Andy Eddington, once the president of Shriner College in Texas, loved sugar in his coffee. On one occasion at a greasy spoon near Dallas, he dumped not one, not two, but three teaspoonful’s of sugar in his coffee. As the waitress watched, Andy said, “Ma'am, we're going to need more sugar for this table.”
This Texas waitress looked at Andy and said, “Listen, bud, before I give you more sugar, you stir what you got.” (Thomas Tewell, pastor, Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church, New York, New York; from a plenary address at the Preaching with Passion Conference, 5-31-01; www.PreachingToday.com)
Sometimes we think we need more to serve the Lord effectively – more money, more skill, or more people. But often the Holy Spirit says to us, “Stir what you got.”
The fact is God has given us plenty of resources to serve him well and to serve him effectively in this place. I know the task seems overwhelming at times, but we really do have everything we need to expand God’s Kingdom right here in central Kansas and to equip people to follow Christ.
You say, “Pastor Phil what do we have? Our church is small. What resources do we have to make any real difference here in the long run? Well, if you have your Bibles, I invite you to turn with me to Mark 4, Mark 4, where Jesus shows us those resources in three parables about the expansion of His Kingdom anywhere in this world.
Mark 4:21 He said to them, “Do you bring in a lamp to put it under a bowl or a bed? Instead, don’t you put it on its stand? (NIV)
A better translation would be, “Does THE Lamp COME to be under a bowl or a bed? Is it not put on the lamp stand?”
Mark 4:22-23 For whatever is hidden is meant to be disclosed, and whatever is concealed is meant to be brought out into the open. If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.” (NIV)
Understand what Jesus is saying. Jesus is THE Lamp, and He didn’t come into the world to be hidden. No. Just like light, He came to shine. He came to reveal Himself to the world, and He is our first resource. My friends…
WE HAVE JESUS!
We have the Lord. All we need to do is let him shine. All we need to do is turn him loose.
In the early days of Promise Keepers, when they still had just one stadium event a year in Boulder, Colorado, a newspaper reporter interviewed E. V. Hill, one of the speakers. The reporter asked him, “What is Promise Keepers all about? What do you do?”
E.V. Hill responded, “We’re all about Jesus. We talk about Jesus.”
And the reporter said, “Is that all?”
“Is that all?” E. V. Hill reported to the Promise Keepers crowd. “They don’t know who He is!”
Well just who is Jesus? Let’s let S. M. Lockridge show us who He is. Show That’s My King video (by S. M. Lockridge, 3½ min.).
“The Bible says my King is a seven-way king. He's the King of the Jews. He's the King of Israel. He's the King of Righteousness. He's the King of the Ages. He's the King of Heaven. He's the King of Glory. He's the King of kings, and He's the Lord of lords. That's my King. Well....I wonder, do you know Him?
“David said, "The Heavens declare the glory of God and the firmament showeth His handiwork." My King is a sovereign King. No means of measure can define His limitless love. No far seeing telescope can bring into visibility the coastline of His shoreless supply. No barrier can hinder Him from pouring out His blessings. He's enduringly strong. He's entirely sincere. He's eternally steadfast. He's immortally graceful. He's imperially powerful. He's impartially merciful. Do you know Him?
“He's the greatest phenomenon that has ever crossed the horizon of this world. He's God's Son. He's the sinner's Savior. He's the centerpiece of civilization. He stands in the solitude of Himself. He's august and He's unique. He's unparalleled. He's unprecedented. He is the loftiest idea in literature. He's the highest personality in philosophy. He is the supreme problem in higher criticism. He's the fundamental doctrine of true theology. He is the cardinal necessity for spiritual religion. He's the miracle of the age. He's – yes He is – He is the superlative of everything good that you choose to call Him. He's the only one qualified to be an all sufficient Savior. I wonder if you know Him today?
“He supplies strength for the weak. He's available for the tempted and the tried. He sympathizes and He saves. He strengthens and sustains. He guards and He guides. He heals the sick. He cleansed the lepers. He forgives sinners. He discharges debtors. He delivers the captives. He defends the feeble. He blesses the young. He serves the unfortunate. He regards the aged. He rewards the diligent....and He beautifies the meek. I wonder if you know Him?
“Well, my King....He is the King! He's the key to knowledge. He's the wellspring of wisdom. He's the doorway of deliverance. He's the pathway of peace. He's the roadway of righteousness. He's the highway of holiness. He's the gateway of glory. Do you know Him?
“Well, His office is manifold. His promise is sure....and His light is matchless. His goodness is limitless. His mercy is everlasting. His love never changes. His word is enough. His grace is sufficient. His reign is righteous. And His yoke is easy, and his burden is light. I wish I could describe Him to you, but He's indescribable – Yes He is!? He is God! He's incomprehensible. He's invincible. He's irresistible. Well, you can't get Him out of your mind. You can't get Him off of your hand. You can't out live Him, and you can't live without Him.
