Peter Tan-Chi - Redefine Success
This morning we're starting a new series. It’s called life goals redefining success. You have to redefine success and all of us have goals. Believe it or not, before I give you a test, I want to ask all the group leaders to please stand up. All the group leaders, please stand up. Last Sunday, I told you that we were launching this campaign called Life Purpose. Your job is to inspire everyone in your group and get them involved in their life goals. So I now ask everyone on the panel to stand up. Anyone who is part of a group please stand up. All of you who are part of a group, please stand up, because here's what you need to do: You're going to invite your friends, and the topic is this, and you don't have to force them to come, because everyone wants to really succeed. You ask them: Do you want real success? They ask you: What do you mean? Finances, family, career...are you interested?
People are willing to discover what true success is. But this event isn’t just for all of you stand-ups. Now those of you who are still sitting, please stand up. Hey, do you think you can escape? Those who were still sitting, all stood up. I want all of you to be a part of this event. This is called plug and play, it's easy to understand, even a fool can do it, we have a video, you just need to have a loving heart, you invite them to lunch or coffee, and show them this video. When you release it, you discuss it with them. This information is very engaging and will help your friends think. Even if there are only one or two people, do you understand? Do you have a friend or two? At least there is someone alive, right? Do you have? OK, why are we doing this? very simple. We do this because our Lord Jesus Christ wants us to share His love with the world. Don't keep it to yourself, you need to share His love with others.
That's why I want all of us to come to this event. If you don't know how to do it, there are simple trainings you can take, and there will be more trainings. You ask your group leader and we will train you. So for the next six, seven, or eight weeks, every Sunday there will be a topic that you can discuss in your group meetings. If you missed a Sunday, you can watch the video, listen to this sermon, and discuss this. Do you understand? good! I praise God! All of you who are standing, please sit down if you refuse to participate. Are you telling me, are you all going to be involved? Because I don’t want to force you. I love you all. Thanks! Please take a seat. thank you all! Praise God!
So what is our series called? Life Purpose: Redefining Success. How many of you have set one-year goals, two-year, three-year, five-year goals? Please raise your hand! Some of you didn't raise your hands, are you telling me that you don't have any goals? Okay, let's make sure our communication with each other is effective. Whether intentional or not, we all have goals. Agree or disagree? For example, after a church meeting, some of you may wonder, where am I going to have lunch. The moment you think like this, you're setting a goal. Your goal is I'm going to have lunch at this particular restaurant after the party. So if you're thinking, what movie am I going to see after the party, that's a goal. In other words, a goal is something you have in mind and then you set out to do it. The only problem is: many times we don’t think about important goals. Because your goals and your understanding of true success influence each other.
For example, if you thought success was money, what would your goals be? Be honest. It’s the pursuit of money. What would you do if you thought true success was becoming a popular public figure? You will seek fame. That becomes your goal. You spend time on your Facebook, you spend time on your Youtube, you want to be famous, that's your goal. If your goal is that you want power, you might go into politics. In other words, your understanding of success will affect your goals. How can you have good goals if you don't fully understand what true success is? So before I get started, I want you to ask your neighbor and yourself, tell your neighbor, in your mind, how do you define success? Please, do you already have that definition? In your mind, what is success?
Whatever that is, today I'm going to teach you what, in my opinion, true success is. A lot of times, young people, especially millennials, they want to climb the ladder of success, and you really want to be successful. There's nothing wrong with that. This desire is God-given. But whatever that is, ultimately your definition of success will help you understand happiness. Success without happiness is the worst kind of failure. And each of you yearns for happiness, right? Like this famous French mathematician Blaise Pascal, you know he said that all people pursue happiness, all people. You know he said that all people pursue happiness, all people. This is the motivation for every action of every person, even the person who hangs himself, even the person who commits suicide, do you understand?
We all pursue happiness, the only question is how you find it. People don’t realize that God wants us to be happy, and that’s in the Bible. God created happiness. He gives you the desire to be happy. But you cannot find happiness without God. How I wish you and I could share this message with the entire world. There is nothing wrong with wanting to be happy. As many of you know, the United States may have the highest suicide rate in the world. In 2014, 42,000 Americans committed suicide. Next is Japan, with 24,000 people in one year, and then South Korea, with 14,000 people. Philippines, we are so blessed, how many people commit suicide? More than 2,000 people. You know why? Some are not reported. But we are blessed. Not many of us want to commit suicide. Many of you know this guy, Robin Williams, he was a comedian, but sadly, he committed suicide.
How many of you know this guy, Mark Salling, please raise your hands. You know, older people don't know this man, but young people, you know, he committed suicide this year, 2018. He is famous as the star of the musical comedy "Glee". But he committed suicide. What is success? Is it fame? Is it money? What about this person? Chester Bennington, vocals. How many of you know this guy? Please raise your hand. None of you from the older generation raise your hands. You don't raise your hands, do you know why? Because he is not from the same era as us, you don't know this person. But he is famous. Now he committed suicide, by hanging himself, he became depressed. You'd better redefine success. What is success in your mind? Because being successful but not satisfied is really the worst kind of failure. Our biggest fear shouldn't be failure, but success at things that really don't matter.
