Only God, Who Makes Things Grow

 

ONLY GOD, WHO MAKES THINGS GROW

            In 1949, George and Elizabeth Wood, an American missionary couple serving in northwest China and Tibet, were forced to leave the area. A local leader named Pastor Mung took over the Church of 200 people. The Woods returned to America, and by 1985 both of them had passed away without ever knowing what had happened to the Church they started.

            In 1988 the Wood’s son George returned to China and met with Pastor Mung and his wife, who were now in their 80’s. For 28 years, the Communist government had done its best to extinguish the Church. Pastor Mung wasn’t allowed to preach, and he spent nine years in prison for his faith. It was illegal to baptize or “indoctrinate” anyone under 18.

            When the government finally allowed Pastor Mung to reopen the Church in 1983, only 30 (mostly older) people were in attendance. Assuming that the Church was on its last leg, George Wood asked, “Pastor Mung, how many believers do you have today?”

            Pastor Mung’s wife brought them a cardboard roll held together by yarn. The first page was filled with five columns: name, age, gender, address, occupation. There were around 20 names. George Wood continued turning over page after page with the names of the baptized.           Finally, he asked the Mungs, “How many believers do you have now?” He said, “One thousand five hundred baptized believers.” In disbelief, George Wood asked, “How did this happen?” Pastor Mung smiled as he shared his secret for church growth. It wasn’t a technique or a program. He said, “Oh! Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

            And we pray a lot!” He went on to describe what the Lord had done. Pastor Mung died in 2006 at 96. But when he passed, the number of baptized believers stood at over 15,000![1] If we want to see Hope Church grow, we work and rely on Only God, Who Makes Things Grow.             Continuing from last week’s sermon, Paul and Apollos humbly acknowledged that they were only God’s servants and faithfully doing what they were assigned to do. Let us look at the works that God’s servants are to do and the one who makes plants and churches grow.  

I. PLANTING & WATERING

            Vs. 5-6, “After all, who is Apollos? Who is Paul? We are only God’s servants through whom you believed the Good News. Each of us did the work the Lord gave us. I planted the seed in your hearts, and Apollos watered it, but it was God who made it grow.”

            We have endured a long winter season. Now spring season is here. It is a season of planting and growth. The Apostle Paul uses two agricultural metaphors to indicate two tasks that God’s servants are to do. Vs. 6. “I planted the seed in your hearts, and Apollos watered it, but it was God who made it grow.” To see how they carried out these tasks, let’s turn to Acts 18.

            PLANTING: After being stripped and beaten by wooden rods and imprisoned in Philippi, run out of Thessalonica and Berea, and scoffed at Athens, Paul came to Corinth. He labored in Corinth for eighteen months planting the gospel seeds in the hearts of both Jews and Gentiles. As a result, a small church was established in Corinth.

            After some time, taking Priscilla and Aquila, he sailed off to Syria and then on to a port in Ephesus. There again, he began the labor of planting the Gospel seeds in the hearts of Jews in the Synagogues. He kept planting seeds as he traveled back and forth to Jerusalem and Antioch.

            WATERING: As Paul moved on from Corinth after planting the gospel seeds, Apollos, an eloquent speaker who knew the scripture well, began to water the seeds planted by Paul.

            The watering took place in the form of teaching of the scriptures. What can we compare with the planting and watering of the gospel seeds in the context of ministry? Paul was a pioneer missionary, preaching the gospel (evangelism) where it had not been preached before.

            Apollos was a Bible teacher who taught the new converts (discipleship) in the Church that Paul had established. As the servants of Christ, we are commanded to plant the gospel seeds in people’s hearts and water them through our teaching of God’s word. God will do the rest.

 

II ONLY GOD, WHO MAKES THINGS GROW

            Vs. 7 “So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow.” (NIV) This verse tells us what our and God’s parts are in part is in His harvest field. Our job is to plant and water the gospel seeds faithfully, leaving the growth to God.

            Only God, who makes things grow, is a reassuring reality for the discouraged Christians worldwide. Especially in the American Churches, success is often measured by the number of people who attend their churches. Smaller churches like Hope Church finds it hard to compete with Churches that are seemingly successful numbers-wise. Let’s not be deceived by numbers.

