Sermon Notes (30 Mar 2008) Renewing Our Commitment

When we depend totally on God, he will take care of us. We may face difficulties but he will see us through.

The reason God save us is not just for our salvation but to give us life abundance to dedicate ourselves to serve God. He doesn't force us to serve him. He wants us to serve him willingly and voluntarily to fulfill his will. In our life, we will face many difficulties. But from the trying times we can learn to receive God's grace to renew our dedication to serve God.

Gen 34 recorded the crisis faced by the family of Jacob. Sechem raped Dinah, the daughter of Jacob. When Hamor, the father of Sechem found out, he asked Jacob to let Sechem marry Dinah. Simeon and Levi, the sons of Jacob were angry and planned revenge. They plotted to kill the family of Hamor and took their possessions. They asked them to get circumcised and attacked them while they were recovering.

Jacob saw the severe attack to the house of Hamor and realized he and his family must renew their commitment to God.

In Gen 35, Jacob led his family to Bethel to rededicate themselves to God. He reminded that his name is no longer Jacob but Israel. We saw the birth of Benjamin and the death of Rachel. Isaac died and was buried by his two sons, Esau and Israel.

Gen 36 recorded the descendants of Esae, who became Edom. The association of the names Esau and Edom provides the link between the descendants of Esau and the geographical territory they occupied. They took Canaannite women as wives. The descendants of Israel and Edom were always enemies.

Evaluate Your Actions

Gen 34:30-31 Then Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, "You have brought trouble on me by making me stink to the inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites and the Perizzites. My numbers are few, and if they gather themselves against me and attack me, I shall be destroyed, both I and my household." (31) But they said, "Should he treat our sister like a prostitute?"

Jacob were sad with the vengeful acts of Simeon and Levi. Jacob felt that it would bring calamity to his household. He thought killing the whole family of Sechem to revenge their sister's humiliation was too much. Jacob chided his two sons for possibly causing the Canaanites to unite to destroy them. But they were not repentant.

Jacob worried for his two sons. We may not experience what Jacob is facing here. But when we face unfavourable circumstances, how do we respond? Do we fight back? Admit defeat and take it as it is? We need to evaluate our actions. We need to ensure our actions bring glory to God. Evaluating our actions is the first step in renewing our commitment to God.

We need to learn how to respond to those who hurt us and our enemies.

Mat 5:38-48
"You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.'
(39)
But I say to you, Do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.
(40)
And if anyone would sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well.
(41)
And if anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles.
(42)
Give to the one who begs from you, and do not refuse the one who would borrow from you.
(43)
"You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.'
(44)
But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,
(45)
so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.
(46)
For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?
(47)
And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same?
(48)
You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Jesus taught us to convert a cursed situation into a blessed one.

There was a farmer in China. He stayed up the hill while another one stayed at the bottom of the hill. This farmer up the hill could get water to water his plants. The 2^nd one could not get water so he dug a canal to get water. The land uphill dried up for the water did not flow over it anymore. Instead of cutting off the water supply or fighting with the 2^nd farmer, he dug a reservoir to water his place while the water still flew downhill. He created a win-win situation.

Purify Yourself

Gen 35:1-4 God said to Jacob, "Arise, go up to Bethel and dwell there. Make an altar there to the God who appeared to you when you fled from your brother Esau." (2) So Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, "Put away the foreign gods that are among you and purify yourselves and change your garments. (3) Then let us arise and go up to Bethel, so that I may make there an altar to the God who answers me in the day of my distress and has been with me wherever I have gone." (4) So they gave to Jacob all the foreign gods that they had, and the rings that were in their ears. Jacob hid them under the terebinth tree that was near Shechem.

God told Abram to leave his comfort zone and go in Gen 12. In verses 6-8, we see Abram (who was 75 then) built an altar in Bethel. God told Jacob to arise and go. Bethel represents the presence of God.

Jacob experienced 20 years of suffering. In Gen 35:2-3, we see Jacob's faith has grown. Jacob recognized that God was always with him through thick and thin. Jacob asked his family to remove all idols. He cleansed his family so they could serve God faithfully. God has a purpose when he allows us to go through trials.

Jas 1:2-8 Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, (3) for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. (4) And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. (5) If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. (6) But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. (7) For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; (8) he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

We must show Jesus in our life.

To serve God today, Christians may be distracted by many temptations. It could be a vice or incorrect priorities. We should learn from Jacob who purified himself.

