In this message, we talk about the true meaning of the gospel according to the apostle Paul, and what it means to be captive to “the present evil age”.

Scripture passage is taken from Galatians 1:3-4.

 

Message Text: Being Set Free from this Present Evil Age

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins to set us free from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen

Galatians 1:3-4

The end of this month marks the 20^th anniversary of our church – St. Timothy Presbyterian Church. 20 years is quite the occasion and I believe there is a lot to reflect on. This community has been around since all of you were born!

Understanding history is such an important part of understanding who we are and how we got here. I wanted to start talking about the history of our community and how that relates to our collective faith journey. But as I started thinking about all of you and where you’re at, I starting asking myself – does it even matter? Will what I have to say about history even register?

This question bothered me so I started thinking about why. As I reflected more, the Scripture passage for today and the message that’s about to come came to me.

Here’s the thing: you’re at the age when you’re figuring out your identity – who you are, what your place in your group is, what your place in this world is, and what the purpose for your life is. I’ve told you my belief that each of us is created by God in a unique way to serve a purpose in this world. Our faith teaches us that we are created in God’s own image.

But as I started thinking, I see clearly how there’s a greater power at work that takes over our thoughts and shapes our life direction. This is what I refer to as “the present evil age” that the author of today’s passage mentions.

Verse 4 talks about Jesus, “who gave himself for our sins to set us free from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father”. “To set us free from the present evil age”. This is the gospel according the apostle Paul, who wrote this letter to the Galatians. Gospel means “good news” – that Jesus gave himself for our sins to set us free from this present evil age. So what is this “present evil age”?

The author of this letter, Paul, had something specific in mind when he wrote this. But this verse is applicable for any time and era. What constitutes the “present evil age” will differ depending on which time and place you live in. It’s up to us, with the guidance of the Holy Spirit, to interpret what this present evil age means for us right now.

Here is how I define “present evil age” for our time and place right now, 2016 in North America: “Our capitalistic and materialistic society that makes us extremely self-absorbed, self-centered and that robs us of our ability to think for ourselves and care for others.”

Let me explain what I mean by this. In our affluent society, our thoughts and motivations are driven by one overriding thing: to find a spot within our economic system that will allow us to live a materially comfortable life. Ideally we can also do what we’re passionate about and what motivates us, but this position must fit within the economic system. In other words, you gotta get paid for what you do. And yes, it’s become a lot more competitive to find such spots, so we work so hard to get one of those few, coveted spots.

This process starts early. You’re taken to private lessons. You’re put in extra classes. Isn’t this why you all feel pressure to do well in school and pad your resume with extra curricular activities – not really cause you enjoy it or are passionate about the clubs you join, but so that you can get into a good university program, which will then help you get into one of those desirable careers?

I’m not saying that we should just all slack off and be naïve about surviving in this world. We do need to survive in this society, and I know that.

But what I’m talking about is when all of our thoughts are consumed with thriving in this system, when we don’t take a step back to think about what it is we’re doing and what this doing does to us?

Here’s what I think this system does to us: it makes us focused only on ourselves – my success, how I’m gonna get job, make money and enjoy life. And then because I’ve worked so hard to get to where I am, I deserve to enjoy the fruits of my labour and the material comforts that come with it. And because I word so hard, in my off time I need to decompress with fun and mindless entertainment. Let me relax by watching Netflix, YouTube, and being on social media.

These are not bad things in and of themselves. But taken together, what does this system do to us? It makes us extremely self-focused and self-centered. We forget how to feel for others. Because I’m so busy surviving in this system, I become numb to the suffering of others. And before we know it, we are slaves to this system.

I understand what this is like because I was an utter slave to this system myself. As many of you know, I was a lawyer before I went into ministry. On the outside, it looked great and like I “made it”. I was a reflection of the Korean-Canadian dream. But you know what? Being a lawyer was never really a good fit with me – for my personality, my specific talents, and what I was interested in. And deep down inside I knew it.

