"While we were still sinners, Christ died for us."

FOCUS Bible Talk (15 Nov 09)

"Spirit Ain't Silent!"

2 Tim 3

1. What if God spoke to you directly?
a. Holy Spirit
When we hear a voice, see a vision, have a dream, or encounter circumstances too coincidental to be true, is God speaking to us via the Holy Spirit in a direct way?

b. Personally
Josh used the example of choosing a girl between Ming Ming and Wa Wa to marry throughout the sermon. Ming Ming, or Wa Wa? Wa Wa or Ming Ming? Who should she marry? Can the Spirit guide us in a very personal way?

2. "God-Spirited"
"All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work." (2 Tim 3:16-17)

Last week we saw the association between Spirit (translated: breath) and life.

a. Breath and words
This week, we see the association between Spirit and word. Words are carried by our breath. Try holding your breath and trying to say something. No sound can come out!

Hence, 'expiration' rather than 'inspiration' is a more accurate depiction of the idea in 2 Tim 3:16-17

Even right at the beginning, this idea can be seen:
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. (Genesis 1:1-3)

Immediately after the Spirit of God is mentioned hovering over the waters, 'God said'. These are very powerful words. As God carries out His words, His Spirit is there.

b. Spirit revealed

It is then of no surprise that His Spirit reveals God's word to us. We need God for us to understand His Scriptures. The only way we can know God is if He reveals it to us.

Peter writes in 1 Peter 1:10-12,
^"10Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, ¹¹trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. ¹²It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you, when they spoke of the things that have now been told you by those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even angels long to look into these things."

The Spirit was in the Old Testament prophets (1 Peter 1:11) and revealed to them that they were not speaking/bringing forth/writing God's word for themselves, but for us today (1 Peter 1:12)!

Peter in his second letter 2 Peter 1:20-21 reiterates
"Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet's own interpretation. For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit."

Paul in Ephesians 3:1-6 also talks about the Spirit revealing His word to the Apostles and prophets:
"For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles— Surely you have heard about the administration of God's grace that was given to me for you, that is, the mystery made known to me by revelation, as I have already written briefly. In reading this, then, you will be able to understand my insight into the mystery of Christ, which was not made known to men in other generations as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to God's holy apostles and prophets. This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus."

At this point, here's a little note about what constitutes Scripture.

'All Scripture' in 2 Tim 3:16 refers to the Old Testament Scriptures. However, by the end of the New Testament, all the apostles' letters (Jesus' disciples) and Paul's letters were also considered Scripture. in 2 Peter 3:15-16, Peter writes

"Bear in mind that our Lord's patience means salvation, just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave him. He writes the same way in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters. His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction."

'The other Scriptures' implies that Paul's letters were also Scripture.


c. Spirit written
Now, "All Scripture is God-breathed". This means that it is not just the preaching by the Apostles and the prophets in the past that are God-breathed, but also in the words writtten down.

Some people think that words written down are less the word of the person. A voice may seem much more authoritative, more definite.

However, words whether spoken or words written down still reflect the sender!

Furthermore, it is important that the words were written down so that the words could escape geographical boundaries

"After this letter has been read to you, see that it is also read in the church of the Laodiceans and that you in turn read the letter from Laodicea." (Col 4:16)

As we read in John 20 a few weeks back, we are more blessed because we have it written down, and we can see the whole picture on hindsight. "Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name." (John 20:30-31)

Still, some people may argue that the words written in the Bible are out-dated, old-fashioned. 'We need new revelation from God."

d. Spirit speaking
Back to 2 Tim 3:16. At one level, God's word has its origin in God. Just by breathing out (perhaps by the odour) we can tell to whom the breath belongs to. The words in the Bible belong to almighty God! Do we dare say His words are 'invalid'?

More than that, the words continue to be the word of the Holy Spirit today.
⁷So, as the Holy Spirit says:
"Today, if you hear his voice,
⁸do not harden your hearts
as you did in the rebellion,
during the time of testing in the desert,
⁹where your fathers tested and tried me
and for forty years saw what I did.
¹⁰That is why I was angry with that generation,
and I said, 'Their hearts are always going astray,
and they have not known my ways.'
¹¹So I declared on oath in my anger,
'They shall never enter my rest.' " (Heb 3:7-11)

The Holy Spirit says (Heb 3:7). It is used in the present tense, not past tense.