2Co 7:1 Since we have these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God.

Jas 4:8 Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

Psa 51:10 Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.

Renew Your Devotion

Gen 35:5-7 And as they journeyed, a terror from God fell upon the cities that were around them, so that they did not pursue the sons of Jacob. (6) And Jacob came to Luz (that is, Bethel), which is in the land of Canaan, he and all the people who were with him, (7) and there he built an altar and called the place El-bethel, because there God had revealed himself to him when he fled from his brother.

Jacob is terrified of the Canaanites. He is worried they would retaliate for his sons' revenge. But God protected them. Jacob built an alter and called it El-Bethel which means God of Bethel. In his 20 years of suffering, Jacob experienced the presence of God.

We too much return to our own Bethel to worship God, to remember his presence, his faithfulness to recommit ourselves to God.

Remember God's Promises

Gen 35:9-12 God appeared to Jacob again, when he came from Paddan-aram, and blessed him. (10) And God said to him, "Your name is Jacob; no longer shall your name be called Jacob, but Israel shall be your name." So he called his name Israel. (11) And God said to him, "I am God Almighty: be fruitful and multiply. A nation and a company of nations shall come from you, and kings shall come from your own body. (12) The land that I gave to Abraham and Isaac I will give to you, and I will give the land to your offspring after you."

Gen 35:14-15 And Jacob set up a pillar in the place where he had spoken with him, a pillar of stone. He poured out a drink offering on it and poured oil on it. (15) So Jacob called the name of the place where God had spoken with him Bethel.

God always fulfills his promises. God appeared to Jacob time and again to encourage him.

When we receive blessings from God, we should remember it with an altar, for example give a special offering.

God appeared once again to Jacob. Not only God blessed him but God also changed his name from Jacob to Israel. God said he would be fruitful and multiply, kings would emerge. This is a confirmation of God's promise to Abram in Gen 12:1-4.

Today, Christians are also blessed by God. We also received promises from God. He gave us the Holy Spirit. When we serve God, we need to always remember God's promises.

We can serve God not because of our talents but because God's promises are being fulfilled in our life.

Conclusion

We need to always evaluate our actions especially to those who hurt us. We need to stay away from sin for we need to serve God with a pure heart. (cf 1 John 1:9). We must remember and experience God's presence, his faithfulness and then recommit our life to God. We need to always remember the promises of God so we can love him more, to have our faith increased to commit ourselves to serve God.

I once was lost but now I'm found

That is the song of the bag of Ngui Wen Jie, Jesse, son of Ngui Yuen Loong.

Jesse has scout meeting in school yesterday. Like all his other friends, he put his bag in the canteen and went for the activities. When they came back, Jesse found his bag missing. He could not find it even with his friends' help.

I have lost quite a bit of things in school myself. But the school bag is something I have never lost.

When Jesse was in Yuk Chai, a confused school mate took his bag home, leaving his own one. They got their respective bags back later. That's fine.

But a missing bag?

I told him it's not the money (well, it is but not as significant) but the responsibility. He should take care of what was given to him. I told him about the lost time to catch up on the homework. Kathleen thought he could use the extra work since he didn't do them too seriously the first time.

At around 2:30 p.m, I called home and found Jesse watching 我猜我猜我猜猜猜while cooking instant noodles. His bag was found in the canteen. The pencil box is gone. Ok. Praise God. We pray that whoever took Jesse's pencil box will feel the love inside it. We pray that he / she / they will know Jesus one day.

I'd have asked you to pray for the retrieval of the bag. But I didn't want to bother you. We prayed and God listened. Praise God. Thank God.

God is good. All the time. And all the time. God is good.

Truth

Before I begin this blog entry, I have to comment on the lack of comments in the recent posts. Have you read it and have no comments? Do let me know. Bloggers thrive and live on responses from readers. No, I am not an egomaniac. But knowing someone read the posts will encourage me very much.

What is truth? Some people say truth is relative and there is no absolute truth. Some say perception is truth.

The Bible says when we find truth the truth will set us free. That means we are no longer trapped by deceptions.

What do you believe? I just read a column in a local Chinese daily that suggested Ahmad Said is a power hungry individual who crave the MBship despite having no support.

If I am as gullible as the editor thinks, then I may give it some consideration. Unfortunately, my mind is already 'poisoned' by the other blogs like Malaysian Today. I believe in YM Raja Petra Kamarudin. I'd take his words over mainstream media any day of the week.

