Pastor Kevin Burden ~ Carter Creek Baptist Church, Greenville, KY ~ Sunday PM, March 2nd, 2008
1 Thessalonians 5:15-23 “See that none render evil for evil unto any man; but ever follow that which is good, both among yourselves, and to all men. 16Rejoice evermore. 17Pray without ceasing. 18In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. 19Quench not the Spirit. 20Despise not prophesyings. 21Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. 22Abstain from all appearance of evil. 23And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
There was a guy who was driving in the country when he blew a tire. He looked in his trunk, but did not have a jack. He saw a farmhouse in the distance, so he started walking. He hadn’t gone very far when he began to think, “What if they’re not home?” A little later he thought, “What if they don’t have a jack?” It wasn’t too long till he thought, “What if they have a jack, but they won’t let me use it, and get mad at me for asking?” This kind of internal negative inquiry went on until he finally arrived at the farmhouse and knocked on the door. When the farmer came to the door all the guy could do was look at him and yell, “You can keep your stupid jack!”
There are some people whose thoughts are so continuously negative that they have themselves convinced that there’s something wrong with everyone and everything.
A negative person is always complaining, grumbling, murmuring, angry or bitter about something.
A negative person has a difficult time expressing love or accepting expressions of love openly.
A negative person very seldom exhibits joy (They seldom, smile or gets caught laughing).
A negative person knows very little of peace (They tend to keep themselves and keep those around them in turmoil).
A negative person is intolerant toward other people (They are quick to point out other’s faults but never able to see their own).
A negative person is often abrupt and abrasive (They aren’t gentle and are usually impolite and insolent).
Words like kind, considerate, and helpful are seldom used to describe a negative person.
Faith is not one of their spiritual attributes because they’re always looking for the sky to fall or some other catastrophe to occur.
Negative people are by nature very critical, and often very vocal about it, because of this they do not possess a great deal of self-control.
Galatians 5:22-26 “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 23Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. 24And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. 25If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. 26Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another.”
A negative person does not manifest the fruits of the Spirit; they do not live a Spirit-controlled life. In reality they are being controlled by the flesh no mater how much Bible knowledge the may seem to possess.
Please understand – I’m not talking about moments of negativity. We all have those. As a matter of fact, some of God’s greatest servants dealt with moments of negativity (pessimism).
The prophet Elijah who said, “It is enough; now, O Lord, take away my life; for I am not better than my fathers” (1 Kings 19:4). This does not mean that our moments of negativity are not wrong.
What I’m referring to is a lifestyle of bitter, self-centered, fault finding negativity that is so damaging, and is to often prominent in some who call themselves Christians.
A negative spirit and a miserable attitude is just the opposite of what God expects His people to manifest.
Isaiah said, “I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels” (61:10).
How in the world can anyone be constantly negative when they’ve been so blessed?
The affects of a negative spirit can be devastating to our home, our family, our church, our testimony, our faith, our service, our worship, and our friendships.
A negative spirit pollutes possibilities, lessens life, isolates initiative, and it suffocates our salvation. The attitude we carry around with us effects everybody we live with, work with, and go to church with.
On the other hand, a positive, hopeful, joyous, happy attitude helps create a positive atmosphere in which others can learn to be happy in the Lord.
Dennis Prager, author of “Happiness Is A Serious Problem” wrote,…
“Unhappy religious people pose a challenge to faith. If their faith is so impressive, why aren’t these devoted adherents happy? There are only two possible reasons: either they are not practicing their faith correctly, or they are practicing their faith correctly and the religion itself is not conducive to happiness. Most outsiders assume the latter reason. Unhappy religious people should therefore think about how important being happy is – if not for themselves, then for the sake of their religion. Unhappy religious people provide more persuasive arguments for atheism than do all the arguments of the atheist.”
In the book of Numbers we find a classic example of the presence and the power of a negative spirit (Numbers 13:1-3, 17-33). As we can see from this experience in the life of the Jews, a negative spirit can do several things.
A negative spirit can cause us to…
#1. FORGET GOD’S PROVISION: To appreciate this, you have to remember what God had done for these people up to this point.
God rescued them from Egyptian bondage.
God spared their lives from the curse of the death angel.
God miraculously got them across the Red Sea.
God sweetened the bitter waters of Marah.
God fed them when they were hungry.
God provided water when they got thirsty.
God led them forth by a cloud by day and a fire by night.
God had been good to Israel, but their negative, pessimistic spirit kept them from remembering His goodness. Oh how easy it is for us to fall prey to a negative spirit and forget just how good God has been to us.
The Lord has SAVED us, SANCTIFIED us, and SEALED us. He SAFEGUARDS us, SUPPLIES us, and STRENGTHENS us. And one day He’s coming to take us home to live with Him forever.
A negative spirit can cause us to…
#2. FRUSTRATE GOD’S PEOPLE: There is nothing more frustrating than catching a vision of what could be and seeing that vision buried by one or two or ten pessimists.
It can be extremely frustrating for a pastor to try and move forward and implement changes that will benefit the work of the Lord, only to look behind him and see a group of people with their heels dug in, determined to maintain the status quo.
Joshua and Caleb saw the potential, they saw the possibilities, they remembered the promise of God; things to which the other men were blind because of their negative spirit.
There is nothing that will douse the fire, dim the vision, or dash the hopes of God’s people any quicker than a negative, fault-finding, critical spirit.
A negative spirit can cause us to…
#3. FOUL GOD’S PLAN: God’s plan was and is to bless His people.
Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.”
John 10:10 “The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.”
Some of you would be surprised at what you’ve missed out on in terms of God’s best for your lives simply because you chose to accept the negative rather than believe God.
A negative spirit will cause you to…
#4. FACE GOD’S PUNISHMENT: God almost destroyed these people right on the spot but Moses intervened and God stayed His hand of immediate judgment.
Philippians 2:1-5 “If there be therefore any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels and mercies, 2 Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. 3 Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. 4 Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others. 5 Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:”
