Sermon Date: 2009/2/15

DATE: 2009/2/15
SCRIPTURE READING: Phil. 2:1-8
SERMON: Same Attitude as Christ’s
讲道题目: 以基督的心為心
Paul challenged us to have the same attitude in us which was in Christ Jesus. As we think of these things three persistent questions demand our honest consideration.
I. Who are we?
(a) In every area of life it is important to know who you are. Nothing is as important as when you seek to fulfill your purpose in life.
(b) What a heartening faith—that we are creatures made for God, that our spirits are restless until they find their rest in him, that only in God’s will is our peace, that we carry the image of God as we live our earthly life.
(c) The clue to understanding who we are is not to be found in the world of nature beneath us but in the world of God above us. When we look to Christ we see mirrored in his eyes of love the person we are meant to be. When we know whose we are we know who we are.
II. Why are we here?
(a) There is sometime in every man’s life, when he is a philosopher and ask himself the question “why?” We are not content just to make a living; we also want to make a life. We sense that life holds a purpose even though the purpose is sometimes not clear to us.
(b) We come from God, we live for God, and we return to God. God has a purpose and plan for everyone. Not the years in our life, but the life in our years, is of supreme importance. When we live for God we find life illumined by the wonder of his friendship and we know why we are here.
III. Where are we going?
(a) Does life have a destination as well as a direction? Is our activity purposeful in the sense that we are going somewhere or is it like the scrambling of little feet in a squirrel cage, much energy but no progress?
(b) If we live for God we know that heaven is our destination. God not only lifts a standard beneath which we march; he also flings before us the vision of his eternal world where the good life finds fulfillment in the perfect fellowship of moral love.
(c) To understand earth we must know heaven. It is the light of eternity that lights our pilgrimage in time. This is a good world, and our life in it has a glorious goal. That goal is when Jesus returns we have the same attitudes as Christ has.

Today is Annual Congregational Meeting Sunday. We hold this meeting year after year. Is it a formality we have to go through or is it a vision we have to affirm every year? Paul knew what he was doing in the church when he admonished Titus in these words: “while we wait for the blessed hope—the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ,” (Titus 2:13). Without vision and hope, a man will run without any aim. He will work but lacks incentive. Many believers turn into neither hot nor cold followers because they miss this vision. They go after success which promises them worldly results. They end up in vanity. They feel deceived. They thought they came with a noble reason. But now they leave with their worldly purpose not being realized.
What advice can we give to such unfortunate people? The Bible gives us a very clear direction. It calls us back to the vision. If we grab hold of this vision, other pieces will fall into place. This vision is nothing but the waiting for the blessed hope—the glorious appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ. If we have this vision and hope, we are the most blessed believers of Christ. When we have hope, our fear is gone, our path is straightened, our spiritual life has direction, our destination is focused and our strength is renewed.
Let us ask ourselves these questions every day. Are we hoping for Christ’s glorious appearing? Are we welcoming His return? Are we ready any time for His return? Or are we caught up with another endeavor for another hope? Is that other hope taking up all of our time and energy leaving us no time for Christ’s return? If we lose our vision, our loss will be great and irreversible. Regrets will not get us anywhere. But repentance will. There is not much time left. We will never have enough time to get ready for Jesus’ appearing. Why bother wasting time on other hopes and goals?
Whenever we lose the hope of Christ’s return, our problems arise, our progress stop, our spiritual life decline. Let us have the same attitude that Christ has which attracts us like magnet attracts iron. The vision is to have the same attitude in us which was in Christ Jesus. Let us put aside things that get in our way and strive on the journey until one day we meet our Lord face to face.

Amen.
Sermon Synopsis
讲道大纲
能够做到以基督的心为心,首先要回答三个问题:
I. 我是谁?
(甲) 我是一个要找人生意义的人.
(乙) 我是为了神而被造的.
(丙) 当我们知道自己是属於谁的时候,我们就知道自己是谁了.
II. 我为甚麽在这里?
(甲) 我不甘心只渡日子而不是活着做人.
(乙) 上帝对每个人都有计画和目的.
III. 我往哪里去?
(甲) 生命是有方向和目的的.
(乙) 我们若为神而活,我们就知道天堂是我们的目的地.
(丙) 要明白地上的事,必须首先明白天上的事.
保罗知道自己在做甚麽,他说:等候所盼望的福,并等候至大的神和我们救主耶稣基督的荣耀显现.(提多书2:13)我们每天都要这样问自己,是否有这个盼望.倘若有的话,我们就可以以基督的心为心,快乐平安的度日,直到见主面.

Pastoral Prayer:
Our most gracious heavenly Father, your spirit meets us in the valley of shadows as well as on the mountaintop of triumph, we come before you in this hour of worship, praying that you would sustain our spirits this day.
Sustain us as we seek to understand ourselves. We pledge ourselves to be the cause for which your Son gave himself, but then in unguarded moments we reveal attitudes and actions that are unworthy of his love. Speak to our hearts of your forgiving grace, set our minds on the lofty heights of fulfillment, and send us on our way.
Sustain us, O Lord, in our relationships with our fellow men. Plant within our hearts the seeds of trust that will allow us to reach out unafraid to those around us. Give us vision to see the refinement that is a part of every heart, though it might not be perceived at first glance. Remove from us, O Lord, feelings of suspicion, bitterness, mistrust, and cynicism that rise against our souls like waves that pound the rocky shore.
Sustain us, O God, in life at home with our families. As it was Valentine’s Day yesterday we pray for husbands and wives and for intimate lovers. So often we leave our loved ones at home when we enter the sanctuary which in fact is our dwelling place for love. Alert us, we pray, to the intimate needs that go unnoticed day after day because we are preoccupied with less important concerns. Let love flow unchallenged through the dry, parched land that we might glimpse what it means to speak of the redemptive love of Christ to our family love ones.
Sustain this nation, our father, we pray. When Canada as well as other countries in the world is plunging into the economic depression we ask for God’s mercy and deliverance from our predicament. As the US president has signed a new law to stimulate economic growth, we ask that it will benefit Canada too. We pray that Americans will buy not only from America but also from Canada. Remove the weeds of bitterness that have strangled our sensitivity to the needs of other people. Show us what reconciliation really means and help us to understand it when we see it.
Sustain the church we pray. As we are having the annual congregational meeting today, we pray for loyalty and faithfulness of all the members in this congregation. Help us to prepare ourselves for the other that lies ahead within your vineyard. Hold our tongues when we would speak pious but empty words. Let actions and attitudes stand side by side so that others will know that the church is indeed alive and at work in this world.
Sustain our spirits now as we come before your altar in prayer. Hear our innermost thoughts and bring your healing spirit forth to meet the uncountable needs that are ours this day.
We thank you Lord, for answered prayers that Brothers Yan Jian’s grand daughter Xia Ming Yu has had a very successful heart operation last week in Tian Jin. We pray for Sister Zhai Xiao Mei who had a car accident two weeks ago. Lord you protected her from physical injury. Although monetary loss was substantial, we thank you Lord for watching over her with your guardian angels. We thank you Lord for looking after Sister Au Yang Yan Hong after her fall on the ice last Saturday night. We pray for her continue healing.
And now teach us how to pray by saying the Lord’s Prayer together…