I craved the freedom to do what I felt called to do and what I was passionate about – things like working with young people like yourselves and helping people at a deeper level find meaning and happiness in life. But I thought that this path to freedom lay within this system I’m talking about: that once I have enough money and income, THEN I can do all of this.

And so I worked really hard to build up my law practice to the point where I would make enough money and have a system going that would free me up to do the things I really wanted to do.
But you know what? The more I tried to do this, the more enslaved I become to the business. Instead of becoming more free to do the things I really wanted, my thoughts became more and more consumed with the business and how I was going to make money.

Let me tell you this: running a business is hard work. If you really love your business, then it’s a great thing, cause you can pour yourself into it. But if you don’t love it and are doing it just to make money, it can make life a lot more miserable. So what started happening is that I slowly stopped contributing to the community and became more self-absorbed with the business. I slowly stopped caring about others and became more numb to feeling what others were going through.

Thank God that he rescued me from this enslavement! Now not everyone is called to do something radical like I did and totally shift careers. It’s more about what’s keeping our minds captive.

My friends, Jesus came to set us free from the things that enslave us. He came so that we can come back to who we really are and who we’re meant to be, so that we can reconnect with our true identity as children of God.

THIS is the gospel, the good news. When we are set free from the things that enslave our minds, then we can see clearly who we are – who God created us as – and what our purpose is.   Our hearts can then feel again: feel God’s love for us and feel the hurt and suffering of those around us.

Because forget about jobs and all that, our ultimate calling in life is to love God with all our hearts, souls and minds, and to love our neighbours – to love those who are hurt, suffering, facing injustice. We cannot do this all of this when our minds are in bondage to this system.

Do you want to discern what you might be captive and enslaved to? Think about what you think about most. Is it money? Is it trying to be popular? Is it trying to get good grades? Whatever you think about most, or whatever you value the most when you’re honest with yourself, that’s what enslaves you.

Matthew 6:21

“For where your treasure is, there your heart will also be.”

What do you most value? That is where your heart is at.

My friends, what can we do be free from this system? It starts with God. We cannot do this on our own. We need God’s grace to enter into our lives. So we first come before God, confess our enslavement, and ask Him to lead us out of this bondage.

Secondly, we must be transformed by the renewing of our minds.

Romans 12:2

Do not be conformed to this world (or age), but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God – what is good and acceptable and perfect.

We are called to be in relationship with God, and through this relationship, discern the will of God. But we cannot do this wen we blindly follow what the world tells us. Let us ask God to transform us by renewing our minds. We must think! Question whether what you’re being told is really the truth and the way to live. Think sharply! This is our calling as God’s children.

Being a Christian, being a follower of Jesus is not just some nice touchy-feely thing. It is about being sharp, thinking critically about the society we live in, and questioning the values the world is telling us.

One way to start is by examining what it is we think about. Our thoughts shape us.

Philippians 4:8-9

⁸ Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honourable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.⁹ Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you.

What does this mean? Think about how God has created you in a unique way – what is unique about you? And how might that be used for others? How can God use what is unique about you to make a difference in this world?

My greatest desire for you is that you be a generation that makes a difference for others; that you seek God’s will for this world; that you will be people of compassion, who stand up for justice, who side with the weak and not be blindly drawn to power.   Let us ask God for wisdom, and let us ask God to transform our hearts and minds so that we might be set free from this present evil age.

In today’s message at the Hi-C service, we discuss some recent events and what it means to be a peacemaker.

Scripture Passage

Ephesians 2:14

For he is our peace; in his flesh he has made both groups into one and has broken down the dividing wall, that is, the hostility between us.

Message Text

This past week, there were 2 people shot to death by police officers:

• Terence Crutcher of Tulsa, Oklahoma
• Ketih Scott of Charlotte, North Carolina

In the first death, the victim was unarmed.

In the second death, the facts are unclear at the moment, especially because the police department is not releasing the videotapes of the actual shooting.

The commonality among these two deaths? The victims in both cases were black.

