556 - Faith and Wisdom Go Hand in Hand#
(JP Text Group - shalom organized)
Dear family, peace in the Lord, and welcome to your arrival. Today is Sunday, and we will look at God's words together.
The topic of sharing is: Faith and Wisdom Go Hand in Hand.
James 1:2-8:
2 My brothers, when you encounter various trials, consider it all joy; 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. 4 And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. 5 But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him. 6 But he must ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind. 7 For that man ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord, 8 being a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.
Let us first pray together.
Heavenly Father, thank you and praise you for starting our new year. This is our first sharing, and through the sharing of your words, may we receive faith and wisdom, continually experiencing your provision in our lives. We commit this time to the Holy Spirit to help us, allowing us to be renewed in your words and to gain revelation and strength. In the name of the Lord Jesus, we pray, Amen.
Today's sharing is divided into two parts: the first is faith, and the second is wisdom.
Faith is in the heavenly realm.
Wisdom is the key to victory in the world, which is in the earthly realm.
What is faith? Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.
Faith is about things that will happen in the future; we have already seen them now, meaning you will see this result, which God has already given you, and in due time, you will see it. No matter how the environment changes, the result will not change. However, everyone's faith in God is different, so the results manifested are also different.
For example, if a person is ill, does taking medicine count as having faith? Of course, it does. When you take medicine, you can set it apart as holy, allowing the medicine to provide for your body and bring you healing. Because not all medicines will heal the body; sometimes the body may have many strange reactions, etc. You can pray that you do not have these reactions when taking the medicine. Faith in medicine is also valid.
What about another situation? This person's faith is in the doctor, hoping that God will prepare a good doctor in the hospital to heal his illness. Does this count as faith? Yes, it does. You can pray, "Lord, prepare a good doctor for me."
Indeed, we have many such testimonies, where the person encounters a specialist just when they go to the hospital, perfectly addressing their illness, so they feel God's power and love; and a third type is directly letting God heal, which is also a form of faith.
All are correct expressions of faith, yet they manifest in three different styles. Because everyone's understanding of God is different, some are new believers, some have known the Lord for a while, and others have experienced much of God's power in faith, so their levels of faith and ways of receiving are also different. But overall, it is God who wants to heal them, and the result is the same.
Faith allows us to know the blessings we have in the spiritual realm, but having only faith, if it is detached from reality, is not enough. For example, as the new year begins, I ask everyone to write down their wishes or goals for this year. Some might say, "I want to earn a billion this year." However, if their current salary is three thousand eight, this goal does not align with their current starting point. Therefore, it is crucial to set goals wisely.
Previously, I mentioned that our way of setting goals is to reach for what you can touch when you jump; this is the application of wisdom. Even those in the Bible with great faith received God's blessings step by step, gradually becoming prosperous. There is no one in the Bible who became rich overnight. Proverbs also tells us that becoming rich overnight is not the correct way. Therefore, faith and wisdom go hand in hand, allowing us to experience God's power more clearly. Wisdom enables us to do the right things at the right time and in the right place.
Proverbs 9:10 says: The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.
Here it mentions the parallel of faith and wisdom. When we fear the Lord in our hearts and are willing to put Him first, this is the beginning of wisdom. The wisdom we mention is different from worldly knowledge; this wisdom is heavenly wisdom, produced from faith, allowing you to see the future through the present. As you increasingly know the Holy One, your actions will be wise, always a step ahead of the people in this world. Now let’s first look at the first part, faith. Our faith comes from the heavenly realm.
Romans 10:17 says: So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.
How can a person have faith? It comes from hearing the word. This word is not the wisdom of various fields in the world but the words of Christ, the words of God. When you continually listen to God's words, you will have faith; thus, this faith is drawn from the heavenly realm. What kind of blessings has God given us in the heavenly realm?
Ephesians 1:3-6:
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and without blame before Him in love; 5 having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.