Why you ask? He has been detained under draconian law. He has been summoned to give his statements in police station. Surely, you cannot believe what he says / blogs?

Au contraire, YM backs up his words every time. This is what I observed. He talked about the wrong doing of a certain individual. The certain individual sent his lawyers threatening lawsuit. YM asked the certain individual to go to hell (literally) and brought up proofs. In other words, he has the evidence. What he says holds waters.

On the other hand, there are those who chose to believe in stories. Case in point is a female person in the church who claims that it's usual for more people to die during certain times in a year, like the Chinese ghost festival or even Cheng Beng (that's Hokkien, in Chinese it's "Qing Ming", pronounced as "Ching Ming"). She even quoted Mary Baxter to support her point, "Mary Baxter also said that."

For starters, there is a gross misunderstanding of the significance of Qing Ming (清明). It is one of the 24 solar terms in the Chinese calendar. The ancient Chinese who are very agricultural-based follow these 24 solar times in planting, harvesting, etc. Qing means clear while Ming means bright

Qing Ming Festival is a time of remembrance. Chinese will go to sweep the graves of the ancestors. The more superstitious ones will even burn things believing the ancestors will receive them. The paper stuff are getting more advanced. Jesse noticed the new shop that took over the sundry shop near our church offers Astro satelite (they renamed so as not to get into trouble) and notebooks. I go to visit the graves of my grandparents and my auntie during Qing Ming too. I don't offer joss sticks. I just help to clean up the graves. I think it is good for us to remember our forefathers.

Qing Ming Festival is NOT a time where the 'ghosts' are given temporary freedom to roam the eath, as popularly believed during the Chinese Chost Month (the 7th month in the Chinese calendar, which climaxed on the 14 of the 7th month) and the western Halloween.

An even during Haloween or the Ghost month, there is NO statistics to show there are more deaths. But the old ladies with their grandmother stories will point at each death during the Ghost month and claimed there are more deaths during that time "because the ghost are free."

It is so easy to debunk this myth. But the old lady would not have any of it because you see, even Mary Baxter also said that.

*** Warning, a can of worm will be opened. Read on only when you are ready. ***

In case you are fortunate enough not to know about Mary Baxter, she is one woman who received revelation from Jesus to write about her visits to heaven and hell. The books contain so many errors and fallacies that I will not bother to list here. Suffice to say the books fail the Bible test miserably.

I have met a lady in an online forum. She would preach from the book (the one on hell, not the heaven.) She had no doubt God intended the book for those who are unrepentant. She even went as far as to suggest that those who didn't believe the book would not go to heaven "because it was the truth."

So, if you meet someone who swears by the books of Mary Baxter, what do you do? Allow me to rephrase the question. How would you take someone who put a story book on par with the Bible?

Unfortunately, such people do exist. They themselves are not totally liberated by the truth of God. And they seek to bound others with their own entrapment.

Do you see the importance of sound doctrine now? Do you now understand why we need Project Timothy? And do you now know why some people DO NOT want to join Project Timothy when there are so many who want to take part?

Stepping back to see the bigger picture

In a short span of a few days last week, I received the same message.

I am reminded of Bruce (played by Jim Carrey, a perennial favourite of mine since In Living Color) driving madly while ignoring the multitude of signs telling him to turn back.

The message is simple. Take a break. Step back. Look at the big picture.

I thought I have when I relinquish all the things that 'no one else could do.' Perhaps my heart was still looking after them. I need to really settle down.

In God's grace and with his blessings, we restarted our family altar time. I am at the same time appalled and guilty at the lack of interest of Jesse. His mind is filled with Maple Story and Counter Strike and any other games in between. If we have DOTA at home, he'd spend even more time playing.

K is right. I am responsible for this. To talk the young people's language, I dabble in the games myself. What I didn't realize was I could pull myself out easily what with my role as a father, wife and hardworking worker in the company. But Jesse and his friends are still young and they don't necessarily have the willpower to set their priorities right. My involvement in the games, however brief is seen as an endorsement. Now, it's very difficult to undo what was done.

I am not giving up. These are fine young people we are talking about. If I could got them to be interested to learn about Psalm 23, the Beatitudes, the Lord's Prayer, the 10 Commandments, the Sermon on the Mount, there is no reason they cannot love the Word of God again.

