GOD'S POWER IN YOUR LIFE
Getting to Know God - Part 3 of 8 05-22-11 Sermon
Jeremiah 32:17
We're in this series of messages called "Getting to Know God" and today I want to look at God's Power. We've looked at His Knowledge and His presence. Today, His power.
The power of the sun produces more energy in one second than has been used in the history of the world. And the sun, at its current rate, will be able to burn for another thirty billion years. That's * a lot of power. But it's not as great as the power of the Creator who made the sun.
Jeremiah 32:17 "Sovereign Lord, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for you." What we're talking about is what theologians call the omnipotence of God. God is almighty. He has unlimited power. He never gets tired. He is never frustrated. Everything He does, He does easily. Nothing is ever too hard or difficult. It's easy for him to answer a prayer. It's just as easy for Him to create a universe. He's all powerful. In Luke it says, "All things are possible with God." Today I want us to look at the Evidences of God's power, the Application of God's power in my life and the Appropriation of God's power, in other words, how do I get God's power in my life?
I. THE EVIDENCE OF GOD'S POWER
The natural place to start is creation. Creation is a silent witness of God's power. Look at the mountains and oceans. God's greatness created those mountains and oceans. Psalm 19:1-2 "The heavens are telling the glory of God; they are a marvelous display of his craftsmanship. Day and night they keep on telling about God." Every moment creation is a witness to the fact that God is powerful. The Bible says that the universe was created at God's command. He spoke the world into existence. He said, "Let there be light and there was light." God one day said "Water!" and there were oceans and rivers and lakes. God said "Fish!" and the oceans were filled with fish. Vegetation! All kinds of vegetation. Stars! and the universe was filled with stars. That's what I call power! He spoke the world into existence. And we see the evidence every day of God's power. Where there is design you have to have a designer. It takes more faith to not believe in God’s existence than it does to believe in Him.
Look at Jesus. Jesus' life displayed the power of God. He had power over nature. He calmed the storm. He told the waves, "Sit down and shut up!" and they became quiet! He walked on water. He fed thousands with one little lunch. He spoke to a tree and it withered. Another time He turned water into wine. He had power over nature.
He had power over illness and death. He healed the blind, the deaf, the sick, the lame, the diseased. He raised people from the dead. He had power over the devil. One time He told a bunch of demons to come out of a man and go into a bunch of pigs -- the original "deviled ham". God's power is awesome!
II. THE APPLICATION OF GOD’S POWER IN MY LIFE
The amazing thing is that God wants to share His power with you. Ephesians 1:20 (Living Bible) "I pray that you will begin to understand how incredibly great His power is to help those who believe Him the same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead." That's amazing! Incredible! He wants to share His power with you. There are so many people who are powerless. They feel like victims. Victims of society, circumstance, other people, their health problems, their financial problems. They feel always a dollar short and a day late, taking two steps forward and one step back. They never seem to get it together. They feel very powerless. God says I want to give you power in your life.
There are two power shortages where God wants to give you power:
Power Shortage #1: The Power of Getting Started.
Most of us have a problem with this from time to time. How many good things have you been postponing in the last six months? "I'm going to get around to that one day but..." What would you like to change about yourself but you can't get the motivation to get started? Do you ever find yourself paralyzed by procrastination? "Someday, I'll..." Romans 7:18 (Phillips) "I often find that I have the will to do good, but not the power!" Does this describe you? You want to do what is right and good but just don't have the power! How many of you have learned that good intentions are not enough? Living Bible: "No matter which way I turn I can't make myself do right. I want to but I can't." Sometimes we get in a cycle of bad habits and it's hard to break out of them. We don't know how to get started. King James Version "How to perform that which is good I find not." A common symptom of people. Circle "perform". Many times in life you will face tasks for which you are ill prepared. You don't have the ability, the talent, the energy, the intelligence, the background, the money, the power. What do you do about those kinds of things where your performance does not match up to what needs to be done? That's where the good news comes in. The good news is that God can give me the power to perform. He can give me the power to get started. When I'm helpless He's there to help me get started making the changes He wants me to make and I want to make. Philippians 2:13 "For God is at work within you, giving you the will [circle "will"] and the power [circle "power"] to achieve His purpose." God says I want to give you the power to get going.