"For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart." (Heb 4:12)

The Spirit of God uses what He wrote to challenge us.

3. Addressed by God
So, is it Ming Ming or Wa Wa? Won't it be better for God to say 'Ming Ming' and make life's decisions so much easier and more exciting? The Bible seems boring and it doesn't state who to marry/

There are 3 main reasons why listening to God speaking in the Scriptures is the better way.

a. Authoritative
Firstly, it is authoritative. In the case of Ming Ming vs Wa Wa, the Bible is very clear that one should marry
1) A Christian
2) Someone not of the same sex
3) Not a close relative
4) Someone available, not already married

These are simple and clear-cut, yet many of us struggle to even pay heed to these 4 rules!

b. Relevant
Secondly, it is relevant. We come to the Bible with our own questions and agendas. We are very selfish. In the end, the Bible does not answer all our questions and agendas. The Bible tells us everything we need to know to make a godly decision. It is sufficient "for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work" (2 Tim 3:16-17)

What if Ming Ming and Wa Wa are both godly, someone of the opposite sex, not a close relative, and available. Well, then it doesn't really matter who you choose to marry! The Bible speaks only of what is relevant to God, or what is of interest to Him.

c. Sure
Thirdly, it is sure. If we hear a voice speaking to us, how do we know it really is from God? We could be schizoprenic if the voice comes from outside us, or we may be having a brain tumour if we hear a voice in our heads. Though we may think that only voices or visions are supernatural, we forget that the Bible is supernatural too! It is from God!

In conclusion, as Bible-believing Christians, we should not be ashamed to say 'God spoke to me in a very personal way today' as we read the Bible day by day, everyday.

Q&A:
Can't we have to best of both worlds, God speaking to us through the Bible, and also the Holy Spirit speaking to us via 'supernatural' means?

Answer:
This is a good question. God is all-powerful and can do anything He wants. Speaking to us in a voice is not beyond Him.

However, there are a few reasons why He would be unlikely to do so.

Firstly, there is no promise that God will do so for everyone, nor for all Christians.
We read many accounts of prophets and apostles hearing voices, seeing visions and dreaming dreams in the Bible, but we should see them as descriptive, rather than prescriptiveaccounts of what happened. Many of the accounts occurred at turning points of history (e.g. forming the church in Acts) and cannot be expected to be repeated again.

Secondly, 'All Scripture' and 'thoroughly equipped' connotes a sufficiency in the Scriptures. There shouldn't be a need for God to 'supplement' His word, as if it was incomplete and inadequate in some way.

Thirdly, many people really want to hear voices and see visions because of a self-centered purpose. They want to know what decision to make, and how to carry it out. It is all about 'me, me, me'. The Bible on the other hand, is all about 'God, God, God.' We need to approach God with Him in first place, not ourselves.

It's funny how things can completely change within 1 week... no, within 1 day...

I'm currently in Ashley's place, in front of me and facing me is Victor on his computer. We're kind of seated at the 2 ends of a table and surrounding us are at least a dozen suitcases, many of which are mine

Approximately 24 hours ago, my room at Mulwarree still looked pretty much like this

12 hours ago, it became like this


Approximately 24 hours ago, Shawna was telling me she couldn't get an earlier flight because they were all booked til 1 Dec

Approximately 6 hours ago, she left for Singapore

As I walked down Kingsford alone (deliberately, turning down Tessa's offer to join them for Ramen) I pondered deep and hard

It felt unreal. To eat at Shang alone.

It feels bizarre, to be at someone else's place all of a sudden, away from the comfortable surroundings that is Randwick

It feels totally out of the blue that Shawna's family has to suffer this

The step I'm about to take... after last night's Christians in Med dinner, I couldn't believe there were other crazy people like me. It feels totally crazy. Totally unreal. That SO MANY people (I counted at least 5) would give up what they love, for Someone they love so much more, to the point that they HATE what they used to love. It sounds totally crazy as well.

