Being Fruitful and Productive Right Where You Are

Well, Happy Sabbath once again. Today I would like to discuss being fruitful and productive in every stage of our Christian lives. In case you haven't figured it out yet, our spiritual lives were intended to be a series of tests. And when you pass one test, you're ready to go on to a higher level and take another test.

Our spiritual lives are a lot like grade school. Do you remember what it was like in grade school? You go through a particular class, and if you pass the test, if you got the information, if you did what you needed to do, then you would move on to a higher grade. You would take that knowledge that you learned, and now that would be added to something new. Something to enhance your knowledge, something to enhance your life. But in order to do that, in order to get there, you had to pass the test. But when due to a poor attitude, or maybe sometimes it was just an action, maybe we didn't study, maybe we didn't take school seriously, we might fail a test.

And what happened if we failed a test? What happened if we failed a grade? Well, you had to repeat that grade all over again, sometimes over and over again until we were ready, until we were prepared to move on. And I'm going to give you the key to the sermon today, from the very beginning. The key to the sermon today is during each stage of life, during each test, during each kind of adversity we go through, God wants us to become fruitful and productive right where we are. We have to be faithful in our personal wilderness before God will bring us into a promised land.

When we go through these stages in life, these periods in life when we're going through something difficult, we can call them a wilderness that we're experiencing. It's a time of stress. It's a time when we sometimes may feel so very alone, like we're all by ourselves. But again, we have to learn to be faithful in our personal wilderness and through the adversities and the stages of our growth that God puts us through in order for us to get to where we need to go.

It's in the middle of a trial that God wants to bring us to the point of being fruitful, not faithless. When we are tested, God wants to see that we are being spiritually productive, not stagnant, not checking out. You see, it's human nature for us to say, okay, Father, I'm going through this trial. I'm going through this problem. As soon as I get out of this trial, then I'll work on being fruitful in my life. As soon as things change for the better, then I'll become more productive.

As soon as I get a better job, then I'll be happy. As soon as I get married, as soon as I get divorced, then my life will be complete. Then my life will be fruitful. Then my life will be productive. But, brethren, this is completely turned around. This is turned upside down from what the Father desires in our lives.

As God wants us to do and to be our best, no matter what we're facing in life, no matter which grade, no matter which stage, no matter which type of adversity we are being influenced by in our lives, we need to understand that to pass the test, we have to be faithful in the little things. If we're not faithful in the little things, how can God bless us with bigger things?

We need to be faithful and positive right where we are. No matter what stage we are today, right now in life, we need to be faithful and positive right where we are. When we show God we can do this, then we are ready for spiritual promotion and additional blessings. I know it's easy to get discouraged. It's easy to think that what I'm going through right now is never going to change, but the truth is, brethren, how we react and grow in adversity will determine if we are ready to be blessed. If we are ready in our lives to rise to a new level, to take it up a notch, and the best way to be fruitful, the best way to do this is to get our minds off of ourselves and to love and care for and serve other people.

Let's go to Genesis 37. We'll see an example of the Patriarch Joseph in this situation. We'll see how he experienced different stages in his life, different experiences, different trials, different adversities. But you know what? He passed the test. At each stage, he was all that he could be. He excelled. He was everything that he could be and wanted to be the best at whatever situation in life God had put him in. Genesis 37, let's begin here in verse 13.

He said, I'm seeking my brothers. Please tell me where they are feeding their flocks. The man said, they have departed from here. For I heard them say, let us go to Dothan. So Joseph went after his brothers and found them in Dothan. Verse 18. Now, when they saw him afar off, even before he came near to them, they conspired against him to kill him.

This is what we classically call a dysfunctional family, I might add. Now, Joseph wasn't perfect in this. Joseph brought a lot of this on himself. He was a teenager and he had seen God had revealed particular dreams to him. And he made the mistake of telling his brothers, interpreting to his brothers what those dreams were. And it gave his brothers the impression that he was arrogant and superior to them.

And it was compounded by the fact that his father even made him a very special coat of many colors that he gave only to Joseph and alienated all of his brothers. Joseph had not yet learned that not everything that comes in your head should come out of your mouth.

