This week’s scriptures are:
Isaiah 60:1-6; Psalms 72:1-7, 10-14; Ephesians 3:1-12; Matthew 2:1-12
Please pray with me:
Dear Heavenly Father, I pray that the words of this sermon are YOUR words, and not mine. I pray that the message here touches those that need to be touched. I pray that those receiving this sermon remember that all Honor and Glory are yours, Lord, both now and forever. Amen and Amen.
Grace and Peace to you, from our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen.
When I first read the scriptures for this week, I THOUGHT I knew which direction God wanted this sermon to go. “Let your light shine and others will come to you”. Of course, that’s what I get for thinking.
When I went back and re-read the scriptures, I used my parallel Bible. This has four translations side by side. The New Revised Standard Version (NRSV), Revised English Bible, New American Bible and (my favorite) New Jerusalem Bible. By using this Bible, I can easily compare the same passage across four translations.
The meaning is always the same. Often there is only a little difference in the wording. However, sometimes that small difference makes a big difference in understanding.
So it was for me when I re-read the passage from Ephesians. You see, when I first read that passage, I missed the part about Paul calling himself “the very least of all the saints” (NRSV). I know there is so much more to these scripture readings, but that SPOKE to me.
Let me start from the beginning.
Hi, my name’s Daniel and I am a sinner. (I feel like we’re at some kind of twelve-step meeting). I often don’t want to follow God’s will, even when I know it’s what’s best for me. This leads me to sin. I’m not saying I’m a murderer, a thief, a blasphemer, or anything like that. Just by not following God’s will, I’m a sinner.
Take this blog for example. A long time ago, God told me I needed to start writing sermons. Of course, I’m not an ordained minister. I’m no longer the council president, responsible for having someone in the pulpit for every Church service. I don’t have a calling to start a new Church. I’m just a sinner. So I said “no”.
God kept at me. He told me to write. I told God that I hadn’t writing a sermon in years. He reminded me that HE wrote those sermons. I told God that I had no place to share the sermons. He told me that HE would take care of that, too.
Then one day I decided to start blogging. OOPS. God said, “GOTCHA”. He told me, “THIS is where you’ll put the sermons”.
Still not sure about this, I started this blog. Set a date to start writing sermons and put the word out.
That’s when the Devil kicked it into high gear. Remember, I am a sinner. (That makes the Devil happy). I have agreed to do God’s will. (That makes the Devil upset). My spirit is willing, but my flesh is weak.
As the weekend approached and I hadn’t started writing, I started getting sick.
“Hey, God, I’ll just start this next week. Okay?” NOT okay.
God had me read and re-read the scriptures for this week. Then He had me read them again. And again. When I THOUGHT I knew the message I was to give, God had me read the scriptures AGAIN and told me, “Guess again”.
I had been so focused on mankind being drawn to the light, that I missed the part about God using Paul. I missed the part about Paul saying he was “the very least of the saints”.
You see, just like Paul, I am a sinner. I’m not the greatest speaker in the world. Heck if I don’t stop and think about some words, I cannot pronounce them correctly. The older I get, the more the hillbilly comes out in me.
And yet God used Paul to spread His message. God used Paul to reach out to the Gentiles (non-Jews). God used Paul to bring people to Christ. God used Paul to reach down through the generations and touch lives. Even though Paul has been gone from this earth for thousands of years, God is STILL using Paul today.
So who am I to say, “no”, when God wants to use me? Who am I to say HOW God can use me? Who am I to say WHEN God can use me?
Remember I am a sinner. I am the least of all of God’s people. I love the Lord. I try to follow the Lord. And yet, I resist His will.
And so to me it’s fitting to have these scriptures for this week. They talk about kings and nations being drawn to the light. They talk about Paul being “the very least of all the saint”.
I saw this sermon being about letting your light shine and people will being drawn to you. Then God showed me about Paul.
Paul may have been the least of the chosen, but once he followed in God’s will, people WERE drawn to him. The gentiles couldn’t help but listen.
So even though we are sinners, God can use us, if we let Him. God has placed us where He wants us. Where He needs us. Where we can touch lives. As long as we’ll allow God to shine through us, people will be blessed.
People will be DRAWN to us. They’ll be DRAWN to the LIGHT. They’ll be DRAWN to God.
On this earth, we may never know the lives we’ve touched. We may never know HOW God used us. Even when we think we’re such lowly sinners that we cannot POSSIBLY be used by God, God may all ready be using us.
When we are doing God’s will, God’s light will shine through us. People will be drawn to that light, wanting to know about the light. The more people are drawn to that light, the more they’ll be drawn to God.
Isn’t helping people to know and love God why we’re here in the first place? So let God’s light shine THROUGH you.
It doesn’t matter if you are the greatest person in the world or the worst sinner in the world. As long as you are now doing GOD’S will, God will use you to reach others. He will use you to bless others and draw others to Him.
So the next time you think that you are just a lowly sinner and that God cannot possibly use you, remember He used me to bring HIS message to you today. Who am I, but a lowly sinner? I am a servant of God.
Amen.
May the reading of this sermon bless you. May God be with you and you with Him, until we meet again.
Amen
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