Power Shortage #2: Keeping Going
It's one thing to get started. Many people are great starters. It's another thing to keep on keeping on doing what you know is right even when you don't feel like it. God says I'm not only going to give you the power to get started, but I'm going to give you the power to keep on going. Many of you can relate to this verse, Psalm 6:2-3 "I am worn out, O Lord. Give me strength; I am completely exhausted, and my whole being is deeply troubled." For some of you I think that's a life verse. "I'm sooo tired!" I read that the average homemaker walks 1,037 miles per year on the job. And you're wondering what your wife does when you are away at work! Everything wears you out eventually. What do you do when you're tired? God says, I want to help you keep on going.
Eccl. 2:11 Solomon: "I looked at everything I had tried, and it was all so useless, a chasing of the wind, and there was really nothing worthwhile anywhere." And you thought mid-life crisis was a 21st century development! Solomon had a great one right there! You may feel this way. Maybe about your career. "I've tried all kinds of things but it's just not working." Or about your marriage or about your kids or your health. "I know I should keep on going but I feel like giving up!" The Bible says that God can give me the power to keep on going. The good news is that He can give me the power to not only perform but He gives me the power to persist. That's good news! The ability, that when I reach the end of my rope, there is a second wind. There is ability that comes into my life, additional power, not just to get started, but power to keep going.
Isaiah 40:28-31 (Good News) "The Lord is the everlasting God. He never grows tired or weary. He strengthens those who are weak and tired. Those who trust the Lord for help will find their strength renewed." That's a great verse! God will give me the power to persist. Because God's power is unlimited He never gets tired. He never gets weary. He never goes to bed. He never gets tired of my prayer requests, of my talking to Him, of anything. He has unlimited energy. He can create a universe and say "What's next?" He does not get tired.
That is a personal encouragement to me. When I am drained and at the end of my rope I know I can tap into a power that is unlimited.
Doesn't the Bible say God rested after creation? Yes, but it's not the same word with the same meaning as our "rest". We rest because we're tired. But when it says after seven days God rested it doesn't mean He was tired – it means He was finished! There wasn't anything else to do. He was finished. Rest for God didn't mean restoration. It meant ceasing from creative activity. God didn't rest because He was tired. He's never tired.
Isaiah 40:31 "They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with wings as eagles. They shall run and not be weary. They shall walk and not faint." God says, I want to give you the power to persist. God says, I promise to energize those who trust in Me.
III. HOW TO APPROPRIATE GOD’S POWER IN YOUR LIFE
I know some of you are thinking, "That may work for you but that doesn't work for me. I'm a believer but I never felt God's power in my life. I don't know if this stuff really works." You're probably exactly right! The fact is, God's power is not automatic. I would say that many Christians do not have God's power in their life to any degree. There are some steps -- some things you must do to appropriate it. Many Christians never get much of God's power in their life. They never key into it. They are just as defeated as unbelievers and just as tired and fatigued. The question then becomes "How do you get power to the people?" Here are four secrets of how to appropriate God's power in your life on a consistent basis.
1. You admit your lack of power.
I admit my lack of power. I admit that I don't have it all together. Our problem is that we think we're omnipotent. We think we're God. "I can handle anything. I can do everything." If you don't believe it, look at your schedule. Who are you kidding? If you burn the candle at both ends you're not as bright as you think you are. Admit your need for God's power in your life. You can't do it all on your own. You come out of high school or college believing you can take on everything. Then, later, you realize that you don't have all power. Stress, tension and frustration come as a result. Mid-life crisis is simply waking up to your own limitations, realizing you are not God. You cannot control everything. You are not going to reach every goal you set in life. You're not going to make as much money as you may have thought. You are a human being. You have weaknesses. You're getting older! Your hairline may be receding! Or it may be gone with the wind! [When God made man He wanted to be fair. To some He gave brains, to some He gave hair. If you're bald in the front you're a thinker. If you're bald in the back you're a lover. If you're bald all over you think you're a lover.]