But then, we have some politicians who haven't learned that lesson yet, don't we? So continuing, now, when they saw him afar off, even before he came near them, they conspired against him to kill him. Then they said to one another, look, the dreamer is coming. They mean this sarcastically. Here comes the dream boy.

Wowee, look at this! Ooh, look at that coat he's got on! Come, therefore, let us now kill him and cast him into some pit. We shall say some wild beast has devoured him. That's what they would tell their dad. We shall see what will become of his dreams. That means when he's dead, we'll see if these dreams come true. But Reuben heard it, and he delivered him out of their hands and said, let us not kill him.

And Reuben said to them, shed no blood, but cast him into this pit, which is in the wilderness. Remember that personal wilderness that I mentioned a few minutes ago that we all experienced when we were going through adversity? When we were going through trials and problems and situations in our lives, when we're going through those various stages, when we're growing from one grade to a higher grade, which is in the wilderness, and do not lay a hand on him, that he might deliver him out of their hands and bring him back to his father.

So that was Reuben's plan, being the firstborn. He was more the responsible firstborn, the elder brother type. Verse 23, so it came to pass when Joseph had come to his brothers that they stripped Joseph of his tunic, the tunic of many colors that was on him. Notice that's the first they despise that tunic, because dad, I'm starting to sound like the Smothers brothers, dad loved him best, and only gave this special tunic to Joseph.

So that stuck in their craw, the craw of the other brothers. Then they took him and cast him into a pit, and the pit was empty and there was no water in it. And they sat down to eat a meal, then they lifted their eyes and looked, and there was a company of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead with their camels, bearing spices, balm and myrrh, on their way to carry them down to Egypt. See, they're traitors, and they're bringing these spices to sell into Egypt and take other things back with them. Verse 26, so Judah said to his brothers, what profit is there if we kill our brother and conceal his blood?

So the money man says, no, we don't want to just kill him. We don't get anything for him if we kill him. But if we sell him, we make a profit. So that was his idea. Come and let us sell him to the Ishmaelites, and let not our hand be upon him. For he is our brother in our flesh, and his brothers listened.

We'll stop right there in the scriptural commentary. Brethren, his brothers hated him, and from this point on, Joseph went through a series of tests to prepare him for a promotion. He didn't know it yet, but that promotion would be to become Prime Minister of Egypt. You don't know it yet, but God has a promotion planned for you that's to be a king and priest somewhere in his universe.

Now, I can't tell you where that will be. I can't tell you what planet that might be on. It's even been discovered yet by the human race. Or if it says kingdom somewhere on this earth, I don't know. But I can tell you this, that God is preparing a promotion for you. I also want you to notice that the pit was in the wilderness.

He was going to go through a series of difficult adversities and trials in his life. We all go through a spiritual wilderness or time of adversity at certain points in our lives, don't we? We certainly do. Even Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to confront Satan when he began his ministry. It's recorded back in Matthew 4 and verse 1. So let's recall some of the tests, some of the adversities that Joseph is going to experience.

First, he was sold into slavery to a man named Potiphar. But you know what? He was determined to be the best servant he could be. And it says in Genesis 39.2 that he was a successful man. He didn't go there and say, oh God, how could you? I don't want to be someone's slave. Someday, when I get out of slavery, then I'll be fruitful. Someday, God, when you get me out of here, then I'll be productive.

No, that isn't what Joseph did. He excelled in all that he did to the point that he was given authority of management over the entire household of Potiphar. Joseph was being fruitful by diligently serving the entire household. It was Potiphar in control of his authority, his own house, and right under him for management of everything else was Joseph. But God blessed him. Why? Because he was determined to be fruitful and positive right where he was at. And because he was willing to do that, he was ready to go to another grade.

