Sermon Illustrations on Power

Gold, Power of

Gold can persuade and silence opposition more effectively than reason.

A man who is furnished with arguments from the mint will convince his antagonist much sooner than one who draws them from reason and philosophy. Gold is a wonderful clearer of the understanding; it dissipates every doubt and scruple in an instant; accommodates itself to the meanest capacities; silences the loud and clamorous, and brings over the most obstinate and inflexible. Philip of Macedon was a man of most invincible reason this way. He refuted by it all the wisdom of Athens, confounded their statesmen, struck their orators dumb, and, at length, argued them out of their liberties. A division.

Pen, Power of the

The pen's power ultimately surpasses force and conquers through influence and truth.

"Do you know, Fontanes," said Napoleon, "what I admire most in the world? It is the powerlessness of force to found any thing. There are only two powers in the world, — the sabre and the pen; and, in the end, the former is always conquered by the latter."

Cyrus' Crown

Wearing a crown brings heavy burdens and cares, discouraging desire for power.

Cyrus, the Persian king, was accustomed to say, that did men but know the cares he had to sustain, he thought no man would wish to wear his crown.

Words Of Charles V

Worldly greatness cannot satisfy the human heart's deeper needs.

Charles V, emperor of Germany, whom of all men the world judged most happy, cried out, in reference to whatever is generally considered good and great, "Get you hence, let me hear no more of you."

Alexander'S Tears

Even conquering the world cannot satisfy a restless soul without God.

The conquests of Alexander the Great could not satisfy him; for when he had conquered the whole of one known world, he sat down and wept because he knew of no other world to conquer.

Power Controlled

Power must be controlled and guided wisely, like a mighty steed or locomotive.

These verses on the locomotive are from the New York _Christian Advocate_:

Steed, with the heart of fire! Steed, with the sinews of steel! Full-blooded courser, careering onward, with rail and with wheel; Black with fuliginous breathing--panting of wo and of weal.

Firm be his muscle who mounts thee, clear and true be his eye; Generous his heart with compassion, willing if need be to die, Who sets thy hot blood a-dancing, and forces thy clarion cry!

For he reins a mightier stallion--a swifter creature of awe, Stronger and darker and wilder than the old Arabian saw-- His neck clothed with the thunder, and ravin and rage his law!

Like a planet out of its orbit he moves when he leaps his rail: Hold him and guide him, O rider! thy purpose he will not fail; But loose him, and man lies groaning, and women and children wail.

O mighty creature of commerce! That bringest the world its bread, And bearest the journeying peoples with limbs of thunder and dread, To thee my life is committed, and safely let me be sped!

Thou steed of fire and of iron, that bearest me on my way, Is life or death in thy destined course, is rapture or sorrow--say? O Christ of God, hold the driving-rod, and mount this steed to-day!

Power In Self-Repression

Self-repression shows true power, as God’s patience reveals His greatness.

Says a recent journal:

Many years ago, in the lecture-room of President Woolsey, of Yale University, a young man who did not know his lesson ventured to make a mock recitation and to give an impertinent answer. The president was a man of fiery temper, tho it had been curbed and subdued by the discipline of years. On this occasion his face turned white; he bowed his head upon the desk before him. There was a half-minute’s silence of death; he raised his head, called upon another man, and the recitation went on. He knew that if he spoke to the offender he would speak too much, so he said nothing.

The students of that class knew well what a lava-flood was penned up there. Self-repression did not seem to them a sign of weakness--it was the greatest evidence of power.

Shall we call it a sign of weakness in God that he bears with the sins of men? When God humbles himself to behold and to forbear, shall we not see in this voluntary self-limitation one of the proofs of his greatness? (Text.)

Power Through Union With God

Linking with God’s power enables us to accomplish what is otherwise impossible.

It is only when we link ourselves with the power that lifts that we can accomplish results which are beyond our strength.

A great weight was to be lifted a little way out from the shore. Vain efforts had been made to bring it to the surface. Great chains had been wrapt about the mass and stout steam-tugs had puffed and strained without avail, and engines from the shore had exerted all their power with no result. A young man offered to raise the weight and he was told to try. A great flat barge was towed out over the sunken hulk, about which chains had been passed, and these were fastened to the barge. When the tide was out, the chains were wrapt still closer; then the young man sat down and waited. In the night the tide came in and the barge rose steadily with the incoming tide, bringing with it the burden to which it was chained. Higher and higher it rose, till at last it was out of the mud and mire. The seemingly impossible had been accomplished by linking the obstacle to the power of the tide. (Text.)

Power Within

True power comes from within, not from external human effort alone.

Men and churches often wait for outside help to draw them along. They need the lesson taught in this anecdote:

When an engineer in Bolivia brought over the Cordilleras the first locomotive ever seen in these latitudes, the native Indians came up from the Amazon basin to see this sight, and sat on their haunches discussing what this strange monster could be. They said: “It is made to go; let’s make it go”; and so they lassoed the buffers, and about thirty of them began to pull, and drew the locomotive a few yards. They exclaimed, “Ay-ay-ay-ay Tatai Tatito.” “The great and little father hath enabled us to do something wonderful!”

The next day the engineer got up steam and hitched a couple of cattle trucks to the locomotive and, when the Indians came again, put them into the trucks and locked them in. Then he stood on the fire-plate of the locomotive and opened the regulator, and let the steam into the cylinder, and it began to move the piston, and the piston the crank, and the crank the wheel, and the wheel the locomotive; and the locomotive carried the Indians along ten miles an hour! What did they not say to their “great and little father!” But they learned this great lesson--that locomotives are not made to be moved along by outside human power, but by means of a power within, and so to carry human beings along.

