Are You Fit For The Body? | Javon Ruff

((music playing)) Praise God. Praise God. Come on. Let's do it for about 20 more seconds. Come on. Can you lift up a hallelujah? Come on. Can you lift up a glory to God? Can you give him a thank you, Jesus? He's worthy of our praise this morning. Jesus, we thank you for the cross.

We thank you for healing. We thank you for freedom. We thank you for the blood that speaks for better things. We honor you this morning. We give you glory. Glory to God in the highest. Oh, lift up your hands, oh ye gates, and be lifted up, ye everlasting doors, and the king of glory shall come in.

Who is this king of glory? The Lord strong and mighty. The Lord mighty in battle. Come on. If you know the Lord is mighty this morning, give him your best praise. We're not just filling time. We're honoring him. Glorifying him. We bless your name, Jesus. We honor you.

We praise you. We glorify you. You're worthy to be praised. He's worthy of our best praise. Do you know that? There's nothing like worshiping and lifting up the name that is above every name. >> You know, the Bible's very clear that there are people that may not want to worship that name or bow to that name or honor that name.

But I tell you what, you're going to do it by choice or you going to do it when you have no choice. Because the Bible said there's coming a day, Lord have mercy, that every knee will bow, every tongue will confess things under the earth, in the earth, and heaven that Jesus Christ is Lord.

Give the Lord one more shout of praise. He is Lord and Lord of all. Thank you, Jesus. ((music playing)) Praise God. While you're praising, let's take a moment and just honor all of those who are watching with us this morning. Come on, let's give it up for all of our campuses.

We know you're praising God right there. We want to welcome Gwynette. We want to welcome our Brazleton campus and Spartanberg. Good morning. I'm not there. I'm here. Well, hello to my Spartanberg family. Let's give it up for Midtown and Alpharetta. Come on, Orange County. Can we give it up for Metro Re-entry, Haye State Prison, Witworth, Hall County Correction, Phillips State Prison, Hall County Jail.

Come on, Lee Arendelle State Prison and all of our online watchers at our online campus. We welcome you and we believe that God's going to do great things today for you. Before you're seated today, why don't you high-five two people and tell them he's worthy. He's worthy. He's worthy.

So great to be here this morning and it's always a privilege and honor to be here in Gainesville and um just to always let people know just in case I'm not a guest speaker. This is home and family for me. And I'm so delighted to be here with our campuses here.

And I'm also glad normally when I come, Shannon's normally at our campus, but she's here with me today. And so glad that she's here with me. Glad to have her with me. We celebrate 24 years of marriage tomorrow. Tomorrow's our anniversary. So, but um I'm always delighted. It's such an honor to stand in this pull pit.

And I honor our pastor today, Pastor Jensen. Miss Sharice, come on, give it up for him. And um let's be praying for them. They're out in Orange County. He's going to be speaking to our church there um on the West Coast. And I know God is going to move powerfully out there.

But let's pray for them. Say a prayer. Amen. Give it up for them. I believe a revival to break out in California in Jesus name. But um he's going to pastor will be back here next weekend. He's going to be preaching live here next weekend. Um and so that's going to be exciting.

And and before I turn to the text also next weekend is I want to ask you to do something this week. How many appreciate of our our student ministries and our youth ministries? Come on. How many appreciate our youth leadership, our pastors, youth leaders at all of our campuses.

Next weekend, they're going to have several hundred students from all of our campuses. And they're going to be at camp. And um it's always a special time when they go to camp. And I want to ask you to pray for them. Pray for all the leaders, the students.

And let's just believe God to do something powerful. Let's Come on. Let's believe that they'll have a mountain of transfiguration up there on that mountain and none of them come back the same way that they came and pray God's protection over them. We're excited about what God is doing in our student ministries.

All right, if you have your Bibles, I want you to turn to Ephesians chapter 2. Ephesians chapter 2, and I'm going to begin reading at verse 11. And um as you walked in today and as you leave, you'll notice that on the patio area and the lobbies at all of our campuses today, we have find your fit.

And find your fit is our our the pathway and opportunity for you to get connected in community, whether it's small groups where whether serve groups or outreach groups or or ministry groups. And um I would love for you to check those out today. Some of you have been looking for an opportunity to get involved and plugged in and find a sense of community.

This would be the very day to do it. It's going to be awesome. And they'll be outside um waiting to talk to you after this service. And matter of fact, I'm going to preach or teach along those lines today concerning find your fit. But Ephesians chapter 2, it says this in verse 11.

Say it says, "Therefore remember that you were once Gentiles in the flesh, who are called uncircum who are who are called uncircumcision by what is called the circumcision made in the flesh by hands. That at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope."

Notice that, "And without God in the world." Verse 13 says this. But now in Christ Jesus, you who once were a far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. I love that. Verse 19. Now therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints.

