PASSIONATE LIVING VERSUS PASSIVE LIVING

Romans 12:11, “Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord;”

Living is not just existence, but consists of human thoughts, words, works and walk. For living to be exciting, successful and impactful it must be done passionately, not passively. Ecclesiastes 9:10, “Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest. “ Colossians 3:23, “And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men;”

Jesus Christ, our Perfect Example of passionate living Mark 1:12-45.

It takes passion to the following:

1. Go into the wilderness for fasting and prayer. Mark 1:12-13, “12And immediately the Spirit driveth him into the wilderness. 13And he was there in the wilderness forty days, tempted of Satan; and was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered unto him.”
2. Preach the gospel and call people to repentance. Mark 1:14-15, “14Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, 15And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.”
3. Call people to leave their occupation (fishing) to join the ministry of soul-winning. Mark1 16-20, “16Now as he walked by the sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew his brother casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers. 17And Jesus said unto them, Come ye after me, and I will make you to become fishers of men. 18And straightway they forsook their nets, and followed him. 19And when he had gone a little further thence, he saw James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, who also were in the ship mending their nets. 20And straightway he called them: and they left their father Zebedee in the ship with the hired servants, and went after him.”
4. Teach authoritatively. Mark 1:21-22, “21And they went into Capernaum; and straightway on the sabbath day he entered into the synagogue, and taught. 22And they were astonished at his doctrine: for he taught them as one that had authority, and not as the scribes.”
5. Cast out unclean spirits. Mark 1:23-28, “23And there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit; and he cried out, 24Saying, Let us alone; what have we to do with thee, thou Jesus of Nazareth? art thou come to destroy us? I know thee who thou art, the Holy One of God. 25And Jesus rebuked him, saying, Hold thy peace, and come out of him. 26And when the unclean spirit had torn him, and cried with a loud voice, he came out of him. 27And they were all amazed, insomuch that they questioned among themselves, saying, What thing is this? what new doctrine is this? for with authority commandeth he even the unclean spirits, and they do obey him. 28And immediately his fame spread abroad throughout all the region round about Galilee.”
6. Heal the sick and cast out demons. Mark 1:29-34,“29And forthwith, when they were come out of the synagogue, they entered into the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. 30But Simon’s wife’s mother lay sick of a fever, and anon they tell him of her. 31And he came and took her by the hand, and lifted her up; and immediately the fever left her, and she ministered unto them. 32And at even, when the sun did set, they brought unto him all that were diseased, and them that were possessed with devils. 33And all the city was gathered together at the door. 34And he healed many that were sick of divers diseases, and cast out many devils; and suffered not the devils to speak, because they knew him.”
7. Rise up early in the morning to pray. Mark 1:35-37, “35And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out, and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed. 36And Simon and they that were with him followed after him. 37And when they had found him, they said unto him, All men seek for thee.”
8. Go to other towns to preach there. Mark 1:38-39, “38And he said unto them, Let us go into the next towns, that I may preach there also: for therefore came I forth. 39And he preached in their synagogues throughout all Galilee, and cast out devils.”
9. Touch and cleanse a leper. Mark 1:40-44, “40And there came a leper to him, beseeching him, and kneeling down to him, and saying unto him, If thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. 41And Jesus, moved with compassion, put forth his hand, and touched him, and saith unto him, I will; be thou clean. 42And as soon as he had spoken, immediately the leprosy departed from him, and he was cleansed. 43And he straitly charged him, and forthwith sent him away; 44And saith unto him, See thou say nothing to any man: but go thy way, shew thyself to the priest, and offer for thy cleansing those things which Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them.”

Below are differences between passionate living and passive living:

1. Passionate living is being proactive while passive living is acting on impulse.
2. Passionate living is being alive to one’s responsibility while passive living is to shirk one’s responsibility. Judges5:9, Judges 5:23.
3. Passionate living is “pressing towards the mark” while passive living is not so. Philippians 3:14.
4. Passionate living is setting and pursuing the fulfilment of personal goals while passive living is aiming at no goals in life.
5. Passionate living is being “not slothful in business, fervent in the spirit”, while passive living is doing and beind the opposite. Romans 12:11; Colossians 4:12-13.
6. Passionate living is responding to physical, mental, emotional, psychological and spiritual stimuli while passive living is not doing so. Matthew 11:16-17.
7. Passionate living is taking action to change an unpleasant and undesirable status quo while passive living is being lethargic. 2 Kings 7:3-5.

Prayer:

Oh God, stir me up by your Spirit to passionately and zealously do your will and pursue the fulfillment of my purpose on earth. Amen.