More Than Sufficient
God's grace is sufficient for all our needs, great and small, and we can experience His peace and joy by exercising our faith.
Charles H. Spurgeon emphasizes the sufficiency of God's grace, sharing a personal experience of feeling wearied and depressed but finding comfort in the assurance that God's grace is indeed sufficient. He illustrates this sufficiency through humorous analogies, highlighting the absurdity of unbelief. Spurgeon encourages believers to have great faith, as it not only leads to salvation but also brings the blessings of Heaven into their lives.
Text
"My grace is sufficient for thee" (2 Cor. 12:9).
The other evening I was riding home after a heavy day's work. I felt very wearied, and sore depressed, when swiftly, and suddenly as a lightning flash, that text came to me, "My grace is sufficient for thee." I reached home and looked it up in the original, and at last it came to me in this way, "MY grace is sufficient for thee"; and I said, "I should think it is, Lord," and burst out laughing. I never fully understood what the holy laughter of Abraham was until then. It seemed to make unbelief so absurd. It was as though some little fish, being very thirsty, was troubled about drinking the river dry, and Father Thames said, "Drink away, little fish, my stream is sufficient for thee." Or, it seemed after the seven years of plenty, a mouse feared it might die of famine; and Joseph might say, "Cheer up, little mouse, my granaries are sufficient for thee." Again, I imagined a man away up yonder, in a lofty mountain, saying to himself, "I breathe so many cubic feet of air every year, I fear I shall exhaust the oxygen in the atmosphere," but the earth might say, "Breathe away, O man, and fill the lungs ever, my atmosphere is sufficient for thee." Oh, brethren, be great believers! Little faith will bring your souls to Heaven, but great faith will bring Heaven to your souls. --C. H. Spurgeon
His grace is great enough to meet the great things
The crashing waves that overwhelm the soul,
The roaring winds that leave us stunned and breathless,
The sudden storm beyond our life's control.
His grace is great enough to meet the small things
The little pin-prick troubles that annoy,
The insect worries, buzzing and persistent,
The squeaking wheels that grate upon our joy.
--Annie Johnson Flint
There is always a large balance to our credit in the bank of Heaven waiting for our exercise of faith in drawing it. Draw heavily upon His resources.
Sermon Outline
- I. The Sufficiency of God's Grace
- A. God's grace is sufficient for the great things in life
- B. God's grace is sufficient for the small things in life
- II. The Importance of Faith
- A. Little faith brings us to Heaven
- B. Great faith brings Heaven to us
- III. Drawing on God's Resources
- A. There is always a balance to our credit in the bank of Heaven
- B. We must exercise our faith to draw on His resources
Key Quotes
“His grace is great enough to meet the great things, The crashing waves that overwhelm the soul, The roaring winds that leave us stunned and breathless, The sudden storm beyond our life's control.” — Charles E. Cowman
“His grace is great enough to meet the small things, The little pin-prick troubles that annoy, The insect worries, buzzing and persistent, The squeaking wheels that grate upon our joy.” — Charles E. Cowman
Application Points
- We should exercise our faith to draw on God's resources and experience His peace and joy in our lives.
- Having great faith is not just about trusting in God's promises, but also about trusting in His sufficiency for all our needs.
- We should not worry about the small things in life, but instead trust in God's grace to meet our needs and bring us peace and joy.