In Charlotte, there have been massive protests throughout the city. Here are some images of the protest this past week:

While the issues being protested are complex, there are 2 main camps:

• The protests under recognized banners like Black Lives Matter and people that support them
• The police and people who support them

While I can’t fully dissect the issues at play in a short message, it’s worth noting some main points of view from both sides.

For Black Lives Matter and those supporting the protest:

• There has been a long history of state-sanctioned violence against black people, and these shootings are just examples of this long history
• Black people have been specifically and systematically targeted for repression, discrimination, segregation and elimination
• None of these injustices have really been acknowledged or paid attention by the mainstream of society and the media
• Now that people are protesting, the media, instead of discussing these long-simmering issues, focus instead on the few random acts of violence by a small segment of protesters
• The history of these victims of the shootings are scrutinized to somehow justify their deaths

From the point of view of police and those supporting them:

• The police put their lives on the line and at risk everyday in their jobs
• When they do react, they are responding to imminent threats on their lives
• When people protest in the manner that is highlighted in the media, they are showing disrespect and lack of appreciation for the difficult job they do

There is much more, obviously, but what we see is this: both sides are entrenched in their views and with heavy emotion on both sides.

The Scripture passage from today states that Christ is our peace, that he has made both groups into one, has broken down walls that divide us, that is, the hostility between us.

When I look at a situation like this, is this really the case? Can peace be possible? Can both groups be made into one? Can hostility be broken down?

Or is this just naïve idealism and wishful thinking?

As Christians, when we read a text like this, do we just dismiss it as nice words but not relevant to the real world?

The issue of race and racism has a very long and complex history in the United States. In fact, the very history of that country is built upon the extermination of one group – the Native Americans – and the forced enslavement of another – the African Americans.

Here in Canada, our history is nothing to pat our backs on either: we have an atrocious history when it comes to our Aboriginal peoples, a tragic legacy that continues today. In our cities like Toronto, anti-black racism exists in many forms, sometimes more subtle and less visible, but there nonetheless. This tension is often seen in relations with police. In my time as a criminal lawyer, I saw many of these issues firsthand.

I encourage you to learn more about these issues. The best way is to just read things on your own. To take it to the next level, I’d love to see more of you study these things in university and even become experts on such issues.

Whatever the case, here in this text, our calling as children of God is clear: we are called to bring peace and be peacemakers.

This can be in a small group among friends at school who are not getting along; or at a bigger scale in society dealing with complex issues like race relations. Jesus calls us to bring peace, to break down dividing walls and hostility.

If we are truly the children of God – if this is what our identity is – then we cannot just be passive observers to what happens around us and just take care of ourselves. We are called to bring peace to this world!

But how do we do that?

To bring peace to those around us, we must first have peace within us, in our own hearts.

Without peace in our hearts, we cannot bring real peace to those around us.

When we are at peace in our hearts, we will be aware of what is going on in our own hearts, see under the surface of what is going on in the hearts of others, and thus be in a place to offer wisdom.

But how difficult it is to find this peace in our hearts! This is perhaps the greatest challenge we face.

We as human beings are walking contradictions. In our hearts, we want to do something nice and say something nice, but we find ourselves doing the opposite.

The apostle Paul articulated this very eloquently in Romans (Romans 7):

¹⁵ I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate.

¹⁸ For I know that nothing good dwells within me, that is, in my flesh. I can will what is right, but I cannot do it. ¹⁹ For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do.

²² For I delight in the law of God in my inmost self, ²³ but I see in my members another law at war with the law of my mind, making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. ²⁴ Wretched man that I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death?

In our deepest selves, we are often at war. As a teenager, you’re trying to figure things out: who you are, what this world is like, what life is about. And within yourselves, you’re probably going through many conflicting emotions, thoughts, feelings and behaviours. You’re probably quite confused at times about your own thoughts and actions.

If these contradictory thoughts and actions are not acknowledged, addressed and dealt with, this can leave you mired in guilt, frustration, anger and hopelessness.

This may be a reason why you often might feel a distance between yourselves and your parents – because as well-meaning as they might be, they can’t understand all these things that are going on in your hearts and minds.

How can we find peace with all these things going on in our hearts?

