Now No Chastening for the Present Seemeth to Be Joyous
A.B. Simpson's sermon explores how God uses paradoxes and pressure to generate spiritual power in our lives.
A.B. Simpson emphasizes the paradoxical nature of God's work, illustrating how pain and pressure can lead to spiritual power and transformation. He compares the process of generating electricity through friction to the way God uses life's challenges to produce strength in believers. Simpson encourages those facing difficulties to embrace the pressure as a means of growth, urging them to be still and allow God to shape their lives according to His will.
Text
God seems to love to work by paradoxes and contradictions. In the transformations of grace, the bitter is the base of the sweet, night is the mother of day and death is the gate of life. Many people want to have power. But, how is power produced? The other day I passed the large powerhouse where the trolley engines are supplied with electricity. I heard the hum and roar of countless wheels, and I asked my friend, "How do they make the power?" "Why," he said, "Just by the revolution of those wheels and the magnetic friction they produce. The friction creates the electric current." In this same manner, when God wants to bring more power into our lives, He brings more pressure. He is generating spiritual force by friction. Some of us do not like it.
Some of us do not understand.
We try to run away from the pressure instead of getting the power and using it to rise above the painful cause. O troubled soul, beneath the rod Thy Father speaks-be still, be still; Learn to be silent unto God, And let Him mold thee to His will.
Sermon Outline
- I points: - Introduction to God's paradoxes - Understanding grace through contradictions
- II points: - The relationship between power and pressure - Illustration of the powerhouse and electricity generation
- III points: - The role of friction in spiritual growth - Embracing pressure for divine power
- IV points: - The importance of stillness before God - Molding to God's will through trials
Key Quotes
“The bitter is the base of the sweet, night is the mother of day and death is the gate of life.” — A.B. Simpson
“He is generating spiritual force by friction.” — A.B. Simpson
“O troubled soul, beneath the rod Thy Father speaks-be still, be still.” — A.B. Simpson
Application Points
- Embrace the pressures in your life as opportunities for spiritual growth.
- Practice stillness and silence before God to better understand His will.
- Recognize that challenges can lead to greater power and transformation.