THE POWER OF GOD

This morning the phone rang at 6am. It turned out to be a dear sister in the Lord from Califonia, 3am her time...We prayed for her and her family and the trials they are facing. Our conversation turned to the power of God. The power of God to salvation (Mark 2:10,Romans 1:16), in prayer (Mark 11:24, Mark 14:38), healings (Mark 3:15), miracles, to cast out demons, increase in faith (Luke 17:5), hope and love, to take away unbelief (Mark 9:24). This power is not taught or seen in most of our churches today. Jesus life, death and resurrection is treated like a historical event, not the power of the way, truth and life it is...not the power of repentence and salvation it is, not the power of grace and mercy it truly is. The cross is of none effect(1 Corinthians 1:17-18) in most churches, when it should be preached as the instrument of our own death to sin and self so we may live for Christ and Him in us.

When we "go" to church on sunday and do not put into practice the word of God during the week, in our families, neighborhoods, travels, then we do not see God's power in our lives. We lose focus and unbelief and lack of faith creep in, and Satan can do his work in us(Ephesians 2:2). We do not see people healed and saved, demons cast out, miracles happening because we are not consistant and covetous of God in us. Hiding his word in our hearts that we do not sin against him (Psalm 119:11), searching the scriptures daily (Acts 17:11), guarding our hearts that we walk in holiness and righteousness (Matthew 12:34, Proverbs 4:23, Jeremiah 17:9-10), and praying without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17). We must take the power of God's word out into all the world..Mark 16:15. i do not care where you are physically located, but wherever you are, are you telling others of the saving power of God? Are you walking in His righteousness or are you friends of the world trying to fit in? Eveyone knows John 3:16, but do they truly know it and live it...no. And do they read a little further to John 3:19, which says, "And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and man loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil." Jesus is that light and he came to seek and save that which was lost (Luke 19:10)...that is us folks...wake up! Your deeds tell on you. How can we know him without knowing his word? He desires an intimate relationship with each of us (John 17:3) that begins here and goes on forever, and through that relationship we will be compelled to take him to others....we need to get going.

James 4:4 says "Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? Whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God." Adultery in this case is cheating on God...denying him in the world..fitting in and being silent is a form of denial... Luke 12:9 says "But he that denieth me before men shall be denied before the angels of God." This means living your life in the world without a care for God and his will and desire for your life , it means putting your own selfish desires before Gods and living your way, it means flat out lukewarm, wishy washy, Sunday Chirstianity, which is not Christianity at all. And when the time comes for you to face our awesome God he will not know you- Matthew 7:23, he will spew you out of his mouth - Revelation 3:15-16, Revelation 19:15. And that means eternal damnation, seperation from God for eternal torture and torment. All because you choose to have it your way in this life that is a vapour, this life God gave you....it boils down to your choice, your free will. Serve God or serve the devil...your choice. If you choose the world and Satan, please do not call yourself a Christian.

"Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the eyes, and the lust of the flesh, and the pride of life, is not of the father, but is of the world." 1 John 2:15-16

i know many young adults from teens on up. i see what great things God can do when the word is put into practice in their lives. When they take the power of God's word to the world in their everyday lives and sacrifice sleep three nights a week to take it to the lost on the street. i see them changing their speech and dress to conform to God's will in their lives. i watch them grow and gain wisdom daily as they pray, study the word and seek the face of God. i see adults investing in their lives who are also serving him and seeking to walk in holiness and righeousness. i love God and these kids with a passion. i pray for them and i am proud of them.

i also know a group of kids who unfortuneatley were not taught how to put God's word into practice in their daily lives, they were fed a powerless Gospel by example, and now they live lives in the world. Lives of drugs, alcohol, rebellion, playing with sexual imorality and saying they are Christian... They are not, they are playing a dangerous game with their souls and risking eternity seperated from God. They are living in the world as part of the world...they are as lost as any unrepentant sinner is. These kids my heart breaks for because i love them passionately also. But they are living in sin and i pray that God send someone to them to share the true power of God's word of salvation with them and what it means to walk in holiness and righteousness.

God is just and righteous in all things. We were all born sinners on the fast track to eternal damnation and but for the grace and mercy of God and His sacrifice of his only begotten son, we would all go to Hell. But he provided a way of escape and we each have a choice on where we will spend eternity by how we choose. i suggest you choose God and walk in holiness and righteousness. Amen.

"I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live. That thou mayest love the LORD thy God, and that thou mayest obey his voice, and that thou mayest cleave unto him: for he is thy life, and the length of thy days: that thou mayest dwell in the land which the LORD sware unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them."
Deuteronomy 30:19-20