Peter Tan-Chi - Unchanging God, Live Wisely
Change is inevitable. How many of you like change? Be honest with me, do you like change? Please raise your hand. You see, most of us don't like change. Do you know how I know? Where you sit, some of you have written your names on your seats. Every Sunday you come, I will know roughly, just like my friends will be sitting here. Some of you will be sitting in that area. I know, and if you hadn't come, I would have known too. Because you always sit where you like. We are all creatures of habit. We love our comfort zones, but the truth is, change happens. Some changes are good, some are not. Changes in technology... Years ago, our company was the first to have an IBM 360 system, and there were two big companies, Burroughs and IBM, and then the technology changed. At that time, our computers were housed in a house, and you needed a house to house the computer.
Today, believe it or not, this thing is more powerful than that big computer room. This is a change in technology. How many of you remember this phone call from our time? Please raise your hand. You see, I know your age. Because I used this phone when I was chasing my wife. Our long-distance calls, believe it or not, cost a lot of coins. Now, times have changed. Business has also changed. How many of you have tried taking an Uber? Please raise your hand. In the future Uber will replace the taxi business, they are the largest taxi company in the world. But the most amazing change, and that's not good, is today's youth. Generation Z refers to people born after 2000, pretty much. Generation Z, young people. Is it acceptable for someone to be born one gender but feel like another? The results of the survey were shocking, with 69% saying it was absolutely fine. Times have changed.
This is not good. For example, engaged Christians believe that these people are Christians. Is it acceptable for someone to be born one gender but feel like another? 44% of Christians said that it is possible because of the media, the Internet, and the rapid increase in information (amount). Many people have not received this education: what should be changed and what should not be changed. How many of you were here last Sunday? Do you remember Just MacDowell's statistics on today's moral quality? Do you remember?
In 1990, one in 26 teenagers had an STD. By 2000, it was one in 12. By 2010, it was one in four. Imagine one in four. By 2017, as of January 2018, it became one out of two. In other words, if you are a teenager and your friends, 50% of them will have a sexually transmitted disease (STD). Some of these viruses are incurable. My friends, there are things that should change and there are things that should not change. So our topic today, for the next four weeks, folks, let's read this together: God doesn't change, live wisely. Please turn to the person next to you and tell your neighbor: God does not change, live wisely. Now, what do we mean? God does not change. For example, in Malachi 3:6: Because I, the Lord, do not change, you sons of Jacob do not perish. I'm going to expand on this verse in a minute, but in the meantime, let me tell you, God is saying, I don't change. God doesn't change, which means His Word doesn't change, His character doesn't change, His attitude doesn't change, and His nature doesn't change. Because God does not change. Theologians call this the eternity of God. I'll explain that verse shortly.
Let me give you another verse. Hebrews 13:8, Please read: Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. What is the Bible talking about? God does not improve because He is perfect. He does not change because He is perfect. He does not grow, He is perfect. God's eternity is our great comfort. His will does not change, His words do not change, and His promises do not change. Because God is eternal and unchanging. I like this quote from Arthur Pink: "He can't get better, He's already perfect. Being perfect, He can't get worse". Many times you and I will change, what do I mean? For example, a boy and a girl love each other, but that love can change. One person makes a decision for the company, and this decision can be changed. Why? New information, because new information, oh! I must change. God doesn't have this problem.
When God chooses you, He knows it from beginning to end. What you will do and what you won't do. God is never scared. This is why it is such a great comfort to me that the unchanging God never changes. The Bible says: He loves you with an everlasting love and He knows everything. So God does not change, praise God. You and I will change, couples will change. But God doesn't change. Hey guys, what's today's message? God does not change, so what must you do? To live wisely, in other words, you have to align yourself with God. His Word doesn't change, His values don't change, but don't think you can change God. You need to change. He loves you.
