The Lord's Work in the Lord's Way and No Little People

by Francis A. Schaeffer, Raymond C. Ortlund Jr. (Foreword)

A Collection of Sermons on Christian Leadership from Theologian Francis A. Schaeffer Christians serving the Lord can fall into two depending too heavily on their own power or underestimating their God-given purpose. In this collection of classic sermons, renowned theologian and philosopher Francis A. Schaeffer teaches believers how to rely on the Holy Spirit―not personal effort or status―in matters of service and leadership.  This short book includes an excerpt from Schaeffer’s sermon, “The Lord’s Work in the Lord’s Way,” plus 2 sermons from the book  No Little People . Covering topics including humility and servanthood, Christian office, spiritual battles, and trusting God’s methods, Schaeffer encourages pastors, students, and church members to live as consecrated people, working humbly for God’s approval instead of human praise.

Genres: Christian, Theology, Faith, Christian Living, Classics, Christianity, Christian Non Fiction

96 pages, Paperback

Published May 31, 2022

About the author

Francis August Schaeffer was an American Evangelical Christian theologian, philosopher, and Presbyterian pastor. He is most famous for his writings and his establishment of the L'Abri community in Switzerland. Opposed to theological modernism, Schaeffer promoted a more historic Protestant faith and a presuppositional approach to Christian apologetics which he believed would answer the questions of the age.

Wife: Edith Schaeffer
children: Susan Schaeffer Macaulay

Reviews

[Teresa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sept 2025: Reread with women’s min team

Summer 2025: Too many bookmarks to count. Listened on hoopla but will be buying a hard copy to mark up and inviting others to read together.

[Stephanie Meyers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Listened through 2x in a row because it’s just such a beautiful reminder of the Gracious Lord we serve. If you long to be like Christ and also struggle with pride or wondering what purpose you have - listen to this book and then listen again, and again. This is a top 5 book for me that I will be reading again(and again) ✨

[Kaetlyn Anne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Live quietly before the Lord. Seek to keep your world small. Because "much can come from little if the little is truly consecrated to God." (pg. 72) ❤️

[Libby Valerio · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Much can come from little if the little is truly consecrated to God. There are no little people and no big people in the true spiritual sense, but only consecrated and unconsecrated people."

"Let us not think that waiting on the Lord will be getting less done. The truth is that by doing the Lord's work in the Lord's way, we will accomplish more, not less. You need not fear that if you wait for God's spirit you will not get as much done as if you charge ahead in the flesh after all, who can do the most, you or the god of heaven and earth?"

[Summer Culver · Rating 5 out of 5]

counterpoint: one five foot person loved this book.

[Sage Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredible little book on humility and living by the power of the Holy Spirit. 10/10 recommend to everyone, especially those in vocational ministry. I will be referencing back to this book for years to come.

“Take the smaller place so you can have quietness before God.”

[Sarah June · Rating 4 out of 5]

The last 7 pages were worth the price of admission. I preferred the second sermon (“No Little People”) over the first. It really caught me in my sinful want to be big & important and instead made me want to shrink before God & be used only in my weakness.

“The final result of not being quiet before God is that less will be done, not more—no matter how much Christendom may be beating its drums or playing its trumpets for a particular activity.” (Schaeffer)

[Elly Hamby · Rating 4 out of 5]

“We should ask ourselves from time to time, ‘who’s feet am I washing’”

These sermons encouraged my soul and trampled on my pride. “‘God so used a stick of wood' can be a banner cry for each of us. Though we are limited and weak in talent, physical energy, psychological strength, we are not less than a stick of wood. But as the rod of Moses had to become the rod of God, so that which is me must become the me of God.”

[Isabel Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh my goodness!! Wow. Would recommend!

“Only one thing is important- to be consecrated persons in Gods place for us, at each moment. Those who think of themselves as little people in little places, if committed to Christ and living under his lordship in the whole of life, may, by God’s grace, change the flow of our generation.”

[Cole Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

I feel like I need to give this book 5 stars out of obligation because:

1) It was super good and very convicting

2) So many people who have led/influenced me over the years have been shaped by this book

Normally I don’t like sermons that are turned into books because the way that you write sermons is different than the way you write books, so it’s seemed pretty choppy in the past. But that wasn’t the case at all with this one! Schaeffer does a great job addressing the pressures that Christians face to “be a big deal” in a way that’s pastoral and understandable. Such a good reminder of the importance of sitting quietly before the Lord

Definitely think this will be one of the books I revisit annually! (Along with “The Great Divorce”, obviously)

[Austin Kloewer · Rating 5 out of 5]

If someone is looking for a short read that will leave their pages marked up with, "I need this!" this is the book for you.