What do you do when you realize you are weak? 2 Cor 12:9-10 Paul says, "God said to me `Where there is weakness, My power is shown more completely.' Therefore I have cheerfully made up my mind to be proud of my weaknesses, because they mean a deeper experience of Christ's power. For my very weakness makes me strong in Him!" When you pretend to be self sufficient, you short circuit God's power in your life. A self-made man needs to admit his inadequacy and then he can start having power. Until then you're just going to burn out.
2. You believe in faith.
The key to personal power in our life is faith. Nothing else. It's faith. The key to personal power is faith. Mark 9:23 "Everything is possible for him who believes" Matt. 9:29 "According to your faith it will be done to you." If that is true, and it is, let me ask you two vital questions:
What are you expecting God to do in your life?
And What are you expecting God to do through your life?
He works according to faith. Since God has unlimited power, we should not limit Him because of our expectations of Him. We limit God by our own unbelief. God has given us atomic bomb power and we live firecracker lives. There's no problem too big for God and there's no request that He can't handle.
3. Speak in faith.
This is very important. You must speak in faith. 2 Cor. 4:13 (Good News) "With that same spirit of faith, we also speak because we believe." We must verbalize your faith. We must announce what you're intending God to do. You must not just think it in your mind, you must announce it. Speak it. Verbalize it.
That's what a goal is. A goal is a statement of faith. When I set a goal "I believe God can help me do _______________ by _______________ time." Goals are simply statements of faith. The size of your goal is determined by the size of your God. Show me what your goals are in life and I'll tell you what you're believing God for.
It's very important that you announce your goals up front. Say it in faith. The Bible says in the book of James that your tongue is the rudder of your life. It's like the little rudder that moves the giant ship. The way you talk to yourself and to others directs the course of your life. The Bible says in Proverbs, "Death and life are in the power of the tongue." So what are you saying... about your marriage, about your job, about your health, about your finances, about your kids? Many of you are maybe waiting for God to do something and believing Him for a miracle but you're short circuiting it by the way you talk. You're believing it in one place but then you are denying and negating it by your complaints. "Yeah, I believe God is going to save my marriage. But my marriage is the pits!" "Yeah, I'm praying that my kids will really take a stand for the Lord, but my kids are hopeless! Incorrigible!" "I'm really praying that God will heal me, but I'm never going to get well." "I want God to change my life and help me break those bad habits but it's just the way I am! I'm never going to change!" You're short circuiting God's power in your life by your mouth.
God's power is not automatic. You must first admit you have a need for it, then you believe in faith, and then you speak in faith. Nothing is too hard for God. After you believe in faith and speak in faith then you...
4. Act in faith.
This is very vital and most people miss this point. Act in faith. You must step out in advance before the power is released. God wants you to take action even before you feel anything. "You mean I have to act as if I've got the power, even though I don't have the power, in order to get the power?" You got it! that's what's called acting in faith. You act as if God is going to provide. And when you step out in advance, before you even feel it, then God sees your faith. Don’t wait for a feeling! If the only time you pray is when you feel like it the devil is going to make sure you never feel like it! You need to do those things you know are right even when you don't feel like it. Immaturity is living by your feelings. Maturity is living by your commitments. You act as if, in advance. So many people miss God's blessing on their life. "There is something I'd really like to do.... BUT I don't think that I can do it." So you never even try! And as a result you never have the power. If you had tried, God would have poured the power into your life to make you competent to do it once you had stepped out. But if you don't even try you will never sense God's power in your life.
Joshua and the children of Israel came up to the Jordan river. It was very similar to Moses at the Red Sea. The whole nation had to pass over the river in order to get into the Promised Land. It was springtime and the banks of the Jordan were overflowing. It was impossible. God said to Joshua and the leaders of Israel, "Take the leaders and put them out in front of the people and tell them to walk into the river. After they begin to walk into the river I will dam it up a little way north and the waters will recede and you will be able to walk across on dry ground." The leaders began to walk into the river. The water was up to their ankles, then their knees, then their thighs. They were probably thinking, "I'm not going to walk very much further!" But look what happened. The Bible says in Joshua 3, "When the priests put their feet in the water, the Jordan river will stop flowing." They acted as if the water would part and it did! God released His power.
Example of Craig Marsh’s healing.
People being raised from the dead throughout history. Even today. Reports from over 50 countries around the world. Over 700 in Mexico and Mozambique alone.
Example of Christian cardiologist raising a patient.