All this feels.. too well-planned.

Perhaps I read too much into things? Maybe.

Job, having lost his property, his sons and daughters and his health, says,

"A lamp is despised in the thought of one who is at ease;
It is made ready for those whose feet slip.

The tents of robbers prosper,
And those who provoke God are secure—
In what God provides by His hand.

“But now ask the beasts, and they will teach you;
And the birds of the air, and they will tell you;

Or speak to the earth, and it will teach you;
And the fish of the sea will explain to you.

Who among all these does not know
That the hand of the LORD has done this,

In whose hand is the life of every living thing,
And the breath of all mankind?

(Job 12:5-10)

God is a good God.

I must complete my reading of Job.


God I know you are real. I know You are in full control. In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, for once I ask, not for myself or for my family or for my friends,

but simply that Your will be done.

"On Christ the solid ROCK I stand.... all other ground is sinking sand..."

Jesus, may Your name be glorified throughout all the earth!

A few things I learnt from Ageing and Endings (the last Medicine course of the year):

1. If you get FAP (Familial Adenomatous Polyposis), it is almost inevitable that you get colon cancer. However, there is still a slight 1% chance you might not.
Death is the only certainty in medicine. It is 100% we will die.


2. As doctors, it is very hard for us to share the gospel with patients while they are under your care. A palliative care doctor commented during a tutorial that because he was approaching his patients as a doctor, he had to be professional and would not offer any of his religious views as his patients lay dying. Rather he would refer his patient to the pastoral care worker to do that, a person in his team treating the patient.


3. Perfecting cream of mushroom Campbell soup and oyster sauce with chicken! (Yum yum many times... especially during exam time!)

FOCUS Bible Talk (8 Nov 09)

"The Spirit in Us: Regeneration & Renewal"

Titus 3:1-8

1. Dead Christianity
a. Same
In Thailand, the phrase 'same same' is used when 2 objects or persons are found to be very similar on comparison.

b. Same
Comparing our Christian life now and before we became Christian, do we come up with the same conclusion it's 'same same'?
Comparing ourselves with our non-Christian friends, do we also say 'same same'?
What's the difference then in being a Christian? Is our Christianity 'dead'?
How do we get beyond dead Christianity?

2. Regeneration by the Spirit
In Titus 3:5, the 'of' in 'renewing of the Holy Spirit' can be translated 'by'.

'Regeneration' has the idea of coming back to life again, or rebirth, being born again.

'Spirit' means 'breath'. 3 minutes are someone stops breathing, he is dead (unless he is put on a ventilator, which helps him to respire, not breathe). Therefore, 'Spirit' really means 'life'.

Salvation involves God washing us through the 'washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit'

This is similar to John 3:3-10, where John records an account of the teacher of the Jews Nicodemus coming to approach Jesus at night.

a. Washing and born again
John 3:5 - Jesus says, "unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God."

As in Titus, there is a reference to 1) the water (washing) and to 2) the Spirit.

It is a second birth. Jesus says, "Unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." This puzzles Nicodemus because he wonders (as most rational people would!) how can a person re-enter the womb and be born again? (John 3:3)

As a teacher of Israel, Nicodemus should have known the answer! (John 3:10). He had memorised Scripture from a very young age and should have known the one reference to water and the Spirit in the Scriptures (Old Testament for us).

Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them. (Ezekiel 36:25-27)

b. Dead
'Again' not only means 'again' as in something repeated, but also 'of above, of God'. This idea is seen from John 1:12-13: "But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God."

"Born again" implies that people who are walking around are actually walking dead!

How could this be?

Back to Titus 3, it is "for we ourselves were also once foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving various lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful and hating one another." (Titus 3:3). We were slaves to sin. "So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God." (Romans 8:8)

Nice people cannot please God. Though they may do good works, God is not pleased with them.

Now, "for the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 6:23).

Some say they don't believe in God or Satan, so how can they following Satan? Ephesians 2:1-3 says that we were dead in trespasses and sins, walking according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience. As we walk according to the ways of the world, we are actually following Satan!

