Sermon by Bro. Daniel Lim
Friday Evening Service
True Jesus Church, Telok Kurau
How to prepare ourselves for the uncertainties ahead in 2014?
Fortunately as Christians, we do not need to do anything new in order to have a good 2014. Hence the title of today's sermon: "Old Recipe for the New Year".
1) Hit the reset button, having a fresh start
"You crown the year with your bounty, and your carts overflow with abundance." ~ Psalms 65: 11-12
- new hopes and move on from the past,
- forget the setbacks and hurts, ( remove negativity, hatred ),
Bitterness is a continuous fire, overtime it will erode our mind and cause us to make unjust judgements.
"looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled;" ~ Hebrews 12:15
We cannot enjoy sweetness with bitterness around. Holy Spirit cannot fill us in the process."And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors." ~ Matthew 6:12
We want to start our 2014 afresh and be a fresh page in order to do so.- forget our glories and achievements.
"Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Therefore let us, as many as are mature, have this mind; and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal even this to you. Nevertheless, to the degree that we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule,[a] let us be of the same mind." ~ Philippians 3:13 -16 (to gain the ultimate prize for what God has for us ; the promiseland)
The moment we start slacking, we will be distracted by our small success.
2) Remember, Remember till December
- Humans are often forgetful of the goodness of what God has for us.
- Remember that we are forgiven from the bondage of sins
"Observe the month of Abib and celebrate the Passover of the LORD your God, because in the month of Abib he brought you out of Egypt by night. Sacrifice as the Passover to the LORD your God an animal from your flock or herd at the place the LORD will choose as a dwelling for his Name. Do not eat it with bread made with yeast, but for seven days eat unleavened bread, the bread of affliction, because you left Egypt in haste--so that all the days of your life you may remember the time of your departure from Egypt." ~ Deuteronomy 16:1-3. ( God's deliverance of the Israelites from Egypt through Passover)
"Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagles' wings, and brought you unto myself." ~ Exodus 19:4 (how God delivered us with the gospel of truth )
"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,We are born with a living hope upon the death of Christ and his resurrection." ~ 1 Peter 1:3
"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come." ~ 2 Corinthians 5:17
We are made new again, and always reconcile by asking forgiveness; we also need to play our part of covenant and not sit idle.
3) Retreat (i.e. knowing how to back off from temptations)
We cannot love the world, and love the father at the same time.
In book of Luke, Jesus also retreated to the wilderness to pray and have his quiet time.
** What will happen , will still happen. We still have to do our part and entrust the rest to God.
There will be major challenges in 2014 that might affect our faith.
Why will God put us into different situations?
When we retreat back, we can reflect and understand God's intentions for us.
Joseph spoke abt his experience with God:
"As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today. So do not fear; I will provide for you and your little ones.” Thus he comforted them and spoke kindly to them." ~ Gen 50:20-21.
Conclusion :
- We need to set our eyes on the eventual prize of what God has in placed for us,
- Pray together and move with more discipline of greater faith.
- Be resolved to keep the Sabbath day as the day of rest.
- Resolve to be more Christ-like.
- Devote more time for the works of God (at times. We might not be able to commit more when we wants to)
- Stand firm in God's Truth i.e. gird your waist with the doctrine of Salvation
Find a Church near you: www.tjc.org