There is no limit to the power that God has available for the situation that you find yourself in.
The amazing thing is that God wants to share His power with you but you've got to follow the steps. First you admit you have the need, then you believe in faith, then speak in faith and then act in faith. Step out in advance, acting as if. Maybe some of you are waiting for God to do a miracle in your life and you think that you are waiting on God. In reality God is waiting on you. He's waiting on you to take the first step. The power will not be released until you take the first step. It's withheld. It's a deliberate choice: "I don't feel it but I know that it's the right thing to do. I'm going to do it." You act as if you have the power to do what's right and the power will be supplied.
Men, tomorrow when you come home from work and you're exhausted and you're tired and want to be left alone. You feel lousy and cruddy and you do not want to face your kids or maybe even your wife. You want to walk in the door and say to everybody "Don't bug me!" Instead of doing that, why don't you try this: On the way home, while you're driving home, why don't you take a little pill called Isaiah 40:31 "They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with wings as eagles. They shall run and not be weary..." ... They shall play with the kids and not faint. Before you get out of the car and go into the house say, "God, You've promised to re‑energize me if I wait on You. So I'm going to wait here a minute, and take a deep breath. I believe in faith that You can re‑energize me. I'm going to say it, I'm going to speak it, I believe it. I'm going to walk in and act as if I've got energy and I'm going to play with those kids. I don't have many hours of the day with them in the first place."
I want you to think of that person that you find hard to love. Or that person you find it hard to be patient with. Or that person you don't even like, you don't even want to be friendly to them! Then say, how would a loving person act toward that person? If I were patient how would I act toward that person? Or if I were friendly how would I act? Once you've got that down then you start acting as if you're loving, you're patient, you're friendly, whatever. Watch what happens! It will blow your mind. That is living by faith. Living in faith!
Maybe for some of you, the romance died in your marriage a long time ago. You say, "I just don't have any feelings for my mate any more. I'm not even attracted to them anymore." You need God's power to jump start the romance in your marriage. You start acting romantic toward your mate. Date your mate. Treat them like a date. Send them flowers. Compliment them. Build them up. Start acting romantic and those feelings will come back, because feelings always follow actions. You cannot feel your way into an action but you can act your way into a feeling. By faith say, "God, I want to feel this way." Then act that way and watch what happens.
So what if God is omnipotent? What good is God's power if you never take advantage of it? You're going to need God's power this week. It is available. What are you expecting God to do in your life this week? We limit God so much by our unbelief. We live on just a fraction of the power that is available to us.
Prayer:
You can begin to live a different way today. You can stop living on your own power and start living on God's power, which is the solution to burn out and the solution to mid life crisis and the solution to that frustration and depression that creeps in on your life. Would you pray this prayer in your heart? "God, I admit that I need Your power. I admit that there are things that are just too hard for me. I'm tired a lot of the time. Yet, Father, I believe nothing is too hard for You." Just admit that to Him. God can move a mountain. If He can move a mountain, He can move a cancer, He can move a bad marriage situation, or a bankruptcy or whatever.
Pray, "God, I believe nothing is too hard for You. I want to start believing in faith that You will fill me with Your power this week and even in this moment. Help me to start speaking in faith. Help me to guard my mouth and quit being negative and stop saying things that are and start saying things the way You see them -- the way they could be. By faith I'm going to start acting in faith this week. Help me to love that person, and not to wait for the feelings first. Help me to be patient, to act patiently, to act friendly, to act loving, even when I don't feel like it. Lord, help me to act romantic and caring to my mate and I will trust that those feelings will be renewed in a greater proportion."
The Bible says that God's power is wrapped up in a person and that person's name is Jesus Christ. You can't get the power without the person. If you've never invited Jesus Christ into your life, would you do that this morning. Just say, "Jesus Christ, put Your Spirit into my life. I need You. I want to be saved. Help me to understand that. I want You to be Number One in my life. I want to give You the good, the bad, the ugly, the past, the present, the future, all of it. Fill me with Your love and power, please." If you did that, today is your day.
Father, thank You for Your power. Thank You that it is available and that we do not need to live lives of frustration and powerlessness when we put ourselves into Your hands. Thank You. In Jesus' name. Amen.
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