Cinderellas & Cinderfellas
Preached - Sunday, June 8, 2003 - Youth Day Celebration
Magnolia Missionary Baptist Church - Reverend Houston Pledges
Camden Alabama
Scripture: "And he sent, and brought him in. Now he was ruddy, and withal of a beautiful countenance, and goodly to look to. And the Lord said, Arise, anoint him: for this is he." 1 Samuel 16:12; "And the king loved Esther above all the women, and she obtained grace and favor in his sight more than all the virgins; so that he set the royal crown upon her head, and made her queen instead of Vashti." Esther 2:17; "But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him." 1 Corinthians 2:9
Introduction
This morning, I want to talk about "Cinderellas and Cinderfellas". The New International Version says this of the text: "So he sent and had him brought in. He was a ruddy, with a fine appearance and handsome feature. Then the Lord said, "Rise and anoint him; he is the one." I Samuel 16:12; "Now the king was attracted to Esther more than to any of the other women, and she won his favor and approval more than any of the other virgins. So he set a royal crown on her head and made her queen instead of Vashti." Esther 2:17; "However, as it is written: No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him" I Corinthians 2:9. "Cinderellas and Cinderfellas".
My brothers and sisters, saints and sinners, bond and free children of the Most High God, all of you that love the Lord, and to all of you in your respectable places. We do greet you in the name of the unparalleled, incomparable, and matchless name of Jesus, and do share with you his word of inspiration, wisdom, and hope. For his word is rich and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness, so that we might be equipped for every good work.
Cinderellas and Cinderfellas.
Is it possible for a person, born in poverty and obscurity to rise to high heights in these times? Are the rags to riches accounts of great men and women exceptions to the rule or examples to be studied and emulated? Can today’s Christian really except to overcome the odds and reach plateaus of success? People who believe in the power of God are doing it every day!
Most of us are familiar with the story of Cinderella, the poor girl who had a chance to attend the prince’s ball with a little help from her fairy Godmother. While there she danced with and enchanted prince before rushing back home before midnight. We are familiar with how the prince sought after her and found her by matching her foot to a glass slipper she had left behind. She provided the stuff dreams are made of when the prince married her and they lived happily ever after. Likewise, we are familiar with Oliver Twist, the poor boy who was living in poverty in England, struggling for food every day but rose to prominence as the child of a wealthy English family once he was discovered. Stories such as these have fed the imaginations of young people for years.
But there were some real lives, touched by the hand of God, that the Bible presents as example of God’s ability to make Cinderellas and Cinderfellas out of every true believer. The life of David and Esther, two Old Testament characters who rose from obscurity, overcame racial and social barriers and succeeded in life with the help of GOD. Just as these young people were chosen to rise in biblical times, youth today can rise to high heights as Christians if they will allow God to guide their life.
What God has in store for those who trust him dwarfs anything we can imagine. The sky is the limit for our potential with God on our side because "eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither hath entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him."
Exposition
As the Holy Ghost shines his light on this text, we see two special characters that are clear the limitations of their circumstance.
Esther was a beautiful Jewish girl. She was bright, intelligent, and one of the most beautiful women in the land. However, she was a Jew. She was part of a captured race that held from which Persians. When King Xerxes order a beauty pageant held from which he would select a wife. Esther entered, confident that despite her race, she could win and become queen of all Persia. She entered and won. While on the throne she influenced the king to save the Jewish people from plots to destroy them. She arranged for another Jew, Mordicai, to move up and become the Prime Minister of the country. Their influence paved the way for the return of the Jews from exile. Her story of a teenager who never doubted that God could make things happen for her, despite her social circumstance. She did the unthinkable and achieved the impossible. It was a real life Cinderella story.
David was a shepherd boy who was courageous, poetic, and ingenious. He guarded the fields of his father and spent weeks at a time in the mountains. He was far removed from the glories of battle, the pomp and pageantry of the royalty and thoughts of such things were just faint dreams. Even in his family he was the least likely of his brothers to achieve great success. They were older, better known, and were soldiers. He was just a shepherd boy. However, God sent the prophet Samuel to the house of Jesse to anoint a future king. When this ruddy, but handsome young man came in from the hills, God told Samuel, he was the one that would be king. It did not matter that he was unknown or that he was just a teenager, he would be king. It would not matter that the only battles he had fought were with wild animals and were not against enemies of the kingdom, he would be king. Years later, this young man rose up from obscurity and became one of the greatest kings’s of Israel. He was not a member of the royal family. He was not from an influential family. He was just a farm boy who became king. It was a real life cinderfella story.
Each are clear examples of what can be done by those who trust and believe in God’s word. Paul, writing to the Corinthians, said no one could even imagine the good things God has in store for those who trust him. He can take rags and turn them to riches. He is a mighty and powerful God.
Today millions of rags to riches stories have unfolded in front of our very eyes. It is evidence that God is still in the rags to riches business, taking those who were least likely to succeed and making successes out of them.
Youth today should remind themselves that God is still in the blessing business. The same words Paul said to the Corinthians ring true today "Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither hath entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him".
If you trust in the Lord, He will.
-Open doors when you knock!
-Satisfy you when you are in want!
-Reward you when you give him your best!
-Give you your dreams when you ask
- Hear you when you pray!
No wonder the songwriter said "I will trust in the Lord, till I die!
