315 - Renewal of Heart and Change 2#
315 - Renewal of Heart and Change 2
(JP Text Group - Organized by the Little Prince of Heaven)
Hebrews 11:8-16:
By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God. And by faith even Sarah, who was past childbearing age, was enabled to bear children because she considered him faithful who had made the promise.
And so from this one man, and he as good as dead, came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore. All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance, admitting that they were foreigners and strangers on earth. People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. Instead, they were longing for a better country—a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.
Let us pray together:
Heavenly Father, we thank and praise you! It is you who prepared such a wonderful time for us to worship and praise you together. Through these words, renew each of our thoughts and minds. We completely dedicate this time to the Holy Spirit. Renew us in each person's heart, let us live out your words, recognize the wonders of Lord Jesus and the love of the Father. Guide this time, thank you and praise you! In the name of Lord Jesus Christ, we pray, Amen! The topic we are sharing is: Renewal of Heart and Change, Part Two.
When Abraham believed, he had already come out of Ur of the Chaldeans. After he left his hometown, do you know what his life became? When he was at home, he had a large family and wealth. Since the day he decided to follow God and gave up everything at home, until the day he died, he lived by moving tents.
From a worldly perspective, his quality of life declined. How wealthy was his home? Just looking at the able-bodied men in his household, there were three hundred and eighteen. This shows that at that time, Abraham was quite wealthy in Ur of the Chaldeans, lacking neither money nor power, and was quite famous. However, because he believed in God, he left all his wealth behind and began a life of wandering.
From a worldly perspective, is believing in this Lord good or bad? If your purpose in believing in the Lord is to live better in this world, then perhaps worshiping other gods would be better. If your focus is truly on God, then it does not matter what your current state is; whether God gives you abundance or you are experiencing poverty, or whether your faith is strong or weak, you will not doubt this God, because our focus is on God.
For Abraham and Sarah, God's promise was: I will make your children as numerous as the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore. Abraham believed, and perhaps because of this promise, he followed God. But twenty-five years passed, and he did not see the child God promised him. From a human perspective, Abraham might have just wanted one son. He already had so much wealth and high status, but lacked a child, which money could not replace. God wanted to multiply his descendants, but after waiting for twenty years, he still did not see this result. If it were you, what would you choose to do?
Verses 15-16 say, if they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return.
They could still go back; God did not say, "Abraham, if you dare to go back to your hometown, I will curse you." God simply said, "Leave your country, your people, and your father's household and go to the land I will show you." When Abraham arrived, it was a desolate place. At that time, the land of Canaan was not as prosperous as Ur of the Chaldeans. In this situation, you might wonder, what is the God I believe in trying to do?
Brothers and sisters, this is what we need to meditate on today: our hearts must be renewed and changed. Our focus should not only be on the earth. If it is just to gain some benefits, eat better, dress better, or be healthier, other gods might also provide that. But do you know what other gods cannot give you? The one true life, the one true way. No other god can give you life; they cannot grant you the way to eternal life. God actually wants us to understand through Abraham that the reason Abraham did not return was his own reason. So what was his reason?
Look at verse 16: Instead, they were longing for a better country—a heavenly one.
Where was Abraham's hope? In heaven. Brothers and sisters, if you read carefully, whether in the Old Testament or the New Testament, those who have given for the Lord, some were wealthy, some were poor, but their focus was all on God. Paul in the New Testament is such an example; he also laid down his past life to follow Lord Jesus and preach for Him. His life became completely different. Compared to before, in the eyes of the world, he seemed to have lost so much. But what did Paul see?
He saw the better homeland in heaven. Abraham believed God's promise regardless of his circumstances. Even though he did not see his descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore, he still believed. Amen! When Abraham died, he did not see the large group of descendants God promised. But today we see, did God deceive Abraham? No. So brothers and sisters, this is called God's promise. When faced with God's promise, what people can do is to believe Him.