²⁵ Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!

Jesus said this:

Matthew 11:28-30

²⁸ “Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. ²⁹ Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰ For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

Remember my message about prayer?

It is about opening our hearts and being honest before God. We ask God to come in and search our hearts. “O God, all these confusing contradictions and thoughts going on in my heart, please come and shine your light on them!”

We lay our burdens at the feet of Jesus and we bring out what’s on our hearts to him.

My friends, we need to find this peace, this true peace. Because it’s not just about us. Yes, if we accept our identity as God’s children, then we find peace and joy in being loved by Him. But we do not stop there: the world cries out for a peace that the world cannot give.

It needs peacemakers. We are called to be peacemakers.

As you go along in high school, you’re thinking about careers and school. There is a lot of talk about different programs, what their cut-off marks are, what grades you need, etc.

My prayer is that you will come to God as you consider these questions.

My prayer is also that you will be a generation that seeks God’s will to be peacemakers in a world that needs it desperately.

I believe that only being in a real relationship with God and being rooted in the Word of God – being solidly grounded in biblical principles – can we first be transformed so that we may in turn change the world.

We’re not all called to be great figures or do things on a global scale, but we are all called to be transformative people wherever we might be.

May God bless each of us in our journeys. May we find peace in God in our hearts, and may God lead us to be peacemakers wherever we are.

Amen.

Welcome to this Hi-C Sunday service!

Today’s message continues on the theme of building a relationship with God, this time via the Word of God.  For the first part of this series, go to Building a Relationship with God via Prayer.

Message Text

Today we talk about Part 2 in the series: Building a Relationship with God. There are obviously so many things related to such a big topic, but I want to provide some essential foundations.

The retreat was really to provide the important foundations of our faith journey. Let’s do another recap, as I will continue to come back to these themes. So what were some of the themes we covered at the retreat?

1. Identity

We are children of God, loved by Him and whom God is pleased with. It doesn’t matter what else the world says about who we need to be or what we need to do, if we are firm in our identity as God’s beloved child, then we can face the world with greater confidence.

2. Community

Faith does not grow alone. We are meant to be in community with one another. A community built on love, acceptance and sharing life. A community that prays for one another.

3. Purpose

When our identity is secure and we are in a community that nurtures one another, we are able to find our purpose for our lives.

Our purpose for life grows clearer as we grow in our relationship with God.

So a relationship with God is fundamental to securing our identity and discovering the purpose that God has in mind for my life.

Last week we talked about one important aspect of building this relationship with God.   And this was by prayer.

We discovered how prayer is not really the words we use or the actions we take, but the state of our hearts. Prayer is opening our hearts to God, being nakedly honest, weak and vulnerable in front of Him. When we do that, God’s Spirit searches our hearts and prays on our behalf with sighs too deep for words. Even though what we discover about ourselves may not be pleasant, God’s grace and unconditional love for us gives us courage to face that. Then the peace of God will be in our hearts.

So having such a prayer life of opening our hearts is important.

But without any other guidance, it’s difficult to build a prayer life of substance. We need some solid food to help us in this prayerful journey.

And that is the topic of today. I want to talk about the Word of God. The Bible. (slide)

What is the Bible?

It’s an ancient book. In fact, it is a collection of different books and writings written by many different authors over a long period of time. In fact, some books are thoughts to have multiple authors whose writings were edited into one book. Genesis is one example of such a book where scholars have determined that there were multiple authors.

But one thing that is clear: many people throughout history have relied upon the books of the Bible for wisdom and guidance on life. These books were written by human beings, but the insights were such that many declared them to be inspired by God.

As human beings, our understanding of the world and life is limited, but the Bible is seen as a glimpse of God’s revelation to us.

There may be many questions you have about the Bible, and today we will have a chance to discuss some of these questions in your small groups.

There are so many aspects to the Bible, but one aspect I want to emphasize today is this: the Word of God is about life.

When read and understood properly, the Bible provides the most solid foundation for your life.

