by Pastor Lee Meng Chiam
Esther 3:5-6
3 points to note :
1. No Way! (v1-5)
Mordecai : "No way I will bow and pay homage to Haman!"
- Religious ground
- Historical Ground
Haman : "No way I will let Mordecai get away with it!"
# Pride was his core motivation (pride is endless ego calculation)
- The Symptoms
Proverbs 16:8
1 Peter 5:5b
# Evil latches in pride
- The Results
2. No Prisoners! (v6)
Proverbs 6:16-19
Haman is not just prideful, he has became evil
- All or Nothing
- Destroy, Kill, Annihilate (v13)
# Evil advances on extremism
We don't have to respond with fear or anger, we can overcome
3. No Dice! (v7-15)
Micah 2:1
- Supernatural Divination
- Shrewd Manipulation
- Surprise Intervention
Proverbs 16:33
"The lot is cast into the lap, but it's every decision is from the Lord"
God's Providence
- Divine Foresight
Providence has the element of divine foresight
- Human Freedom
# Evil exploits laxity
We have to pray that we do not become lax
What is the difference between ignorance and apathy?
I don't know, I don't care, it doesn't bother me, doesn't affect me, whatever ...... When you are lax, evil exploits
Trivial things in life, God is always working for us
Evil is real :
but we don't have to fear
1. We must be Alert
2. We must Stand Up
- when we see evil, if it's in our power to resist, we should resist
3. We hold Steady
4. When the going gets tough, we Look Ahead
- because one day righteousness will have its rewards and the unrighteousness will have its just dessert
"Evil is real and cannot be ignored; whenever it is expressed it must be addressed, resisted and overcome by the Gospel"
Sunday, October 22, 2017
Sunday, October 15, 2017
the Replacement - The sovereign ways of God
Pastor Calvin Lee
About Esther
God is right where He has always been. No matter what, God is still on His throne. God knows best
God is NO WHERE or NOW HERE. A difference in one letter shift
The complete absence of God from the text is the genius of the book
- Karen Jobes -
The first 2 chapters main casts are :
King Xerxes & Queen Vashti
# much focus on superficial values and outward beauty
# possessions and power do not bring real fulfillment
# great display of prestige and pride, but disharmony at home
Esther & Mordecai
# Esther's selection as queen was not just based on her beauty
- In the plan of God, God look beyond her beauty and preparing Esther for a specific task ahead.
# the replacement seems ordinary but it is more than ordinary
- it is not by chance but God divine providence that Esther has been chosen.
# Mordecai's discovery of the plot to assassinate the king was not a coincidence
- seems to be an ordinary event happened by chance but it is not by chance. God placed Mordecai there.
The book of Esther helps us to see events through the lenses of God eyes
Few things we can learned from this story :
# God is ever present though He seems to be silent or absent
# God is working behind the scenes long before His purpose is fulfilled
# God often works out His purposes, not through miraculous intervention, but through completely ordinary events.
Perspective view of life :
1. Chaotic view of life
2. Fatalistic view of life
3. Tstick view of life (God's view)
If I cannot trace his hand, I can always trust his heart
- Charles Spurgeon -
1. Turn to God and not away from God when life doesn't make sense.
- from time to time, we will wonder and question why. When we are not careful we will allow these events to cause us to lose heart. We need to learn to clung on, hold on to God. The truth is that God still with us. He is always the God who goes ahead of us. No matter how we feel, always believe that God will deliver us in His time
2. Learn to put on our spiritual antenna as we see different events unfolding our lives
- we need to see things from God's perspective. Pray to God to open our spiritual eyes, to see things from heavenly perspective. God is weaving His divine purposes in our lives. What we are focusing is important. We always see the messy and rough side of our lives. But often times we don't see that God is carefully designing our lives.
3. Always affirm the faithfulness of God and that all things work together for good
Romans 8:28
4. Adopt a posture to trust in His sovereign wisdom.
- when times are good or bad, God is sovereign.He is good and He is working His divine purposes in us.
The replacement of queen Vashti did not happened by chance because ultimately the replacement became a redemption in God plan for His people.
