Outline

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INTRODUCTION:

One of the pastors of the largest Bible-believing church in America began life as the son of an alcoholic, wife-beating father who eventually deserted his family. D.L. Moody, the first "bus-pastor" (using horses and wagons to bring little children to Sunday school in Chicago) was a youngster without a father, who left home as a teenager to make a living in a shoe factory to assist his mother with family finances. Billy Sunday, the rip-snorting evangelist who almost single-handedly ran the alcohol trade out of many major cities across America was once an alcoholic baseball player until he stumbled into the Pacific Garden Rescue Mission in Chicago. (I just realized that Chicago played a part in all three of these illustrations.)

When God chose a bird to carry the meat and bread to Elijah, it was not the prancing peacock, the brilliant Cardinal nor the beautiful Pheasant. It was the "unclean" raven. A black bird which dines on the dead meat of what we now call "road kills." God uses the unlikely, the unworthy, the most derelict of us at times to do His most spectacular work. Why? Because He is a "jealous God" who wants and deserves the glory and the credit and the honor for Himself.

This lesson is going to allow you to inspire the weakest, the most frightened student to believe that they are special to God, that He has something important for them to do, and that they can succeed at it.

Texts: MAT 13:31-32 Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field: [32] Which indeed is the least of all seeds: but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof.

LESSON PLAN I. OBJECTIVES A. General 1. To teach that there is no such thing as something or someone insignificant in the hands of God. B. Specific 1. To show your students that we already have a "big God"; we only need to trust Him to do great things. 2. To teach that instead of Great Faith, we need surrender, hope, and using the faith which God has already given us. 3. To lead them to understand that God does not use the haughty, the magnificent or the wonderful as often as He uses the simple, the honest, the willing. II. Presentation A. Teacher's presentation 1. Scriptural Basis a.

(NOTICE THAT THIS PARABLE IS FOUND IN THREE DIFFERENT GOSPELS. WE HAVE GIVEN YOU ALL THREE, WITH APPROPRIATE COMMENTARY IN PARTS OF ALL THREE. IT IS IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT GOD FELT IT WAS WORTH INCLUDING THIS (IN ESSENCE - REPEATING IT) THREE TIMES. EXTRA IMPORTANT!

IT IS ALSO INTERESTING TO NOTE THAT IN ALL THREE CASES, THE WRITERS (OF COURSE UNDER THE HOLY SPIRIT) USED SUCH A BRIEF BIT OF WORDS TO RECOUNT THE PARABLE. IT IS AS IF THE WORD USAGE ITSELF IS TO SHOW THAT THE SMALLNESS AND LACK OF WORDINESS IS IN ITSELF AN ILLUSTRATION AS COMPARED TO THE GREAT TRUTH GIVEN THEREIN.

b. EXPOSITORY:

Mat 13:31-32 Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field: [32] Which indeed is the least of all seeds: but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof.

Mar 4:30-32 And he said, Whereunto shall we liken the kingdom of God? or with what comparison shall we compare it? [31] It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when it is sown in the earth, is less than all the seeds that be in the earth: [32] But when it is sown, it groweth up, and becometh greater than all herbs, and shooteth out great branches; so that the fowls of the air may lodge under the shadow of it.

Luk 13:18-19 Then said he, Unto what is the kingdom of God like? and whereunto shall I resemble it? [19] It is like a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and cast into his garden; and it grew, and waxed a great tree; and the fowls of the air lodged in the branches of it.

THE KINGDOM OF GOD: There is often disagreement about the usage of this phrase. Let us dispense with that and look at it as the place and people (especially the people) and angels on God's side of the good and evil issue.

THE MUSTARD SEED - (YOU WILL HAVE THESE IN CLASS)

THE GREAT SIZE AT GROWTH - FOR THIS WE WILL USE THE STALK OF LAST YEAR'S SUNFLOWER SEEDS, SINCE MUSTARD PLANTS ARE NOT AVAILABLE. (ANOTHER PLANT WHICH TYPIFIES THIS IS THE COMMON "HORSE WEED." THESE OFTEN GROW TO MORE THAN SEVEN FEET TALL. YOU CAN BRING IN YOUR OWN GREAT WEEDS, IF YOU LIKE, BUT MAKE SURE THEY ARE BIG!

THE IDEA HERE IS THAT THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE TINY MUSTARD SEED AND THE RESULTING GREAT PLANT IS GOD!

WHAT A DIFFERENCE IN PEOPLE, EVENTS, EVERYTHING WHEN GOD IS INCLUDED!!