            If only we understand who is behind the growth of anything, including churches, we can avoid unnecessary frustration, anxiety and keep our blood pressure under control. Let us look at how God is involved in growing and sustaining the natural world and His worldwide Church.

            Though the Bible teaches us that God created the universe, some skeptics question His involvement with it. Consider these scriptures: Genesis 1:11, “Then God said, “Let the land sprout with vegetation—every sort of seed-bearing plant, and trees that grow seed-bearing fruit.

            These seeds will then produce the kinds of plants and trees from which they came.” And that is what happened.” Psalm 14:13-15, “You send rain on the mountains from your heavenly home, and you fill the earth with the fruit of your labor.

            You cause the grass to grow for the livestock and plants for people to use. You allow them to produce food from the earth, wine to make them glad, olive oil to soothe their skin, and bread to give them strength.” The whole world and the forces of nature are in control of the Lord.

            Jeremiah 31:35, It is the Lord who provides the sun to light the day and the moon and stars to light the night, and who stirs the sea into roaring waves. His name is the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.” The Apostle Paul directed the men of Athens to God’s sustaining power.

            Acts 17:24-25 “He is the God who made the world and everything in it. Since he is Lord of heaven and earth, he doesn’t live in man-made temples, and human hands can’t serve his needs—for he has no needs. He himself gives life and breath to everything, and he satisfies every need.” If for one moment God stopped giving life, the whole universe would disintegrate.

            These scriptures teach us that everything depends on Him, whether it be the change of seasons, the growth of plant and animal life, or the movement of the earth and stars. But interestingly, when it comes to changing human lives, God chooses to work with His people.

 

III WORKING TOGETHER

            Vs., 8-9, The one who plants and the one who waters work together with the same purpose. And both will be rewarded for their own hard work. For we are both God’s workers. And you are God’s field. You are God’s building.” After recognizing that they were merely God’s servants and God is the only one who produces fruit, Paul draws these conclusions.

            Firstly, planting gospel seeds (Evangelism) and watering (discipleship) go together. Secondly, though the servants all called for individual tasks, they are united in God’s work. Thirdly the purpose of gospel seeding and watering is the same so that humankind will come to believe the Good News. Fourthly, God will reward our hard work of labor in His vineyard. Fifthly, all Christians are co-workers of God. The Church is God’s field and building.

            Finally, God uses people of different talents and temperaments to help Him cause the Church to grow. What does this all mean for us today? At Hope Church, we are called to spread the gospel seeds in people’s hearts and disciple those who are being saved by the power of the Holy Spirit.

            How does the planting of gospel seeds and discipling, which amounts to watering, work at Hope Church? We pray and share the good news of the gospel through acts of love, kindness, and preaching of the word during Sunday service and one on one. We disciple the saved during Sunday Bible times, connect groups, and other social and fellowship events.

            Though we are a small church, we have a BIG heart for world missions. We support eight missionaries and ministries in various unreached parts of the world through our generous giving. As we are led by the Holy Spirit, we get involved in pre-evangelistic events such as Christmas Child outreach, student outreach, ministering to the homeless, and other community activities.

            As God’s faithful servants, we do these and many other things with one purpose in mind so that many people will come to know Jesus as their Lord and savior and be discipled. Like the Apostle, Paul and Apollos, we are co-workers in God’s field. We work together as teams.

            We recognize that we are in partnership with Jesus Christ, our Lord, to save the world. Listen to the words of Jesus regarding the end-time harvest. John 4:35, “wake up and look around. The fields are already ripe for harvest.” Our mission is not to grow Hope Church but to Glorify God by becoming devoted followers of Christ. In the end, God gets all the glory. Amen!

 

 

 

 

           

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[1] Source: Adapted from Dr. George Wood, The Assemblies of God Minister's Newsletter (January 2012)

Only God's Servants

 

ONLY GOD'S SERVANTS!

