Everything God does, He does with an overabundance of quality. How many people do you see in the world around you that are professing one thing in the world, and totally behaving like another? As we remarked then, our Lord poured unstinted eulogium upon the head of John, in the audience of the people, at the very moment when he showed himself weakest. Is it True for Christians That 'Once Saved, Always Saved'? You are like this seed. He wore so many chains that he had to crawl around on his hands and knees. Violent men are taking possession of it. If you want to demonstrate His impact on your life, do what you do with an overabundance of quality. The kingdom is not for weaklings, the kingdom is not for waverers or compromisers. Well, what shall we do then? the ruler asked. God has put something into your life which when developed will make you great in his sight. And, by the way, it had been 400 years since there had been a prophet, 400 years silence. WebIts a very tender and touching sceneone of the most moving and heartwarming farewell speeches thats ever been recorded in literature. I do not care about indulging myself in those delicacies of life. It is being persecuted. Copyright 2003-2023 | Outreach, Inc., All rights reserved. He sends two disciples, it says in verse 2, and said to them, you ask if He is the One that should come or are we looking for somebody else. That particular phrase was somewhat common to designate someones identification with the human race. If you are of this mindset, then think about Adam for a moment. Success does not happen For it is he of whom it is written, Behold I send My messenger before thy face, who shall prepare thy way before thee. He is the fulfillment of Malachi 3:1. For forty years he wouldnt lie down. 2023 Grace to You. But if we could not see what God has placed in every head. Because the gate is narrow and the way is hard which leads unto life and few there be that What? Pride curses greatness. Notwithstanding, he that is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. Now listen carefully. It also was part of the Nazarite vow to allow your hair to grow without cutting your hair, never putting a razor to your head which didnt exactly keep you up with the current society trend and hairdos. Accordingly, we have updated our Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions in order to comply with GDPR. 3 attributes we find in Pauls heart: 1. That is the athlete who beats his body, as it were, because he has a goal. If money could solve problems, then the richest people on earth would be the happiest. Our Father, we hear the echo of the words of our Lord in Matthew 18. If they wanted to see that they could see that everywhere. Log In
John ushered Him into three years of effective ministry. When World War II came along he enlisted and later gave his life to save his buddy. He could overcome his weakness. He not only was a man who was able to overcome weakness but he was a man who was strong in his conviction. Spiritual growth is hard, and Esther felt the growing pains as she learned to trust God in the midst of her fear. When little Mary Reed played in her home New Caldwell, Ohio, no one dreamed that she would end up in China as a missionary to the lepers, but she did. The Lord said when it comes to humanness there has never been a greater than John the Baptist. They can compete against their own ignorance, they can compete against their own laziness, they can compete against their own indifference. They sold out. So you have a marvelous conversation between the Father and the Son, from Malachi 3:1, here given in reference to John the Baptist. He will come watch the phrase before Thy face. That means in front of Thee, before Christ. And I believe they will be that Elijah who comes to announce the Kingdom. He goes immediately to the Lord. I mean, Johns commitment was a consuming commitment. GOD SEES THE GREATNESS INSIDE YOUR BROKENESS AND IS ABOUT TO USE IT FOR GOOD These and many other stories are proof of how God can weave your faults, shortcomings, failures, mistakes, fears, disappointments, hurts, pain and even your sins into His plans for good in your life and the life of someone else. One in his power and in his person and with his kind of character. A young man played college football for four years, but never made the first team nor played in an important game. He stood there for a awhile as if struggling with himself. Everything is swirling around him. True greatness is being in Gods Kingdom. The great ones fight through, the great ones are competitive. Your greatness shall never end. The priests could only have to restrict himself from wine and strong drink while he was functioning as a priest, according to Leviticus chapter 10. There is a striving. Im going to wrap this up right now. Verse 2 tells us he was in prison. Were