The relevance of Apostle/Saint Paul's teaching for human life today of 'True Religion' is not only a matter of rules and regulations. God does not deal with human beings like an accountant, but He accepts them freely when they respond to His love. In fact, God implants the Spirit of Christ Jesus in their hearts so they may extend God's love to others.

In the Lord Jesus Christ, men and women have come of age. God does not keep His people on puppet strings but in fact, liberates them to live as His responsible sons and daughters. That is, people matter more than things, principles, and causes. The highest of principles and the best of causes exist only for the sake of people. Personal liberty itself is abused if it is exercised against the personal well-being of others.

Avoid getting into debt, except the debt of mutual love. If you love your fellow men and women, you have carried out your obligations. All the commandments: You shall not commit adultery, you shall not kill, you shall not steal, you shall not covet, and so on, are summed up in this single command: You must love your neighbour as yourself. Love is one thing that cannot hurt your neighbour; that is why it is the answer to every one of the commandments. - Rom. 13:8-10 -

My brothers and sisters, you were called, as you know, to liberty; but be careful, or this liberty will provide an opening for self-indulgence. Serve one another, rather, in works of love, since the whole of the Law is summarised in a single command: Love your neighbor as yourself. - Gal. 5:13-14 -

Let me put it like this: if you are guided by the Spirit of Christ you will be in no danger of yielding to self-indulgence, since self-indulgence is the opposite of the Spirit, the Spirit is totally against such a thing, and it is precisely because the two are so opposed that you do not always carry out your good intentions. If you are led by the Spirit, no law can touch you.

When self-indulgence is at work the results are obvious: fornication, gross indecency and sexual irresponsibility; idolatry and sorcery; feuds and wrangling, jealousy, bad temper and quarrels; disagreements, factions, envy; drunkenness, orgies and similar things. I warn you now, as I warned you before: those who behave like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.

What the Spirit brings is very different: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, trustfulness, gentleness and self-control. There can be no law against things like that, of course. You cannot belong to Christ Jesus unless you crucify all self-indulgent passions and desires.

Since the Spirit is our life, let us be directed by the Spirit. We must stop being conceited, provocative and envious. - Gal. 5:16-26 -

Saint Paul's was a controversial figure in his lifetime, even within the Christian movement. Apostle Paul's had many opponents who disagreed with his interpretation of the messages of the Lord Jesus Christ. In the closing years of his life, when imprisonment prevented him from moving about freely, apostle Paul's opponents were able to make headway with their rival interpretations. Even though Asia had been apostle Paul's most fruitful mission field, at the end of his life he wrote: All those in Asia have turned away from me.

However, in the following generation, there was a resurgence of feeling in apostle Paul's favor. His opponents were largely discredited and disabled by the dispersal of the Church of that city shortly before the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70. Throughout most of the Church apostle Paul's became a venerated figure. His letters, epistles, together with the gospels, became the foundation of the Christian movement.

Apostle Paul's liberating message and the Lord Jesus Christ doctrine has prove its vitality throughout the centuries. Repeatedly, when the Christian faith, hope and love has been in danger of being shackled by legalism or tradition, apostle Paul's message and the Lord Jesus Christ doctrine has allowed the gospel to set a man/woman free.

From Paul, appointed by God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus in His design to promise life in Christ Jesus; to Timothy, dear child of mine, wishing you grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and from Christ Jesus our Lord.

Night and day I thank God, keeping my conscience clear and remembering my duty to Him as my ancestor did, and always I remember you in my prayers; I remember your tears and long to see you again to complete my happiness.

That is why I am reminding you now to fan into a flame the gift that God gave you when I laid my hands on you. God's gift was not a spirit of timidity, but the Spirit of power, and love, and self-control. So you are never ashamed of me for being His prisoner; but with me, bear the hardships for the sake of the Good News, relying on the power of God who has saved us and called us to be holy - not because of anything we ourselves have done but for His own purpose and by His own grace.

This grace had already been granted to us, in Christ Jesus, before the beginning of time, but it has only been revealed by the Appearing of our saviour Christ Jesus. He abolished death, and He has proclaimed life and immortality through Good News; and I have been named its herald, its apostle and its teacher.

It is only on account of this that I am experiencing fresh hardships here now; but I have not lost confidence, because I know who it is that I have put my trust in, and I have no doubt at all that He is able to take care of all that I have entrusted to Him until that Day.

Keep as your pattern the sound teaching you have heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. You have been trusted to look after something precious; guard it with the help of the Holy Spirit who lives in us. - 2 Tim. 1:1-14 -

As we know..........

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Faith . Hope . Love - Welcome donation. Thank You. God bless.

By bank transfer/cheque deposit:
Name: Alex Chan Kok Wah
Bank: Public Bank Berhad account no: 4076577113
Country: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Sunday, May 24, 2009

I have through years of reading, pondering, reflecting and contemplating, the 3 things that last; FAITH . HOPE . LOVE and I would like to made available my sharing from the many thinkers, authors, scholars and theologians whose ideas and thoughts I have borrowed. God be with them always. Amen!

I STILL HAVE MANY THINGS TO SAY TO YOU BUT THEY WOULD BE TOO MUCH FOR YOU NOW. BUT WHEN THE SPIRIT OF TRUTH COMES, HE WILL LEAD YOU TO THE COMPLETE TRUTH, SINCE HE WILL NOT BE SPEAKING AS FROM HIMSELF, BUT WILL SAY ONLY WHAT HE HAS LEARNT; AND HE WILL TELL YOU OF THE THINGS TO COME.

HE WILL GLORIFY ME, SINCE ALL HE TELLS YOU WILL BE TAKEN FROM WHAT IS MINE. EVERYTHING THE FATHER HAS IS MINE; THAT IS WHY I SAID: ALL HE TELLS YOU WILL BE TAKEN FROM WHAT IS MINE. - JOHN 16:12-15 -