Consider The Ant, Pt. 1
Notes
Transcript
INTRODUCTION
INTRODUCTION
God’s creation preaches a continual sermon about His power, glory, and majesty!
We can find throughout the Bible, God using the animal and insect kingdom to speak to man. In Isaiah 1:3, He uses the ox and donkey.
In the Gospels, He uses a rooster. In the book of Numbers, He uses a donkey to speak to Balaam.
In the book of Proverbs, there are several members of the animal kingdom mentioned and every one of them is preaching a sermon for us!
In our text today, God is speaking to the sluggard -
The word sluggard refers to someone that is slothful, lazy, unconcerned, half hearted, careless.
A Christian sluggard lacks a vision and zeal for the things and plan of God, a Christian sluggard is unfaithful in the things of God, a Christian sluggard makes excuses for his carelessness and unfaithfulness.
A Christian sluggard says things like "I'm too busy to study the Bible, I'm too tired to go to church on Wednesday night, I can't read that well” - By the way, you don’t have to know how to read anymore for the Bible, every one of us have options to listen to the Word of God, either with smartphones, CDs, etc.
A Christian sluggard says, “I don't want to be a religious fanatic, I don't know how to talk to strangers about Jesus, I can't make meet my budget now, how in the world do you expect me to tithe?”
2 Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful.
You cannot be faithful to anything if you’re a sluggard!
A Christian sluggard has lots of plans about how he is going to serve God one day, but he never follows through on his plans. A Christian sluggard is satisfied with just the minimum Christian responsibility…He gets baptized and joins the church, and comes to church whenever it’s convenient, but can’t be counted on for much anything else.
The product of a sluggard is poverty and want,
4 He becometh poor that dealeth with a slack hand: but the hand of the diligent maketh rich.
disappointment and frustration,
4 The soul of the sluggard desireth, and hath nothing: but the soul of the diligent shall be made fat.
decay,
18 By much slothfulness the building decayeth; and through idleness of the hands the house droppeth through.
shame and disgrace,
5 He that gathereth in summer is a wise son: but he that sleepeth in harvest is a son that causeth shame.
and deep sleep.
15 Slothfulness casteth into a deep sleep; and an idle soul shall suffer hunger.
Our text today challenges us not to be a sluggard, but to be wise and prepared even as the ant…The Bible tells us to “Go to the ant” - that means to take the time to examine the ant and watch his ways...
Think about this, a sluggard has a large brain compared to an ant - an ant has a brain that is approximately 1 million times smaller than a sluggard, and God tells us to consider the ways of an ant and gain wisdom from it.
God is using his creation to preach a message to each one of us in this text! That’s why for a little while, I want to “Consider the Ant” - Let’s:
CONSIDER THE BODY OF AN ANT
CONSIDER THE BODY OF AN ANT
NOTICE THE ANTENNAE OF FAITH
NOTICE THE ANTENNAE OF FAITH
The sight of the ant is limited. The two main eyes have what they call “compound eyes” in each of them. They are able to see close up, but can’t see far away.
They don't have the ability to know what lies ahead, but they do have antennae which serve as sensors.
I’m here to tell ya’ll that we might not be able to see far into the future, we might not know what tomorrow holds for us, but praise God, I know Who holds tomorrow!
Faith is like driving a car at night…You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.
If you’re truly saved this morning, it’s by faith...
8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.
Faith comes through the hearing of the Word of God:
17 So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
It takes faith to believe in creation - That’s why this world continues to come up with different ways creation happened - What’s funny is they will say one method is scientifically proven, but yet they keep coming up with other theories - I’ve often said that it takes more faith to believe we just happened to evolve from goo than it does to believe God made us, but that’s why the world cannot and will not believe in Creation, they have no faith!
It takes faith to be saved!
Without faith, it’s impossible to please God:
6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
I’m glad today that we can learn something about faith from these little creatures!
NOTICE THE ABDOMEN OF FELLOWSHIP
NOTICE THE ABDOMEN OF FELLOWSHIP
The abdomen contains the stomachs of the ant…Yes I said stomachs…An ant has two stomachs; one for itself, and another one as storage for others. An ant can regurgitate the food stored in the second stomach to those who are not able to reach the food source. Once they have tasted something that is good, they will share it with others, and even leave a trail of scent so that the other ants in the colony can find the food.
Think about this, it must come out of them to go into others!
The definition of fellowship is sharing; communion. The Christian is brought into fellowship with God and the household of faith through Jesus Christ!
3 That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ.
9 But we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God which raiseth the dead:
10 Who delivered us from so great a death, and doth deliver: in whom we trust that he will yet deliver us;
When we are saved, we are brought into fellowship with God! When we obtain this wonderful gift, we ought to share it with others!
When I think of an ant leaving a trail so that other ants can find the food, I can’t help but think about how all who are saved ought to be leaving trails of tracts everywhere they go!
When I think of an ant storing food in it’s second stomach to take it back to those who can’t reach the food source, my mind goes straight to:
14 But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.
The effect of this water does much more than simply satisfy the thirst of the one who drinks it. It also creates something good, something life-giving in the heart of the one who drinks it. It becomes a “…well of water springing up into everlasting life.”
In Bro. Fain Morrison’s latest prayer letter, over in the Philippines, they are digging wells at the churches they are building. He said people in these areas often walk many miles to get to a well for clean water; the idea is, make the well in front of the church a gathering place where these people can get some clean water! What a picture for us today!
We who have tasted and found that the Lord is good need to go back into the colony of the world just like the ant does and tell the others about Him.
After all, believers are merely one beggar telling other beggars where to find bread!
NOTICE THE ARMOR OF FIGHTING
NOTICE THE ARMOR OF FIGHTING
The ant has an exoskeleton; meaning it wears it’s skeleton on the outside. This is why it’s so difficult to kill an ant.
If you spray poison, the ant’s body won’t even touch it, it can just walk through it because of it’s exoskeleton; bait is much more effective because they love the bait and because the ant takes it back to the colony and shares it with his friends and acquaintances, he will also leave a scent trail telling others where it is…But speaking of armor...
Armor can be offensive or defensive...
12 The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light.
7 By the word of truth, by the power of God, by the armour of righteousness on the right hand and on the left,
11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
God gives every believer a full set of equipment, and He sends us out into battle with everything we need at our disposal!
I want to show you something real quick:
This armor is of God both is the sense that it is from Him, and in the sense that it is His actual armor. In the Old Testament, it is the LORD who wears the armor.
17 For he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and an helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on the garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a cloke.
He now shares that armor with us!
Equipped with God’s armor, no wonder we are more than conquerors!
37 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.
Without the strength of God and the protection of spiritual armor, it is impossible to stand against the attacks of spiritual enemies.
God has given His people a call, a mission, a course to fulfill. Satan will do his best to stop it. When he attacks and intimidates, we are to stand. It is plain that this is the Bible’s emphasis in Ephesians 6:11 and 6:13.
We do the Lord’s work and stand against every hint of spiritual opposition.
CONCLUSION
CONCLUSION
Well, that’s one verse…Come back tonight and we’ll look at the other verses here and continue preaching on “Consider the Ant” - You don’t want to miss it. There’s many, many things for us to learn when we “Consider the Ant...”
Are you walking in faith today? Are you saved?
Are you in fellowship with God today?
Christian, how’s your armor? Do you have it on?