Introducion- Have you ever seen someone transformed from a pessimistic defeated person into a passionate enthusiastic person? (Show the congregation two sections from the movie “It’s A Wonderful Life”. The first section is when George is considering suicide. The second section is after George has discovered a new passion for life) Which of those two mind-sets would you rather have, the pessimistic defeated attitude or the happy, victorious, passionate attitude? George Bailey (James Stewart) was a pessimistic defeated man until he met an angel named Clarence. The Clarence’s personal touch (under God’s direction)transformed George Bailey’s life. He was changed from doom and gloom to purpose and passion.
The same thing can happen today. Jesus Christ would like to touch your life. He would like to give you new purpose and passion. We are going to look at a text where Jesus touched one of His disciples. With His touch he transformed a discouraged, defeated, doubting disciple into a new man.
-Read text: John 20:24-28
Prior to this encounter there was a time when Thomas was willing to die for Jesus (see John 11:15-16). He was filled with zeal and passion. However, since then much had changed. Jesus had died on the cross. Jesus had risen from the grave. Thomas was stuck in a pre-resurrection mentality. He was discouraged. He had lost his enthusiasm. He had become a skeptic. Even though people shared the good news of Jesus resurrection, Thomas would not believe their stories. Thomas needed to regain his passion.
Do you need to regain your passion? Do you feel that you are stuck in your spiritual life? Maybe you have been through something that has caused you to stop growing in your spiritual life. You are discouraged.
I want you to join me in observing what happened to Thomas. When Thomas touched Jesus he was transformed. He was changed from a pessimist to an optimist. He was changed from a discouraged disciple to a passionate disciple. I pray that every one of us will receive that touch today. In handling this text I want to ask and answer three questions.
1. The first question is, what causes us to lose spiritual passion? What caused Thomas to lose his passion. What caused him to be such a discouraged, defeated man? Obviously, unbelief and discouragement were his problems.
What about us? What causes us to lose passion? What causes us to live defeated lives? I want to discuss some of the real life issues that cause us to lose heart and to become discouraged in our walk with Christ.
A. People who are active and serving in ministry can become tired and burned out and lose their spiritual passion.
(Refer to Elijah’s burn out in I Kings 19)
B. People who are hurting can lose their spiritual passion. On more than one occasion I have seen the fires of passion snuffed out in hurting people’s lives. Sometimes it is the hurt that is taking place because of family problems. Sometimes it is due to sickness.
C. People who are disillusioned will lose their spiritual passion. Most any church you visit will have scars from church conflicts. When disagreements occur people will be disillusioned. People also are often disillusioned by leaders. I guarantee there are many people who were disillusioned by Jimmy Swaggart and Jim Baker. There are a lot of people who were disillusioned by Enron.
Ill- Years ago in Germany, there was a young Jewish boy who had a profound sense of admiration for his father. His family’s life centered on the acts of piety and devotion prescribed by their religion. The father was zealous in attending worship and religious instruction, and he demanded the same from his children. While the boy was a teenager, the family was forced to move to another town in Germany. There was no synagogue in the new town, and the pillars of the community all belonged to the Lutheran church. Suddenly the father announced to the family that they were going to abandon their Jewish traditions and join the Lutheran church. When the stunned family asked why, the father explained that changing religions was necessary to help his business. The youngster was bewildered and confused. His deep disappointment soon gave way to anger and a kind of intense bitterness that plagued him throughout his life. That disappointed son, disillusioned by his father’s lack of integrity, eventually left Germany and went to England to study. He sat daily at the British Museum, formulating various ideas and writing a book. In that work, he introduced an entirely new world-view, envisioning a movement that would change the social and political systems of the world. Drawing from past experiences with his father, he described religion as an “opiate for the masses” that could be explained totally in terms of economics and personal gain. Today, millions of people still live under the system invented by this embittered man, and millions more suffered under previous regimes that incorporated its values. His name, of course, was Karl Marx, and his idea was communism. And it all began with his father’s misuse of the name of God for the sake of profit.
(SOURCE: James Emery White, You Can Experience an Authentic Life, pp. 33-34 Contributed to Sermon Central by: Joel Smith)
E. People who are discouraged will lose their spiritual passion.
Ill-There is a fictitious story that Satan was having a yard sale. People were buying articles such as lying, cheating. etc. However, there was one article on the end of the table that had a “not for sale“ sign on it. People would ask Satan why that object was not for sale. Satan said I use this item more than any other. I have found it to be my most effective tool against believers. It is called discouragement. If I can get people discouraged, then I can defeat them. (adapted from Melvin Shelton’s illustration that was contributed to Sermon Central)
F. People who are distracted will lose their spiritual passion.
Ill- Jesus told a parable of the sower and the soils. In that parable he taught that people respond to the gospel in one of four ways. He said some people are like the seed that is sown among thorns. He said these people are “the ones sown among thorns; they are the ones who hear the word, and the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.” Mk. 4:18-19 NKJV)
-Some people are distracted by their jobs.
-Some people are distracted by busy schedules.
