Next Sunday, the 20th of March is the official first day of spring and I welcome it with open arms!! Spring time is really a magical time of year isn’t it? Something about it just gets people in a better mood. It’s a time when we can rejoice that we made it through another winter.
-“No winter lasts forever; no spring skips its turn”. ~Hal Borland
Spring is one of my most favorite seasons. I love seeing how things turn green and how life just seems to burst out. Spring time gives us a feeling of excitement and joy with the warm weather it brings and the flowers that bloom.
I have been looking forward to spring and am so glad it almost here. This past week I was thinking about spring and all that comes with it and the thought of Bees came to me. This is the time of year that we will begin to see them. This is their busy time of year. Now, most of us could probably say we could do without Bees but God lead me to a powerful message with Bees in mind.
A few weeks ago, Shayla had an assignment in one of her classes. She was to relate a Bee Hive to a City and share all the things that they had in common. As I thought about that I realized that cities really do have a good amount in common with a Bee Hive and people even more so in common with Bees themselves.
Looking at the bee, God lead me to Galatians 6:9 for our Scripture reading this morning.
Galatians 6: 9 “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at a proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”
Now, before I get into the meat of the sermon this morning, please know that I do not claim and am not an expert on bees what so ever. And some of the information that I use on bees is just things I have picked up throughout my life time. But one thing I am confident in is sharing God’s Word with you.
I want to relate some things we have heard about or have experienced firsthand with bees to our lives that we may gain a message that God desires us to receive.
Within the Bee community there are Worker Bees that stay very busy doing much work. Feeding the young, gathering the pollen, bringing in water, guarding the entrance, and even taking care of the deceased. Worker Bees truly have earned the title as Workers. In order for us to gain the proper perspective about the Worker Bee, we must first look at,…..
I.The Worker Bee’s Role.
A.Worker Bees have many different jobs that they could be tasked with. Not all Worker Bees can serve as soldiers, not all bring in the pollen, not all are guards. Each Worker has a job to do and they take it very seriously as this is their sole purpose in life. To serve their Queen!
I Corinthians 12: 4-6 4 There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. 5 There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. 6 There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work.
1.Each of us have been given gifts from God that we may do His will and serve him with what He’s given us.
2.God has blessed each of us with different gifts and abilities. Not all of us can teach, not all of us can lead music, not all of us can work with children. We each have different gifts.
Romans 12:6-8 “We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man’s gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith. If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach; if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.”
3.The Scripture doesn’t tell us that only some people have gifts, it tells us that we have different gifts. I believe God has given us all certain abilities that He wants us to use in order to bless others and bring glory to Him.
4. Maybe you have no idea what your gifts are that God has given you. Maybe you have searched and tried out different areas in which you could serve Him only to realize that you are not suited for certain things and maybe this has discouraged you in wanting to try anything else.
Illustration: We need to learn to make the most of our mistakes. I’m told in the back woods of Arkansas, there was a man who worked both as a veterinarian and as a taxidermist. The sign on his office door read: “Remember, either way, you get your dog back!”
- You see, we can learn from our mistakes. Failure doesn’t have to be final.
B. In (Galatians 6:9) We Read “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at a proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”
1. Isn’t it true that many of us give up too quickly? But one of the best ways to learn is through failure. You become a success through failure.
2. Failure also develops our skills.
- How did you learn to ride a bike? You fell down and got back up. You learned to roller skate the same way. Failure is a stepping-stone to success if you try new approaches.
- I hope you’ll encourage myself and our church leaders to not be afraid to fail. It means we’re trying new stuff. If we’re not making mistakes once in a while, we’re not trying anything new.
Illustration: How many stories have you heard about people who failed in one area and that motivated them to try something else? Maybe you know the name of Ray Kroc who failed in real estate and decided to start a thing called “McDonalds.” Or how about Colonel Sanders who failed at everything in his life until he was about 70, and then he started doing what he always wanted to do in the first place which was cooking chicken.
3. When you fail at something, maybe God is developing a skill that you didn’t know you had. You see, God uses failure to direct us into a new area. Some of us have tried a ministry and we feel as if we’ve failed and so we just kind of washed our hands and walked away. That’s not what God wants for us. He wants us to develop our skills. He wants us to stop focusing on us and continually focus on Him.
