How well does your car work when the battery is dead? Is it any fun to watch your TV when the electricity is out? Does it do any good at all to have a cell phone if you never bother to charge it? Think about it. How stupid is it to think that your electronics will work well when there is no power source?
Sadly, there are "Christians" all over the place thinking that they can use their talent and their gifts to have an impact on the world around them. There are church-workers everywhere thinking that their planning and abundant resources will make a difference for THE Kingdom. It is sad because no matter how talented you are, how gifted you are, how much you plan, or how many resources you have at your disposal; your efforts will be useless and futile if you are not plugged into God's power source - the Holy Spirit.
"I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit, apart from me you can do nothing." (John 15:5)
Let me be honest and blunt here. I'm tired of seeing churches think they can make a difference for the Kingdom of God with their talents, gifts, resources, and planning while completely ignoring, neglecting, and denying the true power of the Holy Spirit that is strong, alive, and well today!!!
Take a minute to scan through the book of Acts. Compare the church in Acts with the church today then compare the results. Did they have elaborate buildings worth millions? Did they have great orators that could impress the public with great messages? Did they use radio-quality music and professional bands to orchestrate their worship experiences? From what I see in Acts, the answer is NO! They simply had God's Word and the power of the Holy Spirit.
How else can you explain how Peter, in just a few weeks time, went from being so scared that he denied even knowing Jesus, to being the man that preached a message and had 3,000 people respond in one day? Peter and the other apostles did not accomplish this with talent, not with money, not with planning, not with buildings. They accomplished it with the power of God's Holy Spirit.
Why would we expect this to be any different today? Throughout the Bible and history, God has always chosen the LEAST talented and those with the FEWEST resources to make the biggest difference for His Kingdom. The church has clearly forgotten this truth, but wonders why its impact is so limited. It is time that the church remember the true source of its power. Until then we might as well take the battery out of our cell phone and then spend the rest of the day wondering why we can't make any calls!