And sometimes, if you may recall in grade school, when you go to another grade, it's more difficult. It's more complex. It's a greater challenge. And even though life was good, he would have another test. Would he commit adultery with Potiphar's wife? And he said no. He was unwilling to do that. Now, at first, it would seem that God had abandoned him as he was sent into prison. But you see, that's not how Joseph looked at it. Joseph knew that he could have been killed for supposedly, propositioning, that was Potiphar's wife's accusation, propositioning Potiphar's wife. He could have lost his life. But God was merciful to him. And God was sending him to prison for a reason. And then he went to prison. And he unjustly spent 13 years in a prison as an innocent man. And you know what? He didn't become bitter. He didn't become resentful. He did the best with what he had been given, and he became productive and fruitful right there in jail. He didn't say to himself, well, God, when you get me out of this, then I'll have a good attitude. When you get me out of this, then I'll be happy. Then I'll be fruitful. Then I'll be productive. Now, he didn't have that attitude. As a matter of fact, much like in Potiphar's house, he was so diligent, and so good with people, and so good with management, pretty soon he was basically running this prison.

In the middle of the trial, he grew, and he served others. Even in a dream, he had a dream about an innocent Chief Butler or cupbearer, and he gave hope to a downcast cupbearer who thought he was going to die. And Joseph said, no, you know what? I had a dream. And here's the dream. You're going to be restored to Pharaoh's service. You see, what's he doing? He's serving. He's giving people hope. He's giving people encouragement. Now, even though the Chief Butler forgot to put in a good word for Joseph, which he said he would when he was restored to his position, God still blessed Joseph with success and managed authority in the prison. And why? Because Joseph decided to be the best that he could be in that situation, to make the most of that situation to be fruitful and be productive. Now, brethren, we are slaves of Jesus Christ. He paid an awesome price for our lives through his shed blood. What kind of slaves are we to Jesus Christ? Are we fruitful? Are we being productive right where we are presently in life? Or are we conning ourselves with the someday mentality? Well, someday when this situation ends, then I'm going to start studying my Bible regularly. Someday when I retire and I've got the time, then I'm going to pray every day. Someday when my finances get worked out, then I'm going to do these good things to help other people. Or, as good slaves, following the example of Joseph here, who was fruitful and productive, everywhere he went as a servant or a slave or a prisoner, are we being all that we can be?

I think that's an important question. Because, again, like Joseph, we have to be faithful in our own personal wilderness before God will bring us into a promised land.

Because he passed each series of tests through life, this is speaking of Joseph, he was finally recognized and promoted to be the Prime Minister of Egypt under Pharaoh. Because each thing that he experienced, he approached with an attitude of being diligent, of being the best servant, the best prisoner, the best that he could be in any stage in life, and having a positive attitude to go along with it. That is what prepared him, as he went from this grade to a higher grade, to a higher grade, and eventually to be Prime Minister of Egypt. Let's take a look now in Genesis 41 and verse 45. Let's see if he learned something through his experiences. He not only learned something, but he gave two very important young boys at this time who would grow up to be men, who would be founders of great nations, he gave them names that had very special meaning.

And the names reflected what he, Joseph, had experienced in his own life. Genesis 41 and verse 45. In Pharaoh called Joseph's name, this is his Egyptian name, it's Zephnath Penaiah, which can mean one of two things. It means a revealer of secrets, and there's debate about what this would have meant in ancient Egyptian, the revealer of secrets, or a preserver of life. And of course, we know because of his management skills of saving up the seven years of plenty that he literally saved not just Egypt, I'd like to remind all of us, the Hebrew race was saved because they would have all starved. It had not been for a prime minister named Joseph, who had a dream and saw seven years of plenty, and Pharaoh gave him the authority to literally hoard all of that grain for seven years so that when the deep and long famine hit, there would be food enough to feed everyone. So that was his name, and he gave him as a wife, Asanath, the daughter of Pante-Pharah, priest of Aon. So Joseph went out over all the land, and Joseph was 30 years old when he stood before Pharaoh, king of Egypt. And Joseph went out from the presence of Pharaoh and went throughout all the land of Egypt. Now in the seven plentiful years, the ground brought forth abundantly. So he gathered up all the food of the seven years which were in the land of Egypt and laid up the food in the cities and laid up in every city the food of the fields which surrounded them. And verse 49, Joseph gathered much grain as the sand of the sea until he stopped counting, for it was immeasurable. You see, all of those experiences, all of the adversity, all the trials, everything he experienced, all that negative things happening upon him were to prepare him for this moment in time, this moment in history. Again, he saved not only Egypt, but he saved the Hebrew race.

