PRINCIPLES OF CHRISTIAN LIVING (Message to MYF on 17 August 2003)

Transcription

1 MARANATHA MESSENGER Weekly Newsletter of Private Circulation Only MARANATHA BIBLE-PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH 31 August 2003 Present every man perfect in Christ Jesus (Colossians 1:28). Address: 63 Cranwell Road, Singapore Tel: (65) Fax: (65) Website: * Sunday School: 9.45 am Worship Service: am Wednesday Prayer Meeting: 8.00 pm Pastor: Rev Jack Sin (Pager: ) PRINCIPLES OF CHRISTIAN LIVING (Message to MYF on 17 August 2003) Introduction The Oxford dictionary defines Christian as a believer in Christianity, a religion based on the teaching of Jesus Christ. In short, a Christian is one who put on Christ ; one who bears his name as in a family. Isn t it true that we all bear His name and His name reflects certain characters or personalities or traits as in a human family sense? As earthly children, we all bear some sort of family traits that are transferred to us genetically. Although our outward appearance did not change, our inner self did change when we accepted Christ as our Lord and Saviour. We were once saved, through Christ and as we also accepted Him as Lord in our lives, we no longer have control of our inner self. Paul said, We also should walk in newness of life (Rom 6:4, 8) and walk in the Spirit (Gal 5:25). The world as we know today is always changing. We are all affected by the changes in the environment, in our culture, in our society and even in the spiritual world. While technology and advances in sciences have benefited us greatly, it has also brought about a change of mindset right across our society. Moral values and ethics have been questioned and wrongs can be made right so easily. Singapore is not spared from the influx of questionable moral values that encourages immoral values and practices. Recently, the government relaxed the rules on bar-top dancing. A few years ago, big outdoor foam parties was introduced in Sentosa. What have the Word of God for us concerning our Christian principles or moral values? What should the Christians Do? In Col 3:1 4, Paul set the first right principle of Christian living. We are to seek the things and set our affections on things above. Since we are already part of God s family as Christ has raised us up and made a heavenly place for us we ought to have a different mindset from the world (Eph 2:6). Setting our affections also mean our determination and efforts to make it a point to put heavenly matters above earthly ones. It involves a process of

2 sanctification as we continue in this world. The results would be for us to be reunited with Christ in our glorified body when He comes again (v 4). To be able to do this, we must first be right with God. If we are to fellowship with Christ who is sitteth on the right hand of God; we must build up this foundation of faith so that we can take on the challenges of the world. As believers, we have the responsibility to worship and serve God first before anything else. Our Relationship With God Our lives should reflect the two GREAT commandments Jesus gave in Mark 12: Jesus said that there is no other commandment greater than this. We are to love God with all that are in us, our heart, our mind, our strength and even our soul. This is the very FIRST and MOST IMPORTANT principle for our Christian Living. We have to be right with God before we can be right with man. Our relationship with God will also reflect our relationship with man since the Holy Spirit lives in us and guides us. We must bear the fruit of the Sprit and manifested in our moral, social and ethical values in life. Notice that loving God requires our whole being! To love God also means establishing a constant contact with Him. When one falls in love, he or she will want to spend as much time with that person. In fact, as they both get married later, they are together for as long as they live. So too is our personal relationship with God. There are three practical areas in this personal relationship that we want to consider: Prayer Prayer is the most important subject in the Christian life. It is interesting to note that prayerless is a sin (1 Sam 12:23). Jesus taught His disciples to pray (Luke 11:1-4). Prov 15:8 says that the prayer of the upright is God s delight. Throughout the Bible, we see men of God performing mighty works for the Lord through prayers. Why is Prayer so Important and Necessary? i) Prayer is Necessary for our Spiritual Growth. Prayer is communication with the King of our Lives. It is a special bond between the heavenly Father and his earthly sinful adopted children. The habit of prayer is one of the surest marks of a true Christian. The first act of a new Christian is to pray the sinner s prayers. Just as it is a child s nature to cry, so it is part of the Christian s nature to pray. We see our need of God s mercy and grace. How else can be keep in touch with the heavenly realm expect through prayers? Prayer is to faith, what breath is to life. Jesus expects us to pray (Matt 6:5-9 & Luke 11:9). He is a living example for us to follow. We are expected to pray without ceasing (1 Thess 5:17 & Col 4:2). Praying without ceasing means

