Blessed Hope Bible-Presbyterian Church
500 Upper Bukit Timah Rd, Singapore 678106
1 Kings 18:1-16 And it came to pass after many days, that the word of the LORD came to Elijah in the third year, saying, Go, shew thyself unto Ahab; and I will send rain upon the earth. 2 And Elijah went to shew himself unto Ahab. And there was a sore famine in Samaria.
The sixth blessing of being a child of God is joy in God. It describes an attitude of confidence in God, to rejoice in, glory in, boast in the stability of life with God. The psalmist testified of this joy in God as he made God the centre of his devotion:
Psalm 16:5-11 The LORD is the portion of mine inheritance and of my cup: thou maintainest my lot. 6 The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage. 7 I will bless the LORD, who hath given me counsel: my reins also instruct me in the night seasons. 8 I have set the LORD always before me: because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved. 9 Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: my flesh also shall rest in hope. 10 For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption. 11 Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.
Life with God dispels fear and anxiety. We can trust in His care, provision and protection. When we look are unable to rejoice in our circumstances, we can rejoice in the Lord under those circumstances. We can rest in His love and meditate upon His goodness. It brings strength to our soul.
The fifth blessing of being a child of God is God’s preservation in this present life and forevermore (v10b). After Christ’s resurrection from the dead, He appeared to His disciples for 40 days before He ascended to heaven, seated at the right hand of the Father. In heaven, Christ function as Intercessor.
We are saved by Christ’s blood, shed to wash away our sins (v9). We are saved by Christ’s resurrection, giving us eternal life (v10). We are saved by God’s grace, Christ’s great sacrifice on our behalf (v15). We are saved by the gift of righteousness, freely available to us through Christ (v17).
How can we ever repay Christ for the price paid to save us? We can never do so! This is the message of God’s love enacted by Christ. The Apostle Paul described the greatness of this love by Christ’s humility – the willingness to yield and do the Father’s will.
Matthew 25:14-30 For the kingdom of heaven is as a man travelling into a far country, who called his own servants, and delivered unto them his goods. 15 And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his several ability; and straightway took his journey. 16 Then he that had received the five talents went and traded with the same, and made them other five talents. 17 And likewise he that had received two, he also gained other two. 18 But he that had received one went and digged in the earth, and hid his lord’s money.
Reformation/Ordination Service
Order of Worship
Call to Worship Rev Dr Jeffrey Khoo
Opening Hymn The Church’s One Foundation (260)
Invocation/Gloria Patri
Responsive Reading Titus 2:1-15
Hymn Take My Life and Let It Be (419)
The Christian life is a sanctified life lived to the praise of God. There is so much a Christian live for having being freed from the bondage of sin. He lives in the beauty of holiness. Life with God must not deteriorate to a mere outward conformance to God’s law without having true allegiance to God from the bottom of our hearts.
The Apostle Paul speaks of converted gentiles who loved God and serve Him with all their hearts. Their devout lives speak volumes though they were not outwardly circumcised like the Jew. Their good testimony served as an indictment against the circumcised Jews. Though outwardly bearing the covenant of God in their flesh, they disobeyed God in heart, word and deed. This was the sad plight in Jewry during the time of Jesus’ earthly ministry.
Indeed, as Apostle Paul rightly conclude in 1 Corinthians 7:19 Circumcision is nothing, and uncircumcision is nothing, but the keeping of the commandments of God.
True faith is visibly seen by good works and spiritual fruit. It is a religion of the heart, a pure heart of piety toward God and men. The bible character Ruth was such an example. She was a Moabitess who left her homeland to follow Israel’s God by following her mother-in-law, Naomi, back to Israel. God’s commendation of Ruth’s faith came through Boaz’s words in Ruth 2:12 The LORD recompense thy work, and a full reward be given thee of the LORD God of Israel, under whose wings thou art come to trust. God counted her an Israelite in heart although she was outwardly a gentile.
The Jews were circumcised because God commanded it. They were a people set apart for God. The outward sign of the circumcision sets them apart as a people who practice God’s law. But if they failed to obey God in their daily living then the outward sign of circumcision will not make them a “true blue” Jew. Likewise the professing Christian who do not obey God’s law from the heart is not a “true blue” Christian. It is better than he be not called a Christian than to profess being a Christian and not live as a Christian.