Notice this. And members of the household of God. having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief cornerstone, in whom the whole building, here it is, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you are also being built together for a dwelling place of God in the spirit.

Verse 21 says this, "Being fitted together." I want to I want to talk to you from this title or subject if you're taking notes and I ask that you would um just simple thought in the form of a question. Are you fit for the body? Are you fit for the body?

Growing up, there was something that my family enjoyed doing, and that was putting puzzles together, different types of puzzles. Now, me personally, I enjoyed putting puzzles together, but I think my favorite were those types of puzzles that only had probably about 15 pieces. You know, they're real big.

It was very obviously where they went and things of that sort cuz uh with my attention span, my lack of patience, I always wanted to get it done quick. And um but I like doing them. It was fun. It was great. Now my sister on the other hand, she was a little bit different.

She would prefer the the puzzles that's got 8 million pieces in it. You know, it's 500 and 300. You know, the ones that you just open the box and you dump and they just go everywhere. little bitty pieces and we would work on those puzzles and put those puzzles together and and and oftentimes it would take a long time.

It would take a while, you know, to get it done. But I would always remember there would be certain times that after we spent so many hours and so much time, sometimes we work on a little bit today and a little bit tomorrow and a little bit the next day.

But then when you would get to that place where you were coming home, you see the home stretch and just when you think that the puzzle is complete, you notice that there's about one or two pieces missing and you do your best to look. You're looking around, looking under the table, opening the box, and for whatever reason, those that one or two pieces seem to just escape.

And although there's a side of you that's kind of happy and excited the fact that you got this far, but then also there's a part of you that's just a little bit frustrated because I did all this work. My goal in this was to complete it fully, not to leave it incomplete.

And nothing in me or in us would ever be satisfied as long as we saw a piece of that puzzle missing. Because no matter how beautiful the picture was, it still felt incomplete when a piece was missing. That's exactly how the church is when you and I are not in our proper fit.

God created every one of us with a place with a role and a purpose in his body. The church is not a spectator sport. It's a body and every single part matters. This is what the Apostle Paul was talking to the Ephesians church about. He said, 'I understand.

He He's addressing where they were, their former life before Christ, the life that they lived. The scripture said they were strangers. They were aliens from the commonwealth of God. The Bible said they were out of covenant. They were in the world without God and having no hope. But then there was a shift.

The scripture said, "But now, but now it said, you who once were a far off have been brought near by the blood of Jesus." There was a time that you were in darkness. There was a time that you were in deception. There was a time that you were just busted and messed up and tore up and in despair and hopelessness.

But when the blood of Jesus Christ came to your life and cleansed you and washed you and purged you and sanctify you. Come on, somebody. I need some real people here in this service that can testify. I know you're saved and you look good now, but can you just take a moment to think back where you were before the blood touched you?

Before come on, grace came into your life. Cuz if you really remember, you'll get a little bit more excited and give God some good praise. Uh because of the blood of Jesus that took you, come on, from a busted place to a blessed place. From being disadvantaged to advantage, from being cursed to being blessed.

Now that you are in Christ, Jesus, the scripture said, things have changed. >> He said, "You're no longer strangers. You're no longer foreigners, but the Bible said, "Now you have been made part of the citizens and saints." Notice that you were strangers and aliens, but now you're citizens and saints.

The scripture said, "And members of the household of God." But what I love about this text, Paul did not stop there. He said, "Because that's great and that's good, but you and I aren't to be just content with now being citizens and saint in the house." But it says, "Now that you and I are in the house, we have a responsibility to fulfill."

Notice it said, "Now that you're in the house, we ought to be fitted together." Then it said we ought to be built together. And then it gives us the reason why. So that we become a dwelling place for the glory and the presence of God. Understand what Paul is describing.

As beautiful as this building is and this auditorium and all of our campuses is, he's not talking about brick and mortar. He's not talking about concrete and carpet. He's talking about the people that I'm looking at right now that are sitting on these seats. He is talking about you.

You are the church. You are the body of Christ. And he said the our responsibility now is that you and I must be fitted being built up so that we can become a dwelling place for the glory and the presence of God. Can I tell you this morning that God has not changed his mind about the church?

I know we live in a time and in a culture where everything wants to make the church obsolete. Everybody and everything wants to deconstruct and tear down the church is this and the church ain't that and the church is this and all this type. It it amazes me that people that don't go to church have everything to say about the church but don't really know anything about the church or the God of the church.

But I'm here to declare to you the church is not going anywhere until Jesus decides for it to he said upon this rock I will build my church and the gates of hell will not prevail. The church is still his instrument. The church is still his vehicle. The church is still his means uh by which he is going to invade this world with his glory so that souls can be saved and lives can be changed.

