All Work Out - April 22, 2014

Scripture: Romans 7-8

18 Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will reveal to us later. 19 For all creation is waiting eagerly for that future day when God will reveal who his children really are.20 Against its will, all creation was subjected to God’s curse. But with eager hope, 21 the creation looks forward to the day when it will join God’s children in glorious freedom from death and decay. 22 For we know that all creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. 23 And we believers also groan, even though we have the Holy Spirit within us as a foretaste of future glory, for we long for our bodies to be released from sin and suffering. We, too, wait with eager hope for the day when God will give us our full rights as his adopted children, including the new bodies he has promised us.24 We were given this hope when we were saved. (If we already have something, we don’t need to hope for it. 25 But if we look forward to something we don’t yet have, we must wait patiently and confidently.) 

26 And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words.27 And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God’s own will.28 And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them. - Romans 8

Message:

Our sufferings now can only remind us of our Hope for a glorious Future.

Observation/Promise:

We may have sufferings and troubles on earth, but they are only to mold us into better persons, shaping us to be a people of great character, one that GOD is working to be worthy of the paradise He has prepared for us. Yes we are all saved from our sins and condemnation when we accept the Lord Yeshua as our GOD but acceptance is not the end but only the start of our transformation. We can not stop pursuing GOD just because we are already sure of our salvation. The Word says we need to work out our salvation. When GOD saves us, He starts molding us into people with golden characters. And the process of molding and transformation may not be a pleasant experience because it is usually painful most of the time. 

Application/Command:

We need to only trust GOD in our troubles and suffering. When we trust GOD, we are letting go of our human ways of getting things done, we simply trust that the hardship and difficult circumstance is only making us hope more on the glorious future He has in store for us and that what we are going through now will bear into such a fruit that will make good use in the tasks and roles we will be responsible for in the future. And even in our failures, we can be confident that GOD will use our mistakes for His glory and our greater good. With GOD, no experience could ever be a waste, when we follow GOD, everything will all work out in the end and only GOD knows how. 

Endurance with Joy - April 15, 2014

Scripture: Romans 5-6
1 Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us. 2 Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into this place of undeserved privilege where we now stand, and we confidently and joyfully look forward to sharing God’s glory.
3 We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. 4 And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. 5 And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.
- Romans 5

Message:
Enduring through Trials without sinning but by trusting in GOD.

Observation/Promise:
We are all tried and tested in our life. Especially when we believe and follow the Lord Jesus who went through the worst things any human being could ever go through when He was on earth. But our trials and troubles are there to mold us and shape our character. One they are to help us develop endurance. It's human nature for people not to endure because they don't like to endure, it's not a pleasant feeling, it's a feeling of being pressed. But when we learn the secret of endurance, something changes within us and it changes our character. Not our personality, taste or likes, but something deep within us such as our character is being shaped into what is good. When our character is being developed, it pushes us to rely on GOD even more and strengthen our faith and hope in HIS salvation. It makes a person that trusts GOD all the more and that kind of person is someone that is humble and wise just like Joseph, Moses and Abraham.

Application/Command:

Learn to endure the trials in your life not just with sorrowful prayers lifted up to Heaven every time you are going through a difficult situation. Learn to endure with a smile, with rejoicing, and laughter because then you know that these trials are for a specific purpose allowed by GOD to make us into the best that we can be. Learning to endure in trials with joy is a proof of one's deep trust and hope in GOD. No sane person on earth will laugh when their house got burned down, or when an accident wrecked their car. But a person of deep trust in GOD will be able to thank HIM even after the difficulties in life because deep inside he/she knows that GOD has a greater purpose that will result in greater and wonderful things.

GOD's Beauty

1 How the king rejoices in your strength, O Lord!
He shouts with joy because you give him victory.
2 For you have given him his heart’s desire;
you have withheld nothing he requested.
3 You welcomed him back with success and prosperity.
You placed a crown of finest gold on his head.
4 He asked you to preserve his life,
and you granted his request.
The days of his life stretch on forever.

- Psalm 21:1-4

Replace the King with I. I rejoice in the strength of the LORD. I shout with joy because YOU give me victory. Yes! the LORD gives the victory to us when we rely and depend on HIM all the way to fight for us, when we cling to HIM in times of trouble, GOD is too merciful not to hear us and respond to our call. GOD is too good not to understand our heart's desire and give to us whatever we may have pleaded in prayer from HIM. This is the beauty of GOD, HIS character is glorious and wonderful for humanity to behold and worship. 

Even when we go through difficult times, GOD allows this, it is for our good. No matter how painful our situation may be, we just have to trust HIM because HE is in control and HE alone knows the purpose of our pain and suffering. We can't understand now but after everything, we will be able to understand and agree that what GOD did was simply for our best.  When we ask GOD to preserve our lives, HE will do it, because HE longs to extend HIS goodness and favor to us. Our part is to request or ask this from GOD. And HE will grant our requests with more than what we could have ever asked for. 

Inner Purity

10 Then Jesus called to the crowd to come and hear. “Listen,” he said,“and try to understand. 11 It’s not what goes into your mouth that defiles you; you are defiled by the words that come out of your mouth.” 16 “Don’t you understand yet?” Jesus asked. 17 “Anything you eat passes through the stomach and then goes into the sewer. 18 But the words you speak come from the heart—that’s what defiles you. 19 For from the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, all sexual immorality, theft, lying, and slander. 20 These are what defile you. Eating with unwashed hands will never defile you.”

- Matthew 15:10-11,16-20

Yeshua was teaching about inner purity at this particular time. Purity in thoughts and in your heart is what GOD is after. Yeshua says whatever we eat does not affect our thoughts or heart. Yes it may affect our health, we can have certain illnesses when we do not eat right. But this is not what affects our character as a person. It is how we respond to situation and things, it is the motives of our hearts that we are judged by GOD and not by what we eat. The heart is the center of a person. Whatever is in our hearts is our GOD.

Earlier before that Yeshua taught in Matthew 6:21 Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be. Therefore we should watch out and be aware more of with what we think about than what we eat or drink. We should be careful to keep ourselves healthy yes, but these are physical things that pass away in time. What we allow to come to our thoughts be it doubt, hope, lies or truth what we allow to come into our hearts will greatly affect who we are and it make us to be either better or worse. We should eat the words of GOD everyday and think about HIS love and His ways so that we reflect and mirror the greatness and goodness of GOD.