Key Ingredients

Today I brought some food along. Do you think you would like a snack? Let me tell you what I have and let me know which one you would like. (Pull out items one at a time.) I have some flour – about two cups if your hungry, or I have some salt. Oh, would anyone like this – it is a raw egg. I think I have two of those. Let’s see, I also have a cup of sugar for someone with a sweet tooth. For anyone thirsty here is some oil. Now, I don’t have much of this but here is some baking soda and baking powder.

No one seems to be very interested in snacking on what I brought. These are all good things but eaten individually some taste bland (hold up the flour), disgusting (hold up raw eggs), or unpleasant (oil). Do you know what happens when a good cook blends these ingredients together? All of these distasteful ingredients make a scrumptious, delicious, delectable, mouth-watering cake. (Bring out the cake.) The cake needs each one of those ingredients working together for it to be fabulous. Each one of the ingredients has a purpose in forming this cake. (Can elaborate on each purpose.) Take anyone of these ingredients out – even the smallest, like the baking soda or baking powder, and the cake will flop.

People are like these ingredients. The verse in 1 Corinthians says we are all separate and necessary. Even though all those ingredients are good things, there is very little you can do with them alone. But when you mix them with other ingredients you can make many wonderful things. We are like this too. When we work together it brings out our greatest potential. God wants us to work together for him. Like the verse from Romans says, “God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them”. God blends all of us in this church together to be fabulous!

Sometimes we may feel like we are only a small part of this church of people and don’t make much of a difference. I need you to remember the baking soda in the cake and how that small ingredient makes such a huge difference. On the other hand, maybe sometimes you fail to appreciate others and think they are bland or unpleasant like the flour, or oil or raw eggs. Think of the cake without those ingredients. We are all key ingredients! Lets pray.

Prayer: Dear Lord, Thank you for giving us a purpose and blending us together. We know that you will make us tremendous. Help us all to be willing to work together for you Lord. Amen.