This week’s message is prepared by Pastor Joseph Tai.
“Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us. … 11 Not only is this so, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.” – Romans 5:3-5, 11
Last week, we saw from Acts 1:3 that before Jesus were taken into heaven, he appeared to his disciples over a period of four days and spoke about the Kingdom of God. The Kingdom of God is the zeal of the Lord. It is the purpose for him to come down to earth and is the commission that he gave to his disciples (Isa 9:7, Jn 3:16; Mt 28:18-20) to expand through their testimonies. There are five key aspects for us to testify God through our life at the market place, to expand God’s Kingdom. They are: Character, Communication, Commitment, Capability, Completion.
- Character
Character is the expression of the life of Jesus. John 1:4 says ”In him was life, and that life was the light of men.” Verse 12 says, “Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.” Children of God have the life of Son of God. This life is not a stagnant life, but will grow to maturity. Romans 5:3-5 says, “Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.” We see here that Character that is approved and tested is ripe.
The first important element of life is Grace. We have justified through faith and gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand (Ro 5:1-2). The second element is faith that is not ours but comes from God. Faith is the truth of God. (Eph 2:8, Heb 12:2). The third element is God’s love poured out into our hearts by the Holy Spirit (Ro 5:5).
- Communication/Fellowship
Today, God uses people in the market place to manifest and to share His character. They are to let the River of the Water of Life move, to bring the living water into the market place and to make the salty water fresh, to bring life (Rev 12:1-2; Eze 47:8-10).
- Commitment
God’s flow through our lives will bring influence for His purposes. For in God’s Kingdom, we not only need to participate but also need to fully commit ourselves. We must commit to God’s direction and His goal. Our attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus and to live for Him alone. We make it our goal to please Him, to have sufficient courage so that Christ will be exalted in our body, whether by life or by death (Php 1:20, 2:5, 3:7, 13-14, 2 Co 5:9, 14-15, Ro 14:7-8).
- Capability
W as we commit to God’s work, we will be imparted with gifts, talents and capacities from God to serve Him and to serve others. These capabilities will increase as we apply them and do everything through Him who gives us strength (Ro 12:3, Php 4:13).
- Completion
When we embark on the right goal/target, we need to bring it to its completion. We need to fight the good fight and to finish the race, to fulfill God’s Great Commission (2 Tim 1:12，4:6-8; Mt 28:18-20).
Market Place Prayer
We pray that soldiers of Christ in the 10500 will live out the character of Jesus Christ in their market place to share God’s grace, faith, and love. They will commit themselves to God and use their given opportunities, capabilities, and talents to serve the market place. They will be faithful to God even to the point of death to accomplish God’s commission so that they will receive His crown of righteousness and life.
