-How many were lost last week? This week is easier, but still confusing: atomic energy
-Romans 1:18 – “For ever since the creation of the world His invisible nature and attributes, that is,
His eternal power and divinity, have been made intelligible and clearly discernible in and
through the things that have been made”
-If the universe has God’s signature, let’s find out about Him/us
-Atoms have the most potential energy in the universe (we think) but it just sits there
-Church has unlimited potential too (HS)… and it just sits there
-A nuclear reaction
-Unstable molecules (Uranium, Plutonium, etc) are shot with neutrons
-Some break apart, sending more neutrons into close-by atoms which break apart, etc
-Eventually, the number of breaking atoms increases to such a number it detonates
-All the nuclear energy is released
-Room full of mousetraps or set dominoes
-Some requirements
-Something has to start the reaction (pressure, heat, neutrons)
-Material has to be pure enough to prevent interruptions (weapons grade)
-Atoms have to be close enough for neutrons to reach (critical mass)
-Revival work much like this
-One person gets excited and bumps into another, getting them excited and it spreads
-But there are some requirements
-Something has to start the reaction: prayer, faithfulness, worship
-Those involved have to be pure enough to prevent distraction: focused
-Heb 12:1 “let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so
easily hinders our progress.”
-Free from sin’s entanglement
-Free from “impurities” that slow you down
-The church has to be close enough (mature love) to run into each other
-Close to each other to react
-Close to the community to catch them
-Difference between fuel grade and weapons grade:
-Fuel grade has enough impurities to prevent critical mass
-In churches, you have some people who want revival and those who don’t
-If you have enough who do, you get heat and maybe an explosion if enough
-Who are the impurities?
-Don’t want change
-Don’t like new people
-Relationship with God has stalled and don’t want to admit there’s more
-Purification of plutonium: heat and spinning
-In the church, people go through this process too (PIT) to be purified
-When a congregation goes through it, the impurities leave (dead monkeys)
-If you think you are an impurity… Change (don’t leave)
-When we survive the purification process, we become weapons grade Christians
-Pure plutonium explodes on its own: let’s be like that
-We cannot see growth & change until we make ourselves ready. (purity, focus, close, mature)
-Some warnings and instructions
-God provides the power and direction, but we must cooperate
-Atomically speaking, explosions start VERY slowly and then suddenly explode
-Growing in love REQUIRES unpleasant interaction