God's Power Team

Poster has 7 beefy guys with crusader swords. Head guy holds out a Bible.

"John Jacobs and the Power Team. The Ultimate Demonstration, The Ultimate Message. 'The Cutting Edge of Excellence.'"

Religious Trends In Florida

Discusses growth of Satanism in Florida. Many are sacrificing animals. One priest has become a Catholic and describes how their rituals were conducted. Power is a key concept. He deceived his followers with chemically treated logs, etc. Many officials think too much is made of it, and it is thriving because churches ignore emotionally disturbed people who are then attracted to Satanism.

Mystery of the Cross

Alister McGrath's "The Mystery of the Cross" says that God is not simply powerful in spite of the failure and humiliation of the cross, but God Himself makes His power known to us in and through the failure and humiliation of the cross. I've been reminded that the "foolishness of the cross" can only be reconciled with the wisdom of master's programs in seminaries as Christians realize that we are not handling theological ideas, we are handled by a Person. The better I know God, the more I realize that the deepest and most profound mysteries of the Christian faith are focused in the cross, and the cross only. Life in Christ can be that basic, that simple.

Those Who Have the Gold

Luke 6:31

Charles E. Hurwitz, 49, a corporate raider who rules a financial empire worth an estimated $8.5 billion, says, "There's a little story about the Golden Rule. Those who have the gold, rule."

Those Dumb Christians

Mark 2:17

Most believers have always come from the lower classes (1 Cor 1:26). Consider the ancient remarks of anti-Christian philosopher Celsus, as quoted by Origen:

Their injunctions are like this: “Let no one educated, no one wise, no one sensible draw near. For these abilities are thought by us to be evils. But as for anyone ignorant, anyone stupid, anyone uneducated, anyone who is a child, let him come boldly.”

By the fact that they themselves admit that these people are worthy of their God, They show that they want and are able to convince only the foolish, dishonourable and stupid, and only slaves, women, and children.

"Contra Celsum" 3.44

Introduction To 2 Corinthians

”Because leadership is necessarily an exercise of authority, it easily shifts into an exercise of power. But the minute it does that, it begins to inflict damage on both the leader and the led. Paul, studying Jesus, had learned a kind of leadership in which he managed to stay out of the way so that the others could deal with God without having to go through him. “All who are called to exercise leadership in whatever capacity – parent or coach, pastor or president, teacher or manager – can be grateful to Paul for this letter and to the Corinthians for provoking it.”

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Frederick Douglass On Power

Luke 16:16

In 1829, 12-year-old slave Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey secretly bought and read Caleb Bingham’s “Columbian Orator.” From it he learned that words could be weapons, that oratory had power. And it is his eloquent oratory that eventually made this slave boy into one of his era’s foremost leaders, known to history as Frederick Douglass. He said in 1857:

“The whole history of the progress of human liberty shows that ... if there is no struggle, there is no progress. Those who profess to favor freedom and yet deprecate agitation are men who want crops without plowing up the ground; they want rain without thunder and lightning. They want the ocean without the awful roar of its many waters. Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did, and it never will.….”

Available Power

John 17:11

In a seminary missions class, Herbert Jackson told how, as a new missionary, he was assigned a car that would not start without a push.

After pondering his problem, he devised a plan. He went to the school near his home, got permission to take some children out of class, and had them push his car off. As he made his rounds, he would either park on a hill or leave the engine running. He used this ingenious procedure for two years.

Ill health forced the Jackson family to leave, and a new missionary came to that station. When Jackson proudly began to explain his arrangement for getting the car started, the new man began looking under the hood. Before the explanation was complete, the new missionary interrupted, “Why, Dr. Jackson, I believe the only trouble is this loose cable.” He gave the cable a twist, stepped into the car, pushed the switch, and to Jackson’s astonishment, the engine roared to life.

For two years needless trouble had come become a routine. The power was there all the time. Only a loose connection kept Jackson from putting the power to work.

J.B. Phillips paraphrases Ephesians 1:19-20, “How tremendous is the power available to us who believe in God.” When we make firm our connection with God, his life and power flow through us.

[for a similar illustration see #2782]

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Power

Luke 24:49

One New Year's Day, in the Tournament of Roses Parade, a beautiful float suddenly sputtered and quit. It was out of gas. The whole parade was held up until someone could get a can of gas.

The amusing thing was this float represented the Standard Oil Company. With its vast oil resources, its truck was out of gas.

Often, Christians neglect their spiritual maintenance, and though they are "clothed with power" (Luke 24:49) find themselves out of gas.

Confidence

Job 4:6

On July 15, 1986, Roger Clemens, the sizzling righthander for the Boston Red Sox, started his first All-Star game. In the second inning, he came to bat, something he hadn't done in years because of the American League's designated hitter rule. He took a few uncertain practice swings and then looked out at his forbidding opponent, Dwight Gooden, who the previous year had won the Cy Young Award.

Gooden wound up and threw a white-hot fastball past Clemens. With an embarrassed smile on his face, Clemens stepped out of the box and asked catcher Gary Carter, "Is that what my pitches look like?"

Clemens quickly struck out, he went on to pitch three perfect innings and be named the game's most valuable player. From that day on, he later said, with a fresh reminder of how overpowering a good fastball is, he pitched with far greater boldness.

Sometimes we forget the Holy Spirit within us and how powerful our witness can be. The gospel has supernatural power - when we speak it in confidence.

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Serving Others

I was cleaning out a desk drawer when I found a flashlight I hadn't used in over a year. I flipped the switch but wasn't surprised when it gave no light. I unscrewed it and shook it to get the batteries out, but they wouldn't budge.