What's the message today? Folks, God doesn't change. What must you do? Live wisely. What does it mean? Want to live wisely? For example, in Ephesians 5:15, 17, read this verse together: Take heed, not to act as fools, but as wise. How you should behave refers to how you should live and how you should conduct yourself. The Bible says, don't be like fools, but be like wise. Everyone, read this scripture: Do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. In other words, because God does not change, His will is perfect, and because it is perfect, you have to do what He wants you to do, because God does not change. A wise person obeys God. You do not disobey Him, for it would be foolish to disobey Him, for God is God and He has the power to carry out His plan. He has the power to fulfill His promises. But we are human, and we need to align our will with His will.
So what do you do? Folks, I want to share this verse with you: How should you live wisely? Let's read this scripture together: Matthew 7:24 Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice will be likened to a wise man who built his house on the rock. Here you see a smart man. Who is the smart man? First, he heard the words of Jesus. You hear the words of God. What are you going to do? If you follow this, you will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. I'll explain this in a moment. The Bible tells us that the rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew against that house, but it never collapsed. Because the foundation is built on the rock. Some things don't change, the rock represents Jesus, the word of Jesus, the word of God.
Then, there is another parable of a fool. Everyone, let us read this scripture together: Everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. You and I are not going to invest millions of pesos to build your house on something that is going to move, that is unstable, you are not going to do that. So Jesus is an amazing teacher, and He tells us, then the rain came down, the floods came, the wind blew, and hit that house, and it collapsed. And it collapsed big time. I would like to give you the following observation points: Observation point one: There are two kinds of people who build houses.
Next observation point: From the outside, you would not know that this house is built on solid rock. This house is built on solid rock on the sand. From the outside, they are all the same. Building your house, to me, means building your life, building your home. Invest your time and energy in things that are valuable to you. Many of you have families and you love your children. My question to you is this: What kind of family, what kind of life are you building? Is it built on a solid foundation? It's the Word of God, Jesus. Or is it sitting on unstable quicksand?
Another observation: You won't know the difference until you're tested. The storms of life will come. When the storms of life come, floods, heavy rains, what are the storms of life? Relationship problems, financial problems, health problems, trials, tragedies, when the trials come, can you survive? Will your family survive? Will your marriage survive? Or will it crash? Most of us focus on what we can see. Many Christians focus on the outside. God says, you have to go back to the foundation. What foundation is your life built on?
How many of you have seen the Empire State Building? Please raise your hand. good. I've been to the Empire State Building many times, and we used to have an office in the Empire State Building. When you go to the Empire State Building, you rarely hear someone say: Can you take me to the basement? I want to see the foundation. No tourist would go, unless, perhaps, an engineer, or someone concerned about the stability of the Empire State Building. Most of us only look at appearances. Many of you only focus on appearance. But God is saying that sooner or later, life's storms will come.
My message today is very simple. The Bible does not guarantee that there will be no storms in life. But God tells us that you can have a life that can weather the storm. Your home is not immune to storms, but you can have a home that is storm-resistant. That's my prayer for all of us, for all of you. May you understand that to live wisely means to build your life by obeying God's Word and to listen to God and not just listen to it but act on it. A wise man, listen to me now, will listen and act accordingly. Many of you have been here for weeks and months. You attend Bible studies, you listen to sermons, but you also have to act on what you hear. There are many, many people today who listen to the Word of God, but they do not obey it. Jesus is telling us that is unwise. You see, you can't go against God's will, God's will, because it doesn't change. And God has the power to do it.
A few years ago, I was told that I had neurological problems. I was told that my muscles were dying. I had C3, C4 neurological problems. It never bothered me, I knew it. I had a physical and I knew something was wrong with my nerves. Can I tell you, I didn't do anything and why? I didn't feel any pain because there was no pain. Unlike some people who have neurological problems, they pinch their nerves and deal with the problem. Pain is not a bad thing, pain requires you to pay attention and do something about it. But often, we do nothing. Until many years later, imagine that after ten years, when my muscles are almost dead and become muscle atrophy... My classmate is a doctor and warned me. My classmate said: If you do something to your C3, C4... If you don't do it, one day you will be unable to move your hands.