A timeless classic.

Here's a drop of gold to whet your appetite:

"We are not greater than those over whom we have authority. If we have the world's mentality of wanting the foremost place, we are not qualified for Christian leadership. This mentality can lift us into ecclesiastical leadership or fit us for being a big name among men, but it unfits us for real spiritual leadership."

Please read! :) plus it’s short for those of us who struggle to read words for long periods of time

—————————
Annual reread: better than ever…

[Makenna Dickey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can confidently say this is in my top 5 all time favorite books. Deeply convicting, scripture filled, encouraging and challenging. I need to reread this book many many times.
Plus there was a Winnie the Pooh reference which was just perfect.

[Tyler Burton · Rating 5 out of 5]

I finished this little book in a day for two reasons: it is an accessible and quick read, and I needed every word on the page.

This is a little book I’ll be coming back to again and again.

[Justin Hullman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Phenomenal. Purely phenomenal. A quick 77 minute listen that is filled with gold on the Christian life.

Here are just some glimpses of the gold found in this book:

“Quietness and peace before God are more important than any influence a position may seem to give.”

“We must stay in step with God to have the power of the Holy Spirit.”

“If by taking a bigger place, our quietness with God is lost … and the final result will not be as great no matter how important the larger place may look in the eyes of other men”

“The people who receive praise from the Lord Jesus will not in every case be the people who hold leadership in this life.”

“There will be many persons … who stayed close to God and who were quiet before Him and were used in power by Him in a place that looked small to men.”

[Marty · Rating 5 out of 5]

My first foray into the work of Schaeffer, and a great and digestible beginning at that. Short and sweet, Schaeffer shows how God uses people in the meekest of positions to do the most for God when empowered, not by their own strength, but the power of the Holy Spirit.

[Rainer Erani · Rating 4 out of 5]

Crossway Short Classics are good for the soul.

[Nate Hawkins · Rating 5 out of 5]

“The central problem of our age is not liberalism or modernism, nor the old Roman Catholicism or the new Roman Catholicism, nor the threat of communism, nor even the threat of rationalism and the monolithic consensus that surrounds us. All these are dangerous but not the primary threat. The real problem is this: the church of the Lord Jesus Christ, individually or corporately, tending to do the Lord’s work in the power of the flesh rather than of the Spirit.” (Page 36)

“We should seek the lower place because there it is easier to be quiet before the face of the Lord… Quietness and peace before God are more important than any influence a position may seem to give, for we must stay in step with God to have the power of the Holy Spirit.” (Pages 83-84)

[Jeremy Mueller · Rating 5 out of 5]

These sermons from Shaeffer encouraged my soul and trampled on my pride. Main takeaway: God’s mercy and God’s providence through God's Spirit are sufficient means of direction and fuel for a faithful ministry (personal or vocational). Hear Shaeffer’s words for yourself: “Let us not think that waiting on the Lord will mean getting less done. The truth is that by doing the Lord’s work in the Lord’s way we will accomplish more, not less. You need not fear that if you wait for God’s Spirit you will not get as much done as if you charge ahead in the flesh. After all, who can do the most, you or the God of heaven and earth?” (“The Lord’s Work in the Lord’s Way). “Consider the mighty ways in which God used a dead stick of wood. ‘God so used a stick of wood’ can be a banner cry for each of us. Though we are limited and weak in talent, physical energy, psychological strength, we are not less than a stick of wood. But as the rod of Moses had to become the rod of God, so that which is me must become the me of God” (“No Little People”).

[Maggie Martindale · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sweet little book yet so convicting! Stirred in me a yearning to be so humble & consecrated, that I might be a vessel for His glory alone. There’s no people or places too little to be strongly wielded by our Lord, & no people or positions too proud to be lowered by His grace & will.

[Ashton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Crossway Short Classics are a gift to the church. This one—containing two sermons from Francis A. Schaeffer, The Lord’s Work in the Lord’s Way and No Little People—is no exception.

In the first, Schaeffer speaks of the power of the Spirit enabling us to do the work of God. Without the Lord working in and through us in his own way, anything we do is done in the flesh. He says, “The real problem is this: the church of the Lord Jesus Christ, individually or corporately, tending to do the Lord’s work in the power of the flesh rather than of the Spirit” (36).

Later adding the real right-side-up-ness of Jesus’s kingdom, Schaeffer writes: “In this war, if Christians win a battle by using worldly means, they have really lost. On the other hand, when we seem to lose a battle while waiting on God, in reality we have won” (51-52).

May I join in with Christ in the garden and say, “not my will but yours be done.”

