Introduction

 

I.        I want to be a positive person.

II.       I’m sure you want to be a positive person.

III.      The reality is that negative people pull you down and positive people build you up.

IV.      Let’s look back at a story that shows how negative people had a negative affect on others (Deuteronomy 1:20-34).

A.       The men who “…made all the congregation complain”.

B.       Let’s look to see the dangers of being negative in a positive world.

 

Text

 

I.        God Is Positive.

A.       Are you surprised that I chose to refer to this as “a positive world”?

1.       The world is wicked and cruel; full of hate, crime, and war.

2.       But this is not the world God intended (Genesis 1:31).

B.       God created a very good place with a very good man and a very good woman and He had a very good plan in place for them.

C.      God has a plan for you as well (Jeremiah 29:11).

II.       Negativity is Contagious.

A.       Those 10 negative spies had an effect on an entire nation that numbered around 2 million.

1.       “If only we had died in the land of Egypt!”

2.       “Or if only we had died in this wilderness!”

B.       Isn’t that the way it works today?

1.       One person starts to complain and others start to join in.

2.       It happens in the church.

C.      When you are negative, it is contagious and it sows discord among the brethren.

III.      Being Negative Is Dangerous.

A.       We need to go just a bit further with the previous point.

1.       Sowing discord among Christians is one of Satan’s favorite tools.

2.       If we are busy fighting among each other we will not be fighting against what we should be fighting against (Ephesians 6:12).

3.       If we are not fighting for souls due to the negative attitudes the Devil is unopposed in his fight against them—that’s dangerous!

B.       We who are Christians are to be the light that draws others to Christ.

1.       Fighting among ourselves does not lead others to Christ.

2.       Remember, we may only get one chance to make a difference in someone’s life.

3.       We can’t afford to waste that chance.

 

Conclusion

 

I.        When Israel became negative about going into the Land that God promised them they were barred from going.

II.       When Christians are negative, we do not receive the blessings that God intends for us as well.

A person is rich when he and God are satisfied with his life.