A PASSIONATE GENERATION
REVELATION 2:1-7
You
have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not
grown weary. Yet I hold this against
you: You have forsaken your first love. Remember the height from
which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If
you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from
its place (Rev 2:3-5)
In the last days, there is going to
be an attack on the time we spend with God. Dan 7:25 says that …he (the anti-Christ) shall speak great words against the most high
and shall wear out the saints of the Most High… (KJV). It is probably even
happening now.
The primary priority of the church
is to love God (Mt 22:3-38). The Lord seeks relationship with His children. Our
response to His love should be to love Him with all that we are. There should
be some kind of ministry to you from the Lord even as you study His word or
worship. You feel burdens lifted off, peace etc.
Attending just a Sunday service
will not be adequate in this generation. The last day generation will be a
passionate generation. They will keep their appointment with God in their
devotional time. They will burn for God.
The natural heart is cold and has
no desire for the things of God. Once you get born again, your heart is fired
up. God does not want you cold, dry or dead but passionate for Him.
The Church of Ephesus sometimes
called the loveless church appears in Rev 2:1-7. Though the Lord commended it
for several things, He rebuked them for forsaking their first love. In the fire
of your first love, you both did the commandments of God and ENJOYED them but
as your love vanishes, you may do the same things but find them a burden or
robbing you. There are 3 types of obedience:
Affection
Obedience : In this you obey because you love Him and want to. It is done in
gratitude. This is the highest form of obedience
Duty
Obedience : Here one obeys because they know it is their duty as a
Christian to obey
Fear
Obedience : They don’t want to obey and they don’t care. But they
rather obey in fear of consequences
The passionate generation will not
care what others say. They will serve the lord wholeheartedly. If you are going
live passionately for God, you are going to have to understand God’s grace. And
this is 3 fold:
1.
If you never
read your bible again, fast again, pray again, it does not change God’s love
for you. He keeps saying, “Come to me!” God does not love you more because you
read the bible. But if you read it, you are likely to love Him more.
2.
You approach Him
from a position where you know you are not condemned
3.
You run to do
those things (prayer, fasting, studying the word etc.) with ease
Only one thing matters. David,
Mary, Daniel all had this one thing in common – spending time with the Lord
(Luke 10, Dan 6:10, Ps 27:4)
One thing I ask of
the LORD, this is what I seek:
that I may dwell in the house of the LORD
all the days of my life (Ps 27:4) NIV