GOD USES THE NOBODIES TO BECOME SOMEBODY
Let me start with the story of Mother Theresa.
According to her website, she was called the pillar of compassion, a voice for the poor and a modern-day saint.
Mother Teresa was recently declared as a saint by the Roman Catholic Church because of her service for the poor.
Do you know that she started as a missionary teaching geography in a High school in Calcutta?
Then, one day, while recovering from tuberculosis, she received an unmistakable request from the Lord to live and work among the poorest of the poor.
Despite not knowing where or how she would accomplish God's order, she obeyed the call.
Then, with several of her former students at her side, she set out to minister to its people, from making house calls to sick residents to gathering those abandoned and suffering in the streets.
It wasn't long before her efforts of seeking Christ in those that the world had forgotten, that she had finally attracted the world's attention.
People were beginning to listen.
As her mission progressed in an age of material wealth and industrialism, Mother Teresa and her missionaries of Charity would go on to open up the eyes of the world to the importance of living simply, loving gently and the looming threat of spiritual poverty.
Do you also know that in the early years of her ministry in the poverty stricken streets of India, Mother Theresa and her small band of fellow nuns survived on a minimal income and minimal food for many years?
It was a great sacrifice, but they continued slowly and with much patience and perseverance because they knew they were called by God to do just that.
However, after many years, their efforts with the poorest were noted and appreciated by the local community and the Indian politicians.
In 1952, she opened her first home for the dying, which allowed people to die with dignity.
Mother Theresa often spent time with those who were dying.
But over time, the work grew and God worked through her.
Missions were started overseas, and by 2013, there are 700 missions operating in over 130 countries.
The scope of their work also expanded to include orphanages, and hospices for those with terminal illness.
"Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love." She said, many years later.
You see, God does not take the majority of His workers from the ranks of the wise, the mighty or the noble.
God uses the nobodies, the smallest and the least in this world who are willing to sacrifice in order to promote them.
1 Corinthians 1:26(NIV) 26 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."
God wants us to think of who we were before.
It is said that NOT many of us were wise by human standards.
Not many of us were influential in this world.
Not many of us were of noble birth.
But in spite of our humble beginnings, God still chose us for a great purpose.
God has taken control of us and molded us into His image to make us who we are right now.
God wanted to teach us that He can use the nobody's in this world just like you and me to become somebody.
He wanted to teach us that the power belongs to Him only and not from us.
You see, God does not want to use those who are already superstars and influential in this world.
These superstars are very difficult to teach simple lessons of obedience and faith.
But those who are nobody's.
Those who are weak.
Those who are considered least and smallest in the family, they are the ones who are special to God.
Because these men and women have the hearts to say, "Lord, I am a nobody. I am nothing without You. Will you use me?"
When God finds such a willing heart, something extraordinary happens within - that person who is a nobody is thereby promoted to the ranks of God's nobility.
That is what happened to Saul, the first King of Israel.
He was a nobody - coming from the smallest tribe of Israel.
His clan is the least of all the clans of the tribe of Benjamin.
Yet, God was able to give him a great future.
God chose him to be the very first King of Israel.
And God can use you as well if you allow Him and if you start your ministry with a good heart.
How does God use the nobody's in this world in order to make them to be somebody's?
He tests them, He evaluates them and then, he affirms his love for them.
In our study for today, we will look at the example of Saul - his obedience and his teach ability.
Until one day, when Samuel caught sight of Saul, the Lord said to him, “This is the man I spoke to you about; he will govern my people."
Imagine, the Lord God boasting to his servant Samuel regarding a man named Saul that He will raise him up to be a great leader of Israel.
HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE NINTH CHAPTER OF 1 SAMUEL
1. SAUL WAS LOOKING FOR THE MISSING DONKEY
I Samuel 9:1-5 (NIV) “There was a Benjamite, a man of standing, whose name was Kish son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of Bekorath, the son of Aphiah of Benjamin.
2 Kish had a son named Saul, as handsome a young man as could be found anywhere in Israel, and he was a head taller than anyone else.
3 Now the donkeys belonging to Saul’s father Kish were lost, and Kish said to his son Saul, “Take one of the servants with you and go and look for the donkeys.” 4 So he passed through the hill country of Ephraim and through the area around Shalisha, but they did not find them. They went on into the district of Shaalim, but the donkeys were not there. Then he passed through the territory of Benjamin, but they did not find them. 5 When they reached the district of Zuph, Saul said to the servant who was with him, “Come, let’s go back, or my father will stop thinking about the donkeys and start worrying about us.”
One thing we can learn from Saul was that he was a distinguished young man when the Lord called him.
