A Message On Six Legs

A MESSAGE ON SIX LEGS

by Rev. Timothy G. Porter

Proverbs 6:6-11

INTRODUCTION:

God's amazing creation. It sings a continual message about His power, glory and majesty! Throughout the Bible, God uses the animal and insect kingdom to speak to man. He uses the oxen and the donkey in Isa. 1:3. He uses a rooster in the Gospels. He uses another donkey in Numbers to speak to Balaam. In Proverbs, God mentions several special members of the animal kingdom and each one is a divine message for you and me!

In this passage, which concerns the little ant, God is speaking to the sluggard – This refers to one who is lazy, idle, careless, procrastinates, sticks to nothing, minds no business and brings nothing to pass. I don’t know about you, but that is talking about me from time to time! This fits all of us! Amen !!

I would like for us to look into this passage for a few minutes. I believe there is much that we can learn from the little ant. What we learn from these tiny creatures can help us become better Christians and it can help our church be more effective in the cause of Christ! Besides that, the Lord said to do it!

By way of introduction let me say that the ant is the most successful of all social insects, ( Church). There are over 11,000 different kinds of ants. They live in colonies numbering from a few to over 20 million. There are approximately 1 quadrillion ants in the world today. ( This is a 10 followed by 15 zeros!) That’s a lot of little critters! Ants are so numerous that scientists say that if all the ants in the Amazon rain forests were weighed, they would weigh four times more than all the other specials of mammals, birds, reptiles and amphibians, living in that area, combined!

With these few thoughts in mind, let’s notice some facts about the little ant. Those little fellows have a lot to teach us humans about doing the Lord’s business. I want to preach for a while this evening on this thought: A Message On Six Legs.

I.) THE WORK OF THE LITTLE ANT

A. The Ant’s Work Is A Partnership

1. They Work In Love - No fights, Ill. Step on. Brethren should love - Heb. 13:1; 1 John 4:7 ; John 13:35.

2. They Are Helpful - Help carry burdens; injured neighbors; rescue those buried or those who fall into a pit. (Gal. 6:2; Rom.15:1)

3. They Operate In Harmony - 1 weak, many strong. each has a job, but none are more important. ( We are all members of one body - 1 Cor. 12:12-27. This thing isn’t about you or about me. It is all about Him! ***There is power in unity!***

When the driver ant is on the move, lions, elephants and poisonous snakes all flee! Entire villages of people move out of their path. Some of these colonies are so large that they form a front up to a mile wide, and they destroy everything in their path. Humans and animals stand not chance against these feared little ants!

The power of the early church arose out of their unity! If the church united, put away out petty differences and disagreements, stand together in the power of the Holy Ghost, Hell would tremble in our presence! - Mark 3:25 ; Phil. 1:27 ; 1 Cor. 1:10 ; Eph 4:3)

4. They Work Toward A Common Goal - Provide for the colony and especially the queen. 1 Cor. 10:31 ; 1 Thes. 4:1 ; Heb. 13:16

B. The Ant’s Work Is Productive

1. Ant’s Have An All Volunteer Service - No guide, yet each ant works. Thousands of ants may dwell in one ant colony, but every one of them pulls his own weight! They work! (Ill. Soldier ants, they kill all the ants who refuse to work. What an incentive to stay active!) James 2:17-18 ; 4:17 . Ill. We have guides - Pastor’s, evangelists, teachers, Bible, Holy Spirit, etc. We have everything necessary to get the job done for Jesus, but sadly, some refuse to labor!)

2. Ant’s Labor According To Their Own Ability - (Storekeepers, engineers, nurses, farmers, laborers)

One of the more interesting of the ants is the Honey Pot Ant. He eats himself full of nectar and then feeds the rest of the nest. He is a blessing to all!

Ill. Jobs by size. a. Large - soldiers, b. Medium - Laborers, c. Small - Tend the you Each job in the church is important! You are important to

God's work and to the work of this church. He will use you according to your ability, as you grow, your responsibility will grow, 2 Pet. 3:18 . God has especially gifted and equipped you for some type of work in the body of Christ, 1 Cor. 12:12-27)