Finally, after some effort, they came loose. What a mess! Battery acid had corroded the entire inside of the flashlight. The batteries were new when I'd put them in, and I'd stored them in a safe, warm place. But there was one problem. Those batteries weren't made to be warm and comfortable. You and I were made to be "turned on" - to put our love to work, to apply our patience in difficult, trying situations - to let our light shine.

Who Was the Failure? Who Was the Success?

John 12:6

Among the apostles, the one absolutely stunning success was Judas, and the one thoroughly groveling failure was Peter.

Judas was a success in the ways that most impress us: He was successful both financially and politically. He cleverly arranged to control the money of the apostolic band; he skillfully manipulated the political forces of the day to accomplish his goal.

And Peter was a failure in ways that we most dread: He was impotent in a crisis and socially inept. At the arrest of Jesus he collapsed, a hapless, blustering coward; in the most critical situations of his life with Jesus, the confession on the road to Caesarea Philippi and the vision on the Mount of Transfiguration, he said the most embarrassingly inappropriate things. He was not the companion we would want with us in time of danger, and he was not the kind of person we would feel comfortable with at a social occasion.

Time, of course, has reversed our judgments on the two men. Judas is now a byword for betrayal, and Peter is one of the most honored names in the church and world. Judas is a villain; Peter is a saint.

Yet the world continues to chase after the successes of Judas, financial wealth and political power, and to defend itself against the failures of Peter, impotence and ineptness.

Expository Articles

Matthew 28:1

Matthew 28:1-10 is not a resurrection story. Matthew speaks of the resurrection as a future event in Jesus' life, and a past one, but not a present one. The post-resurrection events get a lot of attention. "It is the human dimension that lies at the heart of Matthew's concern, the revelation of Jesus' resurrection to human beings and the impact of Jesus' resurrection on human lives. This is what drives Matthew's narrative."

The definition of power is rewritten. The authorities succeed in killing Jesus (this is stressed) but God's power subverts it with an earthquake. Powerless women now stand at the center of action, while the powerful guards faint.

They Knew the Power of the Resurrection

Mark 8:34

"Bearing the cross" means more than putting up with minor irritations.

1. We bear witness that God's love is stronger than hate and anger.

2. Cross bearing leads us into a life of servanthood and service.

3. To bear the cross is to live in God's power, not our own.

In the 1960's when Clarence Jordan was developing the interracial Koinonia community near Albany, Georgia, he and his fellow Christians were often harassed and attacked. The story is told how one night klansmen surrounded the farmhouse carrying firearms. Clarence's response was simple. "We are not afraid. We know the power of the resurrection." Clarence Jordan had learned to live by God's power and not his own.

"Power In Prayer"

James 5:15

Sermon in James series. Power in Prayer. James 5:15-18

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POWER IN PRAYER

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I. Prayer is centered in faith. 5:15

A. Prayer must come from a cleansed heart. 5:16

B. Prayer should be mutual.

II. Powerful and effective prayer must come from a righteous person. 5:16

A. It matters how you live.

B. Such prayer is powerful and effective.

C. Example: Elijah. 5:17

D. Modern Elijahs.

III. We have an effective God.

A. The power is not in the prayer itself.

B. It is not in the oil, or the person.

C. The power comes from the God who answers.

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Personal Glimpses

Actor and marital arts expert Chuck Norris knows might doesn't always make right.

Not long ago, after a day of filming his television series, Norris went alone to a small Texas bar for a cold beer. As he sat in a corner booth, savoring his drink, a large man towered over him and said with an edge in his voice that Norris was sitting in his booth. Norris didn't like his tone or his implicit threat, but he said nothing and moved to another booth. A few minutes later, though, the big fellow headed back in Norris' direction. "Here it comes," he thought, "a local tough out to make a name for himself by taking on Chuck Norris in a fight."

When he arrived at Norris' new booth, he looked directly at the actor. "You're Chuck Norris," he said.

He nodded.

"You could have whipped my butt back there a few minutes ago," he said. "Why didn't you?"

"What would it have proved?" Norris asked.

He thought that over for a moment and then offered Norris his hand. "No hard feelings?" he said.

"None," Norris answered, and shook his hand. He had avoided a confrontation and made a friend. He won by losing.

[modified from first person to third.]

Seven Questions Every Leader Should Ask

How to keep your leadership on track.

1. Do I have a good reason to lead?

a. A sense of God's calling.

b. A passion for the purpose.

c. Fitting the role.

d. Confirmation from others.

2. Do I harbor selfish motives?

a. Self-esteem.

b. Recognition.

c. Power.

3. Do I follow God's guidance?

4. Am I actually leading?

a. Management is not leadership.

b. Leaders must guide, inspire, challenge and motivate.

5. Who's really in control?

a. God must be in control.

b. Leaders must refrain from manipulating.

6. What's the vision?

7. What's the goal?

Spirit At Work

Joel 2:28

The power you need to live the abundant life is available, but most Christians (and churches) don’t utilize it. [extensive verses are given]

1. Power to witness.

2. Power to hear God’s voice.

3. A heart like God’s heart.

4. Power to be holy.

5. Power to anticipate the future.

6. Help to pray.

7. Reminders of our inheritance.

8. (Other roles.)

Living Supernaturally

Luke 9:23

Some Christians never get on fire for God. Their faith is genuine, they love God, but something clearly is missing. They need to discover the tremendous adventure of following the Spirit, rather than having a “surface” faith. Being filled with the Spirit is not just for Pentecostals.

1. Our natural tendency: boring Christianity.

2. Powered by the Spirit.

3. Filled with the Spirit.

4. The process of being filled.

a. All Christians receive the Spirit.

b. All Christians can be filled, but not all are.

c. This is different than the charismatic gifts.

d. It involves a continuing, voluntary surrender to God.

5. Three steps.

a. Ask daily.

b. Repent from sin.

c. Follow the Spirit.

