Date archive for September, 2008
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Sermons – 2008 Week 39 – Sep Wk 4
Marks of a Spiritual Christian
1 Corinthians 2:15-16It is a life of abiding peace.
Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. (John 14:27)
The growth of a Christian comes through conquest and conflict, and peace through conscious victory in Christ. The spiritual Christian enjoys abiding peace, which is deepening joy and satisfying rest in the Lord.
It is a life of habitual victory.
1 Cor 15:57.
Victory over sin is a gift through Christ.
Rom 8:37 – we are more than conquerors. We do not live on the ragged edge of victory.
2 Cor 2:14 – we always triumph in Christ.
It is not that the spiritual man is not able to sin, but he is able to NOT sin.
Continuing sinning is not the practice of the spiritual man. Real victory never obliges one to conceal what is inside. Psalm 51:6, 10; 2 Cor 7:1, John 8:36, Rom 8:2It is a life of constant growth into Christ-likeness.
2 Cor 3:18. A Spirit-filled man need not be reminded to do all the things that are right. There is to be a progression of our likeness to Christ – from glory to glory.
John 15:2, 5, 8; Gal 5:22-23 (fruit of the Spirit, not fruits of the Spirit).It is a life of supernatural power.
John 14:12. The achievements of the fisherman, Peter, were not through human effort. We should be doing greater things.
Acts 1:8. It is not about our dream but it is about whether we obey.It is a life of devoted separate-ness.
1 Thess 4:3, Heb 7:26
A carnal man is secular in his views, whereas a spiritual man is spiritual, and walks with Christ. A spiritual man also aspires to a separate-ness in his attitude.
A carnal man fights for control, but a spiritual man is separate from the world. He yields himself to the influence of the Holy Spirit.
John 17:16; John 15:19-20; Gal 6:14.It is a life of devoted holiness.
1 Peter 1:15.
Every Christian is called to a holy life, but not every Christian wants to be. They want to be spiritual but are afraid to be holy. Holiness is not sinless perfection nor eradication of sinful nature, nor faultless-ness. But it is blameless in the sight of God.
1 Thess 5:23; Jude v 24.It is a life of submissiveness to the Truth.
A carnal man is stubborn to the Truth, while a spiritual man is submissive to the Truth. He wants God’s will and will receive His blessings.
It is a life that is scriptural in outlook.
A carnal man is sectarian in outlook, but a spiritual man sees things through the looking glass of God’s Word. Loyalty to God is more important than loyalty to man.
It is a life filled with a burning passion for souls.
There is a conscious appreciation for our own salvation. We will see lost men as they are – lost! We will have a burning desire to share Christ.
Mr and Mrs ET Chua
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Sermons – 2008 Week 38 – Sep Wk 3
Let Us Have Revival
2 Chronicles 7:14Podcast: Play in new window | Download (6.6MB)
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Sermons – 2008 Week 37 – Sep Wk 2
The Marks of a Carnal Christian
1 Corinthians 3:1-4Introduction
Carnality is a spiritual cancer. Although we have the eternal inheritance, many children have been wayward and rebellious, and have gone into spiritual wilderness. Sin widens this gulf.
Why do you feel so alone when you backslide?
Carnal Christians and non Christians are not the same. If you are not a Christian, you cannot backslide.
1. It is a Life of Unceasing Conflict (Romans 7:22-23, Galatians 5:17)
There are two kinds of Christians, carnal and spiritual. The two natures, fleshly and divine, contest for control. Though saved, the carnal Christian still lives the worldly way.
2. It is a Life of Repeatedly Defeated (Romans 7:15-19)
Sins of both commission and omission are in view here. Romans 7 describes the defeated life while Romans 8 the victorious life. We need to be more focused. Things we want to do are left undone. Things we resolve not to do are repeatedly done. There is a divided control over a carnal Christian’s life.
