The
Prerequisite of Passion
Steve W. Reeves
INTRODUCTION:
A. In
1911 and 1912 two expeditions set out for the South Pole in Antarctica. One was
led by a British Naval officer, Robert
Falcon Scott. The other expedition was led by a
Norwegian, Roald Amundsen. Both expeditions
were well financed, well equipped
and led by seasoned explorers. Both of them
reached the South Pole. One of them
returned safely. The other perished.
1. Amundsen was passionate about
exploration. He spent years studying Antarctica.
He read journals of previous expeditions
to determine the best route. He
consulted with Eskimos to understand the
best ways to travel. He carefully planned
supply depots along his journey and
stocked them with more than ample supplies
just in case something went wrong. He
even marked his supply depots with flags
that extended out for a radius of ten
miles. His passion and preparation produced
success.
2. Although Scott was also a veteran
explorer he tried to cut corners. He wanted to
utilize new motorized sleds and ponies.
Neither of them worked and his men had
to drag the sleds behind them. He set up
his supply depots with a minimum of
rations and marked them with just a
single flag. He chose a longer route that put
him a month behind the other expedition.
On the return trip his team became lost
and perished just eleven miles from
their base camp.
3. What was the difference? Passion that
led to preparation and planning.
B.
Passion. Commitment. Dedication. These are the ingredients that often make the
difference between success and failure;
growth and decline; life and death.
1. Solomon wrote, “Whatever your hand finds
to do, do it with all your
might” (Ecclesiastes 9:10).
2. In Colossians 3:23 Paul said, “Whatever
you do, do your work heartily, as for the
Lord, not for me.”
C. Zig
Ziglar wrote, “Peak performance is determined by passion.” Passion is the
quality
of life that separates the average from the
superior. It is the principle that sets
excellence apart from mediocrity. I do not
know anyone who welcomes mediocrity
into their life.
1. When you go to a restaurant do you want
mediocre service and mediocre food?
2. Do you want your child to receive a
mediocre education?
3. Do you want to be treated by a mediocre
doctor?
4. The person who is passionate about what
they are doing refuses to accept
mediocrity.
D. In
1 Corinthians 9 we find a self-portrait of the apostle Paul. In both 1 and 2
Corinthians Paul had to defend himself
against critics. Both of these letters contain
more auto-biographical information about
Paul than any other books in the New
Testament. In 1 Corinthians 9:16-27 we have
a glimpse into Paul’s passion.
I. A PASSION FOR A PURPOSE
A. Paul’s life was consumed with His
purpose. In verse 16 he wrote,
“For if I preach the gospel, I have
nothing to boast of, for I am under compulsion; for
woe is me if I do not preach the gospel.”
1. The Gospel was Paul’s life. Earlier
in this letter he wrote, “For Christ did not send
me to baptize, but to preach the
gospel, not in cleverness of speech, so that the
cross of Christ would not be made void”
(1 Corinthians 1:17).
2. In 1 Corinthians 2:1-2 he wrote, “And
when I came to you, brethren, I did not
come with superiority of speech or
of wisdom, proclaiming to you the testimony
of God. 2 For I
determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and
Him crucified.”
3. In Philippians 1:21 – 24 he wrote, “For
to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.
22 But if I am to live on in the flesh, this will
mean fruitful labor for me; and I do not
know which to choose. 23 But
I am hard-pressed from both directions,
having the
desire to depart and be with Christ,
for that is very much better; 24 yet
to remain
on in the flesh is more necessary
for your sake.”
B. Paul’s purpose was to preach Jesus.
Whether it was to philosophers in Athens or
Corinth, a jailor in Philippi, Caesar’s
guards in Rome or whoever he could find Paul
passionately pursued his purpose.
1. in all types of circumstances. Even
when he had been stoned (Acts 14:19),
imprisoned (Acts 16:25) or encounted
other situations (2 Corinthians11:22-29).