We are dead. We are not just sick and can help ourselves that tiny bit. We are completely dead and we need someone external to bring us back to life (like using a defibrillator on an unconscious person)

c. Life!
What is being 'born again' mean?
A. It is to understand the gospel. However, 2 Cor 4:4 says that just by hearing the gospel we cannot believe the gospel because the god of this age has blinded us. We need the Holy Spirit to be able to understand the things of God (1 Cor 2:10-14). Paul says,

"But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God.For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God. These things we also speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned."

B. We will say "Jesus is Lord" (1 Cor 12:2-3). However, it is more than mouthing the mere words. For in the same verse Paul also writes "Jesus accursed". Does that mean that he 'lost' the Holy Spirit a second ago and then gains it back by writing 'Jesus is Lord'?

No. It is about living a life with Jesus as Lord.

C. We believe because it was granted to us. (Phil 1:29 and e.g. Lydia in Acts 16:14)
Romans 8:15-16 says we received the Spirit of adoption.

d. Cosmic change
The word 'regeneration' is also used in Matthew 19:28. "So Jesus said to them, “Assuredly I say to you, that in the regeneration, when the Son of Man sits on the throne of His glory, you who have followed Me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel."

Regeneration is great cosmic change! It has already invaded us. "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new." (2 Cor 5:17)

3. Renewal by the Spirit
So what does being born by water and the Spirit mean?

Is it water baptism? Yes and no.
Water baptism is a outward symbol of our returning to God. However, we can be water baptised and still not be saved. One can go through the process of water baptism, but not believe in Jesus at all.

Is it baptism by the Holy Spirit? Yes and no again.
"For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and have all been made to drink into one Spirit." (1 Cor 12:13)

and

"But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His." (Romans 8:9)

All Christians have been baptised by the Holy Spirit.

It is a 'no' with reference to 'second baptism', that is, some Christians believe there is a second conversion or higher plane Christianity. They say we must be filled with the Holy Spirit 'again', to reach a 'higher plane'. This is not what baptism by the Holy Spirit is. All Christians have been baptised by the Holy Spirit.

a. Transformation and On-going
"And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God." (Romans 12:2)

It is an ongoing process that involves the mind. We must not be conformed to the world. Being competitive. Envying others with bigger houses and better cars and 'more prestigious' degrees. Climbing the career ladder. These things must go. We must change our mindset about these things.

"Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day." (2 Cor 4:16) and "have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him" (Col 3:10)

Back to Titus 3. Regeneration and renewal go together. They are not different periods. It is when we become Christian. The renewal happens as seen from Titus 3:3-7 from the word 'but'.

³ "For we ourselves were also once foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving various lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful and hating one another. ⁴ But when the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared, ⁵ not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, ⁶ whom He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, ⁷ that having been justified by His grace we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life."

The change happens at the point of conversion. It has got to do with our understanding of the gospel (Titus 3:4-7).

b. Fit for heaven
Everytime we say no to sin, it is the Spirit of God enabling us to do so. "For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. (Romans 8:13)

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control." (Gal 5:22-23)

Having been justified by His grace, we'll be heirs then, not now. We must clothe ourselves with righteousness now, befitting of our new status.

4. The Spirit in Us
a. Our need
This is the most important thing we need to know about the Holy Spirit.

b. Our response
"knowing, beloved brethren, your election by God. For our gospel did not come to you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Spirit and in much assurance, as you know what kind of men we were among you for your sake." (1 Thess 1:4-5)

and

"But we are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God from the beginning chose you for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth" (2 Thess 2:13)

Our decision to become Christian is not the same as the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit. The regenerating work of the Holy Spirit is the cause of us believing. Just like over 20 years ago, we didn't choose to be born into this world.

c. His role
It is all of God. It is all His work. There is just one switch, one point of conversion, not two.

d. Vital signs
Do we have the vital signs of having the Holy Spirit in us? Is Jesus our Lord? Is God our Father?

It is only true if we repent from our old ways and trust in Jesus' death on the cross for us.

FOCUS Bible Talk (1 Nov 09)

"Do You Love Me?"

John 21

1. "Do you love me?"