Lord, I Need Your Anointing!

July 6, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

How miserable to try to preach a sermon if God’s anointing is not on it! The most gifted speaker’s words sound hollow without God’s help. The most educated theologian’s thoughts are mere babbling without the Holy Spirit’s aid. All your hours of pastoral study are utterly wasted unless the power of Christ is present.

Pastor, let these wise words soak in…

“I know that it is dreadful work to be bound to preach when one is not conscious of the aid of the Spirit of God! It is like pouring water out of bottomless buckets, or feeding hungry souls out of empty baskets. A true sermon such as God will bless no man can preach of himself; he might as well try to sound the archangel’s trumpet.” ―Charles Spurgeon

“Keep yourself full to the brim in reading; but remember that the first great Resource is the Holy Ghost Who lays at your disposal the Word of God. The thing to prepare is not the sermon, but the preacher.” ―Oswald Chambers

“Apart from divine help, the enterprise of a Christian minister is only worthy of ridicule. Apart from the power of the Eternal Spirit, the things which the preacher has to do are as much beyond him as though he had to weld the sun and moon into one, light up new stars, or turn the Sahara into a garden of flowers. We have a work to do concerning which we often cry, ‘Who is sufficient for these things?’ and if we be put to this work but have not your prayers, and in consequence have not the supply of the Spirit, we are of all men the most miserable.” ―Charles Spurgeon

“The character of our praying will determine the character of our preaching. Light praying will make light preaching. …The preacher must be preeminently a man of prayer. His heart must graduate in the school of prayer. In the school of prayer only can the heart learn to preach.” ―E.M. Bounds

“If you preachers lose your compassion, you can stop preaching, for it won’t be any good. You will only be successful as a preacher if you let your heart become filled with the compassion of Jesus.” ―Smith Wigglesworth

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I Want To Be Fascinated

July 2, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

If we are going to stick with anything for the long haul, we have to be fascinated by it. As soon as it becomes boring, humdrum, or monotonous, the downward spiral leading to us throwing in the towel is almost inevitable.

It looks like this:

Inattention → Fizzled passion → Lack of discipline → Quitting

This is bad enough for a diet, exercise routine, or any other healthy pursuit. But it becomes even more painful when this downward cycle occurs in our spiritual life. In that case, the “quitting” is called by another name: Sin.

In Psalm 119, the Beth section (verses 9-16) opens with two contrasting thoughts:

  • How can a young man keep his way pure? By LIVING according to Your Word.
  • I seek You with all my heart; do not let me STRAY from Your commands.

Stray is a passive word. No real attention or foresight is required to wander or meander around. On the other hand, living is an active word. In the Hebrew, this word carries the idea of keeping careful watch; protecting; carefully tending.

So the question that leads to my success is this: What fascinates me? What dominates my thoughts? What motivates me?

The answer to these questions will determine my stick-to-itiveness.

The remaining verses in this section show the upward spiral away from sin if we will keep careful watch over how closely we stick to God’s Word.

  • → Living = guarding (v. 9)
  • → Seek You with all my heart (v. 10) … Yearning (in the Amplified Bible)
  • → Hidden Your Word (v. 11) … Treasured (in the Complete Jewish Bible)
  • → Personal praise (v. 12)
  • → With my lips… (v. 13) = verbal, public praise
  • → Rejoice (v. 14) … as in more than in any kind of wealth (in the CJB)
  • → Meditate (v. 15) = constant companion
  • → Delight (v. 16)

When we delight in God’s Word, the cycle is started over again—I will not neglect Your Word—but now with a renewed and intensified PASSION!

I want God’s Word to dominate my thoughts, and its principles to captivate me. I want to be fascinated by my relationship with Jesus Christ that comes through the revelation of the Bible to my heart.

There is no other way to live!

If you have missed any of the messages in our P119 series, you can access them all by clicking here.

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Perfect? Yes!

June 25, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

The opening words of Psalm 119 describe the end result of going through what I’m calling the P119 Spiritual Workout. In a word: Blessed.

In fact, this word is so exciting that the Hebrew language uses the emphatic thought here. Bringing that into English means that the first two verses of this chapter both begin…

O!! How blessed!!

That’s a wonderful goal, but the next two verses seem to bring us crashing back to earth. In order to enjoy these heights of blessing we are asked to live like this:

  • They do nothing wrong as they walk in His ways (v. 3).
  • God’s precepts are to be fully obeyed (v. 4).

Yikes! Nothing wrong?! Full obedience?! No mistakes?!

Even Jesus said, “Be perfect, therefore, as your Heavenly Father is perfect” (Matthew 5:48).

But pay attention to this: The sign of a maturing Christian is not one who never sins; the sign of a maturing Christian is one who is closing the gap between sin and repentance.

How does that work? Here’s the progression…

Realization of sin → Repentance of sin → Restoration of God’s blessing

The time gap between our repentance and God’s restoration is faster than the blink of an eye—faster than you can even comprehend. What often takes us a while is moving from realization to repentance. Instead, we explain, and justify, and make excuses, and drag our feet.

