Scripture: Joshua 6:2-21
Introduction
For we are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building. 1 Corinthians 3:9
- At our quarterly business meeting last week, it was a time to reflect on the year 2023.
- Thanks to the amazing generosity of many people and God’s grace, the numbers were very good.
- The things that we accomplished really defy logic and the list is long.
- We started the year with opening our clothes closet every Saturday.
- This took us from 24 Saturdays to 48 Saturdays/year with an average of over 100 families per week or close to 5000 families in 144 hours or 35 families/hour.
- How many clothes did they take? What if they each took 10 items each? That’s 50,000.
- It’s probably more like 50/family and that is a quarter of a million pieces of clothes!!
- I like numbers and I think God does too – His fourth book of the Bible is called Numbers.
- We put out some really big numbers here: like 63 replacement windows, 300 book bags.
- And do we do this with a very large group of people? Nope, we are a tiny bunch.
- So here is my question to you: how do we do it? God is doing it.
- We call it SYNERGY in business when the work output exceeds the sum of the parts.
- In other words, somehow two people working together can do the work of three.
- In our case, 40 people are doing the work of 100 and I’m not joking.
- In our story today from Joshua, you may recall that Moses is dead and it’s now up to Joshua to finish the work of leading God’s chosen people into the promised land.
- There is going to be resistance and there are going to be challenges, but God is helping.
- We face some similar challenges, although on a much smaller scale, but nevertheless we have them:
- See the Walls
- Knock down the Walls
- Rebuild
1. See the Walls
- Walls come in all shapes and sizes.
- The first wall that the Israelites encountered was the Jordan river that had to be crossed.
- God took care of it. In Joshua 3:12-13, He does the parting the Red Sea thing again:
Now then, choose twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one from each tribe. And as soon as the priests who carry the ark of the Lord—the Lord of all the earth—set foot in the Jordan, its waters flowing downstream will be cut off and stand up in a heap.
- So, the Ark of the Covenant and its handlers went in first and the Jordan divided.
- Once the Ark was brought to the other side of the Jordan, it started flowing again.
- The walls of Jericho were formidable.
- In advance of entering the promised land, Joshua sent spies to check out Jericho.
- An interesting twist to this story is that the spies were sheltered by Rahab the prostitute.
- Not only was Rahab the heroine of this story by protecting the spies, but she is also the great, great, great, grandmother of King David and that places her in the line of Jesus.
- God is giving the land of Jericho to the Israelites and Jericho is in His way.
- God is giving the land of Biltmore to us but there are some things in His way.
- What kind of walls do you think we are facing here as we try to occupy this land for Jesus? Mistrust of church, language barriers, denomination issues.
- Honestly, I think the worst barrier or wall that we face is APATHY.
- People just not caring anymore; people just giving up on church.
- This is one of the things that makes Biltmore so strong is that we have replaced apathy with WORK.
- Our people don’t have time to have apathy – we’re too busy.
- As I told the folks at the business meeting “the word NO is not in our vocabulary!”
- But this hasn’t always been the case for us, and it continues to effect many churches.’
- Some churches are caught up in programs and process and legalism.
- Some churches have internal power struggles among families that are akin to the mafia.
- God saw that the promised land needed to be purged of the current inhabitants.
- God saw that walls needed to be knocked down to accomplish His purposes.
- But God knew that His people couldn’t get the job done on their own.
- And He was willing to help on one condition: OBEDIENCE – TOTAL OBEDIENCE.
2. Knock down the walls
- God asks for very specific steps of obedience.
- Our story lists a set of things that God told Joshua to do.
- Every day for six days straight they were to do the following two things:
- March around the city once with all the armed men.
- Have seven priests carry trumpets of rams’ horns in front of the ark.
- On the seventh day, they were to do the following six things:
- They were all to march around the city seven times,
- The priests were to blow the trumpets.
- Then the priests were to sound a long blast on the trumpets,
- Then the whole army was to give a loud shout
- Then the wall of the city will collapse
- Then the army will rush in.
- They followed the instructions exactly and devoted the city to the LORD and destroyed with the sword every living thing in it.
- In our case, we have done everything that the Lord has asked us to do at Biltmore.
- He hasn’t asked us to kill and destroy, He has asked us to feed and clothe and love.
- He told us to go to each home and we did.
- He told us to provide clothing and we did.
- He told us to provide book bags and we did.
- He told us to save this old building, that is His house, and we did.
- God’s answer has been to give us the power of synergy and multiply our efforts.
- When you look at what happened at Jericho, it makes no sense.
- Marching around a city and blowing trumpets and then knocking down the walls with a yell. – no way!!
- But then when you look at what’s happening at Biltmore, is it really any stranger?
- How do we do what we do? I don’t know – it’s a God thing!!
3. Rebuild
- The key to what God was building with the Israelites and what He is building here is SYNERGY.
- But it’s a special kind of synergy – spiritual
- I gave you a hint about it at the beginning when I quoted 1 Corinthians 3:9.
- Listen to Matthew Henry’s commentary on 1 Corinthians 3:9:
Those that are most faithful shall have the greatest reward; and glorious work it is in which all faithful ministers are employed. They are labourers with God, synergoi—co-workers, fellow-labourers, not indeed in the same order and degree, but in subordination to him, as instruments in his hand. They are engaged in his business. They are working together with God, in promoting the purposes of his glory, and the salvation of precious souls; and he who knows their work will take care they do not labour in vain.
- The New Testament word for synergy is the Greek word, synergos or sunergeo (Strong’s Concordance reference 4903 and 4904), meaning “companions in labor, fellow laborers, or helpers with God”
- In addition to 1 Corinthians 3:9, these words are translated in the following verses:
- 1 Thessalonians 3:2 – We sent Timothy, who is our brother and co-worker in God’s service in spreading the gospel of Christ, to strengthen and encourage you in your faith
- 2 Corinthians 6:1 – As God’s co-workers we urge you not to receive God’s grace in vain.
- Romans 8:28 – And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
- So, synergy isn’t just a business term after all. It means there is power in working together with God.
- When we cooperate with God, He supplies us with gifts and abilities far beyond ourselves.
- The Israelites cooperated closely with God and followed His instructions to the letter.
- And by so doing, God multiplied their efforts to the point of shouting down a wall.
- Where do you think the never-ending flow of clothes comes from for the clothes closet?
- Where do you think the many blessings we have received this past year come from?
- God is rebuilding and He is doing it with people who will remain obedient to His will.
- The Israelites did what God asked them to do, and He multiplied their efforts.
- We are being asked to do some very specific things here at Biltmore.
- And if we remain faithful to His call, He will continue to bless us and multiply our efforts.
- We will shout and God will bring the walls down for us.