3 you keep constant touch with God, even though there can be work, responsibilities, tiredness or studies that may try to overwhelm us. The expectation to pray, not only as a divine summon, but also as a royal invitation. The writer of Hebrews tells us Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need (Heb 4:16). We can view prayers as an obligation or we can view it as an opportunity to receive the mercy and grace of God. His command to pray is a command to love. In His love, He desires to communicate with us and bless us. ii) Prayer is our Spiritual Weapon. It is said that the first sign of backsliding is the gradual decline in spending time with God regularly in communion daily. Often, our prayer life is the barometer of our spiritual condition. Prayer is the only means that allow us to communicate with our Supreme Commander in heaven and as long as we are in touch with heaven, we can be sure that He will give us spiritual instructions through His Word. We wrestle not only with the things of the world, but also with the forces of darkness as well (Eph 6:12). There is also power in prayers! James said that the the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much (James 5:16). To abandon prayer is to fight the spiritual battle with our own resources at best and to lose interest in the battle at worst. Remember, the devil is a roaring lion and seeking any that he may devour (1 Pet 5:8)! We have to be fully prepared. iii) Prayer is the Secret of Holiness. Diligence in prayer is the secret of eminent holiness. The sense of God s presence and His holiness can break down all our human resistance in prayers. We develop a close relationship with God as we communicate with Him frequently. As a result, we are sensitive to the prompting of the Spirit in us. If we love someone, we will soon know the person well enough to enable us to do things that will not offend that person. A person who is in constant touch with heaven, will evidently emit the sacred scent of holiness in his life. He will develop a hatred for sins and love for holiness. As we close our eyes and bow our heads to God, we are also closing our eyes to the world and submitting ourselves to God. Suggestions on How We can Improve our Prayer Life i) Make it a point to put God first early in the morning (Ps 5:3. You can always find time with God if you try. ii) Find a suitable time and place to spend a few minutes with God. You can even do this on your way to school in a car, on a bus or in the MRT train.

4 iii) iv) Make a list of prayer items that you need to pray (eg for unsaved friends or coming exams, etc). Soon, you will find that there are lot more things to pray. Pray for the prayer items in weekly MM (ie the preaching of His Word, salvation of our loved ones and the sick). v) If you have some spare time (eg waiting for the bus or classes), use it wisely, use it to pray! God s Word Next to prayer is the reading, meditating and apply the Word of God to our lives. In Col 3:16, Paul encourages us to dwell in the Word of God richly in all wisdom and to use the Word in our teaching and admonition. Even the words used in hymns and spiritual songs can teach us some spiritual lessons. God s Word teaches what we should believe, what we should be, and what we should do. Solomon said that God s Word is life unto those that find them and health to all their flesh (Prov 4:22). It is our life s instruction manual and we all need it to navigate this sinful world. God s Word is a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path (Ps 119:105). As we feed on God s Word, we also grow in our spiritual life. It is the compass of life. The stronger we are spiritually, the better prepared we are to overcome temptations. Remember, Jesus used it as His weapon against the Devil in the wilderness (Matt 4:4). In fact, the Sword of the Armour of God in Eph 6:17 is the Word of God. God s Word helps us to avoid sins (Ps 119:11). Learn to meditate on God s Word. Spend time over through the Scriptures and ponder over God s inspired Word. Develop a sense of respect for His Word. His Word will also give us wisdom. For the Lord giveth wisdom out of His mouth cometh knowledge and understanding (Prov 2:6). We will also cultivate a healthy fear for God (2 Cor 7:1) and a sense of accountability to Him (2 Cor 5:10). The Spirit will convict us of our sins and we will also be sensitive to heavenly matters. Besides reading His Word, we must practise what we learnt and believed. Jesus commanded us to love His Word, if we say that we love Him (John 15:10). There are great blessings obeying God s Commandments (Deut 11:27). It is good to write down any precious lessons learnt during the worship service, Sunday schools or even during your quiet time and makes an effort to apply it. We must learn to keep God s Word in our heart by memorising Bible verses that will be helpful to us. We can use these verses to give us guidance, strengthen our faith or drawing us closer to God in trying and difficult times.

