Sermon 22apr: Know God's Plan - Living in HOPE with the HELMET of Salvation

I thought that these Key Points from Sunday's sermon were important. Please look through, reflect, and remember them in your heart.

1. Put on EVERY piece of the Armor, not what we choose to put on.


2. The MIND is one of the greatest battlefields that the devil wants to attack - he fills it with LIES.


3. When there is Hope (in the right God), there is Life!


4. Jesus did not die for us just for us to be squashed and thrown into the dustbin like tissue paper! Each of has a wonderful Destiny!


5. We are God's workmanship - Don't live sloppily!


6. The greatest enemy of Faith is not fear, but memory - memory of the past failures etc. "Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 3:13b-14)

Put on the Helmet of Salvation! Guard our minds!

+You have Hope! - Overcome Hopelessness
+You have a Destiny! - Overcome Aimlessness
+You are an Overcomer! - Overcoming Helplessness

The Year of Victory means Battle

Be prepared. You're up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it's all over
but the shouting you'll still be on your feet. Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are more than words. Learn how to apply them. You'll need them throughout your life. God's Word is an indispensable weapon.

In the same way, prayer is essential in this ongoing warfare. Pray hard and long. Pray for your brothers and sisters. Keep your eyes open. Keep each other's spirits up so that no one falls behind or drops out.

Ephesians 6:13-18 (The Message)

The Battle

Had you had times when you cried yourselves to sleep? i had.

Had you ever felt like giving up on everything and just SLEEP? Yes too.

Paul Moldenhauer's article was a good reminder. She said "I was in a battle ... the enemy was attacking.

I suddenly understood that I wasn’t battling the people who’d injured my heart, I was battling the demons the enemy sent to oppose me.

Ephesians says that we don’t battle against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers—the powers of the dark world and the spiritual forces of evil. Before I recognized the battle, I took the hits, thinking I somehow deserved such outrageous treatment.

But after I realized I was in a war, I sought God’s help to stay on my feet and fight and over time I gained the victory.

Today is about recognizing that there is a battle and we can’t fight on our own. Some of us want to ignore this possibility. We want to pretend there isn’t a battle. It feels safer.

BUT the Lord says the enemy is like a roaring lion, seeking all he can devour. He doesn’t tell us to ignore the enemy, but to resist him so he will flee. (I Peter 5:8) It’s time to wake up and take our place beside our brothers and sisters who are weary from the battle, standing in strengthening solidarity.

Others of us have forgotten about the war. We’ve chosen to be angry with people and have been battling them instead of recognizing the evil one’s sinister work. If this is your situation, Ephesians 6:12 is an important reminder. “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” Ephesians 6:10-12 (NIV)

Drink in its truth, then, in forgiveness and the power of the Lord, stand against the appropriate foe.

Some of you know full well you’re in a war. You’re knee deep in the muck of trenches and hear the artillery all around you. Maybe you’re even bleeding.

My friend, our Lord is your Deliver, Your Strong Tower, Your Place of Refuge. The words of Ephesians 6:10 are for you. “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes.” (NIV)

Mighty and Powerful God, You know the situation each of your children faces today. You know the severity of our personal battle in the war against the evil one.You know how prepared or unprepared we are to meet our foe. Come in Your might power and infinite love for us and show us what You want usto do. You are the Commander and Chief. You are also the Victorious King. Show us how to live in a world where war of the soul is waged every single day. Give strength to the weary, insight to the confused, and courage to all of us. In Jesus’ Name, Amen"

Sermon 11mar: Living Right with the Breastplate of Righteousness

To hear/view sermon online, please go to FCBC Sermons Online.

10 Mar 2007
'Know God's Standard! - Living Right with the Breastplate of Righteousness'
Key Verses: Ephesians 6:14

Ephesians 5:8-9 'For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth).'

How to live as Children of Light -> ***Ephesians 4:17-5:17

Ephesians 4:21-24 'You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.'

1. Put off the Old Man/Self!
a. Ephesians 4:17-19 'So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, with a continual lust for more.'

b. After Jesus resurrected Lazarus from the dead, Jesus said (John 11:44) "Take off the grave clothes (symbolises old life) and let him (the old self) go!"

Colossians 3:8 and James 1:21 use the words "Rid yourself of..." & "Get rid of"!

2. Be Renewed in the Mind
- God does not just want to change our ways, but the attitude of our minds.

- It is a Passive Process, meaning it requires us to be willing.

Romans 12:2 'Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.'

3. Put on the New Self
- Live like the Lord will live.

- Romans 13:12-14 'Clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ.'

- Living a holy life is more than not sinning. Being righteous means

>stopping the sin

>and working with our all to do what God wants us to do for others.

Sermon 25feb: Know Your Enemy & SIT-WALK-STAND!

For those of you who missed it, please go to FCBC Sermons Online to hear/view it. I forked out time yesterday for it, and was thankful that Ps Khong painted a clearer picture of our enemy for me, and prepared me to put on every piece of my Armor in the coming weeks.