The text tells us that he was handsome and a head taller than anyone else.
Those are amazing description about his physical stature but God is not just concerned on our outward appearance.
God is more interested at the content of the heart.
He proved his obedience to his father when told to look for the missing donkey.
Together with his servant, they went from one place to another earnestly seeking for that one donkey that was lost.
But in spite of their great efforts, they but could not find the donkey.
The missing donkey was actually a test of the kind of heart he had.
God wanted to know whether he had a heart for that one missing donkey and he did.
And in choosing to be the first king of Israel, God looked at his heart of humble obedience.
Physical appearance is good, it is an asset these days - people adore the tall, dark and handsome men.
But the attitude which God is more interested with is that of the inner heart.
What will always stand before God from a person is his godly character and not just his physical appearance.
God can use the nobody's in this world to become somebody when we have godly character.
And this is what we need to cultivate and work on.
We must concentrate on developing our godly character.
We must live a life of holiness.
LET US BE WILLING AND OBEDIENT TO GOD. Isaiah 1:19 (NIV) 19 “If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the good things of the land."
There are two things we are told to do: to be willing and to be obedient.
If we do that, there is a promise from the Lord that we will eat the good things of the land.
Therefore, the key to God's blessings is willingness and obedience to His Word.
Let me tell you a story of a man named Jim Elliot.
He was one of the five missionaries who was killed while participating in Operation Auca, an attempt to evangelize the unreached people of Ecuador.
On February 2, 1952, Jim Elliot waved goodbye to his parents and boarded a ship for the 18 day trip from San Pedro, California to Quito, Ecuador in South America.
It has been almost three years of jungle ministry and many hours of preparation, of planning and praying that led Jim to this day.
He and four other missionaries would be setting up camp in the territory of a dangerous and uncivilized Indian tribe known as the Aucas, known now as the Waodani.
These Aucas Indians had killed all outsiders that are ever caught in their area.
Even though it was dangerous, Jim had no doubt God wanted him to tell the Aucas about Jesus.
The first thing they did when they arrived in Quito was to learn to speak Spanish.
They worked hard to learn the language and fit in.
Their work paid off and within six months, they were speaking Spanish very fluently.
During that time, these Aucas that they were trying to reach for Jesus had killed several workers at an oil company-drilling site near their territory.
The oil company closed the site because everyone was afraid to work there.
Jim knew that the only way to stop the Aucas from killing people was to tell them about the love of Jesus.
And so, Jim and the four other missionaries began to plan a way to show the Aucas they were friendly.
Nate Saint, a missionary supply pilot, came up with a way to lower a bucket filled with supplies to people on the ground while flying above them.
He thought that this would be a perfect way to win the trust of the Aucas without putting everyone in danger.
And so, they began to drop gifts to the Aucas Indians.
They also used an amplifier to speak out friendly Auca phrases.
After many months, the Aucas even sent a gift back up in the bucket to the plane.
Jim and the other missionaries felt that it was time to meet the Aucas face to face.
One day, while flying over the Auca territory, Nate Saint spotted a beach that looked long enough to land the plane on.
He planned to land there and the men would build a tree house to stay safe in until friendly contact could be made.
The missionaries were then flown one by one and dropped off on the Auca beach.
Nate Saint then flew over the Auca village and called for the Aucas to come to the beach.
After four days of waiting, an Auca man and two women finally appeared.
It was not easy for them to understand each other since the missionaries only knew a few Auca phrases.
They shared a meal with them, and Nate took the man up for a flight in the plane.
The missionaries tried to show sincere friendship and asked to bring others next time.
For the next two days, the missionaries waited for other Aucas to return.
Finally, on day six, two Auca women walked out of the jungle.
Jim and Pete excitedly jumped in the river and waded over to them.
As they got closer, these women did not appear friendly.
Jim and Pete almost immediately heard a terrifying cry behind them.
As they turned they saw a group of Auca warriors with their spears raised, ready to throw at them.
Jim Elliot reached for the gun in his pocket.
He had to decided instantly if he should use it or not.
But he knew he couldn't.
Before they left, each of the missionary had promised that they would not kill an Auca who did not know Jesus to save himself from being killed.
Within seconds, the Auca warriors threw their spears, killing all the missionaries: Ed Mc Cully, Roger Youderian, Nate Saint, Pete Fleming and Jim Elliot.
Meanwhile, late in the afternoon of Sunday, January 8, 1956, Elisabeth Elliot, Jim's wife, waited patiently by the two-way radio to hear Nate Saint and his wife discuss how things had gone that day.
But there was no call at all.
As evening turned to night, the wives grew worried.
