29 Jun Comfort And The Cross
Pastor Vincent - 22 May 2014
Faith Before God, Love Among Men
We are always affected by what people think of us. We try hard to make people acknowledge our doings, at the same time, we want others to live up to our expectations. Just as it’s said in Romans 14: Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To their own master, servants stand or fall. And they will stand, for the Lord is able to make them stand. One person considers one day more sacred than another; another considers every day alike. Each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind. Whoever regards one day as special does so to the Lord. Whoever eats meat does so to the Lord, for they give thanks to God; and whoever abstains does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God. For none of us lives for ourselves alone, and none of us dies for ourselves alone. If we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. God is always looking at the attitude of our hearts, not the works per se. Through the message today, may we be broken down before Lord again as He reveals the self-righteousness and judgmental spirit in us, and replace it with His love through His work on the cross. A right understanding of faith enables one to look at others in God's love and truth. As a result, it gives birth to a heart that is full of compassion not mere conscience, a heart full of acceptance instead of being judgmental. May Lord perfect our faith each day as we seek to acknowledge Him even among men.
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1. The traps of Comfort.
- “Suffering”: Abstract
- The problem of “not having problems”
- Resistant to even little inconveniences
- Stay in comfort zones
- <Lk 9> 23 Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. 24 For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it.
- Spiritual battles faced in comfort:
- People proud toward God (no need for Him)
- God-loving spirit put to sleep
- Flesh is stirred up
2. Be intentional about carrying the cross in the midst of comfort.
- [one slide] Cross and Comfort: Opposites or Correlated?
- If we do not carry cross intentionally:
- Devil will get us
- World will consume us
- Many things other than God will influence us
- Accusations grow
- Get listless about “God-stuff”
- Evangelism becomes non-urgent
- People who want to live by the truth will remain in a constant state of battling and tension
- Carry the Cross: Centre on God, Gospel and Kingdom
3. The importance of gatherings.
- <Heb 10> 23 Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. 24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, 25 not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.
- <Mt 18> 19 “Again, truly I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. 20 For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.”
- Value creates Momentum
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