What Happens When God's People Arise

“What Happens When God’s People Arise”

Text: Matthew 9:5-7

Intro:

We see in our passage that our Lord commanded the man sick of the palsy to “Arise, take up thy bed, and go unto thine house.”

As a result of this man’s obedience to the Lord’s command, he was healed.

Great things can be accomplished for the Lord if but the child of God would be obedient to his command to “Arise.”

This morning we want to look and see for ourselves through the Word of God, what the results are when the child of God is obedient to the Lord’s command to “Arise.”

1. Elijah

1 Kings 17:8-10

I am sure it didn’t make sense to Elijah to go to the home of widow in the city of Zarephath located in land of Zidon.

God was sending Elijah to a city and land made up of mostly heathens.

To the home of widow – widow was usually poor and barely had enough to feed herself and family never mind a prophet of Jehovah.

But God’s command was arise and His promise was that Elijah would be taken care of by this unlikely source, a widow.

The result of Elijah being obedient to Lord’s command to arise –

He found the widow with only enough food to make one last meal for her son and herself.

God caused the widow’s barrel of meal and her cruse of oil to waste not or not to run out.

She was able to not only feed Elijah but also her son and herself.

The widow’s son falls sick and dies and Elijah revives him.

Then we see Elijah triumph on Mt. Carmel when he prays down fire from heaven that consumed the sacrifice, the altar, the rocks and the water around it.

The people fell on their faces and cried “The Lord, he is God; the Lord, he is God”

The prophets of Baal were slain and rain fell after being stopped for 3 ½ years.

God had taken Elijah from a dried up brook to the top of Mt. Carmel because he choose to obey God and “Arise”.

2. Jonah

Jonah 3:1-10

Again, it did not make sense to Jonah when God told him the first time to “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it; for their wickedness is come up before me.” Jonah 1:2

After all God was sending Jonah to a heathen nation that hated the nation of Israel and their God.

The first time God commands Jonah to “Arise”, Jonah goes his own way and ends up under the chastening hand of Lord and almost loses his life.

He gets thrown overboard, swallowed up by a whale and then thrown up by the whale after crying out to God and repenting.

Notice, God puts Jonah back to the point of his disobedience and He will do the same with us when we backslide on Him.

But the second time Jonah is obedient and arises goes to Nineveh and preaches pending judgment.

The result of Jonah’s obedience and “arising” - a whole nation of heathens got right with God and are spared!

3. The Apostle Peter

Acts 10:19-21

Here again is a case that it did not make sense to man to arise and go to place God was sending him.

Here we have a case of a Jewish Apostle, a pork abstaining Jew, a follower of the Mosaic Law told in a vision by God that it is okay to eat stuff that was once considered unclean.

Not only that but God was sending him to the Gentiles who were considered unclean.

Not only that but Peter is commanded to go a Gentile named, Cornelius and preached the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ so he can be saved.

What is the result of Peter’s obedience and “arising” – Cornelius and his family got saved and who knows how many others – Amen!

Acts 10:44-48

This is the first time an honest to goodness Gentile is saved by hearing and believing the death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ.

4. The Apostle Paul

Acts 9:5-8

Here we have the conversion of one of the greatest Christian that ever lived.

Prior to his conversion-

He was a persecutor of the church.

He was present at the stoning of Stephen and consenting unto Stephen’s death.

He was “Circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee;”

Here we find him on his way to Damascus for the purpose of hunting out Christians to bring them bound unto Jerusalem.

Notice, with me what Paul asked the Lord immediately after his conversion.

V. 6, “Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?”