5 Suggestions on How to Improve our Devotional Time with God i) Use a good Bible-reading guide (RPG) so that you can read the Bible with understanding and systematic. ii) iii) iv) Use a good Bible commentary or Bible dictionary to guide you. This will give you a better understanding of Bible passages that may be difficult to understand. Learn to apply the lessons learnt in your life practically and as soon as possible. Write down memory verses on a notebook & use it to help you to memorise verses. Discussions Questions a) Are we spending quality and meaningful quiet time with God (too short, too infrequent)? b) Are there any areas in our quiet time that we can improve upon? Participating in the Means of Grace (Mal 3:16; Heb 10:24-25). In Col 3:15, we all called to be the body of Christ. As such, we are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints, and the household of God (Eph 2:19). We must strive to maintain constant fellowship with Christ s followers. This means we are to participate in holy & reverential worship, serving in the ministry of the church, hearing the Word of God, Bible study, attend Sunday school and even participations in corporate prayer (Heb 10:24,25). To grow in our faith, we must constantly be in tune with heaven. There is power and blessing in these ordained avenues of Christian fellowship and worship that can stir up our souls to godliness, faith, righteousness and sanctification. We must not be afraid to serve or avail ourselves to this blessed opportunity of growing in the faith. What greater master can we serve than the Lord of lords and King of kings? Our rewards are not in the world but rather in heaven. We must ensure that our attitude is right with God. Take heaven s matters seriously and ensure that our hearts are well prepared. This also means we are to attend worship service regularly, punctually and reverentially. Be attentive and write down points from the sermons that are meaningful. There is always something to learn even if the Sunday, fellowship, NBC messages or SS lessons seem familiar. Do not just say hello & goodbyes to each other on Sundays, but rather build up the fellowship, share your burdens and even pray for another (Gal 6:2). Use

6 the time to get to know each other better. Suggestions on How to be Effective in Participation in the Church i) If you have a talent to help in certain areas of the ministry, pray that God will be able to use your talent in that area (ie PA, MRM, NBC, fellowship, evangelism, missions, music, etc). ii) iii) Be committed and do your best for God. Remember to be humble and serve with fervour and fear of God. You can always help by praying for the ministry of the church and salvation of loved ones and others. Our Relationship With Men & the World Paul then gave some guiding Christian principles on how we are to relate ourselves to men and the world. First, he reminded us about our past; how we were once like the children of disobedience (Col 3:6-7). Negatively, Paul also tells us to mortify our bodies from the sexual lusts (Col 3:5); put off all forms of filthy communications (Col 3:8) and put off the old man (verse 9). Positively, we are to put on the new man (v.10) and put on spiritual virtues such as holiness, kindness, meekness, long suffering, charity and even a spirit of forgiveness (verses 12-14). The world talks about fame, wealth, power, health and enjoyment. These are the temporal things. Not too long ago, I spoke to a lawyer about God and heaven and he told me that he can t think of heaven now because only this world can give him things that he can hold, touch and keep (money, possessions, career, etc). The Word of God also warns us about loving the world and things of the world (1 John 2:15-16) John challenged us to take note of THREE things: (i) Covetousness (Lust of the Eyes) - v 5. Beside the list of sexual sins mentioned in verse 5, Paul included the sin of covetousness that is also idolatry. This is one area that we all have to be watchful of. God has warned his people of this great sin (10 th Commandment Exod 20:17). Contrary to the second great commandment mentioned in Mark 12:30-31, the 10th commandment warns us that we shall not desire after anything that is thy neighbours. He also warns that covetous man, who is an idolater, will not have any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God (Eph 5:5). Covetousness can take a subtle form. It starts with a desire for better life, comfort, etc and then letting our emotions take control of our reason. Soon we find that we want a lot more things than we need. Won t it be nice to have the latest hand phone or drive the latest cars? The must have attitude drives us to