But a maturing Christian invites the inspection of the Holy Spirit through the reading of God’s Word and then is quick to realize sin and repent from it. When God restores us, do you know how we appear to Him? PERFECT!!

So realizing our sin, repenting of that sin, and experiencing God’s restoration is the fastest way to live as those who do nothing wrong and who are fully obeying God’s precepts.

Don’t wait any longer: realize and repent, and then experience God’s restoration as you stand perfect in His presence!

If you have missed any of the messages in our P119 series, you can access them all by clicking here.

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Be Your Sermon

June 22, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

Listen to the podcast of this post by clicking on the player below, and you can also subscribe on Apple, Spotify, or Audible.

Pastor, what’s God been speaking to you personally?

How has the Holy Spirit been working your sermon on your heart this week?

What has Scripture shown you about you (not just about your congregation)?

When you tell your congregation how God has been working on you, the Word comes alive. Because now they don’t see you as a perfect person preaching at them, but as a fellow traveler who’s hearing from God and learning on the journey just as they are.

“The preacher must throw his thought into his teaching. He must not weary the people by telling them the truth in a stale and unprofitable manner with nothing fresh from his own soul to give it force. Above all he must put heart work into preaching. He must feel what he preaches. It must be with him. It is never an easy thing. He must feel as if he could preach his very life away before the sermon is done.” ―Charles Spurgeon

I’d rather see a sermon than hear one any day;
I’d rather one should walk with me than merely show the way.
The eye’s a better pupil and more willing than the ear;
Fine counsel is confusing, but example’s always clear.
And the best of all preachers are the men who live their creeds.
For to see the good in action is what everybody needs.
I can soon learn how to do it if you’ll let me see it done;
I can watch your hands in actions, but your tongue too fast may run.
And the lectures you deliver may be very wise and true,
But I’d rather get my lesson by observing what you do.
For I may misunderstand you and the high advice you give,
But there’s no misunderstanding how you act and how you live. (Edgar A. Guest) 
 

C’mon, pastor, let us SEE your sermon!

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P119

June 20, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

Have you tried the P90x workout program? The idea is to work all different parts of your body in different ways: resistance training, cardio work, stretching. This multi-discipline approach is intended to give you a complete workout.

We are getting ready to start an intense spiritual workout at Calvary Assembly of God. This summer we’ll be launching The P119 Workout. We’ll be using the 119th chapter in the book of Psalms to have a multi-discipline approach to stretching and improving our spiritual lives.

Each week throughout the summer we will look at one of the 8-verse segments, and learn how to apply the principles to our daily routines. There will be some “workout instructions” given in our Sunday morning services, and then some on-your-own workout routines to do throughout the week.

I am really excited about the expanded spiritual strength everyone will gain from this. Please join me this Sunday at 10:30am.

If you missed any of the messages in our P119 series, check them out here:

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“The Bridge Builder”

June 17, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

I shared this poem in my Father’s Day message this morning, and several folks have asked me to share it. I’m happy to do so!

An old man walking a lonesome road,
Came at the evening, cold and gray,
To a chasm vast and wide and deep.
The old man crossed in the twilight dim,
The rolling stream had no fears for him;
But he turned when safe on the other side,
And built a bridge to span the tide.
“Old man,” said a fellow traveler near,
“You are wasting your strength with building here,
Your journey will end with the passing day,
You never again will pass this way,
You’ve crossed the chasm, deep and wide,
Why build you this bridge at eventide?”
The builder lifted his old gray head,
“Good friend, in the path I have come,” he said,
“There followeth after me today,
A youth whose feet must pass this way.
The chasm that was naught to me,
To the fair headed youth may a pitfall be.
He too must cross in the twilight dim –
Good friend, I am building this bridge for him.” —W.A. Dromgoale

I am thankful for all of the fathers who said they would be courageous enough to be a bridge-builder for their kids! May God bless you as you follow through on this noble calling.

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Be A Foolish Preacher

June 15, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

Pastor, do you realize how clever we try to be?

  • We come up with a catchy sermon series and add some stylish graphics.
  • Then we labor over sermon titles that sound so compelling.
  • As we write our sermons we try to dream up memorable patterns, like all three of our main points start with “S,” or we spell out the word “P.E.A.C.E.”

When the truth of the matter is, what we’re saying is foolishness.

Where is the wise man? Where is the scholar? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know Him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe. Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than man’s wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man’s strength. (1 Corinthians 1:20-25)

You don’t have to try to make God’s Word clever. It is already profound!

You don’t have to try to make it memorable. The Holy Spirit makes it memorable (John 14:26)!

You don’t have to make the Bible relevant. It is the most relevant, applicable wisdom that humanity has ever known! 

D.L. Moody said it this way:

“If God has given you a message, go and give it to the people as God has given it to you. It is a stupid thing for a man to try to be eloquent. Make your message, and not yourself, the most prominent thing. Don’t be self-conscious. Set your heart on what God has given you to do, and don’t be so foolish as to let your own difficulties or your own abilities stand in the way.”

