I was ministered by the message at the Holy Week service tonight. It was so appropriate and spot-on for the struggles I have been going through lately.
The message was on "The Spirit's Fruit And The Disciple's Mark". It basically spoke about how a Spirit-filled disciple should live his life. I noted some points and I thought I share them here:-
1) The Spirit-filled disciple must have the fruit of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control) in his life.
2) The mark of a disciple is love being evident in his life. Hence, the word "fruit" as mentioned above is singular. It was an insight for me because I realised that once a disciple has love in his life, the rest of the attributes (as in the joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control) will manifest themselves naturally.
3) The key to love is to give. Using John 3:16, the speaker, Rev. Wee Boon Hup, brought up this interesting observation: "For God so loved the world that he GAVE his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."
God loved and God gave. Likewise for us as His disciples, to love is to give.
4) The other key to love is to forgive. We cannot love someone fully when there is still grudge in our hearts against that person. Hence, it is a natural thing for us to forgive when we say we love a particular brother or sister or friend.
5) When we accept Jesus as our Lord and Saviour, our old sinful self has been crucified with Christ. That self is dead. We now walk in the Spirit and do the things of the Spirit.
The things of the Spirit can be found in the Holy Scipture. Many times a Spirit-filled disciple thinks that he does not need to use his mind once he is filled but this is where he is wrong.
The devil always likes to meddle with the mind of a person and if a disciple does not fill his mind with the Word of God, then eventually he will be led astray. And when one goes astray, he desires to walk in the flesh and do the things of the flesh.
I mentioned earlier the message was so appropriate and spot-on for me because this morning my heart was filled with grudge against a person and it was so hard for me to even believe that I love this person so much.
The whole day I was telling myself what is the point of giving so much to a person I care and love deeply when in the end, what I get in return is that of disappointment, hurt and sadness. One thing I have concluded - most of the time it is the closest people in my life that hurt me most. It is so ironic.
Anyway, Rev. Wee issued a challenge after he finished delivering God's Word - he asked whether there is someone in our lives whom we need to forgive. He invited the inidividuals to acknowledge by lifting his or her hands. I was moved to do so and when I did that, there was a release on my shoulders.
Praise the Lord for that!
It is amazing how God works at times. He knows the struggles in me and He knows if I do not overcome them soon, eventually the grudge in me would lead to hatred and revenge. Thanks be to Him that he has put a stop to this.
I will continue to love and give since this is what God desires for His disciples to do. And as I have shared in my previous blogs, to serve others is not about me but them hence I will continue to do my best to be a blessing to others. Sometimes I know I will still fail but I am not going to let that put me down.
I will not let the devil discourage me. Instead I will use the Word to encourage and spur me on!
I guess that is all I have to share.
The Lord is good and His love endures forever!
"The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other." Galatians 5:19-26
"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." John 13:34-35
"Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace; the sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God's law, nor can it do so. Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God." Romans 8:5-8
The message was on "The Spirit's Fruit And The Disciple's Mark". It basically spoke about how a Spirit-filled disciple should live his life. I noted some points and I thought I share them here:-
1) The Spirit-filled disciple must have the fruit of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control) in his life.
2) The mark of a disciple is love being evident in his life. Hence, the word "fruit" as mentioned above is singular. It was an insight for me because I realised that once a disciple has love in his life, the rest of the attributes (as in the joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control) will manifest themselves naturally.
3) The key to love is to give. Using John 3:16, the speaker, Rev. Wee Boon Hup, brought up this interesting observation: "For God so loved the world that he GAVE his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."
God loved and God gave. Likewise for us as His disciples, to love is to give.
4) The other key to love is to forgive. We cannot love someone fully when there is still grudge in our hearts against that person. Hence, it is a natural thing for us to forgive when we say we love a particular brother or sister or friend.
5) When we accept Jesus as our Lord and Saviour, our old sinful self has been crucified with Christ. That self is dead. We now walk in the Spirit and do the things of the Spirit.
The things of the Spirit can be found in the Holy Scipture. Many times a Spirit-filled disciple thinks that he does not need to use his mind once he is filled but this is where he is wrong.
The devil always likes to meddle with the mind of a person and if a disciple does not fill his mind with the Word of God, then eventually he will be led astray. And when one goes astray, he desires to walk in the flesh and do the things of the flesh.
I mentioned earlier the message was so appropriate and spot-on for me because this morning my heart was filled with grudge against a person and it was so hard for me to even believe that I love this person so much.
The whole day I was telling myself what is the point of giving so much to a person I care and love deeply when in the end, what I get in return is that of disappointment, hurt and sadness. One thing I have concluded - most of the time it is the closest people in my life that hurt me most. It is so ironic.
Anyway, Rev. Wee issued a challenge after he finished delivering God's Word - he asked whether there is someone in our lives whom we need to forgive. He invited the inidividuals to acknowledge by lifting his or her hands. I was moved to do so and when I did that, there was a release on my shoulders.
Praise the Lord for that!
It is amazing how God works at times. He knows the struggles in me and He knows if I do not overcome them soon, eventually the grudge in me would lead to hatred and revenge. Thanks be to Him that he has put a stop to this.
I will continue to love and give since this is what God desires for His disciples to do. And as I have shared in my previous blogs, to serve others is not about me but them hence I will continue to do my best to be a blessing to others. Sometimes I know I will still fail but I am not going to let that put me down.
I will not let the devil discourage me. Instead I will use the Word to encourage and spur me on!
I guess that is all I have to share.
The Lord is good and His love endures forever!
"The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other." Galatians 5:19-26
"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." John 13:34-35
"Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace; the sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God's law, nor can it do so. Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God." Romans 8:5-8
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