Experiencing God
One word to describe today's jiang dao: heart-piercing. The speaker is one of the rare godly people whom I know who can preach with such conviction, such clarity and such astounding spiritual insights. He not only brought out the Truth, but also exposes the wickedness in the human heart, warning us not to be entrapped within ourselves. In the words of the prophet Jeremiah, The heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick; Who can understand it? (Jeremiah 17:9). How can we human trust in our own hearts, in our own feelings then? May God have mercy on us.
Just want to kind of give a broad overview of his jiang dao as an entry for the benefit of those who couldn't make it for this dazhu. I just had this strong burden in my heart that what he said should not be just 'heard and done with it' but to really ponder upon the lessons we ought to learn.
Today's topic was on 'Experiencing God'. He put the point across clearly, that experiencing God is God's will and no one can come to know God unless God first reveals Himself. First and foremost, man being spiritually dead, on his own accord can never come to know God. It is only by God's initiative to awaken the spirit in us to respond to Him that we can even come to know Him. (Read Ephesians 2 for better understanding) This is speaking in terms of salvation.
He also brought out the omnipresence of God, being God is everywhere and always around us. Not experiencing God (i mean as a Christian) is not because 'God isn't there' but because of problems we have in ourselves. Our fault...not God's fault. (Ref Jer 23:23-24, Lev 26:11-13, Rev 21:3)
So what are the reasons that might cause you not to 'experience God' then?
He listed down the following (i shall further elaborate on them)
1) You're not born-again
Checking one's salvation (an assurance of salvation) is the duty of every single one of us. We must always check to see if we are truly born-again. There are many verses in the Bible that expound on that.
Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine youselves! Or do you not recognise this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you - unless indeed you fail the test? (2 Cor 13:5)
Therefore, brethren, be all the more diligent to make certain about His calling and choosing you; for as long as you practice these things, you will never stumble... (2 Pet 1:10)
Now both Apostles Paul and Peter exhorted us to EXAMINE ourselves DILIGENTLY to see if we're indeed BORN-AGAIN. Now, what exactly is born-again then?
No one gets saved by uttering a 'saving prayer'.
No one gets saved by water baptism
No one gets saved by doing all the Bible taught us to do
No one gets saved by keeping all the commandments
No one gets saved by going to church, sing psalms, pray, study the Bible etc.
Let's look at what our Lord Jesus said...
Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God (John 3:3)
and He repeated it again...
Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not be amazed that I said to you, 'You must be born again.' The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going; so is everyone who is born of the Spirit." (John 3:5-8)
*just to clarify that the 'water' as mentioned above is NOT referring to water baptism but a spiritual renewal and cleansing of the word (ref Ezek 36:24-27, Eph 5:26) lest some people think that water baptism is part of being born-again.
The comparison of the Spirit to wind is to illustrate that the Spirit's sovereign work of regeneration in the human heart can neither be controlled or predicted. Yet its effects can be seen. Now... Jesus mentioned that the effects of this regeneration (born-again) can be seen... thus implying that we can test to see if we're born again. So the question now is, how do we know if we're born again?
i)The fruit of the Spirit
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control... (Galatians 5:22)
for the fruit of the Light consists in all goodness and righteousness and truth (Ephesians 5:9)
See if you're bearing these fruits... if your life is changing gradually... have you become less hot-tempered when u come to Christ, have you become more patient etc...
ii)Test yourselves with the test Apostle John has written for you in his 1st epistle (1 John). In this epistles were doctrinal and moral tests that we can use on ourselves. You guys can also go to www.john3-16.blogspot.com to read 'Are You Born-again', a tract written by Ryle.
2)We do not know we have experienced God before
How often do we expect a 'supernatural' experience from God when He always commune with us in our normal daily lives. We seek 'spiritual experiences' but neglected the presence of God in our daily living. May we truly open up our senses and come to experience God every moment of our life. Make every minute count for Jesus.
3)Unconfessed Sins
As long as we harbour sins in our lives, we can never come to God with a clear conscience. Either we will be too ashamed to come to God, or our hearts will be too hardened to react to God at all.
