Passion For Jesus Ministries

It is not uncommon these days, no matter what stream in the Body you are a part of, to hear, as one of the "in vogue" catch phrases, that we are to be a people of "one thing". Sounds good! But what does that exactly mean and what do I have to do to become a person of one thing?  Let's take a moment and consider what the Spirit is saying to the Church on this important subject.

THREE “ONE THINGS” IN THE BIBLE

There are actually three "one things" mentioned in the Scriptures. We will look at each of these. The first "one thing" is found in Psalm 27:4 – it is desire defined. The second "one thing" is found in Luke 10:42 – it is desire satisfied. The third "one thing" is found in Philippians 3:10-4 – it is desire walked out or what I call the Journey of Desire.

The common aspect in all three "one things" is that being a person with a "one thing" reality is to be our top priority, our overriding need and the primary focus of our life.

DESIRE DEFINED - PSALM 27:4

“One thing have I asked of the Lord, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple.” Psalms 27:4 (ESV)

King David has the unique distinction in the Scriptures as being identified not just as being a servant of God, and not even just as being a friend of God, but he is the "only" man in the Scriptures declared by God to be a "man after God's heart" (1 Samuel 13:14; Acts 13:22). I think maybe the man who God says uniquely represents His heart could probably teach us a thing or two, what sayest thou?

Being a person after God's heart means several things; one thing it means is that David wanted to obey God's commandment - and that is a true statement. But that's not the only thing or even the main thing that being a person after God's heart means. The foundational reality of being a person after God's heart is that David's primary preoccupation and focus in life was to be a student of the emotions of God's heart.

To be a student of the emotions of God's heart means that David desired to know what was important to God, what motivated God, not only what God thought or believed, but also what He felt - and then David wanted his own heart to conform to those realities in God's heart. And God Himself says that David succedded in that quest! With that in mind...

David, the man after God's heart, the man who understood the thoughts and feelings of God's heart, was able to give definition to the ache and yearning of the human heart as well. Beloved, every human being is created with that ache and yearning - recognized or not. When that ache is not defined, or is misunderstood, the result is that we begin running after different things. Being able to define the ache and yearning in our lives gives us an accurate vision as to how we should live our day-to-day lives.

A person (or a generation) that is not able to define their deepest heart desire will cast off restraint.

Where there is no prophetic vision the people cast off restraint...Proverbs 29:18 (ESV)

Notice that the aforementioned verse, when referring to a vision, does not mean that a people without a vision - a plan of their own making, or a vision of another man, or another ministry. It says that awhere there is no prophetic vision - when there is no vision defined and authenticated by the Spirit of God, that is in conformity to the heart of God. In other words, where there is no vision that is aligned to what God thinks or feels.

Where there is no prophetic vision, people will run from one relationship to another. They will run from one college degree to another. They will run from one house to another. They will run from one career  goal to another. They will run from one girlfriend to another. They will run from one sexual encounter to another. They will run from one dominating situation to another. They will try to control people. They will try to find significance in their lives to silence the vacuum and the cry of their hearts that exists because there heart isn't seeking to know the heart of God and to be conformed to that reality.

You see, the problem is that the cry of our heart cannot be silenced; it is eternal. God has put eternity in our hearts, in the core of our DNA. Thomas Dubay calls us “incarnate thirsts.”

Jesus is called the “treasure of all nations” in Haggai 2:7. The New King James translation identifies Jesus as the "Desire" of all nations. Beloved, we cannot repent of our desires for pleasure.

The beauty of God is the personality, nature, character and emotions of God. The only thing that will satisfy the human heart is the revelation of God touching our hearts and minds. Nothing is more exhilarating to the human heart than when God makes Himself known to our being. This is a powerful thing.

Most of the earth doesn’t even recognize that what they really desire is the exhilaration that comes from experiencing God’s emotions. Their desire is not defined. Therefore, they do not have a vision, so therefore they cast off restraint.

DESIRE SATISFIED – LUKE 10:42

In Luke's gospel, we are given an example of what it looks like when the human heart's deepest desire is satisfied. This is the account of Mary of Bethany. I call this account “desire satisfied.” It is the story of Mary of Bethany sitting at the Lord’s feet. Sitting at Jesus’ feet and hearing His Word is the "key" to our desire being satisfied.

42 but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her." Luke 10:42 (ESV)

In this strory, Jesus is visiting some friends of His. There is Lazarus, and his two sisters, Mary and Martha. You may be familiar with this account. Jesus and His disciples come in and Mary sits at Jesus' feet listenting to what He has to say. Martha, on the other hand is concerned about dinner. She starts thinking about preparing a meal for Jesus and the boys. Mary was all about Jesus, Martha was all about doing for Jesus.