Let's drop now down to verse 50. And to Joseph were born two sons. Before the years the famine came from Asanath, the daughter of Potipharah, priest of Aun, he was a pagan priest, and she bore to him these two sons. Verse 51, Joseph called the name of the firstborn Manasseh. Now, Manasseh means one who causes to forget, for God has made me forget all my toil and all my father's house. Why did he give him the name Manasseh? Well, God had helped him to forget the painful experiences and memories of the past. He was not going to relive a negative cycle of resentment, brethren. He was not going to play those old movies over and over again in his head, because you know why? The ending is always the same. It's the past! And he learned to let it go, to forget it, and to live and think about his life right now, his present life. Because every decision he made today would influence a positive tomorrow, would make for a better tomorrow.

And that's exactly why he named this boy Manasseh. Joseph was committed to living in the now, and doing this living in the now was influencing the future in a positive way. Living in the past is failure reinforcement. That's all dwelling on the past is. And he got it! He understood it. All the toil of the past was simply a test. Everything that had happened to him was simply a test to get him to where he needed to be. And what was he going to focus on? He was going to focus on today, where he was, because now he could influence the future. Let's take a look at verse 52. And the name of the second he called Ephraim. Ephraim means fruitful, prosperous. Why? For God has caused me to be fruitful, to be an Ephraim, in the land of my affliction. And he gave this name to Ephraim because God had helped him to be productive and to be prosperous even during his affliction. Brethren, in truth, it was Joseph's attitude and his mindset that made it even possible for God to bless him during his wilderness years. These two names go hand in hand in Joseph's life. He knew that if he wanted to forget the pains of the past, that he needed to be productive and fruitful right where he was every stage of life. Serving, giving, being forward-looking, being positive, being fruitful, no matter where he was, whether it was as a slave or as a prisoner. It didn't matter. I've known people who have been struggling at the same level for 20-30 years because they start, they go through a trial, they either give up, sometimes they start, and then they stop, or they shut down spiritually. Their attitudes are poor, and they cry and whine and moan every step of the way through the trial and the adversity that they're going through.

And what happens? They need to go through it all over again. And I've known people for 20-30 years that have gone through the same cycle of problems, of issues, of adversities, over and over and over again because they haven't passed the test. They go through the same trials instead of becoming fruitful and productive right where they are. Now let's take a look at the example of David.

If you'll turn with me to 1 Samuel chapter 16. I'll cut into the context here. Saul was, of course, rejected by God, and Samuel was told to go to Jesse's house to anoint a new king. So we'll pick it up here.

In 1 Samuel chapter 16 and verse 10.

It says, Thus Jesse made seven of his sons pass before Samuel, and Samuel said to Jesse, the Lord has not chosen these. And Samuel said to Jesse, Are all the young men here?

Then he said, There remains yet the youngest. Oh, that's right. That the kid, David. Yeah, that's right. He's out there with the sheep. He's out doing the job no one wants because it's kind of lonely out there. And there he is keeping the sheep. And Samuel said to Jesse, Send and bring him, for we will not sit down until he comes. So he sent and brought him in, and he was ruddy or reddish either his hair or freckles, maybe reddish freckles. He's quite a young man, perhaps a teenager at this point. With bright eyes and good looking, and the Lord said, Arise, anoint him, for this is the one.

Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers, and the Spirit of the Lord came upon David that day forward. So Samuel arose and went to Ramah. So David here, as we see, much like Joseph, was disrespected, discarded, discounted by his own family. He was considered the runt, who was simply the kid brother and put out there to be the lowly shepherd. They didn't think he would amount to anything. But you know what? David didn't get bitter. He didn't get resentful. He became productive right where he was. And he had plenty of time. So what are you going to do when you have all this time on your hands? Wow, I think I'll become an expert at a slingshot. And you don't do that by slinging two stones. You have to do that over and over and over and over again to become an expert at slinging stones. He didn't sit back and say, well, God, when you get me out of this shepherd gig, then I'll be productive. When my family starts showing me respect, then I'll become fruitful in my life. No, that's not what he said. That's not what he did.