“O Son of man, O Son of God!
Whose love bought all men by his blood,
Give us thy mind, thy soul’s desire,
Thy heart of love, Thy tongue of fire
That we thy gospel may proclaim.
To every man in thy great name!
O crucified and risen Lord,
Give tongues of fire to preach thy Word” (“Give Tongues of Fire”).

In the second sermon, Schaeffer makes a point that I believe will now become a life motto: God literally uses a stick, so he can certainly use anything and anyone; there are no little people.

Setting-apartness is the real differentiator. “Much can come from little if the little is truly consecrated to God” (72). For this reason, we as Christians should live humbly and honorably unto the Lord, “consciously [taking] the lowest place unless the Lord himself extrudes us into a greater one” (83).

Schaeffer applies this to Christian leadership too. He writes “There is only one good kind of fighter for Jesus Christ—the man who does not like to fight. The belligerent man is never the one to be belligerent for Jesus. And it is exactly the same with leadership. The Christian leader should be a quiet man of God who is extruded by God’s grace into some place of leadership” (87).

Oh to be a stick for the Lord.

“The people who receive praise from the Lord Jesus will not in every case be the people who hold leadership in this life. There will be many persons who were sticks of wood that stayed close to God and were quiet before him, and were used in power by him in a place that looks small to men. Each Christian is to be a road of God in the place of God for him. We must remember throughout our lives that in God’s sight there are no little people and no little places” (90).

I recommend this short classic to anyone looking for a quick, encouraging and convicting read.

[Alecia Rohrer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read in one sitting. Such beautiful & convicting reminders of the humility before God and dependence on Him — requirements before any genuine power from the Spirit can ever be generated through us. A necessary read for any believer, especially those in positions of leadership.

[Parker James Lipetska · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 Convicting

[Ashlyn Wheeler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Was convicted & encouraged & even comforted by the truths in this book!

[Glen Higgins · Rating 4 out of 5]

What can God do with a stick? Just ask Moses.

[Salvador Blanco · Rating 5 out of 5]

Christian, read this now to be encouraged and reminded that God will use you no matter what size your ministry is if you would but consecrate yourself to God.

Favorite quotes:

Let us not think that waiting on the Lord will mean getting less done. The truth is that by doing the Lord's work in the Lord's way we will accomplish more, not less. You need not fear that if you wait for God's Spirit you will not get as much done as if you charge ahead in the flesh.
After all, who can do the most, you or the God of heaven and earth? (52)

Consider the mighty ways in which God used a dead stick of wood. "God so used a stick of wood" can be a banner cry for each of us (72)

There are no little people and no big people in the true spiritual sense, but only consecrated and unconsecrated people (ibid).

The Christian leader should be a quiet man of God who is extruded by God's grace into some place of leadership (87).

[Daniel Lønborg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastisk. Nødvendig læsning for enhver kristen, og især enhver der ønsker at vie sit liv til arbejdet for Guds rige. I disse korte, gennemtrængende prædikener lægger et af historiens fem skarpeste evangelikale hoveder grundlaget for et liv i Guds tjeneste, der i ydmyghed elsker ved hans kraft, i stedet for at følge egne mål, ambitioner og dagsordner.

"If we are going to do the Lord's work in the Lord's way, we must take Jesus's teaching seriously: he does not want us to press on to the greatest place unless he himself makes it impossible to do otherwise." (43)

"The central problem is always in the midst of the people of God, not in the circumstances surrounding them." (36)

"People often cry out for the work of the Holy Spirit and yet forget that when the Holy Spirit works, there is always tremendous cost to the people of God—weariness and tears and battles" (53)

[Matthew Le Croissette · Rating 4 out of 5]

“We must remember throughout our lives that in God’s sight there are no little people and no little places. Only one thing is important—to be consecrated persons in God’s place for us, at each moment. Those who think of themselves as little people in little places, if committed to Christ and living under his lordship in the whole of life, may, by God’s grace, change the flow of our generation. And as we get on a bit in our lives, knowing how weak we are, if we look back and see we have been somewhat used of God, then we should be the rod “surprised by joy.”

[Kelsey Hullman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Listened this audiobook this morning! Generally speaking, I much prefer physical copies and avoid audiobooks at all costs, so that was my only negative thing to say about this book! (Which was all in relation to the vehicle the content came in and not the content itself - so basically, y’all should read this book!!!)

[Liam]

Very good short series of sermons on ministry and the lure of power or prestige. A very welcome read for the modern church. I won’t rate because I listened while a bit sick and didn’t get to give the audio my full attention. I plan to revisit eventually.

[Joshua Walker · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an EXCELLENT short read. This message within these two sermons were incredibly insightful and the Lord spoke to me through them! These messages were some I needed to hear at this point of my life and ministry!

I highly recommend this book!