Tuesday, October 11, 2005
Change of status
Oct 9 marks the day of the transfer of my membership to BTPC. Thank God for the warm fellowship and faithful teaching I have been receiving. :) Praying that I will use the gifts God has given me to serve the people. Pray that I may be able to translate the bible studies material well. :)
Monday, October 03, 2005
Put to death
Rather than saying that I’m still alive, it is definitely more encouraging to post something that I’ve learnt. Before I sort out the Revelation studies, I would like to share about Romans. Due to time constraint (tests and assignments!), I can only share the main points in the form of a summary. Following on from Ray’s entry on fighting sin, the sermon today was on ‘Keeping God’s Law through the Holy Spirit’ based on Romans 8:1-17. Paul ends off in Romans 7 by thanking God that through Jesus Christ, he will be delivered from the body of death which is the result of law of sin. Romans 8 continues that there is now therefore no condemnation in Christ Jesus. Thus, we have been set free from the law of sin and death. As a result, we now no longer walk in the flesh (sinful nature), but according to the Spirit. This refers to the Holy Spirit who now dwells in us and leads us to please God. In our new lives as Christians, we have the privilege of being called sons of God, calling God our Father, being heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him. Therefore, with our new status, we are to live by the Spirit and put to death the deeds of the body.
Living by the Spirit is to be led into holiness, godliness, and not being understood as being ‘led into this job’, ‘being led into this relationship’ etc. The idea of being led by the Spirit has often been wrongly understood, and the results disastrous. It is not some spectacular thing, experiential encounter, but it is real every moment in our lives. Now that we are being led by the Spirit, we are to put to death the deeds of the body. ‘Put to death’ means to take extreme measures to cease completely from a particular activity, and this is to counter the very powerful and seductive sinful nature in us. V5, 9 and 14 shows that we must actively choose to cooperate with the Spirit in us to put to death the deeds of the body.
We often find excuses to justify our sinful deeds, but it is definitely true to say that at some point in time, a decision has to be made, whether to obey the Spirit’s leading or to obey our sinful nature. After learning about Romans 7 and 8, I’ve finally understood more clearly what fighting sins is all about and the many implications it leads to, the way I perceive sins in my life and what practical measures can be done. Really thank God for the opportunity to learn from a faithful teacher. Obeying God’s way is hard, just want to encourage all my brothers and sisters to fight on, 24/7. (Besides sleeping time..haha) p”q For those who sleep less, you may need to fight more…haha.
Living by the Spirit is to be led into holiness, godliness, and not being understood as being ‘led into this job’, ‘being led into this relationship’ etc. The idea of being led by the Spirit has often been wrongly understood, and the results disastrous. It is not some spectacular thing, experiential encounter, but it is real every moment in our lives. Now that we are being led by the Spirit, we are to put to death the deeds of the body. ‘Put to death’ means to take extreme measures to cease completely from a particular activity, and this is to counter the very powerful and seductive sinful nature in us. V5, 9 and 14 shows that we must actively choose to cooperate with the Spirit in us to put to death the deeds of the body.
We often find excuses to justify our sinful deeds, but it is definitely true to say that at some point in time, a decision has to be made, whether to obey the Spirit’s leading or to obey our sinful nature. After learning about Romans 7 and 8, I’ve finally understood more clearly what fighting sins is all about and the many implications it leads to, the way I perceive sins in my life and what practical measures can be done. Really thank God for the opportunity to learn from a faithful teacher. Obeying God’s way is hard, just want to encourage all my brothers and sisters to fight on, 24/7. (Besides sleeping time..haha) p”q For those who sleep less, you may need to fight more…haha.