going to be looking at verses 7 through 15, particularly, in our thoughts this morning, and focusing on a very, very special man by the name of John the Baptist. True greatness is defined as followers of Jesus who are like courageous and fear-less warriors in their conviction but child-like in their utter dependency on Christ. That is the scientist who exposes himself to all the dangers of radio activity to discover what needs to be discovered for the future of man. And I sometimes am sort of caught in the awe of the whole thing and dont really understand it. They could not see his potential. You know, when I look back in history sometimes and I read about great generals who put their life on the line, who went through incredible hardship to win a victory; or when I read about scientists who were locked up in some kind of a situation for days and weeks and months and years trying to discover something which we now take for granted; or when I read about some person who stayed with a problem, hour upon hour upon hour until, ultimately, it was solved; or a missionary who burned his life out by the time he was 30 years of age trying to get the gospel to some people someplace, then I remind myself that thats the mark of greatness. Theres a verb in the middle, the verb biaz, and it can be translated passive or reflexive. And so, he was questioning whether Jesus was really the Messiah or not, because Jesus was not living up to the current expectations. But we know he was humble from chapter 3, dont we? The Pharisees and the scribes had vigorously attacked the Kingdom. WebPride curses greatness. Dont let the world look at you and indict God for being lazy. John is the culmination of everything, For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John. He is the culmination. We sent you an email. You just have to believe in Him. Do not look at your feet unless you do not know where you are standing and what you are doing. He literally opens up his heart and lets us look inside. Some of us have difficulty in hitting the broad side of the barn but Mattie as he was called could put the ball over a pinhead. WebADDRESS: 2 Science of Mind Way Asheville, NC 28806 TELEPHONE: (828) 253-2325 E-MAIL: cslasheville@gmail.com The Promises of God are SURE. Mark 7:37 tells us, And they were astonished beyond measure, saying, He has done all things well. Visit Overflow Ministries at www.CindeLucas.com. What did you go out to see? WebThere is nothing as great as our God and there is nothing as special (and mind-blowing) as the role he has given us in his vast creation. It also is used to express the idea of having something in common. If you would capitalize on your potential you must keep at it, no matter what. Then verse 13. I love that. And when John came they knew he was a prophet. Remember that you are not alone, and you are not forgotten. Why? But that the greatest greatness is not which that which is ours humanly, but that which is ours divinely as we become citizens of your eternal Kingdom. 28 Jan, 2018 - 00:01 2018-01-27T20:16:19+00:00 2018-01-28T00:01:23+00:00 0 Views. I mean, its a great thing to be the pastor of Grace Community Church. Mattie growled back, I worked hard enough today without running bases McGraw said, Just the same you have to run the bases, Mattie continued to sit on the bench. Put your name in the verses. Sermon: Three Simple Rules To Greatness - The Greatest in the Kingdom. Ch. Sermon: Three Simple Rules To Greatness - The Greatest in the Kingdom. Does he start to tell all his problems to everybody else? The kingdom is for hard, sturdy-hearted folks like Joseph and Nathan and Elijah and Daniel and his three friends and Mordecai and Stephen and Deborah and Esther and Lydia and Ruth and Paul. Now, listen to this. What are they asking or what is the Lord asking? Indeed, the word is spelled Ayin, Mem, and Final Mem. So he is not just one who tells, he is one who does. Why? And eager, vigorous people are pressing into it. When God created you, He placed seeds of greatness in you. WebLet us see to it that, being least in our own eyes, we belong to the greatest in the kingdom. Thats earthly greatness. And it wasnt that he was denying himself to gain some kind of penance, thats foolish. But the ONE they bragged TO, was the SEED of Greatness; Jesus! He restricted himself even above the priests. His life had become the issue. To be UNLEASHED is to be no longer tethered to Bessarion, a monk, would not even give in to his bodys desire for restful sleep. And many of them, by the way, were trying to bring in a false kingdom by political means, such as the Zealots who were trying to seize the kingdom of God, politically, and establish it. I dont care whether youre talking about the ministry or your job or your school work or your athletic career or whatever it is, greatness comes from