God's Chosen One

Introduction- Not Just The Adults

When we think of the Civil Rights Movement we often mention

Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Fannie Lou Hamer

James Farmer- Congress of Racial Equality (CORE)

Septima Clark

John Lewis

Rosa Parks

The Emmett Till Generation

At its height in the 1960s, the Civil Rights Movement drew children, teenagers, and young adults into a maelstrom of meetings, marches, violence, and in some cases, imprisonment.

Why did so many young people decide to become activists for social justice? Joyce Ladner answers this question in her interview with the Civil Rights History Project, pointing to the strong support of her elders in shaping her future path: “The Movement was the most exciting thing that one could engage in. 

I often say that, in fact, I coined the term, the ‘Emmett Till generation.’ 

I said that there was no more exciting time to have been born at the time and the place and to the parents that movement, young movement, people were born to…

I remember so clearly Uncle Archie who was in World War I, went to France, and he always told us, ‘Your generation is going to change things.’” 

Ruby Bridges

Ruby Bridges was born the same year as Brown v. Board of Education in 1954. In New Orleans, where Bridges lived, reluctant school officials devised a test to screen out African American children from attending white schools. While in kindergarten, Bridges took and passed the test, allowing her to attend the all-white William Frantz Elementary School, a mere five blocks from her home. She would be the only African American child there. 

Fearing a possible backlash, U.S. marshals were dispatched to New Orleans to protect Bridges. On September 14, 1960, she was escorted to the Frantz School by four marshals. She spent her first day in the principal’s office as white parents took their children out of school. 

Little Rock Nine

The landmark 1954 U.S. Supreme Court decision Brown v. Board of Education set in motion the racial integration of the nation’s schools.

In the summer of 1957, Daisy Bates, president of the Arkansas NAACP, recruited nine high school students who she believed possessed the strength and determination to face the resistance to integration. They were Minnijean Brown, Elizabeth Eckford, Ernest Green, Thelma Mothershed, Melba Patillo, Gloria Ray, Terrence Roberts, Jefferson Thomas and Carlotta Walls. In the months prior to the start of the school year, the students participated in intensive counseling sessions on what to expect and how to respond. 

The Greensboro Four

In 1960, four African American college students – Ezell Blair Jr., David Richmond, Franklin McCain and Joseph McNeil – were attending the North Carolina Agricultural and Technical College.

They all four had been shaken by the 1955 murder of Emmett Till. 

Wearing their best clothes, all four students walked into the F.W. Woolworth store in Greensboro, North Carolina on February 1, 1960. After purchasing some merchandise, they sat at the white people-only lunch counter and requested service which they were denied. They politely requested service and again were denied, this time by the store’s manager who told them to leave.

The Children’s Crusade of 1963

On May 2, 1963, thousands of African American students skipped school and gathered at the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church for instructions. They then marched toward downtown on a mission to talk with Birmingham’s Mayor Albert Boutwell about segregation. As the children approached city hall, they were corralled by police and hundreds were escorted to jail in paddy wagons and school buses. That evening, Dr. King went to see the students at the jail with the message, “What you do this day will impact children who have not been born.”

Transition To Body

Isaiah 11:6 ESV

6 The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, and the calf and the lion and the fattened calf together; and a little child shall lead them.

1 Samuel the book of the rise of the LORD God’s chosen king of Israel, King David

The anointed King

The warrior king

The friend king

Body- God’s Chosen One

Seen Differently By God (v6-10)

1 Samuel 16:6–7 ESV

6 When they came, he looked on Eliab and thought, “Surely the Lord’s anointed is before him.” 7 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.”

1 Samuel 16:6–7 The Message

6 When they arrived, Samuel took one look at Eliab and thought, “Here he is! God’s anointed!” 7 But God told Samuel, “Looks aren’t everything. Don’t be impressed with his looks and stature. I’ve already eliminated him. God judges persons differently than humans do. Men and women look at the face; God looks into the heart.”

Illustration: Dove soap’ “Peer pressure: help your child to be themselves” article

The tendency for young people to judge appearance

“Let’s be real: when girls walk into a room, they all check each other out,” says self-esteem coach Dr. Tara Cousineau🔗. “At this point in her life, your daughter is noticing the different emotional and physical traits of her peers, comparing herself to her friends, starting to judge these as desirable or undesirable. This is compounded by the media, magazines, and movies. All of a sudden, the value of a certain type of appearance and personality is amplified.”