            After the 9/11 attack, a few hours before his address to Congress on September 20, President Bush met at the White House with twenty-seven leaders, including 13 evangelicals. The group included Luis Palau and Franklin Graham, pastors Max Lucado, Bill Hybels, T.D. Jakes, Charles Blake, and Gerald Kieschnick, president of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod.       After reading Romans 13, Gerald Kieschnick said Bush has a divine calling in this crisis. "Mr. President, I have just come from the World Trade Center site in lower Manhattan. I stood where you stood. I saw what you saw. I smelled what you smelled," Kieschnick said.

            "You not only have a civil calling, but a divine calling. You are not just a civil servant; you are a servant of God called for such a time like this." "I accept the responsibility," Bush said, nodding."[1] According to Romans 13:4, I wonder how many civil servants, leaders, and politicians in our country acknowledge that they are indeed God's servants sent for our good?

            Can you imagine what this world would look like when leaders humble themselves and recognize that they are only God's servants? In our study, we will see humility displayed by two prominent pioneer leaders and teachers in the Corinthian Church. Through their humility, we can learn that all Christians, whether in leadership or not, are "Only God's Servants," I Cor 3:1-9. Hear what Paul has to say about the need for Christians to grow up and become mature.

I. INFANTILE BEHAVIOR

            Vs. 1-2, "Dear brothers and sisters, when I was with you, I couldn't talk to you as I would to spiritual people. I had to talk as though you belonged to this world or as though you were infants in Christ. I had to feed you with milk, not with solid food, because you weren't ready for anything stronger. And you still aren't ready," Here is a bit of background for the newcomers.

            During his second missionary journey, the apostle Paul spent eighteen months in the city of Corinth. As a result of his ministry, a house fellowship was born. After Paul left, the great orator Apollos came and ministered in Corinthian Church (Acts 18:24-28).

            Despite the faithful preaching of these two men, the Corinthian Church was plagued with several problems. While ministering in Ephesus on his third missionary journey, Paul received a report from the household of Chloe about deep divisions among the church members and some other problems. That prompted Paul to write 1 Corinthians to address those problems.

            Paul calls the believers brothers and sisters in the first two verses before reprimanding them for their spiritually immature and infantile behavior. He says, "when I was with you," referring to his eighteen-month ministry in the Church, that he could not speak with them as spiritual adults because they were acting immaturely. They looked like adult babies. 

            Does this type of infantile behavior only existed in the Corinthian Church, or do we see it playing out in our society and among the Churches in the 21^st century? We find it everywhere, in our homes, schools, workplaces, the US congress, and even in some churches. Infantile behavior is immature, childish, throwing temper tantrums, especially when things don't go our way. 

            Here is a list of ten things to observe in adults who act childish. (PowerPoint). How do we find out the infantile behavior among believers in a Church setting? The apostle Paul gives three identity markers for spiritual infants. Vs. 3-4, "for you are still controlled by your sinful nature. You are jealous of one another and quarrel with each other.

            Doesn't that prove you are controlled by your sinful nature? Aren't you living like people of the world? When one of you says, "I am a follower of Paul," and another says, "I follow Apollos," aren't you acting just like people of the world? Let me bring this to our context. We are spiritually immature when we feel jealous of someone else's success and good fortune.

            When we quarrel with each other at times over petty things, we are acting childish. When we continue to live in sin, even when we know it is Biblically wrong and grieves God's heart, we are spiritual infants and need to grow spiritually. We are no different than the people in the world who knew no God when we take sides of people and promote schisms; that is infantile behavior.

            In the Bible, we are encouraged to be child-like regarding our faith in Christ and desiring God's word. Being child-like is a requirement to enter heaven. Childishness has always been discouraged. Later in the letter, Paul condemns childishness and encourages childlikeness.

            The Corinthian Church was divided. A group followed Paul and the other group Apollos. Historically, like the Corinthian Church, the American Church has been split over party lines and other controversial issues. Unfortunately, the Pandemic has further widened that divide.

            It is time for Christians to be unified in Christ. Oh Lord, please unite our fractured churches. Paul had to unify the divided Church by downplaying their very roles as prominent leaders and point them to one true leader of all Churches, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

II. ONLY GOD'S SERVANTS

            Vs. 5 "After all, who is Apollos? Who is Paul? We are only God's servants through whom you believed the Good News. Each of us did the work the Lord gave us." It looked like the Corinthian Church took great Pride following these two pioneer leaders. Some were Paulites, and others were Apollosites. Paul challenged their immature thinking and childish associations.