6. The choice is up to you.

Limited Edition

Job 11:7

By limiting us, God creates room in which to work. Nancy Alford was on top of world, then was operated on for cancer and developed chronic fatigue syndrome.

1. The power principle.

The weaker we are, the more powerful God becomes.

2. The provision.

3. Prayer and praise.

In prayer we don't seek to change God's mind, but to bring our heart to accept God's will.

4. Is it fair?

God calls us to live hemmed-in lives.

Descendants of African Slaves Find Freedom From Power of Evil

Luke 4:36

A downpour pelts Tim McClard as he floats down the Suriname River in a dugout canoe. The night is so dark that McClard, a Southern Baptist International Mission Board missionary from Farmington, Mo., can hardly see who's in front of him, let alone the river ahead. But he's not worried. He knows who's steering the canoe.

It's 39-year-old George Eduard, an evangelical Christian who grew up in the bush country of Suriname, a South American nation that's a former Dutch colony. Eduard, like many men from a tribe called the Saramaccans, knows every rock in this river. He knows them so well he often guides the boat at night without alight.

Tonight when Eduard nears Dang (pronounced DAHNG) Village, he stops the outboard motor and drifts toward the bank. He and his passengers -- McClard and some visiting Baptists -- get out and slosh toward the village school. There they join a crowd of Saramaccans for worship.

During the service Eduard tells a story about Satan and stresses Jesus' power to overcome evil. That's an intriguing topic for Saramaccans, descendants of African slaves who escaped from Dutch plantations in the 17th and 18th centuries. Today Saramaccans retain many African traditions, including voodoo and animism. Their religion -- called "Kunu" -- revolves around evil spirits.

"The evil is real -- and you can feel it here, but we're trying to show them that the creator of everything loves them and is much more powerful than evil," says McClard's wife, Judy, from Ironton, Mo.

One Saramaccan who has discovered that truth is a woman who calls herself Maria (Mary) Magdala. Villagers used to pay her to consult a demon they believed spoke through her. But when several of her relatives died, people began rejecting her.

"She felt that even the devil didn't like her," recalls Eduard.

But when she heard Eduard preach about Jesus' love, she accepted Christ. "When I prayed with her, the spiritual battle was so intense," Eduard recalls.

The Lord gave her the power to renounce her Kunu practices. "I just call upon my Jesus, and he gives me the strength to do what I need to do," Magdala says. "Prayer keeps me going."

After tonight's service, she asks McClard and Eduard to pray for her and her 15-year-old daughter, who has accepted Christ, too. The two will soon take the public stand of baptism in front of a village that's long been a Kunu stronghold. Eduard knows well the pressures that decision might bring them.

He became a Christian as a youth and recalls as a teen going with his grandfather to preach in a nearby village. After a witch doctor accepted Christ there, villagers stoned them. They escaped, but that night the persecutors dragged Eduard's grandfather from his hut, beat him with a chain and poured tar on him. Eduard, hiding in the darkness, watched in horror.

After he grew up and left home, Eduard strayed from his faith. But one night Jesus appeared to him in a dream. "I'm getting ready to do a great work on the Suriname River," the Lord told Eduard. "I need you to help."

Meanwhile, the Lord began to call the McClards to that work, too. After they heard about the Saramaccans through some missionary pilots, the McClards began to pray for the tribe. They asked Southern Baptist prayer supporters to pray, too. Soon they met Eduard, who then worked at the school their children attend in Paramaribo, Suriname's capital.

Eduard paved the way for McClard and IMB missionary Chip Collins, from Houston, to visit some Saramaccan villages and meet with the tribal chief. The chief gave them permission to bring in Southern Baptist volunteers to do human needs ministries in the area.

"Many groups have promised to help us, but they haven't kept those promises," the chief said. "We'll be watching you to see if you keep yours."

Since that conversation almost three years ago, volunteers have conducted medical and dental clinics, construction and water well projects and Vacation Bible Schools in several villages. "Their work has opened many doors for us to spread the gospel," says McClard.

The door to Dang Village opened in 1997 when volunteers from First Baptist Church, Palatka, Fla., renovated a school. During the project, about 175 Saramaccans accepted Christ after viewing the "Jesus" film.

Volunteer Steve Nettles witnessed their commitments in amazement. "Other than my own conversion, it was the most spiritually overwhelming moment of my life," he says.

He had a similar response when he saw Magdala's baptism during another volunteer project this summer. "That makes everything worthwhile," said Nettles, just after Magdala was baptized with four believers she helped lead to Christ.

The baptisms were the first ones resulting from work of an evangelical church-planting team that includes Eduard, the McClards and several other missionaries. Saramaccans from five villages gathered to see the event, which village leaders allowed to happen in the river in front of Dang Village.

"We're seeing God moving along this river like we've never seen before," McClard says. "The power of Satan is being broken here."

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Success Is the Greatest Danger

"Success, not failure, is the greatest danger facing any follower of God, as Moses knew well. He had traipsed around a desert for forty years as a penalty for the Hebrews’ inability to handle the success of the Exodus. Every significant downfall in his own life came when he seized power for himself - killing an Egyptian, smashing a rock in the desert - rather than relying on God."

(Philip Yancey, "The Bible Jesus Read", p.89)

The Gift of Humility

Matthew 12

Christianity has made a difference by surrounding the use of power with humility.

Over the long course of Christian history, the most depressing thing -- because repeated so often -- has been how tragically far short of Christian ideals we ordinary Christians so regularly fall. Over the long course of Christian history, the most remarkable thing -- because it is such a miracle of grace -- is how often believers have acted against the pride of life to honor Christ. Of all such "signs of contradiction," the most completely Christlike have been those occasions when believers who are strong -- because of wealth, education, political power, superior culture, or favored location -- have reached out to the despised, the forsaken, the abandoned, the lost, the insignificant, or the powerless. Christianity has sometimes made a difference by surrounding the use of power with humility.

