Sewell Hall’s Lesson on Dandelions

Sewell Hall’s Lesson on Dandelions

Introduction: Philippians 3:17, ESV “Brothers, join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who walk according to the example you have in us.” 
We are not too surprised when we hear Paul urging Christians to imitate him. In itself, it is amazing that God inspired Paul to write the words, “Imitate me.” None of us would dare urge others to imitate us. We are simply too aware of our own flaws. However, in this text Paul not only tells the Philippian Christians to imitate him, but also to “keep their eyes on those who walk according to the example you have in us.”
I would suggest that though all of us, including Paul, have flaws, nearly every dedicated Christian excels in certain areas of living, and therefore those qualities need to be observed and followed. For example, it is one thing for scripture to give us the command to love, but watching someone excel in loving others helps us see how to love.
Sewell Hall passed away a few weeks ago after preaching for about 80 years. His first sermon was just before his 15th birthday. Recently, I found a short lesson by Sewell that was translated into Spanish by his son, Gardner as they taught people in New York City. The lesson was given not too many years before Sewell’s death. As I listened, I thought about the above text. Of all people, Sewell Hall was a person to “keep our eyes upon” because of how beautifully he followed the example of Paul.
The lesson Sewell gave was on Dandelions. He delivered it along side his son in front of a field of Dandelions. It was simple and to the point, but the message was unforgettable. This morning, I would like to give you his lesson. I can’t do it like Sewell would, but it is the message that we all need to hear. All the main points made in this sermon are what Sewell said in his lesson.

1. How Did All These Dandelions Get Here? 
   1. How could this beautiful field of dandelions have come about? Do you suppose someone hired a gardener to plant each flower? No, we would all understand that the labor involved would be overwhelming. 
   2. Maybe there was one pod of seed that grew up and a little boy plucked it and blew on it. Or, maybe the wind blew it, and next year flowers were everywhere.
   3. In Revelation 2-3 we read of seven churches. These were seven churches filled with many Christians scattered throughout a large area of Asia Minor. Where did all those Christians come from?
      1. In Acts 19:1, we read, “And it happened that while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul passed through the inland country and came to Ephesus.” Ephesus was a capital city, and from it there were roads that fed all the cities of Asia. As Paul would typically do, he went into the synagogue and boldly taught the about the kingdom of God for a number of months until the Jews became stubborn and began speaking evil of him.
      2. But Paul did not give up. He took the disciples he had made and began teaching/reasoning daily in the school of Tyrannus. Luke gives an amazing brief summary of Paul’s work in Ephesus: “This continued for two years, so that all the residents of Asia heard the word of the Lord, both Jews and Greeks.” Later, in Acts 20, Paul tells the elders at Ephesus that in all he had spent three years with them.
      3. How do you suppose all Asia heard the word? Did Paul use Ephesus as a home base, traveling to city after city for those two years? No. We read in Colossians that Paul never went to Colossae. So how did all Asia hear the word? It was simple. There were men and women who traveled through Ephesus and heard the word from Paul. When they returned to their homes, they taught others, and the one’s they taught also taught others until all of Asia heard the word. How long did that take? Two years. Just two years, and there were Christians everywhere.
   4. What we see illustrated in Asia is explained in the Parable of the Sower. The gospel is the seed. When it is sown in good hearts, it produces other Christians. Jesus was the original “Sower.” How did Jesus sow the seed in the whole world?
   5. Matthew 28:19-20 “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (ESV)
      1. Before Jesus ascended, he told the apostles to go and make disciples of all nations. Well, how were twelve men supposed to do that? 
      2. It’s fairly simple. The apostles started making disciples of anyone and everyone. When they baptized people who wanted to follow Jesus, they also taught them to observe all that Jesus commanded them to do. That included, “Go and make disciples…” 
      3. And the last thing Jesus said to give them confidence in their mission was, “and behold, I am with you always, even to the end of the world.” God’s power and presence with us never fails. As the Messiah said in Isaiah 55:11, “my word will not return empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.” 
      4. That’s what happened in Asia. Paul made disciples and taught them to observe all that Jesus commanded, which included going and teaching others the same commandments they were taught. And that is how all Asia heard the word.
2. Sewell’s Account of His Trip to Zimbabwe
   1. Sewell discovered churches and Christians everywhere, and he inquired about how the gospel spread in the country. The Christians in Zimbabwe were traced back to one Christian man who came to the country as a brick mason. He needed workers, so he hired men to work his quarry. As they worked together, he taught them the gospel. And those who became disciples went back to their villages and taught others.
   2. This single brick mason could not teach all of Zimbabwe, but he could teach those he met and worked with. In the same way, we cannot expect to employ one man to teach a whole community. But if each Christian followed the teaching of Jesus and taught one more person, and that person teaches one more, the kingdom multiplies, just as we see Luke recording time and again in the book of Acts.

Conclusion: That’s the lesson of the Dandelions. One little Dandelion in a field can spread to fill a whole field of beautiful Dandelions.

Personal Note: My parents raised me to see neighbors and friends as opportunities. I repeatedly watched them teach others who later also taught others. When I began to work with Bernice, she taught me the how to open my eyes and see the harvest that was right in front of me. With her example, I began to teach others, and they have taught others, and they have taught others. There is no way to count the number of souls that have been saved simply because Bernice taught me to “open my eyes, the fields are white for harvest.” 

Story of Art and Diane Parmentier

Podcast: Download (9.5MB)