God's Power To Change Your Life Series

-But unless this force is overcome, we will continue to live in a sort of spiritual mediocrity. Can you imagine how dazzling the bonfire in Ephesus must have been? You know, when we become preoccupied with the material things in our lives to the point that it hinders our relationship with God, it may be time for a little bonfire of our own.

-Just as He did with the Ephesians, the Holy Spirit searches out and exposes our obsession with our stuff. And if we will yield our fixation on our stuff to Him, He will overcome our reliance on it. And you know how He does it?

 God overcomes the force of worldly attachment through personal sacrifice.

-The worth of the books the people burned was 50,000 drachmas. You know how much that was worth? To put it in perspective, 1 drachma (one!) was worth a days wages. Talk about personal sacrifice. If you want to think about it by today’s terms: it would be the equivalent of about 5 million dollars worth of personal stuff….burned.

-And because of the personal sacrifice, look what happened:

Scripture: Acts 19:20

“In this way the word of the Lord spread widely and grew in power.”

-Can can overcome the force of worldly attachment in our lives, but only when we become willing to make the personal sacrifice that is necessary for Him to change us. My question to you today is this: are you willing? Do you want God to change your life? Do you want to experience His power in your daily walk with Him? Then you have to be willing to sacrifice your love of things to Him.

Conclusion/Invitation

2 Ways to Allow God More Room

to Work in Your Life:

1. Remember that the hardening of your heart happens slowly and silently.

-You heart didn’t become cold and calloused overnight. In fact, sinful patterns often have their roots in our younger years. And although the holy Spirit keeps reminding us of them, we sometimes ignore Him. And with each refusal, our hearts become harder and harder, so that eventually the Spirit’s convictions glance off our hearts like twigs sliding across a frozen lake. So, instead of turning a deaf ear, respond quickly to His prodding – deal with your sins promptly s o that your heart stays soft and sensitive.

2. Become more receptive to God’s power by being open to change!

-A soft heart stays soft only with the help of a willing attitude. God asks us merely to be open to his power. Even if all you can do is take a tiny step closer towards God, He will embrace you with greater power and hope than you’ve experienced up to this point in your life.

Scripture: Hebrews 3:7-8

“So, as the Holy Spirit says: ‘Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts…”

-Don’t harden your heart today. God has the power to change your life…if you’ll let Him. Let’s stand and bow our heads.