“Send the Fire”
Pastor Allan H. Kircher
Shell Point Baptist Church
March 9
Phil 2:13-16 For it is God who works…..
Time/time/ask one another, “Why can’t I win my friends to the Lord?
• Family members/Co-Workers not interested?
• The answer may shock you in its bluntness
• The truth often hurts.
The reason people who know you aren’t interested in your God may be because you don’t have enough/presence/God/your life.
God’s presence/power/makes everything else crumble comparison.
Without it, you will be just as pale/lifeless/everybody around you.
• w/o power/God in your life
• “Just another somebody” to those around you.
• I was tired of being “another somebody” lost around me.
• “I am going to pursue the power of God in my life.”
Get so close to God, when I walk down/street people/meet Him.
• Don’t see me/ they see God.
• Wouldn’t that be powerful!
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Acts 2:28 “You have made known to me the paths of life: you will fill me with joy in your presence. “
God is working in your life!
• Live in the presence of God, you are naturally joyful.
• You have natural glow because/God’s power/presence in your life.
• You don’t have to act…
• You don’t have to hide myself
• You don’t hide your identity when I come into God’s house
People don’t have to ask you….
• They see…..they feel….
• The presence and power of God.
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2 Timothy 1:7 “God did not give us the spirit of Timidity, but of power, love and self-discipline. “
• What are you timid for?
• God is working in your life!
• Proclaim His name above all. Proclaim boldly.
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Do you remember what it was like in your earthly life?
• Dead in all your ways?
• Depression, anxiety, worthlessness, despondency, loneliness, pride, …..
• Where is the God that has delivered you from all these?
• Have you forgotten Him so soon?
• The same God that has delivered you,
• Is waiting for you to respond.
Claim your identity…..your identity/Child of the King.
• To work in His Spirit, not yours.
• God is the same yesterday (when he delivered you)
• as today (when you trust him)
• And forever (when you spend eternity with him).
How can you not be elated with Joy……?
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I. The Spirit’s role is to empower you.
Jesus probably left His disciples flabbergasted when He said,
“I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father” (John 14:12).
• Can you imagine the faith to have this?
• Can you believe a person like you could do greater things than the Master?
Ask Peter, who preached/Pentecost Sunday/3000 believed.
• David, sling and 3 stones.
• Elijah raising the widow’s son.
• Daniel in the Lion’s den.
The only difference between you and them……
• Faith! Trust! Obedience! Non-conformity to the world.
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Isn’t it breathtaking to hear Jesus’ brother James said in 4:2 “you do not have, because you do not ask”?
• Ask and you will receive.
• All the blessings, riches, the glory of God.
The key/disciples’ success was not in their abilities and strengths.
• You have none outside of the living God.
• You have no claim to works outside/living God.
“You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth”
• The Holy Ghost is what enables you to succeed
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God is able!
• stroll back 3446 years ago right before the Exodus,
• God spoke/Moses/burning bush, “ I am who I am.
• This is what you are to say to the Israelites
• “I am has sent me to you.” Exodus 3:13.
Lord didn’t say, “I was or I will be” he says “I am”
• Same God 4000 yrs. Later.
Let’s look at how God is able…..
First: God answers the cry of His people…
Exodus 3:7-8. Says “the Lord said, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. 8 So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey”.
• You see God is able and He delivered.
• He does the same for you and I.
Cry out for help--yearning, pleading for Him to show His power and strength and mercy.
• Most/us have cried out/seeked God’s mighty hand/our life.
• Gotten on our knees/stretched out our faith
• Yearned for His power/manifested on us.
• And He has delivered, hallelujah!
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Unfortunately, when the rollercoaster ride is over, we forget what God has done.
• Delivered/alcohol, the ride is over
• I don’t need God anymore.
• Where Satan comes in and starts to work in your life.
• Satan’s main goal is to cut off your dependency with God.
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How many of us have cried wolf like peter from the children’s stories?
God get me out of this situation. Anger.
• Thank you God I can handle it now.
God get me out of this situation. Pornography
• Thank you God I can handle it now.
God get me out of this situation. Idle as a Christian!
• Thank you God I can handle it now.
This must get frustrating after a few times. .. not to mention to have a depressing effect on your mind.
• It doesn’t have to happen that way…….
• Stop rejecting the power of God in your life.
• You must enable the Spirit to move.
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What if Joseph rejected the power thrown into pit
• Thrown into slavery….
• Thrown into prison…
• He was faithful and thrown into the palace.
What if Caleb and Joshua rejected the power of God
• Came back from scouting out the promise land?
• Or waited for 48 yrs in the desert….
• They were faithful and give the land!
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How many of us have turned our back to His grace.
• Don’t doubt God and His ability to deliver you….
• God is a restorer, refiner and a loving God.
• We serve a mighty and powerful God.
The church today needs to discover once again that we have an unchanging God and an unchanging kingdom.
• Let us shout in victory for our God.
• We need/discover the power of Pentecost.
• We need to become a Pentecostal Church
• not talking about a denomination
• Talking about an Acts 2 church.
• Not yesterday, not tomorrow, but today…..
• filled/fire of God
• Living for the true King.
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Take off the masks of fake religion, self-righteousness and put on God' power He placed upon you and live it in all you do.
• living in genuine love for each other,
• Have the fire fall/people of God to rise up.
When God sends forth/Spirit amazing things begin to happen.