Let me repeat, our biggest fear should not be failure, because the truth is that you and I will fail. I tell young people, you have to try, don't give up, it's okay to fail. But the danger is that you succeed at something that really doesn't matter. The Bible tells us examples of success, but they are in vain. Let’s look at the second chapter of Ecclesiastes. The beginning of chapter 2 of Ecclesiastes tells us the author’s experience. The author said, I have tried everything, I pursue happiness. Have you guys ever heard of the term Yolo? I learned it from my friend Hayden, Yolo, do you know what Yolo is? You only live once. You can only live once. So there are a lot of young people, that's your belief. So they want to experience, there are many people, they live for this, that is their life goal, I want to travel, I want to experience.
My wife and I were talking to a woman in New Zealand. Very nice lady, we asked her, how is your life? What is your goal? We find out that she is living with a man. So we asked her, are you married? She said, no. They didn't talk about marriage. They have not talked about plans to live together permanently. It’s this idea, this experience, this happiness. They don't think, in the long run, that one day your life will feel empty. But that’s the status quo of most people today, constantly chasing happiness. Let us read this scripture together and learn from the experience of a wise man. Ecclesiastes 2:4-5 I started a great project for myself, building houses. Pay attention to the grammar. Houses are in more than one place. I planted vineyards. Pay attention to the grammar. It is plural. I make gardens (plural), taking care that everything is for myself, and plant all kinds of fruit trees in them.
If you talk about money, this man has everything, he has a lot of money. Because he can build many houses. I know people who have houses in South America, people who have houses in North America, people who have houses in Europe, and they have a lot of money. And this man had a lot of money, and he not only built gardens, he also built parks. Imagine Luneta Park, he has many parks, like Luneta, you know? I mean, this guy is super rich. Then he said, Ecclesiastes 2:8 I also laid up for myself silver and gold, the king's treasure, and the treasures of the provinces. Oh my god, this guy has a lot of money. He also got singing men and women, the things that people love, and many concubines. This guy is amazing. He had thousands of women in his life, 700? Wife, 300 concubines.
My wife and I remember discussing this, how do you schedule a shift every night for this? I mean, something could go wrong, right? For most of us men, having just one wife is enough to give us a headache. But this guy has tried everything, I mean, assuming you have this guy's ability to enjoy life. Ecclesiastes 2:11 Then I looked at all the work of my hands, and the results of my labor. Who knows that they are all vanity, chasing the wind, and are of no benefit under the sun. He described it as void, the Chinese version is beautiful, void, just void, meaningless, chasing the wind. Look at the rhetoric here, how do you catch the wind? You catch the wind, can you? Have you ever tried catching wind? Okay, get ready, let's give it a try. You know, I don't know, there was a movie made about this guy's life.
Have you ever heard of Paul Getty? You know Paul Getty is an amazing businessman. In 1957 Fortune magazine named him the richest American alive. The 1966 Guinness Book of World Records named him the world's richest citizen. Oh, this guy did it. To him, money is everything. He retired at the age of 24. Tired of it, he returned to work at the age of 26. This is the shortest retirement. He has amazing business acumen. He learned to speak Arabic, so he went to the Middle East to get oil fields and drill for oil. I mean, this guy, Paul Getty, was the founder of Getty Oil, and he's famous all over the world. His belief is that money brings happiness. So he is a miser. Do you believe? If you go to his house, in those days, they didn't have cell phones. If you want to call, he has a payphone at home.
In other words, if you make a call on my time, you need to pay. Understand? But he loves money as much as he lives. He is a miser and is very stingy. He installed a payphone. Imagine that you are his guest and you want to call someone. You have to find coins first and then start inserting coins. He is a miser. When his child got sick, he scolded his wife, why did you spend so much money to treat this boy. The boy had a tumor that affected his eyes. He scolded his wife. The boy became blind when he was 12 years old. When the boy died, of course his wife divorced him. He had five wives. The longest marriages, I mean, an average of two to three years, one wife after another, but you know, what happened to his son, his grandson, Paul Getty III, his grandson was in Rome was kidnapped, and then they demanded a ransom of $17 million. Then to show you how stingy he is, he doesn't want to pay.
The kidnappers sent him an envelope, cut off his grandson's ears and put them in the envelope. The kidnappers said in the letter, if you don't pay, we will start sending you different parts of his body. You'd better pay within ten days from now. They reduced the amount from $17 million to $3.2 million. This guy was a miser, and he kept bargaining down the price, and finally he agreed and paid $3 million, and he let his grandson go. But he asked his grandson for $800,000, which was the difference between $3 million and $2.2 million. You may ask, what's the difference? Because according to law, the maximum amount that can be deducted is $2.2 million. So he said, I paid $2.2 million, and you owe me $800,000, plus 4% interest. Can you imagine such a person? No wonder when his grandson grew up, he became a loser. He suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder, drug addiction, and alcoholism. His grandson eventually became a loser.
