Years ago paint-by-number paintings became all the rage. We didn’t have to know how to paint, just how to follow the directions, and we could create a masterpiece.
Then came tole painting, a folk art skill in which blending certain paints in a certain way could create quite realistic effects.
Both types of painting were step-by-step, simply following the directions, and we trusted that the final result would turn out better than we thought possible.
That is how God uses us. He tells us where he needs us, and when we get there, he shows us what he has for us to do. All we have to do is follow him as he leads us one step at a time.
Let’s watch God paint by the numbers in the burgeoning New Testament church.
Color One: Apply white to all spaces.
In Acts 9:3-6 Saul from Tarsus was on his way to Damascus. A brilliant white light fell on him from heaven, blinding his eyes. Saul called out, “Lord! What is it you want of me?”
God replied, “Go into the city, and I will show you the next color of paint.”
Color Two: Splash blue liberally wherever needed.
God looked for a man he could trust. That man was Ananias, a disciple at Damascus.
In Acts 9:10 God called Ananias’ name in a vision, and Ananias answered, “I am here, Lord.”
Ananias reflected the color blue, for he showed trust in his heavenly Father.
Color Three: Carefully apply red to any fear that creeps in on the canvas.
Ananias became afraid when the Lord told him who he was to meet. Saul of Tarsus had terrorized the believers. However, in Acts 9:15 God told him to get up and go meet his chosen vessel, for Saul was to bear Christ’s message before gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel.
The color of red indicated Ananias’ willingness to take a risk, and it washed the canvas as Ananias began to make his way to the street called Straight.
Color Four: Dash on orange wherever action is desired.
Peter endured three visions of a canvas being let down from heaven with God saying, “Eat, for if I say something is clean, do not call it unclean.”
The visions were God’s stroke of orange on his canvas. Peter was to minister to the gentiles, and God needed him to be willing to do so. In Acts 10:20 God said, “Arise, Peter, and go with faith and understanding.”
In Verse 21 we read where Peter did as the Lord commanded.
Color Five: Dab on green in a carefree manner when others doubt.
In Acts 11 a number of godly men criticized Peter for mingling with the gentiles. However, the passage finds Peter a calm and confident green, for in Verse 12 he says, “This is what the Spirit told me to do. I went with six of our brothers, and all was well.”
He had learned to trust in the Lord.
Color Six: Add a liberal sweep of black at just the right moment.
The beauty of God’s painting had begun to come together. On a canvas, black brings in a sense of power. In the early Church only one more color was needed: that of power in his name.
When the news of Saul, now renamed Paul, and that of Peter reached the ears of the believers, the early Church received such a jolt of God’s power that in Acts 11:22 the followers in Jerusalem selected Barnabas, a believer of great power and authority, and sent him as far as Antioch, adding many to the house of the Lord.
When we let God paint the picture, it will reflect his majesty and grace. It will become more than we could have created on our own.
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