When I met Bev, now my wife of 30 years, I fell in love quickly. In the months that we dated, we lived about an hour apart. After I finished my work as the Youth Pastor of the church I was serving, I would drive up to see her, spend a few hours with her until 12:30 or 1 am and then drive home, only to get up and go to work at 6 am at a part-time job I had taken to help pay the bills! The thought of how much sleep I was losing, or how much time I was spending in my car, or even the hazard of falling asleep at the wheel - never crossed my mind! A 'reasonable' choice would have been to talk on the phone and to see each other on Saturday, but when does reason enter the picture when love is the subject?
What kind of relationship do we have with Jesus Christ? Is it a calculated, cerebral thing or a passionate love?
Peter passionately loved Jesus! That comes through in the Gospels. Consider the famed story told in Matthew's Gospel, the 14th chapter. The day started with a long teaching session involving several thousand people. As evening approached, Jesus told the men who traveled and worked with Him to feed the crowd. There was a problem - actually two problems - they had no money and no food! But Jesus told them to seat the people and prepare for dinner anyway and then He blessed five loaves of bread and a couple of fish with an incredible prayer and miraculously fed 5000 people dinner. Elated and exhausted, the men got into a small boat and headed home across the Sea of Galilee, a large inland lake actually. They ran into a stiff headwind that kept them from making much progress and a storm blew up that kicked up waves.
Matthew tells the story - "At about four o’clock in the morning, Jesus came toward them walking on the water. They were scared out of their wits. “A ghost!” they said, crying out in terror. But Jesus was quick to comfort them. “Courage, it’s me. Don’t be afraid.”
Peter, suddenly bold, said, “Master, if it’s really you, call me to come to you on the water.” He said, “Come ahead.” Jumping out of the boat, Peter walked on the water to Jesus. But when he looked down at the waves churning beneath his feet, he lost his nerve and started to sink. He cried, “Master, save me!” Jesus didn’t hesitate. He reached down and grabbed his hand. Then he said, “Faint-heart, what got into you?” The two of them climbed into the boat, and the wind died down." (Matthew 14:25-32, The Message)
What was the source of Peter's 'sudden boldness' that led him to jump out of the boat at 3 in the morning on a stormy lake?
He was passionate about Jesus, loving the Lord in a way that went beyond his reason, beyond calculated benefits! He just wanted to do what Jesus was doing and that included taking a walk on the lake in the middle of night! Silly? Maybe. Reasonable? Obviously not. Necessary? No. But, oh what an experience. From those few moments, Peter gained trust, the knowledge that Jesus' hand would catch him when he was falling, and a story for the ages!
A passionate Christian is runs the risk of being regarded a fool. Ridicule will surely come her way as she prays for the impossible, gives time and resources she can't really afford to give, and lives for an eternity that many refuse to believe is real. A person who is passionate about anything is a easy target for critics. Why? Passion supersedes reason which we value so highly. Passion compels us to reach higher, to give, to go to the ends of the earth, to spend ourselves in a way that is incomprehensible to those who do not share that passion.
Peter's passion for Christ eventually led him to leave the safe and familiar home he enjoyed in Capernaum. He became Christianity's first leader, the rock of the church for her first three decades, and a martyr in his old age for the cause of Christ. He could have played it safe with his life - as so many of us do - and never known the joy of walking with Jesus - first on the lake, and then to the ends of the Roman Empire changing history and countless millions of lives. But, he didn't because he was a man with a passion for Jesus.
How do you love Him, friend?
Is is a tepid love, measured and weighed out on a cost/benefit basis?
Or is it a love that is all-consuming?
“Teacher, which command in God’s Law is the most important?”Jesus said, “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your passion and prayer and intelligence.’ This is the most important, the first on any list." (Matthew 22:36-38, The Message)
_____________________________
Passion for Jesus
I'm calling out to You,
"There must something more
Some deeper place to find,
Some secret place to hide,
Where I've not gone before!"
Where my soul is satisfied,
and my sin is put to death;
and I can hear Your voice,
and Your purpose is my choice
as natural as a breath.
The Love I knew before,
When You first touched my life,
I need You to restore,
I want You to revive.
Could You place in my heart,
A passion for Jesus?
A hunger that seizes my passion for You?
My one desire, my greatest possession
My only confession,
my passion for You!
Author: Brian Houston
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