Introduction

Good morning, beloved. As we gather here today, let us not forget that we are more than just individuals. We are a family, united in faith, love, and a common purpose. We are a community, a body, each with our own unique roles, but all working together for the glory of our Lord. Just as the body has many parts, each with its own function, so too do we have our individual gifts, talents, and resources given to us by God.

As we open our hearts and our minds to His word today, let us remember the words of the great theologian, J.I. Packer, who once said, "The measure of a man's real character is what he would do if he knew he would never be found out." Let us strive to be men and women of character, using our God-given resources not for our own glory, but for the advancement of His kingdom.

The Scripture passage for today's sermon comes from Exodus 4:3, Judges 3:31, 1 Samuel 17:49, and Judges 15:15. In Exodus 4:3, the Lord said to Moses, "Throw it on the ground." Moses threw it on the ground and it became a snake, and he ran from it. In Judges 3:31, we read, "After Ehud came Shamgar son of Anath, who struck down six hundred Philistines with an oxgoad. He too saved Israel." In 1 Samuel 17:49, it is written, "Reaching into his bag and taking out a stone, David slung it and struck the Philistine on the forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, and he fell facedown on the ground." And in Judges 15:15, we read, "Finding a fresh jawbone of a donkey, he grabbed it and struck down a thousand men."

These passages remind us of the power and potential of the resources we have at hand if only we would use them for His glory.

Recognizing Your Divine Deposit

Moses a man who was born a Hebrew slave but raised as an Egyptian prince. He had fled Egypt and was now living as a shepherd in the wilderness. One day, while tending his flock, he encountered a burning bush. It was there that God spoke to him, calling him to lead His people out of slavery in Egypt. Moses, feeling inadequate and ill-equipped for such a task, questioned God. "What if they do not believe me or listen to me?" he asked. God's response was simple yet profound. He asked Moses, "What is that in your hand?" Moses replied, "A staff." God then showed how this ordinary staff could be used to perform miracles.

In our lives, we often feel like Moses. We feel inadequate and ill-equipped to do God's work. We look at our lives, our skills, our resources, and we think, "What can I possibly do with these?" But just as God used Moses' staff to perform miracles, He can use what's in our hands to do extraordinary things. We just need to recognize what we have and be willing to use it for His glory.

The staff in Moses' hand was a tool he used every day as a shepherd. It was something familiar, something he knew how to use. It was a part of his identity. And it was this ordinary, everyday object that God used to perform extraordinary miracles. God didn't ask Moses to use something he didn't have or something he wasn't familiar with. He used what was already in Moses' hand.

For us, God has placed certain gifts, talents, and resources in our hands. These are our divine deposits. They may seem ordinary to us, just like the staff seemed ordinary to Moses. But when we recognize them and use them for God's glory, they can become extraordinary.

The first step in using our divine deposits is recognizing what they are. We need to take a good look at what's in our hands. What are our gifts? What are our talents? What resources do we have? These are not just physical things. They can be our time, our skills, our knowledge, our relationships. They can be our experiences, our passions, our abilities. They are all things that God has given us, things that we can use for His glory.

Once we recognize our divine deposits, we need to be willing to use them. Moses had to throw his staff on the ground. He had to let go of it, to surrender it to God. In the same way, we need to surrender our divine deposits to God. We need to be willing to use them for His purposes, not our own. This may require us to step out of our comfort zones, to take risks, to trust God. But when we do, we will see God do extraordinary things through us.

Using our divine deposits also requires us to rely on God's power, not our own. When Moses threw his staff on the ground, it became a snake. When he picked it up, it became a staff again. It was not Moses' power that transformed the staff, but God's. In the same way, it is not our power that makes our divine deposits extraordinary, but God's. We need to rely on Him, to trust in His power, to believe that He can do extraordinary things through us.

Finally, using our divine deposits requires us to persevere. Moses faced many challenges and obstacles in leading the Israelites out of Egypt. He faced opposition from Pharaoh, doubts from the Israelites, and even his own fears and insecurities. But he persevered. He kept using what was in his hand, trusting in God's power, and following God's guidance. In the same way, we will face challenges and obstacles as we use our divine deposits. But we need to persevere. We need to keep using what's in our hands, trusting in God's power, and following His guidance.

Relevance of Readily Available Resources

As we turn our attention to the Scriptures, we find that the heroes of our faith were ordinary people with ordinary resources ... View this full PRO sermon free with PRO