A PURPOSED DONATION TO LIFE OR RUNNING WITH NO PURPOSE
By Wade Martin Hughes, Sr. Kyfingers@aol.com
This is a two part series, or can be done as one part if you move points very quickly!
I take a bow and a quiver of arrows, and hold them in my hands as a point of visual contact.
TEXT:
1 Cor. 14:8 For if the trumpet give an uncertain sound, who shall prepare himself to the battle?
2 Corinthians 9:6 But I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap sparingly; and he which soweth
bountifully shall reap bountifully.
7. EVERY MAN ACCORDING AS HE PURPOSETH IN HIS HEART, SO LET HIM GIVE: NOT GRUDGINGLY,
OR OF NECESSITY; FOR GOD LOVES A CHEERFUL GIVER.
1. A LITTLE GIRL’S OFFERING HUMBLES ME.
I hold in my hand a little offering envelope, it has 48 cents in it. A little girl gave me this 48 cents several years ago.
Mommy had left home, never to return as Mommy and Daddy together again, and this little child slipped this offering envelope in my hand that had 48 cents, how can I accept this?
I started to return the money to the girl or her family, and I felt God say, ACCEPT THIS OFFERING WITH A GRATEFUL HEART! HUG HER AND THANK HER!
It was not that God needed the offering, or that 48 cents would help me, the little girl needed to GIVE!
That envelope has been on my desk for several years, it serves to remind me GOD LOVES GIVERS!
God does not need your gift, you need to learn purposeful giving, planned giving, love giving.
2. LET US DEFINE PURPOSE:
Something set up as an object or end to be attained; intention, resolution, determination;
to propose as an aim to oneself; what one intends to do; what one seeks to achieve...
To often we walk and give without achieving or focusing upon a plan, a purpose.
3. RECENT GIVING HUMBLES ME.
I have recently been touched by giving.
Two different people from church have heard my lessons and sermons on FIRSTFRUITS BELONG TO GOD, and willfully decided to give their first fruit!
One lady came into church, a little late the other day, she was carrying the most beautiful tomato I have
seen, in the palms of her hands. It was her first ripe tomato out of her garden, and she brought it as an
offering to me the Preacher.
Karen said, I dare not eat what belongs to God.
The other giving touch came from a young man about 27. He carried an offering to the man of God.
In his hands were a hand full of small new potatoes in a plastic bag, and some fresh ripe tomatoes, and a cabbage head, they were the first from his garden.
He explained these were the first ripe fruit from his garden, and he brought them as a gift to God for
blessing him and his family. The first out of his garden was presented as a gift to God.
This was from my oldest son, Wade.
I was so humbled, later while a lone, I was so touched I was moved to tears, never in 22 years of ministry had I received a first fruit offering.
4. THE LESSON OF THE FIRST FRUIT OFFERING!
As a matter of fact, I had a discussion, once with a board member, he said the first watermelon every year was the best tasting watermelon.
I explained why?
It is said, stolen water melon taste sweet?
He was stealing God’s water melon, and eating it, for the first fruit belong to God.
Last week, as I brought the first fruits home, and my wife, Linda, cooked the potatoes and sliced the tomatoes, I was so touched. I felt the holiness of the Most High. I said a special prayer as I ate this offering, I was serving
as an ambassador of the King. I saw the gift of giving.
5. ARE WE TEACHING PURPOSED GIVING?
Many years ago, when we had dug our potatoes, we laid the potatoes on the ground and washed them.
We let them dry in the sun, and then my two little sons started putting the potatoes in bags for storage.
We counted the potatoes to nine, then Joshua was to pick the biggest potato he saw and place it into a
separate bag. The biggest potatoes went into a separate bag. This tenth potato belonged to God.
We finished, and had carried all the bags down into the basement, we carried the separate bags and loaded
them into our station wagon.
We drove across the river to a small Presbyterian church. We could see the Pastor was in the office in study.
We unloaded the bags of potatoes near his study door, we pulled down the street out of sight, and my oldest son, knocked on the door and ran to us down the street.
We watched the Pastor of the little Presbyterian church carry a bag of potatoes to the parsonage.
We sat there and felt like we had given a gift to God, the little Pastor never knew from where the potatoes came,but we had learned a great lesson that day.
6. HOW DO WE MEASURE LIFE’S GOALS?
The measure of life is not in duration, nor the sum total of the gathering of great materialism,
nor is it in knowing every thing there is to know ----
THE MEASURE OF SUCCESS BY GOD’S DEFINITION IS YOUR DONATION TO LIFE --- HOW MUCH DID YOU GIVE?
We can begrudge giving? We can give solely as a tool to receive back. BUT LIVING LIFE AND RUNNING BUT WITH NO
PURPOSE limits our hearts worth.
