Our Response | Senior Pastor Kenneth Carpenter
by Kenneth Carpenter
First Apostolic Church of Maryville (Maryville, TN)
Kind: sermon
Scripture: Numbers 7:1-13, Numbers 7:88, Numbers 4:32-33, Numbers 7:2-9, John 13:31-35, Romans 13:8-14, Acts 28:24

Source: https://acts238.life/repository/sermons/kenneth-carpenter--our-response
Published by Acts 2:38 Life from the sermon transcript on that page.
Free to copy and share with attribution.

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have your Bibles and would stand with me tonight I invite your attention to the Book of Numbers chapter number 7 verse 1 again I want to say to the students I appreciate you being here specifically requested from youth pastor brother Hammond that you would be in this class tonight in the Bible class tonight instead of in your normal strong tower sanctuary because I want to speak this word also into your life tonight chapter 7 verse number 1 and it came to pass on the day that Moses had set up the tabernacle and had anointed it and sanctified it and all the instruments there of both the altar and all the vessels thereof and had anointed them and sanctified them that the princes of Israel heads of the house of their fathers who were the princes of the tribes and were over them that were numbered offered offered and they brought their offering before the Lord six covered wagons twelve oxen a wagon for two of the princes and for each one and us and they brought them before the tabernacle and the Lord spake unto Moses saying take it of them that they may be to do the service of the tabernacle and thou shalt give them into the Levites to every man according to his service verse 10 and the princes offered for dedicating of the altar in the day that it was anointed even the princes offered their offering before the offering before the altar and the Lord said unto Moses they shall offer their offering each prince on his day for the dedication of the altar and he that offered his offering the first day was nation the son of a minute AB of the tribe of Judah his offering was one silver charger the weight thereof was a hundred and thirty shekels one silver bowl of seventy shekels after the shekel of the sanctuary both of them were full of fine flour mingled with oil for the meat offering one spoon of ten shekels of gold full of incense one Young Bullock one ram one lamb of the first year for a burnt offering one kid of the goats for a sin offering and for a sacrifice of peace offerings two oxen five Rams five he goats five limbs of the first year this was the offering of nahshon the son of a minute dad let's pray right now let's just pray pray over the word that you've heard right now ask God here's the specific prayer ask God to let the word touch your heart tonight father I have read the word and Lord I'm about to expound on the word tonight because I believe that that's what you called me to do Lord you called me O God to preach and to teach your word there's no way we can be saved outside of the word there's no way that we can know your mind and your wheel outside of the word God with my hands on my chest tonight I ask that you would let the word find a place in my heart to all through my life Oh God Lord touch this congregation tonight we'll give you praise and honor change our lives tonight God through your word in Jesus name we pray amen you may be seated God has given us almost all things in order for us to be saved God has given please notice my wording God has given us almost everybody said almost God has given us almost all things in order for us to be saved but there's one thing God didn't give us in order for us to be saved is one thing God didn't give us he almost gave us all things but there's one thing he left out and that's my title tonight he left out our response our response see there's a keyword in the New Testament when it deals with salvation who so ever will in order to partake of God in order to be changed by God in order to be the recipient of the blessings from God who so ever will has to come in order for the altar to be effective in order for this to really alter our lives in order for us to really be changed by what we do and what we value we have to give it the proper response tonight I am standing in the most valuable place in my life the house of God this place that we stand in tonight is the place where the word of God is preached the word of god is taught it's a place not only for weddings and funerals it's much more important than just a place to gather and marry are young and bury our dead it's a place that has been designed and dedicated for the sole purpose of our lives in God there's a lot of similarities tonight in chapter 7 verse 1 and in the week that we've just completed there's a lot of similarities because I am telling you tonight this house is the most important place in my life there's one thing I want our marriage to know this is the most important place in our lives if there's one thing I want our children to know this is the most important place in our lives our grandchildren and by the help and the will of God one day our great-grandchildren Moses had set up the tabernacle verse 1 chapter 7 he had set it up he had anointed it he had sanctified it the Bible is pretty clear that he anointed and sanctified the tabernacle and all of the vessels of the tabernacle he anointed it with oil sprinkled blood from a big brush he sprinkled splattered blood on all the pieces of furniture wasn't enough that it was just built it had to be anointed it had to be anointed and it wasn't enough that it was just anointed the Bible said he sanctified them he sanctified them now to the best of my study how would he sanctify the tabernacle he would sanctify by teaching he had the