GOD USES LITTLE THINGS: NOTHING TO OFFER 10-20-24
INTRODUCTION
Dust, stick, jawbone, 5 stones, handful of flour and some oil, still small voice, a kid’s lunchbox
I. PROBLEM - We don't believe God can do mighty things through us!
“Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him. It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. Therefore, as it is written: “Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.””
1 Corinthians 1:26-31 NIV
A. What we are
1. Not wise
2. Not influential
3. Not noble
“As it is written: “There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands; there is no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.””
Romans 3:10-12 NIV
"Trust in yourself and you are doomed to disappointment
Trust in money and you may have it taken from you;
But trust in God, and you are never to be confounded in time or eternity."
D.L. Moody
B. What God does
1. Uses foolish to shame the wise
2. Uses the weak to shame the strong
3. Uses the lowly and despised and things that are not to nullify the things that are
4. Uses unimpressive so that no one may boast
5. We are perfect!
“His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.”
2 Peter 1:3-4 NIV
"There’s something about believing God that will cause Him to pass over a million people just to get to you"
Smith Wigglesworth
II. SOLUTION - We are in Christ
A. Because of God
I would recommend you either believe God up to the hilt, or else not to believe at all. Believe this book of God, every letter of it, or else reject it. There is no logical standing place between the two. Be satisfied with nothing less than a faith that swims in the deeps of divine revelation; a faith that paddles about the edge of the water is poor faith at best. It is little better than a dry-land faith, and is not good for much.
C. H. Spurgeon
B. We are in Christ Jesus
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!”
2 Corinthians 5:17 NIV
1. Our wisdom from God
2. Our righteousness
3. Our holiness
4. Our redemption
“For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ.”
2 Corinthians 4:6 NIV
C. In Christ, we are more than enough!
A preacher friend of mine named Mike told of his conversion to Christ. He told me his family was known throughout the community as the worst examples of humanity. The parents were irresponsible. The kids were troublemakers. They lived like animals, even eating food out of trashcans.
Everyone who saw them thought, "That’s just who they are. That’s all they’ll ever be. They’ll never change."
But Mike did.
There came a point at which he heard the powerful message of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection, and he decided that was what he wanted for his life. He believed in Jesus, repented of his sins, and was buried in the waters of baptism for the forgiveness of his sins. He eventually became a preacher and part of his ministry reached into his family – of whom he baptized several.
Then one day, Mike was at the funeral of his brother-in-law. One of the women who was there (and who had not seen him since his conversion) spoke with him and she said that she was amazed at the change that had taken place in his life. She was surprised at what HE had made of himself.
Mike responded: "Oh I really appreciate your compliment, but I really didn’t change myself. It was Christ IN ME that brought about the changes in my life."
It was Christ in him – the hope of Glory. As Romans 6:11 taught him, Mike counted himself "…dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus."
Jeff Strite, Sermon Central, June 26, 2011.
“And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.”
2 Corinthians 9:8 NIV
III. SYNOPSIS
A. God uses small things.
B. We are nothing.
C. God gives us everything.
In Christ, we are small things in the hands of a Big God!
Christ Has No Body by Teresa of Avila (1515–1582)
Christ has no body but yours,
No hands, no feet on earth but yours,
Yours are the eyes with which he looks
Compassion on this world,
Yours are the feet with which he walks to do good,
Yours are the hands, with which he blesses all the world.
Yours are the hands, yours are the feet,
Yours are the eyes, you are his body.
Christ has no body now but yours,
No hands, no feet on earth but yours,
Yours are the eyes with which he looks
compassion on this world.
Christ has no body now on earth but yours.
CONCLUSION
We must believe that God can do mighty things through us! He uses small, insignificant things. We have nothing to offer apart from Him. We have everything we need for life and godliness!
“But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”
2 Corinthians 12:9-10 NIV
In a large cathedral in Europe there was a very large, magnificent pipe organ. It was a Saturday afternoon, and the custodian was making one final check the organ loft high in the balcony at the back of the church.
He was startled to hear footsteps echoing up the stairway. He turned to see a man in slightly tattered traveling clothes coming toward him.
"Excuse me, sir," the stranger said, "I have come from quite a distance to see the great organ in this cathedral, and would you mind opening the console so that I might get a closer look at it?" The custodian at first refused, but the stranger seemed so eager and insistent that he finally gave in.
"May I sit on the bench?" That request of the stranger was met with absolute refusal by the cathedral custodian. "What if the organist came in and found you sitting there? I would probably lose my job!" But again the stranger was so persistent that the custodian gave in." But only for a moment," he added.
The custodian noticed that the stranger seemed to be very much at home on the organ bench, so he was not completely surprised when he was asked by the stranger to be allowed to play the organ. "NO! Definitely not!" said the custodian. "No one is allowed to play it except the cathedral organist."
The man’s face fell, and his deep disappointment was obvious. He reminded the custodian how far he had come, and assured him that no damage would be done.
Finally the custodian relented and told the stranger he could play the instrument, but only a few notes and then he would have to leave.
Overjoyed, the stranger pulled out some stops and began to play. Suddenly the cathedral was filled with the most beautiful music the custodian had ever heard in all his years in that place.
In what seemed all too short a time, the dowdy stranger stopped playing and slid off the organ bench and started down the stairway.
"Wait!" cried the custodian. "That was the most beautiful music I have ever heard in the cathedral. Who are you?"
The stranger turned for just a moment as he replied, "Mendelssohn." The man was none other than Felix Mendelssohn, one of the greatest organists and composers of the 19th century!
The custodian was alone now in that great stone edifice, the beautiful organ music still ringing in his ears. "Just think," he said softly, "I almost kept the master from playing his music in my cathedral!"
God has designed this wonderful life. He made it and designed it.
Offer it to Him, and allow Him to play wonderful music through it.
Christian Cheong, Sermon Central, December 26, 2007.
INVITATION
It is our custom to offer an "invitation" following the preaching of the Word. You may want to follow Jesus. You may want to proclaim your faith. You may want to repent (stop doing ungodly things and start doing Godly things). Perhaps you want to be baptized for the forgiveness of your sins and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Possibly, if you have already responded to God’s call in these ways, you would like to become a member of Kenwood Church. If you have been moved by the Holy Spirit to make a decision in your life, you can come forward now. If you would like, I would be honored to speak with you following the service about what God is doing in your life.
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