Aggressive Or Slothful

Tuesday, May 29, 2001

AGGRESSIVE OR SLOTHFUL

1 Samuel 30:7 & 8

It is time for the Pentecostal Church that has been the witness of Holy Ghost fire in this world to become aggressive in reaching the soul the clock is ticking.

In your Bible the Children of Israel crossed the Red Sea, Moses dies and Joshua becomes the leader. Then as time goes on Joshua dies and the other old timers that had crossed the Jordan with Joshua that had seen the glory of God, the pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night, dies out.

Israel became content to settle down and enjoy the fruit of prosperity.

All of us have prospered. 2 TV’s, 2 or 3 cars, a/c, and 2 indoor plumbing available.

The Church has become comfortable, everything has prospered but souls.

Israel did not know how to handle prosperity. With prosperity came a spiritual decline.

Have church at home, you could but do you?

Worship became formal; training the young folks were neglected and making them know how important they are.

Eli the priest does not continue being aggressive in the office of being the Priest and allows his sons to commit adultery at the doors of the tabernacle.

Jud 2:10 And also all that generation were gathered unto their fathers: and there arose another generation after them, which knew not the LORD, nor yet the works which he had done for Israel.

Jud 17:6 In those days [there was] no king in Israel, [but] every man did [that which was] right in his own eyes.

If there was ever a time to be aggressive it is today, Jesus is soon to come and we are behind, look around you and look up and down the street you and I live & see the harvest.

Some have told me I’m too old, the bible states the outward man would grow old but the inner man is renewed, restored day by day.

Mt 13:23 But he that received seed into the good ground is he that heareth the word, and understandeth [it]; which also beareth fruit, and bringeth forth, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.

Php 3:12 Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus. :13 Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but [this] one thing [I do], forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,:14 I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

(Perfecting holiness overcoming mediocre)

Perfect: does not mean sinless perfection

It means perfect and complete in all details

Perfect in Position, in Christ

Relative perfection, spiritual maturity

Some 30, 60, 100 fold.

Pr 4:18 But the path of the just [is] as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day.

The writer describes a Christian when they come to Christ the sun comes up, appearing as dawn of a new day, a perfect day.

Many people stay at the same spiritual level day after day week after week month, year, etc.

Most believers become comfortable, at ease in Zion.

Are faith should be bigger, sharper, quicker

Love warmer, tears nearer the surface

Desire for prayer greater, purity and separation greater.

The Apostle states I count not myself to have apprehended, neither already perfect,

But [this] one thing [I do], forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,

The common, mediocre Christian is the person with the same qualities and abilities of every believer, but never uses them.

You can judge yourself.

The word Mediocre comes from a Latin word which means “halfway to the peak”

Not halfway to heaven, but halfway to where they should be.

Halfway between the valley and the peak

Above the harden sinner, but below the shinning saint.

Many settle down halfway to the point God would desire of us and flame of fire.

T D Jakes said following has a disturbing element, it is not always comfortable, things will happen to cause you to move out of the place of mediocre.

The eagle finally kicks the babies out.

: 14 I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

David ran aggressively to Goliath,

The Hebrews boys faced with a fiery furnace had an aggressive faith in their God.

Paul and Silas were aggressive in there praise to God even though they were locked up in jail.