3. It is a Life of Protracted Infancy (1Cor 3:1-2)
When a Christian never grows up, he remains a mere babe in Christ. The Corinthian church should have been strong, but they were still milk-drinking Christians in Paul’s days. Some characteristics of babies:
a. Babies are helpless and depend on others. Hebrews 5:12-14 – instead of teaching others, the carnal Christian needs to be taught.
b. They follow human leaders esteeming human solutions more than God’s. The carnal Christians do not go to the Bible for food. They are spiritual parasites living on predigested food, thus they are open to all sorts of spiritual diseases.
c. They expect attention and expect to be the centre of the world.
d. They live in the realm of their feelings
e. Upset over the smallest things
f. Always ready to explode.
g. Receives, not a giver – selfish.4. It is a Life of Barren Fruitlessness (John 15:2)
The influence of a carnal Christian is always negative. He is unable to win others to Christ because of his inconsistency. There is no fruit of the spirit.
5. It is a life of Adulterous infidelity (James 4:4)
Satan’s lure to the unsaved and to the saved is to keep them from God. A Christian’s relationship with the world is found in his relationship with Christ. Indulging in the pleasures of the world is “adulterous” (to one’s relationship with God). 1 John 2:15-16 – worldliness is all that is not of the Father.
6. It is a Life of Dishonouring Hypocrisy (Ephesians 5:8; 1Cor 3:3)
A carnal Christian’s walk is in darkness. Ephesians 5:8 – “For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord.” Walk as children of light. Otherwise, the walk is a pretext and is hypocrisy.
7. It is a Life of Isolation from Christian Fellowship (Hebrews 10:23-25)
When one does not feel like going to church, this is often another sign of carnality. Much value in a fellowship is what one brings into it and not just what one gets out of it.
8. It is a Life of Stubbornness to the Truth (1 Cor 3:2; Hebrews 5:11)
A carnal Christian refuses to be taught, and rejects the Truth. “I can never get any truths from what the preacher says.” He is dull of hearing and does not want to quit what he is doing. A carnal Christian bathes in sin while a committed Christian who sins will confess to God and ask for mercy. He does not continue to wallow in them.
Mr and Mrs ET Chua
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Sermons – 2008 Week 36 – Sep Wk 1
A Call To Discipleship
Matthew 28:16-20What is missing in our churches today are disciples. There are so many Christians but there is little impact on the community.
Victory Declared
Matthew 29:18,”And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.” The term “authority” is given by the Greek word “exousia” which is power, right or jurisdiction. It is power in a rightful hand. God’s people are a model of heaven on earth.
We don’t need to live defeated lives. Jesus has defeated Satan and Death. Death and the grave cannot claim us anymore. (1Cor 15:55). What we need do now is to obey the Great Commission. The goal of the church is not to just add number to its congregation, but to make disciples. (Luke 14:26)
Victory Multiplied
We are to make disciples of people in every country.
How often do we judge a church by the size of its membership?
It is not the number that matters, but the number of disciples. We need people with a burning desire to share Him and shake up their community.
Victory Strategised
Phase 1 GOING (Reaching)
We are told to ‘go’, but we like ‘staying’ better. The Pastor of a church is like the quarterback. He brings people together. In the analogy using the American Football game, the players are all huddled together in conference. However, this is not the end of the game. They need to play to win. Similarly, the church members are the players and the pastor the quarterback. He needs so pass the ball too and the church members need to reach out. Things don’t always work the way they are supposed to. Some ‘players’ prefer to sit on the bench unfortunately.
Phase 2 BAPTISING (assimilation, ministering)
We are to baptize new believers in the name of the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit. Baptism is like wearing a wedding ring. It is the external reminder of an internal happening.
Phase 3 TEACHING
We are to teach others how to live, as Jesus had taught us. We are not only to know and teach the Bible, but, having known it, it must impact our lives. There are 2 reasons why there are so many churches, but so few outreach:
· People are not being taught how to live;
· People refused to be taught.Victory Guaranteed
God wants disciples to conform to Christ’s image. (Romans 8:29) We Christians are the ‘preview’ to the show ‘Millenium’. People look at us.
Are we willing to be a disciple of the Lord, Jesus Christ?
Mr and Mrs ET Chua
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (7.5MB)