About Esther
God is right where He has always been. No matter what, God is still on His throne. God knows best
God is NO WHERE or NOW HERE. A difference in one letter shift
The complete absence of God from the text is the genius of the book
- Karen Jobes -
The first 2 chapters main casts are :
King Xerxes & Queen Vashti
# much focus on superficial values and outward beauty
# possessions and power do not bring real fulfillment
# great display of prestige and pride, but disharmony at home
Esther & Mordecai
# Esther's selection as queen was not just based on her beauty
- In the plan of God, God look beyond her beauty and preparing Esther for a specific task ahead.
# the replacement seems ordinary but it is more than ordinary
- it is not by chance but God divine providence that Esther has been chosen.
# Mordecai's discovery of the plot to assassinate the king was not a coincidence
- seems to be an ordinary event happened by chance but it is not by chance. God placed Mordecai there.
The book of Esther helps us to see events through the lenses of God eyes
Few things we can learned from this story :
# God is ever present though He seems to be silent or absent
# God is working behind the scenes long before His purpose is fulfilled
# God often works out His purposes, not through miraculous intervention, but through completely ordinary events.
Perspective view of life :
1. Chaotic view of life
2. Fatalistic view of life
3. Tstick view of life (God's view)
If I cannot trace his hand, I can always trust his heart
- Charles Spurgeon -
1. Turn to God and not away from God when life doesn't make sense.
- from time to time, we will wonder and question why. When we are not careful we will allow these events to cause us to lose heart. We need to learn to clung on, hold on to God. The truth is that God still with us. He is always the God who goes ahead of us. No matter how we feel, always believe that God will deliver us in His time
2. Learn to put on our spiritual antenna as we see different events unfolding our lives
- we need to see things from God's perspective. Pray to God to open our spiritual eyes, to see things from heavenly perspective. God is weaving His divine purposes in our lives. What we are focusing is important. We always see the messy and rough side of our lives. But often times we don't see that God is carefully designing our lives.
3. Always affirm the faithfulness of God and that all things work together for good
Romans 8:28
4. Adopt a posture to trust in His sovereign wisdom.
- when times are good or bad, God is sovereign.He is good and He is working His divine purposes in us.
The replacement of queen Vashti did not happened by chance because ultimately the replacement became a redemption in God plan for His people.
Thursday, October 5, 2017
One Needful Touch - From Wounded to Whole
by Pastor Calvin Lee
The Lord is good. The lord is always good. We can't live long in this world without being hurt, wrong and wounded.
Excess emotional baggage due to unresolved issues of the past can affect us, crippled us, paralyze us. Such emotions can caused us something. There is a price to pay mentally, emotionally, physically and spiritually. Just like when we travel with excess baggage, we have to pay an excess baggage fee at the airport.
Hebrew 12:14-15
"bitter"
- a sharp pungent smell or taste. It also means negative feelings wounded by piercing
"root"
- a basic source or origin. Roots are hidden underground. It serves to provide water or refreshment to the plant. In the same way, bitterness is hidden inside us. A bitter root will produce bitter fruit such as anger, hatred, resentment, unforgiveness etc.
- it troubles us
- it troubles others
1. Hurt people often transfer or project their anger from within, on others.
2. They interpret every spoken word or action through the prism of their pain.
3. They portray themselves as victim and possess a "victim spirit"
4. They often alienate others and wonder why no one is there for them.
5. Hurt people often get frustrated and depressed because past pain is ever present in their consciousness.
6. They are often self absorbed with their own pain, and are unaware they are hurting others.
Lessons for us to learn :
A. Emotions are powerful. They either drive us or drain us.
B. Holding on to the memory of the past hurts destroys the power of your present. The more we hold on and the more we keep, the heavier we are.
C. Woundedness becomes a tool for satan's attack.
D. God does not intend for us to live a life that is loaded with excess emotional baggage.
Proverbs 15:13
A cheerful heart makes the face cheerful. But a heartache crushes the spirit.
Proverbs 17:22
A merry heart doeth good like a medicine, but a broken spirit drier the bones.