God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. (1 John 1:5)
Your eyes are too pure to approve evil,
And You can not look on wickedness with favour. (Habakkuk 1:13)
God is PURE and HOLY and tolerates no sins. How can then we even be able to come to Him if we still harbour sins inside? God knows all things... there's no use hiding anything from Him at all. Rather we just strip down all pretense in front of Him and cry out to Him for mercy.
If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9)
Confess our sins and truly repent. That's the way to start a close relationship with God for our hearts no longer condemns us (ref 1 John 3:20-21). It is best to confess to a close brother or sister also. The Bible clearly states that it is always good to have a spiritual partner who can help us in our dealing with strongholds of sin by praying for us and reminding us. (read Ecclesiastes 4:9-12)
4)Self-Centredness
Let us ask ourselves this question: do we do things for God or for ourselves? Sadly to say, most of us (myself included) often push God far far away from the neurons of our brains most of the time in our everyday life. But this is a very serious issue. IDOLATRY is a very serious issue. Yes, we might really be living our lives for God. But let us ask ourselves this question: Do we live for God Himself alone (meaning one day if our circumstances were as bad as Job and yet we would still praise God) or do we live for God-and. What i mean by 'God-and' is that do we live for God plus an attachment with it. This attachment might be 'eternal life', or 'fear of going to hell', or 'blessings from God' etc. However, if one does not live a life for God alone and live a life for God-and, he is an idolator. Can you see the tremendous grace of God now on wretched sinners like us? May God have mercy on us all.
5)Our Age of Efficiency and Speed
We want the fastest way, we want the shortest route. Isn't that the mindset of us people nowadays? However, sadly to say, spiritual growth and maturity in the Lord takes a long and painful process. There's no shortcuts... the shortest way is to abide in the long way. Bcos if one really takes the shortcut, the discipline of God will come and one will realised he has wasted so much time (40 years in the wilderness ref Exodus) all for nothing.
6)Greed
another form of idolatry. 'nuff said.
7)Impatience
can refer to point (5)
8)Self-reflection
How often are we so busy with our daily activities that we do not set aside time to really reflect upon ourselves. If we do not reflect on ourselves, how then can we know what we've done wrong or what we've done right?
How often do we fall into the trap of thinking that as long as we just keep studying the Word and praying SOMEHOW OR ANOTHER we will be closer to God and be more conformed to His image.
Sounds right doesn't it? Seems to have nothing wrong in it...
But i want to bring your attention to this. We should never put ourselves in a passive position. Experiencing God requires a conscious willing to really want to seek God for Himself. It is an active tone. Yes we must still continue to study His Word and pray, but yet at the same time, reflecting upon ourselves and consciously willing ourselves to CHANGE the things we've done wrong or could be done better. We have a responsibility here... yes we leave it to God... but at the same time we ought to DO something about it.
So how can we experience God then?
He listed down 3 main points
1) Your choice of God for Himself or something else
2)a spirit of thanksgiving
in everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. (1 Thess 5:18)
Not only does a thanksgiving attitude help us to fix our gaze on God, it also helps us to avoid grumbling for the things we do not have but give thanks to the things we have.
One way to avoid grumbling is to always count your blessings... and see God's wondrous work in your life. =)
3)Last but not least, using the story of gazing the stars at night, we must come to be firm in the knowledge that irregardless of our feelings and circumstances, by His Word and by faith we know that God is always around us. And the more amazing thing is, He is not only around us, He is in us.
Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? (1 Corinthians 6:19)
...through the Holy Spirit who was given to us (Romans 5:5)
I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the SPirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because he abides with you and will be IN you. (John 14:16)
If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our abode with him. (John 14:23)
Hopefully through this post we can come to know more about God, and more importantly to know more about ourselves and how we ought to live a holy life.
In the words of A.W. Tozer, 'At the base of all true Christian experience must lie a sound and sane morality... The true Christian ideal is not to be happy but to be holy. The holy heart alone can be the habitation of the Holy Spirit.'