Here it mentions that the Father has prepared various spiritual blessings for us. You can meditate on what various spiritual blessings mean; everything good that you can think of or not think of, the Father has already prepared for you.
If you truly do not understand these heavenly blessings, look at this world. God created this world and placed Adam in it. Look at how many good things are already in the world, but the new heaven and new earth we will go to in the future, in the spiritual realm, God has given us far more than these.
It also gives an example, just as God chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world. Many people may not understand, saying, "Before the world existed, God chose us in Christ to be holy and without blame; how was this accomplished?" In fact, God sees this accomplished in the realm of faith.
Because in the river of time, there is a division of past, present, and future, but in God's spiritual world, there is only now; it has always been now. So these things, God knows and has already accomplished; it is just that we are limited by time and space, which is why we see these blessings God has given us. Therefore, your thinking needs to be opened from here. When you go into the heavenly realm to receive these blessings, there is only now, Amen. You must believe that God has already prepared these for you and that you can draw them down by faith.
Because God loves us, according to His good pleasure, He has prepared for us the status of sons through Jesus Christ. Of course, because Jesus went to the cross two thousand years ago, we can see this now, but if you were born before Jesus, you would still need to believe this word.
God has prepared for us to receive the status of sons; we are now all after Christ, knowing that this has been accomplished, and God has prepared it for us to receive. So these are all blessings in the spiritual realm, and these blessings God calls grace, freely given to us, this grace is given to us in the Beloved. In Jesus Christ, through love, it has been given to us.
Therefore, although you live in this world, your provision does not come entirely from the world. When you see the environment around you getting worse, and people around you are sighing and hopeless, you are different; you should look up and see that God has already given you various spiritual blessings. When you see these, you will have faith, and you will have peace within, knowing that no matter what kind of environment you encounter, you have provision, Amen.
And these spiritual blessings were given to us when we believed in Jesus as our Savior; these blessings are not something God will give us after we die, but rather, God has already promised them to us while we are still alive, Amen. But faith is not a boundless fantasy; it is based on God's words to inherit His promises.
2 Corinthians 8:9: For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich.
This passage is God's promise to us. Do you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ? Who is He? The Son of God, who came down from heaven to earth. When He was in heaven, He was a king, rich, lacking nothing. Why did He come to this earth? Because we need Him; we need His salvation, we need His provision because we have nothing.
He was rich, yet for your sakes, He became poor. This is actually an exchange; we give our part to Jesus, and Jesus gives His part to us. What do we have? We used to have a bad temper, often experiencing various temptations, problems, diseases, accidents, death, etc. All we have are these; these are poverty due to lack, but we are powerless.
Jesus took all of these from you; He took your curse and then gave you His riches. This richness includes not only wealth but also health, abundant life, peace and joy in the heart, and a satisfying hope for the future; these are all that Jesus possesses.
He originally had these, but He later became poor; He gave His to you, and you gave yours to Him. So knowing Jesus is the most blessed thing in our lives. Even today, whatever you encounter, you can tell Jesus. It is like handing over what you have in your hands to Jesus, and Jesus will continually bestow His riches upon you, Amen.
James 2:5: Listen, my beloved brethren: Has God not chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him?
Here is a very important point, addressed to believers. Listen, my beloved brethren: Has God not chosen the poor of this world? Since it mentions the poor, we must consider it a broad range, not just those without money.
The world defines the poor as those without money, but in fact, it includes those who lack faith, love, health, and life; these are all the poor. People, due to poverty, constantly seek to change themselves, wanting to get better and better; isn't this a manifestation of poverty? The Bible tells us that our God does not change. Why does He not change? Because in every aspect, He is already the best; change indicates poverty and insufficiency. Our God does not change, which also shows His abundance and richness.
Has God not chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith? So first, you must be rich in faith, believing that God is rich and that this richness has already been given to you; you need to see this in the spiritual realm. Hallelujah.
