Forward in Faith: Healing and Wholeness in every aspect of life
Tonight I am not going to start with a question.
Amazing I know.
Tonight I want to begin with two simple statements.
God wants to bless you.
God wants you to be transformed.
Throughout history God has always blessed His people and one of the ways blesses us is through transformation.
God is able to transform the weak and wounded into the strong and resilient.
God is able to bring Healing and Wholeness into all of our lives.
God can transform us in many ways,
He can use circumstances and situations.
He can use trials and tribulations.
He can use victories and blessings.
He can use the Power of His Spirit.
He can use the Power of His Word.
We should never underestimate the Power of His Word in transforming us.
God really can speaks to us today and everyday through the Bible.
God uses His words in the Bible to transform us.
In my own life, I know the truth of God speaking through his word.
More times than I can count, He has spoken to me.
Encouraging me, blessing me, directing me and correcting me.
Maybe in your life you have experienced that too.
Maybe today God has already spoken something transformational into your life.
Perhaps it was in your daily devotionals this morning.
Perhaps it was during the morning service.
Maybe today God has spoken to you, and if He has, what is your response to Him?
Are you willing to be transformed?
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Last week I went to the Elim Ministers in Training Conference in Malvern.
We discussed many things, and were blessed by the ministry of a number of senior Elim ministers.
Many things really spoke to me.
Perhaps the most important being that as Pastors we need to focus more on encouraging people to really be disciples of Christ with a strong biblical understanding.
One of the speakers spoke of how many modern churches have many born-again, spirit-filled christians who are actually very spiritually shallow.
These Christians know that Jesus died for their sins,
they know they are saved,
they know that there is a place waiting for them in Heaven,
they know they are in a relationship with a God who loves them,
But, they are spirtualy shallow.
They have no depth in the word of God,
and are unclear about what it really means to be a disciple, a real bible believing follower of God.
These are people who are saved but are not being transformed by the Word or the Power of God.
It seems that somewhere along the way, the modern church has become complacent about the importance of God’s word in transforming our lives.
It was also highlighted that somewhere along the way, many modern church seems to have forgotten that we are meant to share the Gospel at every opportunity.
We are meant to take every opportunity to tell people the truth about who Jesus is.
The transformation from death to life that knowing Him as saviour will bring.
Many churches have become content with holding social events that contain no reference to God at all.
Somehow the great commission to go into all the world, to preach the Gospel and make disciples,
to see lives transformed,
to see the sinner saved,
has become ...
lets hold a coffee morning and hope someone comes in for a drink,
and maybe, just maybe,
one of the hosts will have the courage to mention Jesus to them.
It’s outreach...
It’s serving the community...
But it is not sharing the transforming word of the Gospel.
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Let me be open and honest with you.
Conference disturbed me.
It caused me to think.
It caused me to examine myself.
I went back to my room on Tuesday night and God led me to two verses of scripture that hit me right between the eyes.
The first was Romans 12:2 “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – His good, pleasing and perfect will.”
The second was Galatians 1:10 “Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ.”
I read those verses, and I had to ask God to forgive me.
You see, I was accepting the pattern of the world.
I was not being transformed,
I was not seeing others being transformed.
And the second verse really challenged me about who I am in Christ, my role as Pastor, Leader, Shepherd.
Was I more content pouring a cup of coffee than making disciples?
You know, as leaders, it is far easier for us to review a church service or event based on attendance rather than on what God is really doing in peoples lives.
If one of the ministry team interprets a toungue or brings a word of prophecy we are content,
but what we should be seeking after is the transformational spiritual growth of the congregation.
We should not be happier doing nice social things for the community than sharing the truth of who Jesus is.
God wants to bless us.
God wants to transform us.
God wants to use us for His service, to use us for His Glory.
To not conform to the pattern of the world.
God wants to transform us and work through us to transfom others.
I’ll be honest, Tuesday night, there in my room,
I read these verses and I wept.
I am meant to be a servant of Christ, all of us are,
But, I had become content,
I had become complacent.
I needed to be transfomed.
God has called me to be His servant,
to share His word,
to see His Word and His Spirit at work in really transforming lives.
To share the truth of heaven and reality of hell.
To call people to repentance not to a warm fluffy feeling of a false sense of security.
I wept because somewhere I had lost the fire.
I was accepting second best.
I knew I was falling short of where God wanted and expected me to be.
Tuesday night that’s where I was.
And God met with me and through His word spoke to me.
I knew I needed to be transformed.
I knew I needed to be made whole.
I knew I needed to be healed from complacency.
I knew I needed to repent.
And I did...
Does that describe where you are?
Do you need to be transformed?
Do you need to be made whole?
Do you need to be healed?
God wants to bless you.
God wants to transform you.
God wants to use you for His service, to use you for His Glory.
God does not want you to conform to the pattern of the world.
God wants to transform you and work through you to transfom others.
Tuesday night, God met with me and caused me to examine myself. I asked Him to transform and renew my mind.
Are you willing to be transformed too?
Do you want to please yourself or please God?
Tonight are you willing to move forward in your faith?
God is able to bring Healing and Wholeness into every aspect of our lives. Emotional, Physical, Spiritual.
God does not change, His Word does not change, the same creative power that created this universe, brings transformation, healing and wholenedd to our lives today.
Do you need transformation in your own life?
God is able to transform.
Do you need wholeness? God is able.
Do you need healing? God is able.
Will you ask Him to transform you, to heal you, to make you whole?
I will close as I began, with two simple statements: God wants to bless you.
God wants you to be transformed.
