Download to read offline
Uploaded byRick Peterson
Seven Powerful Words
This document summarizes a sermon about the most powerful words in the world according to the speaker. The sermon discusses the seven words "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me" from Philippians 4:13. It breaks down each phrase of the verse individually, explaining what each means and providing biblical examples. The overall message is that through faith in Christ, ordinary people can accomplish extraordinary things.
More Related Content
More from Rick Peterson
Seven Powerful Words
- 1. Adapted from aRoger Thomas sermon http://www.sermoncentral.com/print_friendly.asp? SermonID=80154
- 2. Magicians perform amazingfeats with just a word— “abracadabra.” That’s not for real.
- 4. I want toshare with you seven words that are for real. They are the most powerful words in the world. These seven little words, if understood and believed—really believed, will enable you to overcome any obstacle, conquer every challenge, fight off every foe, bear any burden, and shoulder any sacrifice.
- 5. Ready? Inscribe them onyour heart. Weave them into the fabric of your future. These words will revolutionize your life. “ .” KJV
- 6.
- 7. Let’s unlock thepower of these words a phrase at a time. —This first word reminds us of the “people of faith.” “ .” Make no mistake about it. God uses people to accomplish His will in this world. Remember what scripture says, ESV
- 8. Oh, sometimes Heuses angels. He used a donkey to save Balaam. A huge fish to correct Jonah & ravens to feed Elijah. But almost always the Lord of glory calls men and women to do His bidding. But not just any men and women. God is partial to a certain kind.
- 9. God seeks outordinary folk to use. God seldom uses the mighty, the powerful, the rich, or the influential. The reason is obvious. Too often such people are too full of themselves to be useful to God. That’s why the Apostle Paul who penned these words wrote,
- 10.
- 11. If that istrue, and it is, then these words apply to you and me as certainly as they did to the Apostle Paul. “ .” , not somebody else, not just exceptional people, not just the rich, the famous, the powerful, or the talented, not just preachers or missionaries. . But this is just the beginning.
- 12. These next twowords reveal the perspective of faith. “ .” It is a fact of human nature. We seldom accomplish more than we think we can. People who think can’t, can’t! Henry Ford said, “Success begins with I can. Failure with I can’t!”
- 13. The late CharlieJones used to tell salesmen about the lad who was sitting sadly under a tree by the road as a master salesman drove by. The boy sat by a scruffy looking little puppy under a crudely scrawled sign reading, “Puppy for sale, cheap!” The look on the kid’s face was enough to tell the salesman he wasn’t having much luck.
- 14. The man stoppedhis car and walked over. The boy told him his plight. His dog had pups and his dad told him he could have the money if he sold this last one. But nobody was interested. The salesman offered some advice. “You need to think positive. You have to believe that you have the best product in the world. You have to make it look good. You have to make people believe this is the best dog ever.”
- 15. The boy listenedintently as the man told him everything he needed to know about salesmanship. Finally the salesman moved on to his appointment. An hour later he was on his way to his next appointment.
- 16. The boy withthe puppy was still there. But this time he was dressed in his best duds. The dog had been washed and brushed. There was a big bow around his neck. The sign now read, “World’s greatest dog for sale. $10,000 dollars!” “Oh, no,” the salesman thought to himself, “What have I done?” Unfortunately he didn’t have time to straighten out the youngster.
- 17. Later that daythe salesman happened down the same street. He had almost forgotten about the lad. As he drove by he noticed that the sign was still there. The boy and dog were gone, but across the $10,000 sign was scrawled in big letters “SOLD!”
- 18. The man couldn’tbelieve his eyes. He had to stop and find out what really happened. He walked up to the house and asked for the lad. The boy came to the door with a big smile on his face. “Tell me, son. You didn’t sell that scrawny pup for any $10,000?” “I sure did,” replied the boy. Then he hesitated and added, “Sort of. I traded him for two $5,000 cats.”