7 ignore our basic sense of necessity. Objects (materialism) have taken the place of God in our heart. It also becomes a symbol of our own success. Perhaps, we have also been too soft and weak to fight the temptation. We spend our time, talents and treasures building corruptible treasures on earth and neglect the eternal treasures in heaven (Col 3:1,2). How then do we overcome this? We must lay our treasures in heaven and not on the earth, for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also (Matt 6:19-21). Paul warns us that the LOVE of money is the ROOT of ALL evil (1 Tim 6:10). Isn t it true that money causes family break up, murders, fraud, and many other crimes? Be content with what God has given you. Use your time, talents & treasures for the extension of God s Kingdom like participating in and contributing to the various ministries of the Church. Be thankful for other things as well (like good health, good family, good school, God s protection, etc). Be not conformed to the world but be ye transformed by the renewing our mind (Rom 12:1-2). Seek the things that have eternal values & follow after godliness, faith and piety (1 Tim 6:6). (ii) Pleasures and Enjoyment (Lust of the Flesh). Pleasures and enjoyment are pursuit on which the world places a high value. It takes the form of satisfying ourselves; in the form of worldly lifestyles, covering the areas of fashion and leisure. Be careful of such temptations in the world. Paul warns us about sexual sins in verse 5. These are sins of fornication (illicit sex, incest), uncleanness (impurity), inordinate affections (homosexuality), and evil concupiscence (lustful desires). The world of entertainment (movies, magazines and Internet) has no lack of these sinful ingredients. Even advertisements are using these to excite the minds of consumers. It is not the products that they are selling, but rather a lifestyle that project immorality or female sexism. Recently, a beer company used young and scantily dressed women to promote their beer in army camps and both are unacceptable. Be careful when you surf the Internet. There are no lack of warnings about pornographic sites that stir up our curious and wondering minds. Some of the sites seem to look harmless and even some so-called innocently looking sites can pop up any time. How do we deal with such dangerous sins? Firstly, we have to recognise that these are sins that we have been warned. It is clear that Paul wants us to kill off these sins from our members. To kill off means to cut and take it away permanently. We must realise that these are sins committed by the children of disobedience (V 6). We have a heavenly Father, are now the children of God, being adopted into His family (Rom 8:16-17). We have the Spirit who will empower us to overcome temptation.

8 Secondly, realise that God will punish us for this sin even as His wrath cometh on the children of disobedience (verse 6) Yes, God will deal with our sins as a father will deal with his son should he misbehaves (Heb 12:5-8). Treat God s discipline seriously and remember, we are to account for our actions (2 Cor 5:10). Develop a godly fear of God and let this cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit (2 Cor 7:1). Thirdly, we must bear the testimony of Christ. How can we do that if there are hidden sins in us? How can the Holy Spirit dwells in us if our holy temple (body) is defiled (2 Cor 6:16-17)? Let us use our vessel for His honour and glory (2 Tim 2:20-21). Let our bodies be used as a living and holy sacrifice acceptable to God and let us be not conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of our mind (Rom 12:1 & 2). (iii) Our Speech (Pride of life). In verses 8 and 9, Paul wants us to put off the old man together with his deeds. These deeds refer to anger, wrath, malice (bear false witness), blasphemy, filthy communication and lying. These are words that come from our heart, expressed by our tongue. This little organ in our body is dangerous that it can even kindle a fire. James warns us that the tongue is deadly. Man can tame all sorts of animal but cannot tame the tongue; it is an unruly evil and full of deadly poison (Jas 3:7-8). The 9 th Commandment warned us about bearing false witness against our neighbours (Exod 20:16). Prov 6:16-17 warns us that a lying tongue is one of the seven abominations of the Lord. Be warned that Satan is the father of all lies. We have to be careful with how we carry ourselves, even in the way we speak; for what is uttered cannot be retracted. Sometimes we cannot convey the correct messages to the hearer because of the wrong usage of words or the manner in which we send out our message. Our body language may contradict our intended massage. If you say sorry by shouting in an aggressive manner, you will give the impression that you are not truly sorry. The world uses certain phrases or exclamations in their conversations. For example, there are people who use filthy or vulgar words freely. Some use local dialects that have distorted meanings to express disappointments or even to curse others. Be careful how we mix with our peers in schools or at work. There may be peer pressures around us and we may unconsciously use them ourselves so that we can be accepted in the group. While we can have non-believers as our