The Bible has many of God's promises, and we must believe them. What God says will surely come to pass. Abraham's focus was always in heaven; he longed for a better homeland. So Jesus once said, "What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul?" What can anyone give in exchange for their soul? If you have the life of Christ, do you know what you have? The world is within you, and the kingdom of God is within you.
Why did Abraham not go back? Because his focus was always on that heavenly homeland; he never thought of returning to Ur of the Chaldeans. Today, how many people, when following God, think, "I have asked for a long time, and God has not fulfilled this matter," and then say, "I don't believe anymore"? Has anyone said, "Forget it! I will go back to my old life because God has not granted me this matter. I have prayed for a long time, and God has not fulfilled it; it seems God has forgotten me." If you feel that God has forgotten you, you might think that the old life was better. In fact, your heart is already filled with doubt about God and disbelief in His promises, which is why you think of going back.
If a person wants to go back, they will definitely take action. In our lives, we will be weak, encounter problems, and fail. Actually, overcoming these is very simple: use God's promises to renew your thoughts. If your heart is filled with Christ's thoughts, filled with God's words, remember, the devil can never attack you; no matter how many attacks there are, they cannot succeed. As Christians, most of the time, we deal with this world. The scary thing is that we think about God's promises and words too little every day.
We wake up early and open our phones to see all kinds of sensational news, all sorts of unsettling things... When we often fill our minds with these things, do you know that it is renewing your thoughts? You are just using these worldly negative messages to constantly update your thoughts, which leads to worry and anxiety. Even when encountering problems, you may feel lost and uneasy, which is actually related to what we believe.
Many times, we are busy doing things that are worldly, which are exactly opposed to God's words. Those thoughts are constantly updating us, and we open our hearts to them, so discouragement and despair become inevitable results. Most people do not understand this point and let their minds think about anything.
Even when Abraham was weak in faith, he never thought of returning to Ur of the Chaldeans. God was able to write this scripture saying, "If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return." This proves that Abraham really never thought of this matter. I hope everyone today renews our faith. First, we must determine that what we believe is real, and do not think about the road back to the past. Our God is moving forward. Hallelujah!
Do not allow your mind to come into contact with things and thoughts that easily lead you to discouragement and failure. When these arise, what will you do? You must quickly use God's words and promises to renew those thoughts.
Now there are many patients with depression; in fact, they have too many negative things in their minds. It is very simple to deal with their problems; as long as they keep listening to the word of Christ, they can quickly recover. They may not even need to pray; just keep listening and accepting the right information, and their problems will disappear. In the past, because we did not know, the terrible sewage of this world kept impacting our minds, and then we would ask ourselves, "Why is it so difficult now? Why is it so hard to evangelize and get others to believe?"
In the past, someone asked me, "Now that I believe in the Lord, I know this Lord is so good, but why do others not believe when we tell them?" Even if you are not sure whether this God will bless you, you should at least try believing to see if there is any loss. But others are unwilling. Do you know why?
It is because they have too many negative things in their minds and cannot accept Jesus. You must understand that current behaviors and emotions are related to what you believe. Many people want to solve these problems in their current lives, but in reality, these problems stem from your thoughts. If your current thoughts are Christ's thoughts, you can live out a life like Christ's, and naturally, you will not do things that contradict Christ because there is no evil in your mind.
Brothers and sisters, do you know that children at first do not know what fear is? When thunder strikes, you say, "Quick, hide! Are you scared?" When it gets dark, you say, "The night is very scary." From that day on, they also start to be afraid. When they see monsters on TV, they start to have nightmares at night. No one told them about these things, but once these negative things enter their hearts, they begin to fear, not daring to sleep alone, wanting to hug their mothers at night. This is because they have accepted these negative things. We have been accepting such things since childhood. If we had accepted Christ's things from the beginning, we would not have fear. The Bible clearly says that perfect love casts out fear. Amen!
