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Thursday, January 31, 2008
The Holy Spirit Rev. Dr. A.R. Bernard, 26 Jan 08 The Church Acts 9:31 The church became stronger because the people lived in the fear of the Lord. The church increased in numbers due to the encouragement/ comfort of the HS. Their daily lives were lived in the consciousness of the “fear of the Lord” (i.e. reverential fear, honour of God) and the “comfort of the HS”. On the day of the Pentecost – “In the last days, I will pour out my spirit on all flesh.” .: The HS is the present administrator of God’s plan. As the individual is in the marketplace, in the world, trying to preserve our values, the HS sees it, seizes that heart and makes it the sphere of influence in the world. Luke 4:18 The spirit of the Lord is upon me. The success of Jesus’ ministry was because of the HS. The HS anoints the leadership etc. It is still relevant today in CHC. He is the power by which we accomplish Kristo Kai Kosmo. .: We need to move up to be in places of influence. The Disciples Acts 1:6 Up until Jesus died and resurrected, the disciples did not understand His teachings. Matt 1:8-18 When the disciples first encountered Jesus, they thought Him to be a prophet. They did not understand Jesus to be the Messiah, the incarnation of God. The HS is going to be as to you what Jesus has been to the disciples – to prove protection, provision etc. John 13-17 Acts 1:6-8 The disciples still did not get His kingdom and Messiah-ship. “You shall receive power when the HS has come upon you” To the disciples: Wait in Jerusalem, so you will receive us. Witnesses: the people whose story is so convincing that the jury has to say that he is right .: When the HS comes, what they did not see before, they will see clearly. We don’t go into the world because we have power vs. we are the power. Recognise the difference of having power vs. representing power (Like policemen) – We are to represent the authority of Jesus. Peter received a revelation from the HS – “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God”. But he did not understand the meaning of what he said. Matt 16 “He told them sternly: Do not tell anyone what you have just heard” – Jesus put a prohibition on their understanding of His Messiah-ship. Matt 17 Icons: Moses and Elijah – Individuals whose deaths were mysterious (i.e. no body found or was lifted up to the Heavens) God may not reveal some things to us because of our reaction, which might potentially be in error. “Do not tell anyone what you saw until after my resurrection” The prohibition on the disciples was because in their present moral and spiritual capacity, they could not have represented Jesus in a clear and proper way. Not without the HS, who will “bring all things into your remembrance” How do you witness the reality of someone living when you don’t have a physical body?
In Acts, when the HS came, there was wind, fire and they saw tongues falling into them such that the disciples spoke a message that convicted the 3,000 people who were present. What did they preach? The resurrection of Jesus Christ. We have to share with similar conviction, to show how real our living God is even though there is no tangible body. When you become a Christian, you don’t have a relationship with a religious system, but a relationship with a person. We have to go back to the main character of the Bible!
You can’t help but be successful when you are with someone who is successful. How are you doing spiritually? How is your relationship with Jesus? It is the quality of your relationship, not the other things that matter. We can’t live out Kristos Kai Kosmo without the HS! ________________________________________________________________ Sorry if it sounds a little incoherent. It's just how he preaches, you know, fast forward rewind. - suatwei
Labels: Holy Spirit, Saturday, Sermons
Leaving a foot step - 12:58 AM
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Sunday, January 20, 2008
Faith Pastor Kong, 19 Jan
What is Faith a.k.a Confidence?
Hebrews 11:1 - "substance"= foundation, support. "evidence of things not seen"= confidence in the things I cannot see, but in knowing I will get it. .: Faith is synonymous with confidence, i.e. Faith = Confidence Faith is the positive attitude of confidence in knowing that God is with me every step of my way. Confidence can be seen in my ability to hold my own with people, be it those I'm meeting for the first time or with friends. BUT confidence has the tendency to leak away
How do I Stop My Confidence from Leaking Away? Confidence comes from the assurance that I have got Jesus with me. Praise and worship creates an atmosphere of faith, which is needed for the power of God to travel. Matt 4:1-9 - The devil tested Jesus 3 times on His confidence in being the Son of God. The devil used religious language, so the greatest temptation by the devil is in the area of my being a Child of God. The moment you act on a negative emotion, it overwhelms you. The more of whatever you act upon, the more you strengthen, so choose to act upon the good and the positive! Matt 11: 2-6 - "offended": Scandalised (Greek), Trip up, Stumbled, Enticed to sin .: The key to confidence is relevation - I will do what God has called me to do.
How did Jesus Build Up His Confidence? John 13:3 He knew where He came from - I need to know my position, who I am in Christ. He knew what He had - I need to know my gifts and abilities. He knew where He was going - I need to know my purpose.
How does Pastor Kong Build Up His Confidence? By having a life message, which is: To love God wholeheartedly and to love people fervently. Of which his life message stands upon: The Great Commandment, The Great Commission and the Cultural Mandate. We need to find our own life message!
What is a Sure Sign of Having Confidence? Confidence gives you the power to be the servant of all. John 13:4, 14 - Jesus washed the feet of the disciples. Mentioned in the Bible - Joseph had the ability to serve because he was secure in himself. Daniel.
Key Takeaways Without confidence, you can't please God. Confidence gives us power. Confidence gives us the ability to be the servant of all.