How can we move from being wounded to whole?
1. Let God remove it
Hebrews 12:14
Psalm 147:3
You and I cannot remove that sting with our power. Only God can do. Let God bring about that divine exchange with the fruit of the Spirit.
2. Let grace restores it
Hebrews 12:15
All of us are the recipient of the grace of God. We must learn to allow the same grace to be released to touch others, the one who hurt us.
3. Let good replace it
Hebrews 12:14
We must make the right decision. We can choose to react or respond. We can choose to hold on or let go.
Stop focusing on your pasts, hurts, pains and focus on Jesus Christ, our repairer, our restorer. Pursue peace. Make every effort. God wants us to walk in the path of freedom. Learn to walk away from things that will affect you mentally, physically, emotionally and spiritually.
Trust God, even while it hurts
Trust God, even when it seems unfair
Trust God, even through the tears
He knows, He is working on it.
Walk away from arguments that leads you to nowhere but anger.
Walk away from people who deliberately put you down.
Walk away from any thought that reduces your worth.
Walk away from failures and fears that stifle your dreams.
The more you walk away from things that poison your soul, the happier your life will be.
Walk towards the presence of God and let Him embrace you with His love.
The Lord is good. The lord is always good. We can't live long in this world without being hurt, wrong and wounded.
Excess emotional baggage due to unresolved issues of the past can affect us, crippled us, paralyze us. Such emotions can caused us something. There is a price to pay mentally, emotionally, physically and spiritually. Just like when we travel with excess baggage, we have to pay an excess baggage fee at the airport.
Hebrew 12:14-15
"bitter"
- a sharp pungent smell or taste. It also means negative feelings wounded by piercing
"root"
- a basic source or origin. Roots are hidden underground. It serves to provide water or refreshment to the plant. In the same way, bitterness is hidden inside us. A bitter root will produce bitter fruit such as anger, hatred, resentment, unforgiveness etc.
- it troubles us
- it troubles others
1. Hurt people often transfer or project their anger from within, on others.
2. They interpret every spoken word or action through the prism of their pain.
3. They portray themselves as victim and possess a "victim spirit"
4. They often alienate others and wonder why no one is there for them.
5. Hurt people often get frustrated and depressed because past pain is ever present in their consciousness.
6. They are often self absorbed with their own pain, and are unaware they are hurting others.
Lessons for us to learn :
A. Emotions are powerful. They either drive us or drain us.
B. Holding on to the memory of the past hurts destroys the power of your present. The more we hold on and the more we keep, the heavier we are.
C. Woundedness becomes a tool for satan's attack.
D. God does not intend for us to live a life that is loaded with excess emotional baggage.
Proverbs 15:13
A cheerful heart makes the face cheerful. But a heartache crushes the spirit.
Proverbs 17:22
A merry heart doeth good like a medicine, but a broken spirit drier the bones.
How can we move from being wounded to whole?
1. Let God remove it
Hebrews 12:14
Psalm 147:3
You and I cannot remove that sting with our power. Only God can do. Let God bring about that divine exchange with the fruit of the Spirit.
2. Let grace restores it
Hebrews 12:15
All of us are the recipient of the grace of God. We must learn to allow the same grace to be released to touch others, the one who hurt us.
3. Let good replace it
Hebrews 12:14
We must make the right decision. We can choose to react or respond. We can choose to hold on or let go.
Stop focusing on your pasts, hurts, pains and focus on Jesus Christ, our repairer, our restorer. Pursue peace. Make every effort. God wants us to walk in the path of freedom. Learn to walk away from things that will affect you mentally, physically, emotionally and spiritually.
Trust God, even while it hurts
Trust God, even when it seems unfair
Trust God, even through the tears
He knows, He is working on it.
Walk away from arguments that leads you to nowhere but anger.
Walk away from people who deliberately put you down.
Walk away from any thought that reduces your worth.
Walk away from failures and fears that stifle your dreams.
The more you walk away from things that poison your soul, the happier your life will be.
Walk towards the presence of God and let Him embrace you with His love.
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