people of Israel as his audience and he sanctified that place by teaching about the value of that place I maybe can hear him say things like this now you might have some cloth like that at home and you might lean up against your cloth in your tent but I want you to know this cloth it's holy cloth it's holy cloth I could hear him say things like now there's a lot of places that you can you can just kind of meander around and maybe talk about the dew on the mountain or you might can talk about the livestock and all of this but I can hear him say but when you come through this gate here I want you to have your mind on God because this is no ordinary gate you've come through a lot of gas but this is no ordinary gate this is the gate that leads in to the Courtyard maybe he tells them about the altar and tells them that that altar will only be used to burn sacrifices on maybe he tells them about the labor and tells them that that labor will only be used for the priest to wash their hands and feet he sanctified that place by teaching the people about the value of that place it's no ordinary place does it matter how we feel tonight this is no ordinary place right now does it matter how we feel tonight those are not ordinary pews that you're seated upon and this is not an ordinary place and it's not it's not ordinary it's not just an ordinary place because there's a lot of places that have been set up and there's a lot of places that have pews in them but you have to understand it takes more than pews to make a house of God it takes the anointing but it takes more than just the anointing to have a house of God it takes some sanctification it takes some teaching you've got to have both the spirit anointing and you got to have the word the sanctification because they that worship God can I get a witness they that worship God must worship God in spirit anointing and truth sanctification and they had set it up and Moses had anointed it and Moses had taught the people about it when verse number 2 comes into play the Bible says that a group of men called the princes of Israel heads of the houses heads of the tribes of Israel that they showed up they showed up to the front of the temple or the tabernacle they showed up and when they showed up they had offerings in their hands as a matter of fact I have to move around because chronologically verse number two did not at verse number three the six covered wagons and the twelve oxen came about a little later in the chapter and I want you to notice something chapter seven of the Book of Numbers is a very long chapter it has 89 verses 89 verses Moses had a set up the tabernacle Moses had anointed the tabernacle Moses had taught the people about the tabernacle and the next thing he knew here came these princes here came these men that had gifts in their hands they had an offering because brothers and sisters tonight we need more than just this place setup we need more than this this place being anointed we need more than just the pulpit preaching and teaching sanctification we must have your response there must be a response there has got to be if you're going to walk with God and and have God's fullest richest blessings resting upon you you have got to know how to respond to the beauty of God's house and to the teaching that goes into God's house there has got to be a response you must have a response in order to know that you've been changed by this house if this house hasn't caused you to respond in this house has not had its fullest effects upon you because it's more than your setup and it's more than just anointed and it's more than just me up here telling you how to live for God for God's sake Church you've got to have a response and it can't be I can't I can't give you your response God gave us almost everything we needed for salvation but he left out one thing and that is your response and without your response here is lost as if there had never been a tabernacle you're as lost as if there had never been an anointing you're as lost as if there had never been a teaching preacher you're as lost as if they had never been you must respond the Bible says these princes showed up if I could just go back over beginning beginning at verse number thirteen his offering was one silver charger the weight thereof was a hundred and thirty shekels that's about four pounds one silver bowl of seventy shekels after the shekel of the sanctuary both of them were full of fine flour mingled with oil for a meat offering one spoon of ten shekels of gold full of incense one young Bullock one ram one lamb of the first year for a burnt offering one kid of the goats for a sin offering for sacrifice of peace offerings to auxin five Rams five he goes five lambs of the first year this was the offering of nahshon the son of a been a dad and on the second day on the second day now what you will find if you want to have a little homework you will find that all twelve Prince's that responded Moses did not come down and kill them five lambs - he goes what Moses is looking at is the response of the people and so on the second day and if I read you what the second Prince did do you know that I would read you the identical thing that the first Prince did down to a tee not one more sacrifice not one less sacrifice down to a tee the second Prince on the second day gave the identical offering that the first Prince did on the first day and could I tell you could I go all the way three four five six seven all the way to verse 12 the way to day twelve they came and they offered the same identical gifts each Prince had his day 12 days 12 days that's a long time 12 days they offered we're told we are told in verse number 88 when Moses sums up all the twelve princes and all of their gifts and