Don’t try to be clever. Just be Spirit-led and you will utter the most profound, compelling, and memorable words ever spoken by a preacher!

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Strengths Formula

June 11, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

God wants you to be yourself, but not as you can make you. But to be the “you” He created you to be. Part of what He implanted in you was certain gifts, talents, and abilities. To the extent that you allow the Holy Spirit to (1) reveal these gifts to you, and (2) turn these gifts into strengths, you will find more joy in being “you” as your “you” builds up the Body of Christ.

Just before listing some of the innumerable spiritual gifts God reveals in humanity, the apostle Paul says this:

For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you. (Romans 12:3)

Does that sound contradictory at all: Do not think…but rather think?

The root word is the same in each usage (phroneo in the Greek), but the prefix is what sets them apart from each other.

  • The first has the prefix hyper-. That means it’s overly analyzed, overly concerned = self-focused. 
  • The second time the prefix is soph- (meaning “wise”). This is sound thinking, big-picture thinking = others-focused.

The Holy Spirit gives you sophroneo thinking to reveal your God-implanted gifts and talents to benefit others—to benefit the whole Body of Christ. He helps us turn our talents into strengths by using a formula like this:

Passions + Talents + Your Obedience = Strength for the Body

Pay attention to your passionate responses to situations, as they will reveal to you some of your gifts.

Listen to areas where others say you are talented. This will help you know how God has wired you.

Then you must be obedient to the prompting of the Holy Spirit in how to use your talents. If you let them sit on the shelf, they will never become strengths. Strengths develop when you passionately and obediently use your God-given talents for God’s glory.

The Holy Spirit wants to help you in all of these areas. Will you let Him?

If you’ve missed any of the messages in the Immersed series, you can find them all here.

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Getting Out Of The Hole

May 28, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

Yesterday in part two of our Immersed series, we looked at how helpless we are in trying to break free from sin’s pull on our lives. That is, we are helpless to help ourselves.

But with the Holy Spirit’s help, we go from helpless to hopeful!

In Romans 8, there are all of these contrasting statements about the sinful life versus the Spirit-led life. Our hope to move into the Spirit-led life turns on this phrase in verse 15: but by the Spirit. It is only by God’s Spirit that we can break free. To help illustrate this point, I read a rather long passage from C.S. Lewis’ Mere Christianity. Several people have asked to see this, so here it is—

“Now what was the sort of ‘hole’ man had got himself into? He had tried to set up on his own, to behave as if he belonged to himself. In other words, fallen man is not simply an imperfect creature who need improvement: he is a rebel who must lay down his arms. Laying down your arms, surrendering, saying you are sorry, realizing that you have been on the wrong track and getting ready to start life over again from the ground floor—that is the only way out of a ‘hole.’ This process of surrender—this movement full speed astern—is what Christians call repentance. Now repentance is no fun at all. It is something much harder than merely eating humble pie. It mean unlearning all the self-conceit and self-will that we have been training ourselves into for thousands of years. It means killing a part of yourself, undergoing a kind of death. In fact, it needs a good man to repent. And here comes the catch. Only a bad needs to repent: only a good man can repent perfectly. The worse you are the more you need it and the less you can do it. The only person who could do it perfectly would be a perfect person—and he would not need it.

“Remember, this repentance, this willing submission to humiliation and a kind of death, is not something God demands of you before He will take you back and which He could let you off is He chose: it is simply a description of what going back to Him is like. If you ask God to take you back without it, you are really asking Him to let you go back without going back. It cannot happen. Very well, then, we must go through with it. But the same badness which makes us need it, makes us unable to do it. Can we do it if God helps us? Yes, but what do we mean when we talk of God helping us? We mean God putting into us a bit of Himself.”

When we invite Christ into our lives, He places “a bit of Himself” in us: the Holy Spirit. That enables us to be perfectly forgiven.

But then when we allow the Holy Spirit to immerse us in Himself, it’s not just “a bit of Himself” we get, but all of Him. This opens the door to deeper intimacy, greater closeness, and a more God-glorifying life!

I want to live immersed!

If you’ve missed any of the messages in the Immersed series, you can find them all here.

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Immersed

May 16, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

What happens when we truly let the Holy Spirit have His way in our lives?

Could we experience today the things that are recorded in the Book of Acts?

Is it possible that God wants to do so much more through our lives than we are allowing Him to do now?

That last question, I believe is the most important one. One of the apostle Paul’s prayers went like this:

And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge — that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen. (Ephesians 3:17-21)

This is an expansive prayer … a mind-blowing prayer … a prayer that is asking God to go beyond our ability to contain all that He has for us.

The only way we can get to this place (and I want all of us to get to this place) is if we let go. In other words, if we will let the Holy Spirit totally immerse us in His presence, if we will not try to box Him up, or shut Him out of any area of our lives.

We’ll be learning more about Immersed this Sunday at Calvary Assembly of God. If you’ve missed any of the messages in this series, you can check them out here:

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