An olive branch is extended to me and I received it. It matters not if it's sincere or not. I will follow God's principles as closely I can. A spade is a spade. Heh.

The brave wife

I finally have to get the frog out. My cup has been in the sink for a few days. I have a container and a spoon to wash.

I first opened the front door and the glass door. I summoned all my courage and equipped myself with an opened umbrella and a dustpan I thought I was up to the task. I wasn't.

K shook her head and came to her husband's rescue. She closed the umbrella and used it to move Mr. Frog into the dustpan. She then went out as I closed the door of the room beside the kitchen on the premise of preventing the frog from going into it. I was behind the door. :)

K then asked me to open the gate as well. She wanted to bring Mr. Frog to the field opposite. Either way, Mr. Frog leaped into the drain.

That's the last we saw of the frog.

Phew. No more frogs in the house. Now I need to get the pipe and the back door fixed.

Don't let God push you

During the CBC Congress, Rev Dr David Wang shared how the disciples stayed in Jerusalem even after they received power to bear witness in other places. They eventually scattered to God's intended locations because of persecution.

The Pharaoh of old refused to let God's people go. Because of his stubbornness, his kingdom suffered 10 calamities. One of them being frogs.

For the longest time, Kathleen has asked me to seek professional help with two things at home. You see, one of the three padlocks of my back door got stuck. We tried WD40. We tried to saw it. Nothing worked. And the sink leaks. So, we loosen the water switch when we need water for the kitchen sink. We have an RO Water machine. Whenever we turn on the machine, we turn on the water switch.

Now, the switch is hidden in a kitchen cabinet. I think God wanted to tell remind me gently that the above two things have drag too long. How did he remind me?

He sent a frog. Yes, you read it right.

A 4-legged frog. Dark green. I would have taken a photo to show you if my iPAQ has more powerful zoom.

Now, our windows and doors are ALWAYS closed. I cannot imagine how it got in.

To invite it out, the nearest exit it the back door, which cannot be opened. To do dishes or to drink water from the RO water machine, we need to rotate the water switch.

I didn't want to disturb Mr. Frog (as Kathleen called it.) I actually didn't want to be disturbed by Mr. Frog.

I told my dad, mom and my little sister. My dad said he would not help. He said I should take care of this small thing myself.

I just made a called home. K said Mr. Frog was still having its nap while she has not had hers.

I promise to fix the door and the leaking pipe. I also will go to cell group tonight. (I sent a text message to the cell leader. I have no reply from him yet.)

Who can help me? I will call my brother later in the night.

The five worst things you can do in a meeting

Original article here

• Date: October 3rd, 2007
• Author: Toni Bowers

Here are five meeting offenses that will not only drive your co-workers crazy, but will also damage your reputation within the workplace.

1. Show up late - Occasionally there is an emergency that crops up that forces you to go into a meeting a few minutes late. But usually the culprit is poor time management. Consistently arriving late implies to your manager and your co-worker that you are either extremely disorganized or don’t really respect the rules that everyone else follows.
2. Bring your cell phone - Again, there could be special circumstances that would require having a cell phone in a meeting, such as a call from a doctor or your child’s school. But if your cell goes off at every meeting and it’s just your spouse needing to know if you’ll pick up some Pudding Pops after work, shame on you. This behavior shows a lack of respect as well as a lack of commitment to your job.
3. Have a side conversation - Nothing rankles a meeting leader more than two people having a whispered conversation separate from the topic at hand.
4. Don’t focus - Believe it or not, I’ve been in meetings when attendees have leafed through clothing catalogs or balanced their checkbook while the leader is talking. Trying to multi-task in a somewhat dull meeting might be tempting, but it’s very rude. And don’t think people don’t notice.
5. Talk just to hear yourself speak - It may be your way of raising your office profile, but hogging much of the meeting spotlight with philosophical ramblings will not do it. Be brief and succinct. Meetings are for communication; they are not your personal stage.

Who are you? What do you do?

Session 4, 10 Mar 2008 10 a.m.

Three days ago, Pastor Wang wa in an missionary meeting in Penang. The President of MBS, Dr John Ong talked about the church of China preparing itself to be used by God. There are now more people in China learning English than the people in the rest of the world. This English craze was thought to be due to the Beijing Olympics in 2008 or the World Fair in Shanghai in 2011. Dr Wang knew it started many years ago by the visit of President Nixon in 1972. For the longest time US has boycotted China. But the ping pong ball has broken ice.