Happy are those
who do not follow the advice of the wicked,
or take the path that sinners tread,
or sit in the seat of scoffers;
² but their delight is in the law of the Lord,
and on his law they meditate day and night.
³ They are like trees
planted by streams of water,
which yield their fruit in its season,
and their leaves do not wither.
In all that they do, they prosper.

There is much that is confusing about the Bible, and that’s understandable. It was written so long ago, in a time and place that is so different from today. So it’s very easy to think that what they wrote way back then doesn’t apply to my life right now.

But you know what? Some of the basic questions we have about life have been with us from the beginning of humankind. And even though the Bible is an ancient collection of writings, the authors examined these basic questions about life. Questions such as:

• What am I here?
• What is the purpose for my life?
• What is the meaning of life?
• How do I live a good life?

Beneath the ancient language used is an enormous treasure of wisdom – God’ inspired wisdom. There is such truth that we cannot but conclude that this is indeed the Word of God!

My friends, there are so many voice and opinions in this world. Our parents, friends, experts, leaders, teachers and so many more all have their opinions about life. And without a solid grounding in truth, it is very easy to be swayed by such opinions.

There was a time in my mid-20’s, after I graduated from university and had been working, that I stopped attending church. I thought that the teachings of the church were irrelevant for my life. I didn’t believe in a lot of the things I was taught at church.

I instead listened to wisdom of the world and its experts. I thought I was smarter than faith or religion. But because I had read a lot of the Bible in my younger years, there was something about it that made me feel like I was missing something.

And so with Rev. In Kee Kim, we began a serious Bible study. This wasn’t just about learning Bible stories that we learn in Sunday school, but a serious look into what the Bible actually says, and what that means for my life and this world. It was by diving deep that I realized: these really are the words of life! This is the Word of God!

My dear friends, I pray sincerely that your foundation for life may be built upon the Word of God. You will have to go through your own journey to discover how the Word is made real in your life, but I pray that you will take this journey.

I’ve said before that I encourage you to try reading the Bible on your own, and ask me if you have any questions. That is the essence of my job as your youth pastor, so I hope you do so.

But since we spoke about prayer as a foundation of our relationship with God, I want to provide some specific guidance from the Bible to help you establish this prayer life and relationship with God.

And that is to start with the book of Psalms.

Psalms is actually a collection of many different hymns and prayers. By reading through the psalms, you get a rich sense of how people have poured out their hearts to God. There are psalms of joy and celebration, psalms of fear and grief, psalms of asking for courage.

Many songs that we sing are based on verses in these psalms.

Let’s look at some that reflect the wide variety of emotions that we go through in life:

Gratitude and Rejoicing:

Psalm 9:1-2

¹ I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart;
I will tell of all your wonderful deeds.
² I will be glad and exult in you;
I will sing praise to your name, O Most High.

Psalm 138:1-3

¹ I give you thanks, O Lord, with my whole heart;
before the gods I sing your praise;
² I bow down toward your holy temple
and give thanks to your name for your steadfast love and your faithfulness;
for you have exalted your name and your word
above everything.^[a]
3 On the day I called, you answered me,
you increased my strength of soul.^[b]

Psalm 36:7-9

⁷ How precious is your steadfast love, O God!
All people may take refuge in the shadow of your wings.
⁸ They feast on the abundance of your house,
and you give them drink from the river of your delights.
⁹ For with you is the fountain of life;
in your light we see light.

There are many psalms that reflect sorrow and grief:

Psalm 42:3

³ My tears have been my food
day and night,
while people say to me continually,
“Where is your God?”

Psalm 22:1-2

¹ My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
Why are you so far from helping me, from the words of my groaning?
² O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer;
and by night, but find no rest.

Psalm 22:1

¹ Why, O Lord, do you stand far off?
Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?

Many psalms are prayers of despair and yet still clinging onto hope:

Psalm 13

¹ How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever?
How long will you hide your face from me?
² How long must I bear pain^[a] in my soul,
and have sorrow in my heart all day long?
How long shall my enemy be exalted over me?