Some of my key learning points (which i think it's important for you to know & be prepared, soldiers!) from
'Know Your Enemy - Living Bold in Spiritual Battle'
Key Verses: Ephesians 6:10-13

1. Three Truths about satan
a. Satan is Alive.
Our greatest problems are in the Supernatural. But the devil tries to deceive us that our problem is in the natural, while he deals with us in the supernatural. Really crafty.

b. Satan is Active.
He is actively looking for opportunities to attack/destroy us and rob us of God's blessing for our lives. Sometimes he does this by giving us the GOOD things to distract us from the BEST. Ephesians 5:15-16 tells us that our days are filled with the evil plots of the devil.

c. Satan is Able and Powerful. (He is no pussycat)
1 Peter 5:8 he 'prowls around like a roaring lion'.
If the devil cannot lead us to destruction, the Bible will not warn us.

How powerful?
> he is not omnipotent (all-powerful); only God is.
BUT he is more powerful than us because he moves in the spiritual realm.

> he is not omniscient (knows everything); only God is.
BUT he knows more than us; he's been around since Adam was created!
We cannot rely on our understanding and wisdom to fight him.

> he is not omnipresent (exists everywhere concurrently); only God is.
BUT he has many different little demons to be all over the place, reporting to him about us.
And he still has more freedom than us, because he moves in the spiritual realm.

2. Thus, in order to overcome the devil, we need the spiritual means
- Actively put on EVERY piece of the Armor of God.
-Not one piece can be missing!

Firstly we must
a. SIT tight - Rest in Christ's victory, know our position in Christ (We are seated with Christ in heaven - Ephesians 2:1-6)

b. WALK Right
Ephesians 4:25-32 When we walk right, the devil has no opportunity.
- Every sin is an open invitation to the devil. And he will come.
- Whereas A righteous man/woman is a powerful weapon.

We can Sit tight and Walk right, but the devil will still attack us. That's his calling. Heh. Therefore,

c. STAND and Fight him. RESIST the devil and he will flee from us.
We are covered by the blood of Jesus.
If we do not walk in devious ways, we can resist him and stand against every accusation and opposition from him, and tell him to go.

[Full sermon online]

What exactly is the Armor of God?

As mentioned, it is important for a soldier to recognise and be familiar with her own weapons and equipment. As i continued to look into the Armor of God, here is a chart which is useful to help us sharpen our armor.

(Click to zoom in)

TO DO:
1. Please do spend some time looking through (in the chart) the scriptures of Truth and power which the Armor is based on.

2. Pray through each piece. A guided outline can be:

The belt of truth: Thank You Jesus that You are the Way, the Truth and the Life. You are the only true and living God, the Creator of heaven and earth, the Sovereign King of the universe, my Father who loves me, and my Shepherd who leads me. You are my wisdom, my counselor, my hope, and my strength. You are all that i need.

The breastplate of righteousness: Lord, indeed who am i that You care and died for me. I, a sinful person, do not deserve Your mercy or even to be in Your presence, but You have shown me deep Grace by taking my sins to the cross and declaring me righteous. Lord, show me any sin that I need to confess right now, so that nothing will hinder me from being filled to overflowing with Your Spirit. [Take time for confession] Thank You for forgiving me and for filling me with Your righteous life.

The sandals of peace: Thank You for the peace You give me when I trust and follow You. I will not be troubled; i will not be fearful (John 14:27). Show me how to help others find that peace.

The shield of faith: Without faith, it is impossible to please You (Hebrews 11:6). Thank You for helping me have faith in You. We will not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but be strengthened in Your faith and give glory to You, being fully persuaded that You have power to do what You have promised (Romans 4:20-21).

The helmet of salvation: Thank You for promising me salvation both for today's battles and for all eternity. LORD, You have assigned me my portion and my cup; You have made my lot secure (Psalm 16:5).

The sword of the spirit, the Word of God: Thank You for the scriptures you have deposited in my heart. Please show me which one(s) You want me to use to cut through deceptions and gain Your victory in any battle I may face today.


3. Answer the question i posted in the previous post: Which of this areas do you think you have not regularly and confidently sharpened? Work on it/them!

(Reference from http://www.crossroad.to/text/articles/armorofgod.html)

Soldiers of the Cross... Full Armor gear up!

The Full Armor!

(And you thought that architectural students could draw all the time =p)

If there is no battle, there is no victory. We as daughters of God, warriors of Light, and soldiers of the Cross, need our full armor to engage in the battle - spiritual warfare!

Ephesians 6:12-13 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.

Get your Full Armor ready! (Read Ephesians 6:10-20)

* * *

Reflection

Please answer: Item 1-6, which ones do you think are weaker (i don't think non-existent) in your life?

For me: i think the Sword of the Spirit. I remember verses only part by part, and many times forget their references.

> I want to polish my Sword by going deeper in the word of God - memorising them in my heart, so that they correct and align my thoughts and intentions sharply according to God's will for my life.

> This also helps me rebuke the devil in times of temptation and weakness. (Check out how Jesus rebuked Satan with the Word of God many times when He was tempted in the desert in Matthew 4:2-11)

> This leads me to guide and correct others not basing on my own standards and wisdom, but only God's.