How Do I Maintain My Confidence? The key is to have a secret place in God to turn to, a place to strengthen myself. Psalms 91:1 He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. Psalm 23:1-4 The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness For His name’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. Note: "The Lord" (3rd person) to "He" (2nd person) to "You" (1st person) shows the closeness of God to you as you walk through troubled times, times that will undermine your confidence. ________________________________________________________________ Anyway, would like to add that yesterday's service was a really great one, full of the presence of God, and as Tabitha said, Pastor Kong's anointing has really increased! I came to service, you know, like usual, but when Pastor was talking about confidence, it really struck me and a longing came into my heart to increase my confidence in the Lord more. And as we were singing the worship song, I was thinking, Lord, break down the stone walls around my heart, I don't want to keep come into service and not be touched by You, I want to surrender myself to You, I want to learn how to place You first in my life. Then His presence became so strong that I started crying. I don't usually cry in normal circumstances and the only other time I cried so uncontrollably was the first day my sister brought me to the JW church, not even that day in Expo when I went for the altar call, or even for Benny Hinn's, but as the tears came, and amidst all the noise, one thought flashed through my mind and it was "I forgive you", and I knew that it was God telling me so, for my big sins, my little sins, for moments of rebellion, for doubting Him, for lack of confidence when people ask me To Prove, many many for-s. Hmmm. And it's no coincidence that Pastor preached about my baptism name right! heh heh. d: So I feel like I have given a brand new, guilt-free start to 2008 and I'm sure many of you know that 2008 is going to be a great year that is full of changes, so let's get hyped up and prayed up for it! :) - suatwei Labels: Confidence, Faith
Leaving a foot step - 2:40 PM
Instructions:
To be read with open mind.
Why read this:
If you fell asleep in service/ was doodling in service/ was zoning out in service.
So you will be blessed. Credits:
All Bible verses if typed out are sourced from biblegateway.com. Story of the time management consultant from Grace Chee's blog with edits. Thanks Grace! :D ________________________________________________________________
Col 3: 13 bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do.
Note: You won't do something that is important to you unless you see the value of it.
FORGIVENESS Pastor Tan, 12 Jan 08
What is real forgiveness?
Real forgiveness:
Is unconditional, based on grace rather than based on whether we deserve it or not Is always my initiative - I should always give forgiveness whether it is asked or not Does not minimise the seriousness of the offence. Minimising the offence cheapens forgiveness. If one says "It's okay", it does not need forgiveness. Provb 26:18-19. Isn't resuming a relationship without any change. Because forgiveness is given by grace, resuming the relationship is to be done by the offender, and needs: a) Genuine repentence b) Restitution/ restoration c) Trust to be rebuild (Forgiveness and trust are different) Isn't forgetting what has happened. To forget something, we have to refocus on something else. E.g. By saying I'm trying to forget about my ex means that you are bring reminding yourself what you are trying to forget! Isn't your right when you are not the one being hurt (the victim).
Why We Forgive If I don't forgive, I won't be forgiven by God. God has forgiven us. Forgiving releases past hurts & bitterness - Before God gives us the 'new wine', we need to change to 'new wine skins'! Renewal: Replace/ repair something that has worn out. We need to stop playing the 'Blame Game'. Life is 10% what happened and 90% how we react to it. Your values: What is most important to you, what you stand for (conviction), what you are willing to pay the price for. Hebrews 12:16. If we value things based on circumstances, we forget the real priorities in life. This makes you place importance on what is momentary.
A time management lecturer was giving a lecture to some students on how they can plan their time. As a demostration, he took out a big jar and started filling it with rocks. The rocks quickly reached the top of the jar, with lots of empty spaces in between. He asked the class, "Is the jar is full?" to which the students replied confidently, "Yes". But the consultant shook his head and took out gravel and started to pour it into the jar. The gravel filled the space between the rocks, and he asked the class again, "Is the jar full?" The class knew that there was more to it, and so they answered no. The lecturer smiled and nodded. He then took out a bucket of sand and poured it into the jar. The sand filled the spaces between the rocks and gravel. Then he turned to the class and asked yet again "Is the jar full?" The students not knowing what to expect, but knowing that there was more than what meets the eye, said no. So, the lecturer took out a jug of water and started pouring into the jar until the jar was full. At the end of it all, he asked, "What did you learn from the demostration?" A hand shot up and the student answered, "There're always more things you can add to your schedule to maximise your time." Heads started nodding in agreement in the classroom. The lecturer paused and said,"No." "It means you need to put the big rocks in before you put the gravel, the sand, and water into the jar. Otherwise, the big rocks will never fit into the jar. So, if unless you factor in the most important things in your life first, you will let everything else rule you instead, and you will not find time for the what should be your priorities in your life." How do I Forgive People? Give up your right to get even. Romans 12:19 - Let God avenge for you instead! Learn how to set bounderies in life. Bounderies are not walls, but walls with gates that allow good and bad people to come into your life. Learn to respond to evil with good. Luke 6:27-28 Repeat the above steps as long as necessary. There is not time limit to forgiveness. Learn to release it to God.
Our life changes only when our thinking changes! Is there anyone that you need to forgive? If you can't think of anyone, ask God if there is anyone you need to forgive! :) - suatwei Labels: Forgive, Forgiveness, Priorities, Rocks, Saturday, Sermons
Leaving a foot step - 1:28 PM
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Tuesday, January 15, 2008
Ooo, nobody blogging? Blog more please =D
Please keep Samantha and Me in prayers as we are having our semester test this coming 3 weeks. Until 31 Jan! Jia You!
As some of you all know, I am opening my own shop, yea the beta of version of my shop is up! Do visit my blog for more details! =) and my shop sell swarovksi crystals earring and are all hand-made by me!
Cheers,
Mich
Leaving a foot step - 12:22 AM
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