Secondly, to inherit the kingdom He has promised to those who love Him? God allows us to inherit His promises, to inherit His kingdom; this is indeed a real blessing. This blessing comes in two forms: the first is heavenly blessings; the second is earthly blessings.
How do we obtain heavenly blessings? You become rich on this earth through faith, and in the future, God will reward you in heaven—eternal riches, Hallelujah. This is God continually blessing us. You must first understand that you already possess these blessings; they exist in the spiritual realm and have been prepared by God for you, Amen. Does this mean that once we understand these promises, we can directly use them in our lives?
For example, in evangelism, we already believe we are saved; how do we share the gospel with others? Should we just tell them to believe in Jesus to go to heaven and not believe to go to hell? Is this a way of evangelism? It seems so, but it lacks something. Because using only faith means you want to pass this faith to them, but if they do not believe, and they have no faith, how can you pass your faith to someone without faith? This requires wisdom, Hallelujah.
We share the second part: wisdom.
Colossians 1:28-29:
28 Him we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus. 29 To this end, I also labor, striving according to His working which works in me mightily.
Here Paul gives us a way to evangelize. Some say, "Evangelism is simple; just let them know to believe in Jesus to enter the kingdom of heaven, and whether they believe or not is their business." That's right; when evangelizing, you only need to let people know about Jesus; this is not wrong, telling them who Jesus is completes it. However, if this person has already believed and wants to continue to know Jesus, this requires wisdom.
Therefore, dear family, evangelism is not just as simple as planting a seed; if that seed has already sprouted, shouldn't it be watered? At this point, wisdom is needed; you cannot just keep watering it, or it will die. Here it mentions that we preach Him, to proclaim the name of the Lord, not just to let this person know the gospel, but a better way is to help this person learn to rely on Jesus. It mentions that we preach our Lord with all wisdom.
Since it mentions all wisdom, it cannot be solved with just faith; if that were the case, one faith would travel the world, and the Bible would not need to be written so much. If we only used faith, any problem in life could be solved with just one word, and the problem would not be so troublesome.
Here it mentions all wisdom, for what? To warn every man. Today we evangelize to him; if he does not believe, we need to wait for the next opportunity to evangelize again, which requires wisdom.
When Jesus was by the well of Samaria, He preached the gospel to the woman using wisdom; He did not simply say, "Believe me, I am the Messiah." It was not that simple. He used a very gentle way to spread the gospel, and in the end, the woman believed.
Because Jesus was filled with love, with love, He could generate much wisdom. So we need to use all kinds of wisdom to warn every man, thank the Lord. To warn every man, for believers, means that when they do not yet know how to rely on God, we need to use wisdom to help them know this God. Additionally, it is to teach every man; the growth of believers' lives requires teaching them, using different methods for different people.
In the four gospels, when Jesus preached the gospel of the kingdom, He spoke different examples to different people. Although He encountered tax collectors, fishermen, soldiers, etc., He used different examples for different people to help them understand the gospel; this is wisdom, thank the Lord. What is the purpose? To present every man perfect in Christ Jesus.
So in the process of serving, whether warning or teaching people, the ultimate goal is to bring people to Christ. All of Paul's service was done for this purpose, and he worked hard to do these things. Paul said he labored according to His working which works in me mightily.
Laboring hard, dear family, means using all kinds of wisdom to warn and teach people. This is our life; when our faith enters the world, it appears as wisdom to the unbelievers. Others may say, "His eloquence is amazing; how can he speak such philosophical words? This God of his is truly wonderful." This is what people can see, that this person can say such things, which is truly beyond our expectations. What they see is wisdom, but in reality, it is faith and wisdom going hand in hand. Such wisdom must be heavenly wisdom. Let’s look at the words God gave to Adam at the beginning.
Genesis 2:15: Then the Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to tend and keep it.