My friend, this is what Paul Getty said, the wrong pursuit, the wrong definition of success. His definition of success was one-dimensional, just money. He forgets that success is about family, about relationships, and this is what he said: Only when you fail in business can you build lasting relationships with women. Do you understand his concept? You cannot be successful in business and at home at the same time. I don't know who taught him. CCF didn't exist at that time, do you understand? He doesn’t know the true biblical path to success. And this is what he said: I hate the failure of my marriage and regret it. Note: If possible, I would gladly spend all my money just for a long-lasting marital success.
So my friend, I want you to start redefining what success is. So let me ask you again, what is success to you? Because your understanding of success will define your goals. You know, success without happiness is really the worst kind of failure. Right? God cannot give us a happiness and peace apart from Himself, for there is no peace or happiness apart from Him. There is no such thing. You see, God designed us. Since He designed us, we were created for God. Just like a car, a gasoline car is built to consume gasoline in order to run. Diesel cars are built to consume diesel fuel in order to run. You and I were made for God. You cannot find contentment and true happiness apart from God. No wonder Ecclesiastes tells us, what happened to this man?
Ecclesiastes 2:18 I hate all my labor, even my labor under the sun. For what I have gained I will leave for those who will come after me. I mean, this person starts thinking: What am I going to do with my park, all my house, all my money, what am I going to do? He realized that when I die, I have to leave this behind. How many of you feel like you can take your property with you when you die? How many of you truly believe that when you die, everything has to stay? Please raise your hand. You truly believe that everything will stay behind you. do you know? I have good news for you. There is one person who does not believe this, who does not believe that everything will stay. He told his wife, when I die, you must give me all my money, prepare all my money, and I will take it with me, so this guy died. When he died, everyone came to see the will, and they knew it.
The will says that I want my wife to give me all my money. So after the funeral, they asked the wife, how did you do that? His wife said, I followed his will. I wrote him a check. My friend, haha. So this is the conclusion: Ecclesiastes 2:19 Who can know whether the man is wise or foolish? He will have dominion over the fruits of my labor, which I gained in wisdom under the sun. This is also void. I want to speak now to all the parents and fathers here. You all worked hard and when you die you want to leave that behind. My question is, what are you leaving behind? For many families, it’s all material things. I submit this question to you, think about what true success is. Maybe, you should leave more than just money behind. Maybe you should leave your character behind. Don't spoil your children, sometimes money spoils them. How about leaving them an eternal inheritance? To understand who God is and what is the meaning of life?
Ladies and gentlemen, you and I really don't think about the future. We have goals, but our goals are so superficial. Someone once said that the truth about death has the uncanny ability to change a person's desires. Because death profoundly affects his vision. This is why I have this preference, if there is a conflict between a birthday party and attending a funeral, I would choose to serve at the funeral. Why? Because at a party, everyone is having a good time, but at a funeral service, people start thinking about eternity. If given the chance, I will share the truth about life and death with others. That's why you need to think through how you define true success.
Jesus gave us another version of Ecclesiastes, in Luke chapter 12, Jesus tells about a man who was very rich, and he had everything, and all he was thinking about was expanding his wealth, expanding his wealth, and then this is what Jesus said: Luke 12:19, He was telling a story describing this rich man, who was congratulating himself. And that’s a goal for a lot of people, what is that for you? That's your goal, that's your definition of success. What is the world’s definition of success? Then say to my soul, Soul, you have many goods laid up to pay for many years. Just eat, drink and be happy in peace and quiet. That's the definition of success. I will retire, eat, drink and be merry, I will travel from one country to another. Then Jesus shocked the audience when He said, Luke 12:20-21 But God said to him, You foolish man, (read together) this night my soul is required of you. Whose will be the things you have prepared? So it is with everyone who lays up treasure for himself but is not rich toward God.
Your perception of true success will change. When your perspective on life changes, as far as Jesus is concerned, Jesus said, you have a soul, and that soul is eternal, the soul is immortal, it's in your body, and when you die, it separates from your body. , the soul will migrate. You have a soul. Ladies and gentlemen, if you have no soul, if you have no spirit, it is OK to eat, drink and be merry. But if you believe with all your heart that there is more to life than this physical body, I suggest you really think about today's message. You have a soul, and that soul will continue... God is saying, you are an ignorant person, because you only think about this life, but you do not think about eternity.
So it is with everyone who lays up treasure for himself but is not rich toward God. People often ask me, why don’t we pass offering bags around the CCF church? Why don’t we ask people to donate money? very simple. We provide discipleship, and we tell people: You don't own anything. Everything you have is given by God and is entrusted to you. Part of my purpose is giving, and that's called tithing. Not just giving to church, not just tithing, I give to other things. But you need to think thoroughly and don't be an ignorant person. Don't think like this: you only have this life, that's not right. And I praise God, that’s not right. Because there is no justice in this world. I'm telling you, you can become so depressed, if you don't understand eternity. Because in this world, you often cannot see justice. But God tells us not to worry, for one day everything will be revealed. So you need to think about what true success is.