Starting at a new school or joining a new team are situations in which these comparisons come to the fore. Young people may begin to experiment with different looks, vocabulary, and social behavior. 

These situations can also trigger a massive shift in young people’s attitudes towards their bodies and appearance, as they struggle to find their place in their social circles. 

Celebrate the diversity in their peer group

Compliment your child and their friends on the unique aspects of their appearance, but focus more on their beautiful personalities

Galatians 1:10–12 ESV

10 For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ. 11 For I would have you know, brothers, that the gospel that was preached by me is not man’s gospel. 12 For I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ.

The LORD Looks on the heart

1 Samuel 16:7 ESV

7 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.”

2 Chronicles 16:9 ESV

9 For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to give strong support to those whose heart is blameless toward him. You have done foolishly in this, for from now on you will have wars.”

Psalm 51:10 ESV

10 Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.

Proverbs 4:23–27 ESV

23 Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life. 24 Put away from you crooked speech, and put devious talk far from you. 25 Let your eyes look directly forward, and your gaze be straight before you. 26 Ponder the path of your feet; then all your ways will be sure. 27 Do not swerve to the right or to the left; turn your foot away from evil.

Selected Irregardless Of Standing (v11-12)

David is the youngest child

Ruddy- suitable for building, being renewed

Beautiful- youthful beauty, be able, be sufficient

1 Corinthians 1:26–31 ESV

26 For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. 27 But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; 28 God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, 29 so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. 30 And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, 31 so that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.”

Empowered By The Holy Spirit (v12-13)

Anoint= shows that the process means a change of status

Rush- to split, set on fire, be successful, intrude, succeed, advance

David fights in the name of the LORD

1 Samuel 17:37 ESV

37 And David said, “The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” And Saul said to David, “Go, and the Lord be with you!”

Transition To Close- God’s Chosen One

Illustration: A Boston Celtics fan once said this of Lebron James

Physically, he could have been made to play basketball.

Coming out of high school at age 18, he was listed at 6′8″, 245 lbs with a 7′0″ wingspan, and everyone thinks he weighs more than that but it’s all muscle. 6% body fat, 40+ inch vertical (reported 44″), incredible speed, (reported 4.6 40 time), incredible strength power.

Mentally, you give him a prodigious basketball mind to match his body (a “savant”) and every basketball skill you could want.

Even his supposed lack of shooting just adds an interesting human touch to a player who otherwise seems a basketball deity incarnate, and he’s been able to hit big shots when it counts anyway.

Finally, he was born to play basketball in Cleveland. A Midwest city that has seen its best days long past with the industry that originally made it successful, few people seem to love Cleveland except the kid who was born in poverty in nearby Akron.

In short, literally every star aligned just perfectly as part of the LBJ saga.

Meanwhile the magic is still very much alive and well with Lebron.

That’s why he’s the Chosen One basketball

God hit some big shots for you when Jesus came!

Close- God’s Only Chosen One

A Body Prepared For Me

Hebrews 10:5 ESV

5 Consequently, when Christ came into the world, he said, “Sacrifices and offerings you have not desired, but a body have you prepared for me;

For God So Loved the World

John 3:16 ESV

16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

The Spirit of Descended & Rested

Matthew 3:16 ESV

16 And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him;

God the Father’s Beloved Son

Matthew 3:17 ESV

17 and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”

Led By The Spirit

Matthew 4:1 ESV

1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

God’s Chosen Son- listen to him

Luke 9:35 ESV

35 And a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is my Son, my Chosen One; listen to him!”

Jesus is bread of life.

Jesus is the light of the world.

Jesus is a good shepherd.

Jesus is the gate.

Jesus is the resurrection.

Jesus is the way the truth and the life.

Jesus is the vine.

In The Last Days God Declares

Acts 2:17–18 ESV

17 “ ‘And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; 18 even on my male servants and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy.

Romans 8:28 ESV

28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

2 Peter 1:3–11 ESV

3 His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, 4 by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. 5 For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, 6 and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, 7 and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. 8 For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins. 10 Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall. 11 For in this way there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.