Here we have the most powerful nation and the most populous nation. President Mao wanted to greet President Nixon in English. He practice hard on two sentences, how are you and how do you do. On the day, Nixon was ushered in to meet Mao who was old. He looked for Nixon's hand for a while and said, "who are you?" Being the revolutionary leader, he continued, "what do you do?"

Pastor Wang wanted to ask us the same two questions – who we are. We are the children and servants of God. Then what do we do? We are so used to go to church, sit in church and listen to the pastor. When he is finished, we shake his hand at the door and gave money.

We read about the 12, the 70 (or 72), the 120 and the 3000. The 12 still asked Jesus when he was going to establish his kingdom. They were thinking about their own interest, their fame or status. They didn't leave Jerusalem not because of obedience but because of fear. When they are together, they felt more comfortable. Once out Jerusalem, Peter went back to fishing. John and James wanted to follow Jesus wherever he went. They went fishing too. The Holy Spirit came with a bang. They were all filled with the Holy Spirit. They became different. They were filled fear before, not with faith. They were thinking about a lot of things, now they only thought about Jesus. They were disunited, not they were united. Peter used to put his foot in his mouth, now Peter preached.

There was no PA system then. But when he preached on that one day, 3000 born again.

"Who are you? What do you do?"

By they way we worship, we dance, we sing, we look like people filled with the Holy Spirit. We think once we are filled the Holy Spirit, we will speak in tongues, the service will be longer (because the Holy Spirit is long winded), the people will stand for a long time. Pastor Want doesn't think so. His test is simple. A person filled with the Holy Spirit is changed. It is not about speaking in tongues. Are we changed after speaking in tongues or jumped during worship? He doesn't care how high we jump, can we walk straight like Jesus when we land. It doesn't matter how many times we are slain. When we are back on our feet again, are we standing for Jesus?

That was the test for the 120. They are not just changed but transformed. From then on, being fruitful and multiply is no longer the sole responsibility of the pastor.

In Acts, we study the first early church. In Acts 2, we read about the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. In vv 42-47, we see the baby church. It was so magnificent.

Act 2:47b … And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.

Now that we are filled with the Holy Spirit and changed, we need to do a physical check of out body. Do we have the 5 health factors? If we have the health factors of the early church, the church will naturally be fruitful and multiply.

Preaching

Act 2:42 And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.

They obey the Preaching of the disciples. The responsibility is no longer on the pastor. We the congregation are the subject matter. We are impatient with long sermons. We become critics of the pastor. Do we live the sermon? We are to live out the logos shared from the pulpit.

Pastor Wang dedicated a church in Xin Jiang. He normally does not do that because there are too many of them. But he got interested when he heard the church send missionaries to Russia. He dedicated the church 3 times because there were too many people. The pastor who is a medical doctor had to ask people to go away. She wanted only the missionaries and fulltime workers to stay. The church was still full. She then told Pastor Wang he could start preaching but not too long. They people stay far away and there was no food. Pastor Wang asked how long could he preach. She said it was 11 in the morning. She said he could teach until 8 at night. There was no Bible. Pastor Wang taught from Ephesians which he memorized. As he ended, a young girl started singing about not listening to the preaching of man. Pastor Wang turned around in anger. Then she went into the chorus about going to the north, south, east and west to LIVE the WORD of God! They would go out to DIE for the WORD of God.

Don't JUST listen to the Word of God. We need to live it.

Pray

There were nothing left in the church except for prayers. Wang Ming Dao was put into solitary imprisonment for 27 years. Pastor Wang visited him after his release. He was weak, blind and deaf. He said the communist has taken everything from them including the pastors, the missionaries, the Bibles and the churches. He wiped his tears and said the communists could not take away one thing – prayers! In our church, no one has taken away anything from us. But we surrender and sacrifice our prayers. Our prayer meetings are the least attended. We who wanted to be fruitful and multiply must restore our prayer life.

Power

This is a fruit of the apostles. Henan is known as the Pentecostal province of China. 50% of the population is Christians because of many powerful signs and wonders. An Uncle Tian, who is a high ranking officer had terminal nose cancer. He retired to go home. He expected the wife and daughter to take care of him but they sneaked out every night. One day he followed them to a hut. He heard singing, Christian singing. He is angry. Being a communist officer he is used to arresting Christians and putting them into jail. He went home. The next night, he followed again. This night, he heard people crying and praying for him. The next morning, Beijing asked him to go to a hospital reserved for high ranking officers. He went and he was diagnosed to be clear of cancer. He came back. He had two medical reports, one declaring him with terminal cancer and the other one announced he had no cancer. He didn't go home. He went to the hut, knocked and went to cry like a baby. He became an evangelist. He was imprisoned for two years. Attempts to brainwash him failed. He said his work is easy. He would just show his two medical reports. The villagers were in awe and in fear and they came to know Jesus.