in verse 88 he says these words and all the oxen for the sacrifice of the peace offerings were twenty and four Bullock's the RAM 60 the he-goat sixty the Lambs of the first year 60 this was the dedication of the altar after it was anointed this was the dedication of the altar after Moses had anointed it the word dedication and I guess we have some similarities because we've just came through our dedication week so this is the dedication of the altar but notice the words after it was anointed the word dedication means to initiate the words dedication means to cause it to become functional in other words you must understand that you can have an anointed altar and it not affects your life because you have never had an initiation at that altar because it's not enough to come and sit in a church that's anointed I submit to you it will have little to no effect on your life just to sit in a house that's anointed the only way your life becomes transformed is for you to begin to respond to that altar the only way that your life begins to get changed that the ugly person inside of you gets changed and the ugliness inside of you gets changed and the things inside of you gets altered your emotions your the way that you think the way that the flesh is the only way that that can happen is not just to come and say I know brother carpenters anointed I know we got a choir that shouts I know that we've got a real good spiritual church change you hear them in the prayer room can I tell you brothers and sisters tonight this church will affect you very little and may not even affect you any if you have that mentality we have got to be willing to be able to come to the altar and give God something that he did not give us something that God does not yes and that's my response God does not have my response until I give it to him come on with your praise him right now come on praise him right now I want God to have I want God to have my response david goosey in his commentary comments about the lavish gift all the princes gave he says clearly this was a generous this was generous giving did you notice with me they didn't bring Empty Bowls they brought bowls full of meal that could be offered up in the temple did you notice with me they didn't bring empty spoons they brought spoons full of incense they brought a quart of David gusik a generous giving God must show promised land' people how to be givers one of the best measures of one who has moved from slave mind-set from a slave mindset to a promised land mindset the slave by nature is a taker because he is often unsure of provision promised land people are generous because they trust in God in a God who has promised to meet all their needs you know who these princes are they're former slaves but they have now went from a mindset of a slave to the mindset of promised land people I'm not gonna listen in Egypt in Egypt they did not have enough in Canaan in the wilderness they had just enough but they were heading to a land called Canaan when they would have more than enough can I tell you tonight whatever situation you're in if you're waiting for things to get better to respond you will never respond but if you'll learn how to get a mindset I'm the head into victory I may be in a mess I may be going home to a mess my life might be upside down but I want you to know tonight I have a house that is set up I have a house that is anointed I have a preacher that is teaching it and I'm going to give a response to God I'm going to bring a response something interesting happen now remember I told you that verse number remember I told you that verse number 2 and 3 or 3 happens after they come with all of their gifts to dedicate the altar they bring gifts to dedicate the offer isn't that amazing they didn't bring gifts to dedicate the laver and they didn't bring gifts to dedicate the candlesticks they brought gifts to dedicate the altar because if you could ever get an altar dedicated you're always going to have a labor and you're always going to have light you learned how to keep your flesh on an altar you're going to what listen read my lips tonight if you can if you can keep your flesh on the altar you get ready you will walk on streets of gold one day we need the altar if there's a place we need the labor is good and refreshing but what good is a labor if I got rotten flesh that is going on God give the altar because if I can keep myself on the altar I'll weather every storm hell throws at me I'll weather ever trial that life brings to me how weather all the seasons of life if I can stay on the old come on respond to this tonight if I can stay many altar the altar do something to you I said the altar will do something to you do you know the altar will help you to think about others because that's exactly what I dug out of the scripture here cuz verse three did not happen until they dedicated the altar and we know they spent twelve days at the altar verse three didn't happen until they dedicated the altar which tells me that they evidently become familiar with the operation of the tabernacle don't talk about the operation of the tabernacle not only did the tabernacle have to be set up but the tabernacle at the moving of the cloud the tabernacle would have to be disassembled and the tabernacle would have to be carried by men to wherever the cloud would go was it all just a setup Tabernacle they would have to disassemble it that cloud get the puffing and the cloud move moving then they would have to start come in I will not spend the time tonight but God gave it God had given them specific instructions of exactly who was to come and take the curtains down I heard someone saying it's just a figure that the tabernacle weighed 19,000 pounds 19,000 pounds now if you turn