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The Book of Second Timothy:
Message Twenty Three
By Dr. Michael
Guido, D.D.
A little while
ago I was asked to call on a business man. I went to
his building and walked to the elevator and was
disappointed to see the sign, "Not in use."
That's a sign that ought to be put on many professing
Christians. They're not in use. How about you?
The Christian
is represented as a vessel in 2nd
Timothy 2:20 and 21. There it's written, "In a
great house there are not only vessels of gold and of
silver, but also of wood and of earth; and some to
honor, and some to dishonor. If a man therefore purge
himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honor,
sanctified, and meet for the master's use, and
prepared unto every good work."
If you want to
be useful for your Master, you must be a clean
vessel. Perhaps we can't all be vessels of gold, but
we can be gleaming vessels. Perhaps we can't all be
vessels of silver, but we can be spotless vessels.
Every Christian is a vessel, but not every Christian
is a clean vessel. On a very hot day in South America
we were going to an Indian village to preach the
gospel. Mrs. Guido and I were terribly thirsty and
our guide stopped at a hut for water. The water that
was brought to us was pure, but when we started to
drink it we were made sick by an unsanitary odor that
came from the dirty vessel, and we couldn't drink it.
The water was good, but the vessel imparted a bad
taste. And the same thing happens to the gospel. It's
pure, but the preacher's life hasn't been purged;
it's tasteful, but the teacher's life hasn't been
transformed; it's clear, but the Christian's life
hasn't been changed. Many have been the people who
have turned down Christ because the Christians
haven't been clean. Look into your life. Is there a
spot or a stain that's keeping a sinner from the
Savior? Give up the sin and give in to the Savior. Go
to Him in confession and you'll come back cleansed.
Then you'll be useable and useful.
If you want to
be useful for your Master, you must be a consecrated
vessel. And a consecrated vessel is one that has been
set aside from sin and set apart for service to God.
Some people think that consecration is costly. But
it's more costly to be set aside for sin than it is
to be set aside from sin and for the Savior. In
consecration the Lord calls for all things of His
people - the notebook of the student, the cookbook of
the housewife, the date book of the lover, the time
book of the employer, the marriage book of the
newlyweds, the pocketbook of the wage earner, the law
book of the attorney, and the record book of the
business man. On the night of his graduation from
medical college, Dr. Howard A. Kelly, a world-famous
surgeon, wrote in his diary, "I dedicate myself,
my time, my capabilities, my ambition, everything to
Him. Blessed Lord, sanctify me to Thy uses. Give me
no worldly success which may not lead me nearer to my
Savior." Oh, how the Lord used that consecrated
Christian!
If you want to
be useful for your Master, you must be a close
vessel. Some Christians are able, but they're not
available. The Lord couldn't use Peter so long as he
was following Him afar off. His distance brought
about his danger and denial. He was useless until he
confessed his sin and came close to the Lord. Heed
this challenge:
The Master
stood in His garden, among the lilies so fair -
Which His own
right hand had planted, and trained with tenderest
care.
He looked at
their snowy blossoms, and saw with observant eye,
That His
flowers were sadly drooping, for their leaves were
parched and dry.
"My
lilies need to be watered," the heavenly Master
said,
"Wherein
shall I bring it to them, and raise each drooping
head?"
But close to
His feet on the pathway, empty and frail and small,
An earthen
vessel was lying, which seemed of no use at all.
But the Master
saw it and raised it from the dust in which it lay,
And smiled as
He softly whispered, "This shall do My work
today."
So to the
fountain He took it, and filled it to the brim.
How glad was
the earthen vessel, to be of some service to Him.
He poured out
the living water, all over the lilies so fair,
Until the
vessel was empty, and again He filled it there.
He watered the
drooping lilies, until they revived again.
And the Master
saw with pleasure, that His labor was not in vain.
His own hand
had drawn the water, which revived the thirsty
flowers;
But He used an
earthen vessel, to convey the life-giving showers.
And to itself
it whispered, as He laid it aside once more;
"Still
will I lie in the pathway, just where He found Me
before."
"Close
would I keep to the Master, and empty would I remain,
And perhaps
tomorrow He'll use me, to water His lilies again!
Only an
earthen vessel, but placed in the Master's hand,
And filled
with His blessed Spirit, I will help many others to
stand."
copyright 2000 Guido Evangelistic
Association
All Scripture verses are
quoted from the New King James Version.
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to the next message in this Sower Scripture Study on
the book of Second Timothy.
This series of messages on the
books of the Bible were originally written for
broadcast on Dr. Guido's radio program, "The
Sower." They are collected and reprinted here
for your enjoyment and spiritual edification.
