Ragman
Ryan Trimble Preached on 9/20/2026
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39:46
Summary
Through a dramatic retelling of the 'Ragman' parable, this sermon illustrates the powerful exchange where Jesus takes our sin, shame, and brokenness and gives us His righteousness and healing.
Key points
- •The story of the Ragman serves as a contemporary parable for the substitutionary atonement of Jesus Christ, illustrating how He takes our brokenness upon Himself.
- •Jesus does not just take our 'rags' (sin, shame, and infirmity); He gives us His own 'new clothes' (righteousness, strength, and life) in exchange.
- •The love of God is unconditional and cannot be earned through works or lost through failure, much like a father who desires the company of his children regardless of their efficiency.
- •The Holy Spirit serves as an intercessor who prays through us when we do not have the words to express our needs to God.
Scripture
Grace
Salvation
Restoration
Love
Holy Spirit
Life application
This week, identify one specific 'rag' of shame, past sin, or painful memory you have been carrying and consciously surrender it to Jesus in prayer, asking Him to replace it with His peace and joy.
Reflection questions
- What 'rags' have you been trying to patch up on your own instead of exchanging them with the Ragman?
- How does the imagery of the Ragman becoming sick, injured, and dying in our place change your perspective on the crucifixion?
- In what areas of your life are you 'striving' to earn God's love rather than resting in your identity as His child?
- How can you lean more on the Holy Spirit's intercession when you feel you have no words to pray?
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Full transcript
0:00so
0:02great. Well goodness,
0:08I give honor to your wonderful pastor. It's his birthday
0:14today. My goodness, if I could just be half as
0:19cool as him when I grow up. I'm not kidding.
0:25I mean, it doesn't have to be 60s day. The
0:31dark denim, the boots. I'm like, dude, the man's just
0:37cool, okay? So just how awesome. You have an amazing pastor. You have an
0:43amazing first lady and first family. And such wonderful, warm, kind, gracious people here in
0:48this church body at the Cathedral of Pentecost. I was here many years ago. I
0:54was like 14 or something. Just crazy. And I'm so, so thrilled to be back.
0:59God's so good. Give honor to my pastor, Brother Matthew Tuttle in Viter, Texas at
1:04Eastgate Church, who was so thrilled when I told him I had the opportunity to
1:08come. And he blessed that opportunity. And my wife Anna, my kids, Ava, George, and
1:13Owen, I wish they were all here with me because they're way more fun than
1:18I am. We're going to do some drama ministry today. You can be seated. You
1:22can be seated. I'm going to sing a song in a second. I've released a
1:27few songs. You can get them wherever you stream music. But, you know, my full-time
1:32work, I have a video production company. As Pastor mentioned, I'm thankful to be able
1:38to provide for my family in that way. But I've also grown up doing drama
1:43ministry. And recently, UPCI, they went ahead and they said, we're going to have a
1:48ministry, an official department of the UPCI devoted in the United Pentecostal Church International, devoted
1:53to music. dramatic storytelling, visual arts for live productions, but then also narrative video content
1:59as well. So we're hoping to produce things that are edifying for the church and
2:05compelling and entertaining to those on their way into the church. So we had a
2:11little bitty video just to kind of give you a little glimpse into the vision,
2:16and I think this one's called "The Pitch." So what's the difference? Well, sometimes he
2:22preached in the synagogue. Yeah. And sometimes he told parables on the hillside. So...
2:28Why? Because not everybody's in the church house. And because stories can change lives.
2:34Yeah, stories are sneaky. Sneaky. Right to the heart. So tell me. It's never
2:39been done before. Not like this. It's going to take careful planning and a
2:45large crew. But what about talent? Wholesome content for the entire family. What about
2:51talent? We'll put out a casting call. Thank you, D'Vauchero. The
2:57talent's out there. I've seen it. We've got it. It's
3:03got to be good. Industry standard. Well-funded. So who's going
3:09to pay for this? All right, so that's UPCI Arts.
3:16God's doing some really cool stuff. We're doing a drama at Salt Lake City in
3:21just about two weeks. Lord, help us. We're pulling a cast together. So if you're
3:25interested in that kind of ministry, Jesus told parables. And so we're asking ourselves, well,
3:30what does a contemporary parable look like today? And how can we reach people at
3:35scale? where they're consuming their stories. And so we're hoping to have productions that can
3:40be distributed and you can enjoy from anywhere you are. So just pray for us.