He decided to become the best shepherd he possibly could, and that included protecting the flock that was under his responsibility. His father expected those sheep to be protected. That was his job as a shepherd, of any shepherd, including a spiritual shepherd, is to protect the flock, protect the sheep. And he practiced and practiced and practiced so that if any type of lion or wild animal or anything went after one of those sheep, he could nail it with a sling. So again, he decided to become the best that he could be. He practiced so much, he became an expert at it. He decided to become the best shepherd he could possibly be, and he had an excellent can-do spirit. We'll see that reflected again in the next scripture that we look at. You know what?

He never knew, out there slinging that stone, hitting those lions or whatever it was bothering, he never, in his wildest dreams, believed that he would face someone called Goliath someday.

But God knew. 1 Samuel 17, verse 24. Take a look at this event, part of it anyway. 2 Samuel 17, verse 25. And all the men of Israel, when they saw the man, that's what I would call Goliath if he walked in here, I'd call him the man right now, they saw the man fled from him and were dreadfully afraid. So the men of Israel said, have you seen this man who has come up? Surely he has come up to defy Israel. And it shall be that the man who kills him, the king will enrich with great riches, will give him his daughter and give his father's house exemption from taxes in Israel. Wow! So there are going to be some nice perks if you do what the chickens are unwilling to do.

Where Saul at in all this.

So any of you that are willing to do this, here's your reward. Just let me know.

Verse 26, then David spoke to the man who stood by him, What shall be done for the man who kills this Philistine and takes away the reproach from his... He's offending us! He's a reproach to Israel! This shall not stand, David says.

For who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God?

And the people answered him in this manner, saying, It shall be done for the man who kills him, again, rephrasing what we just read that he is going to get riches, he's going to marry the king's daughter, he's not going to have to pay taxes. And then verse 28, again, we see part of the family issue. If you may recall, we didn't read it today, but Eliab, who was the oldest brother, thought that he was going to be anointed king. Samuel actually thought that he was the one, and God stopped him when he went to Jesse's house, and God said, No, you're looking at the outside.

You're looking at his appearance, Samuel. God does not look at the outside. He looks at the heart.

He looks at the inside, and he isn't the one. Verse 28, So now his oldest brother, Eliab, heard when he spoke to the men, and Eliab was angry and aroused against David, and he said, Why do you come down here, and with whom have you left those few sheep in the wilderness?

That's offensive. He's basically saying, Look, runt, we left you to take care of a few dingy little sheep in the wilderness. Why aren't you there? That's your job. You have no business being with the real men. All of whom refuse to fight Koliath. But you have no business being with the real men. You should be back in the wilderness where your life belongs, alone and isolated, and you certainly should be not here. For he says, For I know your pride and the insolence of your heart, for you have come down to see the battle. You just want to be where the action is. You just want to watch and see all the exciting stuff going on here. Get back to the sheep. And David said, What have I done now? Is there not a cause? What did I do to bring this outburst out of my brother? Then he turned from him towards another and said the same thing, and these people answered him as the first ones did. Now, when the words which David spoke were heard, they were reported them to Saul and he sent for him. And again, we'll stop the commentary right there. Again, I want to emphasize there's more disrespect and more humiliation towards David from his family, in this case, his older brother. However, David didn't get angry. He didn't get bitter. He simply passed the test. And when this test was done and he killed the giant, you know what? It was time to move up a grade. It was time to have a greater adversity. It was time to be challenged, to grow to even a new level. And why? Because that is what our Christian lives are made of. That is part of God's plan. He simply passed the test. And again, when this test was done and he killed the giant, God had another series of adversities of grades for him to go through. First, David experienced the fact that Saul loved him. He even gave him his daughter to be his wife.

But then he became jealous of David. Then another grade, Saul threw spears at him to try to kill him.

Then another level of adversity. David became an outcast. He had to run for his life and he had to live in the wilderness for many years with a band of brothers. Conservatively, the period between when David was anointed by Samuel, that we read earlier, when he was anointed by Samuel, and the time when he actually began to officially rule Israel, that time period was 15 years.

He could have said to himself, God, hello! Anybody home? You had your prophet anoint me, and here I am, year after year, trial after trial, adversity after adversity, and now I'm running around in the wilderness with a bunch of bandits being chased by Saul, wondering where you are, God. He didn't have that attitude. He didn't have that perspective, that mindset. Even a couple of times when he could have harmed Saul in situations, when he was as close to Saul as I am to one of you in a campsite, he never hurt God's anointed, because he knew God was in charge. He knew that God would intervene when the time was right.

