Hidden Workers
The sermon emphasizes the value of hidden workers who serve God faithfully in obscurity, reflecting Christ's love through their everyday actions.
Charles E. Cowman preaches about the significance of living a great life even in mediocrity, drawing inspiration from John the Baptist who did no miracles but bore witness to the Light. He encourages being content with being a voice that points others to Christ, doing common tasks with excellence, and allowing mistakes to bring forth strength and sweetness. Cowman emphasizes the impact of sowing seeds of faith and love, leading others to know Christ through our words and actions, even if we remain hidden and unnoticed.
Text
"John did no miracle: but all things that John spake of this man were true" (John 10:41).
You may be very discontented with yourself. You are no genius, have no brilliant gifts, and are inconspicuous for any special faculty. Mediocrity is the law of your existence. Your days are remarkable for nothing but sameness and insipidity. Yet you may live a great life.
John did no miracle, but Jesus said that among those born of women there had not appeared a greater than he.
John's main business was to bear witness to the Light, and this may be yours and mine. John was content to be only a voice, if men would think of Christ.
Be willing to be only a voice, heard but not seen; a mirror whose surface is lost to view, because it reflects the dazzling glory of the sun; a breeze that springs up just before daylight, and says, "The dawn! the dawn!" and then dies away.
Do the commonest and smallest things as beneath His eye. If you must live with uncongenial people, set to their conquest by love. If you have made a great mistake in your life, do not let it becloud all of it; but, locking the secret in your breast, compel it to yield strength and sweetness.
We are doing more good than we know, sowing seeds, starting streamlets, giving men true thoughts of Christ, to which they will refer one day as the first things that started them thinking of Him; and, of my part, I shall be satisfied if no great mausoleum is raised over my grave, but that simple souls shall gather there when I am gone, and say,
"He was a good man; he wrought no miracles, but he spake words about Christ, which led me to know Him for myself." --George Matheson
"THY HIDDEN ONES" (Psa. 83:3)
"Thick green leaves from the soft brown earth,
Happy springtime hath called them forth;
First faint promise of summer bloom
Breathes from the fragrant, sweet perfume,
Under the leaves.
"Lift them! what marvelous beauty lies
Hidden beneath, from our thoughtless eyes!
Mayflowers, rosy or purest white,
Lift their cups to the sudden light,
Under the leaves.
"Are there no lives whose holy deeds--
Seen by no eye save His who reads
Motive and action--in silence grow
Into rare beauty, and bud and blow
Under the leaves?
"Fair white flowers of faith and trust,
Springing from spirits bruised and crushed;
Blossoms of love, rose-tinted and bright,
Touched and painted with Heaven's own light
Under the leaves.
"Full fresh clusters of duty borne,
Fairest of all in that shadow grown;
Wondrous the fragrance that sweet and rare
Comes from the flower-cups hidden there
Under the leaves.
"Though unseen by our vision dim,
Bud and blossom are known to Him;
Wait we content for His heavenly ray--
Wait till our Master Himself one day
Lifteth the leaves."
"God calls many of His most valued workers from the unknown multitude" (Luke 14:23).
Sermon Outline
- I points: - Introduction to the concept of hidden workers - The significance of John the Baptist's testimony - Living a life of purpose despite mediocrity
- II points: - The importance of being a voice for Christ - The metaphor of a mirror reflecting Christ's glory - The role of small acts of love in our lives
- III points: - Understanding the impact of unseen deeds - The beauty of faith and trust in hidden lives - The eventual recognition of our efforts by God
- IV points: - The call to be content in obscurity - The legacy of simple, faithful living - Encouragement to sow seeds of faith
Key Quotes
“John did no miracle: but all things that John spake of this man were true.” — Charles E. Cowman
“He was a good man; he wrought no miracles, but he spake words about Christ, which led me to know Him for myself.” — Charles E. Cowman
“God calls many of His most valued workers from the unknown multitude.” — Charles E. Cowman
Application Points
- Embrace your role as a hidden worker by serving faithfully in your community.
- Reflect on how small acts of kindness can have a lasting impact on others' lives.
- Find contentment in your unique calling, knowing that God sees and values your contributions.