Sunday, July 29, 2007

Sanctification: Moment-By-Moment Obedience

Sanctification can best be described as being made perfect through the grace of God. But what does it mean to be sanctified and how do we know we are being sanctified?

Mark 6:45-52 chronicles the story of Jesus walking across the stormy lake to come to the aid of his disciples, but why did Jesus send his disciples out into the storm in the first place? v.45 starts off by telling us Jesus "made" his disciples get into the boat. What many people fail to realize about sanctification is that it does not end when we are saved. Just as Jesus sent his disciples into the storm, God will also not leave you as you are.
  1. Recognition of truth : We can all look within ourselves and find flaws we wish to fix, but unless you are willing to face up to them now, you are not truly realizing your need to be sanctified.
  2. Method
    (a) endurance : Sanctification is a daily process. You need to come to accept that it won't happen overnight. Will you cooperate with God to let the Holy Spirit work in you life, even if it's not according to your "schedule?"
    (b) faith : In v.48 it says Jesus saw the disciples straining with oars. Even though Jesus was standing on a mountain top miles aways from his disciples, he was still able to see his disciples in the storm. Do you have faith to know that Jesus can see you in the storm? Do you have faith to see Jesus walking on water to come save you?
  3. Perfect Obedience : Do you have the obedience not to react the same way as before when faced with the same hardships again? Can you obey God's wishes even if you find it difficult to follow?

Being saved is the merely the first step in God plan to mold you. Every day the Lord will try to sanctify you to become a better person. He will find flaws in you that are both easy and hard to overcome. Will you have the faith to believe in him? Will you have the endurance to get through the storm? And will you have the obedience to not to make the same mistakes?

Can you see Jesus walking on water towards you?

--from Nakwon EM July 29th 2007 Sunday Worship Service
*To listen to this sermon in its entirety, please contact James Kim

Sunday, July 22, 2007

Be Filled

Ephesian 5:17-21 speaks about being filled with the Spirit, but what does it mean to be filled? We often imagine a cup being filled to the rim, so that when something were to hit it, it will overflow. In other words if you were to fill yourself with the holy spirit, you can't help but pour it back out when you're faced with trials and tribulations. Now there is nothing wrong with this analogy, but there's a deeper meaning to idea of being filled.

  1. saturation : imagine a sponge, the idea is that we soak or submerge ourselves with the Spirit that we can't help but let it become a part of lives.
  2. cooperation : allow the holy spirit fill you. How can the Holy Spirit work in your life if you don't allow it?
  3. continuation : Being filled with isn't a one time thing. Do you come to church and pour your heart for the Lord, but once you leave does it end there? Do you limit you relationship with God? Being filled is a daily moment to moment experience.

So then how do you know you are filled? How can you tell if the Holy Spirit is working in your life? If you read Eph 5: 19 - 21 closely, Paul explains what it means to be filled.

  1. speech and heart (v.19) : Do you have praise in your heart? Do you feel an urge to sing praise to the Lord?
  2. attitude (v.20) : When you begin to realized how blessed we are by God's grace, how can you not help but be filled with gratitude.
  3. submission (v.21) : Submission does not imply aimlessly yielding to everyone. Submissions means choosing to give up you are always right. Do you find yourself trying so hard to win an argument that you forget why it was so important to win in the first place? Submit to the Holy Spirit, let it work in you life. Don't try to dictate how you think the Holy Spirit should work.

Finally, how do we become filled?

  1. nourishment : The word of God. There is no other way (in other words read you bible people =P)
  2. obedience : Do not live your life from experience to experience. Follow the law.
  3. dependence : Do you live you life depending on God in a daily relationship? Or do you keep God in church. When you leave church do you leave God behind?
  4. yield : Don't get caught up on thinking how you feel God should work. Let the Holy Spirit work in your life, even if it's not according to you plan.

--from Nakwon EM July 22nd Sunday Worship Service
*To listen to this sermon in its entirety, please contact James Kim

Song JDSN says try living w/ a goat. =P

Sunday, July 15, 2007

full of horses & chariots of fire

2 Kings 6:8-18 records a fascinating story of Elisha (Prophet Elijah's protege) and his servant when the King of Aram sends a host of chariots and horses to capture the prophet who was aiding Jehoram, King of Israel, thwarting King of Aram's plans to defeat Jehoram.

The servant cries out in fear seeing the powerful Aramean chariots and horses surrounding them, but Elisha prays to God to open his servants eyes so he could see the spiritual reality - a greater host of horses of chariots of fire encompassing them.

Whether we live in acknowledgment of the spiritual warfare that rages on every moment of every day, it is a reality. Just because we willfully live ignorant of the spiritual reality, cannot and does not negate its existence.

God's great army of horses and chariots of fire were there before the servant's spiritual eyes were opened.

But we must remember these three things about the Spiritual Eyes:

1. Spiritual Eyes are Free of Fear. When the Servant was afraid, he could not see the true reality. So long as we focus on the problem, we will never see past it to see the might God behind our problem. Remember the story about Patch Adams and the "crazy old man" who helped him see past the four fingers and see a whole different perspective.

