Sermon Tone Analysis

AN ABLE GOD - PART 1&2 Combined Sun 8-26-07

Philippians 3:21  Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself.

I want to take out of there - three words and tag them onto the last.

Whereby - he - is - able, even to subdue all things unto himself.

And I want to talk for a while today about an able God.

The age in which we are living, everything has a tendency to be bigger, better.

Quicker and faster.

Stronger and more powerful.

----

 

Everything is bigger and bigger and bigger and bigger.

It goes without saying, sometimes we feel overwhelmed about and with who we are, where we are, and what we are facing in our generation.

–

 

There is not a kid on a campus that does not feel overwhelmed.

There's not a person on the job today that doesn't at times feel overwhelmed.

There's not an individual anywhere in any walk of life that sometimes does not feel like, I'd don't believe I can make it another day.

Never before have we seen our public school grounds and classes and on them what we are seeing and hearing today.

We have seen our television turn into garbage pits were now the news is even X-rated.

We have seen our congressional leaders turn from people with convictions into puppets of immorality.

We have seen terrorists cave in the secure wall and feeling that we have here in America.

We have watched the violist of movies and seen them arisen to the height of popularity.

I do not understand why in our society people want to go to a movie house and watch something scare them.

It doesn't make any sense to me.

All you have to do is drive down the road and get scared enough.

S

 

As it appears we’re standing at the bottom of the stack and wondering when the avalanche is coming.

We know its coming, we know it is there, but we just don't know when.

We don't know when the next shoe is going to fall.

Now the economy is shaken until it has shaken the core of America.

We are seeing it around the world in the instability.

!

But I do not want to dwell on the negative very long, because I have good news for you.

!

In spite of all of the above, in spite of everything

!  that I've mentioned, and hundreds of other things

!  that I have not mentioned, I want you to know we !  have an able God.

Who is still God in this

!

generation, the same as he was in the last

!

generation.

!

A God that is alive today the same as He was a

!

hundred years ago, or 200 years ago, or two

!  million years ago.

And he'll still be alive, and he'll

!  still be God, and He'll still be an able God.

Glory to God.

He's able.

He's able.

I'm afraid that in view of all the bad news, and I am guilty.

I stand the guiltiest in this room today of what I’m about to say.

I don't put anyone any guiltier than myself.

Because I watch the news, you watch the news and we read the newspaper and we hear the bad news all-around.

!

And in view of all of the bad news we are often prone to run and Bury our faces in the pillow and wonder if there is an answer.

!

We wonder where can we go? 

!

Where can we turn?

But I have good news for you.

!

We do have an answer, we still have an able God!

He is able!  --  H!

!

Don't lose faith, don't lose hope in God. 

!  He's still God.

He's not going to advocate.

!  He's not going to step down from his throne.

!

You can't vote him out.

You can’t impeach Him. 

!  He's not going to do anything to come to trial.

!  He's Judge of all the ages.

And he is the jury.

!

And he is the advocate.

He is all in all! –

Well glory.

An able God.

One, the Bible says, who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all we can even ask or think.

S

Now, exceedingly abundantly means to, a great degree.

- Abundantly, plenteous, exuberant, overflowing, plentiful, fully sufficient.

God is able.

He is able.

Glory - I didn't say that.

That's not me saying it, that is this infallible, inherent Word of God that says that. 

!  I'm not the one saying he is able, he is the one saying that he is able.

!  I'm not the one that can heal you, he is the one saying he can.

!

I’m not the one that can save you, he's the One saying that he can.

!  I’m not the one that can walk into hospital rooms and walked out of there and say you are well.

!

He is the one who says, I am able to do that.

S

He is able.

It declares that we have an unchanging, limitless God.

His power goes beyond all limits.

All limitations.

[slow]

So what he expects of me is for me - is for you to respond to this power, to accept his glory, accept His limitless power and strength and respond in faith that He is what he says He is and He can do what He says he can do and He is willing to do what He is able to do.

-- Halleluiah.

Now it’s one thing to have a great big God sitting up here on a throne and having the power of looking down and say I could if I wanted to.

–

 

It's another thing to have someone over here on the throne saying that I’m willing but I’m spineless and strengthless and weak.

–

I'd like to.

I would, but I can’t.

It's altogether another thing having one sitting high and lifted up and His train filling the temple who not only is willing to do so but able to do so.

That's an able God that we have.

!

We go around with our head to the ground expecting everything to jump on us and that is understandable.

!

When you turn the television off after watching - the news used to be the only thing people say that’s all that’s worth watching, and that's not even worth watching anymore.

S

 

!

By the time you get through the news you don't think you're going to live by the time you get to bed.  --  !  Everything is bad, everything is getting worse.

!

And we think that everything is gonna jump on us.

!  No, no, no, no, no, no. 

!

We ought to hold our heads up high.

!

Why?