Passion for God

God loves us passionately and he is delighted when we wholeheartedly and passionately love him in return.

What does the Bible say about a passion for God -

1. Desiring God - Psalm 27v4
2. A passionate king - 2 Samuel 6:12-22
3. Passion through focus - Philippians 3:12-14
4. Feeding the passion - Matthew 6v19-24

Desiring God

Psalms 27:4

The one thing I ask of the LORD— the thing I seek most— is to live in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, delighting in the LORD’s perfections and meditating in his Temple.

Questions for reflection or discussion

1. How has this writer expressed a passion for God?
2. How was this heart for God developed?
3. What could you do practically to develop such passion?

Thoughts to consider

If I spend time prayerfully reflecting on God and who he is, then I become enthralled by him and passionate about him.

A passionate king

2 Samuel 6:12-22

David ... brought the Ark of God from the house of Obed-edom to the City of David with a great celebration. After the men who were carrying the Ark of the LORD had gone six steps, David sacrificed a bull and a fattened calf. And David danced before the LORD with all his might, wearing a priestly garment. So David and all the people of Israel brought up the Ark of the LORD with shouts of joy and the blowing of rams’ horns.

But as the Ark of the LORD entered the City of David, Michal, the daughter of Saul, looked down from her window. When she saw King David leaping and dancing before the LORD, she was filled with contempt for him.

They brought the Ark of the LORD and set it in its place inside the special tent David had prepared for it. And David sacrificed burnt offerings and peace offerings to the LORD. When he had finished his sacrifices, David blessed the people in the name of the LORD of Heaven’s Armies. Then he gave to every Israelite man and woman in the crowd a loaf of bread, a cake of dates, and a cake of raisins. Then all the people returned to their homes.

When David returned home to bless his own family, Michal, the daughter of Saul, came out to meet him. She said in disgust, “How distinguished the king of Israel looked today, shamelessly exposing himself to the servant girls like any vulgar person might do!”

David retorted to Michal, “I was dancing before the LORD, … Yes, and I am willing to look even more foolish than this, even to be humiliated in my own eyes! But those servant girls you mentioned will indeed think I am distinguished!”

Questions for reflection or discussion

1. How did David express his passion for the Lord?
2. What responses were there to his passion?
3. What would it mean for you to express your passion for God?

Thoughts to consider

Passion needs an outlet. If it is not expressed it becomes supressed.

Passion through focus

Philippians 3:12-14

I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.

Questions for reflection or discussion

1. What is Paul devoting his life to?
2. Why is it necessary to forget the past and look to the future?
3. How could you direct your sights so that you too would have a passion for Jesus?

Thoughts to consider

Whatever I focus on will become dominant in life. This can range from a person, to work, to a prized object, to an activity, or of course to God himself.

Feeding the passion

Matthew 6:19-24

“Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.

“Your eye is like a lamp that provides light for your body. When your eye is healthy, your whole body is filled with light. But when your eye is unhealthy, your whole body is filled with darkness. And if the light you think you have is actually darkness, how deep that darkness is!

“No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and be enslaved to money.

Questions for reflection or discussion

1. I become passionate about whatever I invest in and treasure. So, if I want to become passionate about Jesus, how do I invest my life in him?
2. Why is the eye such a key element for determining what you treasure?
3. Which master(s) do you love or are you devoted to?

Thoughts to consider

When I invest in my relationship with the Lord then I am investing in what is eternal. The results on earth might not be seen, but the Lord keeps an inheritance for us in heaven. That choice will filter into how I look out on the world and what controls my life.

Overview question for reflection or discussion

1. How passionate is Jesus for you?
2. How passionate are you for Jesus?

Thoughts to consider

Whatever I devote myself to will fill my heart. What fills my heart pours out of my life. It affects everything I do. It affects all my relationships, all my priorities. However much I try to hide it, it will come out. Let it be Jesus!

Photo Credit

Photo by Felipe Bastias on Unsplash