Power Walk Ministries

Guest (Male): This is the Power Walk Ministries broadcast with Reverend Paul Cannings. We're so glad that you've tuned in to join us today. Our series this week is titled "A Sincere Passion for Christ." There's no doubt that we all pour ourselves into whatever it is that captures our interest, whether it's a person, a sport, a charitable cause, a diet, or exercise routine.

Well, Pastor Cannings takes us to John chapter 12, where we see exactly such devotion in Mary. Challenging us to consider our relationship and approach to Christ, Pastor Cannings brings us this message titled "What Drives Us?"

Dr. Paul Cannings: I am so fascinated by how passionate people can be about a football game, a basketball game, or so many things, but don't have a zeal and a passion for Christ. There is an attitude, a mindset, and actions that go with passion. Let me give you an example.

I turn on the television looking for my Cowboy game, and I run into the Bills. In order for the game to go on, fans came and they shoveled snow out of the stands. Then you have a fan who takes off their shirt and is dancing around, and the stadium is packed with people on a snowy, freezing, frigidly cold day. It's interesting how we act when we are passionate about whatever we have a passion for.

Jesus Christ said he had a zeal for the temple. When he turned the tables upside down, passion meant he could not stand the corruption. He fought for the holiness of God and for the purity of the temple, and he went there with a passion to make a difference as he would teach people there. Passion has certain elements that go with it.

So today, let us take a look at what passion looks like when we look at Mary in John chapter 12. When we look at Mary in John chapter 12, what we see are three critical things that define passion: sacrifice, adoration, and complete devotion. That's what we see.

We would see in John chapter 20 that Mary Magdalene passionately stayed at the tomb seeking Jesus Christ and would not leave until she was able to be near him. Passion has this devotion, this pressing, this steadfastness. Nothing in any form or fashion deters what needs to take place when it comes to this passion. Nothing stops it.

I see people having a passion to make the NFL, a passion to do well at school, or a passion to become an astronaut. People will drive that. They will have certain dietary disciplines they follow in order to achieve those goals they have in their lives. Kids would stay up late at night to make sure they make those grades to get that scholarship to be able to go to college since their parents don't have a lot of resources. Passion is something that is driven.

Today, do we really have a passion for God? God so loved the world. Passion. Jesus Christ sits at the right hand of the Father making intercession for us. Passion, commitment, drive every day. Passion. That God would say to us that he loves us, and in 1 Peter chapter 3, his eyes are upon us and his ears are upon us. He will never leave us nor forsake us. Passion.

Anna would be in the temple after her husband died at a young age. Anna would stay in that temple and she would serve and serve and serve. It was a nasty job washing all the guts and stuff from the animals and all the blood and everything else. She never complains. She passionately looked for Jesus Christ to show up, the redemption of Israel, and she waited and waited and waited for that. When she saw baby Jesus, she went crazy, worshipping God, excited about God.

That's the kind of environment that Jesus Christ is coming into. By the time Jesus Christ is 33, she's most likely passed on. Same thing with Simeon. In the same way, he's waiting and waiting and waiting for the redemption of Israel. When he came, he said, "God, thank you for keeping me alive so I could see it."

Jesus Christ is in this time years later now, and they can't stand him. He's getting too much attention, and that bothers them. He's performing a miracle of raising a man from the dead after four days. That's incredible. They believed the spirit hovered over the body for three days. After the third day, there's no hope. That's why Mary is crying her heart out because there's no hope.

Jesus Christ purposely took four days to come because we know it's purposeful because, in chapter 11 of the book of John, he wasn't that far away. He was a two-day trip away. He took four because he wanted to show to Martha and answer her theological concerns because of the debates that were taking place, that he is the resurrection. Then he wanted to weep with Mary because she felt that she lost her brother forever.

Understand, when we are looking at this time that Jesus Christ comes, you would think everybody's excited about him. Everybody is looking forward to the redemption through Jesus Christ. So when we talk about passion, yeah, Mary got her brother back, so why wouldn't she have passion about this? Mary is listening to Jesus Christ. Martha is listening, but not as in-depth as Mary.

Mary's understanding that Jesus Christ is going down to Jerusalem to die. The way she's treating this, he's not coming back. She's not just listening to the teachings of Jesus Christ; she is hearing it with her heart. She's understanding that Jesus Christ is going to die. You'd think Lazarus would be the one at Jesus's feet because he is the one that was dead four days and was raised from the dead.

So the distinctiveness of Martha and Lazarus especially to me in this story, and how she responds, teaches us that her heart of worship is exemplary. So let's take a look at verse 1 of John chapter 12 as we take a look at our own hearts. In verse 1, it says, "Then Jesus six days before the Passover came to Bethany, where Lazarus was which had been dead." He's trying to make a point. There's a contrast in this text.