When I heard this, I did something, I went to the rehab center, I tried to pull my neck, in other words, I did something, and now, Lord willing, you do it for me Pray, okay? It will be difficult for my nerves to recover, because the (peripheral) nerves will branch to infinitesimal sizes, but my muscles will recover. Why? Because I need to do something about it. My wife told me, baby, I've been telling you for so long, let you do something about this. My wife gave me a prescription, which was CMB. So I told my wife, what is C-M-B? Is that a medical term? Honey, she said, just do it. I said, tell me, what is CMB? C-Carry, M-my, B-bag, Carry my bag, carry my bag. You know, the doctor said, she's right, don't be too heavy, the bag is just the right weight so I can do a shrug, okay? I focused on the muscles in my shoulders. My friend, there is a difference between knowing and doing. What's the message today? Live wisely. God does not change, so what must you do? Live wisely. How to live wisely? Something needs to be done about this. Be aligned with God's will.
So if you understand that God does not change, and you live wisely, you will begin to experience these three Cs: What are these three Cs? You will experience that if you live wisely, you adjust yourself to obey God and trust Him. You will find comfort in Him. You will experience the birth of belief and you must develop strong faith. To live wisely, you need to develop strong faith. And you must have the courage to act on your beliefs. So the message I want to talk about today, the theme today, is just one thing: God doesn't change, so what do you have to do? Have to live wisely. Can you tell the person next to you, look them in the eye, and tell them: Are you wise? Are you wise? If you are not wise, it is not too late, live wisely. Everyone says it again: Live wisely. What does it mean to live wisely? You have to adjust yourself to do God's will. Don't expect God to adjust himself to you; adjust yourself to him.
So I will explain what it means to live wisely. Do you remember this scripture? Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever. Only God never changes. Only God is the same yesterday, today, and forever. You and I will change. I promise you, OK? Look at these men, you over forty, over fifty, notice what happens to your chests? Your chest moves toward your belly, doesn't it? What happens to your body as you get older? Did you feel some kind of pain? The body changes. But God doesn't change. In essence, His love does not change and His character does not change because He is perfect. What is the context of Hebrews 13:8? What is the context? If you want to understand the power of this scripture, you need to understand the context.
Let me tell you what the context is. He's talking about the storms of life. Let's look at Hebrews 13:5. Everyone read: Do not love money. Be content with what you have. Because the Lord has said, I will never leave you nor forsake you. This is an amazing truth about God. He doesn't change. He promised: I will never leave you nor forsake you. You understand, in the Greek, I will never leave you nor forsake you. This is called a double negative. If you want to emphasize something, I will never, never leave you, I will never abandon you... They will repeat, repeat, sometimes three times, sometimes it may be a triple negative. No, I will never leave you nor forsake you. Look at this double, triple negation. Because God doesn't change, He tells us, when you have financial problems, He tells us, don't love money in your heart.
You see, when the storms in life come. For the Hebrew believers, their money was being confiscated, and we have to understand that in Roman times, if you were a Christian, sometimes it was a capital offense, what they would do, they would go to your house and take away your All that stuff, no courts are going to protect you, no due process, so Christians suffer. They took away the Christians' belongings, and God was reminding them. The Bible is telling us, don't put your faith in money now, don't let money become your idol, and you must not love money in your heart. There is nothing wrong with money itself, but the love of money. When you make money your god, the Bible tells us, you will definitely be disappointed. So live wisely and trust firmly in a God who does not change. Money will bring you down and no amount of money will bring you a sense of security.