-Some people are distracted by excuses.
2. A second question I want to ask is, what are the consequences of losing our passion?
A. People who lose their passion will go spiritually AWOL. In our text Thomas was absent the first time Jesus appeared to His disciples. He was AWOL from the band of believers. People will go AWOL from ministry responsibilities. People will go AWOL from church responsibilities. People will go AWOL from worship opportunities.
B. People who lose their spiritual passion are living a defeated life. Thomas had a loss of joy. He was filled with doubt. He was discouraged. He was pessimistic. Understand this…when you lose your passion you might be defeated by any number of negative emotions.
Ill- Several years ago at a passion play an incident took place during Jesus carrying the cross. A man in the audience was heckling the character playing Jesus, throwing out jeers, taunts and dares. Finally the character could no longer tolerate the heckler, he dropped the cross and went over and punched out the man. The director was aghast and after the play pulled the actor aside and told him in no uncertain terms was he ever to do that again. But the next night the same heckler was back and again the same thing, Jesus this time had to be restrained. The director called the actor in and gave him an ultimatum of either quitting or keeping his composure. The young actor assured the director he would keep himself under control. The third night, the heckler was present again and taunted even stronger than the two previous nights. The man playing Jesus rose to his full stature, gritted his teeth and told the heckler, "I’ll see you right after the resurrection." (Contributed to Sermon Central by: Mark Sutherlin)
3. A third question I want to ask is, what is the cure for a loss of spiritual passion? I want to share an acrostic that will help you understand how to regain your passion. The acrostic is the word HOT.
H… H stands for honesty. Be honest with the Lord about your condition! Passion can be restored by taking an honest appraisal of your life. Begin by admitting your condition. Jesus helped Thomas come to terms with his condition. He caused him to look in the mirror. He caused him to see himself in a true light.
Ill- Several weeks ago we developed problems in cranking our car. I carried the car to Walmart and asked them to check the battery. The technician told me my battery was bad. I had to buy a new battery. I fixed the problem because I admitted there was a problem.
People who are filled with passion have several characteristics. When these are absent you will know you have a problem.
1. Passionate believers want to be with other
passionate believers.
2. Passionate believers want to be active in
service.
3. Passionate people want to know God.
4. Passionate people are enthusiastic people.
If these qualities are missing from your spiritual life you need to take action.
O… O stands for openness. Passion can be restored by being open to change and to getting out of your comfort zone. Thomas was open to change and open to leave his comfort zone. Think about it! Thomas was willing to put his finger into Jesus wounds.
Ill- There have been many occasion when I was given a grand tour of a surgical sight. While questioning patients about their surgery they will often show me their incision. A cherry colored wound is not a pretty sight.
Obviously, Jesus had been healed but the Bible tells us the wounds were still visible and could be felt. With all due respect, to put your finger into another person’s wound is a gross action. The point of this observation is to establish a principle. Thomas was open to change and to being taught. Jesus was the change agent. Jesus was the teacher. Thomas was open. Passion is often fueled by new adventures in your spiritual life. It could be fasting. It could be a conference. It could be an extended time in prayer. Such events can and will move you out of your comfort zone.
T…T stands for Touch Jesus.
-If you get sick, do you not go to the doctor?
-If you car breaks down, do you not go to a mechanic?
-If you need money do you not go to a bank?
Notice what happened when Thomas touched Jesus. He spontaneously shouted “My Lord and My God.” vs. 28. That short simple phrase revealed volumes about Thomas. It also revealed volumes about Jesus. Suffice it to say that Thomas was ecstatic. He was transformed by the touch of the master.
Ill- The Touch of the Masters Hand.
It was battered and scarred, and the auctioneer
Thought it scarcely worth his while,
To waste much time on the old violin,
But held it up with a smile.
"What am I did for this old violin?
You will start the bidding for me?
A dollar, a dollar, who’ll make it two?
Two dollars, and who will make it three?
"Three dollars, once; three dollars twice,
Going for three," But no;
From the back of the room a gray-haired man
Came forward and picked up the bow.
Then wiping the dist from the old violin,
And tightening up all the strings,
He played a melody pure and sweet,
As sweet as the angels sing.
The music ceased, and the auctioneer
With a voice that was quiet and low
Said, "What am I bid for the old violin?"
And he held it up with the bow.
"A thousand dollars, and who will make it two?
Two thousand! And who’ll make it three?
Three thousand, once; three thousand, twice;
And going and gone," said he.
The people cheered, but some of them said,
"We do not quite understand,
What changed its worth?" Came the reply,
"The touch of a masters hand."
And many a man with life out of tune,
And battered and scarred with sin,
Is auctioned cheap to a thoughtless crowd,
Much like the old violin.
A "mess of potage," a glass of wine;
A game, and he shuffles along.
He’s going once, and he’s going twice,
He’s going and almost gone.
But the master comes, and the thoughtless crowd
Never quite understands
The worth of a soul, and the change that’s wrought
By the touch of the Master’s hand.
-Myra Brooks Welch (Contributed to Sermon Central by: Elliot Ross)
