A Resolution Of Evolution

TEXT: Acts 2:1-4, 37-42

Evolution:

A gradual process in which something changes into a different and usually more complex or better form.

The process of developing.

The process of evolving into something different.

This word “Evolve” means to develop, or to change over time.

On the day of Pentecost, something happened that instantly changed a lot of peoples’ lives, and in fact, introduced into this world the opportunity for everyone of us to be changed.

When the Holy Ghost fell, a Power was unleashed in this world that would change people forever.

They had been praying and seeking God, and they had indeed been with Jesus Christ just a few days earlier, but when the Holy Ghost fell on them, it was like nothing they had ever had before.

Yes they had cast out devils in Jesus Name, but now they had that Power living inside them.

Yes, they had laid their hands on people and they were healed in Jesus Name, but now that Power was living inside them.

They had comfort like never before!

They had peace like never before!

There was an instant change that came upon them when they received the Holy Ghost.

But, I want you to see that the effects of this Holy Ghost went much deeper than the initial experience, but it installed in them something that would go on & on & on, day after day, month after month, year after year…

It was not just a quick fix, but it was a long-term relationship!

It was not here today and gone tomorrow!

…but, it was something that would remain, and abide, and continue burning in their lives.

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Throughout the scriptures, Fire was commonly the symbol of the presence of God.

In the burning bush, Fire represented God…

Regularly God would come down in the form of Fire from Heaven and consume the sacrifices that had been placed upon the altar.

In the Exodus, God showed up as a cloud by day, and a Pillar of FIRE by night to lead them in the darkness.

And it didn’t stop in the Old Testament, but in the New Testament, we find that God was still being represented as FIRE.

John the Baptist was doing a great work, but he said, I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance. but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire:

And then, on the Day of Pentecost, things happened in a way that there was no question about what was happening…

…because my Bible says that when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.

    ²And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.

   ³And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them.

   ⁴And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues,

What did that mean???

It meant that God Himself was pouring out His Spirit out them!

God Himself was coming in to visit them!

God Himself was coming to live inside them!

And when God showed up, their lives were changed.

But what I want you to see is that this change was not a one-time event, but it was a way of life.

It wasn’t a blast of energy that depleted after a night’s sleep.

It wasn’t meant to be enjoyed for a moment and forgotten about the next day.

But, there was something that had gotten into them that affected the way they lived…

There was a FIRE that had gotten into them that began to change them…

It began to develop them…

It began to evolve each and every one of them into what God wanted them to be…

It began to move them into more and more…and, it didn’t stop after the first night, or after the first week, or after the first month, but Verse 42 says, “they continued stedfastly…”

Sure they had troubles to deal with, but “they continued stedfastly…”

Sure they were talked about, and looked at funny, but “they continued stedfastly…”

Sure they had people talk about them behind their back, but “they continued stedfastly…”

Why?

Because they had a FIRE inside them that Continued to burn!

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When a fire comes through, it changes things.

Things don’t look the same…

Things don’t seem the same…

That fire continues to take new ground…and new things…and gets into different area…

And as long as that Fire is burning strong, it will continue to consume and change everything in its path.

However, unlike most of the victims of fire, I fear that some of us in the Apostolic Pentecostal church have stopped the fire from moving us any further.

We had the fire burning strong in our life at one time, but somehow over time, the flame just isn’t as hot as it was before.

At one time, the Fire of God would Move us, and Urge us, and we would respond by getting up, and moving out into whatever God had dealt with us about…but now somehow, something has interrupted our minds from having that constant burden of moving forward in the Lord.

Church, I’ve come to tell you tonight, that as we enter into a brand new year, we must enter into a brand new way of thinking.

We cannot be trapped by the thought of “This is all I’ll ever have”…

                                                                        “This is all I’ll ever be…”

                                                                        “This is all I’ll ever be able to do…”

If you’re really being honest with yourself, some of you have thought that this past year, but I want you to know that if you will allow the fire of the Holy Ghost to again begin to Consume you, and Change you…

You can have more than you’ve ever had!

                                                You can be more than you’ve ever been!

                                    …and, You can do more than you’ve ever done!