Here's a famous quote, I don't know who said it: I'm not afraid of you failing, but I'm afraid of you succeeding at the wrong things. That's another dimension of success. You're succeeding at the wrong things...what wrong things? Many of you have heard of this woman, Yasuko Namba. How many of you have heard of Yasuko Namba? If you like mountain climbing, you will know Yasuko Namba, because her goal in life is to climb the highest mountain, called Mount Everest. She has climbed the seven peaks, but the highest mountain is called Everest. What is her goal? Became the oldest woman in the world to climb Mount Everest. The first person to climb all the peaks, she did it!
There was just one problem, when she reached the top, she didn't come back because her goal was wrong. Your goal must be to reach the top and come back alive. That should be the goal. It’s not just about getting to the top. She didn't think about how much physical strength it would take to get back. She was completely dominated by the wrong goals. Some of us are governed by the wrong goals. Because your understanding of true success is wrong. I praise God for the Apostle Paul. He understands what true success is. For the apostle Paul, this was his purpose in life: Let’s read this scripture together: 2 Corinthians 5:9 We set our ambition (goal) to please the Lord. Understand? It's in the Bible. Paul had an overall goal. What is his overall goal? To please the Lord—whether abiding in the body or absent from the body.
So for the apostle Paul, he knew the reality of death. Whether in life or in death, in or out of the body, my goal is to please the Lord. Why that was his goal, to please the Lord in everything. I tell my children that your goal in life should be: to please the Lord. True success is living a life that pleases the Lord. right? Why is this important? Let me tell you why this is important. What is the verse after verse 9? Okay, it's section ten. His goal was to please God, and he did so out of common sense. He said, 2 Corinthians 5:10 For we all will be revealed at the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one will receive the reward according to what he has done, whether good or evil.
Ladies and gentlemen, please pay attention to what he says about truth. This is the truth, according to Paul, that we all, notice the pronoun here, all people, without exception, will be revealed at the seat of Christ. He is referring to Christians, and Christians are no exception. You have to give an account of your life. Many people think, I have come to know Jesus. Because I know Jesus, there will be no judgment. No, the Bible is very clear about the punishment of hell, the punishment for sin, that judgment has already been completed. Jesus died on the cross, taking the penalty for our sins. But how you and I live our lives is equally important as how you conduct yourself after knowing Christ. Because we are talking about giving an account to Jesus. It's about the reward, about what happens to you after you meet him.
Salvation is free, don't be confused. Our sins are forgiven because of Jesus. You can do nothing to earn forgiveness of sins. All my sin debt has been paid, amen? But how do I get through this life? The Bible is very, very clear. We all will be revealed before the throne of Christ (read everyone), so that each one will receive the reward according to his deeds, whether good or evil. You see, I couldn't represent my wife that day. My wife had to be responsible for her life, and I had to be responsible for mine. Everyone, my child, you, each of us, is rewarded according to what he has done, good or bad. You see, there is compensation, retribution, and reward here, and God is absolutely fair. He said our salvation is free, but the reward is different. Then He tells us that each person will be rewarded according to what he has done, whether good or evil.
So this was a sure thing for the apostle Paul. So his conclusion is, guys, let's read it again, what is his goal in life? 2 Corinthians 5:9 We set our aspirations, we set our ultimate goals... So ladies and gentlemen, let me tell you something, when I serve the Lord, when I teach the Bible, it's not for men, I do this to please the Lord. Because I will give an account to Him. Can I give you a definition of success? are you ready? Are you ready? Okay, here's the patented definition, and you can all copy it. What is true success? Attention everyone: True success is becoming everything God wants you to be, doing everything He wants you to do, and hearing Him say, "Well done, you good and faithful servant. Come in and enjoy your Master happiness".
Now let me expand on that. Be everything God wants you to be. This is related to the design principle. Be everything God wants you to be. This has to do with your personal life. True success has to do with how you live your personal life. This is not just for people to see, this is to give an account to God personally. Be everything God wants you to be. If you don't manage your private life properly, don't think that your success in the public realm will compensate for your failure in your private life. It’s about character, it’s about being like Christ. It is part of God's design that we are to be like Christ. So what is true success? The first is private life. Be everything God wants you to be. It has to do with being like Christ. Humility, character building, because that is true success, I try my best to practice self-discipline.
I practice self-discipline so that I can be everything God wants me to be. For example, read the Bible. My wife and I read the Bible. We try to read the Bible every day. Why? I needed God’s Word to change my character. Do you have such a goal? Have you ever read the entire Bible? You see, you try to read the entire Bible every year, and I read the entire Bible every year and study other books of the Bible at the same time. My wife and I developed a new habit of getting down on our knees and praying together every morning. This is called a spiritual habit. You must achieve these small goals in order to achieve the overall grand goal. What is the overall goal? To please God. How do you please God? Passed successfully. Number one, they say, be... tell me, be everything God wants you to be.
