Transforming Dust into Beauty: Kingdom Success

1. What is your goal? The Kingdom of God and its implications for Christians

2. What is a true measure of success? Every athlete wants to be successful. Every businessman wants to be successful. Every soldier/servant of Jesus Christ wants to be successful. How is success measured in the kingdom of God? The Gospel of Success?

3. By the world’s standards? Wealth, power and fame? By the standard Christ taught in the gospels about the Kingdom of God? At the end of your life, will you hear those words “well done thou good and faithful servant” from the lips of the Master? How will you measure you life’s achievements?

4. Genesis 1 verses 1- 31 The record of Creation. Let’s look at what He did to see how He measured His success. After the sixth day God saw all that He had made and said “it is very good”. How does God measure success?

5. So what did God do that made Him successful in His acts of Creation?

6. God created something beautiful from dust? • Psalm 103 verse 14 “He himself knows our frame, He is mindful that we are but dust….” - Genesis 2 verse 7 “ The Lord God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living being”.

7. God’s pleasure and success was measured in His ability to transform the rejected, the despised, the insignificant and make them something of beauty and value.

8. We despise dirt and dust….. • As humans we despise dirtiness and dust. • God took that which was despised by mankind and made it into the climax of His creation. • His superb genius was in the act of making dust a living human spirit.

9. God speaks from a different perspective in the Bible… • Proverbs 17 verse 5 • “He who mocks or despises the poor reproaches his Maker” • Luke 6 verse 35 • Jesus says “Love your enemies and do good, and lend, and expect nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be the sons of the Most High; for He himself is kind to ungrateful and evil men”.

10. What can God do with you and that which you despise? • God does not reject, he loves, accepts and transforms…everything into something new. • As His servants He wants us to love the unlovely and see them transformed. • What or who is your dust? • How can you cooperate with God to transform your dust, that which you despise, into something beautiful for His glory?

11. God requires a deep and radical degree of change in our lives… • To experience the unconditional love of God for the despised requires a deep interaction (called incarnation) with the despised, feeling their pain, bearing their shame, suffering their experience of injustice. • Jesus showed this act of incarnation in His ministry preparation in the wilderness, His life on earth, and finally in His death on the cross.

12. Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit • Luke 4 verse 1 “Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit (agape, unconditional love) returned from the Jordan and was led by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness” For forty days he faced the temptations of the devil. He overcame them in the power of the Spirit, using the authority of the Word of God, and thru’ prayer and fasting.

13. Jesus was tempted with all that the world offers us.... • Wealth “The devil offered Him bread from stones” Luke 4 verses 3-4 • Fame “The devil offered Him Lordship over the earth” Luke 4 verses 6-8 • Power “ The devil offered Him the power to save Himself from death” Luke 4 verses 9-12

14. Jesus ministered in the power of the Spirit… • Luke 4 verses 16-20 Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and entering His hometown synagogue in Nazareth, and he opened the scriptures at Isaiah 61 verses 1-2

15. Anointedto preach to the poor • Isaiah 61 vs 1-2 (Luke 4 vs 18 -20) “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because He has anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor (the despised), He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives (the despised), and economic recovery to the blind (the despised), to set free those who are downtrodden (the despised), to proclaim the favourable (successful) year of the Lord….”

16. This was Jesus announcing His mission statement.... • Jesus makes it clear what He will focus on in the next three years of His ministry; He will reach out to; “The poor, the blind, the demon possessed, and the unjustly treated people of His nation and of the Gentile nations neighbouring Israel” • He then sets off to minister to the despised Samaritans in Capernaum in Galilee

17. What did Jesus despise…and what did he do to transform those things? • He despised the Jewish legal system for its concern with the law and not with justice… He transformed it into the law of love, mercy and grace. • He despised the cross and its shame … and transformed death into eternal life for all who believe. Hebrews 12:2

18. Jesusshowed the standard of justice in the kingdom of God • Justice is not justice if it does not deliver justice to the unjustly treated in our society. • Jesus was grieved at the injustice of the Jewish (godly) society and their indifference to the poor and despised

19. Jesus full of the Spirit was moved with compassion Matthew 9 verse 36 “Seeing the multitudes, He felt compassion for them because they were distressed and downcast like sheep without a shepherd”. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plenteous, but the workers are few, Pray therefore to the Lord of the harvest to thrust forth labourers into the harvest force”.