Yet although such occasions are the most completely Christlike, they only rarely feature in the kind of history that gets written up in the most noticed books. In such books, however, alongside much that shames the name of Christ, have also appeared "signs of contradiction" that do in fact testify to the presence of gold among the dross. One of the most remarkable of those signs has been the recurring ability of the Christian faith to act against the normal ways of the world in the exercise of power.

Throughout Western history, power has been a far more potent narcotic than the multitude of physical means that humans have used to get high. Power feeds on itself. It is never satisfied. It is almost never relinquished voluntarily. (The Roman Catholic Charles V, who in 1556 gave up the Holy Roman Empire for a monastic life of prayer, and the Presbyterian William Jennings Bryan, who in 1915 resigned as Secretary of State to protest what he considered warlike policies, are rare exceptions proving this rule.) Power nurtures the idolatry of self. It turns those in its vicinity into sycophants. It thrives in environments that stifle the fruit of the Spirit. Power, like its near kin wealth, breeds burly camels grossly unprepared for threading the eye of the needle. Power corrupts. And it almost never apologizes.

Yet in the year 390 the most powerful human being in the Western world apologized. In the winter of 1076-77 the Emperor of Germany apologized. On July 12, 1174, the strongest ruler in Western Europe apologized. Historians have studied and restudied these events many times. Their work has made it impossible to regard these apologies romantically. Each was an act of calculation, which helped someone in power stay in power, as well as an apology. So, like most of the rest of the benevolent actions in human history, these events were not occasions of pure goodness. Yet even regarded with due realism, they were still remarkable. What makes them most remarkable is that they were not only apologies to other humans, but also apologies to God.

The Christian faith, at least in some meaningful respects, was at work in each of these occurrences. The fact that they were acts of repentance as well as of apology -- acts taken out of sorrow before a holy God and in deference to the gospel revealed in Jesus Christ -- provides at least a partial explanation for why they took place.

In the year 390, the Roman Emperor Theodosius, acting out of frustration at balking resistance to his rule, ordered the massacre of a considerable number of citizens in the Greek city of Thessalonica. When he returned to Italy and went to church, his local pastor denounced him as a notorious public sinner and refused to serve him the Lord's Supper. This pastor was the famous Bishop Ambrose of Milan, who only shortly before had played an influential role in the conversion of Augustine. Less than a century earlier, the Christian church had still been illegal. When Ambrose took his stand, most adults in his congregation had personal memory of imperial Roman attacks on orthodox Christians. Theodosius, one of the last great Roman emperors, could have blown Ambrose away with ease. That he did not, that he submitted to the public penance prescribed by Ambrose in order to be restored to church fellowship, seems to have occurred substantially because of Theodosius' Christian convictions. He had done wrong before God and needed, therefore -- emperor though he was -- to make a public repentance.

The case of the German Emperor Henry IV was not as spiritually clear-cut. Henry had long quarreled with a series of popes before being excommunicated by Pope Gregory VII in February 1076. Henry's decision to admit that he was wrong depended in part on his fears about losing control over his subjects. But it probably had some kind of Christian root as well. With motives that were mixed, Henry nonetheless crossed the mountains in northern Italy during the next winter and stood three days barefoot in the snow before the Castle Canossa, where the pope was in residence. On January 28, 1077, Gregory received the emperor, accepted his apology, and restored him to the church.

With Henry II, King of England and much of France, we return closer to the purer motives of Theodosius. In 1162, Henry had maneuvered to make his crony Thomas Becket the Archbishop of Canterbury. But instead of playing his part as a loyal minion responsive to the wishes of the king, Becket struck off on his own course and did what he thought was best for the English church. By making Henry's life difficult, Becket put himself in danger. Late in 1170, after Henry had denounced Becket within the circle of his own advisers, several of Henry's knights took the king's imprecations as commands, crossed the Channel into England, and murdered Becket in the cathedral at Canterbury. The public was outraged, but quite apart from that outrage, Henry seemed smitten by his act of wanton violence. His public penance at Becket's shrine did bring public opinion back toward his side, but it also seems to have been a genuine act of repentance.

The history of Protestantism has also witnessed acts of this kind. One of the most memorable came in Puritan Massachusetts after the disastrous Salem witch trials of 1690-92. Samuel Sewall of Boston was one of the judges of the court who was swayed by "spectral evidence" to convict and then execute 20 New Englanders as witches. Judge Sewall was a dignified Puritan layman whose diary has been a treasure for historians of the period. Several years after the events in Salem, as Sewall's conscience continued to trouble him for his part in the Salem tragedy, he was moved to action by hearing his son recite a passage from Matthew 12, which included this verse (7): "But if ye had known what this meaneth, I will have mercy and not sacrifice, ye would not have condemned the guiltless." On the morning of January 14, 1697, Sewall passed a statement to his pastor in Boston, who then read it as Sewall stood before his congregation. The statement acknowledged that Sewall, as a judge in the proceedings, bore much of the guilt for what happened. But it went on to affirm that he "Desires to take the Blame and shame of it, Asking pardon of men, And especially desiring prayers that God, who has an Unlimited Authority, would pardon that sin and all other sins." As it happens, Sewall was joined in his repentance by jury members and a few of the ministers who had whipped up the hysteria. But as the most powerful Puritan to make such a confession, his was the most remarkable.

