June 15th, 2022
“Be relentless in the pursuit of what sets your soul on fire.”
This week, I want to share something with you that’s precious to my heart. The above quote was not written in the context of Christianity, but it captures something that is woven into the fabric of human existence. Regardless of whether they know it or not, every human being is longing for something to set their heart on fire. In life, it’s very easy to get caught up in the what, where, and how. What am I supposed to do? Where am I supposed to go? How am I going to do this? Now, all of those things are important and God has plans and purposes for every one of us. Jeremiah 29:11 says,
“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.”
However, the most important question to ask yourself is why. Why are you on this planet, at this moment, doing what you’re doing? If you live for the why that sets your soul on fire, then all of those other things will fall into place, as God directs.
There is great wisdom in the practicality of the Bible. It gives us instruction for every area of our lives and God’s direction in everything we do is essential. However, it’s so important as a believer to not get into a routine of doing all of the things Christians do and forget why. Why are you a Christian? Why are you tithing? Why are you going to church? Why do you tell people about Jesus? Why do you pray for people? Dead religion is simply a rhythm of doing all the right things for all the wrong reasons. Jesus addressed this with the religious people of His day, saying they were like whitewashed tombs—clean and beautiful on the outside, but full of dead men’s bone. Religion without a relationship with the creator of the universe is actually worse than if we had nothing. If our lives stop being a passionate pursuit of Him, then we’ve lost the why of our lives. Nothing else matters if our hearts don’t burn for Him. Jesus said the greatest commandment was not to do good works, excel in life, heal the sick, or make a difference in the world. He said,
‘The most important is, “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these’ (Mark 12:28-31).
The most important commandment is to love Him with everything we have. The call of God is first and foremost a call to forsake every other love to passionately pursue the One you were created for. David was called a man after God’s own heart (1 Sam 13:14). He had a passion for God that propelled him from obscurity into authority and you can hear the cry of David’s heart for God throughout his writings. In Psalm 84:10 he said,
“Better is just one day in your courts, than a thousand elsewhere.”
David had come to the place that live had no savor, no meaning, no worth, apart from Him. Christianity is not about religion; it’s about Him. Luke 3:16 says,
‘John answered them all, saying, “I baptize you with water, but he who is mightier than I is coming, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.’
The only thing that can truly set our hearts on fire is a baptism of His Spirit that agrees with His word dwelling richly on the inside of us. Jeremiah understood this when he said,
If I say, “I will not mention him,
or speak any more in his name,”
there is in my heart as it were a burning fire
shut up in my bones,
and I am weary with holding it in,
and I cannot. (Jeremiah 20:9)
Have we sought God in His word until we can say that it’s in our heart burning like a fire? Do we know what it is to live with a fire shut up in our bones? God’s desire for us is that we would live with the passion He created us for.
There is an amazing story in Luke 24:13-25, in which we read of Jesus appearing to two disciples who were walking the road to Emmaus, which was a village about seven miles outside of Jerusalem. Now, this was after Jesus’ resurrection, but these two men didn’t recognize that they were speaking with Jesus. They walked and talked for miles, but Jesus didn’t reveal to them who He was. The Bible says, though, that “beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself” (Luke 24:27). As they walked, Jesus, the living Word, explained all of the Scriptures in the Old Testament that were about Him. Once they reached the village, they urged Jesus (still not knowing it was Him) to eat with them. When they broke the bread, an incredible thing happened. It says,
“And their eyes were opened, and they recognized him. And he vanished from their sight. They said to each other, “Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road, while he opened to us the Scriptures?” (Luke 24:31-32)
They said, “Did not our hearts burn within us?” That is the why of Christianity. It’s to live in relationship with the One who will still reveal the word and set your soul on fire. We aren’t meant to live mundane, cold, tired lives. We’re meant to live with our hearts burning with the same fire that John saw burning in the eyes of Jesus in Revelation 1. It’s time to allow the Holy Spirit to set the church on fire again and it cannot be said any better than it was in my favorite poem, written by Amy Carmichael:
“O for a passionate passion for souls,
O for a pity that yearns
O for the love that loves unto death,
O for the fire that burns
O for the pure prayer-power that prevails,
That pours itself out for the lost
Victorious prayer in the Conqueror’s Name,
O for a Pentecost!