Uh God has not changed his mind about the church. Let me preach a little bit. The Bible actually says in Isaiah that in the last days that God is going to exalt his church upon the mountaintops and the Gentiles are going to come running and saying, "Teach me the ways of the God of Jacob."

I want to declare and prophesy the Gentiles are going to be running to Midtown. They're going to be running to Alpharetta. They're going to be running to Gwynette. They're going to run, come on, somebody to Gainesville. They're going to run to Brazleton. They're going to run to Spartanberg.

They're going to run to Orange County. And my God, it won't be long. They're going to run to Destin. And they're going to know the ways of God because they will find a church that is fitted and joined together. ((applause)) God never intended us to walk this faith journey alone.

Christianity is not a solo act. It's a family, a fellowship, a body. Everyone was created with a purpose and a place in God's family. Every believer has a role, a function, and a divine assignment in the church. The church is not a building. It's a it's a living, breathing body.

And we're called to be connected and to serve. Just like every part of the body has a function, every believer has a fit in the body of Christ. Paul compares the body of Christ to the natural body. He says in 1 Corinthians chapter 12, "But now indeed there are many members yet one body.

The eye cannot say to the hand, I have no need, nor again the head to the feet, I have no need of you." Verse 22, he says, "No, no, much rather those members of the body which seem to be weaker or necessary." What is Paul talking about? He said, "We're many members, but we're all of the same body."

In these texts, he's talking about, watch this, our individuality. He's talking about our importance, and he's talking about our necessities. He was saying every one of you should always embrace your individuality and your uniqueness. That's why you don't try to be anything or anybody else other than who God has called and created you to be.

That's why we don't compare ourselves among ourselves because comparing ourselves is unwise. Uh and if you try to be anything other than what God called you to be, you will only be second best. One writer put it like this. You were born an original. So don't die a copy.

You need to where God knew exactly what you were doing when he when he when he created you. He said in Psalms 139, "I didn't make a mistake. I wasn't had a bad day, but when I fashioned you and formed you in your mother's womb, you were fearfully and wonderfully made.

Uh nobody's a mistake. Nobody's an accident. Nobody is coincidental. You are c my God. You were in God before you came through your mama. We came from God and through our parents. You are unique. And he said, I want you to know that you're important, too. And he said, I want you to know that you're necessary.

I want to preach to people this morning that you need to realize you're necessary because many of you feel like there's nothing that you can do. You're necessary. I don't care what your past have been. I don't care what you've gone through. I don't care what you've walked through.

You are necessary. You are needed. The blood will cleanse. The blood washes. Grace covers. You are needed. Uh and sometimes we got to tell you that because in a church this size, everybody thinks that all the needs are met. I want to tell you they're not. Not at any of our campuses.

You are needed. You are necessary. There is a fit for you. You are needed. You are necessary. And you are important. Understand when you talk about being fit for the body, what does that mean, Pastor Javon? Number one, if you're taking mo notes, it means this. You must be fitted in connection.

Romans 12:5 says, "So it is with Christ's body, we are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other." Did you catch that? We all belong to each other. In other words, watch this. Connection brings belonging. God designed you to be a part of something bigger than yourself.

You don't just attend church. You belong to God's family. We all need a place to call home in God's family. Psalm 68:6 says this, "God sets the lonely in families." God said, "I never meant for you to be lonely. I never meant for you to feel abandoned. I never meant for you to just be out there trying to do life by yourself."

He said, "I take the lonely and I set them in a family." And that family is the family of God. God doesn't want you lonely. God don't want you to be a lone ranger. God don't want you to just wander in life. No. The enemy wants to keep you lonely, but God wants to get you connected and come on and fitted in a family so that you can flourish.

He sets the lonely. There was a story of a pastor who visited one of the members of his church who had been attending services regular. Then he stopped. After a few weeks, the pastor decided to visit him and he went to his house on a chilly evening. The pastor found the man at home alone.

He was sitting before a blazing fire. The man seeing the pastor come and guessing the reason for this visit, he welcomed him in, led him over to his big recliner there in the living room, and offered the pastor a seat there. As they sat there, there was no words exchanged except for the initial greeting.

After minutes had gone by, they sat in silence. No exchange of communication whatsoever. All of a sudden, the pastor got up from that comforter, walked over to the fireplace, and grabbed the tongs, and he took one of the embers that were blazing hot off of the fire, coals off of the fire, and he set it over on the side of the fireplace.

He laid the tongs down and he went back and sat still in silence. No exchange of conversation or communication. But as they sat there, that ember that was once burning bright and shining, it began to dim more and more and more. It began to die out more and more and more to the point that it had become nothing more than just a black piece of coal and almost a lump of ashes.