3:45It's a brand new ministry. Believe God's in it. We're going to do a drama
3:50here shortly. And as a transition, there's a song we're going to sing. It's called
3:55All My Love. I want you to, if you're comfortable, just close your eyes. This
4:00is a message from the Lord today. You can go ahead and play that track.
4:05♪ Give me some effects. It wasn't
4:10long ago. Was a firebird. Tonight a
4:16heart of stone. I feel that we
4:22are worlds apart. When I was on
4:28the cross. I looked ahead and saw
4:33your face. Don't want you to be
4:39lost. So tonight I'm calling out your
4:45name. Right now you're far away from
4:51all you once believed.
4:56And I'm standing outside, would you open up the
5:02door? Abide with me, cause I want you to
5:08see I gave you all my love Why would
5:14you give me half your heart? You think it's
5:20over now, but you can have a brand new
5:26start, yeah but i keep
5:31on waiting hoping you will
5:36see turn to me could
5:42i give you more than
5:47my very don't give me
5:52you got a chance today
5:58to make it right don't
6:03let it slip away
6:08But now you're far away from
6:14you and I'm standing outside. Would
6:19you open up the door of
6:24life with me? Cause I want
6:29you to see I gave you
6:35all. Why would you give me
6:40your heart? You think it's over
6:45now, but you can have a
6:50brand new start. And
6:56I keep on waiting hoping you
7:02will see Turn to me Could
7:07I give you more than my
7:12worth? Don't give me half your
7:17When I have given all There's
7:23nothing more he could have done
7:28for you He went to the
7:33cross Turning over of his way
7:38There's no need to fear Grace
7:44and mercy wait Come
7:48on, think about it.
7:54Close your eyes. I
7:59gave you all. Now
8:04would you give me
8:10all your heart? No,
8:15it's not. I've given
8:20you up. But I
8:25keep on waiting. I
8:31hope that you will
8:36see. Talk to me.
8:42All over this place, would
8:48you just raise your hands?
8:54Lord, I'm giving you everything
8:59today. You've given me everything.
9:05There's nothing more you could
9:11have done, Jesus. So I'm
9:17going to give you everything
9:23today. Hallelujah. I'm gonna transition to this lapel mic. Can
9:29y'all hear me all right? Okay. We're gonna move on to a story called "Ragman."
9:33Pray for us. We're trying to get the rights to film this story because we
9:37believe that it's just something that can impact people all over the world. So we
9:42are so thankful for those who came and gave two hours of their time to
9:46rehearse yesterday. If you were in the cast, go ahead and stand up. Oh, come
9:51on, let's give them a big hand. Thank you, guys. Thank you, guys.
9:58We appreciate Pastor Elms' vision to even allow this kind of thing to happen. Not
10:03every church wants to do stuff like this, so this is very exciting. Thank you
10:08all for donating your time, for volunteering your time. Let's get into this play. At
10:13the end of this play, God's going to do something special. Someone's going to get
10:18a breakthrough today. You can start that track. The following production is based on a
10:23short story by Walter Wengren Jr. and the stage adaptation by Tom Trimble.
10:28Thank you for your kind attention
10:33as we present the illustrated sermon,
10:39Ragman. I saw a strange sight.
10:44I stumbled upon a story most
10:49strange. Like nothing my life, my
10:55street sense, my sly tongue had
11:00ever prepared me for. Hush, hush
11:05now, and I will tell it
11:11to you. Even before the dawn
11:16one Friday morning, I noticed a
11:22young man, handsome and strong, walking
11:27the alleys of our city. He was pulling
11:32an old cart, filled with clothes, both bright
11:38and new, and he was calling in a
11:43clear, tenor voice. "Rags! Rags! New rags for
11:49old? Rags! New rags for old? Give me
11:54your old rags! Rags!" "Now this is a
11:59wonder," I thought to myself, for the man
12:05stood six feet tall, and his arms were
12:10like tree limbs. and his eyes
12:16flashed intelligence. Could he find
12:21no better job than this?
12:27To be a ragman in
12:32the inner city? I followed
12:37him. My curiosity drove me,
12:43and I wasn't disappointed. Here.
12:48As the ragman began to
12:54pull his cart again, he
12:59did a strange thing. He
13:05put the woman's stained handkerchief
13:10to his own face, and
13:15then he began to weep.
13:22Rags.
13:28New
13:35rags
13:41for
13:48old.
13:55Rags.