20. Jesus focussed on ministering to the despised…transforming them… • Matthew the tax collector • The 12 lepers • Mary Magdalene the prostitute • The children rejected by His disciples • The demon possessed • The Roman Centurion • Peter the lowly fisherman

21. Sadly there were those Jesus could not transform… • The rich young ruler who would not sell what He had and give it to the poor • The proud Jewish Governor Herod • The self-righteous Pharisees • The unrepentant thief • Judas – the lover of money

22. The measure of great people down thru’ the ages has been in their understanding of God’s concern for the poor (the despised)… • King David • King Solomon • The Apostle Paul • Mother Teresa of Calcutta -Nobel Peace Prize • Pope John Paul II • Rabindranath Tagore -Bengali Poet • James D. Wolfensohn a former President of the World Bank

23. A Psalm of King David.. • Psalm 41 verse 1 • “How blessed is he who considers the poor, the Lord will deliver Him in a day of trouble, The Lord will protect him and keep him alive, and He shall be called blessed in the earth”….

24. The Psalm of King Solomon • The wisest and richest King of Israel prophesied in Psalm 72 verses 12-14 “The Righteous King will deliver the needy when he cries for help, the afflicted also, and him who has no helper. He will have compassion on the poor and needy, and the lives of the needy he will save. He will rescue their lives from oppression and violence and their blood will be precious in their sight”.

25. The Apostle Paul wrote… • On what it means to follow Christ he reminded us; • “though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, so that by His poverty you may become rich” 2 Cor 8:9.

26. Mother Teresa of the Missionary Sisters of Charity in Calcutta said… • “I see Jesus in the face of the poor”. • “I see the broken body of my Lord (Christ) in the destitute and dying on the streets of Calcutta”.

27. Pope John Paul II said.. • October 27th, 1999 • “The love of Christ moves us above all towards the poorest of the poor….as Christ was invited to give the good news to the poor…so the Church surrounds itself with affectionate care for those afflicted by human weakness…..”

28. Bengali poet Rabindranath Tagore wrote a Gitanjali as a song offering…. • “God loves the humble and lives among them. Those who want to meet God should look for him among the poor and lowly. Loving service to them is the best form of worship of God”.

29. James D. Wolfensohn former President of the World Bank said… • “Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers are a critical element in the wider effort to enhance opportunity for which the poor cry out, and the social and economic justice that they deserve”. • “Voices of the poor showed us that the groups most trusted in poor communities are the faith communities”.

30. What is the goal of your life? • To make money? • To have a great career? • To gain a high education? • To marry a beautiful person and have a beautiful family? Where does God’s purpose for your life fit into your plans?

31. Are your goals self-centred or other people centred or God Centred? • If your goals are self-centred the only persons who will be blessed by your life will be yourself and your immediate family. • God’s intention is that our lives will bless countless numbers of other people. He wants us to be fruitful, and bless us so we can be a blessing.

32. What does God require of you? • What does the Lord require of you? “ to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God” Micah 6:8

33. To proclaim by word and action the gospel of the Kingdom of God…. • The gospel of the kingdom of God is a holistic gospel of transformation for the whole person; - directed first to the poor - moves from the least to the greatest - ushers in the will of God on earth - is found in righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit

34. What is your response to the call of God on your life? • You belong to Him – Christ purchased you with His precious blood • You are called to imitate Christ not only in your character but also in the way you live • He wants you to be full of compassion and mercy for the poor and the despised • Your life is yielded in His hands • He wants to make you a blessing to the poor in all nations

35. Abraham understood God’s call and expressed it in a covenant with God… • Genesis 12 verses 1-3 • “Go forth from your country, from your relatives, to a land God will show you, and He will make you a great nation, He will bless you, make your name great, so you will be a blessing, and in you all the families of the earth will be blessed”.

36. God’s measure of success in Abraham’s life.. • He was from a pagan idol worshipping family • He became a tent dwelling nomad • He was to express incredibly generous hospitality to all races He met • By His faith he was blessed in His relationship with God and then knew how to bless others • He became wealthy to be able to bless the nations • His posterity would touch all the nations of the earth.

37. Where will this life lead you? • To minister to the despised, poor and destitute? • To transform dust into glory. • To the goal of the prize of the high calling that is in Christ Jesus. • There is “no fear” in this call because faithful is He who has called you to accomplish this goal until the end.

38. Will you do something meaningful with your life??? • King Solomon who had everything said “All is vanity, it is futile” • What will be a meaningful way to use your life? • What did God create you for? • Where will your life lead you?

39. Has God spoken to you in this message? • Let us pray for those who want to be successful in blessing the poor, the despised, the sufferers of injustice. • We will pray that God’s grace; which is “His unmerited favour and His enabling power” will come upon us and empower us to turn the despised into vessels for His glory.