Sunday, August 26, 2012

26 August 2012 - Luke 6:37-38

The Sermon on the Plain's words cannot be fudged
Jesus said "do not judge, and you will not be judged"
"Do not condemn", and condemned you will not be
"Forgive, and you will be forgiven" to the same degree
He continued with "give, and it will be given to you"
For God's riches are more than we can ever accrue

No poem can ever do justice to these verses
They focus on God's blessings, not curses
And no matter which translation is read
This is the way to be eternally ahead
Which means that in everything I think, say, or do
"Do unto others as you would have them do unto you"

Sunday, August 19, 2012

19 August 2012 - ENCS

"The Champion" series Pastor Charles Curtis did continue
The topic "Jesus our Champion" he did earnestly pursue
"Who is Jesus Christ?" is such a pivotal question
Pastor could elaborate on it for many a session
No examination will challenge or confront us more
For those who try to discredit Christ, failure is in store
Two books on the subject did Pastor refer to
He gave authors Sanders and Strobel their due
"The Incomparable Christ" and "The Case for Christ"
He implied their contents could never be overpriced

Pastor then referred to Christ as the elegant solution
For our sinful nature, His death was a perfect substitution
This is what Paul did clearly state
In Romans chapter five verse eight
With His actions, Christ answered the question of sin
He died for us, despite the sinful state we were in

Pastor then read Philippians two verses five to eleven
Which talk about the "kenosis" of Christ from heaven
Kenosis means to empty completely
That is what Christ did so freely
He humbled himself upon the cross
Our gain thus resulted from his loss
"Therefore God exalted Him to the highest place"
And every tongue shall confess His amazing grace

In regards confessing, per Romans 10:9-10
Our voice is much mightier than the pen
If "Jesus is Lord" with our mouth we confess
We will be saved for eternity, nothing less
The Bible is filled with promises in which to believe
From God there are so many gifts we can receive

Moving on to Second Corinthians five verse seventeen
If anyone is in Christ, a new creation is clearly seen
It says that "the old has gone, the new has come"
That is not something about which Paul was mum
Pastor concluded with Romans 7 verses 24 and 25
Our "body of death", only Jesus can revive

19 August 2012 - Isaiah 40:29-31

"He gives strength to the weary" when things look bleak
Verse 29 adds that He"increases the power of the weak"
"Even youths grow tired and weary" per verse thirty
"And young men stumble and fall" and get dirty
"But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength"
"They will soar on wings like eagles" at great length
Verse 31 says "they will run and not grow weary"
"They will walk and not be faint" nor be teary

It has been said that if we feel weary, one thing is for sure
We have strayed from God and disregarded a law of nature
For doing God's work brings recuperation and joy
No matter where or how he chooses us to deploy

So dear God, I apologise for being so weary and tired
As it shows that my time has not been by you inspired
For prayer and bible study I must find time every day
Otherwise from your path I will surely deviate and stray
And by following your Way and doing your Will
I know that my body and soul your energy will fill

Sunday, August 12, 2012

12 August 2012 - ENCS

The "Champions" series was continued by Pastor Neli
In Joshua 1:2 about treading five points we did see
But first Pastor read about Joshua in verses one to eleven
"Be strong and courageous" came the voice from heaven

Pastor started by referring to "Moses my servant is dead"
With previous generations in mind is how we must tread
For although God uses revelations and with relation
(Testimonies are powerful; we should not act in isolation)
He also tends to build generation upon generation
As with Singapore our forty seven year old nation

The next word mentioned was "arise" from verse two
To tread, sitting down is something we cannot do
In what we believe, we must take a stand
Even if it contradicts all others in the land

"Go over" was the next phrase mentioned by Pastor
Without small steps, walking we cannot master
We should keep stepping out in faith in the same way
We will then gain more confidence every single day

About "you and all the people" Pastor did then talk
With other people is the best way to tread or walk
To walk with us, God often sends others
Young and old, sisters and brothers

The last was "into the land I am about to give them"
Where God places us we should not condemn
For wherever he leads, we should tread
And in that way, His Word we can spread

In conclusion, we must all learn to tread
The alternative is really something to dread

Sunday, August 5, 2012

5 August 2012 - ENCS

About Second Chronicles 7:14 Pastor Larry did speak
He also referred to Singapore 47th birthday this week
The island nation and its people are so obviously blessed
But it faces economic and moral challenges like all the rest
This was a lead-in for Pastor and a series new
Talking about "Champions" and what they do
Pastor said that victors is what God wants us to be
But not by the cheating ways that we often see
For per 2 Corinthians ten verses three to five
Paul says that although others may connive
We are to "wage war" in a different way
By being obedient to God every day

The title was "Champions Confront Life's Strongholds"
Remember it is through challenges that God molds
Pastor based his sermon on 1 Kings chapter eighteen
About Elijah, one of the greatest prophets ever seen
Any revival requires a remnant to in faith step out
Per verse 21, about God's power Elijah had no doubt

To "recognise a stronghold" is step number one
In Elijah's day, there seemed to be followers none
A stronghold means saying "I will never change"
But we know this is something God can arrange
Strongholds lead to doubt and double mindedness
Plus of course negative feelings and lots of stress
If from James one verse eight we do read
Stability is what double minded people need
But through trials we can develop maturity
If we rely on the Lord as our real security
Strongholds come from sin, culture, and pride
And mean that to God's word we do not abide

Next we should "confront strongholds with action faith"
Look at 1 Kings 18:24 to see what Elijah did saith
And in the same way that the fire God did arrange
From impossible to possible, God can effect change
Pastor talked of family and nation breaking down
We then heard a testimony from a visitor in town
He said that if his dire situation could be reversed
There is no reason that our lives should be cursed

Lastly, we should "confront strongholds with prayer"
Per verses 37-39, the Lord will show that he does care
He will give us what we solely and jointly need
But He is waiting for us to pray and intercede
His fire is to fill us up, not to destroy others
He wants us to enlist more Christian brothers

In summary, Pastor said that we need to be on fire
If we are to take ourselves - and our nation - higher