14:05Give me
14:10your old
14:15rags! In
14:20a little
14:24while when
14:29the sky
14:34showed gray
14:39behind the
14:44rooftops and
14:48I could
14:53see the
14:58shredded curtains
15:03hanging out
15:08black windows,
15:12the ragman
15:17came upon
15:22a woman
15:27whose head
15:32was wrapped
15:36in a
15:41bandage whose
15:46eyes were
15:51empty. Blood
15:56soaked her
16:00bandage. Rags!
16:05New rags
16:10for old!
16:20The sun hurt both
16:26the sky now and
16:32my eyes, and the
16:38ragman seemed more and
16:44more to hurry. Sir,
16:50why... why are you
16:55not at work today?
17:01You see this? Ever
17:07since I lost it
17:13in the accident, I
17:19can't keep a job,
17:25nobody will hire me.
17:31I can't do anything.
17:37I'm just asking people
17:43for money. I would
17:49be kind to see
17:55their hearts, but... Here,
18:01give me your coat.
18:07Thank you.
18:14The one armed man took off
18:19his jacket, so did the ragman,
18:24and I trembled at what I
18:30saw, for the ragman's arm stayed
18:35in its sleeve, and when the
18:40other put it on, he had
18:46two good arms, thick as tree
18:51limbs, but the ragman had only
18:56one. Rags? After that, he found
19:01a drunk lying unconscious beneath a
19:07blanket, an old man hunched and
19:12sick.
19:16Rags!
19:20Rags!
19:25New
19:29rags
19:34for
19:38old!
19:43And
19:47now
19:52I
19:56had
20:01to
20:05run
20:10to
20:14keep
20:19up
20:24with
20:28the
20:33ragman. though
20:38he was weeping uncontrollably and bleeding at the forehead,
20:44pulling his cart with one arm, stumbling for drunkenness,
20:49falling again and again, exhausted, old, old and sick.
20:55Yet he went with terrible speed. On spider's legs
21:00he skittered through the alleys of the city, this
21:06mile and the next, until he came to its
21:11limits and then he rushed beyond.
21:18I wept to see the change in this man. I hurt to see his
21:23sorrow. And yet I needed to see where he was going in such haste,
21:29perhaps to know what drove him so. The little old ragman. He came to
21:35a landfill. He came to the garbage pits. And I wanted to help him
21:41in what he did, but I hung back, hiding. He climbed a hill. With
21:47tormented labor, he cleared a little space on that hill. Then
21:53he sighed. He lay down. He pillowed his
21:58head on a handkerchief and a jacket. He
22:03covered his bones with an old blanket and
22:09he died. Oh, how I cried to witness
22:14that death. I slumped in a junk car
22:19and wailed and mourned as one who has
22:25no hope because I had come to love
22:30the Ragman. Every other face had faded. in
22:36the wonder of this man and I cherished him
22:42but he died I sobbed myself to sleep I
22:47did not know how could I know that I
22:53slept through Friday night and Saturday and it's night
22:59too but then on Sunday morning I was wakened
23:05by a violence light pure hard demanding light slammed
23:11against my sour face and I blinked and I
23:17looked And I saw the first wonder of all.
23:23There was the Ragman, folding the blanket most carefully, a
23:29scar on his forehead. But alive, and besides that, healthy.
23:35There was no sign of sorrow or of age. And
23:41all the rags that he had gathered shined for cleanliness.
23:47Well, then I lowered my head. trembling for
23:52all that I had seen I myself walked up
23:58to the ragman I told him my name with
24:04shame for I was a sorry figure next to
24:09him and I said to him with dear yearning
24:15in my voice dress me he dressed me my
24:21lord he put new clothes on me and I
24:27am a wonder beside him the ragman the ragman
24:32the Christ Let's all stand
24:37together. Thank you, Jesus. Thank
24:43you, Lord. Thank you. His
24:49presence is here. Whether you
24:54have sin in your life
25:00and you need to repent
25:05and give some of those
25:11old rags to the Savior
25:17today, or whether someone else
25:22sinned against you and there
25:28are just Things you've been holding on to for
25:34a long time that you really don't want to keep anymore. You
25:39know, He bore the cross so you would not have to bear
25:45that. He said, cast your cares on me because I care for
25:50you. He said He would give you beauty for ashes. David said,
25:56restore in me the joy of thy salvation. Maybe you've been in
26:02church a long time. Maybe this is your very first service. Maybe
26:07you've never received the Holy Ghost. with the evidence of speaking in
26:13tongues which is how we know we've been filled with the spirit amen
26:19wherever you are the rag man jesus christ is here today he wants
26:25to help you he wants to make that exchange so as we come
26:31to the front you're welcome to come now i invite you to come
26:36and pray and Give to the Lord. Identify. Why don't you right now,
26:42every eye closed as you come to the front, when you get up here, just
26:47close your eyes and raise your hands and think of something you really need to
26:52give the rag man today. Something you'd like to hand over to Jesus today. Something
26:57you don't want to carry anymore. Something you don't want to hold on to anymore.