4. This is how the Worker Bee lives their lives. What is the Worker Bee’s Life Focus?
II. The Worker Bee’s Life Focus.
A. Serving God should be our focus just as the Worker Bee’s life is focused on the Queen and serving her. She is continuously surrounded by worker bees who meet her every need, giving her food, making her feel comfortable, and keeping her alive for the entire hive to prosper.
1. This is how we should live our lives as well for Jesus.
1 Corinthians 10:31 So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.
2. As a Christian, we should live our lives for Christ. Jesus and Jesus alone should be our life’s focus.
3. Did you know that the Queen she is usually the mother of most, if not all, the bees in the hive. She is responsible for all the life that makes up the hive. Maybe the reason Worker Bees live their lives’ serving her is nature’s way of showing honor and respect to the one that gave life to so many.
4. God has given us life, He is the one that has created our so called hive and has breathed life into existence. Life would be nothing without God so God is everything.
Colossians 1:16. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him.
5.God created it all and He has given so very much. Don’t you think that the least we could do is to live a life that is pleasing to him. By serving Him and exalting Him above everything else in the world.
B.I believe one reason that many of us have a difficult time living a servant hood life for God is that we view it as a Slave Master Relationship rather than Servant Master Relationship.
1.You see, in the bee kingdom there are no slaves. No one is running the show so to speak. No one is demanding things get done or else. The Workers serve not as slaves but as servants to a higher calling.
Listen to the definition of SLAVE according to the Merriam Webster Dictionary:
1: a person held in servitude as the chattel of another
2: one that is completely subservient to a dominating influence
2.Does this sound like something that people would want to subject themselves to? Of course not! This is one reason that many people shy away from God because they have the mentality of being a slave to Him rather than a servant. As a slave your mentality is that you are forced to serve. You have no choice and it is serving out of fear.
3. To be a SERVANT means something totally different:
1: a person employed by another.
2: a person in the service of another.
4.Being a servant to Christ is much more rewarding than having the mentality of slavery to Him. As a servant we think of employment. When you are an employee, you receive pay and benefits. You do a service for another.
5.This is what it is like serving Jesus. When you live your life for Him and become a servant to Him, you ultimately do His will and you receive blessings that outweigh any ting you could ever receive here on earth from any employer.
John 12:26 Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.
6.We are to follow and serve Jesus. We are to be His Worker Bees and to do His will. Serving Jesus should be our focus.
C.Could you imagine what the life of a Bee would be like if they just chose not to serve? If they simply chose to not be a Bee?
1.Most people don’t realize that bees pollinate about one-third of our food supply around the world. Bees pollinate apple trees and berry bushes, vegetables, melons, almonds and many other food sources. Our world would be affected drastically if they decided to not use their abilities and serve.
2.Many people in our world have made that same choice. The choice to not be that which God has created them to be. Many have chosen to serve themselves over serving God. Many have chosen selfishness over servant hood. Many hide harbor and even misuse their gifts and abilities.
3.You know what? I am so glad that Jesus didn’t choose Himself. He chose not just you and I but He chose every single person over himself. He Loved all of us so much that he gave His very life to save ours.
4.God sent Jesus on earth to complete a mission. God had a plan for His life. But even though God had a plan, It was up to Jesus to accept it and follow through with our Father’s desires.
5.At any single moment throughout the various obstacles that Jesus faced, He could have thrown in the towel and said forget it. I choose my life, my comfort, and my own fleshly desires over theirs. I CHOOSE ME! Thank God that Jesus chose us.
Illustration: Did you know that Worker Bees are so focused on serving the Queen that they will die trying all they can just to accomplish their service to her? They will sting anything that they feel is a direct obstacle in hindering the work that they are to do. Once they sting the stinger gets lodged and stuck, tearing from the bee’s body resulting in death of the bee.
6.That’s commitment, that’s following through to the very end. That a great example of loving service that has no limits.
Conclusion:
A.God calls us to be people of action. Our mouths might agree, but we quickly get cozy in our comfort zones, too afraid to reach outside and do something that might be a little uncomfortable or out of the norm. God wants us to serve alongside Him. He doesn’t want our excuses; He wants our hearts!
VIDEO: “Comfort” (http://onetimeblind.org)
1.What are our limits in serving Jesus? Do we only serve when we feel like it? Do we only serve if it’s totally comfortable to us? Do we only serve when it’s easy? Better yet, do we even serve Jesus at all?
2.I do believe that we all serve somebody or something in this life. It’s a choice however as to what or whom we serve.
Matthew 6:24 No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other.
3.The main question for us today is this: Who or what do we serve?
