28/6/2015 Sermon notes – staying young. No more shame. Double honour. (Ps Lim LIAN Neo)

I am rich. The grace of God gives me the ability to attract all good things to my life. – post communion 

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Video on medical mission trip: 

1115 people received Christ at a recent medical mission trip to Cambodia. This is the fruit of our giving. It’s a trip about love and not just medical miracles. The greatest of all is love. Better than just carrying out medical procedures. God is love. 

Each of us is broken. We might think the villagers are broken because physically ill and financially poor. But there is a brokenness in each of us whether we show it or not, or know it or not. 

Lady’s sense of smell was affected by salon chemicals where she worked in. She didn’t wear a mask and repeated exposure caused her to lose her ability to smell. Paid to see doctors but to no avail.  Prayed over and asked to smell olive oil. Couldn’t smell anything. Asked to pray to Jesus Christ. Then smelled anointing oil again and started to smell a fragrance. Praise Jesus. 🙂 

Old lady who couldn’t raise her arm, prayed over and was healed. 🙂 Amen. 

Hebrews 7:25 NLT

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Pastor Lian

Pastor Prince preaching on Tues evening and Friday morning in Hillsong. 

Shared a testimony from Legacy Camp:

First night Ps Daniel ministered. One girl came up for prayer. 5y she could not put up her arm all the way with no pain. After the prayer that night she could shoot her arm up with no pain. Praise the LORD. 

Pastor Lian was invited to serve in Arrow ministry. She was from youth ministry and then back to youth ministry after some years. 

Ps Ben messaged her a verse from a poem- Youth is not a time of life but it is a state of mind where courage predominates over timidity, adventure over the love of ease. 

Some 15yo are very old and some 50yo are very young. Lol. 

We can all be young just like Caleb was a young man 

Joshua 14:10-13 NIV

V11- still as strong today as the day Moses sent me out… Just as vigorous…

V12- …the LORD helping me, I will drive them out just as He said…

Caleb wasn’t over the hill. He was able to take the hill. 

STAYING YOUNG- today’s sermon 

I will take the hill country but I am not over the hill!!! 

What is it to stay young? What is it to be old then? What wrinkles our soul and weakens our heart and hands? 

Young people are strong with no wrinkles right? Even if there are wrinkles on your face you can be young without wrinkles on your soul. 

What makes us old is when our soul, our hands, hearts are wrinkled and our minds are weakened— by fear, doubts, condemnation, shame. Toxic to our soul. 

We are not fearful, doubtful, shameful. 

What is it about Caleb that keeps him young to run up and charge and take the hill? 

Numbers 13:30-31

Caleb quieted the people before Moses. “Let us go up at once and take possession because we are well able.”

Numbers 14:1-2

The people grumbled and wept that night. Complained against Moses and Aaron. 

Numbers 14:8-9

V8- If the LORD delights in use then He will bring us into this land and give it to us ‘a land which flows with milk and honey’.

First secret of Caleb? Love. LOVE MAKES US YOUNG. CALEB KNOWS THE LOVE OF GOD. KNOWS GOD IS DELIGHTED WITH HIM AND HE HAS A DIFFERENT SPIRIT -Numbers 14:24)

Different spirit = spirit of faith 

V9- Only do not rebel against the LORD nor fear the people of the land 

Second secret? Follow the LORD. Practice the presence of God. Emmanuel. God with us. When we do that, our souls are not wrinkled by fear. We know the LORD will bring us into the land. A people who when they see great challenges, they will not fear. 

Arrow leader. Grandfather in critical condition. Unconscious. 80+ yo. One of the leaders, Lily, stepped up. She said, we can take this mountain because the LORD will do it got us. Ps Lian can’t speak mandarin well so wisdom told her not to preach to him. Prayed and cried out for mercy for him. God raised the right person, someone with a different spirit. Lily went down and zhun zhun guni Hun, he was awake and lucid. She shared the gospel, said uncle if u want to receive, squeeze my hands twice. He squeezed many times. After that the grandfather kept reaching out for Lily’s hand to keep holding her hand. Like trying to confirm repeatedly he believes. 

Whatever challenge is before us it will be like bread for us. We are young and ready for mighty exploits. 

The world always says old already. What differentiates us from the world? Spirit of faith. Not afraid. Fearless. 