³ Consider and answer me, O Lord my God!
Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep the sleep of death,
⁴ and my enemy will say, “I have prevailed”;
my foes will rejoice because I am shaken.

⁵ But I trusted in your steadfast love;
my heart shall rejoice in your salvation.
⁶ I will sing to the Lord,
because he has dealt bountifully with me.

And still others are prayers for courage to face whatever situation might come:

Psalm 23:4

⁴ Even though I walk through the darkest valley,^[a]
I fear no evil;
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff—
they comfort me.

Psalm 34:18

¹⁸ The Lord is near to the brokenhearted,
and saves the crushed in spirit.

Psalm 32:7

⁷ You are a hiding place for me;
you preserve me from trouble;
you surround me with glad cries of deliverance.

Aren’t these passages beautiful? They reflect the full range of human emotion and experience. So you see, like I said last week, prayer is not about presenting a certain face to God. It’s about being nakedly honest about what we’re going through, of pouring our heart out to God.

You can use these psalms to help you in your prayer life. Perhaps some of these psalms may help you articulate what is going on in your own heart.

Finally, some of my favourite passage are taken from Psalms. I pray that these verses can be a foundation for your life.

Psalm 1:1-3

¹ Happy are those
who do not follow the advice of the wicked,
or take the path that sinners tread,
or sit in the seat of scoffers;
² but their delight is in the law of the Lord,
and on his law they meditate day and night.
³ They are like trees
planted by streams of water,
which yield their fruit in its season,
and their leaves do not wither.
In all that they do, they prosper.

Some of these next few are taken from perhaps my favourite psalm, Psalm 119. It’s a very long one, but if you digest portions at a time, they are indeed food for the soul. I strongly encourage you to go through this one when you can.

Psalm 119:105

¹⁰⁵ Your word is a lamp to my feet
and a light to my path.

Psalm 119:1-3

¹ Happy are those whose way is blameless,
who walk in the law of the Lord.
² Happy are those who keep his decrees,
who seek him with their whole heart,
³ who also do no wrong,
but walk in his ways.

Psalm 119:9-10

⁹ How can young people keep their way pure?
By guarding it according to your word.
¹⁰ With my whole heart I seek you;
do not let me stray from your commandments.

Psalm 119:35-36

³⁴ Give me understanding, that I may keep your law
and observe it with my whole heart.
³⁵ Lead me in the path of your commandments,
for I delight in it.
³⁶ Turn my heart to your decrees,
and not to selfish gain.

How beautiful are these words! May your whole heart seek God. May you indeed be like trees planted by streams of water, so that you may be strong and yield fruit.

I pray that the Word of God may be real in your lives and help you in your journey in life. The Word gives life, it provides guidance for life, and I pray that it lays a solid foundation for your life as you carry on this week and in the months and years to come.

Amen.

Welcome to the first Hi-C service of the school year!  This is the post for the sermon delivered during the Hi-C worship service on September 4, 2016.

Hi-C service messages will be posted weekly on the website.

Sermon Text

As we begin a new school year, I wanted to emphasize the foundations of our faith and life.

Let’s begin by reviewing some of the themes from the retreat. These are themes that I will be returning to constantly. In your middle school and high school years, my prayer is that these foundational themes may be imprinted on your heart. Life will become more complicated, difficult and challenging, but I truly believe that if you have a solid foundation, then you will be able to navigate through whatever life throws at you.

Review of the Retreat Themes

So let’s do a bit of review. What were the main themes from this retreat?

1. Identity

We discussed our identity as God’s beloved children, with whom God is well pleased. In a world telling us what we need to do what we need to be in order to be acceptable, God is telling us that we are already acceptable and pleasing to God as His children.

This identity should be the foundation of who we are.

2. Community

We discussed that no person is an island: that we need a community to grow in our faith and life journey. A community is not just a group of friends: it is a body of people committed to affirming our basic identity – that we are beloved children of God, and that we don’t need to be anyone else other than ourselves. It is also a community that is committed to sharing life together, growing together, and praying together and for one another.

