Da 3:17-18 NIV

Facing the fiery furnace, the three Hebrew children refused to compromise their beliefs or change their behavior. They told the king, "If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand...But even if he does not...we will not serve your gods." With the words, "even if he does not," they took their faith to a higher level. They knew God could prevent it, but not that His plan called for it in this instance. But they'd rather die than deny or disappoint Him. Understand this: God can take you out of your situation or bring you through it. When He leaves you in it longer than you'd like to stay, He's developing-furnace faith.

Furnace faith is dead to doubt and blind to impossibility. It reaches up through the threatening clouds and lays hold of the One who has all power in heaven and on earth. It makes the circumstances bearable and the future hopeful. Furnace faith believes that even if you do have to go through the fire, God will go through it with you. Listen to the words of a heathen king who watched it all happen: "I see four men loose, walking in...the fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God" (Da 3:25). Furnace faith makes you as free in the fire of affliction as you are out of it. Furthermore, when your friends see the Lord in there with you, it'll convince them like nothing else. 

 “I must work the works of Him who sent Me.”           

John 9:4 NKJV

The Bible word for passion is zeal. Without it, life can become pretty drab. Everything is a “have to” and nothing is a “want to” or a “must.” Zeal keeps you going when others quit. It pushes you through the toughest times and gives you energy you didn’t know you possessed. Nothing can take its place: (1) Opportunity can’t. Opportunity may open the door, but without zeal you won’t make the most of your opportunities and you won’t get to your destiny. Howard Hendricks said, “You don’t put live eggs under dead chickens.” That’s what opportunities are to people without zeal. (2) Knowledge can’t. Some of America’s worst presidents are reputed to have been the smartest. And some of the greatest, such as Abraham Lincoln, had very little formal education. A résumé may get you through the door, but that’s as far as it will get you. (3) Talent can’t. There are many people in the world with great natural talent who never achieve personal or professional success. Talent is like money; it only grows when you put it to work. (4) Others can’t. You will never be successful without the help of others, but merely being surrounded with the right people doesn’t guarantee success. A team with no heart won’t succeed. Zeal is the difference-maker. And one of the secrets of having zeal, is knowing that God has truly called and gifted you to do a certain thing. Jesus said: “I must work the works of Him who sent Me.” This kind of zeal is not taught but “caught,” so if you’re lacking in it today, spend more time with Jesus.

Mike Pilaviche wrote in the Soul Survivor Magazine an article concerning “Coming Back to The Heart of Worship.” In it he challenged his congregation to ask themselves individually, “When I come through the door of the church, what am I bringing as my contribution to the worship?”

Does it ever seem we have lost the spark and are just going through the motions?  Although we are singing, are our hearts far from Him?  Have we become connoisseurs of worship instead of participants of it?  Are we giving the worship marks out of ten like an Olympic event: “Not that song again”, “I can’t hear the bass”, “The music is too loud”, “I like the way she sings”…Are we making the band or choir the performers and ourselves the audience?  Are we forgetting that we are ALL the performers of worship and God is the audience?  Do we forget that sacrifice is central to biblical worship?  In the Old Testament, whenever the people of God gathered to worship, they sacrificed a lamb or other animal. Often when they sacrificed, the glory of the Lord fell on the people and they prostrated themselves on the pavement and worshipped.  In fact, the presence of God was so tangible that, for a while, even the priests could not perform their duties.  (2 Chronicles 7)

We don’t need to sacrifice sheep and goats today and certainly no sacrifice on our part can earn God’s forgiveness or our salvation; the one perfect sacrifice of Jesus on the cross has done that for all time.  Yet we ARE called to bring sacrifices in worship.  We are called to offer our bodies as living sacrifices – this is OUR spiritual act of worship (Romans 12:1).  We are called to offer our sacrifice of praise.

My challenge is this – “When you come through the door of the church, what are you bringing as your contribution to the worship?”  Worship is not a spectator sport, it is not a product molded by the taste of the consumers.  It is not about what we can get out of it; it is all about God.

Let’s return to the heart of worship.

So we built the wall.