with me just for a moment to numbers chapter 4 verse number 32 gives us just a small snippet of the day of the disassembling of the tabernacle and the pillars of the Court roundabout numbers 432 and the pillars of the court roundabout and their sockets and their pens and their cords with all their instruments and with all their service and by name ye shall reckon the instruments of the charge of their burden Luke look at what he calls it there you know what it calls what it calls the tabernacle put together in one piece it's called a tabernacle but take it apart and it's called a burden can I tell you there is a burden to this thing there is a burden it's called a burden we're going to get to heaven we're going to have to learn how to carry our burdens and when we get a light burden we're going to have to learn how to look over and help somebody else carry their burdens and let that sink in for a moment verse 33 this is the service of the families of the son of Moriah according to all their service in the tabernacle of the congregation under the hand of FMR the son of Aaron the priest so he tells these men it's it's your job it's your job this is your job think about it the cloud starts to move 19,000 pounds has to be disassembled and carry now I happen to know that there were curtains there was a lot of curtains I happened to know there was a lot of long poles and I happened to know there was a lot of small silver sockets I happen to know that there were boards that fit together and there were curtains and there were men that in the beginning they were simply told to carry this well I don't really know I guess maybe if they've carried a curtain they might have threw it over their arms maybe carried enough over the shoulders I don't know maybe if it was supposed maybe they all got together and they they put on each shoulder but all of that sounds like hard work to me right because we're walking and we're carrying this burden but evidently evidently these twelve Prince's that were acting out what I want to become add to what I want all of us to live Moses didn't come down and command them it was their response evidently these men saw how the tabernacle would have to be moved and did we use the word burden they saw the burden bearing of their brothers and the Bible says Numbers chapter 7 and verse number two that the princes of Israel heads of the house of their fathers who were the princes of the tribes and were over them that were numbered offered they brought their offering before the Lord six covered wagons twelve oxen a wagon for two of the princes and for each one and oxen they brought them before the Taverner hay like to be Moses on that day Moses is going about his duty in the tabernacle he walks out and lo and behold up comes six wagons in twelve oxen brought by those same twelve Prince's that had just brought all of that freewill offering Moses steps out six covered wagons twelve oxen and these men said we want to offer them we want to give them to you and the Bible says in verse four could we reverse for together and the Lord spake unto Moses saying let's go into verse five take it of them Moses walked out six covered wagons twelve oxen he don't know what to do six covered wagons twelve oxen and God says to Moses go ahead and take it I can put that into use in the service of the tabernacle and I watch this God said take it of them that they may they may be to do the service of the tabernacle of the congregation and thou shalt give them unto the Levites to every man according to his service and Moses took the wagons and the oxen and gave them unto the Levites two wagons and four oxen he gave into the sons of Gershon according to their service for wagons and a dachshund he gave unto the sons of me rayray according to their service under the hand of info FMR the son of Aaron the priest but under the sons of Kohath he gave none because the service of the sanctuary belonging unto them was that they should bear upon their shoulders now guess what happens when we learn how to dedicate our altar we begin to think about our brothers we begin to think about our most 12 men they dedicated their altar with gifts and on their way home they begin to talk about man our brothers when the tabernacle is disassembled they got to carrying those heavy curtains they got to carry those heavy pose I wish there was a way that we could make it easier on our brothers and that's another beauty of the house of God you see we can never expect a world to love the church if we don't learn the church we can never expect a world of want to come among us if we don't love one another oh I've got to preach tonight come on now I want you to know the house has been set up the house has been anointed the house has been sanctified but we need to get some response in the house we need to love one another Lord I don't want to ever say anything that would put a burden on your back but I want to say something that might take a burden off your back I don't want to do anything to cause somebody to stumble but I want to do everything to cause somebody to stay in the race and to live for God because that's what the altar will do for you we got to love each other I said we got a level one another come on church I'm not preaching to the sinner tonight I'm not preaching to the backslider tonight I'm preaching to the church we got to love one another we can't expect the world we got to love our church I said we got to love our church we got to love our church we got a love being here we can't just be here well you know why I go there I don't much like the people I just go there I'm gonna be saved no you're not no you're not you fooling yourself tonight you you you just you just Savin yourself that you're coming to church