Signs and wonders follow us. They don't precede us. They follow us only when we go out, when we declare and when we decide to be fruitful and multiply.

Provide

Act 2:45 And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need.

We need to give and to provide to the needies. The poorest people group in Malaysia is the Orang Asli. We need to ask ourselves who we are and what we did. The early church gave and they won the city. It was not easy because Jerusalem was the base of the Roman Empire colonist and full of gentiles. Yes, this little 'sect' flourished. Saul as a Sadducee persecuted them.

Are we popular? Are we loved? Who are we? What do we do?

Praise

Act 2:47a praising God and having favor with all the people.

What is real praise? When we have a well air-conditioned hall, a nice room and we could throw the towel anywhere and it will be normal on the following day, it is easy to praise God. Paul and Silas were in jail. They were singing and praising. The was an earthquake and the gates were open. When we are suffering and we still praise God, that is true praise.

Uncle Leong was the leader of the Pentecostal movement in Hunan. He was arrested before Christmas two years ago. He was sentenced to 7.5 years in prison. One day Pastor Wang would meet him. He could imagine how he would respond. Many years ago, they could not find him for 9 months. Eventually, they found out he was in jail. They paid the penalty to release him. He weighed 80 kg when he was arrested. He was only 45 kg upon release. He was cut in half literally. He could not even cross the street. He sat on the street. Pastor Wang was across the street because of the police. He decided he didn't care about the police anymore. He went across. They hugged and cried. He asked whether the police beat him or starve him or torture him. Uncle Leong would respond in Hallelujah. He knew there was no point asking. Uncle Leong kept praising God and revealed that 37 prisoners came to know Jesus.

When we suffer and sacrifice for Jesus and we still praise him, then only are we being fruitful and could multiply.

This passage no longer just talks about the pastors. It is about us – the congregations. The preaching, the provision, the prayer, the power and the praise are about who we are and what we do.

The Functions and the Purpose of the Holy Spirit

Session 3. 09 Mar 2008 8:00 p.m.

Pastor Wang had good results in his pre-university exam 42 years ago. His dad bought him a Vespa. He liked to dress in white shirt, white pants, white socks and white suede shoes. At that time there was a movie, Roman Holiday. The hero took the heroine on a Vespa. He went to church to pick up his dream girl, who had the longest legs and the shortest skirt. He invited her to barbecue. She accepted. They went to the furthest beach in Hong Kong because he enjoyed being hugged by the girl.

He had the stick, coal and food. He is a graduate from an all-boy boarding school. He was always the big brother and he never had to start a fire. He didn't know how to start a fire. He used up all matches except one when he got an idea. His Vespa! He wanted to get some gasoline from his Vespa to light the fire. He opened the seat and dip a stick of rolled up newspaper and sprinkled the charcoal. He started the fire. He was still all white but lost his eyebrows. He learned that gasoline could help to start a fire.

One year later, he thought it was necessarily to meet her parents. He was a Shanghainese while the girl's family was Cantonese. He took them to a Shanghainese restaurant for his favourite pork knuckle Oporly porky fatty fatty). He served his future father-in-law and mother-in-law and, his girlfriend. But he got the pork on his all white attire. He was to speak in an evangelistic meeting later in the night. He bent down to hide the spot. He thought of his Vespa again. He heard gasoline could remove stains. He asked the waiter for a pair of chopsticks. He wrapped his handkerchief to get the gasoline to remove his stain. On that night, he was all white but a pink tie. He learned that gasoline could remove stains.

Gasoline could start a fire and remove stain. But the main purpose of gasoline it to be put into the tank in order to make a car GO. Can a car move when the tank is empty? Yes. In many churches, the pastor and the wife pushed the church along.

What if we enter a gas station. If we wind down the window and tell the attendant to fill the car with gasoline, they will think we are terrorists. Today, we are spiritual terrorists. We ask the pastor to pray for us to be filled, to give us more. (师母在外是斯斯文文的母亲，在家是母狮)

The Holy Spirit in us is like the gasoline in a car. The Holy Spirit has many functions. While pastor has quiet time today, he read the Bible and found as many as 23 functions. But he has one purpose.