Pray that we will continue to strive on to be warriors of Christ (2 Timothy 2:3) bearing the armour of God (Eph 6) to fight this spiritual battle (bear witness to Christ via being Light [sharing Gospel] and being salt [live a righteous life]) around us. How can we, seeing other believers being matyred for their faith, still continue to sit on the flowery bed waiting to go to heaven? (ref Numbers 32:6)
I must apologise for my bad structure, grotesque grammar and super-horrendous English. Please don't hate me Bernice! =S
Just want to kind of give a broad overview of his jiang dao as an entry for the benefit of those who couldn't make it for this dazhu. I just had this strong burden in my heart that what he said should not be just 'heard and done with it' but to really ponder upon the lessons we ought to learn.
Today's topic was on 'Experiencing God'. He put the point across clearly, that experiencing God is God's will and no one can come to know God unless God first reveals Himself. First and foremost, man being spiritually dead, on his own accord can never come to know God. It is only by God's initiative to awaken the spirit in us to respond to Him that we can even come to know Him. (Read Ephesians 2 for better understanding) This is speaking in terms of salvation.
He also brought out the omnipresence of God, being God is everywhere and always around us. Not experiencing God (i mean as a Christian) is not because 'God isn't there' but because of problems we have in ourselves. Our fault...not God's fault. (Ref Jer 23:23-24, Lev 26:11-13, Rev 21:3)
So what are the reasons that might cause you not to 'experience God' then?
He listed down the following (i shall further elaborate on them)
1) You're not born-again
Checking one's salvation (an assurance of salvation) is the duty of every single one of us. We must always check to see if we are truly born-again. There are many verses in the Bible that expound on that.
Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine youselves! Or do you not recognise this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you - unless indeed you fail the test? (2 Cor 13:5)
Therefore, brethren, be all the more diligent to make certain about His calling and choosing you; for as long as you practice these things, you will never stumble... (2 Pet 1:10)
Now both Apostles Paul and Peter exhorted us to EXAMINE ourselves DILIGENTLY to see if we're indeed BORN-AGAIN. Now, what exactly is born-again then?
No one gets saved by uttering a 'saving prayer'.
No one gets saved by water baptism
No one gets saved by doing all the Bible taught us to do
No one gets saved by keeping all the commandments
No one gets saved by going to church, sing psalms, pray, study the Bible etc.
Let's look at what our Lord Jesus said...
Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God (John 3:3)
and He repeated it again...
Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not be amazed that I said to you, 'You must be born again.' The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going; so is everyone who is born of the Spirit." (John 3:5-8)
*just to clarify that the 'water' as mentioned above is NOT referring to water baptism but a spiritual renewal and cleansing of the word (ref Ezek 36:24-27, Eph 5:26) lest some people think that water baptism is part of being born-again.
The comparison of the Spirit to wind is to illustrate that the Spirit's sovereign work of regeneration in the human heart can neither be controlled or predicted. Yet its effects can be seen. Now... Jesus mentioned that the effects of this regeneration (born-again) can be seen... thus implying that we can test to see if we're born again. So the question now is, how do we know if we're born again?
i)The fruit of the Spirit
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control... (Galatians 5:22)
for the fruit of the Light consists in all goodness and righteousness and truth (Ephesians 5:9)
See if you're bearing these fruits... if your life is changing gradually... have you become less hot-tempered when u come to Christ, have you become more patient etc...
ii)Test yourselves with the test Apostle John has written for you in his 1st epistle (1 John). In this epistles were doctrinal and moral tests that we can use on ourselves. You guys can also go to www.john3-16.blogspot.com to read 'Are You Born-again', a tract written by Ryle.
2)We do not know we have experienced God before
How often do we expect a 'supernatural' experience from God when He always commune with us in our normal daily lives. We seek 'spiritual experiences' but neglected the presence of God in our daily living. May we truly open up our senses and come to experience God every moment of our life. Make every minute count for Jesus.
3)Unconfessed Sins
As long as we harbour sins in our lives, we can never come to God with a clear conscience. Either we will be too ashamed to come to God, or our hearts will be too hardened to react to God at all.
God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. (1 John 1:5)
Your eyes are too pure to approve evil,
And You can not look on wickedness with favour. (Habakkuk 1:13)
God is PURE and HOLY and tolerates no sins. How can then we even be able to come to Him if we still harbour sins inside? God knows all things... there's no use hiding anything from Him at all. Rather we just strip down all pretense in front of Him and cry out to Him for mercy.
