not your Joe Shmoe

The gospel isn't just a bunch of fancy words that you can make sound really cool. The gospel isn't your average book, newspaper, magazine, or article that you read. The gospel is power.

I often think it's easy to view the word of God as just another book. It's something we have, lots of people have it, if we want to read it we will, if we don't it's not going to go anywhere...

That's what I thought. Sophomore year of college when I don't think I moved my bible off of my desk.

You know the gospel is powerful when you can't even bring it to some countries. When I went to China, we all brought our bibles to Los Angeles the week before so that we had them during training camp, but as soon as it was time to fly across the world we had to mail our bibles home...That is power in itself...I bet you could bring any other book you wanted to over there.

I promise you that you will never be able find another book that came to you with power.

...because our gospel came to you not simply with words but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and deep conviction. You know how we lived among you for your sake. (1 Thessalonians 1:5)

The gospel is so powerful! Whenever the bible is heard and obeyed, lives are changed! Christianity is more than a collection of interesting facts; it is the power of God to everyone who believes.

What has God's power done in your life since you first believed?

The word of God is not just your Joe Shmoe...I can attest to that when I came to the realization of the power of the gospel, my life really did change. I've tried to find fulfillment in many other parts of my life, but nothing fulfilled me as much as the power of the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit changes people when they believe the gospel. Whenever we tell others about Christ, we must depend on the Holy Spirit to open their eyes and convince them that they need salvation.

God's power is what will ultimately change someone - not our cleverness or persuasion. Without the work of the Holy Spirit, words are meaningless. The Holy Spirit not only convicts people of sin but also assures them of the truth of the gospel.

I encourage you to come to the realization of the power of the Holy Spirit and really to depend on the Holy Spirit for your personal growth and the growth of other believers.