The kingdom of God is promised to those who become like children. This promise certainly does not refer to the notorious self-centeredness of small children; much more likely it refers to the capacity of many children to readily admit their mistakes. Not many of the high and mighty in the Christian history of the West have been willing to become as little children with respect to the power they wield. The ones noticed here -- as well as others like Oliver Cromwell or Jimmy Carter -- have been among the regrettably few exceptions. That there are any exceptions at all is, nonetheless, enduring testimony to the transforming power of the gospel.

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Mark Noll teaches history at Wheaton College. He is also Contributing Editor for Christianity Today and Cochair of the editorial board for its sister publication, Books & Culture.

*

The Lessons of History

Charles A. Beard, the historian, was once asked if he could summarize the lessons of history. Beard replied that he could do it with four simple observations:

1. Whom the gods would destroy they first make mad with power.

2. The mills of the gods grind slowly, but they grind exceedingly fine.

3. The bee fertilizes the flower it robs.

4. When it is dark enough, you can see the stars.

Cited in More of...The Best of BITS & PIECES

Simple power of it

Nuclear energy is most potent source of energy known. If 2 lb. chunk of coal could be converted = more electricity than all conventional power plants in U.S. produce in a month! Breakthrough occurred when neutron could strike atom of U-235 causing it to divide. Takes place in a reactor with all necessary housing/instrumentation. Power lies in core of single atoms of fuel! Process unseen.

Covers Our Blind Side

John 14:16

In the book "Healing the Masculine Soul", Gordon Dalbey says that when Jesus refers to the Holy Spirit as the Helper, he uses a Greek word, paraclete, that was an ancient warrior's term. "Greek soldiers went into battle in pairs," says Dalbey, "so when the enemy attacked, they could draw together back-to-back, covering each other's blind side. One's battle partner was the paraclete."

Our Lord does not send us to fight the good fight alone. The Holy Spirit is our battle partner who covers our blind side and fights for our well-being.

Power of A dam

Author Jamie Buckingham once visited a dam on the Columbia River. He'd always thought that the water spilling over the top provided the power, not realizing that it was just froth, that deep within turbines and generators transformed the power of tons and tons of water to electricity--quietly, without notice, not like the flashy froth on top.

Something Beautiful For God - Mother Teresa

The pharmacist waited on his customers, then turned to a small woman in her thirties waiting quietly in the background. She stepped forward with a long list and a shy smile. Would the pharmacist be willing, she asked, “to do something beautiful for God?”

A few minutes later, the woman walked out of the pharmacy with her arms full of donated medical supplies to care for the sick and dying. The woman, who had just begun her ministry to the poor in Calcutta, would later be known to the world as Mother Teresa.

In his book, “Great Souls,” journalist David Aikman describes how Mother Teresa never relied on worldly power. Instead, she relied on the moral authority that came from God-the authority she gained from living the Gospel as she ministered to the poor. And she was persistent.

On one occasion, the young Mother Teresa “came across a dying woman whose body ... had been eaten by rats and ants.” When the staff of a nearby hospital balked at accepting the woman, Aikman writes, “Mother Teresa simply refused to move until they changed their minds.”

Mother Teresa relied on her moral authority once again in 1971 when she defied the Indian government, which was encouraging abortions for women who had been raped by Pakistani soldiers. “What you are going to help them to do is to commit murder-and this will be with them for life,” she told the authorities, and she herself took in scores of unwanted children. Perhaps the most famous example of Mother Teresa's use of moral authority was one I witnessed myself. It occurred in 1994 at the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington. There, Mother Teresa openly challenged President Clinton on behalf of the unborn, calling abortion the “direct killing of the innocent child.” The president and the First Lady were noticeably uncomfortable. But no one could challenge her. Not because she had worldly power-she had none-but because she had unimpeachable moral authority as a result of being obedient to God's call and working among the poor and outcasts of society.

The press recognized the real impact that kind of moral authority has-which is why reporters and editors did their best to hush up the speech. How does one earn moral authority? Simply by being faithful-by doing one's duty. A few years ago I visited Vaclav Maly, the young Czech priest who had led 800,000 people through the streets of Prague in 1989, driving out the Communists. I told him he was a great hero to many of us in the West. “Oh, no,” Maly replied. “I am no hero. A hero is someone who does something he doesn't have to. I was just doing my duty.”

The great paradox of heroism is that we cannot achieve it if we set out to become heroes, only if we submerge our ambitions in obedience to God and do our duty as He calls us.

We've got to teach our young people the difference between power and moral authority. Politicians can gain political power. But as soon as they leave office, they lose power. But if the Christian is obedient to a transcendent calling, God confers an authority that will only grow over time-and that person will be a witness, whether in his own neighborhood or, as with Mother Teresa, to the whole world.

The Illusion of Fame and Power

His initials were W.W., and in the 1930s and 1940s they were enough to identify him to most of America. He was widely considered the creator of modern gossip writing, and in his heyday this rude, abrasive, egotistical and witty man was the country’s best known and most widely read journalist and one of its most influential. In 1943, when there were 140 million people in the United States, more than 50 million of them read his gossip column every day in more than 1000 newspapers, including his flagship, The New York Daily Mirror. Even more people listened to his weekly radio broadcast. Hated, feared and revered, he presided over Table 50 of the Stork Club in New York, creating and destroying celebrities at the drop of his trademark gray snap-brim fedora. Yet when he died in 1972, at age 74, he was practically forgotten. Only two people attended his funeral; his daughter, Walda, and the rabbi who officiated at his services. Today, not many people under 40 even know the name of Walter Winchell.

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Mervyn Rothstein, New York Times, 6-24-1990

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To meet the crisis hour

in the Church and in the world today, we either have or do not have what it takes. It would seem that a certain man had once been

in trouble; then a friend got him out of that tight spot. Because of this he

promised to be eternally grateful and repay the favor to the friend any time,

any where, at any cost. Later, at the worst time and in the worst place, the

benefactor was himself in trouble. But he remembered the promise. Although

it was late in the evening, he told himself that he would be welcomed at any

hour because of the favor he had given. So bang, bang, bang on the door.