God created the world, placed Adam in the Garden of Eden, and then gave him a job, which was to tend and keep it. Tending and keeping requires both faith and wisdom. Of course, if a person fully believes in God, faith and wisdom will unite; before Adam sinned, it was just like that. However, later, when the serpent's words entered him, his faith in God weakened, and he used his own wisdom and analysis to find that the serpent seemed to be right. In the end, he judged the matter using wisdom, but it was not heavenly wisdom; it was his own wisdom, which led him and his entire family into sin.
The last Adam, Jesus Christ, completely believed in God, so when He used faith, He also manifested God's wisdom. In Jesus, you can perfectly see the combination of faith and wisdom; He did this from the beginning of His ministry until the end of His life. Thank the Lord.
Many times, faith and wisdom do not go hand in hand; some people have great faith but lack wisdom, so they often feel disappointed. They originally thought this matter could be accomplished in this way, but it did not turn out that way. Others possess wisdom but lack faith, so they always analyze the pros and cons and stop moving forward. They are always afraid of failure because they lack faith. If faith and wisdom go hand in hand, then this person will find it easy, simple, and effective to do things, Hallelujah. Let’s look at Jesus.
Matthew 7:28-29:
28 And so it was, when Jesus had ended these sayings, that the people were astonished at His teaching, 29 for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.
When Jesus preached, the people of Israel were listening to His teachings. Did Jesus use wisdom to warn everyone? Yes, but when Jesus spoke this wisdom, He did so with faith and wisdom going hand in hand. So everyone felt that this person was different; they were amazed at His teaching. Here it makes a comparison, saying that the scribes also taught the people of Israel, but the scribes' teaching was more like reciting from the law book—taking out the law book to read a passage, and that was it.
But Jesus was not like that; He taught them as one having authority. These words suddenly came alive; after hearing these words, they suddenly understood how much God loves them and realized that God's words have such great power. This is called having authority, unlike the scribes.
What would the scribes say? "It's not a big deal; Jesus is the greatest. When you encounter problems, you should call on the Lord," etc. Such words sound like slogans; but Jesus does not speak like that. He conveys God's authority and power through wise words, allowing everyone to understand, Hallelujah.
Luke 20:26: But they could not catch Him in His words in the presence of the people, and they marveled at His answer and kept silent.
Here it again reflects the parallel of faith and wisdom in Jesus Christ. Because at that time, the scribes and chief priests listened to Jesus speaking these words, and they felt very uncomfortable; they wanted to take action against Jesus, but they were afraid of the people because the people recognized Jesus. So they posed many difficult questions to Jesus to test Him.
The questions they posed were probably things they themselves did not have answers to, but unexpectedly, Jesus easily resolved them and answered without any flaws in front of the people. They could not catch Him in His words and marveled at His answer.
Brothers and sisters, this cannot be manifested merely by faith; it is more about faith and wisdom going hand in hand. If we possess such ability, when you encounter problems, you will not say, "Lord, have mercy on me, please save me." You will have the ability to respond like Jesus, whether it is towards people or situations, you can easily resolve them.
If you possess such ability, even in any environment, you will not be fearful or anxious, nor will you be disheartened or despairing; you will use the faith and wisdom God has given you to solve all problems and experience God's abundant provision. Jesus has already set such a beautiful example for us.
From the perspective of the world, it seems that Jesus is very wise, all-knowing, and His words are powerful, unlike the scribes who only speak some grand principles. So I do not hope that everyone lives like the scribes, who can recite the Bible well and say many slogans but cannot solve problems in life; this is not the result we expect.
This year's theme is "Faith and Wisdom Go Hand in Hand," hoping that everyone can apply both faith and wisdom in life. When we face life this way, we can respond easily like Jesus. These wisdom applications in our lives can allow us to practically experience God's power; you will know that this word truly has great power. Especially when encountering environments, the application of faith and wisdom plays a directly decisive role for us.
