2016.6.5 礼拝

2016.6.5 礼拝

244th Life Church Service

2016.6.5 Philippians 3:3-11 “Knowing and Responding to God’s Call”
Main Passage – Philippians 3:8 Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ.

Daily devotion at Life Church now learns from the book of Luke. Mary, the virgin, is told of conceiving a child by Gabriel. She accepts her consequences and blessing. We might be looking at her with respect and admiration, however, we do not imagine the tough decision she had to make, especially for a young girl who could have expected a normal and happy life to come.

However, when we think about ourselves, it may not easy for us to deny our life and give up our so-called “happiness”. As a result, we might have to go through trials to knowing and responding to God’s call.

Citation from a popular Bible study material by Henry and Richard Blackaby:
Seven Realities of Experiencing God: “Knowing and Doing the Will of God”

1. God’s work – God is always at work around you.
2. Relationship – God pursues a continuing love relationship with you that is real and personal
3. Invitation – God invites you to become involved with Him in His work.
4. God Speaks – God speaks by the Holy Spirit through the Bible, prayer, circumstances, and the church to reveal Himself, His purposes, and His ways.
5. Crisis of Belief – God’s invitation for you to work with Him always leads you to a crisis of belief that requires faith an action.
6. Adjust – You must make major adjustments in your life to join God in what He is doing.
7. Obey and Experience – You come to know God by experienced as you obey Him and He accomplishes His work through you.

➀ Understand the nature of Jesus’ call
Matthew 11:28-30 28”Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for you souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Jesus is inviting us to be a part of His Work. “Yoke” must be something Jesus himself has arranged for us or taken up the other part. In either case, Jesus is with us if we take his yoke so that we can share in His work.
Matthew 4:19 “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.”

➁ Respond to Jesus’ Call.
Luke 9;23 Then he said to them all: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.

Matthew 4:20 At once they left their nets and followed him.
Matthew 4:22 and immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.
Philippians 3:8 What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things.

Paul did not necessarily give up everything, for he kept his Roman citizen which allowed him to travel through different countries quite easily; nor did he give up his knowledge from the scripture which must have helped him greatly in his evangelical work. The point is where we place our priority – God or ourselves.

“Crisis” is something we would want to avoid but inevitable when we try to handle everything in our own way. However, God promised that he can solve if we put him first in everything.