A Seed Sown
A SEED SOWN
11/30/2002 AND 12/1/2002
John 12
23 Jesus replied, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. 24 I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. 25 The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. 26 Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.
27 “Now my heart is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. 28 Father, glorify your name!”
Message
“Listen carefully: Unless a grain of wheat is buried in the ground, dead to the world, it is never any more than a grain of wheat. But if it is buried, it sprouts and reproduces itself many times over. In the same way, anyone who holds on to life just as it is destroys that life. But if you let it go, reckless in your love, you’ll have it forever, real and eternal.
“If any of you wants to serve me, then follow me. Then you’ll be where I am, ready to serve at a moment’s notice. The Father will honor and reward anyone who serves me.
“Right now I am storm-tossed. And what am I going to say? ‘Father, get me out of this’? No, this is why I came in the first place. I’ll say, ‘Father, put your glory on display.’”
PRAYER
-Jesus is our example. If we want to be mature we follow our teacher.
-Jesus’ life was a perfect example of a life lived to be a blessing. It was to be poured out for others.
-That is the purpose of Jesus’ life, but what is the purpose of our lives?
-It is the same thing.
-The secret to joy is giving and sowing your life.
-Jesus told us we could keep our lives to ourselves or we could sow our lives and produce real fruit.
-Christmas is coming up. Why are so many people let down after Christmas? It is because it doesn’t live up to the expectation of bringing us joy.
-It is more blessed to give than to receive-Jesus.
-That isn’t just presents. It is sowing our lives for others.
-The dream in our country is to be blessed and bless others from our extra-our overflow.
-Jesus blessed from His life. His life was sown as a seed.
V 25 to “hate your life” is the same as to hate your relatives in Luke 14:26. It means to “love less”.
-The life we are to hate is our (psuchen) soul. If you love your life, you lose it because you try to protect it.
V26 Serve and follow are the two key words. The point of this verse is that Jesus said to follow “ME” compared to following and serving yourself.
-Worldly people serve their own souls.
-That is the challenge we all face: will we serve our selves or Jesus.
-How do we follow Jesus? By laying down our lives.
-I received an ad in the mail Saturday and the companies slogan was “IT’S ALL ABOUT YOU.”
-Another one is, “because you like nice things.”
WE MUST BE CAREFUL THAT AFTER WE CLIMB THE LADDER OF SUCCESS IN OUR LIVES WE DON’T REACH THE TOP AND DISCOVER THE LADDER WAS LEANING AGAINST THE WRONG BUILDING.
1. TAKE INVENTORY OF GOD’S INVESTMENT IN YOU
-God put certain things in you
-You have resources entrusted to you. Not just what your own but who you are.
-He gave you resources :
AT BIRTH
THROUGH YOUR NEW BIRTH
TRAINING
EXPERIENCE
BY HIS GRACE
-He said to Moses: What do you have in your hand?
1 Peter 4
10 Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms. 11 If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.
Romans 8 Message
He knows us far better than we know ourselves, knows our pregnant condition, and keeps us present before God. That’s why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good.
God knew what he was doing from the very beginning. He decided from the outset to shape the lives of those who love him along the same lines as the life of his Son. The Son stands first in the line of humanity he restored. We see the original and intended shape of our lives there in him.
-The things we would like to discard, God uses for good.
-What’s in your hand? God uses all we are for good.
-Say to God, “All I have to offer you is me.” He says GREAT!
2. GIVE YOURSELF TO GOD
2 Corinthians 8
5 And they did not do as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then to us in keeping with God’s will. 6 So we urged Titus, since he had earlier made a beginning, to bring also to completion this act of grace on your part. 7 But just as you excel in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in your love for us a—see that you also excel in this grace of giving.
-Jesus said “seek ye first the Kingdom of God…”
-The key to sowing your life as a seed is to return it to God.
-This is really what being born again is. I just read where the term Jesus as Savior is not so much Biblical as cultural. The real term is JESUS IS LORD.”
-In other words, here is your property back God.
-The first key in stewardship is the first key in stewardship-
EVERYTHING BELONGS TO GOD.
-WE ARE STEWARDS OR MANAGERS OF IT.
-Part two to answering the altar call is GIVE YOUR LIFE BACK TO GOD.
-I would love to be a traveling minister for a year and preach my favorite message to different people.
-But instead, here I am week by week telling you and me to die and give our lives back to God.
-I recently was challenged by God – AM I WILLING TO LOSE CONTROL? (I’m still working on that one.)
Romans 12
12 Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual a act of worship.
-This Christmas season give one gift to God at least, yourself.
-Then do whatever He tells you with His stuff, your time and your money, and energy.
3. GIVE YOURSELF TO OTHERS
2 Corinthians 8 MESSAGE
8 Now, friends, I want to report on the surprising and generous ways in which God is working in the churches in Macedonia province. Fierce troubles came down on the people of those churches, pushing them to the very limit. The trial exposed their true colors: They were incredibly happy, though desperately poor. The pressure triggered something totally unexpected: an outpouring of pure and generous gifts. I was there and saw it for myself. They gave offerings of whatever they could—far more than they could afford!—pleading for the privilege of helping out in the relief of poor Christians.
This was totally spontaneous, entirely their own idea, and caught us completely off guard. What explains it was that they had first given themselves unreservedly to God and to us. The other giving simply flowed out of the purposes of God working in their lives.
-That explains it. After God has our hearts, He gives them to others.
-Our motive in life becomes, HOW CAN I SOW MY LIFE INTO OTHERS?
-What can I impart and sow that will produce in others?
-Prepare you life as a seed to sow. When it falls to the ground and dies it means you give up control over it.
-Your focus changes from “WHAT CAN I GET OUT OF LIFE” to “WHAT CAN I SOW?”
-Jesus said it is more blessed or you are happier giving than receiving.
-Your joy is multiplied from the harvest your life produces more than it is by the life itself.
-Let me add that you have to take care of yourself are you aren’t fit to sow.
-Paul told the Ephesian ministers to take heed to themselves and the flock over which God had made them overseers.
-You motive changes. You exercise to be healthy and live longer rather than just to look good.
-You give aggressively rather than just as a part of your budget.
-You look for ways to sow the word into people’s lives.
-YOUR MOTIVE AND YOUR FOCUS BECOME DIFFERENT.
-Only God can see your heart. We can’t tell if your heart is in something or not, only God can.
TAKE INVENTORY OF GOD’S INVESTMENT IN YOU
GIVE YOURSELF TO GOD
GIVE YOURSELF TO OTHERS
-Jesus set us free from the bondage and slavery of selfishness.
-Prosperity is marked by generosity, not accumulated things.
-We are now free to give:
to give up
to forgive
to give over to God
-Make your life a seed to sow.
HOMEWORK
Rick referred to this and I did it as well. Instead of just making a Christmas list, make a list of all you have and are. Give them to God.
Make an altar and give God you life, past, present and future.