“Doing Something Great In 2008”
Intro: We live in a society where people desire to do great things but sometimes never see the benefit or reward of the great things in which they have done. I believe this is the year that God desires for us to do great things for Him. The number “8” is the number of new beginnings. How many people want a new start to seeing great things within your life being done for God in the hearts of people that that Him.
Text: John 14:12-14 Daniel 11:32
Do we understand that great causes present great challenges. There were many in the Bible that faced great challenges but was willing to face the challenge with doing something great for God. It is time that we step out of our comfort zone and do something GREAT!
When little David went to the Battle front and heard the enemy cursing His God, He realized that there was a cause. He was not going to battle for victory for himself. God’s vic-tory would remind the world of His existence. They dis-covered that there is a God in Israel. God’s victory would remind Israel of His deliverance. Saul and his army had for-gotten what David already knew. The battle is the Lord’s!!
One of the problems in the church is that we don’t expect God to do great things. We don’t expect to see the power of God work in a service. We don’t expect the glory of God to fall as we sing praises unto Him, and we have got to change our thinking. Changing our thinking, changing our expectations, changing our believing.
I. REACHING THE INCOMPENTENT
A. My challenge to each and every person in this place this morning is to reach out this year and touch someone with the great message of good news and be determined to reach one person that is lost and at a state in their life where things are hopeless. Nothing feels better than finding life.
Proverbs 11:30 The fruit of the righteous [is] a tree of life; and he that winneth souls [is] wise.
B. Jesus did many miracles – He is the great physician, He is the great teacher, He is the great supplier - But the greatest thing that Jesus came to do is save the lost! Winning a soul is better than raising someone from the dead – If you did raise someone from the dead they would die again – but when you lead a person to Jesus, they will never die. “We can’t all be preachers but we can all be reachers!”
Luk 19:9 And Jesus said unto him, This day is salvation come to this house, forsomuch as he also is a son of Abraham.
Luk 19:10 For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.
THE CHURCH IS THE VISIBLE BODY OF THE INVISIBLE CHRIST!
II. RETRIEVING THE IMPOSSIBLE
A. What I like about reading the Word of God is that He shows us of men that were determined to believe God for the impossible. The impossible is for the grabbing of Believers today, but we must dare to see something great through impossible.
Kathryn Kuhlman said “I knew that if I lived and died and never saw a single miracle like the apostles experienced in the book of Acts, it would not change God’s Word.. God said it.
Smith Wigglesworth used to say, “I would rather die trusting God than live in unbelief.”
B. The absence of miracles should create hunger, not disappointment. The last thing we need to do in life is settle for anything that is less than God’s best. God’s people being content without the miraculous will work right into the devil’s plan.
Four-Minute Mile
Do you remember the four-minute mile? They’d been trying to do it since the days of the ancient Greeks. Someone found the old records of how the Greeks tried to accomplish this. They had wild animals chase the runners, hoping that would make them run faster. They tried tiger’s milk: not the stuff you get down at the supermarket, I’m talking about the real thing.
Nothing worked, so they decided it was physically impossible for a human being to run a mile in four minutes. Our bone structure was all wrong, the wind resistance was too great, our lung power was inadequate. There were a million reasons.
Then one day one human being proved that the doctors, the trainers, and the athletes themselves were all wrong. And, miracle of miracles, the year after Roger Bannister broke the four-minute mile. And the year after that three hundred runners broke the four-minute mile!
C. We must become like men in the Word like Elisha, when he took the mantle of Elijah, when the mantle fell from heaven he need not keep the mantle in some showcase, he took the mantle and he strike the river Jordan with it and the river parted. David dared to fight against the giant that came against Israel and their God.
2Ki 2:8 And Elijah took his mantle and rolled it up, and struck the waters. And they were divided here and there, so that both of them crossed over on dry ground.
2Ki 2:9 And it happened when they had gone over, Elijah said to Elisha. Ask what I shall do for you before I am taken away from you. And Elisha said, please, let a double portion of your spirit be upon me.
III. REAPING THE INCREDIBLE
A. The church and believers of today must be like the church in the Early Days. They received the power and anointing of the Holy Ghost and dared to see the incredible power of God do what they had seen in the life of their Savior. Peter and John reap the incredible benefit of seeing the power of God heal a man because they tempted to do something great.
Act 3:6 But Peter said, Silver and gold have I none, but what I have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!
B. The reason the church today is not reaping the incredible benefits of seeing a miracle and wonders happen in our society, because we are not stepping out to believe for something great in the impossible which will lead to our people reaping blessings of incredible.
Mat 14:28 And Peter answered Him and said, LORD, if it is You, tell me to come to You on the water.
Mat 14:29 And He said, Come. And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus.