2. Spiritual Eyes are Opened Eyes. The servant could not see until prophet Elisha asked God to open his eyes to the spiritual reality that already existed. How are our spiritual eyes opened? When truth is declared and realized and received.

Never forget: the One fighting for you is mightier than the one fighting against you.

3. Spiritual Eyes are Discerning. It doesn't seek for human ways for solution. It seems an obvious and logical thing to simply leave the enemy blinded and confused, but Elisha, instead, leads them to the capital royal city and instructs Jehoram to basically feed and help his enemy. But it is through this discerning wise act that the bands from Aram stops raiding and wreaking havoc on Israelite territories. Just because it is peace, it doesn't mean it is from God.

Without spiritual sight, life is hopeless. If there is nothing beyond right here and now, there is nothing worth living for.

Remember the Olympic Games race in which the winner is not the one who gets to the finished line first but the one who keeps his torch still burning at the end of his run. It's not about being first; it's about having the fire of the Spirit, that fire of love for Jesus, burning in our hearts until the Day Christ returns.

--from Nakwon EM July 15, 2007 First Anniversary Service

Sunday, July 08, 2007

for such a time as this

What does it take for us as believers to make a difference in our world? How do we live extraordinary lives in an ordinary world?

Esther was a Jewish girl living in Persia who rose to become Queen to King Xerxes. When her people were threatened with annihilation, her cousin Mordecai urges her to step up and make a difference.

Like all the heroes - great men and women of faith in the Bible - Esther shared these three characteristics that enabled her to change the course of history.

1. Made a Choice - Esther chose to risk her life to save her people.

2. Sacrificed her dreams - Esther could easily have justified herself saying God wouldn't have made her Queen only to be killed for breaking the law of the land. Remember the illustration of Walt Disney who cut out a 4 and a half minute sequence in the first animated feature film Snow White despite the fact it took 240 days to work on it. A lot depend on the multitude of "good" things we need to eliminate to make way for the great things God wants to do through us.

3. Lived by a Higher Standard - Esther never forgot she was a Jew. She never lowered her standard, thinking she belonged to the Persian nation. We tend to copy the people with whom we associate. We borrow thoughts from the books we read and the programs (or movies) we watch, almost without knowing it like the London errand boys humming to the out-of-tune bells. Have you so conformed to the ways of the world (at work or school, etc) that you cannot discern what pleases or displeases God? Or worse yet, has it ceased to bother you although you know it displeases Him?

We as believers live under a higher standard of Jesus, the perfect Son of God. We are not to set out standard against even the "best" and exemplary Christians.

God has called us to be saved; hence we are called to a specific purpose with our lives. We were made for such a time as this - a time of deep spiritually darkness and confusion and godlessness.

Will you stand up for Christ and make a difference in your day?

--from Nakwon EM July 8th Sunday Worship Service

btw, what an AWESOME 6 O'clock Sunday Worship Service that was at Times Square Church! Those of you who did not go, YOU MISSED OUT BIG TIME!!!!!! Join us next month on the first Sunday when we go! Don't miss it!

Reminder: Go into Times Square Church website www.timessquarechurch.org (sorry, can't add a link for your convenience because I have not gotten permission from TSC for creating link to our blogsite yet) and check out the sermon archives and listen to the sermons and blessed!!!

Monday, July 02, 2007

let us

3 "Let Us" statements in Hebrews 12:1-2 constitute God's message of encouragement for us:

1. Let Us Throw Off
- everything that hinders - not just "the good," but even our seeking after spiritual things (if done with false motives) can become a stumblingblock

- and sin that so easily entangles - "the bad"
(remember the Australian 1,000-meter speed skating contestant who won the gold even though he was at the end of the race because the four racers before him got entangled in a heap of tumble)

2. Let Us Run
- with perseverance - not a sprint like a 100-meter dash, but a marathon, so required endurance
(remember George Mueller who prayed over 35 years to save 5 of his non-believing friends; the last one being saved soon after Mueller's funeral)

- the race marked out for us - the distance and time we run is predetermined and limited; our trials no matter how difficult won't last forever
(remember the two critical times for any marathon runner: at the beginning when he has to fight the temptation to race fast recklessly; and at the middle "hitting the wall" and feeling he can no longer go on, sapped of all strength, falling dangerously into despair that he's only half way there)

3. Let Us Fix our Eyes
- On Jesus, the Author & Perfecter of our faith - He began a good work in us; He will finish it
- Who for the Joy set before Him - our aim must be Jesus, and we must run with right focus and motivation

Remember, finally, that God cheers us on as that famous Polish composer-pianist Pederewski who encouraged and played along behind the little 9 year-old boy to keep on playing his "chopsticks" on the beautiful Steinway grand piano before a disgruntled audience who expected the grand master to play. Remember that God, like Pederewski, who cheers us on to keep playing our "chopsticks" while sitting behind us, composes a most beautiful concerto turning our simple and amateurish music called life into a masterpiece.

--from Nakwon EM July 1st Sunday Worship Service