The Word Must Precede the Work
The sermon emphasizes the importance of prioritizing a personal relationship with Jesus and a private life with God, rather than focusing on external activities and public usefulness.
Oswald Chambers preaches about the danger of being consumed by worldly systems that prioritize endless activities over cultivating a private life with God. He emphasizes the importance of the hidden, inner relationship with God, rather than public displays of busyness. Chambers urges Christians to rid themselves of the spirit of the religious age and focus on soaking in the fundamental truths of God's Redemption to remain steadfast in faith when faced with unexpected challenges.
Text
Today's unheeded secret
"My kingdom is not of this world." John 18:36.
"The great enemy to the Lord Jesus Christ in the present day is the conception of practical work that has not come from the New Testament, but from the systems of the world in which endless energy and activities are insisted upon, but no private life with God. The emphasis is put on the wrong thing.
"Jesus said, "The kingdom of God cometh not with observation; . . . for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you," a hidden, obscure thing. An active Christian worker too often lives in the shop window. It is the innermost of the innermost that reveals the power of the life.
"We have to get rid of the plague of the spirit of the religious age in which we live. In Our Lord's life there was none of the press and rush of tremendous activity that we regard so highly, and the disciple is to be as his Master. The central thing about the kingdom of Jesus Christ is a personal relationship to Himself, not public usefulness to men. It is not its practical activities that are the strength of this Bible Training College, its whole strength lies in the fact that here you are put into soak before God.
"You have no idea of where God is going to engineer your circumstances, no knowledge of what strain is going to be put on you either at home or abroad, and if you waste your time in over-active energies instead of getting into soak on the great fundamental truths of God's Redemption, you will snap when the strain comes; but if this time of soaking before God is being spent in getting rooted and grounded in God on the un-practical line, you will remain true to Him whatever happens."
My utmost for his highest , October 19th
Sermon Outline
- The Problem of Unheeded Secrets
- The Kingdom of God is Within
- The Disciple's Life
- Soaking in God's Redemption
- Getting rooted and grounded in God's fundamental truths
- Preparing for life's strains and challenges
Key Quotes
“The kingdom of God cometh not with observation; . . . for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you” — Oswald Chambers
“It is the innermost of the innermost that reveals the power of the life” — Oswald Chambers
“It is not its practical activities that are the strength of this Bible Training College, its whole strength lies in the fact that here you are put into soak before God” — Oswald Chambers
Application Points
- Prioritize a private life with God to remain true to Him in life's challenges.
- Focus on getting rooted and grounded in God's fundamental truths through soaking in His Redemption.
- Imitate Jesus' life of quiet, inner strength and prioritize personal relationship with Jesus over public usefulness.