1. Comforter
   
2. Teacher
   
3. Glorifier
   
4. Abider
   
5. A Gifter of Joy
   
6. A Witness (of what Jesus did)
   
7. The Gifter of gifts (according to his own desire, he gives us different gifts)
   
8. Sower (he partners with us so we can become fruitful and multiply)
   
9. Reaper (he is the harvester)
   
10. Bears fruits with us
    
11. Brings about Unity (unity is not by us.)
    
12. Intercessor (he prays for us with unspoken groan)
    
13. (Missed this. I will update if I can get it.)
    
14. He worries for us
    
15. Liberates (Paul asked who can set us free? The Holy Spirit)
    
16. The revealer – he shows the mystery of the Gospel
    
17. Leads (John 16 – into the fullness of the Kingdom)
    
18. Fights against our old self (we cannot be overcomer. Paul said there are two laws within him and that woe unto him.)
    
19. Seals (he puts the seals of salvation in us. Our names are recorded in the Book of Life. God will not forsake us when we are sealed by the Holy Spirit.)
    
20. Resurrects (Rom 8:11 said the Holy Spirit resurrects Jesus Christ and he will resurrects us.)
    
21. Deals with our old self. (Doing his job is easy. He has been doing it for 42 years. But dealing with his old self is still his daily struggle. He doesn't sin with his hands or eyes or his feet anymore. He doesn't sin with his conducts anymore. A church often grows big but seldom grows mature. A church leader may grow imparient.)
    
22. He is the sent one.
    
23. He gives us power.
    

Act 1:8
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth."

To bear witness means to be fruitful and multiply.

3000 were saved in a day but the church stayed in Jerusalem until the Holy Spirit got involved. 敬酒不喝喝罚酒。

Act 8:1 And Saul approved of his execution. And there arose on that day a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles.

When we are invited / asked to go and bear witness and we refused, the Holy Spirit will get involved. The disciples were forced to scatter to Judea and Samaria due to persecution.

Pastor Wang likes our theme. He doesn't want it to remain a theme. He wanted it to be a lifestyle for us.

Pastor Wang is not inviting us to go to China or India although he likes to. He invites us to go across the street, to our colleague in the next desk, the girl at the check out counter. If we refuse to go, he doesn't know what the Holy Spirit to go. But we see the Holy Spirit did something dramatic.

If we really say to Jesus, the Lord of Harvest that we are willing to go.

The Holy Spirit has many functions. But the only purpose is to enable the church to GO and bear witness.

Willingness and Obedience - Keys to Faithful Servanthood

Session 2. 09 Mar 2008 9:00 a.m.

家家有本难念的经。但是，如果我们是在主里，我们的家就成为爱念的经。

假冒伪善，难进天堂。

Pastor Wang have two sons, one like him is perfect. The other is like the mother. At 4, the eldest son went to kindergarten. The children were to introduce his father. There were fathers who were doctors, lawyers and teachers. His son introduced him as a pastor. The teacher asked the son to explain.

He stands up on Sunday to say a few words, he goes to the door to shake hands and people give him money. Is that what a servant of God do?

How does Jesus transform ordinary people like us? How would Jesus make us fruitful and multiply? We chose not only to be his children but also his servants.

A high ranking minister of civil affairs in China told Pastor Wang that as officials in the communist party, they are supposed to be atheist. But he read the Bible and acknowledged that Jesus is the most successful revolution in history for his ability to stir up and mobilize people. Pastor wanted to know how he came to that conclusion. The minister told him Jesus started as one – not as a general, a poet nor a writer. He was an illegitimate son and died young. The one we worship is such a simple and ordinary man. Even his followers doubted anything significant could come out from Galilee. He was a fugitive and a low level worker. But 2000 years later, almost half the population acknowledge him and believe in him.

Luk 8:1 Soon afterward he went on through cities and villages, proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God. And the twelve were with him,

The Scripture didn't say the twelve co-operated with him nor assisted him. They were fighting among one another for a bigger position and title.

Even today, many followers Jesus are like that. Luke mentioned some sisters by name and commended them.

Luk 8:3 and Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod's household manager, and Susanna, and many others, who provided for them out of their means.

The women serve Jesus and his disciples with their own resources. Today, the women serve God.

