Bro Charlie was back with us last Sunday! He shared a most timely message on the spiritual condition & growth of believers. And I felt like the below verses capture the essence of the crux of the sermon:
Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;
as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance;
but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, "Be holy, for I am holy."
And if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one's work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear;
knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from you fathers,
but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot. (1Peter 1:13-19)
It was LINE DANCING PARTY once more last night at St Faith, Kenyalang, organised by EBC Line Dancing Ministry!
A transformed life - that's the sharing by this young couple testifying the goodness of God. True salvation produces true fruits according to the power of God that works in us. To God be the glory.
Young Lavender is dancing like a semi-pro already... In fact, that's what I notice of the many who were on the dance floor... The skills are definitely increasingly in quantum leaps.
Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene went to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb.(John 20:1)
Today we celebrate the Feast of First Fruits. Today Christians all over the world celebrate the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. The significance of the resurrection of Christ Jesus 2000 years ago is of supreme importance to our Christian faith. For the Bible declares:
And if Christ is not risen, then our preaching is empty and your faith is also empty. (1Cor15:14)
And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins!(1Cor15:17)
Thus, part of Pastor Kueh's message this morning was on the irrefutable fact of the resurrection of Jesus Christ historically. In fact, pastor challenged anyone (who is still unbeliever?) to go do in-depth research on this most amazing historical event.
May I suggest, should you be interested, to start with "Antiquties" by Flavius Josephus, a most renowned Jewish historian. Or go check out Lee Strobel's book, The Case for Christ.
This morning it was good to see brothers & sisters in Christ from both the English & Mandarin service coming together to worship the Lord. And it was good to see brother Alan too! He sure is looking great!
It was also good to see some coming back from "distant places" in the service. Like brother Johnny! I also heard brother Clement had a "wonderful surprise" today with the unannounced return of his beloved daughter! Hallelujah!
Once more, the worship was simply awesome. Praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord for the super anointed worship team. The father-sons & mother-daughter combo were just awesome! ;)
Seriously, how many of you can have the honour & privilege to lead worship TOGETHER with your parents or children?
A MOST BEAUTIFUL sight - the way sister Deborah worship. Her eyes shining, her face glowing - her whole being was worshiping God Almighty. She radiated such joy, peace & grace. This is a person who KNOWS God intimately!
The Line Dancing team also performed a nice, short dance with a very cool finish - a literal "3-d cross"! (Meaning, from any angle, the audience saw a human cross formation.)
The other part of pastor Kueh's message this morning was on "seeing Jesus". Too often, we are transfixed at ONLY seeing our problems. Rather, TURN AROUND, let our eyes be focused on the Lord! After all, didn't the Bible says:
But the salvation of the righteous is from the LORD; He is their strength in the time of trouble. And the LORD shall help them and deliver them; He shall deliver them from the wicked, and save them because they trust in Him. (Psalm 37:39-40)
Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver him; I will set him on high, because he has known My name. He shall call upon Me, and I will answer Him; I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him and honor him. (Psalm 91:14-15)
It was wonderful to see so many responded to the message. God's Word cannot fail. Those who depend on the LORD will see salvation!
Happy is he who has the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the LORD his God. (Psalm146:5)
Yes, our LORD is RISEN! Hallelujah!
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. (1Peter1:3)
Beloved, Christ has been in heaven preparing a place for His bride (John 14:2) for almost 2000 years now, it is our hope that He will SOON return. We are living in a time that is witnessing Bible prophecies coming to pass almost at a daily rate. We are living in a time when events worldwide are marching towards the culmination as foretold in the Bible. We are living in the season of the Lord's return. Hallelujah!
And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. (John 14:3)
He who testifies to these things says, "Surely I am coming quickly." Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus! (Rev22:20)
Women's Joy Fellowship, a ministry of the church, helps to organize two concerts for 潘秀琼 at Kenyalang theater. It was not just a chance for the Kuching fans to meet her, more importantly, it was a chance for 潘秀琼 to share her Faith.
Both concerts were packed full, praise the Lord! Much thanks to all the volunteer ushers from both Chinese & English congregations. The concerts were very well controlled and managed.
It was obvious the crowds love 潘秀琼. Many mesmerizing faces here too just like earlier in the church ;)
潘秀琼 sang quite a few oldies: 情人的眼泪, 月亮代表我的心, 梭罗河之恋....
One of the most touching moment during the concert was her sharing on Teresa Teng! Both were in Japan for a period of time together, and both were seeing each other almost daily. And yet, 潘秀琼 did not share the Gospel of Jesus Christ with Teresa Teng, much to her regret now.
A scene from the concert. Part of the song 梭罗河之恋....
She would weave the sharing of the love of God in between songs and even making "fun" of her own songs for the purpose. Like this very cool "家家有本难念的经 vs 圣经"!
A group photo with some members of the Women's Joy Fellowship, and ushers.
Again, thanks to all the ushers and volunteers who came to help, and Women's Joy Fellowship for organizing the concerts.
This morning 潘秀琼 was at our church to share on the love of God and to WORSHIP!
Who is 潘秀琼? She is a megastar singer from the 60s/70s. From her sharing, she came to know the LORD in the 80s after a traumatic sickness (brain tumor). Ever since, she has been living her life UNTO THE LORD. Hallelujah!
How good was her singing? Well, from the faces of the congregation, it was simply mesmerizing! A sample below:
After many months of prayers & planning, today our Chinese congregation finally moves into their very own worship hall! Hallelujah!
No more do they need to "give way" to the flood of people coming in for the 10:00 am English service. Now they can linger, soak and worship in the presence of God for as long as they want...
Now our beloved Chinese congregation can focus fully on the teaching & preaching of the Word instead of been annoyed by the English congregation people peeking through the doors with the annoying "has it ended?" stares... ;)
Thank you Lord Jesus for this new place. May this place be a place of equipping & building up of the saints to the unity of Faith.
