[Propertalk] Fw: Sermon Resources for Proper 9, July 4 - Part 2

[Joe Parrish]

A Brave Life among Roses

Francis Meilland dedicated his life to raising roses. He knew each plant intimately. As he strode through the nursery he came across one very special rose. "Ah, this one," he said, "this one," as he rubbed the particularly glossy leaf with a finely serrated edge. It was a masterpiece, unlike anything he had ever seen. Of all his plants, this one was sensational.

Meilland was anxious to give his precious rose a name and continue to work in his nursery but the year was 1939 and the threat of war hovered over Western Europe. His only hope was to preserve the precious flower from eminent danger. Soon there after, Nazi Germany had occupied northern France and were moving toward Paris. Waging blitzkrieg, the Nazis attacked one town after another spreading defeat and disaster everywhere.

With little time to spare Meilland took cuttings from his beloved plant and methodically packaged and shipped them throughout the world. He had no idea if they would survive. He could only hope. On one of the last planes that left France just before the Nazis gained control of the airport, one of his precious cuttings, cushioned in a diplomatic pouch, was destined for the United States.

Four long years passed. Meilland received a letter that one of his cuttings had reached a rose grower in Pennsylvania. It was ruffled and delicate. The petals were of cameo ivory and palest cream, tipped with a tinge of pink. His rose had survived. Later, on the very day Berlin fell to the allies, there was a special ceremony that took place in California. To honor the occasion, white doves were set free. After many years the fragile rose had survived the war and now received a name. It was called "Peace."

The harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few. We are sent out as lambs in the midst of wolves. We need few resources to be faithful followers. All we need is guts.

Keith Wagner, It Takes Guts, adapted from Chicken Soup for the Gardener's Soul, Of War and Roses

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Amazing Accomplishments

At the conclusion of a very successful capital funds campaign in a church, a wise leader from the congregation said to the pastor, "Isn't it amazing how much can get done when we don't care who gets the credit?"

David R. Cartwright, Sermons for Sundays after Pentecost (First Third): Guided by the Spirit, CSS Publishing Company, Inc.
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One of the Secrets to Success

Andrew Tobias, the financial author put it this way. Go down any day to the waterfront, and you will find a crowd of unhappy people. Someone will be having trouble getting the motor on their yacht to crank. Someone else will be scraping barnacles. Another will be repainting. Things just don't make you happy. Property brings problems. It is like an alligator that takes a bite out of your pocket every time you turn around. Don't be burdened by too many material things. As you go through life, one of the secrets of success is to travel light.

Unknown

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Forerunners

A forerunner prepares the way for one who is to come. John the Baptist clarified his own role and witness when he declared that he was preparing the way for the coming of one mightier than he. He was not the one of whom the Scriptures spoke, but he was important to the one who was soon to come.

When the Billy Graham Crusade comes into a city, besides being spiritually rewarding, it is an impressive undertaking because of the manner in which organizational details are carried out. Pastor Larry Powell describes one of Graham's crusades that came through Little Rock Arkansas. He said, night after night, things moved along without the slightest hitch, so far as one could tell. Vehicles moved smoothly upon city streets, parking was uncomplicated and orderly. Getting in and out of the stadium was remarkably simple. Seating was casual and made easy by polite, easily identifiable ushers. The worship services themselves included a massive volunteer choir, excellent special music, well and effective personal witnesses, challenging sermons by Dr. Graham, and the invitation to respond to the leadership of the Spirit. Counselors were available for those who chose to respond, there was follow-up on new converts, and local pastors were notified for weeks following the crusade about individuals who had indicated a religious preference. The Billy Graham Crusade accomplished a great work for the kingdom of God. But underline this one thing: without long months of preparation by the crusade team who had come as forerunners, the record would read quite differently. Having met with the team, I can confirm that they were excellent representatives for what they were promoting, proficient at what they were about, and assumed a tremendous personal responsibility for the success or failure of the mission.

Because we have named the name of Christ, you and I are forerunners of the coming kingdom. We pray for the grace to be good representatives of what we proclaim, proficient in our witness, and assume a personal ownership in the ultimate victory.

Adapted from Larry Powell, Blow The Silver Trumpets, CSS Publishing Company

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Real Evangelism

If we are going to be effective in reaching people for Christ we are going to have to start showing people that we really care. Evangelism and missions must be relational in nature. There is no record of Jesus walking up to someone out of the clear blue sky and saying: I am the Messiah and then him beginning to show his care for them. No, he showed his care for them first and then he revealed himself to them.

A story is told about a man who was on a luxury liner and suddenly he falls overboard. He can't swim and in desperation he begins calling for help. Now it just so happens that there were several would be rescuers on deck who witnessed the incident. The first man was a MORALIST. When he saw the man fall overboard he immediately reached into his briefcase and pulled out a book on how to swim. He now tossed it to him and he yelled: Now brother, you read that and just follow the instructions and you will be alright.

