Sermon Central
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Beginning Small Beginnings
Contributed by Jerry Gatson on Jan 30, 2020 (message contributor)
Summary: Zechariah 4:10 tells us not to despise small beginnings. Most big discoveries, companies, and ministries started small, but how do we start them in the first place? Who better to learn from on how to beginning small beginnings than the One who began everything from nothing.
BEGINNING NEW BEGINNINGS
INTRO – Zechariah 4:10 tells us not to despise small beginnings. Most big discoveries, companies, and ministries started small, but how do we start them in the first place? Who better to learn from on how to beginning small beginnings than the One who began everything from nothing.
1. IN THE BEGINNING… Start Working on Things Behind the Scenes
[1]In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.
[2]And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.
[3]And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.
The word of God begins with the account of creation. The Bible says the earth was without order and structure, empty, and covered in darkness. Hebrews 4:13 tells that God can see in the dark, but He begin with creation with "Let there be light." I believe it was to shed light on everything else He wanted to illuminate to our understanding everything that went into creating everything from nothing. Also, God created everything in the first six days. In those six days, God made everything before He made man because God made everything for man and did everything He did for man before there was no one there to see Him do it. Small beginnings don't begin in the public eye with public accolades. Small beginnings begin in the privacy of obscurity where no one is looking, no one notices, and nobody cares. The same way God began creation before there was anyone there to acknowledge His efforts, the creative process of beginning small beginnings usually starts behind the scenes.
6 Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven.
2 Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.
3 But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth:
4 That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly.
5 And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.
6 But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.
What is rewarded openly is what is initiated privately because the motive is not to be seen. The motive is to be obedient to the vision and dream that God showed to you so you are willing to use what you have, start where you are, and do what you can do... even if nobody sees you.
Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.
Things that can’t be seen are the foundation of the things that will be seen. The things that are seen are made of things that are not seen.
What God said and did when there was no one around to impress framed the worlds. What you do behind the scenes will frame your world.
2. IN THE BEGINNING… Celebrate the Small Accomplishments
[4]And God saw the light, that it was good...
And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good.
And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good.
And to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good.
And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and God saw that it was good.
And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and God saw that it was good.
And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good.