            He downplayed and deflected their attention from them to God by saying, "After all, who is Apollos? Who is Paul? We are only God's servants. Being God's servants is no ordinary thing. It comes with humility and responsibility. The OT leaders, even Judges, prophets, and Kings humbly admitted themselves as servants of God. By doing so, they recognized God was sovereign, and they were ready to act at His command. Consider the following scriptures:

            God appears to Isaac one night and tells him that Abraham was his servant. Gen 26:24. Jacob confesses he was a servant of God. Gen 32:10. In Leviticus 25: 55, God addresses all of Israel were His servants. Moses prayed to God, saying, "pardon me, your servant." Ex 4:10.

            Joshua, a military commander himself, when he met the Lord's commander, falls to the ground in reverence and says, "I am at your command, what do you want your servant to do? Joshua 5:14. Eli, the priest, advised the boy Samuel to respond to God, saying, "Speak LORD, your servant is listening," He said the same when the Lord spoke to him. I Samuel 3:10

            When King David was finally settled in his palace, he goes in and sits before the Lord and offers a prayer of thanksgiving. In that prayer, he refers to himself as God's servant eight times. 2 Samuel 7:18-29. Psalm 116:16, “O Lord, I am your servant; yes, I am your servant, born into your household; you have freed me from my chains.”

            Before killing all the prophets of Baal, Elijah prayed, “O Lord, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, prove today that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant. Prove that I have done all this at your command.” I Kgs 18:36. These are only a few OT scriptures.

            When two of his disciples coveting two prestigious places next to Jesus when he establishes His Kingdom, Jesus put them in place in a way all those who aspire to be leaders saying, Matthew 20:26-28, “But among you, it will be different.

            Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you must become your slave. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.” We are to serve one another in love.

            Jesus, disciples often referred to themselves as “a slave or a servant of Christ. “By listening to these examples, do you think God only calls men to be His servants? In God’s kingdom, is there a place for women to equally serve along with men? Absolutely! Yes!

            In the Bible, many capable women held prominent roles of leadership; some even served as prophets. The first woman prophet was Miriam (Moses’s older sister). Ex 15:20-21 Miriam’s prophetic ministry consisted of music and dancing. The daughters of Heman (three of them) were musicians who served with their brothers in the music ministry of the temple.[2] I Chr 25:5-6

            We are blessed with several women singers and musicians in our Church who give their talents in serving the Lord. Another time I will take about the role of women in the Church. It is sufficient to say that God uses both men and women in His service.

            According to the prophet, Joel the end-time harvesting requires all people, young and the old, men and women. This prophecy was fulfilled on the Day of Pentecost, as it is celebrated today by many churches. Acts 2:17-18, “In the last days,’ God says, ‘I will pour out my Spirit upon all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy.

            Your young men will see visions, and your old men will dream dreams. In those days, I will pour out my Spirit even on my servants, men and women alike, and they will prophesy.” Coming back to our text, under the anointing of the Holy Spirit, the Apostle Paul utters these words, Who is Paul? Who is Apollos? We are “Only God’s Servants.”

            As a young boy, I remember once I went up to my pastor and said I want to serve God.  I didn’t know how? He told me if I want to serve God, come every Sunday, spread the mats on the floor, keep the Hymnals ready, pick them up and fold the mats after the service. I did it joyfully.

            That was how I began my ministry of serving God. Let me remind you again of the words of our servant King Jesus, “Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you must become your slave.” There is no greater honor and privilege than for us to be called; we are “Only God’s Servants.” Amen!

             

           

  

 

 

 

 

 

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[1] https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2001/november12/1.38.html

[2] https://claudemariottini.com/2013/12/16/the-seven-prophetesses-of-the-old-testament/

THE POWER OF THE CROSS

 

            Bible scholar and pastor N.T. Wright retells the following story about an archbishop hearing confessions of sin from three hardened teenagers in the Church. All three boys were trying to make a joke out of it, so they met with the archbishop and confessed to a long list of ridiculous and grievous sins they had not committed. It was all a joke.