As we grow older, our fears increase: fear of unemployment, fear of marriage breakdown, fear that children will not listen and have no future, fear of not having a place to be buried after death... There are too many things to fear, and in fact, it is because you have too little faith in God's promises.
Do you know that Adam failed in the beginning because he accepted some wrong thoughts? Once these wrong thoughts entered their minds, their behaviors changed. Let's look at a scripture:
Genesis 3:1, "Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, 'Has God indeed said, "You shall not eat of every tree of the garden?"'"
Is it a question mark? Did God tell her it was a question? When He gives you a promise, is there a question mark? You can check the promises in the Bible; is there any promise that ends with a question mark? "You can believe me, and you might enter the kingdom of heaven?" If that were the case, we would have no definite answer. All the promises God gives you are periods, very definite answers.
At the beginning, God told Adam very clearly: "Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat." That was the end; He did not give him a question mark. Brothers and sisters, what idea is the serpent conveying to her? "Did God really say that? Did He really say you can eat of every tree of the garden?" Yes, He said it! But how did the serpent say it? "Did God really say that?"
Brothers and sisters, this is what the devil wants to make them doubt God's words. The first thing the devil does is attack God's words, confuse God's words. If you are unclear and uncertain about God's words, it is easy to be deceived. "Did God really say you shall not eat of every tree of the garden?" He threw this question to Eve. Think about it: Is God really what you think He is?
What do you think today? If disease is upon you and you pray without effect, and someone asks you, "Do you really think God will heal you?" In this process, we are most likely to say, "Yes! There seems to be a problem. If God really heals me, why is this sickness not gone?" It becomes a question mark.
Brothers and sisters, when your answers are all questions, you start to doubt whether you are doing something wrong or if God does not love you anymore. When these question marks arise, you lose faith and no longer believe in God's promises. This is the devil confusing God's words. If you do not hold on to God's promises and do not believe, it is easy to be deceived.
After the serpent asked, Eve answered, and the serpent said to the woman, "You will not surely die." What did God's promise say? "Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die." Did God say that? You will surely die; it is very clear.
But at this time, how did the serpent say it? Why did Eve fall for it? Because it is simple; she had already thought about the previous question. When you are uncertain about God's promises, it is easy to be deceived. "Did God really say you shall not eat of every tree of the garden?" I ask you one thing: Does God's heart really want to heal you? Does God really love you? Why are you living like this? Can you tell me? You will easily fall into the trap.
So many times, we judge whether God loves us based on our current situation. This is very easy to fall. Do you know what Paul said? He learned how to be content in every situation, whether in plenty or in want, he learned the secret. What is the secret? He knows God loves him and that God's promises will never change. Even if he has nothing now, he still believes God's words and still believes God's promises. Amen!
Brothers and sisters, you know that in the last days, the environment will become worse and worse. If you pursue worldly fame and fortune, it is easy to abandon your faith. Because the devil will ask you, "If you believe in the Lord, you will die." Moreover, can you see your Lord now? We can easily compare ourselves through the environment and easily lose everything, losing life, and you will abandon your faith because you are not sure if what Jesus gives you is real.
Brothers and sisters, as we approach the last days before Jesus returns, such things will become more and more common. We need to hold on to what we believe. You also know that in the last days, various beliefs will continue to emerge. Which one should you believe? Hold on to God's promises. If your focus is not on God's words, if your values are not based on God's words, it is easy to be deceived by the devil. If you hold on to what God says, the devil has no power over you. Therefore, do not add to or subtract from God's words; this will cause God's words to lose their power.
Because God knows that when you eat, your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil. Brothers and sisters, are their eyes bright now? Their eyes are the brightest now, but the serpent has deceived them, making them think they can become brighter this way. You name it "Bright Eye Liquid," and I name it "Brighter than Yours."
The devil hopes that we will look for something outside of Christ's words to find satisfaction. In fact, this is the most dangerous thing. The promises God gives us can bring satisfaction. The promises God gives us may seem like, "Why hasn't the current situation changed?" You still hold on, just like Abraham, who believed even though he did not see the child born. You may be weak, but I never look back. Since I truly understood the grace of Jesus, I have never thought of going back.