7. THERE IS A VERY SAD STORY OF A KING SERVING GOD WITH LITTLE PURPOSE AND LITTLE ZEAL!
The lack of purpose can really hurt ministry. You will be tested in your purpose and drive! You might not realize the test is a test until after you have failed?
The Preacher, Elisha, is an old man and he is up on his death bed. Elisha has been very faithful to his post of duty,
but seems the younger generation is not as committed and dedicated to the God that Elisha had served.
8. THE TEXT WILL BE 2 KINGS 13:15 --19... THE ARROW OF DELIVERANCE AND NO PURPOSE?
Elisha’’s lesson on the --- Arrow of Deliverance
1. Elisha tells the young King TAKE THE BOW AND THE ARROW!
2. PUT YOUR HAND ON THE BOW, the King joins his hand upon the bow with the old preacher.
3. The Preacher says: OPEN THE WINDOW. So the King opens the window.
See the King could not accept or understand that this is GOING TO TEST HIS PURPOSE!
4. The Preacher commands the King, SHOOT THE ARROW OUT THE WINDOW!
The King is tiring of all this nonsense? He again cannot see the purpose to all this nonsense!
The King obeys and shoots the arrow out the window.
5. Now, the old preacher tells the young King get the rest of the arrows, and the king complies.
6. Now, take the ARROWS OF DELIVERANCE AND SMITE THE GROUND.
The king lazily, without clear effort, strikes the remaining arrows three times to the ground.
How sad? How sad young man? The man of God is talking to you and you take his words as a man
speaking and not the God of the man speaking.
The Preacher on his death bed, raises up and says: YOU SHOULD HAVE SMOTE THOSE ARROWS 5 OR
6 TIMES AGAINST THE FLOOR.
Are we talking about 6 minus 3 hits, NO WE ARE SEEING A KING WITH LITTLE TO NO PURPOSE,
just drifting aimlessly and effortlessly down through life?
Those were not just arrows, those were THE ARROWS OF DELIVERANCE.
To this day Israel has trouble with Syria? It didn’t have to be this way.
9. GOD CAN USE A SEEMINGLY AIMLESS PLAN... JEHOSHAPHAT!
TEXT:1 Kings 22:30 --38 ---
Remember,The King Jehoshaphat had prayed about battle and would not listen to the message from God.
The King did not like the message or the messenger!
The King thought, I will disguise myself and enter the battle, I will be OK, disguised, no one will see me?
During the battle, a certain man got a funny feeling, he just put an arrow under the bow string and without rhyme or
reason at the right time, the enemy just shot an arrow.
Wow, the arrow was a guided missile, the King Jehoshaphat felt a pain, and the aimless arrow hit the king
right between the shoulder blades, as the sun went down that evening, dogs were licking the King’s royal blood
from the ground.
America was found accidentally, but there was purpose behind it’s finding.
Growth and Progress is not an accident.
Many arrows shot aimlessly have the aim of God upon them.
Are we warning others? Are we purposefully giving and doing God’s will?
1 Cor. 14:8 For if the trumpet give an uncertain sound, who shall prepare himself to the battle?
10. DAVID, A MIGHTY KING WITH MANY VICTORIES, SEEMS TO LOOSE HIS PURPOSE.
2 Samuel 11:1 --- at a time when Kings go forth TO BATTLE, that David sent Joab...
David tarried at Jerusalem.
If David had been on the ball, with a purpose --- his shameful affair with Bathseba would have never happened.
God has a plan, and His plan is for you to be busy working for Him, in HIS PURPOSE!
Characters of 11 Samuel
Nathan
David
Joab - General
Absalom - Handsome, cut his hair once a year, rebellion, trouble
Solomon - Bathsheba - good true
Ahimaaz - type - good but aimless
Cushi - type - faithful - slow
The Price of Sin
David - Bathsheba - Uriah the Hitite
Nathan - God’s man, rich man had many lambs - poor man had one little pet lamb;
THE RICH MAN EATS THE POOR MAN’S PET LAMB...
Nathan tells truth
11 Sam. 12:7 And Nathan said to David, Thou art the man. Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, I anointed thee king
over Israel, and I delivered thee out of the hand of Saul.
Price Tag
11 Sam. 12:11-12 Thus said the Lord, Behold, I will raise up evil against thee out of thine own house, and I will take
thy wives before thine eyes, and give them unto thy neighbor, and he shall lie with thy wives in the sight of this sun.
12: For thou didst it secretly, but I will do this thing before all Israel, and before the sun.
Just as Nathan had warned THE TROUBLE STARTS:
A. Absalom beautiful sister Tamar
B. Amnon (1/2 brother) loves and rapes Tamar
C. Tamar stops wearing her dress of many colors
D. Absalom throws party and KILLS Amnon
5 long years David can’t see beauty of Absalom
David loves Absalom
Absalom can’t wait on God for order.
