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Resisting temptation and discovering your true passion for Jesus

Did you know that the word “passion” comes from the Latin word “pati” meaning to suffer?

Jesus proved how passionate He was about all of us on the Cross-by suffering the most agonizing death.  Jesus was truly human and truly divine and His human nature did not want to endure a horrible death by crucifixion, yet His divine nature embraced this agony in order to show us how much He loves us!

In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus calls out in anguish to His Father,  “Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”  Matthew 26:39  Jesus surrenders to His divine will, proving the depth of His love for us as He pays the price of our sins.

I have resolved to never let a day go by without remembering the Passion of Christ and I have made it my life’s purpose now to help others do the same.   When we remember how much Our Lord suffered to save us, we begin to discover our passion for Jesus.  If Jesus can suffer so much to create a place for us in paradise, what are we willing to endure to honour Him now, this very day!

PASSION gives rise to PASSION!  I am absolutely and total convinced that disobedience to God has its roots in one problem – a lack of PASSION FOR JESUS!

Imagine this scenario:

Someone you love is in danger of being killed.  You are at a public event when someone with a gun tries to shoot at the one you love.   Someone you don’t know jumps in front of the one you love pushing them out of the line of fire.  The stranger risks their life to save the one you love and in the process is shot and killed.  Suddenly that stranger is no longer a stranger!  That person who took the bullet intended for the one you love becomes the one who saved your loved one!  How grateful are you to that person?  Would you try to help the family of the person who saved the one you love?  Would you thank God for them?  Would you ever forget the person who saved the one you love?

Jesus ceases to be a stranger to us when we see Him being brutally tortured and killed for us!  “But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.” Isaiah 53:5

Do we rejoice in those wounds that heal us or do we grieve the sins that caused the wounds?  In my opinion to rejoice in the salvation that Christ brings without grieving the sins that caused Him to suffer, is the equivalent of holding the person that you love in your arms rejoicing that someone else died to save them, without grieving the suffering and loss of the person that died.  What kind of person does that?  How many Christians do that?  Are we Christians that want the gift of Christ’s salvation BUT refuse to think about how much Jesus suffered to save us?

When Jesus began His public ministry He went into the desert to pray.  There He was tempted by Satan. Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. “All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.” Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’”  Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him. Matthew 4: 8-11

Everyday we are in the “line of fire”; we are at risk of being tempted by Satan and making choices that do not honour Our Lord.  Satan is the one who tries to tempt you and hurt you, while Jesus is the Holy One who wants to protect you and save you!  In fact, the very name Jesus means “God saves!”

When I began to truly see the Passion of Christ, my heart changed.  I began to see all of the temptations Satan uses to possess people—money, power, sex, prestige, lusts of all forms.  I began to see how much Jesus loved all of us and how much He wanted our love and I resolved to turn away from everything that would not give Him glory.  I went from what I would call a careless, sensual existence to a careful, spiritual existence.  I began to get very prudent about the activities I would participate in and I began to consider the opportunity cost of all of the things I was not doing and all these changes happened because of the PASSION OF CHRIST.  I realized as I contemplated the Passion of Christ that Jesus was passionate about me, and I in turn became PASSIONATE ABOUT HIM!

Jesus will help us make good choices that honour Him.  He will help us to see the devil in the details, because the devil is always lurking around trying to devour a soul.  The devil will prey on your feelings.  Every human being has a sensual human nature that is at risk if we focus on what we think feels good, rather than what we know is good in God’s eyes.

I have created this site to encourage you to do one thing:  Realize how passionate Jesus is about you!  See Him everyday at 3pm dying for you on the Cross; 3pm is the time Jesus died for us.   Let that solemn moment inspire you to make more time for Him to deeply meditate on His Passion.  Remember the Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ and let His suffering penetrate your heart.  Discover how PASSIONATE JESUS IS ABOUT YOU and I think you will discover your PASSION FOR JESUS!

One day I asked Jesus this question:  “Why Lord did you have to suffer so much to save us?  You are God. You could have found another way to redeem the world.”  The words I heard in my heart were these:  “How else would you know how much I love you?”

I stand in front of the Cross of Jesus and remember that over 2,000 years ago, few people understood the mystery of what was happening.  Our Lord died without being loved.  But today, we can gather as a united Christian world standing at the foot of the Cross of Jesus at 3pm telling Him how much we love Him!  Join the peaceful revolution in the name of Jesus Christ.  We are One Body of Christ (Christians of all denominations) praying for the mercy of Our Lord upon all souls, united in solemn remembrance of the Passion of Christ each and every day at the time Jesus died for us, 3pm!