Intro: people like the thought of a one man wrecking crew. A guy that can take on 50 people all by themselves. Bruce Lee, just the name is synonymous with beating up people. Sylvester Stallone, Rambo, able to take on as many that come against him. Arnold Swartznagger, the terminator. And my favorite, Chuck Norris, a force of one. It doesn’t matter how many people come against Chuck, He will kick and punch until no one is left standing, he is a force of one.
In the Bible, we are given the name of one man, who was a force of one, His name is John the Baptist. This is one of my favorite verses in the Bible, a man sent from God.
A Force of One
John 1:6
There was a man sent from God, his name was John
Background: is this an incredible verse or what? John the Baptist had for a title, man sent from God. He was a force of one. He was so powerful in God, that all Jerusalem came out to hear him. And with mighty preaching and the power of God, he turned people to God. Even the religious leaders came out and were convicted of sin, and gave their hearts to God.
You may say, yeah, but John was a one in a million. But God has always raised people up to touch their generation. I want to encourage you, never limit what God can do in you or through you, He can make you a force of one. I would like to give you some stories of people who God used in mighty ways to touch their generation for Jesus Christ.
1. William Branham—his story is so full of miracles and power that you could never exhaust the wonderful things God did through this man’s ministry. Even though he fell into some error toward the end of his life, still hundreds of thousands of people were saved, healed, delivered and fill with God’s power through his ministry.
· I love how his ministry started, for those who feel like because you are a no-name in this world, have no connections that will help you climb the ladder of success in ministry, this story is to show that God’s favor is more important than man, and when God is your source, He will open doors that no one can shut.
William Branham had a visitation from the Lord and it was revealed to him that God’s power would be mighty in his life. The story goes that he visited a tent meeting in Indiana, which was a preacher’s conference. He had never done any public speaking in his life up to this time. To his amazement, the superintendent of the ministers came to the pulpit and said, God had given him a dream that a man named William Branham was to conduct the services and that all other speakers were cancelled for the week. William Branham stepped to the pulpit explaining he had never spoken before, but that God had revealed that he would be used in faith to heal the sick and carry a powerful anointing. As he spoke, the Spirit of God fell on that meeting, and people ran to the altars. This was the start of a ministry that would be worldwide in it’s reach for God.
II. Kathryn Kullman—talk about the odds being against you, here was a woman who was called by God during a time when woman preacher’s were not accepted by many people. She traveled with her sister and brother in law who was an evangelist. She noticed that even though he had a good message, the power of God seemed to be lacking in the services. She cried out to God for more and God told her to separate herself from them and launch out into ministry. So in the Midwest of America, she rented a small storefront building inviting people to come hear Kathryn Kullman preach, and experience the power of God. Of course there was a small response the first night, but when people were touched by God’s power in the altars, the next night many more showed up. It is recorded by the end of the week there wasn’t a building in the town that could hold all the people. Of course this same thing happened in every town in which she ministered, to the point that it took giant buildings to house her ministry.
Anyone who has read her life story finds some failures along the way, but it is undeniable that she carried one of the greatest ministries this nation has ever witnessed, she was a force of one.
III. Maria Woodworth-Etter- if you do not have a copy of the book Signs and Wonders, you are missing a great book on the ministry of this powerful woman of God. I will tell two stories on this powerful lady that shows you can be a force of one.
· On one occasion she had fasted and prayed for many days before entering a town for services. As she went to the pulpit to minister she could not preached but in the power of God said, “ the blood, the blood, the blood.” It is recorded that a wave of the Spirit moved into the service and one witnessed declared the people fell prostrate before God from the front of the building to the back. It was as if a wave of power flowed from the platform to the back of the building. Some people stayed on the floor for hours, and many people reported being saved, healed or delivered from addictions.
· In one town a wealthy farmer who declared himself to be an atheist told her that her tent couldn’t be set up in his town. He said, if she didn’t leave there would be trouble. Maria would not be intimidated so the services were held. In the second week of services the farmer and all of his boys came to the back of the church. Many people felt this was going to mean trouble, but they all came to the front and the farmer said, we all need the power of God that is in your life. He said, we have put poison in your drinking water for over a week, enough to kill any person 10 times over, and nothing has happened to you. Whatever power you have, my family needs your God.
IV. Oral Roberts—I will not even try in this message to retell the Oral Roberts story. Like many others I am sure he made some mistakes along the way. I am not even promoting all of his faith teachings by using him as an example of forces of one, but it is undeniable that a sick little boy from Enid, Oklahoma has been used in evangelism like few have ever seen in our nation.
· The only story I would like to tell is one that shows that God can direct your life if you will be sensitive to the Holy Spirit. After holding tent revivals in a particular town, he along with his ministry team were getting ready to board a plane. To the amazement of everyone, Oral started walking away from the plane, away from the airport heading to a field next to the main terminal. He walked out that field into a project of very poor people. He walked to one house where an older black lady asked, are you the man of God? He said, I am. She took him to her son’s bedroom who was at death’s door, God had spoken to her that a minister would come to her house, pray for her son, and he would be healed. After Oral prayed for this boy, he got up, went to the table, and ate a full meal.
In the introduction to the book, the fourth man, sermons by Oral Roberts, a fellow minister writes, “ it is without argument that Oral Roberts is one of the most recognized names in the history of evangelism. He told how on a trip to Haiti, that when he told people on the Island he was from Tulsa, Oklahoma, people always responded the same way, you live where Oral Roberts lives.
Close: you may be saying, sure Pastor Steve, these people were forces of one, but they are all special, I am just an ordinary person, a force of none. If that is what you believe, that is what you will receive. But here is a story, not of a well known evangelist, but a ninety year old lady Sister Washington. Years ago in the big Sunday school promotions at churches, our church in Bangor had an attendance drive. This particular campaign wasn’t going so well, until Sister Crabtree stood before the people an admonished them with these words, Do you love souls? The next week, this wonderful saint of God, sister Washington rented buses, and evangelized her neighborhood. That next week she brought over 100 people to Sunday school. She was a force of one.
God is unlimited, what He has done for others He will do for you. What He has done at other times, He will do now, what He has done in other places, He will do here. Will you be a force of one?