I want to tell you that no matter how difficult the road ahead is, I will move forward and not look back. The reason is simple: when I reach the final destination, Jesus will be there to welcome me. Amen! No matter how I live in this world, although I know that thinking this way will not lead me to the situation you worry about, thinking this way will fill your heart with Christ's words, and your situation will be completely turned around.
But many people, when their problems are not solved and their behaviors are poor, do not think about solving their thought problems; they think about how to change their behaviors. This is where many Christians go wrong. Trying to change behavior is actually futile, just like trying to remove a pimple with a toothpick. If there is a problem inside you, removing the pimple will cause it to emerge from another place. You remove one, and ten may pop up; you become helpless and ask, "What is the problem?" A traditional Chinese medicine doctor will tell you that your yin and yang are out of balance and need to adjust your nutrition. Once you adjust inside, the outside will naturally be fine. Isn't that the problem no longer exists?
So brothers and sisters, do not focus on how serious your external problems are; see what the core problem is. Once you find it, you will know what to do. All these external terrible problems, if traced back to the source, are due to our faith issues. What we need to do is renew our thoughts and minds. Amen!
Before Adam and Eve fell, the devil first made them doubt God's promises. He first attacked what God said to them, saying, "Did God really say that?" I can assure you that if you accept such words, you will step by step walk into the devil's trap. Before you fail, you first accepted the teaching of failure.
Similarly, before a person sins, they first accept the wrong teaching. You need to renew your thoughts and adjust your way of thinking.
The Bible says, "As a man thinks in his heart, so is he." Brothers and sisters, what the devil does first is to take away God's promises and words from within you, making you uncertain about God's words, adding his things to God's words, and then God's words lose their power. So brothers and sisters, if the events of Adam and Eve were to happen to you again, would you fall for it? Based on your current understanding and experience of God, if you were placed in the Garden of Eden and the serpent tempted you, knowing what happened afterward, would you be deceived? No, this is the difference between us and Adam. We have experienced difficulties in life and seen what God says in the Bible about Adam's failures, Abraham's failures, and the successes and failures of many spiritual predecessors. We have seen it all. Today, when this matter is presented before us again, we will not believe it because we know the outcome. Amen!
I always emphasize that God's promises are one thing; you must first believe and receive them so that you can see God in your life, deepening your reliance on God's promises. Is our homeland in heaven the same place as Abraham's? Why could Abraham have such faith? Did he encounter hardships in life? Yes, but he overcame them because he focused on the heavenly promise, the better homeland.
Brothers and sisters, when our environment is not good, and prayers are not answered, we must still think of the promises God gave you. His words will not deceive you. Amen! When the serpent tempts you, how should you respond? No matter what you say, God has already said, "You will surely die," and He has also said, "Of every tree of the garden, you may freely eat." As long as you keep repeating what God has said, you will overcome the devil. Isn't that simple? Next time, he may tempt you in another way; you just need to repeat God's promises again to overcome.
But they did not have this experience. That is why I encourage everyone to experience God in life, to declare God's promises over and over again. It is not that we declare and then the promises will be fulfilled in us; it is through declaration that you gain confidence in God's promises, keeping your focus on them at all times. Amen! Keeping your focus on them will influence your life below. Hallelujah!
Brothers and sisters, can you believe that our God is a good God? No matter how He treats you now, it is for your good. All things work together for good to those who love God. Hallelujah! If God tells us the outcome of something, you should acknowledge that my God is smarter than me, so what you tell me, I will obey.
There are many things we do not understand. What should we do then? Just hold on, just like now when He says, "You shall not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil." How should you think? Do not even think about it; do not think about not eating. You should think about how to eat from the other trees. Do not think about why you cannot eat this...