27:02It could be shame. It could be guilt. It could be sin. It can be
27:07just... difficult memories that you haven't been able to
27:13get through, why don't you give that to Jesus
27:19today? He wants to help you. He loves you.
27:24He has good plans for you. Come on, let
27:30Him love you right now. Give it to Him
27:36today. Give it to Him today. Come on, don't
27:42carry that anymore. Oh, come on, give it to
27:48Him today. Don't leave
27:53with those same old
27:59rags. Oh, come on,
28:05we didn't deserve it.
28:11We didn't deserve it.
28:17Come on, you can't
28:22earn it. He gave
28:28his life willingly. Rejected
28:34it. rejected and
28:39alone. Trampled on
28:44the ground, you
28:49took the fall.
28:55Crucified behind the
29:00stone, you lifted
29:05high. Rejected and
29:10alone, you took
29:15the fall. You
29:20took the fall.
29:27above all things
29:33above all nature
29:38above all nature
29:44and all creation
29:49above all it's
29:55all the way
30:00down above all
30:06kingdom all from
30:11all what is
30:17ever known treasures
30:22of the earth
30:28vividly crucified laid
30:33behind a storm
30:39you live to
30:44die Rejected and
30:50grown Trapped on
30:55the ground You
31:00took the fall
31:04You took the
31:09fall You took
31:13the fall You
31:18took the fall
31:23Crucified Laying behind
31:27the stone You're
31:32here to die
31:38I want to help someone
31:43today who's trying to improve
31:48themselves on their own strength.
31:53You can't earn, you can't
31:59earn this. You know, his
32:04love is unconditional. It's incredible.
32:09I can't even understand that.
32:15Most humans struggle with this. This whole give and take thing. He gave everything.
32:21My father wrote a song just in case you'd want to turn to him.
32:27He gave everything. But I want to help somebody. Maybe you feel like you're
32:33striving. I believe maybe there are some folks striving in this place today. Let
32:39me tell you something. When you wake up in the morning, before you check
32:45one box, before you tackle the first task, do you know He loves you?
32:51You're His child. There's nothing you can do to earn his
32:57love. And there's another side of that coin. There's nothing you
33:02can do to lose it. You can't earn it. You can't
33:08lose it. It's so hard to fathom that kind of love.
33:13A love that's just there. I asked my little boys to
33:19help me around the house with little maintenance jobs. They're going
33:25to do it wrong. They're gonna hammer it
33:30the wrong way. In fact, it's gonna take longer to get that job
33:36done if they help out. Do you know why they're beside me? Not
33:41because they're efficient. Because I love being close to my kids. Before you
33:47accomplished one, before you ever accomplished one thing in your life, His love
33:53was just there. You're His child. He loves you. And we're all dealing
33:58with different things. We're making exchanges today. Sometimes we don't know how to
34:04pray. we don't know the words to pray i'm going to encourage all of us
34:08we did this in the first service we're doing this again now if you have
34:12ever received the holy ghost speaking in tongues i encourage you to pray in the
34:16spirit worship in the spirit for the next few moments push yourself challenge yourself be
34:21brave make new sounds maybe you haven't made in a long time or ever made
34:25before let the spirit flow through you because the bible says the spirit intercedes on
34:29your behalf and And we don't always know how to pray as we ought to.
34:34But the Holy Ghost will flow through you. And in the Spirit, we are making
34:39an exchange with the rag man. And he has given you beauty for ashes today.
34:44So all over this house, eyes closed, hands raised. I encourage you. If you're comfortable
34:50and able, why don't you stretch yourself, challenge yourself. Pray in the Spirit. Pray in
34:55the Spirit. Yeah. Hallelujah.
35:01Come
35:05on,
35:08you're
35:12exchanging
35:16things.
35:20You're
35:24over
35:27old
35:31rags
35:35you
35:39had
35:43forgotten
35:46about.
35:50God's
35:54doing
35:58something
36:01right
36:05now
36:09in
36:13the
36:17spirit
36:20that
36:24you
36:28didn't
36:32even
36:36expect.
36:39Hold
36:43on,
36:47hold
36:51on,
36:54hold
36:58on.
37:06you