So that's character development, becoming everything God wants you to be. You need to practice self-discipline, I exercise, I watch my diet. So you need to understand that to reach your full potential, God designed you for this. Next, do whatever God wants you to do. Now, this has to do with meaning (of life). Because God has a mission for you. Do everything God wants you to do. For example, in my case, what does God want me to do? First, God reminded me that I am a husband, I am a father, and I need to take care of my family. So true success has to do with what God wants me to do. Part of that is being a good father, being a good husband. I can't trust my family to anyone else. I tell our pastors, a lot of times, you can delegate preaching to others, you can delegate meetings to others. But I could never entrust someone else to be a father. I cannot entrust someone else to be my husband. Part of my goals, when my kids were little and growing, I had goals, I wanted to spend time with them, I wanted to teach them the Bible.
So you have small goals, and the more complex overarching goal is to please God in all things. So what does he want from me? What about finance? I have financial goals because God wants me to be a good steward. So in this series, you're going to learn about finance. One of my goals is to stay out of debt. That way I won't feel stressed. And by the grace of God, at a young age, I was able to build my house, which was a 10-year loan, and I paid it off early. I borrowed money to start a business, and over the course of a few years I was able to pay off the debt. In other words, you need to have financial goals. One of my financial goals is: I don’t need to constantly ask people for money to support my ministry. So I don’t ask for money for personal ministry. Do you know why? Because that's one of my goals, you know? It has to be established financially.
Now, how are you? Let me ask you an honest question, how many of you have financial goals, like you want to be debt-free, or you want to own a house, if you have such a goal, please raise your hand. You see, a lot of people don't think about this, you need to think about it. Purpose is how can I best serve God. Once you have these goals, I can almost guarantee that you will eat out less often because eating out is very expensive. These are the so-called money leaks, money leaks. You'll be going to Starbucks less often, and you know why? That coffee is so expensive. I think CCF’s coffee is much cheaper. The cheapest coffee actually is when you go home and make your own coffee. Understand? You have to have these goals, to be everything God wants me to be, to be a steward of my job, our company, we have to have goals.
Do you know the goals of CCF as far as ministry is concerned? By 2020, our goal is to have 20,000 groups in the Philippines alone. There are 200,000 groups around the world. You see, we have goals. Because that is the direction God has given CCF. So part of my job is to communicate this vision to everyone. That's why I want you to be a part of this amazing mission that God has given us. You see, we never invent our mission. Why do we make disciples? Why should we preach the gospel to others? Why? answer! Our Master, Jesus, commands us to go into all the world and make disciples of all nations. I'm just doing what He tells me to do. Many Christians like to do what they want. They want to serve God on their own terms. But that is not your mission from God.
So be careful. You better find out what God wants you to do. The calling is very clear. Do we understand? So when you finish listening to this series, you need to take the time, sit down, and write down these goals. And here's the thing: your goals can't be limited to this life. Because look at this definition of true success: And hear Him say, attention everyone, Well Done! You good and faithful servant, come in and enjoy your master's happiness. This has to do with eternity. You have to be prepared. Because ultimately, I pray, please pray for me, that I can hear Jesus say: Well done! Now the question is how do we do this? How to do it? What is the roadmap? You know, whether you like it or not, all of you have a road map, consciously or unconsciously.
I'm reminded of a guy named... He was a good guy. His name was Colonel George DeLong. Colonel Georges DeLong wants to go to the North Pole to stake his claim. He wanted to reach the North Pole for America. He wanted to erect stakes to assert his sovereignty. Someone gave him a map. There is this message in his map: The map talks about the open Arctic sea, saying that no matter what, there is always something there that makes it navigable. That was his understanding. That's called the open Arctic sea, the one without ice. My friend, this guy in 1879, relied on this map, and within a year, he was stuck because the map wasn't right. Above the North Pole, there are ice caps. They thought they could break the ice, and after breaking the ice in some way, they could find the open sea. There was no open sea there, just rock-hard ice along the way.
Three years later, he starved to death. The group separated. Some went to Siberia, some went another way. But here's the point: He was relying on the wrong map. He was deceived by the map. You all have a map, and you have to think about how to navigate your life in order to achieve true success. My question to you is, what kind of map are you using? What is your premise? You see, all of us have assumptions. As you go through life, you are thinking, I want to live my life like this. My friend, I have something to tell you. It 's one thing to fail, but it's another thing to fail because of the wrong map. Your life will be a mess. Do we have a map? God tells us, and a lot of people don't understand, God wants you to succeed.
I've studied the word success, and throughout the Bible, and I found that the first time the word success and prosperity appears in the Bible is in Joshua chapter 1, in Joshua chapter 1 verse 8, we Let’s read this scripture together, okay? For the first time in the Bible these two words are combined. Let’s read this scripture together: This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to obey everything written in it. In this way, your path will be prosperous and everything will go smoothly. Note the two different Hebrew words, prosper (salah) and success (sachal). Many times salah is translated as: success and vice versa.