3. Purpose

Once we know our basic identity as God’s children, we then seek to discover what is unique about us, and what God has intended for our lives. This calling is discovered through a close relationship with God.

Many of you decided to seek a truly personal relationship with God. There were emotions and tears as many of us felt the presence of God. And that’s great.

But growing a relationship with God is not a one-time thing. It is not strictly an emotional experience. It is a day by day journey.

So today and next week, I would like to talk about growing and deepening our relationship with God. I’m not going to provide a how-to manual on growing your relationship with God, but rather I want to illustrate some biblical principles on what it means to be in relationship with God.

What Does it Mean to Be in Relationship with God?

Let’s talk a bit about what it means to be in a relationship with God.

When we get to know God, we become more attuned to His character and His desire for us. When you get to know a friend more and more, you start learning about his or her personality and character, right? Same with God. The more we get to know Him, the more we learn about God’s character.

By getting closer to God, we discover ourselves more. Think about it: we are getting closer to the one who created us. God created us uniquely and intentionally. So by getting to know our Creator more, we learn more about the very person – me – that God has created. Isn’t that amazing?

And finally, by getting to know God better, we start discerning His will for our lives.

This all sounds great, doesn’t it? The question is, how do I develop this close relationship with God?

As I said, there is no step-by-step manual on how to do this. But let us examine what the Scripture says.

Today I will talk about one aspect of growing our relationship with God.

Scripture Reading

Romans 8:26-27

²⁶ Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes^[a] with sighs too deep for words. ²⁷ And God,^[b] who searches the heart, knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit^[c] intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.

This is the Word of the Lord.

Topic of Today’s Message

Did you get what the topic of today’s message is from that passage?

Yes, it is prayer.

Prayer is a basic fundamental part of how we get closer to God. BUT, let’s clarify what this is, and get rid of some wrong ideas we have of prayer.

What are some common images that come to mind when you hear the word prayer?

I bet some images that come to mind are (slides):

• Closing your eyes
• Holding your hands together
• Kneeling down
• Saying words like “Dear God”, “Heavenly Father”, “In Jesus’ name”, etc.

Well, let me just make things clear by saying that those things are not by themselves prayer. They are outward ways of praying, but they are not prayer.

In fact, (slide) prayer is not the words we use or the actions we take. So what is it then?

The Obstacles to Prayer

Let me first talk about some obstacles to true prayer.

When we think about prayer, a lot of the times we say: but I don’t know how to pray, or I don’t know what to say.

Often we think that we need to present a certain self before God. That we need to behave a certain way in front of God. That we need to be solemn or holy. Or that we have to change our behavior, or be “good” in front of God.

These attitudes PREVENT us from getting close to God.

True Prayer

So prayer is not the words we use, or the actions we do like kneeling down or closing our eyes.

Those are things that may help us focus and concentrate, but those things aren’t prayer.

Prayer is opening ourselves to God and letting Him in.

Let me break it down even more.

Prayer is being nakedly honest before God. It is baring our souls before Him. It is in fact being weak and vulnerable before Him – not strong and guarded.

THAT, my friends, is what prayer is.

Prayer is not for the proud and those who want to be all strong.

It is about being vulnerable and weak.

Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness…

God can only come into our hearts and help us when we are weak, meaning we don’t try or pretend to be all strong.

The world tells us that we have to be strong, that we need to get respect, that we need to save face. We’re supposed to present a happy face to the world. On things like Instagram and other social media, we post pictures of happy and smiling faces. Look at me, my life is so good!

But the Scripture tells us that God can only come into our hearts when we let those guards down and we are willing to be weak. The Spirit helps us in our weakness.

Not About Words

Also, there is a lot of confusion. People say: “I don’t know what to say when I’m praying”. So again, prayer is not about the words we use. We often don’t have the words to express what is going on in our hearts. In fact, we don’t usually even know what’s going on in our hearts. Each of us have had our own life experiences. We all have a story. I shared some of my stories at the retreat that shaped me. You all have your unique story. There have been many things that have affected us: family experiences that shaped us, events in our lives that may have traumatized us, people who have affected us. You will realize more as you grow older just how you’re your family relationships and experiences have shaped who you are. These things affect us, but we often don’t know how they have affected us.

