Rustoleum
WORD PICTURE: RUSTOLEUM SPRAY CAN
Scriptural Reference: 1 Corinthians 3:12-15
If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man's work. If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames.
1. Read 1 Corinthians 3:13. Focus on what burns. Point out that sometimes we get a preview, such as in this poem entitled Lying in a Hammock at William Duffy’s Farm (author unknown):
Over my head, I see the bronze butterfly,
Asleep on the black trunk,
Blowing like a leaf in a green shadow.
Down the ravine behind the empty house,
The cowbells follow one another
into the distances of the afternoon.
To my right,
In a field of sunlight between two pines,
The droppings of last year’s horses
Blaze up into golden stones.
I lean back, as the evening darkens and comes on.
A chicken hawk floats over, looking for home.
I have wasted my life.
2. As Pastor Bob Appleby says, “If you’ve accepted Jesus, it’s not about whether you are going to heaven. As a believer, you will. It’s about whether or not you’ll miss your destiny.” Life work burning or not has a lot to do with missing our destiny. How am I spending my time? Is it “kingdom work — or not? What IS kingdom work?
Clues:
Show a can of Rustoleum (the spray-on paint that protects against rusting)
Matthew 6:19-20
Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.
What I Shared
I contrasted my excitement about praying with someone in the parking lot versus the excitement of picking the right valance for the new kitchen window. Similarly, what about my prayer for willingness to speak truthfully? I needed God’s guidance to speak with a mom whose troubled son is blaming everyone but himself for his problems. He even blamed MY son, whose heart was breaking for that kid. Would talking to the mom be wise?
The question before us is: how much of my life’s busy-ness will NOT burn or rust? And how much will?
Matthew 3:12
His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor, gathering his wheat into the barn and burning up the chaff with unquenchable fire.
Matthew 25:32
All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.
All Scripture references from the New International Version of the Bible (NIV).
Copyright by Whitney McKendree Moore, August 2006