2. Simple, Practical Basis a.

When we consider the difference that God can make the reality is mind boggling! Look for instance at the phrase in Acts 4: 13 speaking of John and Peter, two men whose lives up until Jesus entered them had been involved with fishing the Sea of Galilee:

Acts 4:13 Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marvelled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus.

b.

Citing the Apostle Peter again, look through the Gospels and see him speaking out of turn, making clumsy attempts to assure Jesus of his loyalty and then cursing, denying and abandoning Christ. Now watch in Acts 2 as he preaches under the power of the Holy Spirit's anointing and see 3000 souls won to Jesus. A few days later, at the site of the Temple (Acts 3) he preaches again, and 5000 men, plus women and children were won -- perhaps as many as 10 or 11,000 souls! Little is much when God is in it!

c.

We offer as further proof the plow boy, Elisha who is using his father's oxen when Elijah calls him to follow and serve himself and the Lord God. He asks for a "double portion" of God's power as it related to Elijah. God shows us clearly that He responded in the affirmative by providing a record of 8 miracles done by Elijah and 16 recorded miracles by Elisha.

d.

ONE OF THE BEST STORIES OF LITTLE BEING MUCH IS FOUND IN JUDGES 6,7 &8, THOUGH YOU WILL HAVE TO READ AND THEN TELL IT AS AN ABBREVIATED STORY.

Especially good are the verses found in the beginning where Gideon is shown to be afraid, just as anyone would be in his position.:

Jdg 6:11-16 And there came an angel of the LORD, and sat under an oak which was in Ophrah, that pertained unto Joash the Abi-ezrite: and his son Gideon threshed wheat by the winepress, to hide it from the Midianites. [12] And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him, and said unto him, The LORD is with thee, thou mighty man of valour. [13] And Gideon said unto him, Oh my Lord, if the LORD be with us, why then is all this befallen us? and where be all his miracles which our fathers told us of, saying, Did not the LORD bring us up from Egypt? but now the LORD hath forsaken us, and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites. [14] And the LORD looked upon him, and said, Go in this thy might, and thou shalt save Israel from the hand of the Midianites: have not I sent thee? [15] And he said unto him, Oh my Lord, wherewith shall I save Israel? behold, my family is poor in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father's house. [16] And the LORD said unto him, Surely I will be with thee, and thou shalt smite the Midianites as one man.

3. TIPS FOR THE YOUNGER CLASSES

LITTLE IS MUCH WHEN GOD IS IN IT. THAT IS THE MESSAGE. THAT IS THE SONG. THAT IS THE LESSON. ONE WAY IS TO USE THE MUSTARD SEED AND THE LARGE STALK FROM THE SUNFLOWER PLANT. ANOTHER IS TO TAKE A GRAIN OF POPCORN AND ONE WHICH HAS BEEN POPPED. (DO THIS AT HOME, THEN BRING BOTH KINDS WITH YOU.) LOOK HOW MUCH BIGGER THE ONE IS TO THE OTHER. GOD PLACED THE GROWTH IN THERE, THEN SHOWED MAN HOW IT WORKED.

GAME: WHAT CAN I BE?

HAVE A NUMBER OF 3X5 CARDS WITH JOB TITLES ON THEM. TAPE ONE ON THE BACK OF EVERY CLASS MEMBER. HAVE THEM ASK QUESTIONS OF THE OTHERS ABOUT THEIR JOB AND TRY TO GUESS THEIR "FUTURE JOB." BE SURE TO HAVE BOTH SECULAR AND CHRISTIAN POSITIONS. SOME SUGGESTIONS: BUSINESS OWNER PRESIDENT OF U.S. COLLEGE PRESIDENT SENATOR MISSIONARY TO RUSSIA FAMOUS WRITER MISSIONARY TO CHINA PREACHER TEACHER JET AIRPLANE SALESPERSON

Notice that each of these positions calls for special training, for a particular kind of temperament. Tell the students that some people do not care for school when they are young, but when they grow older, and God shows them what he wants them to do with their lives, they get excited about studying a particular area. MOTIVATION AND DIRECTION GIVE EXCITEMENT!

4. DEMONSTRATIONS / ILLUSTRATIONS / SONGS / QUOTES (see Footnote 1) a.

The saintly Horatius Bonar, realized that the little things can either make or break the Christian. He wrote, "A holy life is made up of a multitude of small things. It is the little things of the hour and not the great things of the age that fill up a life like that of the apostles Paul or John, or David Brainard, or Henry Martyn. Little words, not eloquent speeches or sermons; little acts, not miracles or battles, or one great heroic effort or martyrdom, make up the true Christian life. It's the little constant sunbeam, not the lightning, the waters of Siloam that go softly in their meek mission of refreshment, not 'the waters of the rivers great and many' rushing down in torrent, noise, and force, that are the true symbols of a holy life." Bonar then warned against the "little evils, little sins, little inconsistencies, little weaknesses, little foibles, little indulgences of self and of the flesh, little acts of indolence or indecision, or slovenliness or cowardice, little equivocations or aberrations from high integrity, little bits of little indifferences to the feelings or wishes of others, little outbreaks of temper, or crossness, or selfishness or vanity."

b.

