Confessions of a Christian Part 4

CONFESSIONS OF A CHRISTIAN – 4

 “Sometimes I feel I’ve lost my passion.” 

 The Theme and Theology of Passion in the Bible:

 ·      Quana, Hebrew; “zeloo”, Greek: literally meaning “jealousy” or a strong emotion, a zealous desire

·      Used positively, as in “God is jealous and passionate for His people” and negatively, as in Israel is “jealous for false Gods”

 The Problem With Too Little Christ- Like Passion

                  Romans 12:11 – “Never be lacking in zeal”

 The Problem With Too Much Manic Passion

                  Linked with outbursts of anger (2 Corinthians 12:20; Galatians 5:20) and even persecution of Christians (Romans 10:2; Philippians 3:6)

 

The Passion “Groove”

 CASE STUDY:

1 Timothy and Regaining A Groove For God

·      The Ephesus church plant is a great opportunity for the gospel with very high stakes if they fail

·      The Church is facing simultaneous life threatening problems: fighting, doctrinal disputes, leadership changes

·      Timothy is young, scared and in charge due to a battlefield promotion – He has lost his passion

·      The passage is Paul’s response to Timothy’s resignation letter

 1Timothy 1:3-6

"Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the command of God our Savior and of Christ Jesus our hope, to Timothy my true son in the faith: Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. As I urged you when I went into Macedonia, stay there in Ephesus so that you may command certain men not to teach false doctrines any longer nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies. These promote controversies rather than God’s work – which is by faith. The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. Some have wandered away from these and turned to meaningless talk."

 

How To CULTVATE and KEEP YOUR PASSION for GOD

 1.    DEVOTE Yourself to a God-Size Dream

command certain men not to teach false doctrines any longer nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies. These promote controversies rather than God’s work – which is by faith. (verse 3-4)

 PASSION KILLER: Endless drama over non-essential issues extinguish passion.

 KEYS TO CULTIVATION: The size of your dream will determine the ENDURANCE level of your heart.

 

2. Hold on to the Right GOAL

The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. (verse 5)

 PASSION KILLER: Any goal smaller than LOVING GOD and LOVING OTHERS will eventually extinguish your passion.

 KEYS TO CULTIVATE: We BECOME what we love – so be deliberate about God – honoring goals.

 

3. Practice the Discipline of CONFESSION

The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. (verse 5)

 

 PASSION KILLER: The effort required to actively hide sin destroys passion

 KEYS TO CULTIVATE: You don’t have to be vulnerable with EVERYONE but you should be vulnerable with SOMEONE.

 

 4. Continually Rediscover Your “WHY”

The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. (verse 5)

 

PASSION KILLER: If we do not know why we are doing something, we will not do it for very long.

KEY TO CULTIVATE: Lifelong healthy passion is rooted in GRATITUDE for the life, sacrifice and resurrection of Jesus.