Acts 4:13- boldness of Peter and John… Marveled. Knew that they had been with Christ. 

What differentiates us is that we have been with Christ. 

Nothing is difficult for my God because He delights in me and will give the hill to me. 

What the devil will do to crowd out that faith from us-

A church member shared how he was in his 50s and in a high paying job and high position. Lost his job. Felt shame. From a director to jobless for months. Ended up working in McD. The devil wants to upon us the thought we are a failure but that is not true. We might have failed but not a failure. Might have lost some skirmishes but we are not losers. Shame wrinkles our soul like a prune. He went to work at McD with shame. Shame isn’t something that will go away if you don’t talk about it or pretend. Shame can only be removed by the blood of Christ. He kept coming to church. Praise the LORD. As he kept hearing the Word, reminded self Christ note every shame; Jesus was naked and bleeding and it was in this condition that He bore all that shame for us. That is why we refuse to entertain any shame in our lives. Devil will tell us we can only walk with head held high if we win. Not true. We can hold our head up high as we walk UNTIL our miracle manifests. Keep resting and declaring FINISH – Christ brought an end to all our shame. Two years later, applied and received a high paying job, high position job- restoration!! 

Not just a loss of a job. In debt also. A marriage situation for some. This year, in the year of restoration. 

See Isaiah 61:7 – the first verse Ps Lian got preparing this sermon 

Double honour instead of shame

Bumped into a lady who had received miraculous healing but years later she had a divorce. Difficult time and experienced shame. Felt it was difficult to face people. Changed her email address because surname changed. No adultery involved. Saw her recently. Married again and now has two glorious children. 😉 DOUBLE HONOUR in place of her shame. 

Whatever you are going through today, there will be double honour 

“And instead of confusion, rejoice in their portion”

Shame causes us to be confused. Shut off areas of our mind. Feel unworthy and lousy. Double honour that will cause confusion to flee away. 

You aren’t as highly qualified but how come you carry a different spirit? The double honour of God comes upon what u touch. Amen. 

Peter denied Jesus three times to a servant girl. What did the Lord do?

John 21:25-17

Simon Peter do you AGAPE (love) me more than these?
Yes LORD, u know I PHILLEO (like) u. 

God doesn’t want us to bury our shame but to see what He has done with our shame. 

What did Jesus say to Peter? “Feed my lambs”

LORD I am only like this, my love is only small like this. And He says, it is more than enough. It is more than enough to feed my lambs. 

Peter felt amazed. After all these, Jesus still trusted him. 

Jesus wanted him to know even that little love, Jesus values. Whatever u have, God still loves and values u. U don’t have to be ashamed. He knows us for who we are. Knows everything about us and still loves us perfectly and completely. What a savior we have. He has restored. 

Jesus made sure Peter got a chance to declare his love three times – perfectly restored from his thrice denial. 

Peter walked out with double honour. Who did God choose on day of Pentecost? He could have chosen John, but He chose Peter. That is called Amazing Grace. 

Not saying go and sin so that grace will abound. 

We are saying, if you do sin, grace will super abound and abound until u overcome in that area and u will stop failing and falling and sinning. 

On the day of Pentecost, Peter preached and 3000 were saved. Later on, his shadow healed the sick. 

Didn’t become perfect after that. Paul withstood him to his face about something he did wrong. But even that grace came into that area and super abounded again. 

A CG member had glaucoma. At night when she walked, fell a few times coz she couldn’t see. Sight was impaired. Went into the cycle of fear and discouraged. Felt very old. Entertained depression, worry, shame… One sad day, she decided to end it all. She went to the beach with the aim of suicide. Walked into the sea and then she started drinking the salty sea water. Then something miraculous happen. A man suddenly pulled her up and pulled her to shore to safety. “I dunno u and I dunno what happened. I was having a shower when I suddenly felt a strong urge to go to the beach. When I arrived, I saw a light on the sea and knew something was there. I dashed forward and found u.” She wept. Even when she was faithless, God remained faithful. 

We have a savior who is so kind. Who has loving kindness and tender mercies. 

When u have a savior who is faithful and true & loving kindness and tender mercies… A savior whom when u are shameful, He gives u double honour… U will experience ur double honour. Don’t need to take your life. 

Will see God move mightily in your lives today. He has paid for us to have superabounding grace and honour.