Sermon Tone Analysis

By Pastor Glenn Pease

Colonel Bottomly was rising to the level of general in the United States Air Force.

He was a proud self-sufficient man who needed nobody.

He felt that if you could succeed without God you didn't need Him.

As he rose in power he began to feel he could do as he pleased, and he did.

He bombed across the border in the war in Viet Nam.

It was a violation of the rules of war, but he thought he was above the rules, and he could do what other morals could not do.

He didn't get by with it, however, and was facing a court martial.

His whole world began to tumble in, and he was filled with stress.

He called his son who was a Christian.

When his son explained how he could become a child of God by receiving Jesus as his Savior, he prayed right over the phone and became a Christian.

Here was a famous man who became a Christian because of the witness of an ordinary an unknown man.

This has been the case with many of the famous Christians of history.

They are brought to Jesus by ordinary people.

D. L. Moody was brought to Christ by an obscure Sunday School teacher.

Charles Spurgeon was brought to Christ by an unlettered man.

Peter is one of the most famous names in Christian history.

It is hard to imagine anyone who has not heard of Peter, but he was brought to Jesus by his ordinary brother Andrew.

Andrew never did anything wild and spectacular like his live wire brother Peter.

He never leaped over the side of the boat to walk on water.

He never drew his sword to take on the Roman army single handed.

He never preached to the masses like Peter did at Pentecost.

Andrew was a quiet behind the scenes type of person.

He had no great gifts that make him stand out.

He was just an ordinary guy who loved to introduce people to Jesus.

That is about all Andrew ever did in the record we have of his life.

He represents the majority of Christians who feel ungifted and ordinary.

Some believers like Barnabas are extra-ordinary people.

They are unique, and they have gifts that most do not have.

It is not that ordinary people can't be like Barnabas.

They can be like them and imitate some of their best qualities, but they can never be equal to them.

Andrew did nothing that the rest of us could not do if we choose to do it.

Andrew is connected with evangelism, but we let this word scare us.

We think we have to be very gifted people to do evangelism.

This is a failure to see that we are confusing the gifted evangelists with the ministry of evangelism.

All Andrew did was invite people to come to Jesus.

He was an inviter.

He was not a leader, but a follower but he could invite others to come to Jesus to see for themselves what He could do in their lives.

We have this mistaken idea that if a person is filled with the Spirit he will become a dynamic soul winner leaving streaks of lightening in his path as he blazes across the stage of history.

The New Testament reveals no such thing.

Andrew was a quiet sort of guy who just confronted people one on one and said, "Let me introduce you to Jesus."

Andrew knew Jesus was the Way and so he pointed others to the Way.

He brought Peter to Jesus, and then Peter left Andrew in the shadow, for Peter was far more gifted.

But Andrew did not fret and complain and feel bad about himself.

He just kept bringing people to Jesus.

He is the one who brought the lad with his lunch to Jesus, and Jesus used it to feed the multitudes.

He is the one who brought the first Greeks to Jesus as well.

He was not the kind of guy who could preach like Peter, but he could point a man like Peter to Jesus.

He could not feed the crowds, but he could point a lad to Jesus, and Jesus could feed the crowd.

He could not change Greeks, but he could bring them to Jesus who could change them.

Andrew was sort of a middle man.

He linked people up with Jesus and made great things happen.

He did not do the great things, but they happened because he did his ordinary things to prepare the way.

Do you think anything wonderful and marvelous ever happens without many ordinary things preparing the way?

Do you think a space craft soars into the sky with its spectacular blastoff without a thousand and one ordinary people doing ordinary things first?

Do you think any great performer could hold you spell bound with their gifts without the labor of many ordinary people behind the scenes?

Do you think Billy Graham could put on his great crusades without the help of masses of ordinary people doing all sorts of ordinary things?

Ordinary people doing ordinary things is the foundation for human progress.

In 1848 it was suggested that a bridge be built across Niagara.

It would save miles of travel and solve many problems.

But the cliffs were too steep, and the water was to wild to figure out how to begin.

Then someone got the bright idea of offering ten dollars to the kid who could fly a kite from one side to another.

The string could then be connected to a larger string, and then to a rope, and that to a cable, and they would have a start.

The sophisticated engineers had a field day laughing at such an idea.

But one young boy named Herman Walsh flew his kite across the chasm and collected his ten bucks, and thus a great bridge was begun with an ordinary boy flying an ordinary kite, and his ordinary string got this extra-ordinary project under way.

It has been a blessing to many millions.

Jesus did not choose all Peters, but he choose some Andrews to be a part of his 12.

Our culture says it is no good to be ordinary.

If that is all you are, then you are not special.

Never mind the fact that of the billions of people on this planet most are ordinary.

The only way to be somebody is to be the best is the message we often get.

This leads parents to put pressure on their children.

David Wilkerson wrote, "It begins early.

The first time little Tommy hits a home run in Little League, someone starts grooming him for the big leagues.

When Susan gets a solo part in choir, she's told she is another Sandi Patti.

The children's teachers keep telling them that every year in school is worth so many more dollars of income.

The libraries overflow with books of how to take 10 easy steps to the top, how to get power over others with the right mental gimmicks, and how to make millions without trying."

The great sin of our culture is to be ordinary.

But in the Bible we see the ordinary glorified, and in Andrew we see a specialist in the ordinary.

John mentions Andrew 3 times in his Gospel, and in 2 of the 3 he is called Simon Peters brother.

Don't get him confused with the many other Andrews.

This is the Andrew who is the brother of Peter.

Just say Peter and all know who you are speaking of, for Peter was extra-ordinary.

He stands out as unique, and everybody know Peter.

Andrew alone does not stand out, for Andrews are a dime a dozen.

Nobody ever said I want you to meet Peter the brother of Andrew.

Peter's reputation stood on its own, but Andrew had to be more clearly identified because he was just ordinary.

But remember, he too was one of the 12. Jesus chose, not only Peter to be a foundation of his church, but he also chose his ordinary brother Andrew.

Jesus has a place in His kingdom for the ordinary, for they are always the majority.

There are far more Andrews as fishers of men than there are Peters.

There are far more ordinary pines than there are giant redwoods.

The redwoods are marvelous and a wonder, but the ordinary trees are the key to building the houses for people to dwell in.

And so also it is the ordinary Andrews who are the key to building the church of Christ.

Andrew did not try to imitate his older and more dynamic brother.

He knew Jesus chose him for who he was.

If He would have wanted another Peter, He would not have chosen him.

He knew Jesus could use the ordinary as well as the extra-ordinary.

Andrew knew he was loved and used by Jesus just by being himself.

He didn't have to be like somebody else.

He didn't have to be somebody different, or somebody better.