Just think this way, and you will definitely eat it. Do you understand? God has given you so many trees in the garden; can you not go to look at a tree every day and taste a fruit? Isn't that a good thing? But why are you thinking, "I will not eat, I will not eat, I must not eat"? Rest assured! You will definitely eat it because your eyes are on it.
Many people have family problems; the more they look at the problematic person in the family, the bigger the problem becomes. One day, when you adjust your focus to look at Jesus' promises, you will find that person is not so annoying anymore. It is not that this person has changed; it is that your heart has been renewed. Hallelujah!
Brothers and sisters, when we do not understand God's promises, we still believe in God's words and His promises. We cannot understand everything in this world. There are always people asking, "Why hasn't God done this?" Rest assured, as long as it is a question, it will make your faith waver. What God gives you is definitely true. Hallelujah! The more question marks you have in your heart, the more you tend to think, "Maybe God does not love me anymore. Maybe He really does not want to heal everyone..."
Brothers and sisters, what is God's promise? By His stripes, you were healed. But what if someone gives you a question? Does your prayer get a hundred percent response from God? There are many unanswered prayers; how can you believe? No matter how others ask, you should believe that I still believe God's promises are real, no matter what you say, I believe it.
We must be foolish regarding God's promises; how God says it, we believe it. Do not try to be clever at this time; your cleverness at this moment is foolishness.
Brothers and sisters, you just need to be sure that our God is a good God. You say, "I do not know the reason for this happening, but I know God must have His good intention." Can you comfort yourself this way? You must know this is real; you are not God, so you do not know the truth of all things. Amen!
We can only use our limited thinking to think about the infinite God, which is very difficult. You do not understand God, but God's height is greater than ours. His ways are higher than our ways, and His thoughts are higher than our thoughts. Just because you do not know does not mean God does not know.
I often like to use Joseph as an example. Every step Joseph took, just when there was hope, he would fall back down without hope. But from God's perspective, was He not supporting him step by step? He walked such a long road; it seemed to the world that he had such a difficult path, but in God's eyes, he was always moving upward.
God saw your best outcome when you were born. If you have not reached the end, do not jump to conclusions. Even if a doctor may have given you a conclusion, that is not the final answer. What he says does not count; Jesus is the Alpha and the Omega; He is the beginning and the end. Amen!
Even if the world says you have failed, you are useless, and you are completely finished, you say, "No, I believe in Jesus' promises." You need to use this thought to renew yourself every day, especially when the problem has not been solved and the situation has not been turned around. What should you think?
If you doubt whether God loves you, then look at the cross. To what extent does God love you? He gave us His most beloved Son. Is this not a clear evidence? Even when your faith is weak, you still have a visible proof, which is the cross. Romans 8:31-32
"What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?"
Do you know why Paul uses so many rhetorical questions here? To deepen your certainty. He uses rhetorical questions to tell you, "Have you thought about this? If God is for us, who can be against us?" What is the answer? God is helping you. Since you arrive at this answer, you should say, "No matter what my current environment is like, no matter what problems I experience, I still believe God is helping me."
Use these words to renew your thoughts. If you say, "But there are still some problems." You need evidence. What is the evidence? Since God did not spare His own Son for us all. Did God do this? Two thousand years ago, God did this. At this moment, it is not a question; it is through a rhetorical question that allows you to ponder what God has done for you.
If you say, "I forgot," take a look at the cross. When you see the cross, remember that Jesus was nailed to the cross for my sake. And all of this proves one thing: God loves me. Because He loves me, He allowed His only begotten Son to die on the cross for my sins and rose from the dead three days later. So is the Lord alive now? He is still alive. Hallelujah! Just be sure that what you believe is a living Lord, and then it will be easy.
The question is, does God love Jesus? How much does He love Jesus? I just talked about this recently. How much did Abraham love his son Isaac? He would rather die himself than see his son die. That is the kind of love we are talking about. God's love is much greater than this. So He loved Jesus so much, yet He still gave Him up for whom? For me. Amen!