The first occurrence of the word success is in Genesis Chapter 24. It talks about Abraham's servant, and the word is salah. The servant said, He looked at Rebekah and said, Is this the lady who is going to be my master's wife? Then the word success came along. He said... He looked at her and said in his heart: Will the Lord make me successful? In the Bible, success is always associated with God. Say it with me, everyone, success is always connected to God. Because God is the source of our success. God is your ultimate map. So for Joshua, he was given a mission, and that mission was to enter the Promised Land. Joshua, how do you accomplish this mission? How do you succeed in your mission? You have to do this to succeed. This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth; you shall meditate on it day and night.
Ladies and gentlemen, don't just read the Bible, you meditate. Meditation comes from the word rumination. Just like a cow, you have to ruminate, return the food bolus from the cow's stomach to your mouth, chew it over and over again, and you have to meditate and think about it over and over again. Ladies and gentlemen, I can only understand when I begin to meditate. Reading is one thing, and then you meditate on what you have read. So I keep a simple journal, and I try to use my keyboard to write down what God is saying to me. So no matter what kind of exercise you do, but the road map is based on God, His Word and Himself. Please read it, everyone, and think about it day and night, loudly!
Now be honest with me, today is confession time. How many of you read the Bible every day? Please raise your hand. Lift higher, higher. Lift higher, lift higher. Those of you who didn’t raise your hands, you haven’t made it a habit to read the Bible every day. I ask you now, how can you expect to achieve real success? How do you navigate life? You know I care enough about you, and I pray that you care enough about yourself. I hope you won't regret it for the rest of your life. You know that the most tragic thing is to live with regrets for the rest of your life. And a lot of people don’t understand priorities. You know, I'm surprised that, for example, there are people who would rather golf than come to worship on Sunday, but I praise God that I see a lot of them here, right? You know why? They stopped playing golf on Sunday mornings because they understood what was more important. Worship God and listen to God's Word, so they change their priorities.
Now I don't know how you set your priorities, how you set your schedule. But for us, you need to prioritize your relationship with God. And He will guide you. Please pay attention to the next verse and read it again. You must always think about it day and night. louder please! So that you... What is the purpose of studying the Bible? Our Bible study group, what is our purpose in studying the Bible? So that you...what? All people, those who belong to various groups, so that you may observe and obey everything written in this book. So the Bible is very simple, whatever God says, your job is to do it. This way you can succeed. And then the Bible tells us, so... this is the by-product, the result, of right action, and the result will be, everybody read: Your way will be prosperous, and everything will go well for you.
Some of you want to prosper, please raise your hands. How many of you want to be poor forever? hehe. Prosperity is not always about money. It is a by-product of abundant life. Then everything will go well (succeed) for you. My friend, is the Bible clear? good. What's the message today? You have to redefine success. What is success? Just remember what true success is. First, become everything God wants you to be. Please repeat: Be everything God wants you to be. That's your private life. Do everything God wants me to do. That's your mission, your job, your family, your business, so what are you going to hear him say? here you go! You are a good and faithful servant. How is this word used in the Bible? salah, sachal, how is this word used?
Okay, let me give you an example. This example is about how God wants you to succeed. Do you believe God wants you to succeed? Okay, it's the story of Joseph, I love this story. The story of Joseph is an amazing story. But notice what Joseph emphasizes. Joseph, remember? He was sold into slavery, as a young man, he was sold, when he was very young. This is what happened to him. After being sold into slavery, he was purchased by a man named Potiphar. Now let’s read this together, Genesis 39:2 The Lord was with Joseph (even though he was a slave now) and everything went well for him (success salah). Please note this sequence, the key to success, the Lord is with Joseph. The key to success is to have a close relationship with God and have God's hand in your life. God will not be with you in your life if you do not obey Him. God was with Joseph. The Bible says that everything will go well with him (success salah).
Notice this sequence, God is with Joseph, and then what happens? He makes everything go smoothly (success salah). How could you possibly succeed as a slave? Then do what God wants you to do, no matter where you are. The Bible tells us, notice another verse, Genesis 39:3 And his master saw that the Lord was with him, and that the Lord made everything he did prosper... Again, notice the emphasis here: His master and saw that the Lord was with him. Let me ask you a question. In the office where you work, can your boss and your colleagues see God in your life? Have you ever wondered how his master saw God in his life? The Bible says that his master saw that the Lord was with him.
How have you seen God at work in someone’s life? The answer is? He is different. He works hard and he is loyal. Can I give one piece of advice to anyone who works for people? Make an effort to arrive early and leave late so you can leave a good impression of your loyalty. When someone asks you to do something, try your best to do it well. Think about how I can serve better. Instead of always trying to do the minimum, think about doing the maximum. Think beyond (expect). There is a story that when Russia was still ruled by Communism, the Communist Party issued an order to fire Christian workers from factories. Now, this guy is a supervisor, he's a manager. Someone told him: You expel that man, he is a Christian.