The man next to him happened to be a IDEALIST. When he saw the man fall overboard he immediately jumped into the water and began swimming all around the drowning man saying: Now just watch me swim. Do as I do and you will be alright. The person next to him happened to be a member of the INSTITUTIONAL CHURCH. He looked upon the drowning man's plight with deep concern. He yelled out: Now, just hold on friend. Help is on the way. We are going to establish a committee and dialogue your problem. And then, if we have come up with the proper financing, we will resolve your dilemma.

The next man on deck happened to be a representative of the school of POSITIVE THINKING. He yelled out to the drowning man: "Friend, this situation is not nearly as bad as you think. Think dry!" The next man on board happened to be a REVIVALIST. By this time the drowning man was going down for the third time and desperately began waving his arm. Seeing that, the revivalist yelled out: Yes brother, I see that hand, is there another? Is there another? And finally, the last man on deck, was a REALIST. He immediately plunged into the water, at the risk of his own life, and pulled the victim to safety.

My friends, the harvest is plentiful, but the WORKERS are few. We need realist in the church willing plunge into the water and go to work.

Staff, www.eSermons.com.

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Relationship Evangelism

There is an old story told about a man by the name of Ali Facid. He had a small farm and a family. One day, the story goes, a Buddhist priest came by and said to Ali Facid: You know, there are valuable stones called diamonds, and if you get one of these you could be a wealthy man." Ali Facid went to bed that night, but the words of the old priest haunted him. He was so obsessed that he felt that he must find him one of these diamonds so that he could become a ruler. He sold his farm, put his family out to neighbors and went out to find his acres of diamonds. Months passed. He was broken in body and spirit. His funds were gone. And at the Bay of Barcelona, he threw himself into the water, never to walk this earth again.

Meanwhile, the man who bought his farm bent over one day and picked up a little stone. He laid on the mantle that night not knowing what it was. A few days later the old Buddhist priest cam by and saw it and exclaimed: Ali Facid must be back from his search. No, came the response. Then where did that diamond come from? The farmer replied: I was out plowing in the garden and found it there. And friends, did you know that from that very garden, for this is not a legend but a true story, came the jewels and diamonds that today adorn the crown heads of Europe and Russia. In Ali Facid's own back yard there were acres of diamonds and he knew it not.

My friends, I know that the [your church's neighborhood] is not like in terms of extensive growth. But, I also know that there are acres of diamonds right here in our own back yard. There are people right here in our area that do not have church families, who are not committed to Christ, and who are waiting to be asked. We don't have to look to other areas of the city. All we have to do is pick up the diamonds that are right beneath us.

Staff, www.eSermons.com

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Evangelism

An executive hirer, a "head-hunter" who goes out and hires corporation executives for other firms, once told me, "When I get an executive that I'm trying to hire for someone else, I like to disarm him. I offer him a drink, take my coat off, then my vest, undo my tie, throw up my feet and talk about baseball, football, family, whatever, until he's all relaxed. Then, when I think I've got him relaxed, I lean over, look him square in the eye and say, "What's your purpose in life?" It's amazing how top executives fall apart at that question.

"Well, I was interviewing this fellow the other day, had him all disarmed, with my feet up on his desk, talking about football. Then I leaned up and said, 'What's your purpose in life, Bob?' And he said, without blinking an eye, 'To go to heaven and take as many people with me as I can.' For the first time in my career I was speechless."

Josh McDowell

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Working Your Way Up

There is nothing like success to make you unsure of yourself. Perhaps the greatest obstacle to making a go of a project is the process of doing something so well that you never do anything else for fear of failure. If a writer makes it to the best-seller list the first time out, every novel to follow will be judged by the first. If a baseball player gets a home run the first time at bat, every time he or she comes up to the plate, the stands will be judging the performance in light of that first hit. If a movie director's first film is a box office smash, it's going to be hard to produce a second film that will do as well.

It sounds crazy, but it is true. It is safer and more assuring to work your way up than being a star from the moment you start. The young man was called into the boss' office to talk about his future with the company. "You've only been with us for six months, and already you've moved from the mail room, to office clerk, to the accounting department, to the head of sales and purchasing. That's an incredible rise in such a short time. I've asked you in to find out what your long-range objectives are so I can make adjustments with our management structure."

The young man began, "Well, within six more months I hope to be a vice president of this company, and with a little help, I'd like to purchase this entire operation and take over your office."

"Well, at least you're direct," said the startled president. "Do you really think you can replace me that easily? I've been at this a long time, you know, and experience counts for something. And what would you do with the company after you take over my office?"

"As I see it," the young man brashly went on.

The conclusion to this illustration and for many additional illustrations and sermons for the Proper 9 and July 4th can be accessed at www.Sermons.com.
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