The Need for Power pt1

The need for Power

Ezekiel 36:26-28

The New King James Version Chapter 36

26 I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 27 I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them. 28 Then you shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; you shall be My people, and I will be your God

In lite of what we have been talking about the last few weeks this is a very key verse to understand.

we have a wide open space/promises of God that we are to live in, and to help us and enable us to do this God himself gives us a new heart and a new spirit

this new spirit is the Holy Spirit ( the third part of the trinity) who was there at the beginning of all creation, that has now be given to us/becomes a part of us

The Holy Spirit empowers us and changes us so that we become able to live in the promise land “I will put my Spirit in you, and you shall live, and i will place you in your own land.”

the Holy Spirit is the power of God being outworked on earth he is the promised helper that Jesus mentions “But the helper, the Holy Spirit whom the father will send in my name, he will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that i said to you.”

The Holy Spirit was promised to the disciples, we know that a disciple is a follower of Jesus, but the root word for Disciple is the same Discipline (Disciplus)

so not only are disciples followers they are also disciplined in action and in understanding, if we want to receive the Power that we need we ourselves need to be disciplined

so because the disciples we disciplined/obedient they received the Holy Spirit/the Power that was promised

which tells us that if we wish to be receivers and bearers of this same power, then we need to be disciplined followers of Jesus, some people wonder why they don't receive the power maybe its because they are undisciplined?

we are in desperate need of this power as believers! this is the power that raised Christ from the dead this is the power that enables us to overcome and this is the power that enables us to live/dwell in the promised land/wide open spaces.

It is also the Power that is to be out worked through us that will cause the world to see that God is there and that all power and authority belong to him.

1 Corinthians 4:19-20

The New King James Version Chapter 4

20 For the kingdom of God is not in word but in power.

The New King James Version Chapter 4

19 But I will come to you shortly, if the Lord wills, and I will know, not the word of those who are puffed up, but the power. 20 For the kingdom of God is not in word but in power.

This is an interesting scripture Paul is saying a lot of people have words about God and like to use there words to explain God, but the kingdom of God is not about words but power, God wants to express himself through us by power.

you see Paul is expressing his need (and the need of all believers ) for Power, his need for the Holy Spirit, his need for something more then himself, to be able to fulfill his calling.

The gospel does not simply tell people what they ought to do; in it God gives them power to do it.

Morris, L. (1985). 1 Corinthians: an introduction and commentary (Vol. 7, p. 84). Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.

now i’m not saying there is no need for the Word of God, the scriptures, the scriptures contain the power and give us understand who and what the power is and our need for it and that's not what Paul is saying either.

he was addressing an issue in a church were other people had come in speaking another way of God and Jesus and were leading people away from truth, Paul is simply saying that the Kingdom of God is more then just words, it is the power of God being outworked.

So to see the Kingdom outworked WE NEED POWER, WE NEED THE SPIRIT OF POWER, WE NEED THE HOLY SPIRIT

Paul is saying anyone can use words anyone can say that they know truth, but you will know that its truth/of God when there is power that comes with it! Holy Spirit is in it!

So what does this Power do? how does it help us, why do we need it

Ephesians 3:16

The New King James Version Chapter 3

16 that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man,

So we hear in this first part that one of benefits of having that Holy Spirit/the power is the work that he does in strengthening our inner man/inner person

in the natural we are weak the flesh is weak but the Spirit of God the Spirit of Power is the total opposite, the Holy Spirit is the one who helps us to become disciplined , the work that God does in us in an internal work.

the outside appearance doesn't change, the work that God does that the Spirit does , he works on our character, our integrity, our internal desires.

This power enables to us to overcomes of sin, it is the strength that we need in all situations, we all want to believe that we ourselves are strong enough/can be strong enough to overcome.

but the truth is we cant we are so desperately in need of Power, so desperately in need of the Spirit of God

Ephesians 3:20

The New King James Version Chapter 3

20 Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us,

not only does this power/the Spirit do an internal work in us, it is also the power that enables us see the out workings of the miraculous things of God, things that we could never have imagined, things that we could never have possible done out of our own strength are done by the Power of God.

The Holy Spirit given to us as a gift, is the gift that enable all believers to see and experience the kingdom of heaven here on earth. if we want to do anything for God or his kingdom then we need to first recognize our desperate need for his Power.

You cannot achieve anything of value for God if you don't have the Holy Spirit/the power, you cannot experience the fullness of God without the Holy Spirit/the power.

WE NEED TO BECOME DESPERATE FOE THE POWER OF GOD IN THIS CHURCH AND IN OUR LIVES.

if you want to change and grow, you need the Spirit

if you want our church to change and grow, we need the Spirit

if this community is going to change and grow, they need the Spirit.