Date: 26-10-25
Preacher: Bro Johnny Chin
Title: Depending on God: Kingdom Values
Depending on God: Kingdom Values
‘Kingdom values’ sounded so lofty at the beginning of this morning’s message but as the morning progressed, I began to realise that my original impression had been replaced with an appreciation that these values are non-negotiable if we want to enter God’s kingdom. They are not lofty but non-negotiable and as Christians, we have to embrace them for we do not want to be described as Christians who can get on with our daily lives without forsaking earthly habits and wants. Like what Bro Johnny said ‘We cannot enter God’s kingdom on our terms but only on His’.
The biblical references for Bro Johnny’s message this morning are from Matthew 5:1-3 particularly Verse 3 which states ‘Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven’.
From the start, Bro Johnny stressed that if as Christians we don’t influence the world with Kingdom values, we would be influenced by the world’s earthly values.
Who then are those poor in spirit? They are those of us who admit that we are spiritually bankrupt and nothing good lives in us. It is like what Paul himself admitted in Rom 7: 18-19 and then the saving grace of God comes in 24-25.
So what is a kingdom value? It is ‘I admit I am totally powerless to help myself. I need to depend on God to help me.’
Bro Johnny then shared that the very essence of embracing the above kingdom value is repentance, for there can be no ‘following’ Jesus without ‘forsaking’ as shown in Matt 3:8 and Luke 9:3 respectively. He showed that before the disciples followed Jesus, they had to surrender their earthly pursuits too.
What then must we forsake? He mentioned 1) constant forsaking of sins and 2) constant forsaking of self. Notice the word ‘constant’ is repeated, for our walk with Him is a continual process. Each time when we forsake our sins, we draw closer to Him and we become more sin conscious. Also the constant "forsaking of self "results in God's power and deliverance.
In closing and in keeping with the Church’s theme, Bro Johnny shared that a person poor in spirit will naturally pray without ceasing.
When I do this work of documenting the Sunday messages I am often left speechless how creative God can be through all His servants’ messages.