• Barriers are broken…..communities are formed….
• Opposites are reconciled..
• Unity is established..disease is cured…
• Hope is established….addictions are broken….
• people are blessed
• Church happens without schedules and time frames.
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Today, God’s Spirit is present, up to us to usher it in…
• So be ready……get ready….God is up to something…
• Discouraged Christians cheer up…..
• Dishonest Christians fess up……
• Sour Christians sweeten up…
• Closed Christians open up….
• Gossipers shut up….
• Conflicted Christians make up….
• Sleeping Christians wake up….
• Lukewarm Christians fire up…..
• Dry bones shake up, and pew potatoes stand up…..
Christ the Savior of all the world be lifted up.
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II. The power of God
• comes/realize/Christian life/not/keeping rules
• But about knowing Christ.
Until we live by repentance/faith we will always be going through the motions/religion w/o knowing/person of Jesus Christ.
Until/people who call themselves/people of God:
• Renew their commitment to knowing Christ on a daily basis
• living faithfully for Him
• We will not experience the power of God.
As long as we think/Christianity/something/we do, we are missing the point.
• It is not about what we do
• But what God does in us.
• Not/reciting creeds/Going through/formatted schedule.
• It is about coming to God’s throne any time during the worship, not just at altar call.
• When the fire of God is upon you will know it!
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God’s power moves in unpredictable and spontaneous moments.
Satan is the one who:
• Holds you to the pew.
• Binds/hands when/power/God says lift them in His honor and glory.
Don’t let Satan win in your life.
• Don’t let Satan control your thoughts.
It’s about surrendering my life/body/mind/heart to Jesus Christ and asking Him to take up residence.
The only one you need to answer to is your heavenly Father.
• It’s about confessing/sin/turning from it.
• Banking everything I have on God
• Loving Him with my whole heart.
• The experience is not tame, it is wild and powerful.
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III. The Transformation
Paul said, “I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection” (Philippians 3:10)
• Christian life is not just about salvation
• But transformation.
Regeneration/miraculous transformation/individual and implantation of spiritual energy.
Jesus made/very clear/Nicodemus/regeneration/essential to acceptance by the Father.
Flesh gives birth to flesh and spirit gives birth to spirit. (John 3:6)
The acceptance/adoption/transformation/Spirit will empower you in a mighty way.
• We are to grow in heart holiness
• Be salt/light/tasteless/dark world.
• become transformed/daily basis
• Then become agents of transformation in the world.
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You don’t want the Holy Spirit to just save you for heaven,
You want Him:
• use His power/transform your life
• Sustain that power to glorification.
• Use you in this world for kingdom purposes.
• The kingdom is here and now.
To/functioning Christian today, you need/power/Holy Spirit operating/life every day
Apostle John/Revelation/talks/things we have/go through/world
“This calls for patient endurance on the part of the saints who obey God’s commandments and remain faithful to Jesus” (Revelation 14:12)
The power/God’s Spirit comes when you replace apathy with zeal.
You can’t just try to be good and be a Christian.
You have/want/transformed/image of Christ/want/made like Him.
You can’t/complacent toward/things/God/His kingdom/experience the power of God.
True saving faithful transformation results
• true heart/loves God
• Desires/seek Him/every morsel/your being.
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Transformation is seen when we lift veils/our face/seek His glory.
2 Cor 3:18 “And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the spirit.”
• We shed/pride/take off the veils of the world.
• We allow/Lord our God to mold us to His likeness with ever increasing glory.
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Then the power of God lay upon us.
• The power to smash unrighteousness.
• The power to smash bitterness.
• The power to smash hostility.
• In the name of our Savior Jesus Christ.
And through/power/God we have this ministry,
we do not lose heart.
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For God said, “Let light shine out of darkness, made His light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.” 2 Cor 4:6
And when that light is shining in your heart, you experience power.
• This is the way to live. We have been powerized.
• We have inherited eternal life.
• We have experienced eternal love.
• We now hold nothing back
• We have discovered God’s mighty presence.
• We/excited about life
• Excited about/wonderful God we serve.
• Willing to do whatever it takes to have more of Him.
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Are you willing to do whatever it takes/have more of Him today?
Are you willing/cut away everything/holding you back to experience the power of God?
When you do:
• the Holy Spirit will come to you in new ways
• You will experience a life never know possible.
But here is the key:
• Takes total surrendering.
• Total submission to the Spirit.
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• Be imitators of Christ’s humility.
• When you are imitators you have power.
• The power of God’s spirit.
• God is saying to us, “I have set before thee an open door” (Revelation 3:7-13)
Today is the day God is throwing open the door of Heaven and saying, “Come into a new place of intimacy and communion with Me.”
You don’t need to worry about the blessings if you sit/lap/Blesser!
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God is calling you/new level of intimacy this morning.
• If you dare to answer His call
• The Lord will reveal a fresh part of His character.
He will pull you so close that you will be breathing the very rarified air of Heaven.
His presence will become so strong
• that you will be oblivious/everyone/everything else around you
• Then you will seek the Blesser, not the blessing.
• You will seek the Reviver, not the revival…
• You will seek His face, not His hands!
You may be only/few spiritual inches away/encounter/lifetime.
If you want to see the face of God, you come down this morning before His throne.
God is waiting to see if you seek Him.
Let us humble ourselves, be imitators of Christ, and seek His power and presence in all we do.