There must be movement…

There must be progress…

There must be advancement…

We cannot let things stagnate in our lives, and in our churches…

Hey! I know there are plenty of things to get you down…

I know the new wears off…

I know a lot of people are lazy, and just won’t get committed…

I know it seems like you’re the only one worshipping sometimes…

But, we cannot allow the gloom and doom of humanity to back us into a corner, while God is wanting to do so much more than He’s ever done before.

Hey!  I’m telling every one of you…God has got some things He wants you to do this year, and you don’t have time to listen to the lies of the devil!

The devil wants you to feel weak!

He wants you to feel like things are hopeless!

He wants you to get disgusted and discouraged!

But, it’s time that we come out of those lies with a voice of victory, and say “Rejoice not against me, o mine enemy, for when I fall, I shall Arise!”

Bro ______, I’m not ready for the devil to bury me in a spiritual coffin…

I’m not ready to be declared spiritually dead…

 

I’M READY TO MOVE ON INTO SOMETHING GREATER FOR GOD!!!

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Apostolics…

Let me tell you…We’ve got the truth!

I said, We’ve got the truth.

This Apostolic way is the Truth.

The death, burial, and Resurrection is still the way to salvation!

And, the world needs to hear this gospel message, but if the devil could just snuff out this flame.

…if the devil could just snuff out this fire.

He would be breathing a whole lot easier.

Hey! Pentecost is alive and well.

And, If the devil could stop this wave of Pentecostal Power, and Apostolic Authority, then he would be breathing a whole lot easier.

See…it’s not really the building that frightens the devil…

It’s not the sign that frightens the devil.

But, it’s what is happening that scares the devil.

If Satan could have a New Years Wish tonight, it would be to stagnate the rivers of Apostolic Revival.

Satan is not bothered by dead churches.

Satan is not hindered in the least by dry churches.

Satan does not worry about saints that got a feeling 20 years ago, but haven’t had one since.

He’s not upset by saints that keep the pews warm instead of keeping revival alive.

Satan does not worry about Prayerless People, or Worshipless Weaklings…

But, when the saints get exited,

and the church gets unified,

and the preacher gets anointed,

and the Word goes forth,

and the flames of Holy Ghost revival starts to burn throughout the church,

That’s when the devil gets worried.

That’s when the devil gets bothered.

I wish you would join with me tonight and let’s give the devil something to worry about.

He’d love for you to stagnate right where you are, but I wonder if somebody would stand to your feet, and say, “Devil, You haven’t seen the last of me!”

                                                “Devil, You haven’t heard the last of me!”

Come On!…Somebody dig your heels in deep and say, 

Devil, you’ve tried to steal my prayer life, but I’m fixin’ to pray like never before!

You tried to steal my excitement, but I’m fanning the flame again tonight!

You tried to steal my anointing, but I’m getting it fresh tonight.

You tried to get my Joy, but I’m reclaiming it tonight!

You tried to get my Peace, but I’m taking it back tonight, in the Name of Jesus!

You’ve tried to steal my worship, but this next year, I’m gonna worship like never before!

Oh, I know the devil has tried to steal your freedom to worship, but I wish somebody would get excited about what God is going to do in your life this next year, and praise Him in advance right now.

Come On, Let Loose…

            You can have the freedom of Worship back right now!

            Tell him…“Devil, I ain’t settin back tonight, I’m gonna praise the Lord with all my might!”

                        “I’m not staying strapped to my pew!”        

           

            Somebody that hasn’t leaped for joy in a while, Why don’t you get up in the air as high as you can right now?

            Somebody that hasn’t run the isles in a while, why don’t you give the devil a heart-attack, and make a lap or two?

            How about some of you elderly saints that may feel like you’re too old for all this stuff…maybe you can’t jump anymore, but why don’t you stomp you’re feet on the floor of this sanctuary and give the devil a real big head-ache right now?

That’s it!  We’re making a statement here tonight…

We’re not some dead, dried-up bunch of people…

We’re not some stagnant bunch of has-beens, but we are Alive and Excited about the Lord, and this next year is going to be the best year we’ve seen yet!

Come On, Let’s continue with this atmosphere of Praise.

God is loosing some people to do a greater work right now.

That’s right, Through your praise God is creating a brand new boldness in you!