God put him through a series of adversities, and David passed the test each step of the way, and went up to another grade, and then a higher grade. And like David, brethren, we, too, have to be faithful in our own personal wilderness before God will bring us to a promised land.

Let's take a look at our final example today, the example of the Apostle Paul. If you'll turn with me to Acts 9, Acts 9 and verse 3.

It says, Any journey he came near to Damascus, we know about his conversion on the road to Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven, and he fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? And he said, Who are you, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the end of the goads. It's hard for you to kick against a rod that has a point on the end of it that's meant to goad or prod and keep the animals in line. He says, persecuting me is like kicking a sharp object. It hurts. So he, trembling and astonished, said, Lord, what do you want me to do? And the Lord said to him, arise, go into the city. You will be told what you must do.

And the man who journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice but seeing no one. Then Saul arose from the ground, and when his eyes were opened, he saw no one. But they let him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. And he was there three days without sight, and neither ate nor drank. Now there was a certain disciple at Damascus named Ananias.

And to him the Lord said in a vision, Ananias. And he said, Here I am, Lord. And the Lord said, him arise and go to a street called Straight and inquire at the house of Judas for one called Saul of Tarsus. For behold, he is praying. And in a vision he has seen a man named Ananias coming in and putting his hand on him that he might receive his sight. Verse 13, And Ananias answered, Lord, I have heard from many about this man how much harm he has done to your saints in Jerusalem.

And here he is an authority from the chief priest to bind all who call on your name.

But the Lord said to him, Go, for he is a chosen vessel of mine to bear my name before Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel. For I will show him how many things he must suffer for my name's sake. And Ananias went his way, entered the house, and laying his hands on him, he said, Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you in the road as you came, has sent me that you may receive your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit. Immediately there fell from his eyes something like scales, and he received his sight at once. And he arose and was baptized, so when he had received food and was strengthened, then Saul spent some days with the disciples at Damascus. That seems pretty clear. So what happened? Then suddenly Paul, who was trained by Gamaliel, one of the most respected rabbis, suddenly went to Jerusalem and became an apostle, was recognized since he had more education and more experience than the Galilean fishermen, who were the apostles in Jerusalem. He immediately went to Jerusalem and became part of the Twelve, and was embraced and wholeheartedly accepted among them. Is that what happened? Well, from Paul's narrative in Galatians, he states that 14 years after his conversion, he went again to Jerusalem. He mentions that time in Galatians chapter 2. It's not known exactly what happened during this time, and both Acts and Galatians provide very few details. But we know this. We know that from Damascus he traveled to Arabia, then he went to Jerusalem in Acts 9, and then to Tarsus for safety. And years and years and years are going by, and Paul's ministry is barely even mentioned. Years go by. It's not even registering what he's doing. He was a talented and trained rabbi. What was God doing with him at this time? God was putting him through a series of tests to prepare him for promotion. Paul doesn't become bitter or angry because he isn't being used in a greater way, even though he appears to be rather forgotten because we don't know what's going on in these 14 years. There's no detail. Like I say, he's barely mentioned. Everything going on in Jerusalem is mentioned, but whatever Paul is doing isn't even mentioned.

Yet, he doesn't get resentful that he's not a part of the mother church in Jerusalem. He's simply serving smaller congregations in what we might call the wilderness. He remains positive and productive wherever he is. We don't hear about him. We don't know what he's doing, but he's doing what God allows him to do. He's doing the best he can with the situation that he's given during those 14 years. He is faithful in his own personal wilderness. And again, like Paul, we have to be faithful in our own personal wilderness before God will bring us into a promised land. Then, after 14 years, 14 years in mediocrity, 14 years not even being mentioned, the book of Acts doesn't even say what he's doing. 14 years, something happens.

Acts 11, verse 19. Now those who were scattered after the persecution that arose over Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch, preaching the word to no one but Jews only.

