Maximum Christianity
Forward	This article is about living an abundant life in Christ to the maximum, to the fullest. Why did God perform such great miracles among mankind and reveal His power and glory so mightily through men like Samson, Moses, David, and Elijah? Yet each of these people were mere men and had their failings just as we. In the lives of these men were a quality that God is seeking in you and I today so that we may rise up and take our places in God's kingdom so He may show forth His glory through us and bring in the harvest!
Index	Two Questions Children of Great Exploits A Passive vs. An Active Response Conclusion: Maximum Christianity
Two Questions	Q. What has the Lord Jesus done for you personally? And why are you a Christian? Have you ever stopped to think why you're a Christian? Are you attending church because all your friends are going there? Is the main reason you're in a fellowship because of someone of the opposite sex you're attracted to? If you're thinking, "Whoops!" then I hope my question has either hit a mark or has caused you to begin wondering. Some Christians might have an almost automated response. "Jesus Christ died on the cross for me and shed His Blood to wash away my sins." While that is true, what has Jesus Christ done for you personally? What is your testimony? The question I really want to hit home with you is: How has your life really been impacted and changed by Jesus Christ to the point that serving and loving Jesus Christ and following Him for the rest of your life is your greatest purpose? It's a hard question, I admit. There is no perfect answer to this because we are yet being perfected by the Lord each day. For myself, the Lord has healed me of a life long sentence of self-destruction, given me identity after many years of painful unknowing, filled with joy my empty-soul, and has given me a new beginning and a new hope. A purpose. A destiny. While these are but a few of the reasons why I serve the Lord, were it not for Him, I would not be alive. I would either have been dead by another's hand, or have taken my life. The reason why I ask this question is for you to see if, within yourself, you have an inward conviction of an upward calling in your life. Cults can easily answer this question. In fact, they have many rehearsed responses to a variety of questions, and this may be "Topic #35" on their memorization lists! If we can do no better than they, perhaps we need to come with fresh inspiration and greater hunger and zeal before the Lord and ask that He reveal His love and greatness in a dimension greater than ever before, and to change our lives so powerfully that we will never be the same! Q. If you could do absolutely anything you wanted in life to glorify the Lord, and the Lord would bless it, what would you do for Him? You might prematurely - and rather quickly - answer, "Make the whole world believe in God!" or something equally noble, but take time to think this over carefully in terms of what you can begin to do today and build towards tomorrow. Strategy and strength. Think about the ramifications about this question. If you could do absolutely anything you wanted to bring glory to your Lord, what would it be? Recall that Jesus is the Alpha and Omega, and He has no end. His power is limitless, and there is no limit to what you can do in God! No limit? Wowwwwww. If I could do anything I wanted to glorify my Father in heaven? Whooaaaaa! Indeed, these are mind-staggering questions!
Children of Great Exploits	"Could God really use me in such a mighty way? Can He really use someone like me who has lived all his life in a status-quo mundane existence?" Then let me ask you: what's your purpose in life? Most college students have on their minds this: to graduate and get their degree, then get a great-paying job, embark upon a successful career, have a great house, great wife, great kids and dog, and drive a great BMW. At that point, many people find so little to live for, despite having so much. What are you living for? A mediocre mundane existence, or a life of excitement doing the wondrous works of God? Did you know that a life in God can be exciting and fulfilling? God can use you mightily as He did the men of God in the Bible. Yet this life is harder and more challenging. "But I'm not qualified!" "But I'm not spiritual enough!" "But I'm not able!" And yet, if you really read the Bible closely, since when was being spiritual enough, able enough, and being qualified enough prerequisites of being used of God? God used simple men the world might have deemed failures and useless. Look at Moses. Moses was Pharaoh's adopted grandson. He had wealth and power, was learned in the sciences, mathematics, politics, history and all, but yet by his own human qualifications and ability he tried to be Israel's deliverer. He beat up a taskmaster and buried him, and was soon discovered and exposed (possibly due to some toes sticking out of the sand!) and he retreated to the desert and became a shepherd. He was a shepherd (the lowest job in Egyptian society - the absolute bottom of the corporate totem pole) for 40 years and was old, frail, and devoid of his original abilities when God chose the right moment to reveal Himself and to place His call upon him. What did he say? "I'm not good at speaking; I'm not eloquent enough" Yet God was not looking for Moses' ability but his availability. As a result, God wrought mighty miracles through Moses, and he delivered the entire nation of Israel out of Egypt - the land of their slavery and bondage! King David. He committed adultery with Bathsheba whom he, from his rooftop, spied taking a bath (great name, huh? Better than Showersheba!) and further schemed to have Uriah her husband killed in battle. Yet God taught him how to be yielded and obedient, and to have a heart after God. God loved David because he was a man after His own heart. David learned that it wasn't vain burnt offerings and sacrifices that God was after, but a broken heart and a contrite spirit - these God would never despise. And through David, God wrote many prophetic songs and scriptures that became our book of Psalms foreshadowing the coming of His Christ. Apostle Paul. He was a mass murderer. He dragged Christians out of their homes and hiding places to be put to death in public. And yet the Lord used him to write most of the New Testament! Paul was an apostle - a sort of pastor of pastors and shepherd over many churches. What am I saying? In the Book of Daniel, it is written, "And they that know their God shall do great exploits." There is no limit to what God can do in your life. But what's keeping God from doing so?