“The Pharisees couldn't stand Him, but they found out they couldn't stop Him. Pilate couldn't find any fault in Him. The witnesses couldn't get their testimonies to agree. Herod couldn't kill Him. Death couldn't handle Him, and the grave couldn't hold Him. Yea!!!, that's my King, that's my King.
“Yes, and Thine is the Kingdom....and the Power....and the Glory....Forever....and ever, and ever, and ever – How long is that? And ever, and ever. And when you get through with all of the forevers, then. AMEN!” (Rev. S.M. Lockridge)
Do you know this King? Is He YOUR King? I hope so, because if He is you have everything you need! When it comes living our lives and influencing others, we don’t need anything else. We just need to let Jesus shine through us. We just need to let Jesus live His life through us and share Him whenever we can.
In another context, Jesus said, “If I be lifted up, I will draw all men unto myself.” Lift up Jesus, my friends. Lift Him up in your actions. Lift Him up in your speech. Lift Him up at work. Lift Him up at School. Lift Him up before your friends. Lift Him up every chance you get. Just let Jesus shine through you.
You say, “Phil, how do I do that? How do I let Jesus shine through me?” Well, we do it when we listen to Him. We do it when we hear His words and put them into practice.
Mark 4:24-25 “Consider carefully what you hear,” he continued. “With the measure you use, it will be measured to you—and even more. Whoever has will be given more; whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him.” (NIV)
If you hear and believe what Christ has to say, He will give you more guidance. But if you refuse to believe what Christ has to say, then you will be totally and hopelessly lost.
I like the way John Ortberg put it in a sermon on Choices. He talked about using a GPS system. You plug it in, punch in your destination, and a woman’s voice tells you how to get wherever it is you are going.
Now, you can have that GPS lady in your car, but that doesn't mean you trust her. If you trust her, what do you do? You do what she says. You go where she tells you to go. If she says, “Turn left,” you turn left. That’s what it means to follow Jesus. It means trusting Him enough to do what He says.
But you can choose not to listen to Jesus, just like you can choose to ignore your GPS system. Ortberg talks about a time when he and his wife were together in the car and he was quite sure the GPS lady was wrong. She said to go left, and he didn't go left. He went right, because he “KNEW” she was wrong. Then came an interesting response. She said, “Recalculating route. When safe to do so, execute a U-turn.” Ortberg says he was sure she was wrong, so he unplugged her. “That's the beauty of that little box,” he said. “You can unplug her.”
Well, he got lost as a goose, which his wife enjoyed immensely. So they plugged the GPS lady back in, and you know what she said? “I told you so, you little idiot. You think I'm going to help you now? You rejected me. You just find your way by yourself.” No—she didn't say that. She said, “Recalculating route. When safe to do so, execute a U-turn.”
Now, that's grace. As soon as we’re ready to listen, as soon as we’re ready to surrender, God says, “Here is the way. Execute a U-turn.” By the way, that's repentance. (John Ortberg, in his sermon, Choices, www.PreachingToday.com)
Where are you at with the Lord Jesus Christ? Are you ready to listen to Him and make some U-turns in your life? Even if you have ignored Him up until now and are totally lost, He is ready to show you the way. All you need to do is listen to Him. All you need to do is hear Him and trust Him enough to do what He says.
If you do, He will shine even brighter through you. But if you choose to ignore Him, then even what little light you have will be taken away.
My friends, we have all the resources we need to expand Christ’s Kingdom right here in Lyons, Kansas. That’s because we have Jesus Himself. All we need to do is let Him shine through us.
Now, if that’s all we had, that would be enough, but God has also given us another resource. You see, we not only have Christ…
WE ALSO HAVE HIS WORD.
We have the good news of the kingdom. We have the message that Christ gave us. All we need to do is share it. All we need to do is scatter it around like a farmer does his seed.
Mark 4:26-29 He also said, “This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. All by itself the soil produces grain—first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come.” (NIV)
Sometimes we think we need fancy programs and plenty of resources to grow and produce disciples of Christ. But this parable tells us that all we need is the “seed” of God’s Word. Remember, in verse 14, Jesus told us that the “seed” was the Word of God. So all we need to do is scatter some of that “seed” around.
All we need to do is share the Word as God gives us opportunity, and then get ready for the harvest. Verse 28 says, “ALL BY ITSELF the soil produces grain…” The Greek word is “automatically.” The farmer doesn’t dig up the seed every day to see how its doing. No! He lets it alone, and AUTOMATICALLY it starts to grow.
In the same way, God is the One who uses His Word, planted in the hearts of people, to grow followers of Christ. It is not through our efforts, but His. He is the one that produces disciples of Christ. All we need to do is scatter some seed.
When the Apostle Paul talked about His work in multiplying disciples and planting churches, he said, “I planted the seed…but GOD made it grow” (1 Corinthians 3:6). God is always the One who makes things grow. We can’t force it. We can’t manipulate it or even manage it. All we can do is plant the seed of God’s Word and let God do the rest.