They knew the news was not good.
The next morning, another missionary pilot flew over the beach to look for the men.
He saw only the badly damaged plane on the beach.
News quickly spread around the world about the five missing missionaries.
A United States search team went to the beach, found the missionaries' bodies and buried them.
But don't think Operation Auca ended there, because it didn't.
In less than two years, Elisabeth Elliot, her daughter Valerie, and Rachel Saint (Nate's sister) were able to move to the Auca Village and lived there.
Because of that, many Aucas became Christians.
They are now a friendly tribe.
Missionaries, including Nate's Saint's son and his family, still live among the Aucas even today.
Elisabeth Elliot even helped make a movie about Operation Auca called Through Gates of Splendor.
It showed real life scenes of the five missionaries on the beach with the friendly Aucas.
It also included footage of the two years she and her daughter spent living in an Auca village.
This is the story of obedience and allowing God's purposes to be done in their lives.
2. SAUL WAS DIRECTED TO THE HOUSE OF SAMUEL.
1 Samuel 9:6-10 (NIV) "6 But the servant replied, “Look, in this town there is a man of God; he is highly respected, and everything he says comes true. Let’s go there now. Perhaps he will tell us what way to take.”
7 Saul said to his servant, “If we go, what can we give the man? The food in our sacks is gone. We have no gift to take to the man of God. What do we have?” 8 The servant answered him again. “Look,” he said, “I have a quarter of a shekel[a] of silver. I will give it to the man of God so that he will tell us what way to take.” 9 (Formerly in Israel, if someone went to inquire of God, they would say, “Come, let us go to the seer,” because the prophet of today used to be called a seer.) 10 “Good,” Saul said to his servant. “Come, let’s go.” So they set out for the town where the man of God was.
Another thing we can learn from the life of Saul, the first king of Israel is that he was willing to be directed by the Lord.
He was willing to seek guidance from God.
Here we find them at a loss on where to go next to find the missing donkey.
But then, when his servant suggested that they go to the man of God in that town to ask for direction, he agreed right away that it was the best thing to do.
Yet, it was his humble suggestion for a gift to the man of God that stood out in that conversation.
He does not want to go to the man of God empty handed.
He wanted to make sure that he had something to offer in respect to his position.
Many commentaries believe that it was not actually a fee but a respectful homage to a superior leader based on a customary duty.
There were many instance in the Scripture when such gifts had been given such as in the time of Jacob when he offered some spices to the Pharaoh of Egypt.
Also, when the Queen of Sheba offered some gifts to pay homage to King Solomon during her visit.
In the case of Saul, it was a grateful acknowledgment to Samuel being honored as a man of God.
His obedience to his father was praise worthy and his desire to seek advice from Samuel was also admirable.
God can use the nobody's in this world to become somebody when we are willing to seek godly wisdom from God or from others.
In the same manner, we should use every possible way to acquaint ourselves and seek out those who have godly wisdom.
We must listen to their advices so that we can receive and apply their wisdom.
LET US LISTEN TO ADVICE AND ACCEPT DISCIPLINE.
Proverbs 19:20-21 (NIV) "20 Listen to advice and accept discipline, and at the end you will be counted among the wise. 21 Many are the plans in a person's heart, but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails."
It is said that when you and I listen to their advice and accept their discipline, ultimately, we will be wise like them.
We will be counted among the wise.
Then, we will allow God's purposes to be done in our lives.
Let me give you another story.
This time, the story of Elisabeth Elliot, the wife of Jim Elliot who died while reaching for the Aucas.
She is also an example of a woman who was willing and obedient to God regardless of the difficulties she faced.
She was considered to be one of the most influential Christian women of the 20th century.
She recently died of Dementia at the age of 88.
She is a Christian author and speaker.
A widow at an early age, there was no hatred in her heart but she had to ask why.
They were newly married at that time and they had a newborn daughter.
Elisabeth believed that she was called by God to live with her husband's killers.
She ministered to them and remained in their settlements in the foothills of the Andes mountains subsisting in barbecued monkey limbs and living in rain swept huts for two years.
Finally, she was able to understand why her husband was killed by the natives.
She wrote two books about her husband's martyrdom and the years she and her newborn daughter spent living among the Aucas,
the tribe that killed him.
She wrote: "The Auca Indian who killed my husband was trying to preserve his own way of life, his own freedom and liberty.
He believed that the foreigners were a threat to their liberty, so he feels that he had every right to kill them."
Now, she understood their insecurities that only Christ can fill.
One of her first converts in that tribe was a woman named Dayuma, who taught her the language and brought many of her family to Christianity.