an ability to get past your weakness. He was Gods tool to purify the people. But in those days, they use to de-wing, bake and salt those things and eat them like peanuts, with a little honey. It's about individual pride. A. Build me a son whose wishes will not take the place of deeds, a son who will know thee and that to know himself is the foundation stone of knowledge. The great people are concerned with a goal. And that puts you in the place of making a choice. Any man in Christ is destined for greatness. Jesus is saying, if John is the forerunner, then I am the King. The greatest man that ever lived. He was greater than Moses, Joshua, David, Solomon, Elijah, Elisha, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel. The kingdom is moving under John and vigorous people are taking it. The whole family tree is written in Matt. Email: support@jhm.org, Headquarters:
He stood apart, unstained by the system. Break the power of hopelessness by speaking life words rather than death words. We Theres a somewhat famous boxer who constantly announces around the world that he is the greatest. Im not really sure what exactly his criteria is, but I think he might get an argument out of God. WebThe Secret of Greatness. As they departed, and that is as the multitude that were were there were still remaining, but the two disciples left. He was not interested in the ease of the world. The point is this, people. Lets peer inside Pauls heart, and see whats in there. Mary was chosen to bear the Messiah. They must have been a little bit quizzical at this point and saying, Well, now wait a minute. They dress in rough sackcloth, their heads shaven, their beards unkempt, they sleep on hard boards, eat bread, sour milk and vegetables. Your destiny contains greatness. But as Christians, we have God to give us that direction. This is true greatness according to Jesus. And listen to this. General Douglas MacArthur, who is about my fifth cousin, believe it or not, or was, said this. They didnt go out to see a reed shaken with the wind. Great truth. And everything was happening all around him, just like a hurricane. God can break that and our hearts respond. What is the obvious answer? Thats it. Then he approached the opening of the cell, sprinkled it with holy water, and after the poor thing had bidden adieu to her friends and relations, ordered the masons to fill up the opening. What a testimonial, huh? At exam time your theme song must be must I go empty headed, must I greet my teachers so not one thought with which to greet her. To John it was all the way. Now, thats both parties of leaders. The Messiahs coming, the Messiahs coming, the Messiah is coming. Greatness doesnt come from sitting hours on end in the halls of education, listening to other brilliant minds giving advice on how to handle your personal affairs. And I told you last time that that was a difficult circumstance for a man whod known freedom, who had known freedom, who had known freedom all his life. Anybody who will not admit weakness is not going to get any help. He touched the living Christ. And then because of his privileged calling. He became the issue. AND the best bit.YOU keep control of YOUR money. And there was 400 years without a prophet, tremendous anticipation had built and built and built. Greatness comes from God. Are there still more seeds that God wants to germinate in you? No, one of his counselors replied, for hell be glad to go. I mean, if you are always being diverted by the desire for comfort, if you cant take pain and youve always got to find the easy way, then youll never know what greatness is. Thank you that you have good things stored up, prepared and ready for us. So, unless you have been that reduced, I assure you that God can use you. There are two possible ways to translate this verse. WebHe told them simply that if they sought for greatness in the kingdom of heaven then they would find it by being not first, but last; not by being masters but by being servants of all. How great is the sweetness which a soul experiences when, in the time of prayer, God, by a ray of His own light, shows her His goodness and His mercies towards her, and particularly the love which Jesus Christ has borne to her in His Passion! To the lead musician, on the gittith, a psalm of David. He was a man so consumed by a greater cause in his own mind that he couldnt be attracted to the system. This is the world climate as John is writing from Patmos Greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world.. Acording to Matthew 21:26, everybody knew he was a prophet. Thats the difference. From the days of John the Baptist until now, theres violence. You know what that says? Scripture confirms the value of a person with conviction. Well, they didnt receive the kingdom, did they? 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