Many people stumble directly when encountering problems, and some even do not want to believe anymore because they have not utilized faith and wisdom. Some people continually use the wisdom and faith God has given them to solve problems in life, and their faith in God grows stronger, and their wisdom increases.
James 1:2-8:
2 My brothers, when you encounter various trials, consider it all joy; 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. 4 And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. 5 But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him. 6 But he must ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind. 7 For that man ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord, 8 being a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.
When people encounter various trials, it indicates that the environment is not good; sometimes it is not just generally bad, but can be said to be very terrible. Most people complain, despair, and even blame those around them when they encounter these things; but those with faith and wisdom can face them with joy.
James tells us: "My brothers, when you encounter various trials, consider it all joy." What is the reason? This person has faith; he sees the current environment through the spiritual world. He knows that God is beside him, always helping him; this is an opportunity for him to use God's power to witness God's goodness once again. He also believes that no matter what kind of environment, there must be God's good purpose within it.
Since such things have happened, let’s look at it from another angle: What does God want to accomplish in these matters? What kind of benefits does He want to give us? It is said that all things work together for good to those who love God; you must believe this word and find out where these benefits are.
If you keep stumbling over certain matters, perhaps God is just asking you to change direction; if you move forward, the problem may become bigger. Or perhaps the occurrence of this matter is a reminder for you, etc. You need to find out what benefits God is giving you in this matter based on your situation, Hallelujah. When you understand these, your faith in God will grow stronger.
Here it tells us that faith tested produces endurance. Why do we need to have the character of endurance? Because possessing the character of endurance allows us to bear greater blessings. Wheat must go through cold winters and scorching summers to become delicious and nutritious; its nutrients can only be rich after experiencing these. Our reliance on God and faith in God are the same; when we go through various environments, our faith is elevated; you cannot always have the faith of a child.
Therefore, the character of endurance allows us to bear greater blessings. If endurance is successful, it will make you perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. You will be a complete person on earth.
When we talk about a complete person, it does not mean you will no longer sin, but rather that when you encounter greater problems in the future, you will not be disheartened or despairing; you will have a lively hope in God, Hallelujah. No matter what you encounter, you will have hope; you will believe that God will surely lead you out of these and bestow greater blessings upon you. The figures in the Bible, such as Abraham, Joseph, and David, all viewed God this way.
But what if we do not have such a vision? First, we need to receive God's words and continually know this God. When you realize that this God will not harm you, that He has prepared various blessings for you, and that He is a God of blessing, not a God of calamity, when you are completely certain of this in your heart, when the world presents an environment, you must believe that God will use these environments to build you up again.
However, these environments are not necessarily sent by God; everyone must understand this. Many times, it is because we have taken the wrong path that the environment has come, but God can use these environments to build us, such as building our character of endurance, giving us more wisdom, etc.
Some say, "What if I lack this wisdom and cannot understand?" Ask God for wisdom. When you ask God, He will give it to you. How can you obtain this wisdom? Reading the Bible is a necessary result; first, fill your heart with the truth, Hallelujah.
Secondly, use God's words: "Lord, help me know how to use your words." This is wisdom, Amen. You must believe that God is willing to give it to you. Just ask in faith without any doubting. You must first believe that God is willing to give to you. So have you noticed that this heavenly wisdom is asked for by faith?
Some say, "Can I just ask God for wisdom without reading the Bible?" Where does wisdom come from? It comes from the truth; if you do not read the truth, how can you have heavenly wisdom? These two cannot be separated.
Dear family, many people have asked in faith but then doubted; what is the reason? There is no truth in their hearts, so after asking, they are not sure whether God wants to give them or is willing to give them. When you understand God's truth, realize that God is willing to bless you, and confirm these with biblical basis, you will not doubt.