The manager was a Communist and he refused to fire him. Do you know why he refused to fire that man? He said: Sir! If I fire this guy, there will be problems in the factory. He is our most valuable employee. I cannot afford to fire this Christian. You know what got into my head? If all CCF members, if all Christians could act like this, your boss would say, you know what? I couldn't afford to let this guy go. My friends, we need to do this. This is why true success means: You become everything God wants you to be and do what He wants you to do. Christianity has a bad name today, and I'm sorry to tell you, but my heart feels sad: as I go around the world and meet different pastors, Christianity is actually a bad word in America today.
You know what they think of when they think of Christians? Judgmental, critical, unloving, always fighting, we are not showing the image of Christ. But you know what? Something is happening. There are many pastors around the world, and when we come together, we want to get back to basics, we want to get back to discipleship, and we want you, all of us, to live like Christ. Can you turn around and tell the person next to you to be like Christ. Then people can see Christ in us. Please note, Genesis 39:3 And behold, the LORD made everything he did prosper. Notice that the owner knew that God was in this man's life and that God was the one who made everything go well for him. You give God the glory, not yourself.
You know, the truth is: true success comes from God, amen? Tell your neighbor: True success comes from God. Genesis 39:5 The LORD blessed the house of the Egyptian because of Joseph, ever since his master made him steward of the house and of all that he had. Everything in the house and in the field is blessed by the Lord. In other words, they knew that God was the one who made them prosper. Everyone looks at me, true success is not selfish, true success blesses others. Joseph was successful and he blessed others. How do you live a meaningful life, if you just live it for yourself... You see, being everything God wants you to be is a blessing to others. That's real success. You leave a mark on other people's lives, you have a positive impact on people.
That, my friends, is success, just like Joseph. Be everything God wants you to be, do everything He wants you to do, and you will make an impact on others. But you know, the Bible is a wonderful book. The Bible inserts a sentence, Genesis 39:6-8. Joseph turned out to be beautiful and handsome. Do you know why this sentence is placed here? Let me tell you why. Because there was a woman, a dissolute woman, and she was Lady Potiphar. The wife of Joseph's master sent her love to Joseph with her eyes... so he must be very handsome. Remember, good looks, good looks, you know, like Mr. Philippines, OK? And the Bible tells us: She said, Lie with me. Joseph refused to obey... You know, I think, the Bible tells us that Potiphar seduced him every day, every day.
I know, some of you will say, it’s over, why is it over? If you were Joseph, I know what you would say, Lord! Submit yourself to authority! However, Joseph refused. Because Joseph knew the road map. The road map is to follow God and please Him. You need to follow this road map every moment of every day. For me, the road map is simple, I walk with Jesus. When I don’t know what to do, I ask Jesus. Lord, what should we do? When I have a question, I stop, Lord, what do we do? That's my road map. You see, God isn't telling me what I'll be like five years from now. All I know is this: God wants me to be here this morning, and because I'm here this morning, I'm going to do what He wants me to do this morning. Moving forward day by day is the road map to success. Just take it one day at a time and do what God wants you to do.
The Bible tells us that Joseph was a man of God. Do you know what he told the lady? In Tagalog: Madam, you are incredible! I don’t know whether Mrs. Potiphar is beautiful or ugly, okay? I can't tell you, but one thing I know, he told this lady, your husband is my master and leaves everything in my hands. I was in charge of his home, he turned everything over to me, and I became the boss. But he only left one thing with me, and that was you. I couldn't do this. You see, this man has integrity, but you know what's amazing about it? This is what he said, Genesis 39:9 He said, How can I do this great evil and sin against God? You see, I tell the wives here, you can't control your husband, you can't watch your husband, hold your husband accountable to God.
Many of you feel so frustrated because you want to play the Holy Spirit, you want to play God. I tell women, I tell men, relax, do your part, do what is within your control, do what is beyond your control... Do you have a romantic husband? By the way, we have a lot of them here, and I want you to know that God knows what you're doing. God loves you. Ladies, don't break a cold sweat. They are beyond your control. What are you going to do? You walk with God and let God deal with them. Joseph was such a person: How could I do such a great evil and sin against God? That, my friend, is the road map to success, your walk with God. The Bible tells us that the Lord was with Joseph. He was sent to a jail cell, can you imagine? Is it fair that I have been wrongly accused of being holy? Please tell me, is that fair? Sometimes, you don't experience fairness.
I know some of you are having questions today and you feel like this isn't fair. My friend, God is allowing these problems to happen in your life because true success involves being everything God wants you to be. Sometimes in the process of character transformation, He allows disappointment, He allows betrayal. In Joseph's case, he was betrayed twice, first by a family member and now by his boss, and now he's in jail, which is traumatic. But you know what the Bible tells us? Joseph continued to walk with God, even in prison. The Bible tells us that as each day passed, what happened to him? He became...over many, many years, we don't know how long, but over many years, at the age of thirty, he became the prime minister of Egypt. Isn't this amazing? A slave in prison, at the right time, he became prime minister. The Bible tells us that this is truly amazing.