- 19. It is amazingwhat you can do when you don’t know you can’t. David didn’t know Goliath was too big to stop. Caleb didn’t know the Promised Land couldn’t be conquered. Joshua didn’t know Jericho’s walls were too strong. Elijah didn’t know his enemies were too many.
- 20. Faith is morethan positive thinking. But it is never less. God has never accomplished anything through folk who say “I can’t!” He has moved mountains, toppled kingdoms, and turned the world upside down with ordinary folk who say “I can!” I can! Not I might, I should, I could do, if.
- 21. —That’s the potentialof faith. “ .” That’s a mighty big promise. But no bigger than other promises in the Bible. How about these “ ”? ESV
- 24.
- 25. Paul penned thesewords from personal experience. He knew what he was talking about. He knew Christ was the Lord of all circumstances, not just the good ones. I sure some of you may recall some extreme situation that has taken place in your life & you're thinking, "Thank God for that? Yeah, right!" Well, think about this: The Apostle Paul had some terrible situations in life that could have turned him into a sour & bitter old man. But they didn't! Listen to some of his words.
- 26.
- 27. Remember Paul wrote,ESV How could any good come out of those terrible things? We can’t see the future results stemming from some terrible event. God can!
- 28. We need topractice thanking God in every situation. ESV
- 29. Christian author MaxLucado writes: In God Came Near I've told how our oldest daughter fell into a swimming pool when she was two years old. A friend saw her and pulled her to safety. What I didn't tell was what happened the next morning in my prayer time. I made a special effort to record my gratitude in my journal. I told God how wonderful he was for saving her.
- 30. As clearly asif God himself were speaking, this question came to mind: Would I be less wonderful had I let her drown? Would I be any less a good God for calling her home? Would I still be receiving your praise this morning had I not saved her? Is God still a good God when he says no?
- 31. Make a mentallist of how God has provided for you in the past. Use that as the basis for recognizing how he will provide for your needs in the future. Instead of complaining or worrying, take your requests directly to the Lord. With all this in mind listen to the context of our key verse.
- 32.
- 33. Some of youknow this by experience. Some of you have suffered loss. Many of you have faced problems, confronted temptations, wrestled with habits, and struggled to make decisions. It wasn’t easy. Some who knew you probably thought you wouldn’t make it. But you did.
- 34. And because ofit, you know the power of these words. “ —not just the easy things, not just the things that everyone else is doing, not just the things I have always done before— .”
- 35. But our lastphrase is the key. This final phrase reveals the true power of faith. I want to make this clear. This phrase is not about the power of positive thinking.
- 36. This is notsome kind of pull yourself up by your bootstraps slogan. It isn’t a promise that you can do anything if you dream big dreams and reach for the stars. Nonsense. The power, the secret, is not in you. The power is in Christ. KJV
- 37. Paul said itelsewhere, ESV As Jesus reminded his disciples, ESV
- 38. The Old Testamentprophet declared, ESV It’s not about us! It’s all about HIM!
- 39. Unless Jesus Christis in you, unless he is the Lord of your life, you have no promise of God’s power. There is no guarantee of personal or spiritual success. Even if you do get ahead in this world, it won’t matter in a hundred years. As Jesus warned his disciples, ESV
- 40. Here and there,now and then, it is “ .” There they are. Words packed with big promise. Remember them. Believe them. Most of all live them. You may be surprised by what happens. Your dreams may not all come true. Your problems won’t necessarily all disappear. But something better could happen.
- 41. Phillip Brooks, agreat American preacher of another day, explained it like this, “Do not pray for easy lives, pray to be stronger people; do not pray for tasks equal to your powers, pray for powers equal to your tasks. Then the doing of your work may be no miracle, but you shall be a miracle. Every day you shall wonder at yourself, the richness of the life that has come to you by the grace of God.”
- 42. Say them withme, “ - - - .”