This week, I want to share something with you that’s precious to my heart. The above quote was not written in the context of Christianity, but it captures something that is woven into the fabric of human existence. Regardless of whether they know it or not, every human being is longing for something to set their heart on fire. In life, it’s very easy to get caught up in the what, where, and how. What am I supposed to do? Where am I supposed to go? How am I going to do this? Now, all of those things are important and God has plans and purposes for every one of us. Jeremiah 29:11 says,
“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.”
However, the most important question to ask yourself is why. Why are you on this planet, at this moment, doing what you’re doing? If you live for the why that sets your soul on fire, then all of those other things will fall into place, as God directs.
There is great wisdom in the practicality of the Bible. It gives us instruction for every area of our lives and God’s direction in everything we do is essential. However, it’s so important as a believer to not get into a routine of doing all of the things Christians do and forget why. Why are you a Christian? Why are you tithing? Why are you going to church? Why do you tell people about Jesus? Why do you pray for people? Dead religion is simply a rhythm of doing all the right things for all the wrong reasons. Jesus addressed this with the religious people of His day, saying they were like whitewashed tombs—clean and beautiful on the outside, but full of dead men’s bone. Religion without a relationship with the creator of the universe is actually worse than if we had nothing. If our lives stop being a passionate pursuit of Him, then we’ve lost the why of our lives. Nothing else matters if our hearts don’t burn for Him. Jesus said the greatest commandment was not to do good works, excel in life, heal the sick, or make a difference in the world. He said,
‘The most important is, “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these’ (Mark 12:28-31).
The most important commandment is to love Him with everything we have. The call of God is first and foremost a call to forsake every other love to passionately pursue the One you were created for. David was called a man after God’s own heart (1 Sam 13:14). He had a passion for God that propelled him from obscurity into authority and you can hear the cry of David’s heart for God throughout his writings. In Psalm 84:10 he said,
“Better is just one day in your courts, than a thousand elsewhere.”
David had come to the place that live had no savor, no meaning, no worth, apart from Him. Christianity is not about religion; it’s about Him. Luke 3:16 says,
‘John answered them all, saying, “I baptize you with water, but he who is mightier than I is coming, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.’
The only thing that can truly set our hearts on fire is a baptism of His Spirit that agrees with His word dwelling richly on the inside of us. Jeremiah understood this when he said,
If I say, “I will not mention him,
or speak any more in his name,”
there is in my heart as it were a burning fire
shut up in my bones,
and I am weary with holding it in,
and I cannot. (Jeremiah 20:9)
Have we sought God in His word until we can say that it’s in our heart burning like a fire? Do we know what it is to live with a fire shut up in our bones? God’s desire for us is that we would live with the passion He created us for.
There is an amazing story in Luke 24:13-25, in which we read of Jesus appearing to two disciples who were walking the road to Emmaus, which was a village about seven miles outside of Jerusalem. Now, this was after Jesus’ resurrection, but these two men didn’t recognize that they were speaking with Jesus. They walked and talked for miles, but Jesus didn’t reveal to them who He was. The Bible says, though, that “beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself” (Luke 24:27). As they walked, Jesus, the living Word, explained all of the Scriptures in the Old Testament that were about Him. Once they reached the village, they urged Jesus (still not knowing it was Him) to eat with them. When they broke the bread, an incredible thing happened. It says,
“And their eyes were opened, and they recognized him. And he vanished from their sight. They said to each other, “Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road, while he opened to us the Scriptures?” (Luke 24:31-32)
They said, “Did not our hearts burn within us?” That is the why of Christianity. It’s to live in relationship with the One who will still reveal the word and set your soul on fire. We aren’t meant to live mundane, cold, tired lives. We’re meant to live with our hearts burning with the same fire that John saw burning in the eyes of Jesus in Revelation 1. It’s time to allow the Holy Spirit to set the church on fire again and it cannot be said any better than it was in my favorite poem, written by Amy Carmichael:
“O for a passionate passion for souls,
O for a pity that yearns
O for the love that loves unto death,
O for the fire that burns
O for the pure prayer-power that prevails,
That pours itself out for the lost
Victorious prayer in the Conqueror’s Name,
O for a Pentecost!
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