Power Point - August 23, 2005

August 23, 2005

…“Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,” says the LORD of hosts.

                                                                             --Zechariah 4:6

I don’t know how many times I’ve heard Christians say to me, “I never knew about the work of the Holy Spirit.” Somebody once said that in the Old Testament, God the Father was rejected. In the New Testament, Christ the Son was rejected. And in this day and age, the Holy Spirit has been rejected.

If you are struggling in your Christian walk, perhaps no one told you how to live the Christian life in the power of the Holy Spirit. When you came to know Christ and became a church member, maybe someone said, “Just fill out this card, get baptized, come to church, and do the best you can.”

This journey is more than just reading your Bible every day, praying, going to church, and teaching a Bible study class. If this is what you think, then you will eventually become spiritually stale and the Christian life will be nearly impossible to bear. You’ll eventually come to a place where you realize that it’s impossible to maintain in your own strength.

Don’t leave the Holy Spirit dormant. He wants to take control of every area of your life. Isn’t it about time that you stop struggling, straining, and sweating to live the Christian life? Isn’t it about time you start letting God be God in you? Be alive in the power of His Holy Spirit!

As Christians, we’re not just here to take up space or live for ourselves. How can we be carnal, selfish believers when Christ has done so much for us? This journey to be a better Christian should be to make our marriages work, better our businesses, or build a great church. It is all about glorifying God.

Colossians 3:17 says, “Whatever you do in word or deed, do ALL in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.” When you get really serious about glorifying God in your life, then He will begin working through your faith in ways you can’t even imagine. God does not want to be King for a day—He wants to be Lord for eternity.

BE AVAILABLE TO THE FATHER’S PURPOSE, BE AWARE OF THE SAVIOR’S PURCHASE, AND BE ALIVE TO THE SPIRIT’S PRESENCE.