It was then that the pastor didn't got got up. He walked back over to that same fireplace and grabbed those same tongs and he grabbed that ember, that coal, and he took it and he set it back into the fire. And it was a matter of minutes that which was seemingly dead, gone, done away with, and finished was now back on fire again.

As the pastor reached the door to leave, the man said, "Thank you so much for your visit and especially for the fiery sermon. I shall be back to church next Sunday." Can I tell you, it's belonging that help keeps you burning. The more you get disconnected from the body, the more you separate from the body, the more you stay away from God's people and God's house, you that fire that once burned, it's a matter of time that you begin to burn dimly, dimly, dimly, losing your passion, losing your fire, losing your spirituality.

And when you start losing spirituality, you start gaining carnality. And oh, I just said something. Because the more you come away from the spirit, the more you draw closer to the flesh. And I'm here to preach to somebody in this room or watching me online. Uh you have been an ember to that has been separated too long.

And this is your word today. It's time for you to get back connected and fitted in God's house with God's people. You were never meant to burn out. Uh you were meant to burn on. But belonging is what keeps you burning. Understand that belonging takes intentionality. Hebrews chap 10 24-2 it says and let us consider one another and stir up love and good works.

And it says not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together as the manner of some but exhorting one another as we see much more as you as so much the more as you see the day approaching. Oftentimes when we use this scripture and hear this scripture, we we we we use it in reference to coming to church.

You need to get to church, we use it as a term of gathering to church. But it did not say forsake the gathering. It said do not forsake the assembling. Because there's a difference between gathering and assembling. It is possible to gather and never be assembled. >> We're gathered in this room today, but not everybody is assembled. >> Because gathering can happen, you know, casually, but watch this.

Assembling takes intentionality. See, that's why you can have a box of Legos and they're gathered in the box, but it'll say on the bottom, assembly required. >> Oh, I'm preaching. I know. Because just because you're gathered here don't mean you're assembled in the body. >> See, think of it like this.

We we you know, we live in South Carolina. We don't live far from the BMW plant, the assembly line where they make the X3. And you know, you you can go over there, you can see the cars, but it's amazing how they start out at the beginning of the assembly line.

They don't look like a whole lot of nothing. But once they enter into assembling and they go from one step to two steps to next steps and another step and another step. Oh, come on. Every step of the way. And it stays on the process. Stuff is being added.

Things are being put on. things have been. Come on, somebody. And when it gets to the end of the assembly, oh my God, it don't look like in the end what it looked like in the beginning. And what I'm telling you, I'm glad that you're saved. And I'm glad you said get yes to Jesus.

Uh but don't just be gathered. Uh get assembled because I promise you in a few months you won't look like what you started. Uh you'll be Come on, somebody. Your praise will be different. Your worship will be different. But you got to get connected. >> Understand? We must be fitted number two in serving.

Jesus said in Matthew 25, "The greatest among you alive is the one who is called to serve others." He said, "Because the greatest honor and authority is reserved for the one with the heart to serve." Jesus said, "I didn't come to be served, but I came to serve."

Listen, Martin, Dr. Martin Luther King says this, "Everybody can be great because anybody can serve. You don't have to have a college degree to serve. You don't have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You only need a heart full of grace and a soul generated by love to serve.

Understand the Bible is very clear. We are called to serve. Serving isn't optional. It's how you grow and glorify God. Some shaping only comes through serving. There's some shaping and molding that will only come through serving. Now notice we we call it find your fit. See, when you get fit, you are considered to be in shape.

But if you're unfit, you're out of shape. So if you want to be, if you get fit, you'll be shaped. But if you remain unfit, you going to stay out of shape because there's some shaping. Come on, somebody. That's only going to come with your serving. We're called to serve.

Ephesians 4 said the church is to help us to be equipped to serve. Paul said in 1 Corinthians 15 that we ought to persevere when we serve. Psalms 102 said that we ought to be joyous when we serve. Serve the Lord with gladness. The scripture said, in other words, if I'm serving, I don't look stand around and halfway speaking to people don't want to say nothing.

No, serve the Lord with gladness. The Bible said, "Enter into his gates with thanksgiving. Come into his courts with praise. Serve him with gladness." Can I say this? Serving is often connected to releasing purpose. Let me preach this real quick. I get asked this all the time. So, how did you get get in with Jensen?

How did you get in with Jetson? I get it all the time. So tell me, how did you get in with Jetson? I'll be can't tell you how many times I've been asked that. And I said, well, I said, I need you to understand that I never got in with Jensen. >> When I came to Free Chapel, I was in a hot mess.

I was in trouble >> when I got to Free Chapel because I was in a mess and in trouble. But it resulted of me getting in an altar. And when I got in an altar, uh Jesus got in me. And when Jesus got in me, some things had to get out of me.

Oh, not only did some things get out of me, uh then Jesus put a passion in me. And that passion in me was to help other people get what I got. And so I never got in with Jensen. I got involved in the church. Uh and after Jesus got in me.