Because a double-minded man will not receive anything from the Lord; such a person always finds it hard to make decisions. He wants to receive blessings from God while also wanting to obtain something through his own cleverness and wisdom. If he wants to possess both at the same time, in the end, he will gain nothing. Therefore, I encourage everyone to rely on God, to rely on God's faith and wisdom, to witness Him in life, Hallelujah. Those who have gone through great storms and have overcome can better understand God's power; when they encounter matters again, they will not be anxious or impatient.
Ecclesiastes 8:5-6:
5 He who keeps his command will experience nothing harmful; and a wise man's heart discerns both time and judgment. 6 Because for every matter there is a time and judgment, though the misery of man increases greatly.
Here, the wisdom given to us in Ecclesiastes is something we should read carefully. It says to keep the command; what is this command? It is God's command. Anyone who can fully keep God's command will not experience harm. Originally, when we act according to God's words with faith and wisdom, harm will not come upon you because God has opened a special path for you.
A wise man's heart discerns both time and judgment. Why has no harm come upon him? Because he possesses God's wisdom; when he possesses God's wisdom, he can discern both time and judgment. Time refers to when to do what kind of thing, and judgment means that this matter has reached its end and cannot be done anymore.
For example, many people want to run a kindergarten or training business, etc. You should not do such a business; this means you need to discern what time it is. As the birth rate continues to decline, this industry will become increasingly difficult; if you enter, you will not do well. It is not that you lack ability; it is simply that the time has come, and it cannot be done anymore. What is judgment? It is knowing what the next opportunity is. To speak in business terms, you need to know what the next opportunity is, and then you can do this industry, right?
Just like before 2019, I mentioned several times that if anyone has two sets of houses, they should sell one and keep one for themselves; that was the best time. After that, house prices fell sharply, and now many people cannot sell them. God gives us wisdom so that we can discern both time and judgment; you will not experience harm because every matter has its time and judgment. You need to understand this and discern both time and judgment with faith and wisdom.
The Bible also tells us that the prudent man sees danger and hides himself, but the simple pass on and are punished. If you possess faith and wisdom, you will know what can be done and what cannot be done. The simple think, "So many people are doing it; we should do it too." In the end, they end up with nothing; this is being punished. Therefore, in this environment, we need faith and wisdom from God even more.
Some say, "Whenever I encounter something, I feel uneasy, anxious, and even feel that life has no meaning." This is caused by a lack of faith. If you have spiritual insight, when encountering matters, you will seek wisdom from God to solve these problems rather than complain about the environment. Is God willing to give us wisdom? Of course, He is; He gives generously to all and is willing to bless people. You must ask in faith, without doubting. Because faith is not based on sight or feelings, but relies on God's promises.
2 Corinthians 5:16-17:
16 Therefore, from now on, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard Him thus no longer. 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
When a person uses faith and wisdom, he does not act based on feelings. You know that many believers act based on feelings, saying, "I feel this matter can be done; I feel quite at peace about this; I feel this is okay." Do not rely on feelings; rely on faith and wisdom, which are based on God's words.
The more a person possesses faith and wisdom from God, the more he loves God's words; the more he loves God's words, the more wisdom he gains. In the Bible, people like Abraham, Isaac, Joseph, David, etc., all experienced this God, Amen. You must first believe that you are a new creation in Christ, so continually use God's words to renew yourself, and you will increase in faith. You need to know what God has given you in the spiritual realm; you have faith, and then use wisdom to bring these spiritual blessings into the world, and you can be a beautiful witness for the Lord, Hallelujah.
2 Peter 1:3-8:
3 His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, 4 by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. 5 But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, 6 to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, 7 to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. 8 For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Peter was not highly educated; his understanding of the Lord Jesus mostly came from his personal experiences, so his words are very direct but very practical.
Peter tells us: "His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness." Because we know this God, who loves us, God has given us exceedingly great and precious promises.
What are these promises? You can find many promises in the Bible, which are all beneficial to us and have no harm; these promises can help us escape the corruption that is in the world through lust.