This is clear evidence. Anytime we refer to the cross of Jesus, it is the love of the cross. Why? No other love can replace it. Even when you are weak, when you see this, you will remember God's love for you. But God did not spare His own Son for us. Will He not also freely give us all things with Him?
Does God love all things? Compared to all things, which is better? Of course, the Son is better. But God said, "When you accept my Son, I will freely give you all things." Amen! The purpose of this is not to make us pursue all things but to make you pursue Jesus. Do not get it wrong, brothers and sisters.
Just like at the beginning, when Jesus said to Peter, "Launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch." Peter caught so many fish that two boats were filled. If at this moment Peter valued the fish instead of Jesus, he would have suffered a great loss because Jesus can give you not only two boats of fish but the whole world. He has given you Himself along with the world.
If you give up Jesus and only pursue those two boats of fish, all you will get is two boats of fish. But if you follow Jesus, you will gain Jesus and the world behind Jesus, His kingdom and His righteousness will be given to you. Hallelujah! Therefore, continually renew your thoughts and minds. At any time, acknowledge that our God is good. Even if I do not understand, I still believe He is good. He is alive today, and He loves me. Amen!
My prayers not being answered does not mean He has not heard. God will accomplish the most beautiful blessings for you at the best time and in the right place. The fear is that we do not trust Him. We are so clever that we run into problems.
Let’s look at a scripture, James 1:15-17
"Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death. Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning."
Is this a promise? It is a comparison. When human cleverness arises, we think about how to make ourselves better, and desire arises. When the serpent tempted Eve, he hoped she would eat that fruit and be like God. Desire arose in Eve's heart, and as a result, she lost a greater blessing, right?
We should not have this. We should only let Christ's thoughts fill us. Anything outside of Christ's thoughts is likely to be desire. These things may seem good at the time, but what do they produce? Sin. Brothers and sisters, does it take time for it to grow? Do you know what the process of growth is? It is when your thoughts continually lean toward sin, and in the end, it brings forth death.
So verse 16 says, "Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren."
Do not doubt God's promises. If you seek other things outside of God's promises, follow people, or think about how successful people in the past were, you will definitely fail. But in Christ, you will always have hope. Why?
Verse 17 says very clearly, "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above." Where is above? It is the place Abraham was hoping for. Is it from there? Today, we have accepted Jesus; our focus should be above. That is why we often tell everyone that you can live out the heavenly style on earth.
When Jesus was on earth, did He live out the heavenly style? He already did. In any environment, He looked up to heaven. Where did Jesus' power come from? It came from above. Every time Jesus did something, was He not doing it according to the Father's will? Therefore, He overcame all things. Amen!
In life, I encourage everyone to live out God's promises. The purpose is simple: to let you see that God is with you, walking with you, while also letting you know that the one in heaven is the one you should hope for the most. When you pray on earth, and God answers you, you should think about the greater gifts and rewards God will give us in heaven in the future. Therefore, these two must not be separated.
In the country, there are some organizations that emphasize living in heaven every day, putting their focus on heaven and not caring about what happens on earth. Over time, people will feel very empty. Is life not real? If the family child is sick, should we not use God's words to heal him? But you say, "I am not worried."
This will cause people to stumble. You say it does not matter if I am poor; God already loves me, and my focus is in heaven. This is correct, but you are a person living on earth. God first lets you live out the heavenly style on earth. His purpose is to let us experience His promises on earth. Amen!
But our focus and attention should not be on material things. Peter wanted fish, but he could not focus solely on the fish; he just needed to focus on Jesus. What he needed to do was, "I will do as Jesus says." At first, was Peter not very clever? He said, "Master! We have toiled all night and caught nothing." The implication is that it is not the best time to fish now, but...
This "but" is very important. "But at Your word, I will let down the net." Amen! Is this not a renewal of thought? Without that updated thought, would you do that? No, you would think the moon is out, and the fish are asleep; fishing now is a waste of time. Do not be too clever.