Uh I got in the parking lot with Tony Weaver. I became an usher with Pastor Dwayne uh and Mike Ellis and David Collins. Come on. And a lot of other our faithful ushers. Uh I got involved in youth ministry. I got involved in outreach ministry. I got involved in Joshua men Bible study and Sunday school class.

It was never about getting in with Jensen. It was about getting involved with Jesus's church. But let me show you something. But while I was involved serving for youth, I ran into Jetson, Pastor Franklin, that is by accident. I'll never forget it. No, I didn't have a meeting.

No, I didn't set an appointment. He was coming to study. I was going out the back door cuz I was trying to set up stuff for youth. And he said, "Hey, what are you doing?" I said, "I'm trying to set up stuff for youth." And I was young then.

I'm like, "What do you need? I got stuff to do. hurry up. Let's go. Let's go. Let's go. And he looked at me and he said, "I've seen you around here serving." And he said, "Just stay faithful to God. His hand is on your life." That's all he said to me.

And I said, "Well, good. I got to go get this stuff set up for youth before they get me." And it was all that it was. All I'm trying to say. Quit trying to get in with people and just get involved. Uh get Come on, somebody. Uh come on.

Your gift will make room for you and take you before good great men. Uh just get involved and watch what God will do. You got to be fitted. Come on. In unity. In a world that's divided. We need a church that's united. A unified church is an unstoppable church.

A connected church is a powerful witness to the world. When the church is united, the world sees Jesus. Listen to me. Unity was the prayer request of Jesus in John 17. John chapter 17. Unity is the posture in place that the oil flows and the anointing flow. The anointing flows and God commands the blessing.

Unity is what unlocks power. Acts chapter 2 said, "When they were in one place in one accord, there came a suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind and the Holy Ghost hit that upper room and filled them where they sat and there appeared unto them clothed in tongues of fire and they began to speak in tongues as the spirit gave them utterance."

The Bible said in Acts chapter 1, Jesus said, "Try ye into Jerusalem until you be endued with power from on high." Unity unlocks power. Understand something that unity multiplies effectiveness, but division destroys our witness. Paul said, "Make every effort to keep yourself united in spirit." Not he said, "Make every effort to keep yourselves united in spirit."

Notice Paul said, "Don't establish unity." He said, "Keep unity." Cuz we don't establish it. God establish it. It's our responsibility to keep it. It's the same word that he told Adam in the beginning to dress and keep the garden. And there anytime you have to dress it and keep it because there's the possibility of something getting in it that shouldn't be in it.

So when Paul said keep, strive, and keep the spirit of unity, he was implying cuz something is coming after it. And the one that's coming after it is the devil. The thief come not but to steal, kill, and destroy. He's the master of division. He's the king of chaos.

And Paul said, "As the body, as the church, we have to fight to keep, watch this, the spirit of unity." You know what you got to do? Quit gossiping. Quit backbiting. Quit giving in to the flesh. Quit going back and forth with people on social media that you don't even know.

You They don't even care. They ain't even your friend. They following you. Don't know nothing about you. You getting all worked up, acting a fool all week long for nothing. Let me tell you, people are not our enemy. There is a spirit realm uh that spirits work behind people.

And you got to know to bind the spirit. Come on, somebody. ((applause)) See here here's here's here's it. Cuz see, we have confused unity with uniformity. It's not the same. No, no, no, no. It's not saying this. Unity is is is those who coming together to promote a common cause or obtain a common goal.

Let me break it down because because I'm excited because college football about to start back cuz I've been in sackcloth and ashes for half the year. But I'm about to come out of deliverance in Jesus name. But understand that team, whatever your team is, it ain't really but one that matters.

But anyway, but that team that that team, watch this. They're in unity, but though they have different positions, there's not just 11 quarterbacks on the field. There's not 11 uh centers on the field. They're different positions with different roles and responsibilities, carrying out different jobs. Uh but they're all working toward one common goal, and that's to move that ball down the field and get it across that goal line and score.

Can I preach a little bit this morning? This is best demonstrated in Mark chapter 2. It was four men who had a common goal and a common mission to get a man to Jesus. If you don't know what Free Chapel is about, we're about inspiring people to live for Jesus.

We're about souls being saved and lives being changed. And the Bible said these four men carried a man to Jesus. Can I preach it? What dawned on me? It just said four men. And in my mind, I'm going to take a pastor line. It's my sermon. I can preach how I want it.

In my mind, it was hard for me to believe that they were all the same men, that they were all the same age, that they were all the same race, that they were all of the same background, that they were all of the same social status. I believe on one corner it could have been an Asian.

