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Let's become a vessel used by God
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2
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[2 Timothy 2:21]
If a man cleanses himself from the latter, he will be an instrument for
noble purposes,
made holy, useful to the Master and prepared to do any good work.
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3
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All of us who believe
in Jesus and have been saved are called 'saints'.
A saint means'a person
who is sanctified.¡®
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4
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The place where people
called as saints gather is called 'church'.
The owner of the church
is 'Jesus'. Jesus is expressed as the ¡°head¡±
of the church and the
church is expressed as the ¡°body¡± of Jesus.
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5
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The church is a place where people who acknowledge the reign and rule of
Jesus, the Head,
are gathered. Numerous churches have been established in each country
and region.
The head of all these churches is only Jesus.
After all, all these churches are one church with Jesus as their master.
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6
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God sets up workers to
keep the church right.
Those who have been
established as workers of God will do what God wants.
Doing what God has
entrusted us to is expressed in terms of ¡°to be used by God¡±.
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7
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The apostle Paul says
that not all workers who are used in the church of God are used the same. To
illustrate this point, he gave an example of the vessels in a large house.
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8
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There are many types of
vessels in a large house.
Among them are the gold
and silver bowls that everyone considers special.
There are also wooden
bowls and bowls made of clay.
These vessels are used
according to the purpose set by the owner.
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9
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The vessels the owner
decides to use for special work are used for precious work.
It is used to entertain
valuable guests or to hold important events.
He will mainly use gold
or silver vessels for these special things.
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10
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Some vessels are used for other purposes.
There are also bowls used for simple drinking purposes.
Alternatively, there are also bowls used to hold leftovers.
Wooden or clay vessels will be used for this.
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The Bible says that the
workers used by God are the same as the vessels in a large house.
Some people, like
vessels used for special purposes, are used by God differently.
Another said that God
uses it like a vessel used in ordinary things.
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12
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It is truly blessed that we are specially used by God.
What must we do to make God specially used?
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13
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First, we must avoid
evil things. The Thessalonian Bible says:
¡°Avoid every kind of
evil.¡± (1 Thessalonians 5:22) Those
who wish to be specially used by God must be careful not to imitate evil
things even as a joke.
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14
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Second, you must be
careful not to fall into pride and stubbornness that only you think is right.
We must do things that
please God with good friends who believe in and follow Jesus.
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15
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Third, you must be
careful not to have useless arguments.
The Bible says that
verbal fights do not give any benefit, but rather a bigger fight.
God specially uses
those who do not quarrel with others and who are patient and kind.
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16
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After Jesus was
resurrected and ascended to heaven, the church began.
At first, it was one
church in Jerusalem. However, because of the workers God uses specially,
the church has spread all
over the earth. Through their faithful service,
we are blessed to believe
in Jesus and become children of God.
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17
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Now it was our turn. We
must do our best to become workers that God can use specially.
We must keep away from
things that God hates and put our energy into doing things that please God.
First of all, you must strive to become a worker specially used by God in
your church.
In the future, God will
use these friends as valuable workers for the kingdom of God.
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(This
is the sample conclusion provided by CTM. Please feel free to change the
conclusion to best suit the listeners of your sermon.)
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