Luk 9:1-2 And he called the twelve together and gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases, (2) and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal.

Jesus gave. It is not that the twelve earned it nor did they deserve it. It didn't say the twelve graduated from seminary, had a change in heart nor repented. They were the same with their old habits and tendencies of bickering and fighting. Jesus gathered them and gave. That's how god operate.

He doesn't want until we become perfect saints. He gave them power to do what he did in Luke 8. He gave them power and authority and his own job.

We see the twelve went out as disciples (Luke 8:1) and came back as apostles (Luke 9:10.)

Pastor Wang celebrated his 35^th anniversary 2 years ago. The wife chose to have candlelight dinner op top level of the Eiffel Tower in Paris. It was the bi-centennial celebration of Eiffel Tower. Pastor Wang was enjoying his tartar steak. He preferred raw beef. Without warning, the wife asked him whether he still loved her. He thought only Jesus asked that kind of questions. Why do women always ask this kind of questions? He gave what he thought was the perfect answer. He said 35 years ago, he told her he loved her in front of the church and if there is any changes, he would tell her.

The next year, they went to wild life safari in Africa. They saw many wild animals. At the hotel, a tall African manager dressed in white pointed at a tree house in the hotel. He revealed that 50 years ago, a little princess climbed up and slept there one night. She became the queen when she came down. She was Queen Elizabeth the 2^nd. Her father died while she was up there. The wife wanted to stay there. It was very expensive. The wife climbed and wished she climbed as a fat lady but would climb down as a beauty queen.

The Bible said if we are willing then we are worthy. It is not whether we are qualified. We asked where our power and authority are. Pastor Wang asked if we have even tried to 'go.' As we go to heal the sick, to cast out demon and the proclaim the Kingdom of God, we will return as apostles (with the power and authority.)

But, those were the twelve, weren't they? We are are ordinary people. We can just give our offering and listen quietly. We are so timid. We are unqualified and we are also so 'people.'

Luk 10:1 After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them on ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place where he himself was about to go.

This is after the people gave Jesus all sorts of reasons not to follow him. This is common among God's people. We all have a PHD in Excusiology. We can come up with the silliest of excuses. Some version has 70, some 72. It's not an exact numbers. The Bible didn't mentioned their names or gender. They were willing. (Chinese version said established while English versions said selected or appointed.)

Jesus sent them our two by two and to every village and every town and every city. They did the exact same thing that the twelve do. Jesus wanted us to be fruitful and multiply because of the harvest (which is plentiful.) We tend to think we are not qualified to be fruitful because we look at ourselves. But the Lord of harvest sees that the harvest is plentiful but the workers are few.

Luk 10:17 The seventy-two returned with joy, saying, "Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!"

They came back full of joy. They came back victorious! They reported their victories in Jesus' name. That makes a difference. It is not because we attended a seminary or a special class. It is only because we have learned to trust in his name.

Php 2:8-9 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. (9) Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name,

Phil 2 tells us because Jesus humbled himself and obeyed God, he became a servant. Because of that humility and obedience, God raised his name. In his name every knee shall and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord in the glory of the Father.

The disciples said not just people but even the evil spirits were subject to the name of Jesus.

This is a very rare time that Jesus declared that a battle is won. Jesus saw the principality of the air tumble down.

Act 1:3 He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God.

How ordinary were these people that Jesus called? In Acts, there were 120 who were led by the 11. Jesus taught the 11 the same principles of the Kindgom for 40 days.

Act 1:6 So when they had come together, they asked him, "Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?"

The disciples didn't change. They still ask the same question. Jesus reminded them to wait. Waiting is not a matter of time but more of a matter of attitude and of mindset.

Isaiah said those who wait on the Lord will rise up like the eagle. They shall run and not be tired and walk and not fall, all because they are willing to wait. We need to change our habits that we are willing to wait.

Pastor Wang visited the Louvre. Everyone went there to see Mona Lisa. Pastor Wang saw a 10 meter tall Ascension by Raphael. He could only see the nail-pierced feet of Jesus in the clouds. People were looking up. We are the same as these people. These people in the painting looked stupefied. We are then reminded how the angel called them Galileans. But they did two things right. If we do these two things right, we will be fruitful and multiply.

Act 1:14 All these with one accord were devoting themselves to prayer, together with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and his brothers.

同心合一。恒切祷告。They were in one accord. Devoted in prayer.