            Seeing through their bad practical joke, the archbishop played along with the first two, who ran out of the Church laughing. But then he listened carefully to the third prankster, and before he got away, told the young man, “Okay, you have confessed these sins.

            Now I want you to do something to show your repentance. I want you to walk up to the far end of the Church, and I want you to look at the picture of Jesus hanging on the cross, and I want you to look at his face and say, ‘You did all that for me, and I don’t care that much.’ And I want you to do that three times.” The boy went up to the front, looked at the picture of Jesus, and said, “You did all that for me, and I don’t care that much.”

            He said it again, but then he couldn’t say it the third time because he broke down in tears. And the archbishop telling the story said that I know that story because I was that young man. There is something about the cross. Something about Jesus dying there for us leaps over all the theoretical discussions, all the possibilities of how we explain it this way or that way, and it grasps us. When we are captured by it, somehow, we sense that the love of God grabs us.”[1]

            We are journeying through the letters to the Corinthian Church. We saw the importance of Belonging to Christ, how spiritual unity is achieved, and its manifestation in our world today. In our study, Paul exposes the futility of human strength and wisdom and how they are no match to the Power of The Cross. He also shows us where we came from, who we are now in Christ.

            Is it possible for someone who vehemently opposed the message of the cross and persecuted Christians to become a passionate preacher of that same message? Yes! That was the back story of the Apostle Paul. He knew firsthand the cross’s power as it has changed his life on the Road of Damascus. Based on that experience, he confounds the wisdom of the world. When we say the power of the cross, we are not referring to a mere object but the one who died on it.

 

I GOD’S WISDOM & WORLDS WISDOM

            Vs. 18-21, “The message of the cross is foolish to those who are headed for destruction! But we who are being saved know it is the very power of God. As the Scriptures say, “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise and discard the intelligence of the intelligent.”

            So where does this leave the philosophers, the scholars, and the world’s brilliant debaters? God has made the wisdom of this world look foolish.” These verses flow from verse 17, where Paul admits that he did not use eloquent words to preach, lest they minimize the power of the cross. He affirmed the fact that salvation could not be achieved by worldly wisdom.

            Paul used an O.T. quotation to show how God dismisses the wisdom of this world. God sent His prophet Isaiah with a clear message to expose the shallow worship of His people. “And so, the Lord says, “These people say they are mine. They honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. And their worship of me is nothing but man-made rules learned by rote.             Because of this, I will once again astound these hypocrites with amazing wonders. The wisdom of the wise will pass away, and the intelligence of the intelligent will disappear.” Isaiah 29:13-14. God humbles those who consider themselves wiser and stronger in their own eyes.

            Job thought he could challenge God by asking tough questions about human suffering. God appeared to him in a whirlwind and challenged Job with 77 mind-blowing questions about the affairs of the universe. In return, Job had nothing much to say except mumble a few words.

            Job 42:1-6, “I know that you can do anything, and no one can stop you…It is I, and I was talking about things I knew nothing about, things far too wonderful for me. I had only heard about you before, but now I have seen you with my own eyes. I take back everything I said, and I sit in dust and ashes to show my repentance.” Even the world’s top philosophers, scholars, and debaters, when God confronts them, can be dumbfounded at God’s wisdom.

 

II THE FOLLY OF THE CROSS

            The Apostle Paul began his argument with these words. Vs. 18, “The message of the cross is foolish to those who are headed for destruction! But we who are being saved know it is the very power of God.” He identifies two groups that were heading for destruction at that time.         Vs.22-23, “It is foolish to the Jews, who ask for signs from heaven. And it is foolish to the Greeks, who seek human wisdom. So, when we preach that Christ was crucified, the Jews are offended, and the Gentiles say it’s all nonsense.” First, let us look at the message of the cross.

            It is the whole gospel. God’s redemptive plan of sinners is demonstrated in the birth, works, crucifixion, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is the good news. Yet, it doesn’t sound brilliant and accepting, and it is often perceived as a threat and offensive by many. Why?