A Passive vs. An Active Response	Our biggest mistake is having this attitude: "Oh well, if God wants to do it, He'll do it." My dear one, that's called a passive attitude. It's a ho-hum mediocre and mundane effortless attitude that is akin to being spiritually lazy! It is a posture that accomplishes little, values little, and hopes for little in life. Consider Christopher Columbus. Historical findings of his personal log entries reveals him as a man of God. The world said the earth was flat - you know the story. And yet he pioneered where no man had dared to venture and today you and I are enjoying in this great nation the blessings of one man's refusal of accepting a passive life, as he lived his life for God. The pilot who broke the sound barrier. His plane was trembling violently under the harrowing air pressure as he pressed is fighter forward against a foreboding barrier. Many people had backed off fearing death, but not this pilot. And after much perseverance, he punched through, and launched us into a new era of supersonic flight! Thomas Edison, the creator of the light bulb, was ridiculed with every failure. "I haven't failed," he said. "I've found 10,000 ways that don't work!" As a result, the original light bulb he created is still lit today - still fully functional - while you have to replace your house's light bulbs every so often. Thomas Edison was a Christian. Edison also said, "Many of life's failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up." Yet with a passive attitude, we are giving up before even beginning. Is the passive attitude justified? Can we really live life saying "if God wants to do it, He'll do it?" I find this mostly an excuse not to pursue God's promises in the Bible! For in the Bible, there are two kinds of promises. There is the unconditional type and the conditional type. The unconditional promise is that He will do it no matter what. For example, God promises, "I will never leave thee nor forsake thee." However, a conditional promise is along the lines, "If we do this, God will do that." For example, "If my people who are called by My name will humble themselves and pray, and turn from their wicked ways, and seek My face, I will hear them from heaven, forgive their sin, and heal their land." Think of the ramifications of that! If we take that scripture to its absolute maximum think of how mightily God can move through the earth!
Conclusion: Maximum Christianity	One preacher was obedient to obey the call to preach. As a result, one day a young gentleman attended one of his services, heard the Word of God, and was driving along one night when tears flooded his eyes. He pulled over, walked out into the darkness, dropped to his knees under so great a conviction, and gave his life to Christ, and asked the Lord to use him. He later was used by God as an evangelist and has lead probably led hundreds of thousands of people to Christ over the past several decades. His name was Billy Graham. While we may not be the next Billy Grahams, and while we may not be the next missionaries to Africa, being used greatly by God does not come by the masses, but being willing and obedient to do anything God leads you to do, no matter how great or small. You can be used of God in your school, workplace, neighborhood, and even city. It may start with something small, and being faithful with the little things. God will move us on to greater and greater things. There is an excitement as we progressively understand what is possible! You may think what you're doing is insignificant. You may only touch one person's life. But that person, like Billy Graham, goes forth and touches many other lives. There is an excitement from God when you see a volcanic multiplication effect! What does it take to be used of God in a mighty way and live an exciting life serving Him? The qualifications are two-fold: 1. A desire and willingness 2. Obedience. You may not be at a point where you want to be used of God in such a dimension. That's understandable, because everyone is at a different spiritual level. But somewhere deep down, you feel this is the life you want to live. Let me warn you: it's going to be tough. You may live a life that ends up being one of persecution and times of suffering. But Jesus said, "Great is your reward in heaven." All God requires of you is that you have even an inkling of desire to be used of Him! You can pray, "Lord, I know I'm not that kind of person, and I may not be ready yet, but can You make me such a person? I want to be that kind of person. I hate living a mediocre life!" The next is obedience. Some people may spend many years of their lives in seminary and building up vast stores of knowledge. But do they really seek God to hear His voice? And even if they hear God's voice, will they obey it, or retreat into the safer and greater comfort zone of theological study and pursuit of historical knowledge? Albert Einstein once said, "Imagination is more important than knowledge." You know that God wants to show forth His power and His glory, and He is looking for vessels to convey His love and mercy. Would you remain passive and sit in the pews of your church, or be someone active and be one God can use? Consider the original question: "If you could do absolutely anything you wanted in life to glorify the Lord, and the Lord would bless it, what would you do for Him?" If you can begin to open up your creativity and begin to ponder the immensity of its ramifications, you will see that we have an incredible opportunity before us.