2. He continued preaching when he was criticized
by the philosophers and “wise”
men of his culture. In Athens they
called him an “idle babbler.” In Corinth
they called him “foolish.” In
Ephesus they labeled him as a “trouble maker.” He
wasn’t concerned about himself. He
just kept on preaching.
3. In the midst of challenges and
dangers he never lost his passion. He
was like
Jeremiah in Jeremiah 20:9, “But if I
say, ‘I will not remember Him or speak
anymore in His name,’ Then in my
heart it becomes like a burning fire
shut up in my bones; And I am weary of holding it in,”
shut up in my bones; And I am weary of holding it in,”
II. A PASSION FOR PEOPLE
A. In verses 19-23 Paull went on to write, “For though I am free from all men, I have
A. In verses 19-23 Paull went on to write, “For though I am free from all men, I have
made myself a slave to all, so that I
may win more. 20 To the Jews I became as a
Jew, so that I might win Jews; to those
who are under the Law, as under the Law
though not being myself under the Law,
so that I might win those who are under the
Law; 21 to those who are
without law, as without law, though not being without the
law of God but under the law of Christ,
so that I might win those who are without
law. 22 To the weak I
became weak, that I might win the weak; I have become all
things to all men, so that I may by all
means save some. 23 I do all things for the
sake of the gospel, so that I may become
a fellow partaker of it.
Became all things to all people. Got
into their world.
1. Paul was willing to do whatever was
necessary to win people to Christ.
2. He would sit down with the Jews
according to their traditions and talk about the
Gospel. He would sit down with the
Gentiles, eat a Bar-B-Que sandwich and
talk about Jesus. He would sit down
with a free man and talk about becoming a
bond-servant. He would sit down with a bond-servant and talk about
becoming a
free man through Christ.
3. He would move out of his comfort zone
to reach people. People were his
passion.
4. I was reminded recently of Herb
Kelleher, longtime CEO of Southwest Airlines.
Did you know that Southwest was the
only airline that sustained profitability
without cancelling any flights after
September 11, 2001. What is the secret
behind its success? Kelleher said,
“Treat people right.” He has a passion for
people beginning with employees. He
says if you treat your employees right and
they are happy they will make the
customers happy. Happy customers come
back. Returning customers generate income
and that makes stock holders happy!
B. The church needs to address this issue.
What was Jesus’ passionate about?
Serving people. What was Paul’s passion?
Preaching Christ to serve people. What
should be our passion today? People. Are
we going to serve ourselves or others?
Are we going to serve tradition or
people? Where is our passion?
III. A
PASSION FOR A PRIZE
A. This is not unbridled or unrestrained
passion. Verses 24-27 reveal that Paul’s
passion was coupled with discipline and
perseverance. “Do you not know that those
who run in a race all run, but only one receives the prize? Run in
such a way that
you may win. 25 Everyone
who competes in the games exercises self-control in all
things. They then do it to receive a perishable wreath,
but we an imperishable.
26 Therefore I run in
such a way, as not without aim; I box in such a way, as not
beating the air; 27 but
I discipline my body and make it my slave, so that, after I have
preached to others, I myself will not be
disqualified.”
1. Run the race with determination. Only
one receives the prize.
2.
Run the race with discipline. Compete according to the rules. Train and
condition
yourself to win.
3. Finish the race. Many people start
the race but never finish it. Many are
passionate about starting but lose
their passion and fail to finish.
CONCLUSION:
A.
Vince Lombardi, the legendary head coach of the Green Bay Packers, was known
for
his passion about football. Of all the
notable Lombardi quotes one of ny favorites is,
“Football is like life - it requires
perseverance, self-denial, hard work, sacrifice,
dedication and respect for authority.” In other words, “passion.”
B. I
challenge you to find your mission in life and pursue if passionately.
Most
importantly, however, I challenge you to
respond to your Heavenly Father who is
passionate about you. He loves you more
than you’ll ever be able to grasp. He is
given more for you than you’ll ever
comprehend. He promises you more than you can
possibly imagine. Will you come to Him
today through faith and obedience to His
Son, Jesus Christ.
