生命根基系列: 1.與耶穌合而為一 (Union with Jesus) (mp3檔 + 大綱)

基督徒生活系列: 如何使對神的信心成長 (How to Grow our Faith) (mp3檔 + 大綱)

Foundational Series: 2. I Am My Beloved

The first message is about our heart attitude and focus, this message is the expression of our union with Jesus in practical daily living: fulfill our callings by total surrendering to God. God has a unique and wonderful plan for each of us; we were born on this earth with a holy mission to fulfill. But in order to fulfill it, we need to surrender our dreams and goals and give our all to Him. Only when we walk in His specific calling for each one of us will we find true meaning and satisfaction in life.

Therefore, it’s all about surrendering our all and living for Him. We need to take up our crosses and follow Him. The key to absolute surrender is to know and live in the reality that we belong to Him, and He to us.

Key texts: Luke 9:22-26; 1 Cor. 7:23; Rom. 6:22; Song 2:16, 6:3, 7:10; Jer. 29:11

Luke 9:22-25

22 又說：人子必須受許多的苦，被長老、祭司長、和文士棄絕，並且被殺，第三日復活。23耶穌又對眾人說：若有人要跟從我，就當捨己，天天背起他的十字架來跟從我。24因為，凡要救自己生命（生命：或作靈魂；下同）的，必喪掉生命；凡為我喪掉生命的，必救了生命。25人若賺得全世界，卻喪了自己，賠上自己，有甚麼益處呢？

Rom. 12:1

1 所以弟兄們，我以神的慈悲勸你們，將身體獻上，當作活祭，是聖潔的，是神所喜悅的；你們如此事奉乃是理所當然的。

Rom. 6:22

22 但現今，你們既從罪裡得了釋放，作了神的奴僕，就有成聖的果子，那結局就是永生。

Song 2:16, 6:3, 7:10

2:16 良人屬我，我也屬他；他在百合花中牧放群羊。

6:3 我屬我的良人，我的良人也屬我；他在百合花中牧放群羊。

7:10 我屬我的良人，他也戀慕我。

Jer. 29:11 (新譯本)

11因我自己知道我為你們所定的計劃，是使你們得平安，而不是遭受災禍的計劃；要賜給你們美好的前程和盼望。這是耶和華的宣告。

1. The Cross and the Call:

-         Surrendering means letting go and trust in God completely. It means to conform all values and decisions to God in perfect and willing obedience. (Rom. 12:1-2; Phil. 4:4-8)

-         Meaning of taking up our crosses; notice it’s “his cross,” each has a tailor-made cross.

-         It’s a “cross” because His plan may not seem like a good plan to our nature at first, that’s why we need to deny ourselves.

-         But God’s purpose is to save us, mold our characters and give us a fulfilling life. His plan is the best for us since He knows us best. We’re often very shortsighted and narrow-minded about our futures and ourselves. (Isai. 55:8-9)

-         We’re God’s servants (Greek “doolos” also means “slaves”).

-         We don’t like the idea of a slave because we find it hard to surrender, and it’s because we fear we’ll lack in material and/or emotional needs.

2. The Key to Absolute Surrender:

-         Knowing that we belong to Him in an intimate love relationship.

-         We can never be wholly dedicated servants if we’ve never realized the experiences of being God’s child and lover (intimate friend) in the first place.

-         A servant will not worry about food, clothing and shelter, his Master will provide for him. Moreover, God is our Father, we’re His children, He will certainly provide when we seek to do His will wholeheartedly.

-         When we first believed, it’s all about our needs. As we mature, as we fall deeper and deeper in love with Him, we recognize and desire to dedicate ourselves to Him.

-         The more we experience God’s unconditional love for us, the more we want do love Him back unconditionally. (1 John 4:19)

-         We are slaves who serve God willingly like a person who is deeply in love will do anything for the one whom he loves. We are a child of God, and a lover of God that serves like a slave.

-         The Song of Solomon is about a marriage relationship, which God uses to illustrate between Jesus and the Church.

-         We are His, it will not matter anymore if we do not have the next meal or luxury. We’ll finally come to a place where even if He does not answer our prayers anymore, we will still love Him more and more. This is the essence of belonging to Him, of absolute surrender out of pure love, and the essence of Matt. 6:33.

-         E.g. the poor widow, what happened to her after she gave all her money away? But when we realize that we belong to Him, we’ll also realize that He belongs to us, and when He belongs to us, we’ll have everything and more than we ever needed.

3. Conclusion: The Power and Value of a Surrendered Life (Letting Go)

-         At the end, we found out that obeying God is the greatest joy in this life, because what used to be utter darkness and death (the cross), now symbolizes peace, life, and love. (Paul surrendered all to God so he could finish his race; read 2 Tim. 4:6-8 and Acts 26:19)

-         Give your greatest pain and disappointments to God (my personal experiences).

Practical aspects:

-         Our school majors, our occupations, where we live, our church ministry etc.

-         Surrender things that we didn’t choose: family, relatives, certain people, our nationality, our appearances and physical features.

-         Surrender our time, money, talents and all relationships to Him

-         Surrender our pride, lay down ourselves to love others and walk in humility.

-         Surrender all our pain, griefs, suffering, unforgiveness to Him.

-         If we have disobeyed God’s calling in the past, when we repent, God can turn all our past mistakes for good. (Rom. 8:28)