So the context is this: You must not let money become your god. You must not love money. There is nothing wrong with money itself. Money should become our slave, not our god. I know a lot of people who, when there's a financial crisis, they give in, they collapse. Do you know why they compromised and collapsed? They did not live wisely, and Jesus gave us a promise: No matter what happens, I will be with you. I will not leave you nor forsake you. What a comfort. What is faith now? The faith is this: You have to know that God is always there to watch over you. What is the verse after verse 5? Which verse? Section 6, smart! Let's read verse 6: Hebrews 13:6 So we can speak boldly, with courage and with firm conviction: The Lord is my helper; I will not fear. What can people do to me? My friend, if you live wisely and firmly believe in this truth: God does not change. He has given you a promise.
What is this promise? I will never leave you, I will never forsake you. Do you believe this promise? Then to strengthen your assurance and strengthen your trust in Him, He gives you the next verse. Hebrews 13:6 So we can speak boldly and with conviction: The Lord is my helper; I will not fear. Let me give you an example. I have a friend who is a millionaire and lives in North America. He does real estate development and he and his brother are partners. When the financial crisis hit the United States in 2007-2008, they lost almost everything. They emerged insolvent. In short, banks will stop lending you money. In short, you're in big trouble. what would you do? As a follower of Jesus, are you going to cheat? Are you going to run away? If you live wisely, you won't be afraid to face problems head on, because you know God is for me, and God has promised me that He will never leave me nor forsake me. Of these two brothers, one was a committed follower of Jesus and the other was not. That one has no faith and does not know the way of the Lord. Same incident, same company partners, declared bankruptcy.
Today, my friend, his name is Todd, my friend is back on his feet, generous, loving the Lord, busy doing the Lord's work, he has recovered. His brother never recovered, and when life's storms came, the house collapsed. He started drinking and his family was affected. My friend, you have to live wisely. To live wisely, know that God's promises don't change, His Word doesn't change, and His love for you doesn't change. God does not change because He is perfect. He loves you with perfect love. Unlike people, when they discover something, they change their mind. 44 years ago, my wife and I got married. 44 years ago, we promised each other that I would never leave you or abandon you. Why is this important? Because I have friends who have been married for 30, 40 years, and then they decide to separate, which is crazy, why do people do that? Why did you get divorced?
After 30 years of marriage, 40 years of marriage, let me tell you why. Because human love is very fickle, we will change. But my comfort is in God, who does not change. So I told my wife, I said: Baby, no matter what you do, I will love you, I will always love you. Doesn't this sound sweet? I tell my wife, nothing you can do will make me stop loving you. That's why you see my wife getting younger as the years go by. And she's doing the same thing to me, Nothing's gonna change the love I have for you, baby, I love you, I will always love you, that's the kind of love God has for us. My love may fail, but God's love for you never fails. So when the storms of life come, whether it's illness, money, or relationships, where do you find comfort? In God, He does not change. Isn't this beautiful? Praise God! So remember, God does not change and you have to live wisely. You have to have this strong faith that He promised me that He would watch over me.
My friend, this woman is a member of CCF, and I got her permission to tell her story, but I won't name her. She discovered that her husband had another family. You know, I realize, it's one thing for a wife to find out her husband has been unfaithful, that's one thing, but to find out your husband has another family, that's very painful. Not only that, she discovered that her husband not only had a family outside the marriage, but also had four children in one family and five children in the other. What an amazing thing it is now, this husband comes home every day. What would you do now? What would you advise this woman to do? I tell you what the world would advise her to do. Kick your husband out and pursue your own life and find your own happiness. Many of our CCF members have had this experience, but I praise God for so many of you, for your strong faith. You trust God. Her happiness does not depend on people or relationships, but on the unchanging God.
If you saw her today, you wouldn't know it. She's always smiling, but I know the pain. We have pastors who, if you look at their lives today, they hold hands... But a few years ago, relationships were a mess. Friends, is God faithful? louder please! Well, God doesn't change, so what do you have to do? Live wisely and follow His plan. Don't compromise, don't go your own way. Malachi 3:6: Because I, the Lord, do not change, you sons of Jacob do not perish. Do you know the context here? The context is this: If you read verse 7, the Bible says, you have been sinning, just as your ancestors did. You have been sinning against me. In other words, the Jews were not the holiest of people. But God says, because of my will for you, and because of my love for you, you do not perish. This means that I should have completely destroyed you, but because I have chosen you, you can rest assured that I will not change.