9 friends but it does not mean we allow our moral standards to be compromised. In my work place, I come across colleagues who use vulgarity in their conversation. These are said in a hostile environment during an argument and it does little for people to respect him. What can we do? Paul urges us to use our tongue for the edification of the hearer (Eph 4:29). Remember that we are to be the salt and light of this world and as such, we have to constantly be aware of how we carry out our conversations. Our speech should be seasoned with salt and grace (Col 4:6). Let us be accountable for every word we say. Consider the following rules carefully before you speak a word: 1. Charity (is it said out of love or out of spite or even hatred)? 2. Verity (is it true or is it false or am I unsure about its origin)? 3. Necessity (is it necessary to say it and must I say it now or at a later time)? 4. Sagacity (is it wise to say it in this manner or can I say it in a more tactful way)? Our Christian Virtues From verses 12-17, Paul offers a strategy to help us live for God day to day. These are: i) Imitate Christ s Merciful and Forgiving Attitude (12, 13). The key to forgiving others is remembering how much God has forgiven you. Is it difficult to forgive someone who has wronged you a little, when God has forgiven us so much? Realising God s infinite love and forgiveness can help us love and forgive others. Develop the virtue of meekness and humbleness of mind to serve even as Christ has commanded us to serve with humility. ii) Let Love (Charity) Guide our Lives (14). We should live in harmony with one another. This does not mean we have to agree with each other on all things. But as loving Christians, we should work together as a whole body of Christ. We should endeavour to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace as we belong to the same body of Christ (Eph 4:3-4). We are constantly seeing the lack of love as the reason for so many conflicts. Love is not a feeling but an action that we do not reach out to others. 1 Cor 13 gives us the characteristics of Christian love. Jesus commanded us to love God and our neighbours as ourselves. iii) Let the Peace of God Rule in our Heart (15). Paul tells us that Christ s peace should be the rule in our heart. Our hearts are the centre of conflict because there our feelings and desires clash our fears and hopes, our distrust and trust, our jealousy and love. Jesus in our

10 peace (Eph 2:14) and the peace of God will help us keep our hearts and mind through Christ (Phil 4:7). When we pray, God gives us the peace that passes all our human understanding and bring assurance, by His hearing and answering our prayers. It is this peace that assures us the answers are from God. iv) Always be Thankful (15). We must develop the spirit of thankfulness in our heart. This is a good remedy against covetousness. Be thankful in all circumstances, even if we are sick or facing a disaster. We can thank God for everything that happened in our lives; our salvation, God s faithfulness etc. Psalm 92:1-2 encourages us to thank God for his loving kindness and faithfulness. In every thing give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you (1 Thess 5:18). v) Keep God s word at all times (16). (Mentioned above). vi) Live as Christ s Representative (17). As a Christian, we represent Christ at all times where we go, whatever we do and whatever we say. For whether we live, we live unto the Lord and whether we die we die unto the Lord: whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord s (Rom 14:8). Conclusion As long as we are in the world, there will be constant dangers and challenges. It is not easy to run the race or take the straight and narrow gate (Matt 7:13 &14). It is not easy to lead a godly Christian life. Despite knowing many dangers ahead, we can fall every day into temptations and sins. We should walk circumspectly as wise people and redeem the time, because the days are evil (Eph 5:15-16). Like a journey, there are many signs that warn us of the dangers and gives us the directions as well. We must take these signs seriously. Solomon in Ecc 12:13 concluded that the whole duty of man is to fear God and keep his commandments. Paul concluded his life in 2 Tim 4:7-8 by declaring that he had fought a good fight, as a soldier and finished his course as an athlete in this life. He has kept the faith and look forward to his crown of righteousness in heaven. May we all be encouraged to run this race like Paul before us. Dn Steven Ng * * * * * * * * * At the Pulpit Theme for the Quarter: The Holy Spirit & The Believer Today Rev Jack Sin "The Holy Spirit & Prayer (Jude 18-23; Eph 6:18)

11 *These hyperlinks work with Word 97 and later version. [End of MM, 31 August 2003]