. You know, from chapter 35 to verse 40, we can get lost in the ouches of gold and the tatches of brass and the badger skins and all this and all that, but I want you to see from that offering to the end. In chapter 40, Israel is assembled, and you know what they see? They see what God has done with their offering, and they see what the wisdom of wise-hearted men and women have built, and they see God descend and fill it with His glory! Dads and moms are standing there, and kids are standing there, Dad, is that what we gave to him? Yeah, yeah, be quiet. Yeah, yeah. Because you're part of something bigger. I don't mean to be silly, but I want to tell you, I'm sure there are folks that have said, what are we building a gym for? Churches don't need gyms. I want to tell you, we built two of them. And I wish I could show you the preachers that stand in pulpits tonight, because back in 1987, we built our first gym, and we had three-on-three contests. And then we would preach to these young boys and girls, and some of them would get saved. And one stands out in Arizona tonight in a pulpit because somebody built a gym and the glory of God filled it. I wish you could see all of the congregational times, all of the fellowship times where somebody comes in and they don't know and they feel apart and they sit down and they enjoy a meal or a cup of coffee or some event and they make a friend and all of a sudden their life is changed because now they belong to a place. It's a family life! God can use it in such a great way. Is it the tabernacle? No, it's not built out of badger skins. But God's hands on it. And it's a soul winning station. And it's a fellowship place. And it's a training place for kids. I loved how your preacher said it, that could see that God could do something big. You know what I've finally figured out? That those that are the most grateful for the grace of God are usually the ones that have the most generous hearts to participate in offerings. And I've also discovered the flip side of that is also true. When we become distant from our experience of grace, we kind of develop an unwilling and an ungenerous heart. There's a wonderful story in Matthew chapter 26, true story. A woman comes to anoint Jesus. She washes his feet with her tears and dries them with her hair. Then she breaks open an expensive bottle of perfume and pours it out on him. I know that there's sometimes disagreement on who it is. Some say it's Mary, the sister of Lazarus. Some say it's Mary Magdalene. I personally think it's Mary Magdalene because it so accurately describes something beautiful. A woman who had been cast out, a woman who had lived a demon-filled life, Jesus cast them out. A woman who had been a woman of the streets, who no one wanted to be attached to, no one wanted to be close to, but Jesus saved her. And she knows in her heart something is true. She knows that He has spoken and it's true. He is moving to His death. And she brings that box of ointment and with her hair and with her hands she cleans his feet and then breaks that box of ointment, that expensive box of ointment and anoints her Lord. It's probably the most precious thing she owned. It may well have been the only thing she owned. Oh, the religious leaders didn't understand it. As a matter of fact, they were kind of put off by it. And in essence, Jesus said to them, she knows something you don't. And she's experienced something that she remembers. That the grace of God changed her life. And she is willing to give because she has been forgiven so much. What does your giving say about you? What does your heart in giving say about you? Does it say, boy, they remember where God found them and where God got them? Or have we gotten so distant from grace that we've become stingy, thinking it's ours? The songwriter put it this way. By and by, when I look on his face, beautiful face, Thorn-shadowed face By and by When I look on his face I'll wish I had given him more More, so much more More of my love than I ever gave before. By and by, when I look on His face, I'll wish I'd given Him more. You know, nobody's gonna stand in heaven before the Lord and say, I wish we'd have taken that trip. instead of giving to that building. I wish we'd have never filled out that card for his glory. I tithed and God failed me, no one has ever said. How about if we say I remember where God got me. And I remember I wasn't worth getting. And I remember how many times I failed him and he restored me and he loved me and he gave me grace. And I'm not gonna be stingy with a God who is willing to give it all for me. What will your giving say about your heart? Would you pray? Father, we thank you so much