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Written
by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit
For crying out loud!
The difference between excitement and enthusiasm is purely one of motive. Enthusiasm begins in the Spirit. Our purpose is in God but while our motivation is expressed with flair or frenzy the interpretation of our actions may appear elusive to believer and non-believer. The question of motive may languish in how we appear to others. The reason why we get worked up emotionally, excited about putting something in action, is who, we serve. When we serve God, the means and the method often escape the conventional expectation. Our purpose in God exceeds reason. What moves us in the Spirit to often,
is not seen as interaction. Getting something
accomplished is why we are created. The Questions need to
be answered in faith for us to work in faith. Who is God?
Where is God? Can we speak to Him? Can we know God? Is
God visible? Can we see God? Or are we not to see all of God… in Jesus, for He is perfect selfless sacrificial love… demonstrated in and as a man! What do you see in Jesus? Is it enough? Has Jesus changed your life? Results! The measure of God’s purpose is "Fruit"… the results are measured in love! Many today insist they are speaking in
the Spirit, led of the Holy Spirit… Where is the
result? It is the movement of the selfless, sacrificial love from or through one to another; thus creating change. Loving change is the proof of the presence of the Spirit. The results are always a change of heart. This makes clear that the results of the love of God in Jesus, is fruitful. Therefore we who act in the love of God bear fruit, the result of, or manifestation of the Holy Spirit, borne witness in another’s life. If someone speaks in the love of God then the result is someone changes his or her life. The Spirit does not speak unless there are ears to hear. God’s love does not come back void. We’re not to just choose to believe in God; we act on it with life changing choices. The motive is muddled today as we act without clarity… for we lack faith to accept the love we so need to move us by desire… to Jesus and in turn to the Jesus in each other. Peter begins to speak on the day of
Pentecost by the Holy Spirit. That talk as recorded, was
under ten minutes long… Was it the message? It was the Spirit and it was about Jesus… it was the Spirit that touched and quickened. The power of the Holy Spirit in and through man is always being undermined by the flesh… in most cases that of the carnal mind and it’s concepts, compromising God’s love, for mans lack of faith. What are the results… three thousand lives choose Jesus and a new way of life. A life together in the love of God, sharing all they have and pooling their monetary worth to do the most good as God would have it. The love of God in man moves him into action… this is enthusiasm. The motive of God’s love through man brings him into action Once many years ago God demonstrated in a very dramatic way the power of His Spirit in the lives of men. A young married man got up before a group of men to give his testimony and about ten or twenty sentences into his talk he started crying. Then began to sob and he could not speak for every time he tried he would cry more. Every time he tried to speak he would just cry more and more. Someone shouted, some kind words of encouragement "It’s ok were with you" that was followed by a stillness in the audience. Almost everyone was perplexed. Faces that could be observed ranged from, a sadness with eyes on the speaker to some who were gazing into space, almost ignoring what was before them. Several men had their head down as if sharing in this unknown pain. Then someone shouted out "I love you." This only caused the speaker to break down more, with his face buried in his hands he sobbed and sobbed… now some began joining with him, one here, another there, around the room men could be heard crying and sobbing. Bursting out again and again the sound became louder. Suddenly a man began confessing his sin aloud… forgive me… then another… some fell on their knees while others put their face in their hands or across their arms. Some fell to the floor prostate, some just sat motionless with tears rolling down. Many cried out to God and still others mumbled. A few rose to their feet as if to leave or just did not know what to do, even in their state of anxiety they to began to cry. Very soon there was not a dry face in the crowd. It seemed like minutes but it went on for quite a while… Men whaled of their need of Jesus… crying, "God help me!"… And the continual "I’m sorry, I’m sorry". Cries of "Oh God" and "Jesus" blended in the undertone of what could be called prayer. The mixture of men at all levels of confession spoke out loud their sin and their need… Walls that were up for years came down… in the midst; the love of God quickened hearts… God cried out to men by His Spirit through a man crying and they heard Him and joined Him… On it went no one tried to stop it or make sense of it everyone was in need or pain at some level and joined in. Some resisted but only briefly… anger and hatred, dishonesty and lying rose up and dissipated… Fear, disappointments and collections of bound up feeling were loosed. Sin of every nature was confessed and washed away… replaced by love and Joy… Some sounded angry at first, others were gentler but all soon became a pool of voices individual yet one… together… sharing… A few men came to the speaker who was now on his knees still sobbing and kneeled around him and embraced him. Others were embracing each other one after the other… then sorrow began to turn to expressions of thankfulness… thanking God… thanking the speaker… thanking God for being there… and for each other. Amid sobs were rejoicing… tears and smiles came together. Freedom… from sin and oppression, Who could have planned this or orchestrated this but God? Most of these men were strangers at the start of this testimony. Now, it was like they always knew each other. Men confessed sin and sorrow, unforgiveness and just unloving hardness. Men who said they never cried… had cried that day. The forgiveness of dishonesty in business to anger at children and wives came out in waves and in a variety of expressions. The talk of cleansing and change went on for hours that day and for some it was exchanged over and over and repeated in the days ahead. Some later talked almost in disbelief, for they at first resisted the love they felt. Lives were touched… but not by words alone… in fact most would not remember what the speaker said in words but they felt his love and that they were touched by God. There was no question of what brought the speaker to tears… no one cared… they knew it was God. Healed, forgiven… washed clean… renewed and all felt loved and in different ways and confessed that Jesus touched them within, with their love for each other that just seemed to overtake them. Is it what we say or is it the love of God in us that is made manifest by the Holy Spirit. We must never lose sight of the power of testimonies… but we must never lose sight that it is the power of God’s love that changes hearts not words alone… but the power of love behind those words. Love speaks the loudest and it speaks forever…
Jesus Christ’s Community at Hebron www.jesuschrists.com |