Jesus said, "Peter, launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch." Just do it; as long as you do it, you will see God's promises. Amen! But when Peter did this, he was not relying on his experiences or expertise; he simply believed what Jesus said.
Now, letting down the net, I know that the timing and conditions are not right, but the only thing I can do is that He said it, so I will do it. I believe that what this young man said is different. Then Peter saw two boats full of fish. Did this not allow him to experience God in life?
So brothers and sisters, I want to tell everyone to truly experience this God in life, which will gradually place your hope in heaven. Amen! Do not expect that today you believe in the Lord, and tomorrow you will say you are living in heaven. This requires a process. Jesus' three and a half years of ministry, more than three years were spent healing people and teaching how to live on earth, right? Although it also mentioned God's glory and what we will be like in the kingdom of heaven, that was less.
Why? Jesus wanted this group of disciples to experience Him while on earth, and then reveal and guide them so that they would place their focus on heaven. Amen! At the beginning, Jesus spoke those words to the disciples: "I will die for you, and you must follow me; you must deny yourself..."
Did Jesus not say these words? Could the disciples do it? When real persecution came, not one remained who did not flee. But after Jesus resurrected, the Holy Spirit began to renew them. They continually experienced Jesus' words on earth, and in the end, these disciples all died for the Lord.
Did God force them? "If you do not die for me, I will not let you enter the kingdom of heaven!" (Did God say this?)
They willingly did it. This took a long time to experience. They knew Jesus' power, and in the end, they had the faith to do so.
Abraham's faith was not developed in a day; he continually experienced God on earth, which is why he had such faith in God. But one thing is certain: he never thought of going back. Amen! What I want to tell everyone is that renewing thoughts means continually moving forward, updating toward God's promises. We believe that moving forward is toward heaven, not downward. Amen!
No matter what the environment is like today, you must have this thought: experience Jesus' promises every day in life, and your faith will grow larger and larger. In the end, your hope will definitely be in heaven. Amen! Thank you and praise the Lord!
2 Peter 1:12-15
"For this reason, I will not be negligent to remind you always of these things, though you know and are established in the present truth. Yes, I think it is right, as long as I am in this tent, to stir you up by reminding you, knowing that shortly I must put off my tent, just as our Lord Jesus Christ showed me. Moreover, I will be careful to ensure that you always have a reminder of these things after my decease."
Peter gives us hope. The reason for writing 1 and 2 Peter is to tell those people to believe in God's promises. Moreover, Peter is not talking about some strange things, but you already know these things. So what is the content Peter is talking about? The cross and resurrection of Christ, and what we will have in heaven in the future, right? These are things he has repeated throughout his life, and you are to be established in the present truth.
Every time you come to hear the word, it is about Christ's word, about Jesus' words, about God's promises. It is to constantly remind you to strengthen yourself in the present truth, which is to continually renew yourself, right? "I will remind you of these things..."
Your hope is above, living in this world by relying on God's promises. Having received God's promises, you should serve. Do not think that serving is just singing hymns in church; serving is in every aspect of your life. Even those who do not believe in the Lord have things they receive and give out. What you give out is your service.
What you give to your children, family, and friends is your service. We need to correctly understand what service is. When we receive God's promises from above and then serve, we will have strength. Hallelujah!
Peter said, "I know my time is short. After I am gone, I hope you will remember what Christ has done for you." Peter may have written these words when many of Jesus' disciples had already passed away. At this time, he still tells everyone to return to God's words and continually hold on to the promises.
2 Peter 1:16-18
"For we did not follow cleverly devised fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of His majesty. For He received from God the Father honor and glory when such a voice came to Him from the Excellent Glory: 'This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.' And we heard this voice which came from heaven when we were with Him on the holy mountain."