Now let me show you the context of this verse. In Malachi 3:1, the person prophesied was Jesus. It's amazing that the fact that we have faith in the Lord is because of Jesus. Look at Malachi 3:1: I will send my messenger (John the Baptist) before me, declares the Lord of hosts. The Way (Matthew, Mark, Luke, John). The Lord whom you seek will suddenly enter his temple. Why do I say this is about Jesus? Because the temple in Jerusalem was completely destroyed in AD 70, the Messiah must come before AD 70. The Bible says that the Lord you are seeking will suddenly enter his temple. My friend, that's the context of this verse, and then the context here says, God doesn't change, He will judge sin, that's the context, He will judge sin. Look at Malachi 3:5, everyone read: I will come near to execute judgment on you, declares the Lord of hosts. God does not change and He hates sin. 4,000 years ago, 2,000 years ago, and to this day, He hates sin. But He loves sinners, but He will judge sin.
I will be quick to testify against sorcerers, against those who commit adultery, against those who swear falsely, against those who defraud people of their wages, against those who oppress widows and orphans, against those who mistreat strangers, against those who do not fear me. In other words, God is saying, I will judge sin. So God doesn't change. Israel, you are a sinner and you should have perished. But, God says, the Lord does not change, so you sons of Jacob, the children of Israel, do not perish. So your best example of finding comfort in an unchanging God is the nation of Israel. When He makes a promise to you, He keeps His promise. What do I mean? The Bible clearly tells us why you should take comfort in the promises of God and in the character of God, because He will keep His promises. Let's read this scripture together, Psalm 33:11 The plans of the LORD stand forever, and the thoughts of his heart endure from generation to generation.
So let's take the nation of Israel as an example. How many of you realize that in the Bible, the nation of Israel is an example of God's dealings with us? It demonstrates God's unchanging character, God's unchanging nature, and God's ability to fulfill His promises. Let me quickly share with you the story of Israel. In 586 BC, the Babylonians destroyed the temple and the Israelites were dispersed. The southern kingdom of Judah and the northern kingdom of Israel were completely destroyed and moved to Babylon. From then on, they were no longer called a nation. for Israel. In 516 BC, God had promised that after 70 years, you would return to the Promised Land, so King Darius and King Cyrus decided to allow the Israelites to go back and rebuild the temple.
In AD 70, after the temple had been beautifully rebuilt, King Herod rebuilt it, but it was completely destroyed. The temple in Jerusalem was completely destroyed. Do you understand? Totally destroyed. The temple is gone. Then in AD 135, the Romans got really angry with the Jews because they were so stubborn, and they decided to kick out all the Jews and rename Israel to Palestine. The word Palestine did not exist until Rome decided to rename Israel Palestine. There is no such race called Palestinians. You must understand this. Hey, Hittites, Philistines, Amorites, these are the original inhabitants of Israel, and they have been lost. Then the Israelites came and made Jerusalem their capital for hundreds of years, and then something happened. What the world wanted to do to Jerusalem was contrary to God's will. God did something different.
In 1917, the most powerful country was the United Kingdom. The United Kingdom issued a mandate called the "Balfour Declaration". According to this mandate, the Jews could return to Israel and we would allow them to establish a country. Then, when When the Arabs heard the news, they suddenly became interested in Israel. We have to remember that for about two thousand years, the state of Israel didn't exist, it was a desert, it was a terrible place, you wouldn't want to live there. When the Balfour Declaration was issued, suddenly neighboring countries became interested. Why is it so important to understand this? Because when God says something, He does it. So what happened? This is what happened: 50 years later, the amazing thing is, like the Jubilee, 50 years later, the Jewish people, I mean, Israel became a state, the United Nations recognized Israel as a state. Do you remember? The Philippines, we were one of the few countries that voted to recognize Israel, and we were the turning point in that vote because God loves the Philippines. He asked us to stand with Israel, remember?