you can't come to church and hate your brother whom you have seen and claim that you love God whom you've never laid eyes on you can't come to church and have things in your heart toward one another and try to love God on the same hand God looks right through that God don't even accept it in the first place you're wasting your time waving your arms you're wasting your time telling God you love him he said if you get to the altar and you remember that some things between you and your brother leave you hallelujah the altar leave your glory to God at the altar leave you thank you Jesus at the altar go back get in love with your church and then come back and offer up to me because God said that's the way that's the way y'all love your church you got to love each other well I just go there I don't much like it but I just go there we they're their apostolic they believe what I believe that's a poor reason to come here that's a poor reason to come here and if you have that mentality it's only because you have never dedicated the altar you have never you have never dedicated your altar it's anointed but it's not dedicated in your life it's not changed your life while you was a little jealous teenager girl and now you're a little you're a jealous teenager older woman while you were a little less than a little boy and now you're a little less than middle-aged man and you know why that is you have never learned how to dedicate an altar because if you could ever learn how to dedicate an altar the altar begins to work in your life it begins to help you managing if it begins to help you control this flesh when your flesh wants to fly off the handle and go cussing and give everybody a piece of your mind and until everything's on all kind of social network if you've got some anointed altar on the inside of you you say you know what I don't know why that brother said that about me but I'm going to pray for him I'm gonna pray for her I'm doing when they cursed me I'm bless them back I'm gonna be good to them that to those that despitefully used me can you say man tonight they got to looking around they got to walking home ain't got talking man I wish there's a way we could make it easier for our brothers they've carried him curtains impose 19,000 pounds of material somebody said notice no sir reading I can hear so I can hear one of them say well man if we could buy if I could buy a wagon but but I can't afford to buy a wagon I don't have enough to buy a wagon and the Bible said that two princes brought one wagon could it be that two princes brought one wagon cause one white one Prince couldn't afford a wagon but if two princes could get together they can go in and buy a wagon do you know we need each other tonight do you know that you cannot be the church alone God's church is not the long Ranger if you're going to be the church like it or not you're among some / people that are imperfect you're among some people that are flawed but welcome to the church you're not among perfection yet it does not yet appear what we shall be I don't have angel wings yet but if you're going to get to heaven we've got to learn how to get together in the church we gotta lay I can't afford a wagon on my own but let me get with that Sullivan fella and we might put our talents together and we might borrow wagon I can't afford a wagon on myself but if I can get together I can I can buy what let me tell you maybe I can't get Noland saved by myself maybe I don't have the power in and of myself as a father to have Fallon and Loren and Nolan to walk those streets of gold but maybe I can get brother Sullivan with me just maybe if I can get his influence in my life he'll have an influence upon brother Nolan I may not be able to afford a wagon on myself but if I can get with somebody else we're gonna buy us some wagons because we want to make it easy I don't know about you but I like my grandchildren growing up in a youth group my grandchildren alone can't be the youth group we don't have it among us to buy that wagon but let me get my grandkids with your grandkids I'm gonna tell you something it's difficult to serve God in the church I preach in them I preach in them I on I know what I'm talking about I talk to students I go to churches where a young man or a young woman might be the only teenager in the church I hear them when they come up a matter of fact I try to attach myself to them because you know why it's not easy for them to live for God nobody's bought them a wagon yet maybe we got some folks that are too concerned with having their way they can't get together because they won't the church run just like they want the church run so they're never able to get together and by stinking wagon but I want you to know tonight that you're not looking at that kind of church here you're looking at some folks and said hey brother let me get with you and let's buy a wagon and we won't raise kids that's the only teenager we won't raise the little girl that goes to church and no CC only 12 year old in the church what a hard life that is oh my card aren't you glad that somebody has got together I hope y'all understand it when I'm preaching tonight we don't love each other somebody said I believe the 10 commandments well I Got News for you there is 11 did you know that did you know they're not ten commandments do you know there's 11 commandments it's found in John 13 31 there's not Ten Commandments there might have been 10 commandments of Moses but we got more than Moses had and because we've got more than Moses had God gave us one more commandment we have 11 Commandments John 1331 says it this way Jesus says therefore when he was gone out jesus said now is the son of man glorified and God is glorified in him now when he was gone out