In one of her books, she wrote, "Faith does not eliminate questions. But faith knows where to take them."
This is the kind of person that God will promote.
A person who wants her questions to be answered by God and waits patiently for godly advice.
First, Saul was looking for the missing donkey as a sign of obedience.
Secondly, Saul was directed to the house of Samuel as a sign of God's leading.
3. SAMUEL TALKED TO SAUL ABOUT HIS FUTURE
1 Samuel 9:11-27 (NIV)
11 As they were going up the hill to the town, they met some young women coming out to draw water, and they asked them, “Is the seer here?”
12 “He is,” they answered. “He’s ahead of you. Hurry now; he has just come to our town today, for the people have a sacrifice at the high place. 13 As soon as you enter the town, you will find him before he goes up to the high place to eat. The people will not begin eating until he comes, because he must bless the sacrifice; afterward, those who are invited will eat. Go up now; you should find him about this time.”
14 They went up to the town, and as they were entering it, there was Samuel, coming toward them on his way up to the high place.
15 Now the day before Saul came, the Lord had revealed this to Samuel:16 “About this time tomorrow I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin. Anoint him ruler over my people Israel; he will deliver them from the hand of the Philistines. I have looked on my people, for their cry has reached me.” 17 When Samuel caught sight of Saul, the Lord said to him, “This is the man I spoke to you about; he will govern my people.”
18 Saul approached Samuel in the gateway and asked, “Would you please tell me where the seer’s house is?”
19 “I am the seer,” Samuel replied. “Go up ahead of me to the high place, for today you are to eat with me, and in the morning I will send you on your way and will tell you all that is in your heart. 20 As for the donkeysyou lost three days ago, do not worry about them; they have been found. And to whom is all the desire of Israel turned, if not to you and your whole family line?”
21 Saul answered, “But am I not a Benjamite, from the smallest tribe of Israel, and is not my clan the least of all the clans of the tribe of Benjamin? Why do you say such a thing to me?”
22 Then Samuel brought Saul and his servant into the hall and seated them at the head of those who were invited—about thirty in number.23 Samuel said to the cook, “Bring the piece of meat I gave you, the one I told you to lay aside.”
24 So the cook took up the thigh with what was on it and set it in front of Saul. Samuel said, “Here is what has been kept for you. Eat, because it was set aside for you for this occasion from the time I said, ‘I have invited guests.’” And Saul dined with Samuel that day.
25 After they came down from the high place to the town, Samuel talked with Saul on the roof of his house. 26 They rose about daybreak, and Samuel called to Saul on the roof, “Get ready, and I will send you on your way.” When Saul got ready, he and Samuel went outside together.27 As they were going down to the edge of the town, Samuel said to Saul, “Tell the servant to go on ahead of us”—and the servant did so—“but you stay here for a while, so that I may give you a message from God.”
Saul had a very fruitful first time meeting with Samuel.
He was treated with dignity.
He became the special guest of Samuel.
He was given the special food fit for a king.
He was presented with a dignified offer - to govern Israel.
It was a big promotion for a man who came from the smallest tribe of Israel and from the least of all the clans of Benjamin.
Everything was in his favor.
Everything seemed to come in proper place.
If you are in his place, you would feel elated and proud of who you are.
Do you know that God has great things ahead for each one of us?
We are special in His sight.
If we serve Him faithfully, He has a great plan for all of us.
But all of these can change once we make a wrong turn with our lives and make those wrong choices along the way.
We must always remember that a good beginning in the ministry does not guarantee a strong finish.
You can start out strong, but if you begin to boast about yourself, all these good things can be taken away from you.
And this is the what happened to Saul.
As we move on the future chapters of his life we will discover that he slowly turned away from God and ultimately failed.
Saul's career as king began like the sun coming up early in the morning, shining with all its brilliance.
But his career ended like the sun going down ultimately to disaster and personal defeat.
Why? What went wrong?
We will find out th reasons as we move along in our future study.
But as for now, we must remember that....
LET US ONLY BOAST OF THE LORD'S STRENGTH IN US.
1 Corinthians 1:21 (NIV) "Therefore, as it is written: "Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord."
God is the source of all our strength.
Therefore, we must boast only of the Lord.
In fact, God was the one who uses the nobody's to make them somebody's.
God was the one who lift up the smallest from the tribe so that he can govern His people.
But God is always looking for the faithfulness and the obedience of that one person he lifts up so that he could maintain His calling.
God can use the nobody's in this world to become somebody when we learn boast not of ourselves but the Lord's strength in us.
Only Christ can set us free from the life of sin and death.
Let us give our lives to Him and serve Him only.
END....