On another corner it could have been a black man. On another corner it could have been a white man. On another corner it could have been a Hispanic man. But if you read that text, uh it didn't matter to none of them. Uh because they wasn't discussing their race, uh their background, their color, how much money they had, what car they drove, what neighborhood they lived in, where their kids went to school, and how big was their savings account.

No, the only thing that they were focused on uh was getting that man uh across the goal line to God uh to score him with salvation and get him delivered. They weren't trying to get credit. They were trying to get God glory. What would happen if we got fitted in unity and keep the main thing the main thing?

Oh, I need somebody to shout. If you believe that, fit it in unity. Fit it in unity. ((applause)) Sit down for a minute. Last one. I got more, but this all you going to get. Write this down. Fitted in protection. Fitted in protection. Connection brings protection. Connection protects your faith.

Isolation weakens your faith. Community strengthens it. 1 Peter 5'8 says this, "Be sober, be vigilant, because your adversary, the devil, walks about as a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour." Did it say he will devour? It didn't say that. He said whom he may, which means it's possible, but it's not definite.

Possibility comes to those who are vulnerable. In the natural, the lion goes always goes after the sheep or the deer that has left the pack. Because when I become separated, I become more vulnerable to the attacks of the enemy. And the enemy knows. Beware of people and things that pull you away from godly counsel. >> Beware of people and things that pull you away.

Ask it. Is this pulling me away from the Bible? Is this pulling me away from prayer? Is this pulling me away from the house of God? Is this pulling me away from from being truly committed to God and his house and to his people? Anything that's pulling you away from God, you need to pull away from it.

((applause)) I don't care if it's a person. I don't care if it's a place and I don't care if it's a thing. But here's what Ecclesiastes said. They'll put it up and I'm finishing right now. Somebody say fit and protection. Two are better than one because we have, watch this, have a good reward for their labor.

For if they fall, one will lift up his companion. But woe to him who who is alone when he falls, for he has no one to help him. Again, two are better than one. They will keep you warm, but how can one be warm alone? Though one may be overpowered by another, two can withstand him.

A three-fold cord is hard to be broken. Here it is real quick. Solomon Solomon gives us four amazing things according to this scripture. Fitted in in protection. He said, "When you're fitted in protection, there'll be reward for your labor." That's the first thing. Reward for your labor. You got somebody laboring with you.

One writer put it like this. If you see a turtle on top of a pole, you know he didn't get there by himself. Can I tell you, you will never reach your fullest potential in God by yourself. >> I don't care how good you think you are. I don't care how talented.

God has so wired this thing that we need people in our life. You're never going to reach the pinnacle of success by your in God's eyes by yourself. Reward for your labor. Watch this. The second thing is relief in the storms. Did you catch it? When it says when they lie down, they'll be warm together.

Many people associate that with the marriage. It's not talking about marriage. actually is painting a picture of of of of a of of of a situation that h it's actually implying a person who is on a journey who has gotten caught in a snowstorm and the storm and the weather has gotten so bad that now he's stranded and abandoned out in the freezing cold. not of his own choice, but a storm came unexpected. >> And what it's saying is life can often bring you under unexpected storms that leave you out in the cold.

And the worst place you could be is not having no one that can come alongside of you and stand with you and keep you warm in a sense of building you up and encouraging you and supporting you and standing with you. He said that's why to the two they come together.

They'll be warm and you don't have to give in and be overcome. Storms happen to us all. >> Some of you know what I'm talking about. >> Somebody walked in here in a storm today, feeling left out in the cold. Unexpected diagnosis, unexpected layoff, unexpected downturn in the business, unexpected situations with your children or your husband or your marriage.

Life will hand you some storms. Uh, and listen, it's not a matter of if, it's a matter of when. But the key to the storms of life is that I get fitted. Come on, somebody. Come on, get fitted for protection. ((applause)) And he said, not only is there reward for your labor, restoration in storms, here it is.

You ready? I mean, un relief in storms, but restoration in failure. He said, woe unto him who falls down and have no man to pick him up. Who's your accountability? Who keeps you accountable? Who's in your life that can check you, correct you, and really counsel you? No, no, no.

I'm not talking about somebody that can just tell you everything you want to know, but who who can tell you what you not everything you want to hear, but they tell you exactly what you need to know. I'm talking about somebody that know all of your skeletons are buried.

Yeah. Javon, who's yours? Oh, I got it. I'm not bragging. I have a man that texts me every Monday and he done asked me about Free Chapel. He done asked me about sermons I preached. He done asked me about how ministry is going. He done asked me what you're studying.

You know what? He asked me how are you and Shana doing, how you treating your wife, how are you and the kids doing? When's the last time you've been on a date? I'm not telling to preaching something to you that I'm not placing implementing in my own life.

I get it every single week. And he knows he's in my life for that reason to keep me accountable to my first ministry, which is the ministry of my home and my fa you're not hearing what I'm saying. And that's what he's saying. Woe unto him who falls down and have no men to pick him up.