Now don't get me wrong, God is not against hard work. God is the hardest worker that exists. Jesus works really hard. The apostle Paul worked hard. David worked hard. The Bible is not against hard work. In fact, the Bible encourages, yea, even commands, hard work. As human beings, there’s something healthy and desirable about working hard. It is part of this journey of desire to work hard and feel a sense of satisfaction and completion in our hearts. God made us to be productive. The problem is not work. The problem is that Martha was distracted by her work, and her work distracted her from the “one thing” that Mary was doing. Martha's problem? She was consumed with the need to make sandwiches that Jesus never ordered!

Beloved, one thing is needed; one primary thing is needed to satisfy that desire in your heart. The thing that is needed is what Mary did, sitting at Jesus’ feet and listening to His words. When we give ourselves to sitting at the Lord’s feet and hearing His Word, our desires begin to be satisfied. In Song of Solomon 1:2, the Bride says,"Father, Let Him kiss me with the kisses of His mouth (Word), for Your love is better than wine.” (paraphrased)

When the revelation of His love touches my heart, it is so exhilarating. The release of the spirit of revelation upon the reading and meditation of the Word is most exhilarating.

Pleasure is not evil

Allow me to regree a minute. We have to get away from this idea that pleasure is evil, or that seeking pleasure is evil. Pleasure is not evil. God is the Author of pleasure. He is the most exhilarating and most pleasurable Being that we will ever know. God is hilariously exhilarated and consumed with pleasure.

“In your presence is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore” Psalm 16:11 (ESV).

The one thing that will satisfy our hearts is putting our hearts in front of the revelation of God’s Word - Why? Because it is pleasurable! We are to give ourselves to long and loving meditation on the Word of God i.e., dialoging with Him, singing the Word, preaching the Word, writing the Word. It is imperative that we get the Word of God into our being and ask Holy Spirit to illuminate the Word and give us revelation.

Sustaining power of His Word
 
Let's look for a moment in Job 23:12-14.

“I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my portion of food.” Job 23:12-14 (ESV)

God wanted to make such a point about the Word of God that He led the nation of Israel into the wilderness to show them that man cannot live by bread alone but by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord (Deut. 8:3). The word that comes from the Lord’s mouth is the only thing that will sustain our weak hearts. The very word that comes from God’s mouth is the very word that sustains the hearers. The very creative word that comes from God’s mouth is what holds the stars in mid-air. Hebrews 1:3 … he upholds the universe by the word of his power. If the word of His power can sustain the entire cosmos, then what does this say about what it can do to our weak little hearts? The Father is so serious about His words that He drove the nation of Israel into the wilderness.

Raising up a generation that sits, gazes and listens

Right now this generation does one thing - they sit and they listen. But, they don’t sit and listen to the Lord. Instead, they sit and listen to their TV. They sit and listen to their radios, their stereos, their CDs. They sit and listen to the Playstation. They sit and gaze upon other things. They sit, listen and gaze on their girlfriends. They sit, listen and gaze on their boyfriends. They sit, listen and gaze at “be all you can be in the army.” They feed their hearts and their minds with something other than the “one thing” that can satisfy the desires of their hearts. Some sit, listen and gaze on pornography. Some sit, listen and gaze on drugs. Some sit, listen and gaze on different activities of vanity. Some are good and some are evil. The problem? None of those things will sustain or satisfy the desire of our hearts.

Luke 10:42 speaks of what we must do to satisfy the desire that David defined in Psalm 27:4. It is the action of coming and sitting at Jesus’ feet and hearing His words that will satisfy. God is calling this generation to give themselves to the power of the Word of God. He’s calling a generation to enter through the open door of the spirit of revelation in the knowledge of Who He is: His personality, His thoughts, His feelings, and His being.

Discipline without desire satisfied

Many believers erroniously think that the way to conqueror their inner battles with tempation and sin is through the door of discipline. Discipline is not bad. But, Beloved, discipline without desire satisfied will not work! But, on the other hand, desire touched and satisfied, even a little bit, gives birth to godly discipline. Discipline then becomes what it was designed in the plan of God to be - a fence; it becomes a boundary-line to guard desire.

The reason why there is no discipline in our society is because there is no desire being satisfied. This generation is running about aimlessly trying to grab something. But because there is no desire being satisfied, there’s nothing to guard our hearts. Our hearts are empty and there’s nothing to protect them. We are open game for the enemy's strategies.

It is imperative that we understand the rightful function of boundaries. We have boundaries in relationships: we have boundaries in marriages, in friendships, in families, not for boundaries sake, but because boundaries protect relationships. We have fences around our houses. Why? Because it protects something. That’s what godly discipline does. Discipline is meant to guard, to protect.

Godly desire satisfied births godly discipline. The spiritual disciplines of fasting, reading the Word, and prayer eventually become disciplines because of desire satisfied. However, there may be days and seasons where we don’t feel like it, and we have to be steadfast and consistent through those seasons. Why? Because we are assured that if we press through, we will be rewarded with what we diesire (Hebrews 11:6).