who was gone out that's John 13 31 please if you could put that on the screen I'd I'd really like for them to see John 13 and 31 I told them tonight I had a little problem with my my notes here and I told him I'd go slow on the scripture John 13 and 31 now when he was going out who was gone out Judas because Jesus can never get glorified in your life until you send Judas out of the room Judas is a taker Judas comes to church to see what he can get out of it Judas comes to church to see if his preachers preaching Judas comes to church to see if they're going to sing play my style of music Judas comes to church to see if somebody's gonna get their hands shook Judas is a sponge he's just taken and sometimes Judas has stuff no no not sometimes all the time Judas has got to leave your life for you to get a revelation of the 11th commandment 11th commandment goes something like this verse 32 if God be glorified in him God also if God be glorified in him God shall also glorify Him in himself and shall straightway glorify Him little children yet a little while while I am with you you shall seek me and as I said unto the Jews whether I go you cannot come so now I say unto you a new commandment that's the 11th commandment I give unto you that ye love one another as I have loved you that ye also love one another by this shall all men know that ye are my disciples if ye love one another o those men they left at dedicating that altar and on their way home they said we want to make it easier on our brother we want to bring wagons and we want to bring oxen they're not gonna change em curtains on their shoulder they're gonna lay them curtains in them in wagons they're not gonna carry the impose on their shoulders they're going to carry the impose in that wagon we want to make it easier on our brothers we want to make it easier and being a part of the Apostolic Church or the apostolic youth group to be a child of God you have got to continually be looking at ways to make it easier upon one another words of encouragement words of affirmation words of just we need each other we don't need gossip in this church gossip is cancer backbiting it's cancer murmuring is cancer talking about what you don't like about the church more than what you do like about the church it's cancerous you're not gonna make it you're gonna fall out along the way your children are not gonna be saved you got to learn how to fall in love with the church so that your children will fall in love it's a power of the word its power of the word look at Romans chapter 13 verse number 8 Romans 13 verse number 8 praise God praise God Oh hallelujah god help us not to murmur god help us not to complain god help us not to back bite one and it back by bite one another god god help us to speak words of affirmation words of love words of encouragement oh god help us lord as a church this house has been set up this house has been anointed God you know I've taught the word now God may there be a holy response from the people lord of the dedication of the altar romans 13 and 8 oh no man anything but to love one another for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law for this thou shalt not commit adultery thou shalt not kill thou shalt not steal thou shalt not bear false witness thou shalt not covet and if there be any other commandment it is briefly comprehended in this saying namely thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself now you think about that if I can just simply get down to love you like myself I don't have to keep a long list of what a list of what I shouldn't do to you if I just keep one thing in mind I'm to love you like I love myself I don't have to have a long list I'm not supposed to lie to you I'm not supposed to covet your wife I'm not supposed to I'm not supposed to steal from you if I just love you like I love myself it'll all take care isn't that a whole lot easier than to try to keep the flesh those commandments are don't commit adultery don't steal work they pertain to the flesh but love your neighbor as yourself pertain to the heart if I can get in the flesh crucified on the altar I can get my heart alive and I can love everybody can somebody say Amen listen to me tonight verse 10 love worketh no ill to his neighbor therefore love is the fulfilling of the law and that knowing the time that is that is high time to awake out of sleep for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed the night is far spent the day is at hand let us therefore cast off the works of darkness and let us put on the arm of life let us walk honestly as in the day and not in rioting and drunkenness not in chambering and wantonness not in strife and envy and cooki on the Lord Jesus Christ and make not provision for the flesh to fulfill the lust is it there is it amazing hey goes on one hand the glove one another and then he starts talking about the end of time he's a lot of folks will pack out they'll pack out churches to hear a prophecy preacher you're hearing the prophecy preacher tonight you're hearing a prophecy preacher tonight what's important is not for you to know about the dragon and the book of Revelation what's important is not for you to know who the Antichrist is is he alive right now where is he at is he a government official no that's not the important thing the important thing for you tonight is to love one another for the night is far spent and the day is at hand if there's ever been a day that you need to bury some hatchets if there's ever been a day that you need to get together with people and just make things right with them and go on and live for God do you look at me tonight it is today Jesus is coming and what would your response be you'd stand with me tonight I have one last scripture to