How do we gain victory?
Acts 2:46~47 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. Hymn for scheduled worship: Korean/English Hymnal #351 Onward, Christian Soldiers (#389 in previous version) When you become financially stable and do things you want to do, you feel good. When you are complimented or acknowledged by others, you gain joy and strength in your heart. If you are conscious of others’ eyes and concentrate on others’ compliments or acknowledgement, you often cannot gain strength even if you listen to God’s Word. How can you enjoy true joy and gain victory in your daily life?
1. The more you realize, the more answers come
Many times we cannot get rid of our worries even though we say that we trust and believe in God. You have no choice but to keep worrying and worry about the necessities of life if you do not experience answers from God. If you open your spiritual eyes and look upon God and not your circumstances, God gives you answers. He will give you faith if you lack faith, and He will change your thinking if you have wrong thoughts. It is the greatest grace and answer to realize the Word of God.
2. The more you receive God’s love, the more you enjoy
Although the Early Church was very weak and lacking, they knew the mystery of true prayer. They were people who knew how to pray for each other and share love. Although they lacked social status and education and were chased after, they were full of God’s love. They experienced the assurance of the saved and working of the Holy Spirit, and thus, they were not fearful.
3. We who believe in Jesus Christ are one body
When we see our inadequacies, we sometimes are confused about our identity. There are times when we are embarrassed as we live our life of faith, because it seems as if we are only going to suffer when we are supposed to receive blessings according to God’s Word. If a believer is going through hardship around us, we must become one body and pray for him. We are the ones who save lives and the ones to fulfill world evangelization together. Joy and happiness unimaginable is waiting for us who believe in Jesus Christ.
- Like the Early Church who prayed together to overcome all hardship, begin to pray so that you can decide and act with the eyes of the Gospel. Immanuel Church Sunday Worship 1st Service / 2012.4.22