DESIRE WALKED OUT- PHILLIPIANS 3:13-14

Now, let's look for a moment at what I call the journey of desire.

13 Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:13-14 (ESV)

Desire defined – “one thing I desire”

Desire satisfied – “one thing I need”

Journey of desire – “one thing I do”
 
Knowing what your desire is helps you to understand and know what you need. This generation doesn’t know what they need, because they don’t know what they desire. And how will they know if we don't tell them (Romans 10:14) All they know is that they have this ache in their heart, and are running about aimlessly, doing silly stuff, even in the Church.

Sharing the gospel isn't about telling people they are sinners! They already know that. The gospel is all about telling them what they were created to be and how Jesus is avaiable to help them get there!

The Lord is raising up forerunners who will proclaim the beauty of Jesus. Proclaiming this by the power of the Spirit will unearth this desire in the hearts of this generation (Romans 10:14).

14 But how are they to call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? Romans 10:14 (ESV)

Beloved, we need to know what we desire in order to know what we need. The very thing that we need is the very thing that we desire. Until we know these two things we won’t know what to do!

Forgetting – focused abandonment

The term that I use for “one thing” is focused abandonment.

The first thing you need to do to be a person of one thing is to forget. Forget what? Forget the past.

There’s been a prophetic call going forth, telling the generations to go for it. Go for it hard. Fast, pray, evangelize, go to the mission field, heal the sick, cast out demons, and give generously. There’s a call that has gone forth. It’s a call for radical devotion. There’s a call to purity and simplicity of devotion, a call to focused abandonment.

Many sincere believers in their hearts are saying, “I want to!” But, there is a major obstacle keeping them from successfully achieving their goal. They are overwhelmed with their failures. They are overwhelmed with their struggles. They’re overwhelmed with their on-going compromises. They’re overwhelmed with their spiritual immaturity, their brokenness and their weakness. There are many who are beginning to know what they desire and know what they need but they don’t want to do it because of all the failures of the past.

Paul’s exhortation to us is to “forget”.

The way you forget is not by forgetting, or ceasing to remember, instead we forget by remembering (knowing) something. What do we need to know? That God enjoys you in your weakness. We are to know the richness of his grace in kindness towards us (Ephesians 2:7).

John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son...”

God loves the world so He gave His Son. The world is filled with murderers. The world is filled with rapists. The world is filled with prostitutes. The world is filled with people who are greedy. The world is filled with people who abuse their spouses. The world is filled with racism. The world is filled with oppression and injustice. John 3:16 tells us that God is filled with longing and desire for these broken and demonized people, even when they haven’t yet said yes to Him. How much MORE does He desire us after we have said yes to Him?

There are so many people who have said yes to God who think they are disqualified from a lifestyle of focused abandonment because they still struggle in their inner life. Paul says the first thing we must do is to forget.

I believe the revelation of the kindness of God is going to come upon the earth in a way that will shock many people.

One of the reasons there has been so little repentance in the Church is because the kindness of God has been preached as “niceness.” When the true kindness of God is preached, it is going to touch the hearts of God’s people and produce repentance (thought transformation).

Mercy that empowers

God's mercies are new every morning. Every day is a new page. When we wake up in the morning, it’s another blank page for us to draw a new picture on. If we’ve messed up on the picture the day before, that’s okay. Do you hear me? That's okay! God is not carrying a grudge!

22 The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; 23 they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. Lamentations 3:22-23 (ESV)

We’re not talking about rebellion here. We’re talking about sincere people who struggle. They "want" to live lives of focused abandonment, and God wants to help them to forget when they fail. We need to know His mercies are new every morning. We need to know that His mercies endure forever. We need to know that His mercies endure forever. We need to know that His mercies endure forever. Get it?

By studying and meditating on the emotions of God (becoming a person after God's heart), our hearts are filled with revelation of His mercies and how He enjoys us, even in our weakness. One of my favorite verses is:

for the righteous falls seven times and rises again, but the wicked stumble in times of calamity. Proverbs 24:16 (ESV)
 
We are not destined to stumble in a time of calamity. We are not! I believe a time of calamity is speaking of the hour of history we are living in. Young men and young women do not have to stumble and remain fallen in this hour of history. No! A thousand times No! We are righteous - because we are bought with the blood of Jesus, and the sincerity and the yes of God has been birthed into our spirit. This is what it means to be righteous. If we are righteous, then we may fall but we can rise. Get it?

This generation needs to know the kindness and the goodness of God.

Jesus - the sympathizing High Priest (Hebrews 4:15)

Another thing that empowers us to forget is the knowledge that Jesus is a sympathizing High Priest. On one hand, we have a God who enjoys us even while we are in our weakness. On the other hand, we have a God who sympathizes with us in our weakness. Talk about good news!