OK, then, in 1967, the Arabs attacked Israel, the Six-Day War, if you remember, and then in 1973 there was another war, and Israel took complete control of Jerusalem. This is God's plan. And then in 2017, last year, UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, declared that Israel had no legal or historical rights anywhere in Jerusalem. This goes against God's plan. What will God do? He raised up a man named Donald Trump, and what did he do? He said Jerusalem is the capital of Israel, and I recognize that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel. Isn't God amazing? Folks, you have no idea what a miracle it would take for Israel to have Jerusalem as its capital today. I will prove it to you. I have been to the United States many times and I have preached to Filipino congregations.
When I see the younger generation, I greet them in Filipino. You know what they say to me? Sorry sir, hi, I don't speak Filipino. Sorry, because they are my fellow Kababayans, so I speak Filipino to them. Sorry, sir, I don't speak Filipino. So now I have to speak American English and my pronunciation has to be accurate. Because we tend to forget our own country, within a generation. But imagine the Jewish people, for two thousand years. Think about it, for two thousand years there was no country called Israel, no land called Israel, no flag called Israel, no language called Israel, Nothing at all. But, after 2,000 years, God is saying, before the end comes, I will gather my people and bring them into their own country.
My friend, isn't God amazing? What's my point? very simple. When God says something, it happens. Matthew 5:18 Truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not one jot or one jot will pass away from the law until all of it is fulfilled. see it? I don't know where you find comfort, where you find your faith, where you find your courage. For me, it's the same God, the same Word, the same promises, the same purpose, the same plan that I align myself with. This is where I find my solace (peace of mind). Because God is unchanging, what must you and I do? Live wisely. Because God is unchanging, what must you and I do? Live wisely. What does it mean to live wisely? You have to adjust your life.
For example, let's read this verse again: Matthew 7:24 Therefore, please read: Everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice will be likened to a wise man who built his house on the rock. So...I've been teaching you how to read the Bible, and when you see the word "therefore," what do you have to do? What does "so" mean? How do you know the power, meaning, and application of this verse? You have to read the context. The larger context is the Sermon on the Mount, right? But the immediate context will wake you up, be wise. He now tells you how to apply it. Everyone, please read together: Matthew 7:20, 21, 22, 23, 24, let's read: Therefore you will know them by their fruits. In other words, who is a Christian? It's not just what you say. Christians' actions must be worthy of what they claim. So Jesus is clearly telling us that we can recognize them by their fruits.
Now let me ask you, how do you know this is a mango tree? How to know? Can a mango tree bear fruit? mango. How do you know it's a star apple tree? A star apple tree produces star apples. How do you know this is an orange tree? It will produce oranges. How do you know you are a Christian? answer. You will know them by their fruits. Do you understand now? Now read the next verse: The Bible is very clear, look at me. We are not saved by good works, we are saved by faith. Amen? Purely by grace, but saving faith never stands alone, and saving grace never stands alone, so don't be deceived. A lot of people think of a Christian as someone who has his hands up, oh yeah, I have my hands up, I walked up there years ago. My friend, that may or may not be the day you become a Christian. On that day, if you are a follower of Jesus, there will be fruit. So he explains now, and I'm talking to many of you, because the context is this.
Let us read this scripture together. Everyone read: Not everyone who calls me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven. Everyone read: Only he who does the will of my Father in heaven will enter. This is context. Please read the next section: Everyone read: On that day, many people will say to me, On that day, the day of judgment, When the storms of life come, every mention of storms refers to judgment, When that day , what will happen? Lord, Lord, have we not preached in your name, cast out demons in your name, and performed many miracles in your name? Then I told them plainly, I never knew you. Depart from me, you who do evil. In other words, this is not religion, preaching, casting out demons, performing miracles in the name of Jesus... Satan can do all of the above. The proof (of salvation) is that you obey God's Word.