Upstairs a man rolled out of his waterbed unhappily. Finally, after stumbling

around in the dark looking for robe and slippers, he went to the door, and

showed his one-time benefactor in. But then he ran back to his wife crying, "A

friend of mine is traveling through this area and has come to me seeking a

meal. I don't have a thing to set before him." His cupboard was bare.! The

bare cupboard is a far cry from Peter's thrilling words, "Such as I have, give

I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk." In the

days of the early Church, organized religion was able to do nothing for the

cripple, long wilted at the gate of the temple called Beautiful. But an

outcast preacher (Peter by name) who never had a chance to fill the temple's

pulpit, filled this lame man's need. Peter met the need through the name of

JESUS.

Worldly Ambition

Look at the end of worldly ambition. It is said that Alexander, who conquered the world and wept because there were no more worlds to conquer, at last set fire to his own city and died drunk; that Hannibal, who filled three bushel baskets with gold rings taken from the fingers of the slaughtered knights, died at last by poison administered by his own hand; that Caesar, having conquered 800 cities and dyed his garments with the blood of 1,000,000 of his foes, was stabbed by his best friends in the very place where he had had his greatest triumphs; Napoleon, after being the scourge of Europe and the desolater of the country, died in captivity and banishment. God says, “The expectation of the wicked shall be cut off.”

__________

William Moses Tidwell, “Effective Illustrations.”

Disappointment of Worldly Ambition

Proverbs 10:7

Just glance at the end of worldly ambition. Look at four of earth's

greatest rulers. First, Alexander, who, when he had so completely

conquered the nations of earth, wept because there were no more to

conquer, at last set fire to a city and died in a drunken debauch.

Second, take Hannibal, the great Carthaginian general who ravaged

Italy, who filled three bushel baskets with gold rings taken from the

hands of slaughtered knights, who finally committed suicide by

poisoning himself. Third, take Caesar, who conquered 800 cities and

dyed his garments with the blood of a million of his foes, but was

finally stabbed by his best friend, in the court where had been his

greatest triumph. Fourth, take Napoleon, who was the scourge of

Europe, but was finally defeated and banished and died a captive in a

strange land. God says, "The memory of the just is blessed; but the

name of the wicked shall rot" (\reference{Proverbs 10:7}{Proverbs

10:7}).

William Moses Tidwell, "Pointed Illustrations."

The Greatest Conqueror

John 16:22

The name of Napoleon the Great truly stands prominently for power. Musing as a lonely prisoner on St. Helena, he summarized thus: "Alexander, Caesar, Charlemagne, and myself founded empires. But on what did we found them? On force! Jesus Christ alone found his kingdom on love, and today there are millions who would die for him."

Where then is happiness to be found? Jesus said, "I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man taketh from you." (John 16:22)

====================

Another version:

"I know men," said Napoleon in exile on the island of St. Helena to Count Montholon, "I know men, and I tell you that Jesus was not a man! The religion of Christ is a mystery, which subsists by its own force, and proceeds from a mind which is not a human mind. We find in it a marked individuality which originated a train of words and actions unknown before. Jesus is not a philosopher, for His proofs are miracles, and from the first His disciples adored Him. Alexander, Caesar, Charlemagne, and myself founded empires but on what foundation did we rest the creation of our genius? Upon force. Jesus Christ founded an empire upon love, and at this hour millions of men would die for Him. I die before my time, and my body will be given back to the earth, to become food for worms. Such is the fate of him who has been called the great Napoleon. What an abyss between my deep misery and the eternal kingdom of Christ, which is proclaimed, loved, and adored, and is extending over the whole earth!"

And turning to General Bertrand, the Emperor added, "If you do not perceive that Jesus Christ was God, I did wrong to appoint you general!"

====================

Another version:

Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821) was, by all accounts, a giant of history. Soldier. General. Emperor. Exile. And although no would add ‘theologian’ to this list, Napoleon faced a question common to all mankind: Who is Jesus Christ?

History has seen many different answers. Christians have claimed Him as Savior, others have considered Him just another wise teacher, and skeptics have deemed Him to be a largely mythological figure.

Near the end of his life, the exiled Emperor Napoleon came to the following conclusion about the King of Kings:

I know men, and I tell you Jesus Christ was not a man.

Superficial minds see a resemblance between Christ and the founders of empires and the gods of other religions. That resemblance does not exist.

There is between Christianity and other religions the distance of infinity.

Alexander, Cæsar, Charlemagne and myself founded empires. But on what did we rest the creations of our genius? Upon sheer force. Jesus Christ alone founded His empire upon love; and at this hour millions of men will die for Him. In every other existence but that of Christ how many imperfections!

From the first day to the last He is the same; majestic and simple; infinitely firm and infinitely gentle. He proposes to our faith a series of mysteries and commands with authority that we should believe them, giving no other reason than those tremendous words, ‘I am God.’

The Bible contains a complete series of acts and of historical men to explain time and eternity, such as no other religion has to offer.

If it is not the true religion, one is very excusable in being deceived; for everything in it is grand and worthy of God.

The more I consider the Gospel, the more I am assured that there is nothing there which is not beyond the march of events and above the human mind. Even the impious themselves have never dared to deny the sublimity of the Gospel, which inspires them with a sort of compulsory veneration.

What happiness that Book procures for those who believe it!

So said Napoleon Bonaparte. What about you? Who do you say that Christ is? Scripture tells us that “every knee should bow ... and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.” Even the great Napoleon.