Jesus was a poor man. Born and reared in obscurity, He lived and died to make repentant sinners eternally rich. A stable was His birthplace and a manger His cradle. For many years He worked as a carpenter in a poverty-stricken and despised village which bore the scorn of men as they asked, "Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?" He began His public ministry at the Jordan River with no organization to support Him and no patrons to enrich Him. He preached without price and performed miracles for which He received no money. He even had to borrow a small coin when He needed one to make a simple illustration. How pathetic His words, "The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head" (Mt. 8:20). Occasionally He was invited into homes for His meals, but many times He went hungry. He frequently slept under the open sky and once spent 40 days in the wilderness without food. This One who was both God and man constantly went about doing good. At the end of His life He was betrayed for 30 pieces of silver - the price of a slave - and was unjustly crucified. As He hung on the cross, He was finally stripped of His last remaining possession - a seamless robe. His burial clothes were the gift of a friend, and He was laid in a borrowed tomb.

c.

Little is Much When God is In It.- So the song says. Think of that. the kingdom of God is such a thing. Who knows what can be done when one "little person" gives their life to Christ?! David Livingston was a boy literally hanging out in the rafters of a church when he listened to a missionary speak of the needs in Africa. He later gave so much of himself to those people that centuries later his name is still associated with it.

d.

Abraham Lincoln was born in a log cabin in Kentucky, raised as a poor farm boy in Illinois, and became the President of the United States. Known as one of our greatest Americans, he read his books by the light of a fireplace or candle, yet educated himself, stood for Christian ethics, and helped to heal a nation torn apart by war.

e.

Calvary Baptist Church of Harrisburg, PA, began in an apartment living room, "progressed" to a house trailer, then to a "community room" in an apartment complex where the first job on Sunday morning's was to empty the ashtrays and stack them, clean up the beer and liquor bottles from the previous Saturday night party. Since that time, thousands of souls have been won to Christ by this ministry begun by a businessman who answered God's call to pastor.

f.

Perhaps the greatest illustration of humble beginnings is found in the comparisons of two verses about Jesus Christ.

Luk 2:7 And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.

Rev 5:11-14 And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands; [12] Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing. [13] And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever. [14] And the four beasts said, Amen. And the four and twenty elders fell down and worshipped him that liveth for ever and ever.

5. QUESTIONS YOU CAN ASK TO BRING OUT YOUR STUDENT'S MINDS AND LEVELS OF LEARNING: a.

WHEN WE SPEAK OF HUMBLE BEGINNINGS OR SMALL THINGS BECOMING GREAT, ARE WE BRAGGING ABOUT WHAT WE HAVE ACCOMPLISHED? ISN'T THIS WRONG?

ANSWER: If it were a case of bragging on ourselves, it would indeed be wrong. We are not singing, "How Great I Art!" Rather the praise goes to the Lord Jesus Christ for saving and for using our redeemed lives. We who would succeed must realize that success without being in the very center of the will of God is no success at all. Secondly, there are no truly "self-made-men." No one succeeds in a vacuum. We all succeed, if we succeed at all, because the people around us "lift us up" by their encouragement, financial participation, prayers, etc.

On the spiritual side of the issue, we must all realize that the Lord is indeed GOD OF RESULTS. There is no dismissing the fact that often more talented people than we have worked as hard and long as we, yet without the results. We cannot escape also that other people who seem less talented and who seem to work less have greater results than we. The Lord promotes whom He will. The praises we sing about our achievements must always be God-Centered, or they are truly bragging, and that is indeed wrong!

b.

SOMEONE ONCE TOLD ME THAT WANTING TO SUCCEED IS A SIN. THAT IT IS ARROGANCE AND PRIDE! IS THAT RIGHT?

CONSIDER THESE VERSES:

PRO 28:20 A faithful man shall abound with blessings: but he that maketh haste to be rich shall not be innocent.

THE CLEAR TEACHING HERE IS THAT GOD WILL BLESS A FAITHFUL SERVANT OF HIS OWN.

SECONDLY, ANYONE WHO "MAKES HASTE" TO BE RICH WILL BE FOUND GUILTY. GUILTY OF WHAT? PERHAPS OF STEALING OR CHEATING TO HAVE RICHES. PERHAPS OF DENYING GOD HIS PROPER PLACE. THE WORD STILL STANDS, THOUGH IT MAY NOT BE ABSOLUTELY CLEAR. SUCCESS IS NO SIN, ONLY IN GOING AWAY FROM GOD TO HAVE IT IS WRONG.