If you love God, you will obey Him. It's unimaginable that I would tell my wife, my wife would tell me, honey, I love you, and she wouldn't listen to me. It's unimaginable. You cannot say: Lord, I love you, but I will never obey you. Lord, I believe in you, but I will never obey you. This doesn't make sense. So, Jesus said, don't be a fool. If a wise man hears this, what will he do? He will do it. So, ladies and gentlemen, my concern is that you do not have a strong faith, a strong trust in Jesus. You have to develop a strong belief. Who is Jesus? Who is a true Christian? A true Christian will put his faith and trust in Jesus, because he believes in Jesus and believes that Jesus died for his sins and has forgiven all his sins. He now lives a life full of gratitude, and the evidence is... Life changes. Please note, this is very clear, I never knew you, depart from me, you evildoers.
So, my friend, my appeal, my concern today is, are you living wisely? Are you aligning your will with God's will? Let me share with you the importance of faith. I will read to you now a letter written by a communist to his girlfriend. This letter is about a Communist student who wrote to his fiancée because he wanted to break up with her. Are you ready? What does belief mean? We are branded as fanatics. We are fanatics. Our lives are shrouded and dominated by one huge factor, the struggle for world communism. We Communists have a philosophy of life that no amount of money can buy. We have goals to strive for and clear goals in life. We subordinate our trivial personal lives to a great human movement. If our lives become difficult because we obey the Communist Party, then each of us is doing it in our own way. The idea of making new and better contributions to humanity is enough to compensate us.
There is one thing I take extremely seriously, and that is the cause of communism. This is my life, my career, my religion, my hobby, my lover, my wife, my lover, my bread and meat. I work for it during the day and dream about it at night. As time goes by, it affects me more, not less; so I can't continue a friendship, a relationship, or even a conversation without being able to talk about the cause that drives it. I, too, guide my life. I evaluate people, their appearance, their thoughts, and their actions based on their influence on the cause of communism and their attitude toward the cause of communism. I've been to prison for my ideals, and I'm ready to face the firing squad if necessary. That, my friends, is what the Communists believe. The only problem is this: the basis of his belief isn't true. Communism promises a utopia, but it cannot deliver communism because it is flawed and not based on truth.
When the communists take over any country, there will be rulers and leaders and the masses, and then you will immediately notice that in every communist country, those in power live a different life, they have different food, this The so-called classless life is a complete fiction. Communism cannot bring utopia on earth. The only person who can bring utopia on earth is none other than who? Jesus Christ, the King of kings. What a shame this is for us. My friend, it is a shame to us if we do not have strong faith. My friends, if we don't have strong faith, I want the cause of Jesus. To me, my belief is the Great Commission. Why do you think we make disciples? Why do you think we are never satisfied after sharing the gospel? Because according to Billy Graham, of the millions of people who heard his sermons, at most 3% or 2% would continue to go to church.
You see, Jesus' methods haven't changed, you have to make disciples, you have to teach them, you have to train them. Friends, do you share this belief? Let me share with you a couple who are role models in their faith. You have to have faith and have the courage to live it out. Let's welcome Bianca and Marti, a young couple with great faith. Let's hear their testimonies.
Praise God, you know? My daughter wrote her conviction when she was 16 years old. Do you want to know her conviction? This is my daughter's creed, written when she was 16 years old. I'm not going to have premarital sex. Now I don't know about you people, I don't know if you have faith, but can I share with you that when she was young, she wrote: I won't get drunk, I won't do drugs, I won't smoke, I won't No bad words... But you know, this one touches my heart: I won't kiss until my wedding day. On my daughter's wedding day, when Joel lifted the veil, I cried, and my wife cried, because when he lifted the veil from her face, it was very meaningful to us. She kept it secret. She was pure, having never kissed a man before. Friends, the problem as Christians today is that our values have been eroded and we no longer have faith. When you know the Lord, you will have faith. You will know what He wants and you will know what He does not want. Can I share with you my own beliefs? By the way, these are admirable beliefs, but it's up to you.
