Shipwrecked on God — E.A. Johnston

Dependence on God Rather Than Self-Reliance

God is not interested in self-reliant churches. God is not interested in self-reliant denominations. God is not interested in self-reliant individuals. If you doubt that statement I challenge you friends to look in your Bible and see what God thought of a self-reliant king.

Go look up and see how God dealt with self-reliant King Saul and how this man ended up in apostasy seeking out the witch of Endor. No friends, God is not interested in self-reliant individuals but he is deeply interested in those rare individuals who are utterly cast upon him.

Whose hope the Lord is God is looking for individuals who were shipwrecked on God. C .T. Studd was a man shipwrecked on God. He was a man who gave up wealth and reputation to gamble his life away for perishing souls.

C.T. Studd's Radical Surrender to Gospel Mission

At the age of 53 he bought a one-way ticket to Africa and left England against the counsel of family and friends and physicians. He didn't see his wife for 16 years. C .T. Studd lived to spend and be spent for the sake of the gospel.

He wrote the famous poem only one life will soon be passed only what's done for Christ will last. He was a man totally shipwrecked on God and that's the title of my message this evening friends. Shipwrecked on God and my text can be found in the book of Acts in chapter 27.

Paul's Shipwreck and God's Preservation in Acts 27

You can turn your Bibles there now friends we will be in verses 41 through 44. The Apostle Paul was a man who lived his life if I may so speak shipwrecked on God broken and shipwrecked on God for the spread of the gospel.

Let us look at our text beginning in verse 41 and fallen into a place where two seas met they ran the ship aground and the fore part struck fast and remained unmovable but the hinder part was broken with the violence of the waves and the soldiers counsel was to kill the prisoners lest any of them should swim out and escape but the centurion willing to save Paul kept them from their purpose and commanded that they which could swim should cast themselves first into the sea and get to land and the rest some on boards and some on broken pieces of the ship and so it came to pass that they escaped all safe to land.

Brokenness as the Antidote to Spiritual Pride

Our passage describes a shipwreck. The ship which Paul was on became broken up upon the rocks. This message friends is on the doctrine of brokenness and brokenness is the opposite of pride. I believe friends that spiritual pride is the main hindrance to revival in our day.

I have known many pastors and evangelists who are full of spiritual pride. When a church or a denomination becomes prideful that's when God withdraws himself in a judgment upon that spiritual pride we like to boast about how many we've led to the Lord.

We like to boast and brag about the size of our church campus. Listen friends God is only near broken people. Isaiah 57 15 declares for thus saith the high and lofty one that inhabiteth eternity whose name is holy.

I dwell in the high and holy place with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit to revive the spirit of the humble and to revive the heart of the contrite ones that word contrite means broken crushed to powder.

Paul's Thorn and God's Sufficient Grace

I believe it was Alan Redpath who said that before God can use a man he must first crush him. The apostle Paul before he was saved was a prideful Pharisee of Pharisees. Then God broke Paul. He gave him a thorn which would not go away.

Paul relates how he prayed on three occasions for God to remove this thorn in his flesh but God answered my grace is sufficient for thee and God used that thorn in the apostles life to keep him broken before God and utterly shipwrecked on him.

Brokenness in the Lives of God's Servants

If you want to study brokenness and how God uses those rare individuals who are broken then go read David Brainard's journal or go read the life of Jonathan Edwards who was kicked out of his church and thrust out into the wilderness of Stockbridge or go read the life of George Whitfield and how broken that dear man was as he spread the gospel across two continents in the midst of great awakenings and you'll find a calm denominator there which links the holy lives and that is brokenness before God.

They each were individuals whose lives were shipwrecked on God. Men whom I've known personally who I feel God has used in remarkable ways all shared that calm denominator of brokenness. I remember sitting with my homiletical mentor Dr. Stephen F. Oldford.

Suffering Before Effective Ministry

We were in a study and he related the following story to me. He said a fellow pastor had asked him to go visit a church in a neighboring town to listen to a young pastor who had remarkable talents as a preacher.

Well Stephen Oldford went along with this pastor friend to hear this man preach and on the drive home the pastor asked Dr. Oldford what he thought of him as a preacher. Stephen Oldford replied yes he was quite remarkable but and he paused and added but he hasn't suffered enough.

Stephen Oldford understood this principle of brokenness. There was a time in my own life when I was full of pride and self-reliance but God had to break me. He had to smash me. He had to break me because he had called me to preach and God only uses broken men and broken women.

Look at the life of Amy Carmichael and how God used that broken woman for his glory in India. I repeat God is not interested in self-reliant churches or self-reliant denominations or self-reliant individuals.

Emptying Self for Gospel Advance

He is looking for a man so empty of self and dead to this world and dead to the opinion of man who is willing to trust him utterly in a life of brokenness before him. God can work wonders through such a man.

Listen friends this present world is a ship broken up and on the rocks full of sin sick and perishing souls on the way to hell who need to hear about the remedy for sin in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Oh how much more good we could do in advancing the gospel of the Son of God if more evangelists and pastors and missionaries were taken off their self-reliance and cast entirely on God's spirit being shipwrecked on God for his glory.

Let us pray.