ROM 2:7 To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life:

HERE IS THE OPPOSITE OF THE LAST PART OF THE PREVIOUS VERSE. ONE WHO DOES WELL BY PATIENT PERSEVERANCE WILL BE ABLE TO HAVE THE NAMED BLESSINGS, INCLUDING GLORY, HONOR AND ETERNAL LIFE. 1 TIM 5:17 Let the elders that rule well be counted worthy of double honour, especially they who labour in the word and doctrine.

REGARDING THE PASTOR, SHEPHERD, ELDER, BISHOP (ALL THESE WORDS MEAN THE SAME POSITION IN THE CHURCH) HE IS COUNTED WORTHY OF "DOUBLE HONOR." WHAT DOES THAT MEAN TO YOU?

c.

SO THE MESSAGE OF THIS LESSON IS THAT I CAN TRULY DO GREAT THINGS WITH MY LIFE IF I ALLOW CHRIST TO RULE IN IT, AND I DON'T HAVE TO FEEL GUILTY ABOUT THAT? RIGHT?

d.

I CAN REALLY DO SOMETHING "BIG" WITH MY LIFE? I CAN REALLY MAKE A CONTRIBUTION TO THIS WORLD, AND FOR THE CAUSE OF CHRIST WITH MY LIFE, EVEN IF I DO NOT COME FROM A RICH OR FAMOUS FAMILY?

ANSWER:

YOU CAN EVEN DO ALL THIS IF YOU DO COME FROM A RICH AND FAMOUS FAMILY! THAT HAS NEVER BEEN WHY PEOPLE SUCCEED AT ANYTHING. ALL THAT DOES IS PROVIDE A BETTER BEGINNING WITH MONEY, EDUCATION, ETC. ALL THAT CAN BE HAD ANYWAY IF YOU ARE WILLING TO PRAY LIKE IT ALL DEPENDS ON GOD AND WORK LIKE IT ALL DEPENDS ON YOU!

TEACHER -- DISCUSSION OF THIS POINT IN CLASS IS MANDATORY!

6. APPLICATIONS a.

SOME KEY WORDS FROM THIS LESSON ARE: PATIENCE WORTHY HONOR SUCCESS LITTLE IS MUCH PROMOTION HUMILITY OBEDIENCE

HOW WOULD YOU DEFINE THEM?

HOW WOULD YOU APPLY THEM IN YOUR LIFE RIGHT NOW?

WHAT DANGER SIGNS WOULD YOU ASSIGN TO THEM IN YOUR LIFE NOW?

I.E., HOW MIGHT YOU BE ABLE TO STAY ON TRACK WITH GOD?

b.

HOW WOULD YOU APPROACH A TRUE FRIEND IF YOU SAW HIM GETTING OUT OF BALANCE REGARDING SUCCESS AND HIS CHRISTIAN FAITH?

HOW WOULD YOU SUPPORT HIM OR HER?

HOW WOULD YOU WARN THEM?

WHAT WOULD YOU DO IF THEY BECOME ANGRY?

WHAT IF THEY ARE HURT BY YOUR WORDS?

HOW I WOULD TEACH THIS LESSON

1. THIS LESSON REQUIRES YOU TO BE A GREAT QUESTION ASKER AND LISTENER!

2. READ THE PARABLES

3. DO THE DEMONSTRATIONS WITH THE SEEDS AND STALKS

4. GO TO THE VARIOUS BIBLE CHARACTERS DISCUSSED IN THE PRACTICAL AREA AND LOOK AT HOW GOD USED THEM.

5. DEAL WITH THE QUESTIONS AND APPLICATIONS!

NOTE:

THIS IS THE LESSON WHERE YOU NEED TO BE A GREAT QUESTION ASKER. HERE IS WHERE YOU CAN DRAW YOUR STUDENTS OUT, INSPIRE THEM TO BE AND DO SOMETHING FOR GOD!

YOU CANNOT DO THAT WITH A LECTURE!

THE ELOQUENT CHURCHILL WAS MOST FAMOUS FOR HIS SPEECH, "NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER GIVE UP!"

DON'T PREACH! TEACH BY ASKING THE CLASS TO THINK!

Footnote 1: Please note that the use of a quote or a reference to a person does not indicate that we hold them in high esteem; only that the item can be used in some way in a lesson. In fact, you will find some statements actually oppose or disagree with Bible-believing philosophies in some outlines so that you can use them as arguing points.

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