Experiencing God's Power

7-8-’01 EXPERIENCING GOD’S POWER

A. Armstrong

Thought for the day: “Those who yield their lives to God, experience his power.”

1 Pet 1:5

5 Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

There is no work of God upon the earth without the Holy Spirit.

All things are accomplished by His power. Even when Jesus walked the earth, he went in the power of the Holy Ghost.

The Bible says….

John 3:34

34 For he whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God: for God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto him.

Every experience in God- every accomplishment for God is not without the Holy Ghost. So when we talk about experiencing the power of God, we naturally think of the work of the Holy Ghost.

Experiencing God’s power begins with salvation. It is a work of the Holy Spirit. And salvation is a powerful experience.

It is a heart changing - hope changing - life changing experience.

I know that as a child I experienced the power of God’s salvation and it was something I could never doubt.

When my children were little, I prayed for them to experience God as children and as young people.

I knew that if they did, they would not be able to altogether get away from it.

And I believe there are people today that have had that experience in their lives when they were younger, but are not serving God now - I don’t believe they have gotten away. I believe that God still deals with them and that they really down in their hearts [whether they admit it or not], know that God is real.

But it isn’t that experience alone that they have had that lets them know that God is real and they need him. I believe that the lives of born again Christians are a constant, powerful witness of the power of God.

I know that when I prayed for my children to know God when they were little, I got a heavy burden for them because I saw so many that were raised in the church leaving it just as soon as they were on their own.

So I ask God - ‘What can I do to know that my children will serve you?’ And he told me to keep them in church. To bring them all the time and TO LIVE MY LIFE FOR HIM.

Now I understand that better than I had at the time. He wanted me to show them the power of God in salvation and in all the things I would face in my life. Then they would know that he was able to save and keep them too.

When the world sees your life changed and you living a righteous life, it is a witness to the power of God. It tells them it is more than just a ‘phase’.

When my father first got saved, his relatives and friends said, ’This is just a phase he is going through.’ His life had been pretty wicked and they just couldn’t believe that God could change someone like him.

They may have started out by thinking this was just a phase, but they certainly at some point had to recognize that a real and lasting change had been accomplished in his life. That was 47 years ago, and he is still living for God.

That is a witness of the power of God unto salvation.

I know a man that [before he came to Christ himself], would hear that someone had come down to the alter and was suppose to have gotten saved.

Every time he see me after church, he would say, ‘Was

’so and so’ there?’ He was wondering if there was anything to their salvation. Or if there was anything that could KEEP a person.

Unfortunately, many times someone would come to the alter, claim salvation and in a few services they would be gone. And I am afraid he got the impression that there wasn’t any real keeping power to this salvation.

Too many people claim salvation that have no real change in their lives and it is a witness AGAINST the power of salvation instead of for it. One man said, ‘If you aren’t going to LIVE for God, don’t claim his name. It is a shame and reproach to Him and his church.’

So when this man finally came to God, he thought he would have to somehow change himself. He thought he would have to stand on his own power, so he had little faith that he could last.

But he found out about the power of salvation- that it is a life changing experience. It is the work of the Spirit and that is a work of power.