You can enjoy someone, but not necessarily sympathize with them. We have a High Priest who sympathizes with us in our weakness. Therefore, as the writer of Hebrews tells us, we can approach the throne of God with boldness.

Jesus has experienced every temptation known to man. Hebrews tells us that He was without sin even though He was tempted in every way. But He has felt the pressure - He understands. He is the sympathizing High Priest.

In our hour of need, in our hour of crisis, we can come before Him with confidence, knowing that He will not reject us. When I say, “Jesus, I’m struggling with…” Jesus will look at me and say, “Buddy, I understand - I've been there!” From that very place He will give me mercy and strength to overcome.

Mercy satisfies

Mercy is not just giving us a second chance. Mercy is the very power that God gives to satisfy our heart's desires.

"Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love, that we may rejoice and be glad all our days. Psalms 90:14 (ESV)

We struggle because sin offers a measure of pleasure. Sin claims to satisfy the desires of our hearts. When we cry “God, have mercy on me,” we’re saying, “Lord, come and satisfy me. God, give me the desire to be satisfied.” Mercy is not just giving us a second chance. Mercy empowers us.

Jesus is a sympathizing High Priest, and therefore we can come before His throne with grace and boldness, asking Him for mercy, which is the very power of satisfaction.

We have ravished His heart

We must know we have ravished His heart with one glance of our eyes. We must know that we have ravished His heart with one momentary simple glance of our eyes telling Him that we love Him. The apostles had His attention. They were broken, easily discouraged, filled with ambition and He told them these things in John 15-17:

John 15:9 “as the Father has loved me, so have I loved you.”

Jesus said, “The same measure of love God has for me, I have for you.”

In John 17:23 He tells them that the same love the Father has for Jesus He has for us.

23 I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me. John 17:23 (ESV)

In John 17:26 Jesus tells us that the Father desires to give the same desire that He (God the Father) has for His Son to a generation, who will then give the desire back to His Son. The Bride will love the Son the way the Father loves the Son.

26 I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them." John 17:26 (ESV)

Reaching forward - the call to action

Paul not only tells us to forget, he also tells us something further. The second thing Paul tells us is that he’s reaching forward. Reaching forward speaks of being intentional. We are to forget and we are to reach forward. It speaks of action  -something we must do. It speaks of rearranging our lives to do the “one thing”, even to the point of changing our schedules around.

The journey of desire starts by faith (Hebrews 11:6). Usually, when people talk about discipline, they are speaking of ten hours of prayer. But Beloved, the ten hours of prayer is birthed out of desire. It takes intentional discipline to say, “I want to set aside a half-hour a day to sit at the feet of the Lord.” We need to schedule our time. We need to be intentional.
 
When we remember God’s kindness and mercy, we forget our weakness. Forgetting has enough power to give our hearts the desire to begin reaching forward. Reaching forward speaks of the "little" reaches of our hearts. It doesn’t take much. He promises us that if we draw near to Him, He will draw near to us (James 5:8). He will respond (Hebrews 11:6b).

8 Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. James 4:8 (ESV)

In Luke 15, the Prodigal Son is walking from a distance, going home, yet the Father saw him and ran to meet him. That’s what our Father will do with the "little" reaches of our heart. With the "little" reaches of our hearts, we are well on our way to living lives of focused abandonment.

Pressing upward - the marathon pace

Paul doesn't stop with telling us to forget and to reach forward. He goes on even further. The third thing Paul says is:

“I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” Philippians 3:14 (ESV).

Pressing upward speaks of setting our mind on the big picture, setting our mind on a course and going for it. We don’t obtain focused abandonment overnight. It’s not an event - it's a journey.

This is so hard for the Western American mindset. We live in an instant, push-button society. God is not American  - Hello!. Most of the time He doesn’t do things instantaneously. I like the analogy of one guy who says, “God is like a glorious intruder but He is also a patient farmer.” As a friend of mine says, "Sometimes God is gloriously silent”.

When on the journey of desire, God does not always respond in a way that is obvious or instantaneous. We live in a society where pleasure is easily accessible, so this can be troubling to us. Focused abandonment is a lifelong journey. God, in His mercy and infinite wisdom, has chosen to make the journey of desire a lifelong journey. Therefore, we must set a marathon pace. If we think that it is instantaneous, then we will quit. When we remember that it is a marathon pace, then we will run with endurance. No matter what comes our way we will keep pressing on.

Beloved, you were created to be a person of one thing. You were created to be a person after God's heart, to know what He is thinking, what He is feeling, what He desires, what motivates Him. You don't have to be a Martha, some one who is distracted by the need to make sandwiches that Jesus never ordred. You can forget the past, press forward into your destiny and upward with a marathion mindset. It is not only a possibility - it is your destiny!

Like the prophet Nike would say, "Just do it!"