There are many reasons we don’t have such insight into ourselves: we’re either too lazy and distract ourselves with things like Netflix, YouTube and other diversions; we ignore what’s really in our hearts and try to compensate for our hurts by doing things like trying to be popular, finding comfort in friends, or even taking substances. Whatever the case, we often cover up what’s really in our hearts.

And so, Paul was wise when he wrote: (slide) “for we do not know how to pray as we ought”. We just don’t have the insight into ourselves to pray the right words!

But thanks be to God, because Paul goes onto write: (slide) “but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words.”

Isn’t that amazing? We don’t have much insight into ourselves, but if we let God in, His Spirit examines our hearts, discerns what’s weighing on our hearts, and the Spirit prays on our behalf with sighs too deep for words.

So let’s put it all together: (slide)

²⁶ Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes^[a] with sighs too deep for words.

So when we are willing to be weak and vulnerable, God’s Spirit comes and helps us. We don’t even know what to say to God, but that Spirit comes and expresses what is on our hearts – with sighs too deep for words.

So that’s what God does: (slide) “And God, who searches the heart…”

God searches the heart. This, my friends, is the essence of prayer: allowing God to search our hearts, and being open to the insights that God reveals about our hearts.

By being open to God’s Spirit, He will eventually reveal our true selves to us more and more.

Now this is a scary thing. Most people don’t really want to know or see what their true hearts are like. This is because what’s revealed is often very ugly and unpleasant. Often what we see is deep insecurity.

And in this world, it’s not a cool thing to be insecure, weak and fragile. We’re supposed to appear strong, collected, and cool. At the retreat I shared just how insecure I was when I was younger, and even when I became an adult. But for a long time I didn’t really want to acknowledge it. It just wasn’t cool to be weak and admit just how scared and insecure I was.

When we allow God to reveal our true selves, we often find a self that is broken, hurt, and deeply insecure. Why would anyone want to go through that?

But thanks be to God for His grace. This is the message of grace, and goes back to our identity: that God, who created us, created us as we are – with all of our flaws, weaknesses and vulnerability – and loved us and is pleased with us.

He wants us to respond to His invitation to be in a close relationship with Him. He wants us to open our hearts to Him. The reason we can go through the difficult process of seeing our true selves is that God gives us the strength to overcome the darkness we see in us. God will carry us through.

Although it is difficult to see our insecurities and fears face to face, God will be with us.

(Slide): John 14:16-17

¹⁶ And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate,^[a] to be with you forever. ¹⁷ This is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, because he abides with you, and he will be in^[b] you.

God will strengthen us to face what is in our hearts. Isn’t this such a better way to live than hiding what’s really there? Than in pretending to be something we’re not?

So again, this goes back to our identity: if we are truly God’s children and believe that He loves us, then we allow ourselves to be weak, and ask God to come into our hearts.

God knows our hearts. We just need to invite Him in.

Finally, here is a message that God tells us today via His servant Paul: (slide)

⁶ Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. ⁷ And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

So we do not worry. Instead, being thankful for the love that God first showed us, we let what’s in our hearts be made known to God. When we can just invite God into what’s really going on in our hearts, God’s peace will guard our hearts and minds.

Isn’t this such a better way to live? Isn’t this a refreshing message? We are called to just be ourselves before God, our honest selves, and not try to be something else.

So this coming week and for the year to come, try to spend some time on your own asking God to come into your heart. He already knows it, but He asks us to open our hearts to Him. There are no need for any special words. God’s Spirit will pray on our behalf. When we do this, we will experience God’s peace.

So find your own way to do this. This can be by doing the traditional method of kneeling down with your eyes closed. Or it can be by meditating when you’re taking the bus to school, or when you’re eating, or whatever works for you. The important thing is to just continually invite God into your heart and for Him to reveal what is on your heart.

Let us sing together, I Have a Maker. Let’s really meditate on the words and let this be our prayer to God into our hearts.