Spirit of Joshua, Caleb, Gideon and David (ACLC 2019)

Elder Liew Hoi Foo
16-11-2019

Joshua and Caleb see great opportunities. Go and possess the gates of the enemies.

Though we are not superstars, God sees each and everyone of us like Gideon. From 32,000 men enlisted fight the Midianites, 22,000 left. But 10,000 is still too many. God says, "I only want the 300."

In the case of David, he ran towards the enemy to possess the land.

In the case of Exodus, there was no road map to the Promised Land. God chose the obedience of Moses to lead the people to the Promised Land. The journey, though supposed to be much shorter, took 40 years.

For us, 40 years is a crossover. God's will is we need to be obedient and put our trust in Him.

There is no one size fits all.

Matthew 25:14-30 New King James Version (NKJV)
The Parable of the Talents
14 “For the kingdom of heaven is like a man traveling to a far country, who called his own servants and delivered his goods to them. 15 And to one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one, to each according to his own ability; and immediately he went on a journey. 16 Then he who had received the five talents went and traded with them, and made another five talents. 17 And likewise he who had received two gained two more also. 18 But he who had received one went and dug in the ground, and hid his lord’s money. 19 After a long time the lord of those servants came and settled accounts with them.

20 “So he who had received five talents came and brought five other talents, saying, ‘Lord, you delivered to me five talents; look, I have gained five more talents besides them.’ 21 His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’ 22 He also who had received two talents came and said, ‘Lord, you delivered to me two talents; look, I have gained two more talents besides them.’ 23 His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’

24 “Then he who had received the one talent came and said, ‘Lord, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you have not sown, and gathering where you have not scattered seed. 25 And I was afraid, and went and hid your talent in the ground. Look, there you have what is yours.’

26 “But his lord answered and said to him, ‘You wicked and lazy servant, you knew that I reap where I have not sown, and gather where I have not scattered seed. 27 So you ought to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming I would have received back my own with interest. 28 So take the talent from him, and give it to him who has ten talents.

29 ‘For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away. 30 And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

Here the talents are the people. Either we are the faithful servant or the foolish servant.

God wants us to multiply our talents. In multiplying our talents, there are risks involved.

Are we putting to good use the talents in us?

The journey of a thousand steps begin with one step. Let us begin by reaching out to the first one.

We need to be courageous to take risks.

It is not about the individual. It is about the church as a whole.

God has placed in us as a family church.

In this new season, we will be courageous to dismantle silos to be more effective so that everyone comes together to work as one.

Let us look for fishes out in the sea and the ocean.

God has brought the manna around us. God has brought so many souls around us for us to harvest.

Let's also not neglect the fishes already in the pond. Continue to serve the congregation.

Look beyond the box. Look at three services. Try not to fall into the worldview. Let us not be caught with the hardwares and bricks and mortars. Let's strengthen our people. Dare to be different. We minister from babies in the womb all the way to the golden years. Let us not be boxed in by the old traditional way of running a church. There are many opportunities for us.

Going forward, there are exciting and challenging times. Work together for the Kingdom, and not just for our own ministries. Have the Kingdom mentality.