And what he's saying is we got to have people that can be there to pick you up. That's why we have men's ministry and that's why we have women's ministry and small groups. Cuz listen, none of us is beyond failure. >> The Bible said, "He that thinks he stand, take heed lest he fall."

In other words, don't think you so strong that you can't mess up. Don't think you so you're good so righteous you can't have fail. >> But he said I need somebody in my life because if you get it watch this restoration and failure Galatians says this when your brother notice it didn't say a sinner when your brother or your sister that means they're believers are overtaken in a fault.

Ye that are spiritual, restore them with meekness, considering yourself, lest you be tempted. In other words, this could happen to you. Don't you be so nasty and sassy. This could you go to them and man, I'm so sorry. And what you start doing is encouraging, I'm sorry. This ain't good, but buddy, you going to get through this, sister. you going to get through this.

You're better than this. God's not done with you yet. And the Bible said restore them. And that word resto restoration means to set back into its proper place. It speaks of a bone being reset. And it is proven biologically that when a bone is set back in its broken place is stronger in that place after it heals than it was before it's broken.

Can free chapel in all of our campuses. That's why we have restoration, my God. Restoration groups because we want to restore people, get them back stronger than ever before. Stand to your feet. My last point, and then there's reinforcements in battle. I wrote it down like this. There are some attacks you can't face on your own.

There's some battles you cannot fight on your own. There are some enemies you can't defeat on your own. There are some attitudes you cannot change on your own. There's some habits you cannot break on your own. There are some problems you cannot solve on your own. There are some needs you cannot meet on your own.

But Ecclesiastes says, "And though a man might prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him. For a three-fold cord is hard to be broken." You get fitted in protection so you have reinforcements for the battles. I want to end by saying this. That's why we got to have prayer partners.

That's why we have to be open when you're struggling. Standing with each other in battles, get accountability, show up for others. That's why we're doing this whole find your fit. It's not just so we can have pretty post. We understand we got to be fitted. We got to be built up.

We got to be a habitation because the Gentiles are coming. I said the Gentiles are coming. ((applause)) You're not here by accident. God designed you to fit perfectly in his body, the church. You're not supposed to just attend. Don't just sit on the sidelines. I challenge you at every one of our campuses today that it's time to find your fit.

When you're fitted for the body, your life will flourish. Your life will be fuller. The church will be stronger. The kingdom will advance. And God will be glorified. Don't leave this place without making the decision to find your fit. Are you fit for the body? Your peace matters.

Your presence matter, your service matter, and the body of Christ needs you. Every head bowed and every eye closed, please. No one leaving, no one moving. Paul understood that before we could get fitted in the household, we had to be in the house, which it starts with a life that is surrendered to Jesus Christ.

You get in with Christ and then he puts you in his body. And once you're in his body, he fits and he builds. And every campus right now, our pastors are coming at all of our campuses. But you're in this room this morning. And the fit that you need is to be fitted with Christ first.

Have you surrendered your life to Jesus Christ? Have you just been doing through the motions and playing church? There's some of you in here that you're like that lump of coal. You know, you've strayed away from God. You know you're backslitting. You know the passion that you used to have, your faithfulness.

Matter of fact, for some of you, this is the first time you've been in church in a minute. And you're not here by coincidence or accident. God brought you back here. You know what he's ready to do? He's ready to take the tongs of his spirit and pick your life up and put you back into the fire of his goodness and grace again and mercy again to get you back on track.

But he only comes where he's invited. If you're in this room this morning right where you're standing, I'm going to count to three and you would say, "Pastor Javon, I got I got to get in with Jesus first. I'm backsliding. I'm lost. I've strayed away and I'm ready to commit.

I realize that my life has value. I realize that I'm needed. I realize that I'm I I have a purpose more than just going through the motions. I'm ready to surrender a hole and follow Jesus. Pray for me. I'm going to count to three. And when I get to three, if you'll just lift up your hand right where you're standing, I'm going to pray for you.

One, if you know this word is for you. Two, if you feel the Holy Spirit drawing you, and I believe that he is, you're not responding to a man. You're not responding to a preacher. What you're responding to is God and his spirit. Three. Raise your hand up.

Raise it up high. High high as you can get it. There it is. Raise it up high. High. High. High. High. High. I see those hands. I see those hands. I see those hands. Yes. Yes. Yes. I see those hands. Hands up. Raise them up high. Unashamedly. I want you to keep them up unashamedly.

Unashamedly. Unashamedly. Raise it up high. Every one of you with your hand raised. I want the church, I want the body now to look around. If you see someone with their hand raised, I want you to gently lay your hand on their shoulder as an act of support.

