Committed To Action

Mayor Gerardo Balmori

The Salvation Army

Introduction: King Solomon started well but finished poorly and toward the end of his life he had

married many foreign women and he had built many foreign places to worship and his heart had

been turned from God. As Solomon, King Asa started well, but finished poorly. (We preached

just recently about it. Remember?)"Asa’s heart was fully committed to the Lord all his life." Nine

times the Bible says that King Asa "sought the Lord," and seeking the Lord is not something you

can do with a divided heart. So the question is, what does it mean to have a heart fully committed

to the Lord? King Asa tells us by his actions.

I. FULL COMMITMENT RELIES ON GOD’S POWER FOR VICTORY

A. Asa became king when he was young and for the first 10 years of his reign he has a pretty

peaceful rule. He started some reform in Judah by tearing down some of the idols and pulling

down some of the high places and the Bible tells us that God was pleased by all this. But in his

tenth year King Asa faced his first major test and it was this test that lit the fire for revival.

1. II Chronicles 14:9-13. Now that’s the first thing we learn about commitment – it relies upon

the power of God for victory. See Asa confessed his own weakness and them he acknowledged

the limitless power of God. He realized that the strength of man on either side was no the issue.

The issue was God. God’s the determining factor.

2. Brothers and sisters of the cell group, God is ready and able to do far more than we are ever

able to accomplish when we are ready to rely upon Him for victory and not trust in our own

flesh. Please Read Deuteronomy 20:4 Ephesians 3:20,21

3. Revival never comes through the power of human strength, but through audacious faith and

the power of God. We must be fully committed to the idea that God has limitless power and can

anything He pleases when He is trusted and asked.

Revival will come when we are fully committed to His power.

II. FULL COMMITMENT TAKES BOLD ACTION TO PLEASE GOD

A. We have already noticed that King Asa went through a period where he did some cleanup

work in his nation. He removed some of the idols and tore down some of the idolatrous places

dedicated to idol worship and that was a good start. But after God gave him the victory against

the Cushites, Asa too the final steps to reform God’s people.

1. II Chronicles 15:1,2,8. These were bold steps to take in a land where idolatry and idol worship

had become popular. You see Asa knew that he could not expect God to give him continued

victory as long ad the nation harbored sin and sinful things.

2. But Asa did not stop there. In verse 16 he took his boldest step of all. READ. The two hardest

places to remove sin is when sin is in high places and when it is in the home. Asa tackled both in

one swift, courageous move.

B. Revival will come to God’s people when someone will step out in a committed faith and take

bold action in His name to get rid of whatever hinders God’s return and God’s blessings.

Galatians 2:11-13 III John 9,10

III. FULL COMMITMENT REPAIRS THE BROKEN THINGS THAT MATTER TO GOD

A. Revival just doesn’t tear down and remove it builds up and restores.. Back in II Chronicles

15:8 the Bible says that Asa took courage and not only tore down the detestable idols but that he

"repaired the altar of the Lord that was in front of the Lord’s Temple." For decades the altar had

lain in ruins and no sacrifice, no worship was offered to God. But when revival same to Judah,

not only did Asa tear down the things that dishonored God, he built back the things that brought

honor to God.

B. This got me to thinking about what things does God want us to repair that brings honor to His

name. The list could be quite long, but I only have time to share a couple that stand at the top of

the list.

1. A return to total commitment to the teaching of Scripture. The church has to decide that

culture, popular opinion, nor those in high places are not going to tell us how to interpret or

apply the teachings of God. Instead we are going to study it, all of it, we are going to apply it as

God gave it and we are going to proclaim it to the world as the truth it is. Jesus said, "You shall