But some of them were men from Cyprus and Cyrene who, when they had come to Antioch, spoke to the Hellenist, preaching the Lord Jesus. Who were the Hellenists? Remember, the Hellenists were Jews who accepted Greek culture. They were Jews who didn't do things the way the Jews in Jerusalem did. They did things the way the Hellenistic culture did. They were Jews in religion, but culturally, their language, the way they thought, they were Greek, even though their lineage and their faith was Judaism. Verse 21. And the hand of the Lord was with them, and the great number believed and turned to the Lord. Then news of these things came to the ears of the church in Jerusalem, the mother church, it's natural, and they sent out Barnabas to go as far as Antioch. And he came, and when he had seen the grace of God, this is towards the Hellenist, grace of God. He was glad and encouraged them all that with purpose of heart they should continue with the Lord, for he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith, and a great many people were added to the church. What happens here? Barnabas says, we need someone who is a Hellenistic Jew to lead these people. We need someone who's like them. We need someone who can relate to them, someone who grew up in their world, someone who understands and respects their culture, someone who can say to them, been there, done that. That's what we need. Verse 25. Then Barnabas departed for Tarsus to seek Saul. Hello, has anyone seen Saul? I'm looking for a man named Saul.

There he is, quiet, doing the best he can in his hometown, not recognized by the Jerusalem church, but being the best that he can be with the stage in life that he was. It says, verse 26, and when they found him, he brought him to Antioch. He found Saul, and he brought him back to where the Hellenists were. And as they say, from this humble beginning, after 14 years, the rest is history. Paul passed the test. He was fruitful. He was prepared. He was ready to take a more prominent role in the Church of God. He had been humbly serving in his hometown, where he grew up, any way that he could. He was doing it. In Acts 12 and verse 25, in Barnabas and Saul returned from Jerusalem when they had fulfilled their ministry, and at this time it was gathering alms for a coming famine in Jerusalem, and they also took with them John, whose surname was Mark. So brethren, like Joseph's trials, like David's trials, like Paul's trials, we need to be our very best where we presently are in life.

And the best way we can prepare to be greatly blessed is to become a blessing to someone else.

That is how we are fruitful during a time of adversity. We stop thinking about ourselves. We stop thinking about me, and we come outward. We get outward, and we think about others.

And we begin to give hope and encouragement and perhaps physical help, and doing things to give back to others to be all that we can be, no matter what stage in life that we're in. God will make sure our own personal needs are met if we meet the needs of other people. And serving is an important way we can be fruitful and productive right where we are, no matter what stage, no matter what place we are in life. Let's take a look at our final scripture, Job 42, verse 10.

Job 42, verse 10, it says, And the Lord restored Job's losses when he became good enough.

No, he restored his losses when he studied his Bible more.

Doesn't say that. He restored his losses when he prayed for himself.

Doesn't say that either. It says he restored Job's losses when he prayed for his friends.

That serving, that's giving. His friends needed his prayers and God's mercy because of the kind of things they had said to Job and implied about God's providence. They needed his prayers.

And it says, indeed, the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before. Job didn't get his losses restored when he prayed for himself. The restoration started when he prayed for his friends who indeed needed God's mercy. Is there a lesson here for us? You bet there is. Remember, we have to be faithful in our own personal wilderness before God will bring us into a promised land. When we're being tested, God wants to see us being productive. He wants to see us being fruitful, no matter what stage, what adversity, what trial, what grade we're in in life. Brethren, in conclusion, if we're not faithful in the little things, how can God bless us with even bigger things?

Jesus said to the servant with five talents who brought back five more in Matthew chapter 25 and verse 21, he said, well done, good and faithful servant. You are faithful over a few things. I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of the Lord. So again, if we're not faithful in the little things, how can God bless us with bigger things? We need to be faithful and positive and fruitful right where we are through any stage in life. When we show God we can do this, we're ready for a spiritual promotion.

We are ready then for additional blessings in our lives, but the truth is how we react and grow in adversity will determine if we're even ready to be blessed, if we're ready for our lives to rise to a higher level. No matter what you're going through right now, no matter what stage in life or adversity that you're personally facing, remember that God wants you to pass the test. And the questions may be in different order. I'm going to give you the answers to the test every time. Faith, a positive mindset, being fruitful by serving others, and wholeheartedly accepting the challenge.

Those are the answers. Will we pass the test? Have a wonderful saffron day.