Remember, we're joined together. We're fitted together. We're in this together. We're to encourage one another. So, every one of you that raised your hand, repeat these words after me. Everybody, let's join them. Say, "Jesus, I surrender my life. Forgive me of my sins. Wash me in your blood.

I thank you for your mercy and your grace that gives me a fresh start and a new beginning. I thank you that right now I'm no longer an alien. I'm no longer a stranger. That I'm a citizen now and a saint in the household of God. I ask you Lord from this day forward.

Help me to be fitted. Help me to be built up so that my life can be a dwelling place for the glory of God in Jesus name. Amen. Amen. And amen. Now watch. Don't go running for the doors. Hold on. Let me give you a quick instruction because it's important.

Every one of you that prayed that prayer, I want you I want you to tell somebody. Matter of fact, you can go to our next step. Matter of fact, why don't you just go out to the patio? All of our teams will be out there. Tell them they got we can give you a Bible.

We give you a devotion. We get your information to follow up with you because we want to help you. It starts here, but it doesn't stop. You got to get fitted. So if you go out there on the patio and tell them I prayed that prayer today and Pastor Javon said you got a Bible, you got a devotion for me and if you don't he was lying.

That's not I'm just playing. But tell him and then say you know what I don't want to just make a decision. I want to be fitted. Can you help me? Can you show me what I need to do? And I want to encourage every one of you. It's time for some of you to come out of the comfort zone of the uninvolved.

It's time. I'm speaking to somebody that used to serve and you hadn't served in a long time. And it's time for you to jump back in the game. I said it's time for you to jump back in the game. It's time. It's time. And so I want to encourage as many of you and all of our campuses, go out there and talk.

Men, women, divine greeters, ushers, all of us out there. and let's be a dwelling place for the glory of God. Amen. Pastor Franklin will be back here next Sunday preaching. Thank you for your tithe. Thank you for your offering. Thank you for your giving and your support online and dropboxes.

Now, may the Lord bless you and keep you. May the Lord make his face shine upon you. May he be gracious unto you. Let this countenance upon you and give you peace. God bless you. We love you. And remember, stay fitted for the body. God bless you. ((music playing)) >> What an amazing Sunday it has been.

From worship to the message from Pastor Javon, it's been a great Sunday. >> Yes, it really has. And and if you have recently accepted Jesus after that powerful um preaching, please go ahead and text the word yes to 510510. Or if you're in need of prayer, you can text the word prayer to 510510.

We have a team of people that would love to pray for you and get connected with you. >> Yes. And like U Pastor Javon was saying, you you are not meant to do this alone. Get somebody there with you. And by texting that prayer to 510510, you are also going to have a community behind you, backing you up, praying for you as well.

We also just want to thank you for all of your generosity, for giving into this ministry, for helping Free Chapel reach so many lives. Um so thank you so much. >> Yes. And we're also excited for our school of disciplehip. Here with us is Lauren to share a little bit about her journey with SOD. >> Hey.

Yeah, like you said, my name is Lauren and I've been coming to Free Chapel for several years now. Um I actually love SOD so much that I'm now the SOD intern. So I completed SOD actually back in CO. So I um was able to do part of it in person and online as well.

So that was a really cool experience. And you know SOD has just been such a huge blessing in my life. I knew I wanted more, but I just wasn't sure exactly where to start. Um, and that's when I decided to register for the classes and see, you know, what they're all about.

So, um, from the very beginning, I just found an incredible community and encouragement, um, people that supported me, you know, when I really needed it through school disciplehip. And so, the commitment, you know, it wasn't as, you know, it wasn't easy always. You know, I was a single mom at the time and but it was absolutely worth it.

And so, you know, if you're thinking about doing this, it's a commitment and that means it's obedience and that means blessings are on the way. So, you know, God gave me a fresh understanding of core truths in his word and things like tithing, his unfailing love for me and just how to walk in my spiritual gifts.

And so, you know, I also grew in discipline when it comes to reading scripture, which I think all of us could, you know, use a little bit of, you know, cushion for when it comes to reading your Bible, you know, giving that time and, you know, praying and calling on the name of Jesus.

And so, you know, SOD has just truly transformed my walk with God and, you know, I really know that it will for you, too. >> Yes. Thank you so much, Lauren, for that amazing testimony. We just want to let you guys know that there is still time to sign up and enroll into School of Disciplehip.

The great thing about SOD online is that it's once a week and you can work at your own pace. We also have our online restoration groups which are Celebrate Freedom, Divorce Care, and Grief Share on Tuesday nights via Zoom. No matter how you get connected, we'd love for you to get plugged in and receive support and grow in your faith.

Well, that is all that we have for this Sunday and we can't wait to see you next Sunday. Hope you have a great week. Bye, you guys. ((music playing)) ((music playing)) ((music playing)) Hey, hey, hey. Black.