You want a greater boldness in your witness?  Then I challenge you to praise in a way you’ve never praised before?

What about you young folks?  Some of you never have raised your hands before…Why don’t you throw your hands in the air, and say, “God, I want more this next year.”?

I told you, The devil is not worried about dead churches, but right now the devil is getting a little hot under the collar…

He don’t appreciate it when you act like that.

He don’t like it when you act like that.

He don’t like that enthusiasm.

                        He don’t like your level of Faith.

He don’t like your vision for Revival.

He don’t like your vision for the Miraculous!

But, I wonder if anybody would join with me today in saying, “I don’t really care what the devil likes!”

I don’t have to have his stamp of approval, I want to see God move!

I want to see God move!

Come On…

With the help of God, This Next Year, We’re going to put Satan under our feet!

We’re going to see more healings than ever before!

We’re going to see more miracles than ever before!

We’re going see deliverance like never before!

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Sometimes we’re tempted to look back over the past and see the down-falls, and the slip-ups, and the more we look at the past, the more discouraged we get.

I’ll tell you, church, we’ve got to quit worrying about the “What if’s”

, and the “What About’s”, and the “What if I had done it this way or that way.”

We’ve got to quit worrying about “What Might have been”, and get our mind on “What is going to be”.

Oh, I wish I could get somebody to make up their mind tonight, that this is going to be my best year ever…

            This is going to be my greatest year ever.

Last year may have been tough, but in Jesus Name, Things are starting Fresh tonight!

 

But, it’s only going to happen if we take the bull by the horns, and make a Resolution for Evolution.

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Brothers & Sisters, I’ll tell you what I did before I got here tonight that I want MORE than I’ve ever had before.

I’ve made up my mind that I’m not interested in setting still, but I’m ready to make some strides for the Lord.

See… I’m convinced that God is looking for somebody that He can use in this very hour, and I want to be that one!

I want more Power.

I want more Strength.

I want more of the Word.

I want more anointing when I preach.

I want more People come into the church.

I want more People to Repent.

I want more People getting Baptized in Jesus Name.

I want more People Filled with the Holy Ghost – speaking in tongues.

I want more Love.

I want More Unity.

I want more Fellowship.

I want more Power in my Prayer Life.

I want more Dedication.

I want more Commitment.

I WANT TO EVOLVE INTO SOMETHING GREATER FOR GOD!

You say, Bro. Davis, You’re kind-of being greedy ain’t you?

No, I don’t think it’s greedy at all.

I want everything that the Lord has for us.

We can set here until we rot, and stay the way we are, but God wants us to keep moving forward!

Anything that sets still stagnates.

And I don’t want to get stagnant, but I want to keep on moving for God.

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Closing:

I don’t know if you’ve believed a word of what I’ve said here tonight, but I want to assure you that if we will resolve to evolve, God will do the work.

If we’ll get more dedicated than ever, God will produce things that we’ve never seen before.

We’ll have harvests like never before. (Bro. _____, 2005 can be the best year for your church ever!)

We’ll see miracles that we’ve never seen before.

We’ll see the lost saved like never before.

But, it’s going to take our dedication…

            It’s going to take our heart’s desire…

            It’s going to take us having a burden…

            It’s going to take us continuing even when we get hit….

            It’s going to take us enduring, even when we feel weak…

Don’t you get stuck in a RUT…You’ve got to come out of that thing, and Run On for Jesus!

I wonder if there is anybody here that has been hammered by hindrances this last year, but you ain’t quite ready to walk away yet?

Is there anybody here that has had your share of trouble, but you’re not interested in giving up yet.

Oh, I wonder if there is a pastor here that hasn’t seen the growth that you wanted to see this last year, but you’re burden still wants to see the lost saved?

Hey!   It’s commitment time!

It’s time that we forgot about the failures of 2004 and make a commitment that this next year is going to be the best year you’ve ever had.

Come On…Make a Commitment Right Now!

            “I’m gonna worship like never before!”

            “I’m gonna praise like never before!”

            “I’m gonna sing & shout like never before!”

            “I’m gonna preach like never before!”

            “I’m gonna witness like never before!”

We’ve got to continue to Move Forward!

Bro ______, I want you to stir up Apostolic Revival in every church you go to this next year.