He's getting ready to go die. Lazarus is raised from the dead. So he's showing everybody that even if I'm going to die, I'm life. In other words, I don't need somebody to give me life before I give Lazarus this life. I am life. So Jesus Christ points that out vividly.

Now, you would think Martha is not going to come to him and say, "Here goes Mary again. She's just at your feet and I'm trying to cook and get this meal ready." No, she doesn't say anything because that's been addressed before. The disciples are not really paying much attention because Judas in this passage is trying to save up money to take care of the poor. So he's not thinking about Jesus Christ dying.

The context of how Mary views this is so beautiful to see. All these folks, the disciples, were getting the serious word of God just about every day. They're seeing him walk on water, seeing Jesus Christ raise Lazarus from the dead, and demons coming out of people. But they're thinking that their function most likely is based on what Ezekiel is teaching.

The Redeemer would come and all these different things. Ezekiel is talking about a time past the time Christ is on earth. But they're thinking he's coming to redeem Israel. They're running alongside a donkey and they're asking questions like who's going to be on the left and who's going to be on the right. They're thinking of a kingdom Jesus Christ is going to establish on earth because they can't kill him. We saw them try to kill him and they couldn't do it.

Judas is thinking he's very popular right now, so he can make a whole lot of money. So the context specifically portrays the heart of a true worshiper because there's only one person here truly worshipping Christ. In verse 2, it says, "There they made him a supper, and Martha served." It doesn't mean that Mary didn't help in some form or fashion, but there's not a complaining going on here. But Lazarus was one of them that sat at the table with him.

Please hear me. Many times God does so much for us that we don't pay much of attention to it because we think that our abilities got the job done. So we don't see every good and perfect gift as coming from above. If we see it, we're not as appreciative as we need to be. What I mean by that is 50,000 people die in wrecks, and you made it home. Have you ever stopped to just say, "God, thank you, Jesus"?

The things he does all week long make you so appreciative. Only God could do that. How often do we get up in the morning and think about the fact that this earth is spinning every second of every day and God is sustaining it? Could you do that? Could NASA do that? Think for a minute. Who gets the cow to have another cow? Who's the one that gets a chicken to get another chicken?

Who is the one that keeps the right mixture of oxygen and nitrogen in the air for us to breathe? He watches over your kids when they're at school, and he takes care of everybody coming back together at night. Who's the person who does all of this? How do we respond to God? We give our sermons to kids when they complain. What about us?

Why do we go to church? We sit in church and we get mad if it goes too long rather than going and saying, "God, I thank you I got a chance to just serve you in a place where you say this is the only organism that you're the head of is the church." God, I'm going to make that the greatest place ever so that, Lord, you reign from this church to every place else. When is our attitude like that?

Every day, he sits at the right hand of the Father making intercession for us. Think about it. Revelation chapter 12 says Satan is going to heaven day and night trying to destroy us, and Christ faithfully defends us. I challenge you today. Don't be like Lazarus. God is doing so much for us every day. We complain, we grumble without a passion like you find in Mary. Stay focused.

Guest (Male): Thank you, Pastor Cannings. What a difference between Anna's focus in the temple, the money changers, and the priests who allowed them to carry on business there. And then we see the heart of a true worshiper in Mary. How about you? What does your walk with Christ look like?

If you'd like to talk about how to have a closer relationship with Christ, then give us a call at 281-260-7402 or visit us online at powerwalkministries.org. And when you're there, learn more about our ministry and prayerfully consider a one-time or monthly contribution that keeps these broadcasts on the air. You can donate online or even mail us a check at Power Walk Ministries, P.O. Box 920517, Houston, Texas, 77092.

Guest (Male): You should come because we never stop learning. So a conference such as this one will just impact you so much that you will grow.

Dr. Paul Cannings: I am so excited about the conference coming up April the 23rd through the 25th. I really am ecstatic about it. Pastors have come together on a committee to help with the process moving forward. I'm excited about our first conference last year, but this conference this year is going to be greater. There's like about 40 classes here.

Let me give you a taste: the pastor and deacons functioning under the leadership of Christ, a biblical approach to resolving conflict in the church, traits of successful biblical leaders, cultivating a healthy and productive team environment, overcoming the stagnation in the church, discipling leaders, dealing with how do we grow people and do evangelism at the same time.

Despite all the difficulties churches are facing, we can find a powerful, effective way forward. A lot of teachers are coming to teach. They're well-trained, well-educated, and practicing these principles within their church. Come be a part of April the 23rd through the 25th. Go to powerwalkministries.org so that we could move forward together for God's glory. Look forward to seeing you. You will not be in any way disappointed at this conference.

Guest (Male): Again, our web address is powerwalkministries.org. And now as we close, let's remember to take stock of where we invest our energies and resources and consider all that Christ has done for us. Let's develop the kind of devotion that Mary had for Christ and make him a priority in our lives.