If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9)
Confess our sins and truly repent. That's the way to start a close relationship with God for our hearts no longer condemns us (ref 1 John 3:20-21). It is best to confess to a close brother or sister also. The Bible clearly states that it is always good to have a spiritual partner who can help us in our dealing with strongholds of sin by praying for us and reminding us. (read Ecclesiastes 4:9-12)
4)Self-Centredness
Let us ask ourselves this question: do we do things for God or for ourselves? Sadly to say, most of us (myself included) often push God far far away from the neurons of our brains most of the time in our everyday life. But this is a very serious issue. IDOLATRY is a very serious issue. Yes, we might really be living our lives for God. But let us ask ourselves this question: Do we live for God Himself alone (meaning one day if our circumstances were as bad as Job and yet we would still praise God) or do we live for God-and. What i mean by 'God-and' is that do we live for God plus an attachment with it. This attachment might be 'eternal life', or 'fear of going to hell', or 'blessings from God' etc. However, if one does not live a life for God alone and live a life for God-and, he is an idolator. Can you see the tremendous grace of God now on wretched sinners like us? May God have mercy on us all.
5)Our Age of Efficiency and Speed
We want the fastest way, we want the shortest route. Isn't that the mindset of us people nowadays? However, sadly to say, spiritual growth and maturity in the Lord takes a long and painful process. There's no shortcuts... the shortest way is to abide in the long way. Bcos if one really takes the shortcut, the discipline of God will come and one will realised he has wasted so much time (40 years in the wilderness ref Exodus) all for nothing.
6)Greed
another form of idolatry. 'nuff said.
7)Impatience
can refer to point (5)
8)Self-reflection
How often are we so busy with our daily activities that we do not set aside time to really reflect upon ourselves. If we do not reflect on ourselves, how then can we know what we've done wrong or what we've done right?
How often do we fall into the trap of thinking that as long as we just keep studying the Word and praying SOMEHOW OR ANOTHER we will be closer to God and be more conformed to His image.
Sounds right doesn't it? Seems to have nothing wrong in it...
But i want to bring your attention to this. We should never put ourselves in a passive position. Experiencing God requires a conscious willing to really want to seek God for Himself. It is an active tone. Yes we must still continue to study His Word and pray, but yet at the same time, reflecting upon ourselves and consciously willing ourselves to CHANGE the things we've done wrong or could be done better. We have a responsibility here... yes we leave it to God... but at the same time we ought to DO something about it.
So how can we experience God then?
He listed down 3 main points
1) Your choice of God for Himself or something else
2)a spirit of thanksgiving
in everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. (1 Thess 5:18)
Not only does a thanksgiving attitude help us to fix our gaze on God, it also helps us to avoid grumbling for the things we do not have but give thanks to the things we have.
One way to avoid grumbling is to always count your blessings... and see God's wondrous work in your life. =)
3)Last but not least, using the story of gazing the stars at night, we must come to be firm in the knowledge that irregardless of our feelings and circumstances, by His Word and by faith we know that God is always around us. And the more amazing thing is, He is not only around us, He is in us.
Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? (1 Corinthians 6:19)
...through the Holy Spirit who was given to us (Romans 5:5)
I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the SPirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because he abides with you and will be IN you. (John 14:16)
If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our abode with him. (John 14:23)
Hopefully through this post we can come to know more about God, and more importantly to know more about ourselves and how we ought to live a holy life.
In the words of A.W. Tozer, 'At the base of all true Christian experience must lie a sound and sane morality... The true Christian ideal is not to be happy but to be holy. The holy heart alone can be the habitation of the Holy Spirit.'
Pray that we will continue to strive on to be warriors of Christ (2 Timothy 2:3) bearing the armour of God (Eph 6) to fight this spiritual battle (bear witness to Christ via being Light [sharing Gospel] and being salt [live a righteous life]) around us. How can we, seeing other believers being matyred for their faith, still continue to sit on the flowery bed waiting to go to heaven? (ref Numbers 32:6)
I must apologise for my bad structure, grotesque grammar and super-horrendous English. Please don't hate me Bernice! =S
posted by Japheth at
10:52 PM
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