Don’t Let Your Pain Be in Vain | Jentezen Franklin
Sunday, September 28
Have you ever felt stuck in a pit you couldn’t climb out of—whether it’s failure, addiction, depression, or regret? In this message from Jeremiah 38, Pastor Jentezen Franklin reminds us that God can take our struggles and turn them into testimonies that rescue others. What the world calls worthless, God can use for His glory. Discover how your story can become someone else’s lifeline.
Scripture
Isaiah 64:6, Jeremiah 38:9-12, 38:11-12, Revelation 12:11, Luke 2:12, Isaiah 64:6
Key Points
· God Values the Broken: God sees worth in our stains and failures, transforming them into testimonies for His glory (Jeremiah 38:9-10).
· Pain Has Purpose: Your struggles and past mistakes are part of God’s plan to create a story that can rescue others (Isaiah 64).
· Community Strengthens Redemption: Linked together, our collective “dirty rags” form a rope to pull others from despair (Jeremiah 38:10).
· Share Your Testimony: Overcome fear and boldly share how God delivered you to help others in similar pits (Luke 2:12).
· No One Is Beyond Mercy: God can redeem anyone, using their pain to glorify Him and reach others, no matter how deep the stain.
Introduction
Today we’ll explore the message, Don’t Let Your Pain Be in Vain by Pastor Jentezen Franklin. The message encouraged us to see our struggles, failures, and stains as part of God’s redemptive plan, transforming our pain into a testimony that can rescue others from their own pits of despair.
In a world quick to discard the flawed, this sermon reminds us that God’s grace sees us in our stains, offering hope and purpose through His redemptive plan.
• What stood out to you from Sunday’s message?
God Uses Your Stains as a Testimony
God doesn’t discard what the world deems worthless; He transforms our sins, failures, and hardships into testimonies that glorify Him. Read Jeremiah 38:9-12.
Jeremiah 38:9-13 (NLT)
“My lord the king,” he said, “these men have done a very evil thing in putting Jeremiah the prophet into the cistern. He will soon die of hunger, for almost all the bread in the city is gone.”
So the king told Ebed-melech, “Take thirty of my men with you, and pull Jeremiah out of the cistern before he dies.”
So Ebed-melech took the men with him and went to a room in the palace beneath the treasury, where he found some old rags and discarded clothing. He carried these to the cistern and lowered them to Jeremiah on a rope. 12 Then when Jeremiah was ready, 13 they pulled him out. So Jeremiah was returned to the courtyard of the guard—the palace prison—where he remained.
In Jeremiah 38:9-12, old rags—seemingly useless—were used to lift Jeremiah from a dungeon, symbolizing how God uses our brokenness to deliver others. Pastor Franklin highlighted biblical figures like Moses, a murderer, David, an adulterer, and the Samaritan woman, whose flawed lives became powerful stories of redemption.
Consider a time you felt disqualified by your mistakes—perhaps a personal failure or a season of doubt. God can use that very struggle to reach someone else trapped in a similar pit, turning your stain into a story of His grace.
Reflection Questions:
• What is one mistake or struggle from your past that God could use to help someone else?• How does knowing God used flawed people like Moses or David encourage you to share your story?
Our Rags, His Riches
Even our greatest deeds are marred by imperfection, as Pastor Jentezen reminds us that our flaws and failures, likened to “filthy rags” in Isaiah 64:6, are not discarded by God but redeemed for His purpose. Our only hope is trusting in Jesus Christ, who purifies us and ushers us into God’s presence, transforming our stains into testimonies.
“All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away.” Isaiah 64:6 (NIV)
Sin taints us, making us unfit to stand before God. Just like someone in raggedy clothes wouldn’t be allowed to attend a royal feast. Our righteousness is like tattered rags when measured against His boundless perfection.
Yet, as Pastor Jentezen preaches, God takes these rags—our pain and imperfections—and weaves them into a story of redemption, proving that no stain is beyond His grace to restore and use for His glory!
Reflection Questions:• How does the idea of your “filthy rags” being valuable to God change how you view your past?• What’s one way you can trust Jesus this week to turn a personal failure into a testimony for His glory?
The Power of Linked Rags in Community
In Jeremiah 38:9-12, Ebed-Melech and others used old, filthy rags tied together to pull Jeremiah from a hopeless, muddy cistern where he faced death. Pastor Franklin emphasized that only these rags, not the king’s gold or silver, could save him. Similarly, our stained pasts—marked by addiction, failure, or loss—are the “dirty rags” God uses as testimonies to rescue others. Revelation 12:11 declares, “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony.” Our unique stories, though marred by sin, become powerful tools in God’s hands to lift others from despair.
The sermon vividly illustrated that one rag alone couldn’t save Jeremiah; they had to be linked together. Pastor Franklin demonstrated this by having people link arms on stage, showing that the body of Christ grows stronger when united. Isaiah 64:6 reminds us, “We are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags.” Yet, when we join together, our collective testimonies form a strong rope to pull people from pits of hopelessness. By linking up in the church, we overcome the enemy’s attempts to divide us, using our shared stories to reach a lost world, one person at a time.
Reflection Questions:
1. How has your connection with other believers helped you overcome personal struggles or support others in their pits?
2. What “stain” from your past can you share as a testimony to strengthen the body of Christ and help someone else?
3. How can you actively link with your church community to use your collective “rags” to reach those in need?
Discussion Questions:
1. Do you ever feel like your past or your failures disqualify you from ministry or from sharing your testimony?
2. Who is someone that God has put on your heart that may die if you don’t help pull them out of their pit?
Overcoming Fear to Share Your Story
The sermon powerfully reminds us that fear often holds us back from sharing our testimonies, preventing us from walking through the open doors God provides. The preacher urges us not to let fear interfere, using the image of Jesus wrapped in swaddling clothes—humble, filthy rags—to show that God uses the broken and stained to reach others.Luke 2:12 says, “And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger”. Just as Jesus entered the world in humility, we are called to boldly share our stories of redemption, no matter how stained they may be. Fear of judgment or inadequacy can paralyze us, but the sermon emphasizes that God sees our stains as testimonies that can pull others out of their spiritual dungeons.
By sharing our testimonies, we overcome the enemy’s lies and participate in God’s redemptive work, as Revelation 12:11 declares, “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony.” The preacher’s challenge is clear: don’t let fear of your past or feelings of unworthiness stop you from speaking about God’s faithfulness. When we step out in faith, our stories become the “dirty rags” God uses to rescue others, just as He rescued us. The call is to trust that God opens doors for a purpose and to boldly step through them, sharing how His love lifted us from our own pits of despair.
Reflection Questions:
1. What fears or insecurities prevent you from sharing your testimony with others, and how can you surrender those to God?
2. How does the image of Jesus wrapped in swaddling clothes inspire you to embrace your own “stained” story as a tool for God’s glory?
3. Who in your life might need to hear your story of God’s redemption, and how can you take a step this week to share it?
Conclusion
Pastor Jentezen Franklin’s message reminds us that God sees value in our brokenness, calling our stains a testimony that glorifies Him. By linking our stories with others in the church, we become a rope of redemption, pulling others out of their pits. Let’s embrace our past, share our testimony boldly, and trust God to use our pain for His purpose, knowing no one is beyond His mercy.
Jesus, who wraps Himself in our brokenness, can use your story for His glory. This week, commit to living out your story, knowing no stain is too deep for God’s grace to redeem.
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