We are powerless to change people, but God’s Word is powerful! It will absolutely transform lives and change whole communities when it begins to take root in the soil of people’s hearts.
On April 28, 1789, the famous “Mutiny on the Bounty” took place while the ship was on its way to the Caribbean just after leaving Tahiti. The sailors had enjoyed their time in Tahiti, and they didn't want to leave—especially under the command of Lieutenant William Bligh, who was notably strict and ill-tempered.
The mutineers, under Fletcher Christian’s leadership, forced Bligh and the other officers into the Bounty’s attached longboat and cut them loose. The mutineers then returned to Tahiti, but Fletcher Christian feared that staying there could put him in danger of capture. Mutiny was, after all, a capital offense.
So he reboarded the Bounty and set out to find a place where he could hide forever. Seven other mutineers, twelve Polynesian women, six Polynesian men, and one infant joined him. After months of exploration, they found Pitcairn Island, which had no people but an abundance of coconuts, breadfruit, and other useful crops. The group destroyed the Bounty, to avoid detection by passing ships, and settled into their own “paradise.”
Only they didn’t experience “paradise.” Their free sex provoked jealousies and rage. One mutineer discovered that the root of the ti plant could be distilled into liquor, and they all discovered that they could not build a healthy society with criminals, concubines, and whiners. Within four years, all of the Polynesian men and half of the mutineers had been murdered. A few years later, only two Englishmen – Edward Young and Alexander Smith – remained with the fearful women and children.
Then while poking through the items saved from the ship, Smith discovered a Bible and a Book of Common Prayer. Smith couldn't read, but Young taught him before dying of a wasting disease in 1801. Smith studied the Bible for years and became convinced that everyone on the island (at this point, himself, 10 women, and many children) needed to live by its principles. He instituted Sunday worship and daily prayer times.
In 1808, an American ship discovered Pitcairn Island, where the crew was shocked to find a community of 35 English-speaking Christians. Six years later, a British ship rediscovered Pitcairn. The crew had orders to seize and kill any mutineers they found in the South Pacific, but they couldn't bring themselves to arrest Smith and disrupt the peaceful community, who was now calling him “Father.” In fact, no one ever came to arrest Smith, and he died on the island in 1829.
That’s the amazing story of Pitcairn Island. Even thought it was settled by criminals and had a courthouse, it never hosted a trial, and the island’s three jail cells housed only lifejackets. (Elesha Coffman, “Mutiny and Redemption,” Christian History Newsletter, 4-27-01; www.PreachingToday.com)
That’s the power of ONE Bible, my friends. It will absolutely change lives and whole communities. All we have to do is scatter it around and let it do its thing.
You see, we really do have everything we need to make a real difference here in Lyons, Kansas. We have Jesus, and we have His Word. So…
DON’T WORRY ABOUT OUR SIZE.
Don’t let our seeming insignificance stop you from serving Christ, for God loves to use small things to bring about big results. God loves to demonstrate the significance of insignificance.
Mark 4:30-32 Again he said, “What shall we say the kingdom of God is like, or what parable shall we use to describe it? It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest seed you plant in the ground. Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds of the air can perch in its shade.” (NIV)
In Jesus’ day, the mustard seed was the smallest seed a Jewish farmer ever planted. It took 725-760 mustard seeds to weigh a gram (28 grams equal one ounce). So we’re talking about a very tiny seed. Even so, the annual plant that comes from that seed reaches a height of 10-12 feet in a few weeks – the largest of all garden plants in that day.
Now, that’s the way God grows His Kingdom. It starts off small, but before you know it, it’s so big many people are enjoying its shade.
Stuck in a dead-end job and strapped for money, Kyle MacDonald came up with an improbable plan: starting with one red paperclip, he would trade on the Internet until he exchanged it for a house.
First, he traded the red paperclip for a fish-shaped pen. Next, he traded the pen for a doorknob. He traded the doorknob for a Coleman stove. He traded the Coleman stove for an electric generator. He traded the electric generator for a Budweiser sign and a keg of beer, which he then traded for a snowmobile. Exactly one year and 14 trades later, MacDonald finally reached his goal: he exchanged a part in a Hollywood movie for a home in Saskatchewan, Canada.
The true story of Kyle MacDonald is told in his book One Red Paperclip, which was made into a movie just a few years ago. Think of it! Fame, fortune, a book, a movie deal, and a home—it all began with one red paperclip. (The Chronicle: Lebanon Presbyterian Church, November 2007, www.PreachingToday. com)
Sounds incredible, doesn't it? But that’s exactly the nature of the Kingdom of God. It starts small, but it can grow to have a huge impact on the lives of people.
All we have to do is let Jesus shine through us and plant the seed of God’s Word in people’s hearts. When you have Jesus and His Word, you don’t have to be big; you just have to be true.
