TITLE: Why Has the Fire Gone Out?

TEXT: Romans 9:1-5

PROPOSITION: Christians must have a burning desire to reach the lost.

QUESTION: Which?

KEY WORD: Reasons

READING: Same

INTRODUCTION:

                1. Jeremiah 20:9  "Fire in my bones"

                2. Acts 17:16  "Soul stirred within him"

                3. Care? Share! -- Don't? Won't!

                4. Some need a spiritual re-awakening.

                5. Others - Fire has gone out.

If you are not right with God: you will not appreciate what I have to say.
You might misunderstand my heart and my motive.
You might think this is from anger or frustration.  You just don't know my heart.

I. Failure to weep over souls

                A. Cry over: football, soap operas, and things

                B. What about souls?

                                1. Psalm 126:6 go weeping, come rejoicing

                                2. Matthew 23:37 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem

                                3. Luke 19:41 Saw city, wept over it

                C. Acts 20:31 Night and day with tears

                D. Philippians 3:18 I tell you now, even weeping,

II. Preoccupied with secondary things

                A. Counseling, corns and calluses

                B. Budgets and buildings

                C. Matthew 6:33 Seek kingdom of God FIRST!

III. Indifference, Apathy

                A. Mormons, JW's, Pentecostals, Muslims

                B. More committed, spend more money

                C. Better to be a homosexual than indifferent

                                A. Matthew 11:23-24

                D. Giving, Work, Sacrifice, Soul-winning

IV. Labor without Love

                A. Duty vs. Desire

                B. Converted to the system without the Savior

                C. I Thessalonians 1:3 remembering your labor of love

                D. Hebrews 6:10 God will not forget your labor of love

V. At ease in Zion    Amos 6:1

                A. Many retired from job = retire from Lord's work

                B. Spectators, Slide through life

VI. People on whom preaching does no good

                A. Agrippa - Acts 26:27-29 Almost persuaded

                B. Matthew 27:4 - What is that to us?

                C. Sensitivity Bush - lose ability to be moved

Conclusion:

                A. Special invitation - rekindle the fire

                B. Have I described you?

                C. Just come down front - card to fill out