On Our Destiny
As a child of God, have you ever thought about your personal destiny? After all, can we know our destiny? The answer is both yes and no. “Yes”, the Bible is crystal clear about a faithful believer's destiny ─ eternal life and blessings in Heaven. Alternatively, any disbeliever in Jesus Christ as our Saviour will be doomed to the eternal punishment in Hell. “No”, the Bible is basically silent about the average believer's earthly destiny. The life and mission of the Lord Jesus is an obvious exception as is proclaimed in Hebrew (10:7) that“Lo, I have come to do thy will, O God, as it is written of me in the roll of the book.” (see also Luke 24:25-27)
When we refer to Bible characters such as Abraham, Moses, David, Ruth, Esther… and the Apostles, we may feel a strong sense of pre-destination in their destinies. In fact, I do believe that God has a plan for every one of us in Christ (see Eph. 2:10). Yes, we are created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them. This reminds us that God prepared us long ago with a purpose, i.e. to do good works according to His will. Besides God, another important factor determining our life destiny is our freewill. The irony is that we were sinners under the bondage of sin until Christ has made us free (Gal. 5:1). The greatest freedom in Christ is exemplified by his sacrifice on the cross. The Apostle Paul therefore urges us not to use liberty for an occasion to the flesh after we are set free in Christ (Gal. 5:13). We should rather serve one another by love.
Brothers and Sisters, I certainly could not give you a clear answer on your earthly destinies. However, it is both a mystery and goodwill of God our Father and Jesus our Lord that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose (Rom. 8:28). Hence, we may safely assure one another that our destiny in the Lord is linked to love and our freewill to serve God and the people around us. What is better out there than the promise of a blessed eternal life for the faithful believer? So, let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; and let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works (Heb.10:23 – 24).
Thursday, August 17, 2006
Tuesday, August 15, 2006
Why Do I Need A Good Habit (Article for Sunday on August 20th)
Pastor Tom Dooley at the Harrison Free Will Baptist Church once preached on “Eight Habits of Highly Effective Christians” based on II Peter 1:1-10. He points out that Christian life begins when one places their trust in the Savior. Accordingly, Peter wants us to understand that becoming a Christian is not the end, it is rather the beginning. The Christian life is to be "added to" or growing and maturing.
II Peter 1:5 (KJV) puts an emphasis on “giving all diligence” as we add to our faith. The word "diligence" refers to the earnest and zealous exertion of oneself. This matter of adding to our faith – seeing our faith strengthened and enriched demands our diligence. No one grows in the spiritual realm automatically. It takes intentional effort. Indeed, it is an investment into eternity!
Most of us would agree that a diligent pursuit of becoming all the Lord wants us to be is necessary. In reality, a spiritual pursuit is very much like pursing New Year resolutions. Some resolve to quit a bad habit, some to loose weight… but after a few days or weeks... they start thinking “Is it worth it?” or “Must I continue?”. Many decide no. Their problem is that they fail to see the future reward and the importance of building up a good habit.
A good habit not only helps us to improve but to protect us as well. I am sure many of us have the experience of losing our umbrellas during weathers with occasional showers or drizzles. Without a good habit of picking up things, it is obvious why people tend to lose their umbrellas. Similarly, we may find ourselves at a loss when a fire breaks out if we don’t have sufficient fire drills.
As a matter of fact, Christians are not exempt from difficultly, failures and discouragement. If we do not have a good trust in God during our up times, how can we trust Him during our down times? If a good habit is not built up during our successes or peace, how can we build up one during our failures or chaos? If we can’t stay focused in our relationship with the Lord Jesus in times of encouragement, how can we stay focused in times of discouragement?
I don't have all the answers for you. However, I do encourage you to build up a good habit by setting aside 21 days consecutively for an objective which is clear, worthwhile and practicable to you. May God the Father and Jesus our Lord help and build us up. Amen.
II Peter 1:5 (KJV) puts an emphasis on “giving all diligence” as we add to our faith. The word "diligence" refers to the earnest and zealous exertion of oneself. This matter of adding to our faith – seeing our faith strengthened and enriched demands our diligence. No one grows in the spiritual realm automatically. It takes intentional effort. Indeed, it is an investment into eternity!
Most of us would agree that a diligent pursuit of becoming all the Lord wants us to be is necessary. In reality, a spiritual pursuit is very much like pursing New Year resolutions. Some resolve to quit a bad habit, some to loose weight… but after a few days or weeks... they start thinking “Is it worth it?” or “Must I continue?”. Many decide no. Their problem is that they fail to see the future reward and the importance of building up a good habit.
A good habit not only helps us to improve but to protect us as well. I am sure many of us have the experience of losing our umbrellas during weathers with occasional showers or drizzles. Without a good habit of picking up things, it is obvious why people tend to lose their umbrellas. Similarly, we may find ourselves at a loss when a fire breaks out if we don’t have sufficient fire drills.
As a matter of fact, Christians are not exempt from difficultly, failures and discouragement. If we do not have a good trust in God during our up times, how can we trust Him during our down times? If a good habit is not built up during our successes or peace, how can we build up one during our failures or chaos? If we can’t stay focused in our relationship with the Lord Jesus in times of encouragement, how can we stay focused in times of discouragement?
I don't have all the answers for you. However, I do encourage you to build up a good habit by setting aside 21 days consecutively for an objective which is clear, worthwhile and practicable to you. May God the Father and Jesus our Lord help and build us up. Amen.
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