________

Quoted from Ritzema, E. (Ed.). (2012). 300 Quotations for Preachers. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.

Christ's Power to Lift Up the World

Two men met on the dikes that surround the city of New Orleans two

years ago during the great flood, at which time the city seemed

doomed. The water from the Mississippi on the one side and from the

gulf on the other, seemed almost certain to overflow the city. One man

said to the other, "What would you do for this city if your had the

strength and money?" It took the one addressed by surprise and turning

to his questioner, said, "What would you do; as you seem to have been

thinking about the matter?" "Oh," said the first man, "I would, if I

had the power and the money, build these dikes so wide and so high

that no flood could endanger this city." This would seem to be the

delights of philanthropy. "But," said the second man, "I would not do

that; if I had the strength I would get my arms beneath this city and

lift it above the dikes so that no flood could ever endanger it."

Jesus Christ does for our world just what the latter man said he

would do for the city. He puts his everlasting arms beneath this

doomed world and lifts it above all the currents of sin.

By J. Wilbur Chapan, "Present Day Parables."

A Mistaken Explanation

The 11 terrified disciples sat in a locked room. Author Max Lucado describes the scene: “As you look around the room, you wouldn't take them for a bunch who are about to put the kettle of history on high boil. Uneducated. Confused. Calloused hands. Heavy accents. Few social graces. Limited knowledge of the world. No money. Undefined leadership. And on and on.”

“No, as you look at this motley crew, you wouldn't wager too many paychecks on their future. But something happens to a man when he witnesses someone who has risen from the dead.”

*This does not explain the power of the disciples! The explanation is the fiery, Divinely empowering, baptism of the Holy Ghost which they received on Pentecost! In the story of Lazarus and the rich man, Jesus made it clear that one's rising from the dead would not convince sinners to repent. It is only the convicting power of the Holy Ghost that can bring this about, and that power works, not through men who have seen Christ risen from the dead, but through men who are filled with His Spirit.

-- Duane V. Maxey

*

Give Me New England!

Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758) was a brilliant theologian whose

sermons had an overwhelming impact on those who heard him. One in

particular, his famous "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God," moved

hundreds to repentance and salvation. That single message helped to

spark the revival known as "The Great Awakening" (1734-1744).

From a human standpoint, it seems incredible that such far-reaching

results could come from one message. Edwards did not have a

commanding voice or impressive pulpit manner. He used very few

gestures, and he read from a manuscript. Yet God's Spirit moved upon

his hearers with conviction and power.

Few know the spiritual preparation involved in that sermon. John

Chapman gives us the story: "For 3 days Edwards had not eaten a

mouthful of food; for 3 nights he had not closed his eyes in sleep.

Over and over again he was heard to pray, 'O Lord, give me New

England! Give me New England!' When he arose from his knees and made

his way into the pulpit that Sunday, he looked as if he had been

gazing straight into the face of God. Even before he began to speak,

tremendous conviction fell upon his audience."

I See It All Now

Psalms 55:22

Hudson Taylor, pioneer missionary to China, was deeply distressed by many burdens that weighed him down. As he prayed for strength to carry on his ministry, Psalm 55:22 suddenly came to his mind: "Cast your burden on the Lord, and He shall sustain you."

Springing to his feet, he cried, "This fear-allaying truth has evaded me too long! I see it all now. If we are obeying the Lord and still run into difficulty, the heavy responsibility rests with Him, not with us!" Then he prayed, "Lord, You shall have all the burden! At Your bidding I will go forward, leaving the results with You." With lightened heart, Hudson Taylor went on to establish a great work in China.

Why the Computer Didn't Work

How's your power source? Are you plugged in? In his book Spiritual Stamina, Stuart Briscoe tells the story of a man who bought a new computer. Bringing his new prize home, he carefully opened the box, gingerly took the machine out, studied its manual, and connected the wires. Eagerly he flipped on the power switch -- but nothing happened. Puzzled, the man switched the computer off and rechecked all the connections. He rounded up a screwdriver and fastened the wires more securely. He read again the relevant portion of the manual. Satisfied that he'd followed directions, he flipped the computer on -- and again nothing happened. As his anger rose the man's little girl walked into the room.

“Hi, Daddy!” her cheery voice rang out. “What a pretty computer! Can I plug it in?”

-- Moody

*

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"... the best of programs are all bound to futility until a genuine

revival of the biblical baptism with the Holy Spirit and fire replaces

the self-centered, carnal condition of a terrible high percentage of

believers." - Hal Perkins

NOT FLASH BUT FORCE

In the days of the electric trolley cars, it was a common occurrence

for the small wheel to jump off the power-charged wire overhead. When

that happened, the power was gone. Sometimes in the motorman's efforts

to get the wheel replaced he would make a false contact. There would

be a flash of fire, but still the car was motionless. When the proper

contact with the power line was made, the flashing ceased and the

trolley moved with its load of passengers on its way. Better not to

be satisfied with an occasional flash of emotion. We must let the

Holy Spirit take control of our lives and know His power. ("Choice

Illustrations" W.W. Clay pg. 41)

The WORD "RECEIVE"

Mark Guy Pearse tells about an unusual experience on a train trip. He

was thinking about the life of Christian victory and power. He relates

that as he was reading "my eye fell on the word `receive,' and I saw

it was not my climbing up but the Lord coming down. It was early

spring, and as we stopped at a station it was raining, and I noticed a

little cottage where an old woman had put out a pitcher to catch the

water, and it was filled to the brim; I said to myself, `He can take

my broken pitcher of a heart and fill it abundantly.'" Open your

heart and you will "receive" power. ("Choice Illustrations" W.W>

Clay pg. 41)

100 Sermon Illustrations on Power