            In the first century, the message of the cross often evoked mixed reactions in listeners. For instance, on the Day of Pentecost, when the apostle Peter held Jews accountable for their actions, this was how some responded, Acts 2:36-38, “So let everyone in Israel know for certain that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, to be both the Lord and Messiah.”

            Peter’s words pierced their hearts, and they said to him and other apostles. Brothers, what should we do? Peter replied, “Each of you must repent of your sins and turn to God and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins.” Many responded positively. Three thousand Jews got saved in one day. That was the beginning of the early Church.

            But later on, when Stephen preached a similar message saying, your ancestors “killed the ones who predicted the coming of the Righteous One the Messiah whom you have betrayed and murdered. The Jewish leaders were infuriated by Stephen’s accusation, and they shook their fists at him in rage. Vs. 57, “Then they put their hands over their ears and began shouting. They rushed at him and dragged him out of the city, and began to stone him.

            His accusers took off their coats and laid them at the feet of a young man named Saul,” Acts 7:52-57. Interestingly the same Saul now radically transformed by the Christ of the Cross took the Jews and Gentiles to the task saying, the cross is foolish to the Jews and unreasonable to the Greeks, but to those who are being saved is the very Power of God.

            Historically the cross and its message have often been miss understood by people due to overzealous and shameful acts of specific individuals in the name and for the sake of Christ. During the High Middle Ages, the cross became connected with a series of religious wars waged from Christian Europe to liberate the Holy Land from the grasp of Muslim rulers. Those who chose to go and fight would wear a special garment, marked with a cross, over their clothes.

            In the late 11th century, these Crusaders conquered Jerusalem in a bloody battle that did not spare women and children in the effort to rid the city of “infidels.” The Crusades sparked waves of active hostility toward European Jews, resulting in outbreaks of violence against Jewish communities for centuries. In recent history, the cross was taken up by activists demonstrating against social advances. As part of their terror campaign, the Ku Klux Klan would often burn plain wooden crosses at meetings or on the lawns of African Americans, Jews, or Catholics.

            The cross has been a powerful sign of divine love and salvation for all Christians. Tragically, the cross has also been twisted into a vivid symbol of hatred and intolerance. Who can restore its original meaning? It is left to those who have experienced the Power of the Cross.

 

III THE POWER OF THE CROSS

            Vs. 24-25 “But to those called by God to salvation, both Jews and Gentiles, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God. This foolish plan of God is wiser than the wisest of human plans, and God’s weakness is stronger than the greatest of human strength.”

            In the world’s eyes, the Cross and Christ dying on the cross looks foolish and weak. Little do they know that what they consider a stupid God’s plan is wiser than the wisest human plans. The weakness of God is stronger than the greatest of human strength. The Cross of Christ that has been ridiculed becomes the Power of God to all those called by God to salvation.

            The mere symbol or image of the cross has no power, and it cannot save. Hence, we don’t worship or bow down before an image as some church traditions do. The power to save is in the person of Christ who sacrificed His life on the cross so that we might live with Him.

            Over the years, countless people have tried to discredit the cross and wipe out the followers of Christ, but the cross stood triumphantly every time. As of 2015, Christians the adherents of the cross are approximately 2.3 billion, out of a total population of 7.5 billion.

            The power of the cross is still grabbing many Hindus, Jews, Muslims, people of all faiths into the fold of God. By 2050, Christianity will be the first to reach 3 billion. More than 3.4 billion people will be Christians then, according to the Gordon Conwell projections.

            How has the power of the cross changed your life? Those of us who are being saved are called to turn from our selfish ways and take up our cross daily and follow Christ. Let’s not be ashamed of the cross nor live like the enemies of the cross by uncontrolled lifestyle. The Cross of Christ represents God’s love, forgiveness, and acceptance of all people. Let’s not turn it into a vehicle of hatred and violence. Let’s conduct ourselves in a manner worthy of the Cross of Jesus Christ, our Lord, and Savior. Let us share the Good News with all people. Amen!

 

 

 

           

 

 

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[1] Source: Adapted from N.T. Wright, "Grasped By the Love of God," N.T. Wright Online