Can I speak to parents? To work out something with your children, it has to be of their own free will. I can't give you my faith. The faith has to come from you and the Lord. But my own beliefs are very simple. 2 Corinthians 5:9 Therefore, whether we are living in the body or away from the body, we set our minds to please the Lord. My conviction is that whatever I do, as a father, as a leader, as a pastor, as a businessman, it is all to please the Lord, whatever I do. My faith tells me why, because the next verse tells us, please read: 2 Corinthians 5:10 For we all will be revealed at the judgment seat of Christ, we will all be revealed, and I will give an account to God, we It will be revealed before the throne of Christ, so that everyone will be rewarded according to his deeds, whether good or evil. In other words, my belief is that I will give an account to God and that I am standing before Him now.
My friend, God does not change. He hated sin before and He still hates sin now. And God promises us that if you put Him first, my friend, do you have the faith to put God first? Do you have? Now if you don't have faith, your Christianity will be superficial, and you won't be able to experience all that God has for you. You can't experience God's best, why? Because you are not living wisely. You have to live wisely and find your confidence and comfort in God and His Word. Make a creed and see what He wants and what He doesn't want. Have the courage to follow through. Where does our courage come from? Folks, let's end with this verse. Deuteronomy 30:15 Behold, I set before you today life and blessing, death and disaster. This is my belief, God gives you a choice, life or blessing, death or disaster.
Now let me ask you, what do you want to choose? louder please! What do you want to choose? Dear friends, many of you come here, you do not know what it means to live wisely. You have to make a choice and do something about it. How do you act? Deuteronomy 30:16 You are commanded to love the LORD your God and to keep his ways and to keep his commandments, statutes, and judgments, so that you may live and increase in number, and the LORD your God will take possession of it wherever you enter. The earth bless you. God continually reiterates to us that you make the choice. Have you already made this choice? Live wisely. He repeated: Deuteronomy 30:19 I call heaven and earth to bear witness against you today. I will lay before you the blessings of life and death, so you must choose life...
Let us bow our heads, if God has spoken to you, I want you to meditate today, what beliefs is God asking you to practice? Some of you have never committed your life to Jesus. You have never had the belief that Jesus is the Son of God and that He is the Savior. You never had the faith that He would take care of your future if you trusted Him completely, and you were afraid to commit your life to Him. But today, if you are willing to commit your life to Him, I want you to follow me in praying this prayer today. At this time your heads are bowed, and I want you to pray a prayer and say: "Lord Jesus, please help me live wisely and give me courage."
To live out these beliefs, you need Jesus. Have you surrendered your life to Jesus? If you are not yet convinced that Jesus is your Lord and Savior, you are not yet sure that your sins are forgiven because there is no proof. Your life is characterized by lawlessness and disobedience, and I want to assure you that you need to repent today. Because He is giving you a serious warning. Live wisely to claim His promises and listen to His warnings.
As you bow your heads, if you want Jesus to be your Lord and Savior, could you please quietly raise one of your hands and I want to pray for you. Praise God! Lift it higher! You want Jesus to be your Lord and Savior, but you are just not convinced that your sins are forgiven. Keep your head high. Well, there are many of you, please pray this prayer with me:
Lord Jesus, I have no fruit of salvation. Today I repent of my sins and I surrender my life to You, Jesus. I accept you by faith as my Lord and Savior. I ask you, Jesus, to forgive my sins and give me a new heart. Thank you for forgiving my sins and thank you for giving me the gift of eternal life. Please help me grow to love you, we pray in Jesus name. Amen!