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1. The God of Increase
Daniel 4:3:
3 How great are his signs,
how powerful his wonders!
His kingdom will last forever,
his rule through all generations.
God desires your generation to shine.
God wants each generation to increase. He isnt going to bless you and allow the next generation to fade away.
That’s just the way our God is.
Do you believe that this morning?
2. Get out of the Rut
John 14:12:
12 “I tell you the truth, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father.
You may not have any money and very little education.
In the natural, the future may not look very bright. Some people around you may try to discourage you and tell you there’s no reason to hope for more.
Others may tell you to stay where it’s safe although it’s really being stuck in a rut of defeat.
Don’t listen to all the naysayers. Get out of the rut.
God is not limited by your environment, family background, or present circumstances.
God is limited only by your lack of faith.
Today step out in faith and you will break through the barriers.
3. Passing on a Legacy
Psalm 78:4:
4 We will not hide these truths from our children;
we will tell the next generation
about the glorious deeds of the Lord,
about his power and his mighty wonders.
Start expecting more than the generation preceding you.
God wants each generation to go further than the previous generation.
He doesn’t want you to stay where you are.
You can choose to pass on a legacy of godly attitudes, blessings, and success to your children today.
Today I want to tell you a story. It's a special story called a 'parable'. A parable is an earthly story that has a heavenly meaning. In the Bible there are many parables that Jesus told so we could understand His teachings better.
This is a story about a farmer and a pumpkin.
The Farmer lives wa-a-a-a-ay out in the country. On his farm He has a pumpkin patch.
Pumpkins are really special. They start out as small oval seeds that grow into big, orange pumpkins. The farmer plants the seeds, waters, and cares for the pumpkin vines and patiently waits as they grow.
Finally by October there are big, orange pumpkins in his pumpkin patch! Some are tall and lean, some are short and round, and some have bumps and lumps. But they are all pumpkins and all were planted and cared for by the Farmer.
One day the Farmer chose a pumpkin for a special project. He brings it in from the field and washes it off. You have to be careful with pumpkins; they're tough on the outside, but if you drop them, they break into pieces!
The Farmer takes a large knife and cuts a hole in the top of the pumpkin. Inside there is yucky, slimy pulp waiting for Him. That has to go! He cleans it all out and throws it away - never to be seen again.
After that He gives the pumpkin a new face! He cuts two triangles for eyes, a square for a nose, and a big, wide smile!
Then He does something really special. He puts a small white candle down inside the pumpkin and lights the wick.
How that pumpkin glows! As people pass by, they see the smiling pumpkin and smile back. They know that once again the Farmer has taken a simple pumpkin and changed it into a glorious sight!
The Meaning of the Parable:
Just like us, all the pumpkins were different. But there was something the same about every one of them - that yucky, slimy pulp on the inside!
The yucky, slimy pulp is like the sin that's in us. Romans 3:23 says: "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." That's every single one of us.
God has made a way that all our sin can be forgiven and washed away. God even says He'll cast them as far as the East is from the West. Romans 5:8 says: "While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us."
John 3:16 goes on to say: "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life."
After cleaning out that pumpkin, the Farmer gave the pumpkin a new face! The Bible says God can make us a new creation too.
2 Corinthians 5:17 says: "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!"
Then came the really special part. The light was placed inside that pumpkin and it glowed for all to see!
2 Corinthians 4:6 says: "For God, who said, 'Let light shine out of darkness,' made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ."
And Matthew 5:16 says: "In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven."
So we can become like that pumpkin in the Christian object lesson - a glorious sight for others to see the love of Jesus!