Why did Peter write so much to testify about Jesus? The reason he wrote this down is to tell you that the Christ you believe in is not a fabrication; it is my personal experience. Was it Peter's experience? When he was on the Mount of Transfiguration, did he not see the real Jesus come? He saw it, and he even foolishly said, "It is good for us to be here; let us not go back."
He could never forget this event. Is he not serving now? He tells those behind him and tells us that what you believe is not cleverly devised fables but the real Lord, whom we have seen with our own eyes and touched with our hands. The apostles also bore such witness, right? "What we have heard, what we have seen, and what we have touched." Moreover, he also said that a voice came from heaven, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." Have we not experienced this? These experiences make you more certain of God's promises. Amen!
We need to have some testimonies in life and in the church. How are these testimonies produced? This person believes in God's promises, receives them, and finally turns into a testimony in life. These testimonies can inspire us to rely more on our God, ultimately allowing us to place our focus on heaven. Hallelujah! Thank you and praise the Lord!
You must know that these things are real, not fabricated or just our dreams; He truly exists. Today, many people listen to sermons and read the Bible just to have an experience, to be touched by God. What will happen if this is the case? It is to seek through these listening experiences to have an encounter with God. This is good, but I tell you, through God's promises, believing His words will allow you to have a more real encounter with God than Adam and Eve did. Although Adam and Eve could see with their eyes, today you cannot see with your eyes, but through this word, you can believe God's promises, and you can experience the Lord in a more real way than Adam and Eve did. Amen!
When you are in any environment and remain unchanged and still certain, you will have a testimony. Hallelujah! These testimonies will directly affect our lives. I often say that what you think in your heart will affect your life. Correct faith will produce a correct life. This is the meaning of the phrase we often tell everyone: your current state of life is actually brought out by what you believe.
Do not think about how to change your external issues; just adjust and change your internal faith, and everything will be renewed and changed. This is a very simple thing. I hope every brother and sister can experience such things. In the last days, various mixed messages are increasing, and brothers and sisters are attacking and accusing each other, and such things are constantly happening. If we believe God in this way, when persecution comes one day, how many people can die for their brothers? Because in small matters, they cannot accept him, they cannot accept him, and when real persecution comes, we may really become Judas Iscariot.
What to do? It is actually very simple. No matter how the external environment is, at this moment, focus on God's promises, hold on to God's promises, and live. Your faith will continue to grow. Amen! Still, that phrase: if God does not let you eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, what should you do? Do not even think about it. Do not think, "I will not eat; I must not eat." Do not even think about it. Just look at what God wants you to do. Hallelujah! This makes it very simple, and you can often gain victory in life.
In the Psalms, it says, "Our years are seventy, or even by reason of strength eighty; yet their span is but toil and trouble." But have you thought about it? If you look up to God's promises every day, although these toils and troubles exist, your hope is greater. Hallelujah! This is a way to overcome our lives. I hope everyone continually renews their thoughts and minds with God's promises, and let Christ's promises be a testimony of His glory in your life! Hallelujah! Thank you and praise the Lord!
Let us pray together:
Heavenly Father, we thank and praise you! Thank you for helping us through these words, renewing our thoughts and minds. Abraham received your promises; he obeyed and went to the land of Canaan, which was not as prosperous as Ur of the Chaldeans. He lived as a stranger in the promised land, like a foreigner in a tent, but still believed in your promises. He believed that what you said would surely come to pass. Although Abraham also died in faith without seeing so many descendants, he still joyfully believed. He knew he was just a traveler and a sojourner on earth; his true homeland is in heaven. He could live out the beautiful style of heaven on earth.
You also give us such faith and hope, so that we do not look at the patterns of those around us; how they are has nothing to do with me. I want to look up to you. Even if they complain every day, I will declare your power. My mouth will often utter praises to you. This is your promise; I am filled with your promises, filled with Jesus, filled with Christ. Holy Spirit, come and fill me, let me constantly think of your words, hold on to your words. Thank you and praise you! All glory belongs to you! In the name of Lord Jesus, we pray. Amen!