SOUNDING OUT:
On Fire for God (Part 1 of 5)

  Remember the account of the two men walking along the road to Emmaus in Luke 24. They were disheartened and sad. Jesus had been crucified, and they were in despair about it. Jesus joined them and opened God’s Word unto them expounding in all the scriptures the things concerning himself. Upon arriving in Emmaus they constrained him to spend the night with them arguing that it was too late to continue traveling. When he consented and broke bread with them, their eyes were opened and he was known unto them. After Jesus vanished out of their sight their joy overwhelmed them, and they returned to Jerusalem to share what had happened. Before returning they reasoned together saying:

  That’s the kind of heartburn we want to have. They started their day with negative heartbreak and ended it with positive heartburn. What a difference in attitude. There is no doubt that their attitude was affected by the time they spent with Jesus.

  Today I want to look at the foundation of an advantageous attitude that springs from a genuine and vital spiritual relationship with God. We will see five activities that the Word identifies as springing from a proper attitude and approach to life. We will see the importance of:

The Greek word prothumos is a key to unlock God’s heart on these activities. It is a compound word, made up of the two words pro and thumos. Pro means "before" and can refer to rank, place or time. Here it refers to time.

  Bullinger translates thumos as “an intense passion of the mind.” It does not describe the heat of the fire, but rather the bursting forth of the flame. Other definitions of thumos in Thayer's Greek Lexicon are: "glow, ardor, the wine of passion, inflaming wine." Bullinger translates prothumos as “predisposed, willing, eager, zealous.” When used with pro, it could be translated as "passion before it subsides" or "intensity at its peak." In other words, psyched, wired, keyed, jazzed, stoked, or on fire!

  I'll bet you can identify with this state of mind; and by the way, that's what it is. It is not a physical sensation. Perhaps you experienced it the first time you spoke in tongues… Or ministered healing to someone… Or had the eyes of your understanding opened as God's Word melted your heart. That’s a prothumos state of mind!

  Prothumos shows a predisposition. What are we predisposed to do? Well, do you think God may have some suggestions as to what He thinks we ought to be ready and willing to do? If you thought He might have something to say, you would be right.

  In the nine occurrences of the prothumos word family we will find five direct actions that should become a part of our temperament as a believer. In Hour 6 of Part III of Living in God’s Power, “Redemption Realized,” Kevin Guigou covers these five basics. As you do each one prothumosly, you will be totally prothumofied.

  These two verses regarding the same incident give us the first two uses of the word we are working. Here we find our word prothumos translated both “ready” and “willing.” Curiously, much of the heart of prothumos is captured in our understanding of an attitude that is ready and willing. The context of both of these verses gives us the first step in stabilization, prayer and praise.

  Jesus Christ is in the garden of Gethsemane, undergoing the greatest mental anguish any man will ever endure. What keeps him going? His true and vital spiritual relationship with God, his Father. We can see the foundation of such a relationship in his exhortation to the dozing disciples.

  "Watch ye and pray.... "That's our number one priority, maintaining the proper vertical relationship with our Father. Prayer and praise form the foundation. The spirit is prothumos. The real you is always prothumos to pray and praise.

  "The spirit is ready and willing, but the flesh is weak [asthenês]. "Here in its first use, we see prothumos specifically contrasted with the word asthenês. Thus one way we can see more depth of meaning of prothumos is to look at asthenês, an antonym. Prothumos, being ready and willing is the opposite of weakness. Having our freewill attitude ready and willing provides great strength for living.

  Thayer gives the following shades of meaning for asthenês based upon its Biblical usages: "unable to achieve anything great; destitute of power among men; weak and inferior; sluggish in doing right; wanting in manliness and dignity; having no power to promote piety and salvation; wanting in decision about things lawful and unlawful."

  The real you is prothumos in prayer and praise. You are:

  That's the picture you should have of yourself. Prayer and praise is the foundation for the other four activities. If our vertical relationship with God is alive and vital, we will have the strength to handle our horizontal relationships, and the needs of life will be taken care of. When we develop an attitude of prayer and praise, we will see that God responds. He will talk back. This attitude of prayer and praise will establish our humility, our meekness, our thankfulness, and our ability to keep our heads above the negatives of this world because of our direct communion with God.

  One New Testament Greek term for “praise” is from the Greek words, “epaineõ” and “epainos.” One translation of these words is “applause.” Our lives should be a walking applause, a standing ovation for what the Father has done for and in us. When others look at us, our lives should be an arrow, pointing straight to the Father. The attention we receive should be reflected to God and the Lord Jesus Christ. This all begins with prayer and praise to God.

  In our day and time much of our prayer and praise should be in the spirit. Part of our infirmity is not knowing what we should pray for as we ought (Romans 8:26). Speaking in tongues is such a vital lever in our prayer life. Through it God has made a way for us to engage in perfect prayer and praise. It is the foundational manifestation, and we can operate it as much or as little as we choose. Learning how much God desires it and how many benefits it provides the believer makes this activity even more exciting. We ought be ready and willing at anytime to operate this manifestation. God wants us prothumos in prayer and praise.

  In the next four weeks we will look at the remaining activities in which we should be ready and willing to engage. We should be predisposed to move in these categories, and pursue opportunities to do so as they arise. Our resolve will also guide us to their fulfillment as we determine the way we should go.