Ne 4:6 NKJV

Nehemiah rebuilt the walls of Jerusalem in less than two months. How did he do it? Passion! He gave up a high-profile job, overcame relentless opposition, and worked passionately. 'So we built the wall... for the people had a mind to work.' But first we read: 'They said to me... 'The wall of Jerusalem is also broken down, and its gates are burned with fire'... When I heard these words... I sat down and wept' (Ne 1:3-4 NKJV). Observe: (1) Passion is your first step to achievement. Your desire, not your IQ or your DNA, determines your destiny. The greater your desire, the greater your potential. (2) Passion will increase your willpower. Only when you want something badly enough will you pay the price to achieve it. God despises a lukewarm attitude (See Rev 3:15). An indecisive person gets nowhere with Him (See Jas 1:8). (3) Passion will change you. When your desires are in harmony with God's will and you follow them with a passion, you can't help but become a more productive person. (4) Passion will make the impossible, possible. Beware of 'experts.' Sometimes what they present as wisdom is just shortsightedness. In 1895 Lord Kelvin, president of England's Royal Society, said, 'Heavier-than-air flying machines are not possible.' In 1905 the U.S. President Grover Cleveland said, 'Sensible and responsible women do not want to vote.' In 1923 Nobel Prize winner in physics Robert Millikan said, 'There's no likelihood man can ever tap the power of the atom.' Jesus said, 'With God all things are possible' (Mk 10:27). When you become passionate about God's purposes, He will show you what's possible.

2Pe 1:9 NKJV

Brian Dyson, former Vice Chairman of Coca Cola, delivered the commencement address at Georgia Tech in 1996. In it he said, 'Imagine life as a game in which you are juggling five balls in the air. You name them - work, family, health, friends and spirit. You will soon understand that one is a rubber ball. If you drop it, it will bounce back. But the other four balls - family, health, friends and spirit - are made of glass. If you drop any of these they will be irrevocably scuffed, marked, nicked, damaged or even shattered. They will never be the same. You must understand that and strive for balance in your life.' Many of the people we admire are out of balance; they can build great churches and companies, but not great relationships. Solomon wrote: 'They made me the keeper of the vineyards, but my own vineyard I have not kept' (SS 1:6 NKJV). Pastors who teach the importance of building strong families, sometimes raise children who turn out resentful because they got none of Dad's time and attention. And worse, he told them, 'We have to make these sacrifices for God and the ministry.' In what areas are you out of balance? In your quest not to drop the ball in your public performance, make sure you don't drop it in your personal life - where it counts most. The Bible bottom-lines it: 'Add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love... he who lacks these things is shortsighted' (2Pe 1:5-9 NKJV).

This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith.

1 John 5:4 NKJV

The Bible is a 'David and Goliath' book. It's filled with stories of ordinary people whose faith overcame great obstacles and impacted the world around them. That's why John the Apostle writes: 'Whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith.' If you haven't heard of Irwin Rosenberg, here's his inspiring story. As a junior officer he was discharged from the Navy when he was diagnosed with cancer. That was the standard military procedure at the time. But he was determined to get back both his health and his job. At one point he was given only two weeks to live. But through faith and dogged determination his cancer was eventually brought under control. Irwin then focused his attention on becoming a naval officer again. But he discovered that navy regulations forbade reinstatement of a person discharged with cancer. Everyone around him said, 'Give up. It can't be done. It would take an Act of Congress to get you reinstated.' Their advice gave him an idea,  he'd pursue an Act of Congress. After years of waiting, petitioning, cutting through red tape and battling bureaucracy, President Truman eventually signed into law a special bill that allowed Irwin Rosenberg to reenlist in the Navy and go on to become a Rear Admiral in the United States Seventh Fleet! The poet writes: 'You can never tell how close you are, it may be near when it seems afar; so stick to the fight when you're hardest hit,  it's when things seem worst that you mustn't quit!'

You say, “It’s impossible.” God says, “With me all things are possible” (See Lk 18:27). You say, “I’m exhausted.” He says, “Wait on me, I will renew your strength” (See Isa 40:31). You say, “Nobody loves me.” He says, “I have loved you with an everlasting love” (Jer 31:3 NIV). You say, “I can’t go on.” He says, “My grace is sufficient for you” (2Co 12:9 NIV). You say, “I don’t know what to do.” He says, “I’ll direct you” (See Pr 3:6). You say, “I can’t do it.” He says, “You can do all things through Me” (See Php 4:13). You say, “It’s not worth it.” He says, “It will be – just keep going” (See Gal 6:9). You say, “I can’t forgive myself.” He says, “You can – because I have” (See Eph 4:32). You say, “I can’t make ends meet.” He says, “I will supply all your needs” (See Php 4:19). You say, “I’m afraid.” He says, “I didn’t give you the spirit of fear, but of power” (See 2Ti 1:7). You say, “I can’t handle this.” He says, “Give it to me; I’ll carry it for you” (See Ps 55:22). You say, “I’m not smart enough.” He says, “I’ll give you wisdom” (See 1Co 1:30). You say, “I’m all alone.” He says, “I will never leave you nor forsake you” (Heb 13:5 NKJV).

Billy Sunday said, “I stand on God’s Word, and if the book goes down, I’ll go with it.” Today, let God’s Word settle it!