read I reminded me and sister Cartman who was talking about this the other day brother Jesse Williams he is went on to be with the Lord but he was for many years the assistant superintendent of the United Pentecostal church and he made a statement one time in a message that has branded my heart it literally seared my heart he said these words he said more than life when he's talking to the church talking to the church like I'm talking to the church tonight this is not an evangelistic service I'm talking to the church tonight he said these words he said more than likely you will die and meet the Lord in the same spiritual condition that you are right now and I don't know about you but I have a hard time ever believing I'm just ready to go I do I hope that doesn't offend anybody there's somebody more holier than me here I'm probably sure of that but I have to have an altar in my life because I want more and more and more and more you think about that tonight I wouldn't I wouldn't wanna die wouldn't want to die tonight but I believe to the best of my ability god I hope it's I hope it is the best of my ability if I draw my last breath here in a few minutes I hope I've done everything I do know this with the exception of wanting to pray more and fast more there's no other spiritual disciplines that I've got that where one of these days I'm gonna get baptized or one of these days I'm really going to get in church I'm really going to get in one of these days you see when it's all said and done there's one verse I want to leave us with tonight and I don't mean I don't mean for us to end on such a somber note but you know who says it has to be a somber note Acts chapter 28 verse number 24 it's about eight verses from being the last verse in the book of Acts you know I believe that this one verse this one verse sums everything up I want you to know tonight there is no such thing as middle ground neutral ground let's read it all together and some I believe that pretty well says it some believe what else some believe and the only way you can be in that category of believing is to make the right response to make the right response brother Nolan's going to come in about two minutes he's gonna say a dismissal prayer I'm not gonna tell you to come to the front I'm not gonna tell you staying up you I'm not gonna tell you to leave but I am gonna tell you for two minutes 120 seconds would you just respond to this message tonight would you just respond to it tonight but two minutes Jesus Jesus come on can we lift our hands all across this house God we love you Lord God we thank you for your word tonight Lord God let us have the right response to the altar Lord God let us have it anointed alter it every single home that is represented tonight Oh God gonna let the fathers of each family in this place tonight God rededicate themselves to the altar Lord God and I'm not talking about the altar in this church but God let every dedicate got to the altars in their homes Lord you got don't let our altars in our homes gone be barren Lord God don't let our altars in our house is gonna be empty Lord God let us have a fresh revival of altars at our homes Lord that would set our wife's on fire God it would set our children on fire Lord God we know Lord the altar it's a place that our flesh is crucified God don't let our flesh be teased God just conducive Lord let it don't be comfortable Lord because it hasn't been at an altar Oh God God we thank you Jesus let me have loved you got one toward another Lord Lenny love everyone Lord God if I have any faults against my brother god I ask you to help me you've got it if any of my brothers or my sister God you have issue God or have faults in me lord I pray you'd help him to forgive me Lord I pray you to help us Lord we need you Oh God you gotta need you come on one last time let's let's our boys then let's thank him for what we've heard tonight God we thank you Jesus we thank you for your anointed Word we thank you for your man of God that you sent to us tonight you've got to never lose sight of the altar you got to never take the altar for granted because our flesh grow and grow and grow God we thank you tonight God no we don't take it for granted that you've met us here tonight you God I don't change it for granted God on this Wednesday evening Lord you looked at in a group of people at 1331 William blood drive and you placed your presence in this sanctuary tonight I don't take it for granted got after a tough week Lord that you've met me here to encourage me God you've met me here he's got to set my feet on solid ground he's Lord and I'll thank you and I thank you and I thank you God I'm not worthy you got this Church is not worthy God to have your presence here God we are just flesh God we are just filthy rags but God in an altar Lord you have menís here when we crucify our flesh you've got any places in your presence Lord you've got to change us and to encourage us tonight do everything in your name in Jesus name in Jesus name someone say Amen someone say man I asked you to keep please keep the spirit of Prayer but before you leave I want you to shake hands and hug a brother and a sister and I want you to tell them that you love them and I want you to tell that brother or sister that this church is not the same without them I want you to tell them brother I love you and I need you but this church is not the same without you so many guests in this place I want to tell you that this church is not the same without you we need you here at FAC we love you here at FAC let's hug one to another brother the brother and sister to sister the brotherly love and the sisterly love that the Scriptures talk about tonight please keep the spirit of Prayer in this house this evening