What is true success? Look, everyone, be everything God wants you to be. Do whatever He wants you to do. and heard him say: Well done! A good and faithful servant. Pay attention, be faithful. Some of you may not be able to do super great things, but I want to be faithful. Let me tell you a story that I heard the last time I was in Dubai. I was in Dubai last week, a pastor in Fiji, one of the most successful pastors, and you know why? 12% of the population attends his church. You know, Fiji is a small country, but 12% of the population goes to his church. So this person is very loyal. He told us stories from Fiji’s past. Fiji is an island. The people on the island were cannibals and they ate humans.
There was a group of missionaries who decided to go to this indigenous area where the Kuyu people lived. But they were warned not to go there because no missionary had come back alive and they would eat you. But what does it mean to be faithful? Just do whatever God wants us to do. They are loyal. They fasted and prayed. So they went to the island and started preaching about Jesus. Then they heard that the chief was sick, so they asked if they could pray for the sick man. But to see the chief, you first need to talk to the lower-ranking chief. The fourth-ranked chief finally agreed, OK, you can pray for the chief. When they went to see the chief, the chief said: You know, my god does not listen to my prayers. I am ready to pray to your god. Please pray for me.
So they prayed for the chief. After praying, the chief died. My friend, if you were a missionary...what would they be thinking? Lord, we are about to be roasted. So they prayed. Do we know what happened? The chief is alive! After the chief was resurrected, he said, I fell asleep and two angels came to pick me up. The two angels first took me to a beautiful place and he was describing heaven. He said in that place, I met the prophets, I met Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, he had never read the Bible, you know? But he named them. I met Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and he named the prophets. Then the angel took me to another place, a very bad place. I saw a lot of young people and it was a bad place to be. Pain, suffering, and then the angel took me out. The angel said, you choose now, where do you want to go? If you were that chief, what would you say?
I want to go to that place up there. So the angel said, listen to the missionaries. So when he woke up, he called all the leaders. After telling them what happened, from that day on, the God of this place became the God of the missionaries. Isn’t God amazing? So if you go to Fiji today, you will see many, many churches. All because a few people were willing to risk their lives to be faithful to the call of Jesus. My friend, true success is hearing Him say: Well done! A good and faithful servant. That's what I pray for. Can we pray this kind of prayer? Everyone read, Matthew 25:21 And his master said, Well done, you good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a few things, but I will make you ruler over many things. You can come in and enjoy your master's happiness. The Bible tells us that true success involves eternity. To be faithful now, you have to think about the big picture.
As CS Lewis once said: All their lives in this world, all their journeys, were just the cover of a book: and now they finally began the first chapter of the great story that no one on earth has ever had. Read... Do you remember the book "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe"? He is saying that our life on earth, all the journeys, are just the introduction, the cover. Friends, you have no idea what God has in store for His people. Life on Earth is just the first page. The book about your life will be written from the day you saw Jesus. That day was a special day for all of us. But then I remembered that God has an amazing plan for your life. Towards the end, I want to watch a minute of Billy Graham's video with you, because Billy Graham understood what true success is. Let's hear his testimony.
That's my prayer. My prayer: please pray for me. We bow our heads. I wonder how many of you are truly ready to meet Jesus. I want to pray for you, and if you want me to pray for you so that you can be ready, why don't you stand up. Yes, please stand up. You want me to pray for you, you want to be ready, wherever you are, you tell Jesus that you want to achieve the right goals. And the truth is, we need help. I need Jesus to help me and make my ending beautiful and powerful. Is there anyone else? I'm going to pray for you, and before I pray for you, I want you to pray this prayer first. This is between you and the Lord.
Life is short my friend, eternity is long, think about this. What would Jesus say? Some of you are not even sure you can see Jesus. For those of you who know you are going to see Jesus, you may not even hear Him say, Well done, because you are living a double life. I hope you will humble yourself today. If God is speaking to you, stand up. You know, standing up is an act of humility. Because you are saying, "Lord, I need you". Praise God. Many of you, this is between you and Jesus. First, you pray this prayer. You pray like this, it's a humble prayer, start by saying this:
Lord, I'm not even sure I'll ever meet you. With the way I'm living my life now, I'm not sure. But Lord, I want to be sure. I come before you today as a sinner, and I ask you, Jesus, to save me from my sin. Thank you for dying on the cross and paying the price for my sins.
For those of you who know you are going to see Jesus, but you are not sure yet… you are not sure you will be able to hear Him say, "Well done"! pray this:
Lord, today I am going to make adjustments in my life. I want to readjust my goals, because Lord, times are changing and goals are changing, but You never change. So, Lord, my goal today, my overall goal, is to live a life that pleases You. I want to experience real success. Lord, please help me to be everything you want me to be. Help me to do everything you want me to do. Lord, I pray, I will hear you say: Well done! A good and faithful servant.
As you pray this to yourself, right now, you ask God, what new goals does He want you to have? Right now, even if it is just for a minute, wherever you are, please be still and listen to the Lord speak to you.
Father God in heaven, I pray for myself, and I pray for my friends who are standing up, that our wish, my wish, is the same as Billy Graham's, and our hope is that we will hear you say: Well done! A good and faithful servant! Come in and enjoy the joy of your master! thank you all! We pray in the name of Jesus. Amen! Amen!