A. Absalom - if I were King/Judge
B. Steals hearts - tries to take throne - If God set up you better leave alone!
David loves him and runs....
Absalom’s Pride Hangs Him.
11 Sam. 18:14 Then said Joab, I may not tarry thus with thee. And he took
three darts in his hand, and thrust them through the heart of Absalom, while
he was yet alive in the midst of the oak.
11. AHIMAAZ BECOMES A BIBLICAL TYPE, HE IS A MAN THAT WANTS TO RUN, HE JUST DOES
NOT GET THE GOD MESSAGE AND HE RUNS WITHOUT A PLAN OR PURPOSE.
Meet Ahimaaz
11 Sam. 18:19 Then said Ahimaaz the son of Zadok, Let me now run, and bear the king tidings, how that the Lord
hath avenged him of his enemies.
Let me Run and tell Bad News
12. CUSHI IS A FAITH MAN, MAY BE A LITTLE SLOWER BUT HE KNOWS THE PURPOSE OF THE RUN,
CUSHI HAS THE MESSAGE!
Joab knew better - Let Cushi
11 Sam. 18:20-21 And Joab said unto him, Thou shalt not bear tidings this day, but thou shalt bear tidings another
day: but this day thou shalt bear no tidings, because the king’s son is dead.
21: Then said Joab to Cushi, Go tell the king what thou hast seen. And Cushi bowed himself unto Joab, and ran.
Gets message slow, faithful, dependable.
13. GENERAL JOAB YIELDS TO AHIMAAZ, AHIMAAZ WAS A GOOD RUNNER, HE JUST NEVER GOT THE
MESSAGE!
Joab - Well Go Ahead
11 Sam. 18:22 Then said Ahimaaz the son of Zadok yet again to Joab, But howsoever, let me, I pray thee, also run after
Cushi. And Joab said, Wherefore wilt thou run, my son, seeing that thou hast no tidings ready?
Ahimaaz knew how to run faster, he knew all the short cuts.
14. THE KING IS WAITING FOR THE PURPOSED RUNNER!
David waits at gate
The Watchman recognizes Ahimaaz’s running and sees him coming...
11 Sam. 18:27 And the watchman said, Me thinketh the running of the foremost is like the running of Ahimaaz the son
of Zadok. And the king said, He is a good man, and cometh with good tidings.
Good men can be good runners and miss the mark with no purpose to stand empty before the King??
Message
11 Sam. 18:28-29 And Ahimaaz called, and said unto the king, All is well. And he fell down to the earth upon his face
before the king, and said, Blessed be the Lord thy God, which hath delivered up the men that lifted up
their hand against my lord the king.
29: And the king said, Is the young man Absalom safe? And Ahimaaz answered, When Joab sent the king’s servant,
and me thy servant, I saw a great tumult, but I knew not what it was. I knew not what it was -- no message.
15. HERE COMES A SLOWER, MORE PURPOSED RUNNER, AND HE HAS THE MESSAGE!
Cushi comes with the Message... he was slower, but you could depend on him.
Cushi explains Absalom killed in oak tree - 3 darts
11 Sam. 18:33 And the king was much moved, and went up to the chamber over the gate, and wept: and as he wept,
thus he said, O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absolom! Would God I had died for thee,
O Absalom, my son, my son!
16. ARE YOU SINGING, PREACHING AND WORKING WITHOUT THE WORD FOR THE PEOPLE?
Church we must get in Bible on the altar....
1 Cor. 14:8 For if the trumpet give an uncertain sound, who shall prepare himself to the battle?
It is annoying to be honest to no purpose.
The devil can cite Scripture for his purpose.
Nothing contributes so much to tranquilize the mind as a steady purpose - a point on which the soul may fix its spiritual
eye.
The secret of success is constancy to purpose.
The Great End of Faith is not knowledge but action.
No action, little action, terrible things await those that remain neutral doing moral conflict.
To every action there is always opposed an equal reaction.
What great pleasure there is to do a good action secretly and have it found by accident, a greater to know God recorded
your purposed gift.
17. HOW DO WE MEASURE LIFE’S GOALS?
The measure of life is not in duration, nor the sum total of the gathering of great materialism,
nor is it in knowing everything there is to know ----
THE MEASURE OF SUCCESS BY GOD’S DEFINITION IS YOUR DONATION TO LIFE --- HOW MUCH DID YOU GIVE?
We can begrudge giving? We can give solely as a tool to receive back. BUT LIVING LIFE AND RUNNING BUT WITH NO
PURPOSE limits our hearts worth.
His servant, Wade Martin Hughes, Sr. Kyfingers@aol.com Help me? Pass this on to another?