Why is this so? Because God gives you better things. If you realize that you have received better things, the not-so-good things the world offers will no longer attract you. Only in this way will our attraction to the Lord not diminish.
But many believers have not experienced this; they think that what is in this world is quite good. They have not received in the Lord, which is why they have such a view. Peter has received. You see, how much Peter used to love fishing? He did not love it; he had no choice; it was forced by his life. But after he followed Jesus and witnessed Jesus' power, he began to live by imitating Christ.
As he continually served God, he increasingly felt that what he was doing now was a hundred times better than what he did before; he truly began to catch men like catching fish. Therefore, he no longer loved the fish of this world but cared more about souls. From here, we can see that this is Peter's experience. He used to care about fish, but now he cares more about souls; in such matters, he has already partaken of God's nature.
We all hope to bear abundant fruit, which means having a beautiful witness in life, experiencing God's power, whether it is healing, financial turnaround, or improving interpersonal relationships, etc.; these are all fruits. Some people have no testimony throughout the year; where is the reason? Peter directly tells us that if we want to bear fruit, we have methods; we are not saying, "Lord, I want to bear fruit today," and then lie down to sleep; this is impossible to bear fruit. So it mentions that we must first recognize God's promises; you need to know what God has already given you and prepared in faith, and then you need to cooperate.
How to do this? Be diligent in doing things. Add virtue to your faith, produce good behavior, then have knowledge, which is spiritual knowledge, then add self-control, perseverance, godliness, and finally produce brotherly kindness; after having brotherly kindness, you can have love for all.
Slowly, step by step, as you have these things in abundance, you will bear fruit continuously, and you will not be able to stop. In life, there will be countless testimonies; the more you experience God, the more you will love Jesus, Hallelujah. The more you serve, the more joyful you will be; the more you serve, the easier it will be. Thank the Lord. Peter had such experiences, and I hope you can experience such beauty this year, thank the Lord. I hope everyone can meditate on Peter's words, see where you are now, and continue to rely on God to gain faith and wisdom.
Finally, let’s look at a passage from Ephesians 5:15-17:
15 See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, 16 redeeming the time, because the days are evil. 17 Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is.
Let’s conclude with this passage. Be careful how you walk; when we continually focus our eyes on Christ, we possess these insights from heaven, which gives us faith; with faith, you will know what time it is now, and you will have wisdom to do things. Such a person will walk carefully.
But the fool cannot discern the time and does things according to his own preferences. We should not be like this; we want to be wise, to know that the day of the Lord is near, to know what time it is now, and to know how to do the right things.
The days are evil. Therefore, do not place all your focus on the world; the more you see, the more disheartened you will become. Do not be unwise; do not look at those around you who do not live out God's image, and you also do not want to live it out. No, you must believe in this Lord; you can be different from them. When you understand what God's will is and how God leads you, move forward towards the goals God has given you this year.
Finally, I hope everyone can write down their goals for this year, the more detailed, the better, and then pray to God for these things, expecting that by the end of this year, you will have a rich harvest. Thank the Lord.
Let us pray together.
Heavenly Father, thank you and praise you for leading us today through your words. Yes, no matter how the environment changes, you do not change; Father, your love for us has not diminished. Therefore, no matter what year it is, no matter what people say, we believe that we can pass through in your abundant provision. Give each brother and sister a heart that longs for your words, let us fix our faith on the words of Christ, and let us live by looking up to Christ. Also, grant us the wisdom we need at this moment, so that we can live each day relying on God's wisdom. Thank you and praise you.
A new week has begun; I believe this is a blessed week. Let us use spiritual eyes to view everything in our lives; also give us wisdom to solve these matters with the wisdom of Christ, experiencing you step by step, experiencing you more and knowing you more. Thank you and praise the Lord. Bless all that our brothers and sisters do, so that they can see God's glory in all they do. In the name of the Lord Jesus, we pray, Amen.